Several new advancements in research are worth highlighting for the month of September. Globally there have been several researches in US, Europe and Asia that are potentially very important.
Some of the researchers came up with a new technique for detecting Parkinson’s Disease from skin swab in 3-minutes. They look for some molecules in the sebum from skin.
Several researches focused on tracking the gait change and progression of disease through the use of radio waves.
Some scientists are working on developing new treatments for PD. Some scientists are working on generating dopamine producing neurons from the skin of PD patients. While some others are working on developing monoclonal antibody therapy and other stem-cell based therapies for treating PD.
Following are details about some of the researches:
1)
Detecting Parkinson’s Disease from skin swabs!
Researchers have recently discovered that molecular classes of lipids in sebum can help in diagnosing Parkinson’s Disease. High molecular weight lipids is found to differ significantly in patients with PD.
Increase in oiliness, flaky skin on face and scalp are some of the common symptoms of PD. This was first noted by scientists in 1927. Increase in production of sebum (light yellow oily substance) is strong symptom of PD. It is believed that sebum should be explored further to understand stronger biomarkers of disease.
Following is the link to the original source:
2)
Radio waves to monitor the gait
A radio device located in the background of a home analysed the waves reflected from the body and thereby calculated the speed of movements and gait. This approach can help assess severity of PD, progression and response of medication. It is found that the “at-home” gait speed strongly corelates with the standard PD assessments. It also can be a sensitive indication of the progression of PD. It captured the symptom fluctuations as part of medication response.
Following is the link to the original source:
3)
Generating dopamine producing neurons from skin!
Scientists have developed a method to generate dopamine producing neurons from the skin of PD patients. This may help study mechanisms of the disease and develop newer treatments.
Following is the link to the original source:
4)
Monoclonal antibody therapy for PD
Since PD affects over 10 million people worldwide, there is a need to target the underlying disease mechanism of disease. E.g. targeting alpha-synuclein may potentially slowdown the progress of PD. Researchers claim that monoclonal antibody therapy may be useful in this regard.
Following is the link to the original source:
Commenti