The potential of proteomics for in-depth molecular investigations of progressive supranuclear palsy

Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is a rare neurodegenerative disorder. The lack of comprehension about the pathogenesis of the disease, its heterogeneity, and the complex clinical evaluation in early stages, limit the development of effective treatments for PSP patients and highlight the need of further research on the field.

In this work, we review the current knowledge of the physio- and neuropathology of PSP, its clinical features, diagnosis markers, and treatment options. We also compare the proteomic-based studies done to date in brain tissues as well as in cerebrospinal fluid and other non-cerebral samples, briefly describing the proteomic approach used and the biological findings obtained in each study.

PSP is a complex neurodegenerative disorder marked by tau aggregation, glial dysfunction, and neuroinflammation. Although advances in neuroimaging and biofluid biomarkers have improved PSP diagnostic accuracy, no disease-modifying therapies are currently available. Promising avenues such as tau PET tracers, seed amplification assays, and advanced proteomic-based approaches are enhancing our ability to detect disease-specific tau pathology and hold the potential to provide novel biomarkers for earlier and more precise clinical diagnosis and treatment development that could transform the landscape of PSP.