In a study with 991 adults, scientists at DZNE show that the most common forms of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) as well as the neurological diseases amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) can be recognized by blood testing. Their procedure is not yet ready for routine medical use, but in the long term it could facilitate disease diagnosis and advance the development of new therapies already now. The findings published in the journal "Nature Medicine" are based on the measurement of certain proteins in the blood, which serve as biomarkers.
The study also involved the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and other research institutions in Germany and Spain. FTD, ALS and PSP form a spectrum of neurodegenerative diseases with overlapping symptoms characterized by dementia, behavioral symptoms, paralysis and muscle wasting, movement impairment and other serious impairments. In Germany, it is estimated that up to 60,000 people are affected by one of these diseases.
Although they are relatively rare, their consequences for health are nevertheless severe. As yet, there is no cure for any of these diseases. And, with current methods, it is not possible to reach a conclusive diagnosis of the molecular pathology of these diseases during a patient's lifetime, since brain tissue must be examined.
" Prof. Anja Schneider, a research group leader at DZNE and Director of the Department of Old Age Psychiatry and Cognitive Disorders at UKB "However, a diagnosis of.