Study Demonstrates Effectiveness of Finger Prick Method for Remote Collection and Quantification of Biomarkers Associated with Neurodegenerative Disorders

Results presented at the 2023 meeting of the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, demonstrated the potential for remote collection and quantification of biomarkers associated with neurodegeneration, including neurofilament light (NfL), glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), and phosphorylated tau (p-tau).

This pilot study (DROP-AD) included 43 participants from Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona. Researchers collected EDTA plasma, capillary dry blood spot (DBScapillary), and venous dry blood spot (DBSvenous) from all participants. A macro lancet needle was used to collect capillary whole blood, and both venous blood (no centrifugation performed) and capillary blood were spotted and dried on Noviplex DBS cards (Shimadzu Europa GMBH, Duisberg, Germany) which were shipped overnight to Gothenburg, Sweden without any cooling or temperature control. Single molecular array (Simoa Single Molecule Detection Services; RayBiotech Life, Peachtree, GA ) analysis of DBS samples was used to measure the blood biomarkers NfL, GFAP, and p-tau. Pearson correlation analysis between DBScapillary, DBSvenous, and EDTA plasma revealed DBScapillary GFAP (r=0.7180, P<.0001) and NfL (r=0.6967, P<.0001) levels correlated with EDTA plasma. Additionally, DBSvenous GFAP (r=0.7614, P<.0001), NfL (r=0.7701, P<.0001), p-tau217 (r=0.9625, P<.0001), and p-tau181 (r=0.6619, P<.0001) levels correlated with EDTA plasma.

This study demonstrates the potential for remote collection methods, such as a finger prick test, to assess for biomarkers associated with neurodegeneration. Researchers are hopeful this could lead to a more efficient remote monitoring tool for patients with neurodegenerative disorders that bypasses current on-site, time-limited, and temperature-dependent methods of collection and quantification. This study was presented by Hanna Huber, PhD of the University of Gothenburg Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology.