Homocysteic Acid in Blood Can Detect Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Preliminary Study.

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Biochemistry
• Biomarker Discovery

Background:

• Early intervention is crucial for Alzheimer's disease (AD) treatment effectiveness.
• Minimally invasive, cost-effective biomarkers are needed for early AD diagnosis.
• Plasma amyloid-beta (Aβ) shows potential but its direct link to AD development is unproven.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate homocysteic acid (HCA) as an early diagnostic marker for mild cognitive impairment (MCI).
• To assess the diagnostic performance of plasma HCA in distinguishing MCI from healthy controls.

Main Methods:

• Plasma concentrations of HCA, TNF-α, cortisol, tau, and p-tau were measured.
• Analysis included patients with AD, MCI, and negative controls (NC).
• Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to evaluate HCA's diagnostic accuracy.

Main Results:

• Plasma HCA levels were significantly elevated in MCI patients compared to NC.
• HCA demonstrated high diagnostic accuracy, with an Area Under the Curve (AUC) distinguishing MCI from NC.
• A cut-off concentration of 0.116μM for HCA yielded 95.7% sensitivity and 70% specificity.

Conclusions:

• Plasma HCA is a potential early diagnostic marker for MCI.
• HCA may precede neurodegeneration in AD pathology, potentially via NMDA receptor overactivation.
• Further research into HCA's role in AD pathogenesis is warranted.