Discovery of possible biomarker of migraine
- By MedZine Redactie -
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A long time search may have come to an end: scientists have found that measuring adiponectin (ADP) before and after migraine treatment can accurately reveal which headache victims felt pain relief. According to study leader B. Lee Peterlin, this study 'takes the first steps in identifying a potential biomarker for migraine that predicts treatment response and, we hope, can one day be used as a target for developing new and better migraine therapies.' A report on the study of people experiencing 2 to 12 migraine headaches per month, led by researchers at Johns Hopkins, is published in the March issue of the journal Headache.
Migraines are defined as headaches with at least two of four special characteristics: unilateral or one-side-of-the-head occurrence; moderately to severely painful; aggravated by routine activity and of a pounding or throbbing nature. Sufferers generally also feel nauseated or are sensitive to light and sound. Women are three times as likely to get migraines as men. Because of the complicated diagnostic criteria, the diagnosis is tricky.
For the study, Peterlin and her colleagues collected blood from 20 women who visited three headache clinics between December 2009 and January 2012 during an acute migraine attack. The researchers measured blood levels of ADP, a protein hormone secreted from fat tissue and known to modulate several of the pain pathways implicated in migraine. Peterlin and her colleagues looked at total adiponectin levels and two subtypes or fragments of total ADP in circulation in the blood: low molecular weight (LMW)-adiponectin and high molecular weight (HMW)-adiponectin. The researchers found that in all 20 participants when levels of LMW increased, the severity of pain decreased. When the ratio of HMW to LMW molecules increased, the pain severity increased.
Should ADP prove to be a biomarker for migraine, it could help physicians identify who has migraine and know who is likely to respond to which type of medication.
Source: http://www.news-medical.net/
