A Symbolic Event.
Interstate competition.
“There are a bunch of newsletters out there I have read. News Items is the one I want to read.” — Jane Metcalfe, Chair of the Board of Directors, Human Immunome Project, co-founder Wired Ventures and Wired magazine.
1. The Food and Drug Administration on Friday green-lit a blood test to detect plaques in the brain associated with Alzheimer’s disease, providing a less risky and more accessible tool to help diagnose the neurodegenerative condition. The test, called Lumipulse, measures two proteins found in the blood’s plasma to determine whether a patient has amyloid plaques in the brain. Up until now, physicians have mostly used costly, more invasive tests that involve puncturing the lumbar — known as a spinal tap — and brain scans that expose patients to radiation to confirm the presence of amyloid. The Lumipulse test takes a simple blood draw. “Today’s clearance is an important step for Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis, making it easier and potentially more accessible for U.S. patients earlier in the disease,” Michelle Tarver, director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said in a statement. (Source: washingtonpost.com)
