Israeli researchers have developed a blood test capable of detecting Parkinson’s disease even before symptoms emerge, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem announced on Tuesday.
The simple test, which focuses on RNA fragments in the blood (tRFs), offers a “highly accurate, non-invasive, rapid and affordable diagnostic tool, providing hope for early interventions and treatments that could change the course of the disease,” the university said.
“This discovery represents a major advancement in our understanding of Parkinson’s disease and offers a simple, minimally-invasive blood test as a tool for early diagnosis,” said Hebrew University professor Hermona Soreq, the lead scientist in the study. “By focusing on tRFs, we’ve opened a new window into the molecular changes that occur in the earliest stages of the disease.”
Parkinson’s disease is a movement disorder of the nervous system that worsens over time. Nearly one million suffer from the disease in the United States alone, where it is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder after Alzheimer’s.
The study was carried out in conjunction with Shaare Tzedek Medical Center in Jerusalem and the University of Surrey and Imperial College in London.
The results of the study were published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature Aging.
