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Associations between subjective cognitive decline (SCD) diagnosis and severity with plasma tau and NfL levels using SIMOA technology
Author(s) -
Azad Dishari Zaman,
Debure Ludovic,
Vedvyas Alok,
Osorio Ricardo S,
Masurkar Arjun V,
Wisniewski Thomas,
Shao Yongzhao
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
alzheimer's and dementia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.713
H-Index - 118
eISSN - 1552-5279
pISSN - 1552-5260
DOI - 10.1002/alz.043886
Subject(s) - medicine , context (archaeology) , cognitive decline , neuropsychology , cognition , cognitive impairment , biomarker , psychology , montreal cognitive assessment , gastroenterology , disease , cardiology , psychiatry , dementia , chemistry , paleontology , biochemistry , biology
Background Subjective cognitive decline (SCD) is thought to be a preclinical stage of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and is based largely on subjective report data in the context of normal neuropsychological functioning. There is, however, an unclear relationship between SCD and potential plasma markers along the AD spectrum. Method 213 older adults (53 cognitively normal, [NL], 52 SCD, 54 mild cognitive impairment [MCI] and 54 AD), mean age 74.9±9.6, completed the UDS 3.0 battery, the Global Deterioration Scale (GDS) and a blood draw. Plasma levels of Aβ40, Aβ42, neurofilament light (NfL) and tau were measured using ultra‐sensitive, single‐molecule array (SIMOA) technology. Result Plasma NfL levels were high in MCI patients and higher still in those with AD over cognitively unimpaired people (NL and SCD) (F (2,198) =22, p<.001) before and after correction for age, sex and apoE4 status. Both plasma tau and Aβ42 levels were higher in SCD over NL subjects (F (1,95) =7.8 and F (1,96) =6.5; both p<0.05). Importantly, plasma tau but not Aβ42, Aβ42/ Aβ40 ratio or NfL was correlated with self‐reported Cognitive Change Index (CCI) scores both in the overall sample (r 154 =2.4, p<0.01) and in the NL and SCD only (r 89 =2.15, p<0.5). Conclusion Plasma NfL is a potential biomarker of cognitive decline to MCI and AD, while plasma tau may have higher discriminatory value in the preclinical stages of the disease and is associated with SCD.