Woman's 'Super Smell' Raises Parkinson's Hope

A former nurse's acute sense of smell sees the launch of a study which could ease the plight of thousands of sufferers.

A woman who can identify people with Parkinson's through her sense of smell has given rise to a study which could lead to early diagnosis of the disease and more effective treatment.

Joy Milne's own husband, Les, died earlier this year aged 65, after living with Parkinson's for more than 20 years.

Joy Milne with husband, Les, and their granddaughter. Pic: Parkinson's UK

Mrs Milne, 65, from Perth, told Sky News how up to six years before her husband was diagnosed with the disease she noticed how his smell had changed.

The former nurse said: "However, we weren't in contact with other people with Parkinson's so I didn't realise then that it was an individual smell to Parkinson's."It wasn't until we moved back to Scotland, to Perth, and we went to the Parkinson's group and when I went into the room, I thought 'Oh the smell is stronger'.

"I realised that then other people smelt."It could be strong with somebody, it could be weaker with somebody else, so that in actual fact whether they were controlled, or their disease was getting worse or their actual medication was working, I could actually identify."And as a result of Mrs Milne's super-smelling observations, new research is to be carried out aimed at identifying small molecules secreted by the skin that are believed to emit a subtle but individual odour from people in the early stages of Parkinson's.

Experts think the disease may cause a change in the sebum, an oily substance that keeps the skin supple, resulting in a unique smell.The researchers will analyse skin swabs to identify the small molecules found in people with Parkinson's, aimed at creating a diagnostic test.

The team will also use 'human detectors' - people with exceptional smelling abilities - to support the study.Professor Perdita Barran, who is leading the research at the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology (MIB), said: "The critical thing with what Joy did is that she noticed this smell change way before any of the motor symptoms or other symptoms associated with Parkinson's had kicked in.

"Early diagnosis is key to effective treatment, so that's going to be really useful for us."

One in 500 people in the UK have Parkinson's - which can leave people struggling to walk, speak and sleep - and has no cure or definitive diagnostic test.

Some 127,000 people in the UK live with the condition and 7.5 million worldwide.

Dr Arthur Roach, director of research at Parkinson's UK, which is funding the study, said: "Funding pioneering studies like this has the potential to throw Parkinson's into a completely new light."It's very early days in the research, but if it's proved there is a unique odour associated with Parkinson's, particularly early on in the condition, it could have a huge impact."

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22 Oct 2015

Scientists have begun research into if a person's odour can be used to diagnose Parkinson's after a "supersmeller" detected the disease by sniffing T-shirts.

Researchers from the University of Manchester will analyse skin swabs taken to discover if the debilitating disease changes chemicals found in the skin, according to Parkinson's UK.

The study was launched after a Scottish woman, Joy Milne, successfully identified sufferers by smelling T-shirts they had slept in. She could even detect subtle changes in smell in people who had not yet developed the condition.

Parkinson's - a disease of the central nervous system - causes progressive tremors, stiffness and slowness of movement. Currently there is no cure.

Coronal view of a patient brain suffering from Parkinson's disease

Sufferers include comedian Billy Connolly, 72, who was diagnosed in 2012.

Mrs Milne's husband Les died in June at the age of 65 after living with Parkinson's for 20 years.

Mrs Milne, 65, from Perth, said: "I've always had a keen sense of smell and I detected very early on that there was a very subtle change in how Les smelled. It's hard to describe but it was a heavy, slightly musky aroma. I had no idea that this was unusual and hadn't been recognised before.

"It's hard to describe but it was a heavy, slightly musky aroma. I had no idea that this was unusual and hadn't been recognised before"

- Joy Milne

"I watched with interest how research had uncovered distinctive smells associated with certain diagnoses and when I was attending a Parkinson's UK research lecture at the University of Edinburgh a few years ago I mentioned it to the researcher, Dr Tilo Kunath.

"Tilo was interested and together we worked out ways to see if I could detect it from other people with Parkinson's and not just Les. It turned out I could."

She made the link with Parkinson's only after meeting other sufferers and happened to mention it to a scientist at a talk, prompting tests which found her sense of smell was accurate.

Parkinson's UK, which is funding the research, hope to find a link which could lead to earlier diagnosis. The charity estimates there are around 127,000 people with the disease in the UK.

AT A GLANCE

Parkinson's disease

Symptoms

The three main symptoms of Parkinson's disease are:

         tremor (involuntary shaking of particular parts of the body)

         slow movement

         stiff and inflexible muscles

A person with Parkinson's disease can also experience a wide range of other physical and psychological symptoms, including depression, constipation, problems sleeping (insomnia), loss of sense of smell (anosmia) and memory problems

What causes it?

Parkinson's disease is caused by a loss of nerve cells in part of the brain called the substantia nigra. This leads to a reduction in the amount of a chemical called dopamine in the brain

Dopamine plays a vital role in regulating the movement of the body and a reduction in dopamine is responsible for many of the symptoms of Parkinson's disease

Exactly what causes the loss of nerve cells is unclear. Most experts think that a combination of genetic and environmental factors is responsible

Who is affected?

It's thought that around one in 500 people are affected by Parkinson's disease, which means there are an estimated 127,000 people in the UK with the condition

Most people with Parkinson's start to develop symptoms when they are over 50, although around one in 20 people with the condition first experience symptoms when they are under 40. Men are more likely to get Parkinson's disease than women

How is it treated?

There is currently no cure for Parkinson's disease, although treatments are available to help reduce the main symptoms and maintain your quality of life for as long as possible

These include supportive treatments (such as physiotherapy and occupational therapy), medication and, in some cases, surgery

You may not need any treatment during the early stages of Parkinson's disease as symptoms are usually mild. However, you may need regular appointments with your specialist so that your condition can be monitored

Dr Arthur Roach, director of research at the charity, said: "Funding pioneering studies like this has the potential to throw Parkinson's into a completely new light.

"It's very early days in the research, but if it's proved there is a unique odour associated with Parkinson's, particularly early on in the condition, it could have a huge impact.

"Not just on early diagnosis, but it would also make it a lot easier to identify people to test drugs that may have the potential to slow, or even stop Parkinson's, something no current drug can achieve."

• Six hours of activity a week could protect against Parkinson's

• Changing how you walk could be key to Parkinson's diagnosis

Professor Perdita Barran of the University of Manchester will lead a team trying to identify differences in chemicals present on the skin surface of people with Parkinson's.

Scientists believe that Parkinson's may cause changes in the sebum - an oily substance in the skin - that results in a unique and subtle odour on the skin only detectable by people with a keen sense of smell.

The team will recruit up to 200 people with and without Parkinson's to have a skin swab taken and fill in a brief questionnaire, before the samples are analysed by the "supersmeller" and experts from the food and drink industry.

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