A recent study has shown that proteins in a drop of blood can predict the onset of many different diseases.
This research, published on July 22 in Nature Medicine, was done through a partnership between GSK, Queen Mary University of London, University College London, Cambridge University, and the Berlin Institute of Health at Charité Universitätsmedizin in Germany.
The study used data from the UK Biobank Pharma Proteomics Project (UKB-PPP), the largest proteomics study so far. This project measured around 3,000 plasma proteins from over 40,000 participants in the UK Biobank.
The researchers linked this protein data to the participants’ electronic health records and used advanced analysis techniques to identify a ‘signature’ of five to twenty proteins that are important for predicting each disease.
The study found that these protein signatures could predict the onset of 67 diseases, including multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, motor neuron disease, pulmonary fibrosis, and dilated cardiomyopathy.
The models based on protein signatures outperformed those based on traditional clinical data, such as blood cell counts, cholesterol levels, kidney function, and diabetes tests.
This new approach could significantly benefit patients by allowing for earlier diagnosis and treatment of many diseases. Currently, some conditions can take months or years to diagnose, but this research offers the potential for quicker identification.
The findings need to be validated in different populations, including those with and without symptoms and signs of diseases, and in different ethnic groups.
Professor Claudia Langenberg, one of the lead authors, expressed excitement about the potential to identify new markers for screening and diagnosis from the thousands of proteins circulating in human blood.
She emphasized the need for more proteomic studies in diverse populations to confirm these findings and to develop effective and affordable tests that can measure disease-relevant proteins.
Dr. Julia Carrasco Zanini Sanchez, the first author of the study, noted that some of the protein signatures they identified performed as well as, or even better than, existing screening tests like the prostate-specific antigen for prostate cancer.
She highlighted the promise of these protein signatures for earlier detection and improved prognosis for many diseases. The next step is to prioritize diseases and evaluate these proteomic predictions in a clinical setting.
Dr. Robert Scott, co-lead author and Vice President at GSK, stated that a major challenge in drug development is identifying patients who will benefit most from new medicines.
He believes that this work shows the potential of large-scale proteomic technologies to identify individuals at high risk for a wide range of diseases. This aligns with GSK’s approach to using technology to deepen the understanding of human biology and disease.
Further work will continue to explore these insights and improve their application in drug discovery and development.
In summary, this research has opened up new possibilities for predicting a wide range of diseases through protein signatures in blood, which could lead to earlier diagnoses and better treatment outcomes.
The study emphasizes the importance of further validation and development of these findings to make them useful in clinical practice.
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The research findings can be found in Nature Medicine.
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