Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 4, 2026
Author Spotlight: Unveiling the Pathway Linking Obesity to Autoimmune Inflammation in Multiple Sclerosis
Published on: February 23, 2024
Synaptic, axonal damage and inflammatory cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers in neurodegenerative dementias
Anna Antonell1, Adrià Tort-Merino1, José Ríos2,3
1Alzheimer's Disease and Other Cognitive Disorders Unit, Hospital Clínic, Fundació Clínic per a la Recerca Biomèdica, Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
Introduction:
Synaptic damage, axonal neurodegeneration, and neuroinflammation are common features in Alzheimer's disease (AD), frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD).
Methods:
Unicentric cohort of 353 participants included healthy control (HC) subjects, AD continuum stages, genetic AD and FTD, and FTD and CJD. We measured cerebrospinal fluid neurofilament light (NF-L), neurogranin (Ng), 14-3-3, and YKL-40 proteins.
Results:
Biomarkers showed differences in HC subjects versus AD, FTD, and CJD. Disease groups differed between them except AD versus FTD for YKL-40. Only NF-L differed between all stages within the AD continuum. AD and FTD symptomatic mutation carriers presented differences with respect to HC subjects. Applying the AT(N) system, 96% subjects were positive for neurodegeneration if 14-3-3 was used, 94% if NF-L was used, 62% if Ng was used, and 53% if YKL-40 was used.
Discussion:
Biomarkers of synapse and neurodegeneration differentiate HC subjects from neurodegenerative dementias and between AD, FTD, and CJD. NF-L and 14-3-3 performed similar to total tau when AT(N) system was applied.
