A new study in the Journal of Parkinson’s Disease uncovered how neuronal deposits of phosphorylated alpha-synuclein (p-syn) in the body of patients may result in the early detection and diagnosis of the disease.
For the study, researchers sought to assess skin p-syn deposits among patients with parkinsonism as a result of tauopathy and Parkinson’s disease.
More than 20 patients were recruited for the research. 18 involved a diagnosis for progressive supranuclear palsy, 8 of corticobasal syndrome, 26 of Parkinson’s disease, and 26 served as part of a healthy control group.
Skin biopsy was conducted among all of the participants.
What researchers determined: “The detection of skin p-syn deposits may help in the differential diagnosis of parkinsonism.”
“Indeed, in this study, all PD patients and only two out of 26 with a clinical diagnosis of PSP/CBS had skin p-syn deposits,” the authors also concluded. “Furthermore, these two patients showed clinical features that could suggest an atypical synucleinopathy presentation or a mixed pathology.”
