Study Rationale: Extracellular vesicles are small, membrane-enclosed packages that all cells release into the blood. Because the contents of these packages reflect that of the cells from which they arise, they contain valuable molecular information about disease processes. We will develop automated methods to isolate extracellular vesicles from blood that can done entirely by liquid-handling robots, increasing the number of samples that can be analyzed. We will then measure the alpha-synuclein carried by extracellular vesicles using highly sensitive tests that we developed in a previous MJFF-supported project.
Hypothesis: We hypothesize that we can detect a measurable difference in alpha-synuclein carried inside extracellular vesicles isolated from blood in people with PD.
Study Design: We will develop new methods using liquid-handling robots that can reproducibly isolate extracellular vesicles from blood and compare the results to those obtained using current methods. We will then measure alpha-synuclein in extracellular vesicles isolated using these new methods from a large number of samples.
Impact on Diagnosis/Treatment of Parkinson’s disease: The methods we develop can be used to create better diagnostic tests for PD that could lead to early disease detection or monitoring how fast the disease progresses.
Next Steps for Development: Because the methods we will develop will be automated and highly reproducible, if they are successful at diagnosing PD, they can be rapidly validated in a larger set of samples and then applied to clinical use.