Amyloid Pathology Influences Aβ1-42 Cerebrospinal Fluid Levels in Dementia with Lewy Bodies

• Published in: Journal of Alzheimer's disease 2013, Vol.35 (1), p.137-146
• Main Authors: Slaets, Sylvie, Le Bastard, Nathalie, Theuns, Jessie, Sleegers, Kristel, Verstraeten, Aline, De Leenheir, Evelyn, Luyckx, Jill, Martin, Jean-Jacques, Van Broeckhoven, Christine, Engelborghs, Sebastiaan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Alzheimer Disease - cerebrospinal fluid; Alzheimer Disease - diagnosis; Amyloid beta-Peptides - cerebrospinal fluid; Biomarkers - cerebrospinal fluid; Female; Humans; Lewy Body Disease - cerebrospinal fluid; Lewy Body Disease - diagnosis; Male; Neurofibrillary Tangles - pathology; Peptide Fragments - cerebrospinal fluid
• ISSN: 1387-2877; 1875-8908
• DOI: 10.3233/JAD-122176

A significant proportion of patients with dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) show Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology like senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. Biomarkers in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), such as amyloid-β1-42 (Aβ1-42), total tau (T-tau), and hyperphosphorylated tau (P-tau181P), are linked to the different pathological hallmarks of AD. We set up a study to investigate the influence of AD co-pathology on CSF biomarker concentrations and profiles in autopsy-confirmed DLB. DLB patients with senile plaques showed significantly lower CSF Aβ1-42 concentrations than DLB patients without senile plaques, but not compared to the AD patients. There were no significant differences in CSF T-tau or P-tau181P concentrations between DLB patients with and without neurofibrillary tangles. A correlation was found between the number of APOE ε4 alleles and Aβ1-42 CSF levels in DLB patients with senile plaques. Although the CSF biomarkers Aβ1-42, T-tau, and P-tau181P have an added diagnostic value for the differential dementia diagnosis, concomitant amyloid pathology in DLB limits the use of CSF Aβ1-42 for the differential diagnosis of AD versus DLB.