Researchers in Australia believe they've discovered something that could be a flying leap forward in the battle against Parkinson's disease:
Photo by Jens Maus/Wikimedia Commons.
<h2>The breakthrough? A <a href="http://www.latrobe.edu.au/news/articles/2016/release/world-first-blood-test-for-parkinsons" target="_blank">way to detect the disease using a simple blood test</a>. </h2><p><img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xOTUwNjM1Ny9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NjEyMzQ4Mn0.Mwo-6oCkyIA2epdqHNMEt93ZzwVh6fSidi1afblkLao/img.jpg?width=980" id="c3a03" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="7b423964099aa019b8d5ce11631ffacd" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image"></p><p class="image-caption">Photo by <a href="https://pixabay.com/en/blood-vial-analysis-laboratory-20745/" target="_blank">PublicDomainPictures/Pixabay</a>.</p><h2>If they're right, this would be a big <i>bleeping</i> deal. </h2><p>According to the Parkinson's Disease Foundation, currently there is <a href="http://www.pdf.org/en/diagnosis" target="_blank">no uniform method of testing for the condition</a>. Prospective patients are observed by a neurologist for symptoms that indicate brain cell loss has already begun.</p><p>A blood test, like the one developed by the La Trobe University team, could detect the disease <em>before</em> symptoms show up, allowing patients to start treatment before they suffer too much irreversible damage.</p><h2>How does the test work?</h2><p><img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xOTUwNjM1OC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzNjc1NTg4M30.h1d6IfiYzn2YVbKXWqwcQcN-YAF57GgDdHWrK2lGGHQ/img.jpg?width=980" id="39893" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="2d0adc01953f7c34161a201fe6fe05f5" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image"></p><p class="image-caption">Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/cjp24/5744968358/" target="_blank">JPC24M/Flickr</a>.</p><p><strong>Science.</strong></p><h2>No, seriously. How does it work?</h2><p>The research team discovered that Parkinson's causes cell mitochondria — which the faint, half-remembered voice of your ninth-grade biology teacher is currently reminding you is the "power plant of the cell" — to become hyperactive.</p><p>The test scans for byproducts of the abnormally behaving mitochondria.</p><h2>As always, there's still lots more work to do. </h2><p>Speaking to The Guardian, lead researcher Paul Fisher said his team <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/apr/20/blood-test-to-detect-parkinsons-disease-could-lead-to-earlier-treatment?CMP=fb_a-science_b-gdnscience" target="_blank">didn't have the financial resources</a> to study whether the hyperactive mitochondria detected by the test are entirely specific to Parkinson's or also occur in others with similar neurological conditions.</p><p>They've also run only one trial to date.</p><h2>But it's the kind of discovery that provides a lot of hope to a lot of people.</h2><p><img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xOTUwNjM1OS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYwNzcwNDAwNH0.Bh0eC3gseKSl_9Mm0M_rkDoa0mHHnncBfD8JNwI6-FA/img.jpg?width=980" id="23070" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="a643ddb4b3c9041cead9e3d0da63084e" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image"></p><p class="image-caption">Actor Michael J. Fox's foundation provided funding for the research that led to the discovery of the test. Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images.</p><p>In addition to the estimated <a href="http://www.ninds.nih.gov/research/parkinsonsweb/index.htm" target="_blank">500,000</a> to <a href="http://www.parkinsonfoundation.org/education/what-pd/index.html" target="_blank">1 million</a> people with Parkinson's in the U.S. (<a href="http://www.pdf.org/en/parkinson_statistics" target="_blank">about 60,000 new Parkinson's patients are diagnosed annually</a>) and the <a href="http://www.pdf.org/en/parkinson_statistics" target="_blank">7 million to 10 million</a> with it worldwide, there are also millions more people whose family history puts them at a greater risk to develop it. <br></p><p>Early detection might be the key to helping them live longer, healthier lives. <br></p><h2></h2><h2 style="line-height: 1.3; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); margin-top: 2em; font-size: 26px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizeLegibility; font-family: VllgRegular, 'Avenir Next', 'Segoe UI', Roboto, 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif !important; background: none;"><a href="http://www.latrobe.edu.au/news/articles/2016/release/world-first-blood-test-for-parkinsons" target="_blank">Actor and longtime anti-Parkinson's advocate Michael J. Fox's foundation</a> provided funding for the research, once again proving that when you give money to science, science gives you back something awesome.</h2><p>No flying cars yet.</p><p><span></span></p><p><img src="//i.upworthy.com/nugget/5717ab8c644e15003600007c/attachments/BTF-807a162426a1d0cdde5b1c21c6b152b2.gif"></p><p class="image-caption">GIF from <a href="http://do-androidsdreamof-electricsheep.tumblr.com/post/61204703776" target="_blank">"Back to the Future"/Universal</a>.</p><p>But I'll take showing a debilitating disease who's boss any day of the week.</p>
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