Charlotte Teunissen, professor in neurochemistry at Amsterdam UMC, and colleagues review the highly dynamic and accelerating field of blood-based biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease. In their recently published review, they provide insight into the current state of the blood test and discuss which steps must be taken to be able to implement this in practice. It was published in The Lancet Neurology.

Becoming reality

Classic pathophysiological hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), think of amyloid-beta, tau and neurodegeneration, can be detected using cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) or imaging techniques such as PET scans. However, these methods are invasive or expensive. There is a need to identify cost-effective biomarkers that can easily be obtained in a less invasive manner. Blood-based biomarkers seem to be the best option in this scenario. Recent results have shown that these blood-based biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease are becoming more and more reality.

Blood levels of amyloid and tau

Due to the availability of ultrasensitive detection methods the use of blood-based biomarkers for diagnosing AD is close to clinical use. Blood levels of the proteins amyloid and tau correlate strongly with levels of these proteins in CSF, and with evidence for the presence of AD on PET scans. These blood measurements provide information about the disease progression and can potentially monitor the effects of the treatment.

The future

With the rise of feasible blood-based arrays and proteomics technologies, novel diagnostic biomarkers can be identified. The development of precision medicine might also benefit from the validation and implementation of blood-based biomarkers. More importantly, the knowledge acquired is the start of the identification of specific biomarkers for the diagnosis of, and development of treatments for, other types of dementia.

Read the review in the Lancet Neurology: Blood-based biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease: towards clinical implementation
Or find a Dutch summary at Alzheimer Center Amsterdam