Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 14, 2025
Detection of Disease-associated α-synuclein by Enhanced ELISA in the Brain of Transgenic Mice Overexpressing Human A53T Mutated α-synuclein
Published on: May 30, 2015
Serum GFAP predicts survival in advanced ALS: a prospective multicenter study
Hee-Jae Jung1, Woo-Seung Jeong2, Heung-Won Kang3
1Department of Neurology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Neurofilament light chain (NfL) shows ALS progression, while glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) predicts survival in late-stage disease. Combining NfL and GFAP may improve prognostic accuracy for personalized ALS care.
Area of Science:
- Biomarker discovery in neurodegenerative diseases
- Neurology and clinical neuroscience
- Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) research
Background:
- Neurofilament light chain (NfL) is a key biomarker for axonal damage in ALS.
- Limited specificity of NfL necessitates complementary prognostic markers.
- Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) are investigated as potential adjunctive biomarkers.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the prognostic value of serum GFAP and BDNF as adjunctive biomarkers to NfL in ALS.
- To assess the diagnostic performance of NfL, GFAP, and BDNF in ALS.
- To determine the association of these biomarkers with clinical severity, disease progression, and survival.
Main Methods:
- Serum NfL, GFAP, and BDNF levels measured using ultrasensitive SIMOA assays in two independent ALS cohorts.
- Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis for diagnostic performance evaluation.
- Correlation analyses, Kaplan-Meier survival estimates, and Cox proportional hazards models used to assess associations with clinical outcomes.
Main Results:
- Serum NfL, GFAP, and BDNF were significantly elevated in ALS patients compared to controls.
- NfL and GFAP levels correlated with advancing disease stage (King's stage).
- Elevated GFAP independently predicted poorer survival in advanced ALS (King's stage 3-4).
Conclusions:
- NfL is a robust marker for ALS progression.
- GFAP serves as an independent prognostic marker in late-stage ALS.
- Combining NfL and GFAP may enhance prognostic accuracy and support personalized ALS care.
More Related Videos
09:00High Throughput Sequential ELISA for Validation of Biomarkers of Acute Graft-Versus-Host Disease
Published on: October 31, 2012
09:29Isolation of Intermediate Filament Proteins from Multiple Mouse Tissues to Study Aging-associated Post-translational Modifications
Published on: May 18, 2017