Role of Alpha-Synuclein in Accurate and Early Diagnosis of Parkinson Disease: Sameea Husain-Wilson, DO

WATCH TIME: 3 minutes

"If we did not have the ability to identify the alpha-synuclein, there may be such soft motor signs that, in essence, you could be looking at a person who’s [actually] presenting with essential tremor. But given that these diseases are not of the young, there may be overlying arthritic changes, degenerative disc disease, slowness of movement, balance issues, things that may just be there."

Earlier this year, a group of patient, research, and industry leaders published a paper proposing a new staging system by which Parkinson disease (PD) is defined, using neuronal α-synuclein (n-αsyn) pathology, considered a hallmark for the disease, instead of clinical symptoms. This system known, as the neuronal α-synuclein disease integrated staging system (NSD-ISS), was first designed for research use only, with the goal to enhance trial design and drug development. Overall, this paper added to the continued enthusiasm behind using α-synuclein as a part of PD diagnosis and care.

In recent years, there has been a greater emphasis on diagnosing patients earlier in their disease course in efforts to ultimately create access to novel treatments and slow disease progression more effectively. CND Life Sciences’ Syn-One test is an α-synuclein skin biopsy test used for the detection of the pathology in Parkinson disease (PD), dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), multiple system atrophy (MSA), and pure autonomic failure. It has demonstrated the ability to be a sensitive tool in the detection of phosphorylated α-synuclein and may represent a key piece to the multisystem effort of diagnosing PD from other synucleinopathies.

Sameea Husain-Wilson, DO, a neurologist and director of movement disorder neurology at the Marcus Neuroscience Institute of Baptist Health, has been using the Syn-One test for several months at her institution. In a recent interview with NeurologyLive^®, she discussed the utility of the test, and why its ability to quantify the presence or absence of α-synuclein is critical for movement disorder specialists worldwide. Additionally, she provided context on the test’s function to distinguish PD from other synucleinopathies, highlighting how some of the subtle, early differences are crucial to ensuring accurate diagnosis.

For more information on the Syn-One test, click here.