19. Predicting Alzheimer’s
Norman Relkin
Kelvin H. Lee, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and Norman R. Relkin, Clinical Neurology and Neuroscience, Weill Cornell Medical College, discovered a way to predict the onset of Alzheimer’s in living patients. The method is almost as accurate as an autopsy, which is currently the only definitive way of predicting the disease’s later onset. The researchers discovered a “barcode” (panel) of 23 proteins specific to Alzheimer’s while comparing cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from a group of patients suffering from the disease with samples from a control group of asymptomatic patients and patients with other forms of dementia. To be able to identify the disease accurately in living patients would have major implications. Although other researchers are looking for ways to diagnose Alzheimer’s through proteomics, the Cornell engineering/neurology approach is unique, as is the researchers’ use of the gold standard of autopsy-proven Alzheimer’s (as opposed to patients’ clinical symptoms). Although more work needs to be done before spinal-tap procedures for diagnosis of Alzheimer’s can be available to physicians, the discovery of the protein barcode bears major implications for personalized medical care and clinical drug trials.