Impact of harmonization of collection tubes on Alzheimer's disease diagnosis

Alzheimers Dement. 2014 Oct;10(5 Suppl):S390-S394.e2. doi: 10.1016/j.jalz.2013.06.008. Epub 2013 Oct 23.

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study was to analyze differences in biomarker outcomes before and after harmonization of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) collection tubes in Alzheimer's disease (AD) diagnosis.

Methods: We analyzed data from French memory centers that switched from different CSF collection tubes to a common one. A total of 1966 patients were included in the study. CSF concentrations of β-amyloid 1-42 (Aβ42), total tau, and phosphorylated tau (p-tau181) were measured in each center using the same commercial enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay (ELISA) kits. The diagnostic value of CSF biomarkers according to the type of tube used was then assessed using different cutoffs.

Results: The predictive value of Aβ42 was highly affected by the type of collection tube used. The optimal cutoff value for p-tau181 appeared not to be affected by the type of collection tube whereas that of total tau was slightly changed. New optimal cutoff values were then computed.

Conclusions: In a routine clinical environment, the selection of the collection tube and biomarker cutoff value makes a major difference in AD biological diagnosis. The use of a common collection tube among different centers will reduce the risk of misdiagnosis and incorrect patient stratification.

Keywords: Alzheimer's disease; Biomarkers; Cerebrospinal fluid; Diagnosis; Preanalytics.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Alzheimer Disease / cerebrospinal fluid*
  • Amyloid beta-Peptides / cerebrospinal fluid*
  • Biomarkers / cerebrospinal fluid
  • Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
  • Female
  • France
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Peptide Fragments / cerebrospinal fluid*
  • Phosphorylation
  • tau Proteins / cerebrospinal fluid*

Substances

  • Amyloid beta-Peptides
  • Biomarkers
  • MAPT protein, human
  • Peptide Fragments
  • amyloid beta-protein (1-42)
  • tau Proteins