Sense of smell tests key to tackling Parkinson's diseases

Losing your sense of smell could be an premature sign of Parkinson's disease, scientists have warned. The growth of smell tests could help doctors diagnose the condition much earlier - vastly improving sufferers' lives. At present, many are given drugs far too late because by the time the familiar shaking symptoms of Parkinson's appear, action makes little difference.

A test is a step closer after scientists discovered that sense of smell is reduced by the presence in the brain of a exacting protein linked to the development of Parkinson's. About 120,000 Britons suffer from Parkinson's, a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that influence the control of motor skills, speech, mood and behavioural problems and cognitive functions. There's no cure.

In the study, Dr Silke Nuber from Germany's Tubingen University found that mice with higher levels of a protein known as human alpha-synuclein had a poor intelligence of smell - as well as showing signs of Parkinson's. Dr Kieran Breen, director of research at charity Parkinson's UK, said he supposed a new test could be available within five years.

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