A method for early diagnosis of brain diseases using one drop of saliva has been developed

The technology is based on the use of plasmonic “hot spots” formed when proteins bind to copper-gold oxide (Au-CuO) nanostructures. These structures amplify the extremely weak Raman signals of biomolecules by more than a billion times. Thanks to this, the system is able to distinguish between different forms of protein aggregates – monomers and fibrils – which was previously difficult to achieve with standard diagnostic methods.

In collaboration with St. Vincent’s Hospital, the scientists examined saliva samples from 44 patients with epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease and schizophrenia, as well as 23 healthy volunteers. The analysis showed that the technology makes it possible to classify diseases with an accuracy of over 90%, reaching 98%. A particularly significant result was that diagnosis is based not on the total protein level, but on identifying its structural changes – a key pathological sign of neurological disorders.