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Cerebrospinal fluid tau and beta-amyloid 42 proteins identify Alzheimer disease in subjects with mild cognitive impairment
Riemenschneider M, Lautenschlager N, Wagenpfeil S, Diehl J, Drzezga A, Kurz A.. Archives of neurology, 2002-11-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Context Cerebrospinal fluid tau protein and beta-amyloid 42 (Abeta42) protein are altered even in very mild Alzheimer disease (AD). So far, few data exist for subjects with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Objective To investigate the potential of cerebrospinal fluid tau and Abeta42 for predicting progression from MCI to AD in a longitudinal study of 28 patients with MCI who received follow-up for 18 months. Design An 18-month prospective study. Setting Clinical follow-up study of community-residing subjects with MCI. Main outcome measures Cerebrospinal fluid tau and Abeta42 concentrations were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay at baseline. The potential of both biomarkers was evaluated to predict the progression to dementia, the end point of this study, using multiple logistic regression analysis. Results Of 28 subjects with MCI, 12 progressed to dementia (2 to frontotemporal dementia; 10 to AD). Six subjects had progressive MCI, and 10 subjects showed stable MCI. Cerebrospinal fluid tau levels were significantly elevated in patients who progressed to probable AD (P =.002) and subjects with progressive MCI (P =.003) compared with subjects who had stable MCI. Cerebrospinal fluid Abeta42 levels were significantly lower in patients who progressed to probable AD (P =.007) and those with progressive MCI (P =.04) than in subjects with stable MCI. Logistic regression analysis identified elevated tau protein level as a predictor of cognitive deterioration (P =.02), whereas a delayed verbal recall score at baseline was significantly associated with the development of probable AD (P =.03). Conclusion Our results indicate that altered tau and Abeta42 concentrations may be detectable in subjects who are clinically diagnosed as having MCI but demonstrate the pathological changes of AD.
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APA 7th
Riemenschneider, M., Lautenschlager, N., Wagenpfeil, S., Diehl, J., Drzezga, A., & Kurz, A. (2002). Cerebrospinal fluid tau and beta-amyloid 42 proteins identify Alzheimer disease in subjects with mild cognitive impairment. Archives of neurology. https://doi.org/10.1001/archneur.59.11.1729
Vancouver
Riemenschneider M, Lautenschlager N, Wagenpfeil S, Diehl J, Drzezga A, Kurz A. Cerebrospinal fluid tau and beta-amyloid 42 proteins identify Alzheimer disease in subjects with mild cognitive impairment. Archives of neurology. 2002. doi:10.1001/archneur.59.11.1729. PMID: 12433260.
BibTeX
@article{riemenschneider2002-12433260,
author = {Riemenschneider, M. and Lautenschlager, N. and Wagenpfeil, S. and Diehl, J. and Drzezga, A. and Kurz, A.},
title = {{Cerebrospinal fluid tau and beta-amyloid 42 proteins identify Alzheimer disease in subjects with mild cognitive impairment}},
journal = {Archives of neurology},
year = {2002},
doi = {10.1001/archneur.59.11.1729},
pmid = {12433260},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1001/archneur.59.11.1729}
}
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Key findings
- Results Of 28 subjects with MCI, 12 progressed to dementia (2 to frontotemporal dementia; 10 to AD).
- Cerebrospinal fluid tau levels were significantly elevated in patients who progressed to probable AD (P =.002) and subjects with progressive MCI (P =.003) compared with subjects who had stable MCI.
- Cerebrospinal fluid Abeta42 levels were significantly lower in patients who progressed to probable AD (P =.007) and those with progressive MCI (P =.04) than in subjects with stable MCI.
- Logistic regression analysis identified elevated tau protein level as a predictor of cognitive deterioration (P =.02), whereas a delayed verbal recall score at baseline was significantly associated with the development of probable AD (P =.03).
- Conclusion Our results indicate that altered tau and Abeta42 concentrations may be detectable in subjects who are clinically diagnosed as having MCI but demonstrate the pathological changes of AD.
Why it matters
In 28 people with mild cognitive impairment followed for 18 months, higher cerebrospinal fluid tau and lower beta-amyloid 42 at baseline were found in those who progressed to probable Alzheimer's disease compared with those who remained stable. This is a small longitudinal biomarker study and does not show that any treatment, cure, or prevention works.
Study details
- Study designlongitudinal study
- Participants28
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 57/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a longitudinal study following the same people over time. Scored zero for effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Archives of neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Archives of Neurology: journal h-index 353 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 7 / 12 | A longitudinal study following the same people over time |
| 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 | 2002 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 1 / 4 | 28 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 215 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 8.3 citations a year over 26 year(s) since 2002 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 11.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 25 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 6 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Alexander Kurz: h-index 65 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Technical University of Munich: institution h-index 1,092 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 0 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 1 institution(s) in 1 country — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete) |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 12433260) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 57 / 100 | — |
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