The Cerebral Palsy Alliance (CPA) has committed funding to a new blood test that can pinpoint the root causes of brain injuries in newborns, after a study achieved “revolutionary” findings.
The study – carried out by researchers at the Imperial College London and funded by the CPA – examined babies experiencing brain injury due to hypoxia, or a lack of oxygen in the brain.
Analysis patterns of gene expression in blood allowed researchers to determine the cause of the injury and the likelihood of the infant responding to the cooling therapy, the "gold standard" treatment for brain injury in infants.
Potential HIE breakthrough
"The study investigated the differences in gene expression in newborns with hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE) - some from high-income countries (Italy), and others from low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) in South Asia,” CPA chair of Cerebral Palsy Research Professor Nadia Badawi said.
“Newborn encephalopathy is much more prevalent in South Asia than in Europe and Australia, and previous work has demonstrated that gold standard therapy - cooling - is ineffective and potentially dangerous in the LMIC settings.
“This study helps explain why and provides insights that will allow more effective treatment.
"The investigators found clear differences in gene expression between those infants born in HIC and those from LMIC.
“The differences in gene expression between the two groups suggest that the causal pathways to HIE may differ in the two socio-economic settings, and subsequently, the capacity to derive benefit from cooling is altered."
Professor Badawi said the study provided valuable insights into the complex nature of brain injury in newborns and by better understanding the underlying mechanisms, clinicians could make more informed treatment decisions and improve outcomes for babies.
Lead investigator Professor Sudhin Thayyil from the Department of Brain Sciences at Imperial College London said that the study showed that although cases of brain injury in newborns may appear similar, the underlying causes could be quite distinct.
The non-invasive nature of the blood test offers a low-impact, high-efficacy method for diagnosing brain injury in newborns, allowing for timely interventions and personalised treatment.