{"id":12181,"date":"2025-07-14T12:28:54","date_gmt":"2025-07-14T10:28:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uni.lu\/lcsb-en\/?post_type=news&p=12181"},"modified":"2025-08-13T15:07:03","modified_gmt":"2025-08-13T13:07:03","slug":"using-molecules-produced-by-microbes-to-detect-parkinsons-disease-early","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.uni.lu\/lcsb-en\/news\/using-molecules-produced-by-microbes-to-detect-parkinsons-disease-early\/","title":{"rendered":"Using molecules produced by microbes to detect Parkinson\u2019s disease early"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Prof. Paul <\/a>Wilmes<\/a> was just awarded a Proof of Concept grant by the European Research Council<\/a> (ERC) to explore if small proteins originating from gut microbes could serve as biomarkers for Parkinson\u2019s disease. This neurodegenerative disorder, affecting over 6 million individuals worldwide, is generally diagnosed when motor symptoms become apparent and substantial neurological damage has already occurred. Early detection hence represents a critical unmet need that would facilitate a prompt use of available therapies to delay the progression of the disease. This is where the microbes inhabiting the human gut come into play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs part of my ExpoBiome project<\/a>, funded by an ERC Consolidator Grant, we have uncovered that some small proteins produced by the gut microbiome can trigger the aggregation of \u03b1-synuclein, the molecular hallmark of Parkinson\u2019s disease,\u201d explains Prof. Wilmes, head of the Systems Ecology<\/a> group at the LCSB<\/a>,. \u201cWith this ERC Proof of Concept grant, we now want to establish the utility of these small microbiome-derived proteins as predictive biomarkers, meaning quantifying them in faecal or blood samples could become an efficient way of identifying people at risk and of detecting the disease early.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n\n

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\nSpotlight on microbiome-derived proteins<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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After results obtained within ExpoBiome highlighted the potential of these small microbiome-derived proteins for clinical application, Prof. Wilmes and his team developed and patented a new method to identify the most promising molecules among them. Based on advanced omics technologies and state-of-the-art artificial intelligence, this analytical pipeline is the first step to selecting the best candidate proteins for disease risk prediction and diagnostic.

Image: Example of 3D structure of six copies of a microbiome-derived small protein (in green) that cross-seeds the human \u03b1-synuclein (in blue) to form an amyloid aggregate, the molecular hallmark of Parkinson\u2019s disease.<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n