Overview

• A University of Manchester-led study published in npj Parkinson’s Disease demonstrates that sebum skin swabs can identify Parkinson’s biomarkers up to seven years before motor symptoms emerge.
• Using Thermal Desorption-Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry, researchers pinpointed 55 volatile compounds that distinguish healthy volunteers, isolated REM Sleep Behavior Disorder individuals and Parkinson’s patients.
• Hyperosmic volunteer Joy Milne correctly identified sebum samples from iRBD participants who were later clinically diagnosed with Parkinson’s.
• In a double-blind trial reported in the Journal of Parkinson’s Disease, trained dogs achieved up to 80% sensitivity and 98% specificity in detecting Parkinson’s from skin swabs.
• Building on three-year longitudinal sampling by Dr Drupad Trivedi, the research is moving into multicenter validation to enable practical clinical deployment of the non-invasive test.