Non-invasive detection of volatile metabolites in Parkinson's disease
Research type
Research Study
Full title
PArkinson's Non-invasive volatile ORganic compound Analysis and Microbiome Assessment (PANORAMA) study
IRAS ID
311577
Contact name
Yen Foung Tai
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Imperial College London
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 8 months, 30 days
Research summary
Six million people worldwide are affected by Parkinson’s disease (PD) and the incidence is in rapid increase. Currently, the diagnosis of PD is based principally on the presence of specific symptoms, such as bradykinesia, rigidity and rest tremor, which appear when the disease is already beyond a mid-late stage. Several studies have demonstrated that some gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms manifest years before motor onset, which could result from alterations in the gut microbiome composition.
Early diagnosis could remarkably improve the management of symptoms and patient quality of life. Several studies have focused on identifying biomarkers of early PD, although an established panel does not yet exist.
Novel diagnostic methods can be developed measuring specific small molecules in breath and other matrices, called Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). A feasibility study conducted by our group, recruiting 1,002 volunteers across twenty-six general practices in North-West London, confirmed that breath tests are very well-accepted since quick and non-invasive.
Our aim is to develop a non-invasive test for Parkinson’s disease early diagnosis investigating breath and other biological matrices. In addition, we want to examine microbiome changes, at the origin of the early GI symptoms, to possibly link the bacterial alterations to the VOC production. To this aim, we will collect breath, urine, blood, stool and skin (sebum or sweat) from PD patients and controls. VOCs in all the biological matrices will be measured using sensitive and specific mass spectrometry techniques.REC name
HSC REC A
REC reference
22/NI/0090
Date of REC Opinion
31 May 2022
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion