Study Looks For DNA Changes To Measure Parkinson’s Disease

Study Looks for DNA Changes to Measure Parkinson’s Disease

Neurons derived from a patient with Parkinson’s disease. Courtesy of Regis Grailhe, Nasia Antoniou and Rebecca Matsas, Institut Pasteur Korea/Nikon Small World.

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine and Arizona State University (ASU) have received funding from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) to launch a multi-year, $1.7-million effort to identify blood-based biomarkers of Parkinson’s disease (PD), which could improve care and accelerate new treatments for the neurodegenerative disorder, which affects nearly 1 million Americans, with 60,000 new cases diagnosed annually.

“The exact cause of Parkinson’s is unknown, but evidence points to a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Right now, there is no objective test or biomarker for PD, which increases the risk of misdiagnosis and delayed treatment,” said Paula Desplats, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Neurosciences at UC San Diego School of Medicine and co-principal investigator of the new study with Travis Dunckley, PhD, assistant research professor at ASU’s Biodesign Institute.

The new study will analyze nearly 2,500 blood samples collected longitudinally over three years in the MJFF-sponsored Parkinson’s Progression Markers Initiative (PPMI). These samples include donations from patients diagnosed with idiopathic (cause unknown) PD; PD patients and asymptomatic individuals who carry a genetic mutation in the PD-implicated LRKK2 gene; at-risk populations of people with REM sleep behavior disorder and/or smell loss; as well as healthy control subjects. Researchers will analyze DNA methylation, an epigenetic modification of the DNA that can change genetic activity without changing the underlying sequence. DNA methylation is critical to turning genes on and off and affects a vast range of cellular functions and fundamental development.

“This epigenetic analysis could help us better understand the pathology of Parkinson’s disease, pointing to biomarker candidates and, potentially, novel therapeutic targets,” said Samantha Hutten, PhD, MJFF senior associate director of research partnerships. “In addition, this DNA methylation data grows the value of the PPMI clinical, imaging and biological database, the most robust in Parkinson’s research.”

“Study Looks for DNA Changes to Measure Parkinson’s Disease“