Amprion launching SAAmplify as tool to help in disease diagnosis
Set of biomarker panels can ID Parkinson's early, with high accuracy
Amprion is launching SAAmplify, a set of biomarker panels that can be used as a tool to help in the diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease and other neurodegenerative conditions linked to the formation of toxic clumps of the protein alpha-synuclein.
With its launch planned for this year, SAAmplify builds on the company’s seed amplification assay (SAA) originally called SYNTap, which can identify Parkinson’s with high accuracy in patients who show symptoms or have prodromal disease, meaning that symptoms have yet to manifest.
“This level of accuracy is like having a window into the brain itself,” Russell Lebovitz, MD, PhD, Amprion’s CEO and co-founder said in a company press release. “With these new panels, clinicians will have the biological insights to develop a diagnosis for prodromal and symptomatic patients alike, which has never before been possible.”
A key feature of Parkinson’s is the formation of toxic clumps of misfolded alpha-synuclein, which are believed to drive disease progression. These clumps, or aggregates, spread in a prion-like way, meaning clumps in one brain area trigger the formation of more aggregates in nearby regions.
Amprion’s assay uses a sample of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), the clear liquid that flows around the brain and spinal cord. A seed of clumped alpha-synuclein is added to the CSF sample to see if it causes more clumping, mimicking the prion-like spread seen in Parkinson’s.
Amprion assay now improved, making disease diagnosis faster
Since its launch in 2022, Amprion has improved the assay, making it more sensitive and faster to use.
The company says its tool remains the only assay available for diagnosing synucleinopathies, or diseases marked by the abnormal buildup of alpha-synuclein in the brain. In addition to Parkinson’s, such diseases include Lewy body dementia and Alzheimer’s with Lewy body variant.
According to Marwan Sabbagh, MD, a neurologist at Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix and scientific advisor for Amprion, “accurate confirmation is critical to support clinical diagnosis” of Parkinson’s disease and other conditions featuring toxic alpha-synuclein protein clumps.
“[The assay] allows clinicians to confidently develop a differential diagnosis based on each patient’s biology,” Sabbagh said.
Patients navigating a potential neurodegenerative disorder diagnosis are often met with unclear answers. … We’re hoping to bring some much-needed clarity to patients and their loved ones with this novel technology.
SAAmplify has been enhanced to combine testing for misfolded alpha-synuclein with additional common biomarkers, such as forms of tau, amyloid beta, and neurofilament light proteins, providing a comprehensive tool for diagnosing Parkinson’s and other synucleinopathies.
Lebovitz noted that “patients navigating a potential neurodegenerative disorder diagnosis are often met with unclear answers.
“We’re hoping to bring some much-needed clarity to patients and their loved ones with this novel technology,” Lebovitz said.
Amprion is showcasing SAAmplify at this year’s Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC), which is taking place through today in Philadelphia and online.
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