Blood-Based Biomarkers Are Transforming Alzheimer's Disease Diagnostics
This review evaluates the rapidly advancing field of blood-based Alzheimer's disease biomarkers, focusing on plasma Abeta42/Abeta40 ratios, phosphorylated tau species (p-tau181, p-tau217, p-tau231), neurofilament light, and GFAP. These analytes are approaching the diagnostic performance of CSF and PET biomarkers at a fraction of the cost and invasiveness. The authors highlight their transformative potential for screening in primary care, treatment response monitoring, and clinical trial enrichment, while noting the need for continued assay standardization.
The original study
Blood-based biomarkers in Alzheimer's disease - moving towards a new era of diagnostics.
- Authors
- Arslan B, Zetterberg H, Ashton NJ
- Journal
- Clinical chemistry and laboratory medicine
- Type
- Journal Article, Review, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
- PMID
- 38253262
Original abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD), a primary cause of dementia globally, is traditionally diagnosed via cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) measures and positron emission tomography (PET). The invasiveness, cost, and limited accessibility of these methods have led to exploring blood-based biomarkers as a promising alternative for AD diagnosis and monitoring. Recent advancements in sensitive immunoassays have identified potential blood-based biomarkers, such as Aβ42/Aβ40 ratios and phosphorylated tau (p-tau) species. This paper briefly evaluates the clinical utility and reliability of these biomarkers across various AD stages, highlighting challenges like refining plasma Aβ42/Aβ40 assays and enhancing the precision of p-tau, particularly p-tau181, p-tau217, and p-tau231. The discussion also covers other plasma biomarkers like neurofilament light (NfL), glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), and synaptic biomarkers, assessing their significance in AD diagnostics. The need for ongoing research and development of robust assays to match the performance of CSF and PET biomarkers is underscored. In summary, blood-based biomarkers are increasingly crucial in AD diagnosis, follow-up, prognostication, treatment response evaluation, and population screening, particularly in primary care settings. These developments are set to revolutionize AD diagnostics, offering earlier and more accessible detection and management options.