Scientists have developed a blood test that can tell people if they are at risk of developing type 2 diabetes in the next 10 years of their lives.
The test looks for DNA “methylation” — chemical changes in the blood that show that the activity of genes associated with diabetes is “up” or “down” when someone is in their early stages of development.
This provides a more accurate prognosis when combined with the method used by the doctor, which determines risk based on factors such as age, weight, and family history of the disease.
Professor Riccardo Marioni, lead author of the study that developed the blood test, from the University of Edinburgh, said: “A blood test that gives people information about their risk of developing type 2 diabetes could be part of improving health in the future.”
To develop the blood test, the researchers looked at 14,613 people who agreed to monitor their health for 15 years in a study conducted in Scotland.
Using half of that group, they were able to see how the blood of those who developed type 2 diabetes differed from that of those who did not.
They then tested how well their test worked in the other half to predict which cases had occurred up to ten years after the blood test was taken.
A blood test published in the journal Nature Aging could identify another 18% of people who will develop type 2 diabetes in the next decade.
This increased the percentage of people at risk identified by the standard method used by physicians, which was 30%, to 48% when a blood test was used at the same time.
Source: Daily Mail
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