New brain scan method to check effects of trace metals
A new method of accurately mapping deposits of trace metals in the brain could help unlock the causes of degenerative brain diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s according to scientists at the University of Technology, Sydney.
Called Metal Imaging Mass Spectrometry (MIMS), a UTS Faculty of Science team lead by Dr Philip Doble has devised a tool that will give better information to medical researchers working to isolate causes of disease and develop treatments.
Dr Doble said the study of metals and their interactions with proteins in the body was a relatively new area of research, broadly known as metallomics.
“The study of metallomics is generating huge interest as there is increasing evidence that the excessive accumulation or imbalance of metals play a role in the development of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.
“We think MIMS has the potential to be revolutionary in the understanding of these sorts of neurological diseases, but it could also be applied to something like cancer research – metals are associated with 30% of proteins in the body,” Dr Doble said.
“The implications of this are enormous, ranging from new knowledge of the disease pathology, identification of drug targets, and the determination of efficacy or otherwise of existing drug regimes.”
Dr Doble said the next stages of the work were to improve both the speed and resolution of the MIMS method and demonstrate its power and usefulness to the medical research community.
