Home › Research › Brain scans and imaging
Beta-amyloid, phospho-tau and alpha-synuclein deposits similar to those in the brain are not identified in the eyes of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease patients
Ho CY, Troncoso JC, Knox D, Stark W, Eberhart CG.. Brain pathology (Zurich, Switzerland), 2013-06-28
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD) are the two most common neurodegenerative disorders, and are characterized by deposition of specific proteins in the brain. If similar abnormal protein deposits are present in the eye, it would facilitate noninvasive diagnosis and monitoring of disease progression. We therefore evaluated expression of proteins associated with AD and PD pathology in postmortem eyes and brains in a case-control study. Eyes from 11 cases of AD, 6 cases of PD or PD with dementia, and 6 age-matched controls were retrieved from the autopsy archives of The Johns Hopkins Hospital. Immunostains for β-amyloid, phospho-tau and α-synuclein and Congo red stains were performed in the same laboratory in both brains and eyes. No amyloid deposits or abnormal tau accumulations were detected in the lens, retina or other structures in the eyes of AD patients. Eyes also lacked definite Lewy bodies or Lewy neurites in either PD or AD cases. Patchy cytoplasmic α-synuclein positivity was seen in the retina of AD, PD and control cases, but did not correlate with the presence or extent of Lewy body pathology in the brain. Abnormal protein aggregations characteristic of AD and PD are thus not commonly present in the retinas or lens of affected patients when assayed using the same protocols as in the brain. This suggests that β-amyloid, phospho-tau and α-synuclein either do not deposit in the eye in a manner analogous to brain, or are present at lower levels or in different forms.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Ho, C. Y., Troncoso, J. C., Knox, D., Stark, W., & Eberhart, C. G. (2014). Beta-amyloid, phospho-tau and alpha-synuclein deposits similar to those in the brain are not identified in the eyes of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease patients. Brain pathology (Zurich, Switzerland). https://doi.org/10.1111/bpa.12070
Vancouver
Ho CY, Troncoso JC, Knox D, Stark W, Eberhart CG. Beta-amyloid, phospho-tau and alpha-synuclein deposits similar to those in the brain are not identified in the eyes of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease patients. Brain pathology (Zurich, Switzerland). 2014. doi:10.1111/bpa.12070. PMID: 23714377.
BibTeX
@article{ho2014-23714377,
author = {Ho, C. Y. and Troncoso, J. C. and Knox, D. and Stark, W. and Eberhart, C. G.},
title = {{Beta-amyloid, phospho-tau and alpha-synuclein deposits similar to those in the brain are not identified in the eyes of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease patients}},
journal = {Brain pathology (Zurich, Switzerland)},
year = {2014},
doi = {10.1111/bpa.12070},
pmid = {23714377},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1111/bpa.12070}
}
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
Key findings
- We therefore evaluated expression of proteins associated with AD and PD pathology in postmortem eyes and brains in a case-control study.
- This suggests that β-amyloid, phospho-tau and α-synuclein either do not deposit in the eye in a manner analogous to brain, or are present at lower levels or in different forms.
New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Brain scans & tests →
Study details
- Study designcase-control study
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 50/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a case-control study. Scored zero for sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomized / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on journal's citation record, times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record and multicenter collaboration, so those were left out: it earned 29 of the 58 points we could judge it on, which is 50 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Brain pathology (Zurich, Switzerland)) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Study design | 6 / 12 | A case-control study |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2014 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomized / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomization or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | — / 7 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multicenter collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 23714377) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 29 / 58 | Scored on 11 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 29 of the 58 points we could judge it on is 50 out of 100. |
| Total | 50 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Free copy unknown: no free-copy check has an answer for this record yet. That does not mean it is paywalled.
Related
Studies in the library that share something with this one. The line above each title says what.
Related studies in Brain scans and imaging
Also tagged “phospho-tau”
3 studies in the library carry the topic tag “phospho-tau”; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed, alphabetical-by-hash tour of them, not the closest in content. All 3 tagged studies.