Parkinson’s Disease

Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden and Oslo University Hospital in Norway report in the journal npj Parkinson’s Disease that they have identified blood‑based biomarkers and gene‑activity patterns that may reveal Parkinson’s disease up to 20 years before motor symptoms appear. Using machine‑learning analysis of blood samples, they found DNA‑repair and cellular‑stress signatures present in people very early in the disease process but absent in healthy controls and in patients with fully developed Parkinson’s. Lead author Annikka Polster says this "important window of opportunity" could eventually enable broad, relatively low‑cost screening via blood tests and help target treatments before major brain damage occurs. The team expects that, with further validation and assay development, early‑detection blood tests could begin entering clinical practice within about five years, and they see the same pathways as targets for new or repurposed drugs to slow or prevent disease. They caution, however, that blood gene activity only partially reflects brain biology, that medications and other external factors could affect results, and that the current study population may not represent all patients, so more work is needed before routine use.