UCLA study shows feasibility of blood-based test for diagnosing Alzheimer’s Disease

UCLA researchers have provided the first evidence that a simple blood test could be developed to confirm the presence of beta amyloid proteins in the brain, which is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. Although approximately 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, no reliable blood-based test currently exists for the neurodegenerative disorder that is the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States. Using blood-based biomarkers — a signature of proteins in the blood that indicate the presence of a disease — to diagnose Alzheimer’s could be a key advance. “Blood-based biomarkers would have the important advantage of being safe, affordable and easy to administer in large groups or in rural areas, and therefore could have an enormous impact on clinical care and clinical trials alike,” said Dr. Liana Apostolova, director of the neuroimaging laboratory at the Mary S. Easton Center for Alzheimer’s Disease Research at UCLA and head of the research team. Results of the study appeared in the journal Neurology. Alzheimer’s disease can be diagnosed definitively only by examining brain tissue after death. While people are alive, physicians must rely on proxy measures, or biomarkers, along with cognitive symptoms such as memory loss. Two current methods for determining the beta-amyloid formation characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease both have drawbacks. Cerebrospinal fluid can be obtained from patients, but that requires a spinal tap, an invasive proced...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news