Diagnosis of Parkinson's disease now possible from a skin test: Study

USA: The diagnosis of Parkinson's disease (PD) may now possible with the help of a skin test, suggests a recent study in the journal Movement Disorders. The study results clearly showed the utility of skin tissues for clinical diagnosis of PD through the detection of pathological αSyn. 

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder that affects millions of people worldwide. It inflicts significant economic, social and medical burden on the society. Neuropathological changes of PD include deposition of pathological α-synuclein (αSyn) aggregates widely throughout the brain. PD diagnosis is based mostly on clinical signs and can be definitely confirmed upon the postmortem demonstration of substantia nigralαSyn. Misdiagnosis is common and about 20% of clinically diagnosed PD patients get an alternative diagnosis postmortem. In this scenario, accurate diagnosis becomes critical. 

There is an unmet clinical need in PD to identify biomarkers for diagnosis, preferably in tissues that are peripherally accessible such as skin. Immunohistochemical studies have detected pathological α-synuclein (αSyn) in skin biopsies from PD patients albeit sensitivity needs to be improved. 

Sireesha Manne, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA, and colleagues provided the ultrasensitive detection of pathological αSyn present in the skin of PD patients, and thus, pathological αSyn in skin could be a potential biomarker for PD.