Washington, May 5 : Researchers from the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre have developed a new blood test that could help diagnose Alzheimer''s disease in its early stages.

Their findings have characterized a unique biochemical diagnosis, which identifies patients with this devastating disorder.

"Until now, there has been no definitive diagnostic tool for Alzheimer''s, other than postmortem analysis of brain tissue," said senior author Vassilios Papadopoulos, director of the MUHC Research Institute.

"Our clinical study shows that a non-invasive blood test, based on a biochemical process, may be successfully used to diagnose Alzheimer''s at an early stage and differentiate it from other types of dementia."

Papadopoulos and colleagues based the Alzheimer''s blood test on the production of a brain hormone called dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA). This hormone is present at high levels in the brain where it has a wide range of biological effects.

The researchers were able to promote the production of DHEA, using a chemical process called oxidation, in blood taken from non-Alzheimer''s patients.

"We demonstrated we could accurately and repetitively detect Alzheimer''s disease, with small samples of blood,” said Papadopoulos.

This research was published in the Journal of Alzheimer''s Disease. (ANI)