Frontiers in Neurology (Oct 2021)

Prediction of Cerebral Amyloid Pathology Based on Plasma Amyloid and Tau Related Markers

  • Ting-Bin Chen,
  • Ting-Bin Chen,
  • Ting-Bin Chen,
  • Kun-Ju Lin,
  • Kun-Ju Lin,
  • Szu-Ying Lin,
  • Yi-Jung Lee,
  • Yi-Cheng Lin,
  • Yi-Cheng Lin,
  • Chen-Yu Wang,
  • Jun-Peng Chen,
  • Pei-Ning Wang,
  • Pei-Ning Wang,
  • Pei-Ning Wang

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2021.619388
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 12

Abstract

Read online

Background and Purpose: Pyroglutamate-modified β-amyloid peptide (AβpE) is crucial for AD pathophysiological process. The potential associations of plasma AβpE and total tau (t-tau) with brain Aβ burden and cognitive performance remain to be clarified.Methods: Forty-six subjects with unimpaired cognition, mild cognitive impairment, or very mild dementia were enrolled. Plasma levels of AβpE3−40, t-tau, and Aβ42 were quantified by immunomagnetic reduction (IMR) assays. We analyzed individual and combined biomarker correlations with neuropsychological scores and Aβ positivity determined by 18F-florbetapir positron emission tomography (PET).Results: Both plasma AβpE3−40 levels and AβpE3−40/t-tau ratios correlated negatively with short-term memory and global cognition scores, while correlating positively with PET standardized uptake value ratios (SUVRs). Among the biomarkers analyzed, the combination of AβpE3−40 in a ratio with t-tau had the best discriminatory ability for Aβ PET positivity. Likewise, logistic regression analysis showed that AβpE3−40/t-tau was a highly robust predictor of Aβ PET positivity after controlling for relevant demographic covariates.Conclusion: Plasma AβpE3−40/t-tau ratios correlate with cognitive function and cerebral Aβ burden. The suitability of AβpE3−40/t-tau as a candidate clinical biomarker of AD pathology in the brain should be examined further in larger studies.

Keywords