Department of Chemistry, Molecular Sciences Research Hub, Imperial College London, London W12 0BZ, UK.
Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Apr 16;22(8):4128. doi: 10.3390/ijms22084128.
Neurodegenerative disorders are a highly prevalent class of diseases, whose pathological mechanisms start before the appearance of any clear symptoms. This fact has prompted scientists to search for biomarkers that could aid early treatment. These currently incurable pathologies share the presence of aberrant aggregates called amyloids in the nervous system, which are composed of specific proteins. In this review, we discuss how these proteins, their conformations and modifications could be exploited as biomarkers for diagnostic purposes. We focus on proteins that are associated with the most prevalent neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and frontotemporal dementia. We also describe current challenges in detection, the most recent techniques with diagnostic potentials and possible future developments in diagnosis.
神经退行性疾病是一类高发疾病，其病理机制在出现任何明显症状之前就已经开始。这一事实促使科学家们寻找生物标志物，以帮助进行早期治疗。这些目前无法治愈的疾病都有神经系统中异常聚集物的存在，这些聚集物被称为淀粉样蛋白，由特定的蛋白质组成。在这篇综述中，我们讨论了这些蛋白质、它们的构象和修饰如何可以被用作诊断目的的生物标志物。我们专注于与最常见的神经退行性疾病相关的蛋白质，包括阿尔茨海默病和帕金森病、肌萎缩性侧索硬化症和额颞叶痴呆。我们还描述了检测方面的当前挑战、具有诊断潜力的最新技术以及诊断方面的未来发展方向。
