Could a nostril swab decide up indicators of dementia a long time earlier than signs start?

British scientists believe they have found a groundbreaking way to test for dementia via the nose decades before symptoms begin, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

Research has found traces of proteins linked to the condition in the noses of people who have no signs of it. 

Further work is set to investigate whether a simple scan or swab could pick up ‘unique signatures’, which indicate whether someone will go on to develop dementia.

Scientists based at the University of Southampton who are working on the nose test say it could provide results ‘in minutes’.

The researchers say it could even potentially identify the specific form of dementia someone is suffering from, enabling doctors to tailor care.

With a new generation of drugs on the horizon which are most effective in the early stages, the test could prove a crucial tool in helping people access them before their disease progresses. 

At the moment, a diagnosis can take years because of long waiting times for brain scans and cognitive tests at memory clinics.

The disease is still the UK’s biggest killer, claiming 76,000 lives each year.

Last week the MoS launched its Defeating Dementia campaign, in association with Alzheimer’s Society, to raise awareness of the disease, increase early diagnosis, boost research and improve care.

Professor Roxana Carare, from the University of Southampton, who is leading the project, told the MoS the aim of their research was to ‘transform’ dementia diagnosis.

She said: ‘We’ve shown for the first time that there is a pathway of communication between the brain and the nose, and the next step is to show whether that could be harnessed to make really early diagnoses.’

Prof Carare’s team is to conduct a trial involving 50 patients who have been diagnosed with dementia with Lewy bodies, a form of the disease affecting around 140,000 Britons.

A nose biopsy will test for the presence of two brain proteins – alpha synuclein, a hallmark of this form of the disease, and neurofilament light, which indicates general brain degeneration and is already used to monitor Alzheimer’s disease progression.

Professor Rami Salib, from University Hospital Southampton, has found both proteins in samples of nose tissue taken from healthy adults having sinus operations.

Older patients had the most, suggesting levels increase naturally with age. But the trial will help establish whether those with confirmed dementia have a ‘unique signature or pattern’ compared to healthy people.

Further work will identify specific patterns picked up in younger adults who go on to develop dementia.

Prof Salib said: ‘There is plenty of work to be done but we have the basis of something that could potentially be transformative.’

The team, which has funding from the Jean Corsan Foundation, is in talks to develop a test using laser light to analyse nasal tissues.