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@ARTICLE{Coles:282548,
author = {Coles, Nathan P and Elsheikh, Suzan and Gouda, Alaa and
Quesnel, Agathe and Butler, Lucy and Achadu, Ojodomo J and
Islam, Meez and Kalesh, Karunakaran and Occhipinti, Annalisa
and Angione, Claudio and Marles-Wright, Jon and Koss, David
J and Thomas, Alan J and Outeiro, Tiago F and Filippou,
Panagiota S and Khundakar, Ahmad A},
title = {{A} modified α-synuclein seed amplification assay in
{L}ewy body dementia using {R}aman spectroscopy and machine
learning analysis.},
journal = {Journal of neuroscience methods},
volume = {425},
issn = {0165-0270},
address = {Amsterdam [u.a.]},
publisher = {Elsevier Science},
reportid = {DZNE-2025-01311},
pages = {110617},
year = {2026},
abstract = {Lewy body dementias (LBD), comprising dementia with Lewy
bodies (DLB) and Parkinson's disease dementia (PDD), are
defined by misfolded α-synuclein aggregation. Seed
amplification assays (SAAs), such as RT-QuIC, enable
sensitive detection of α-synuclein aggregates but typically
provide binary readouts and require fluorescence labeling.
Raman spectroscopy offers a label-free approach to detect
subtle biochemical changes, and its diagnostic potential can
be enhanced with machine learning.This proof-of-concept
study aimed to evaluate whether Raman spectroscopy combined
with machine learning can improve SAA-based discrimination
of LBD from controls in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).We
analyzed a small number of post-mortem CSF samples from
pathologically confirmed DLB (n = 2), PDD (n = 2), and
controls (n = 2) using a 7-day SAA. Raman spectra were
collected on Days 1, 4, and 7 and analyzed using principal
component analysis (PCA) and uniform manifold approximation
and projection (UMAP).Following SAA, both PCA and UMAP
distinguished combined LBD samples from controls within 24 h
(Day 1), reflecting biochemical changes consistent with
α-synuclein fibrillation. Spectral shifts indicated
decreased α-helical content with increased β-sheet
structures. No consistent separation between DLB and PDD was
observed.This preliminary study demonstrates that combining
Raman spectroscopy with machine learning can enable rapid,
label-free detection of disease-specific changes. Despite
the very limited sample size, these findings highlight the
potential of this novel workflow and strongly warrant its
validation in larger cohorts.},
keywords = {Humans / Lewy Body Disease: cerebrospinal fluid / Lewy Body
Disease: diagnosis / alpha-Synuclein: cerebrospinal fluid /
Spectrum Analysis, Raman: methods / Machine Learning / Male
/ Female / Aged / Aged, 80 and over / Proof of Concept Study
/ Parkinson Disease: cerebrospinal fluid / Parkinson
Disease: diagnosis / Principal Component Analysis /
Biomarkers: cerebrospinal fluid / Diagnostics (Other) / Lewy
body dementia (Other) / Machine learning analysis (Other) /
Raman spectroscopy (Other) / α-synuclein aggregation
(Other) / alpha-Synuclein (NLM Chemicals) / Biomarkers (NLM
Chemicals)},
cin = {AG Fischer},
ddc = {610},
cid = {I:(DE-2719)1410002},
pnm = {352 - Disease Mechanisms (POF4-352)},
pid = {G:(DE-HGF)POF4-352},
typ = {PUB:(DE-HGF)16},
pubmed = {pmid:41238048},
doi = {10.1016/j.jneumeth.2025.110617},
url = {https://pub.dzne.de/record/282548},
}