Alzheimer’s could be detected early by ‘Biomarkers’

AlzheimerAccording to a new finding three bio proteins present in cerebrospinal fluid may spot Alzheimer’s disease much before the symptoms begin to show up and might also indicate the speed at which the disease is spreading.

The findings were published in the August issue of the Archives of Neurology. The report supports the recent diagnostic criteria touting the use of such proteins, also know as biomarkers in helping to diagnose this new form of dementia.

Maria C. Carrillo, senior director of medical and scientific relations at the Alzheimer’s Association, said “This just reinforces the recommendation by [Alzheimer's working groups] saying that biomarkers can actually be incorporated today into clinical practice in order to add a certain piece to the diagnosis if patients are already presenting with something that looks like Alzheimer's.”

Three levels of proteins were measured by the researchers- total tau protein, phosphorylated tau and amyloid protein- in the cerebrospinal (CSF) of 102 people with Alzheimer’s, 200 people with mild cognitive impairment and 114 “normal” people.