Seed Amplification Assay for α-Synuclein: Diagnostic Applications in Synucleinopathies

Seed amplification assays (SAA) targeting misfolded α-synuclein have emerged as powerful tools for the diagnosis and study of synucleinopathies, including Parkinson’s disease (PD), dementia with Lewy bodies, and multipßle system atrophy. These assays exploit the prion-like seeding properties of pathological α-synuclein to detect minute amounts of misfolded protein in biological specimens. the PubMed database was searched according to our study criteria, and 55 clinical studies comprised the final literature review. the majority of studies have focused on patients at various stages of PD, with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) being the most commonly investigated biological specimen. Diagnostic utility was most pronounced in the CSF of PD patients, whereas results from other biological samples and across different synucleinopathies have been more modest. α-syn SAA demonstrate significant diagnostic potential in synucleinopathies. Additional applications may include monitoring disease progression. Future studies should explore the utility of α-syn SAA in alternative biological specimens, assess its performance across various synucleinopathies and other neurodegenerative diseases, and determine its comparative diagnostic value.