Role of plasma phosphorylated neurofilament heavy chain (pNfH) in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

The phosphorylated neurofilament heavy chain (pNfH) is a promising biomarker in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). We examined plasma pNfH concentrations in order to corroborate its role as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in ALS. Incident ALS cases enrolled in a population‐based registry wer...

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Published in:Journal of cellular and molecular medicine 2022-07, Vol.26 (13), p.3608-3615
Main Authors: Zecca, Chiara, Dell’Abate, Maria Teresa, Pasculli, Giuseppe, Capozzo, Rosa, Barone, Roberta, Arima, Serena, Pollice, Alessio, Brescia, Vincenzo, Tortelli, Rosanna, Logroscino, Giancarlo
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alzheimer's disease
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Biomarker
Biomarkers
Dementia
Laboratories
Mental disorders
Neurofilament
Original
Ostomy
Patients
Plasma
Regression analysis
Spasticity
Survival
Variables
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Summary:The phosphorylated neurofilament heavy chain (pNfH) is a promising biomarker in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). We examined plasma pNfH concentrations in order to corroborate its role as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in ALS. Incident ALS cases enrolled in a population‐based registry were retrospectively selected and matched by sex and age with a cohort of healthy volunteers. Plasma pNfH levels were measured by an ELISA kit and correlated with clinical parameters. Discrimination ability of pNfH was tested using receiving operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Kaplan–Meier (KM) analysis and Cox proportional hazard models were used for survival analysis. Plasma pNfH was significantly higher in patients compared to controls. An optimal cut‐off of 39.74 pg/ml discriminated cases from controls with an elevated sensitivity and specificity. Bulbar‐onset cases had higher plasma pNfH compared to spinal onset (p = 0.0033). Furthermore, plasma pNfH positively correlated with disease progression rate (r = 0.19, p = 0.031). Baseline plasma pNfH did not influence survival in our cohort. Our findings confirmed the potential utility of plasma pNfH as a diagnostic biomarker in ALS. However, further studies with longitudinal data are needed to corroborate its prognostic value.
ISSN:1582-1838
1582-4934
DOI:10.1111/jcmm.17232