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Plasma neurofilament light chain is associated with cognitive decline in non-dementia older adults
Lingxiao He, John E Morley, Geetika Aggarwal, Andrew D Nguyen, Bruno Vellas, Philipe de Souto Barreto, MAPT/DSA Group. Scientific reports, 2021-06-28
Topic: Brain imaging, connectivity and assessment
Neurofilament light chain (NfL) has been associated with cognitive status in multiple neurodegenerative conditions. Studies about plasma NfL and cognitive decline in older adults are still limited. 504 older adults (median age 75 years) who expressed memory complaints were selected from the Multidomain Alzheimer's Preventive Trial (MAPT) and were classified as normal cognition (NC) or mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Cognitive functions were measured as mini mental state examination (MMSE) and composite cognitive score (CCS) over a 4-year period. Plasma NfL was measured at the first or the second year of the MAPT. Mixed-effects linear models were performed to evaluate cross-sectional and longitudinal associations. In the whole population, higher plasma NfL was cross-sectionally associated with lower cognitive functions (MMSE: β = - 0.007, 95% CI [- 0.013, - 0.001]; CCS: β = - 0.003, 95% CI [- 0.006, - 0.001]). In adults with MCI, but not NC, higher plasma NfL was associated with lower CCS at the cross-sectional level (β = - 0.003, 95% CI [- 0.005, - 0.0002]). The upper quartile NfL group further demonstrated more over time decline in CCS (β = - 0.07, 95% CI [- 0.12, - 0.01]) under the MCI status. Plasma NfL can be a promising biomarker of progressive cognition decline in older adults with MCI.
Key findings
- Neurofilament light chain (NfL) has been associated with cognitive status in multiple neurodegenerative conditions.
- In the whole population, higher plasma NfL was cross-sectionally associated with lower cognitive functions (MMSE: β = - 0.007, 95% CI [- 0.013, - 0.001]; CCS: β = - 0.003, 95% CI [- 0.006, - 0.001]).
- In adults with MCI, but not NC, higher plasma NfL was associated with lower CCS at the cross-sectional level (β = - 0.003, 95% CI [- 0.005, - 0.0002]).
- The upper quartile NfL group further demonstrated more over time decline in CCS (β = - 0.07, 95% CI [- 0.12, - 0.01]) under the MCI status.
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Study details
- Study designcross-sectional
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 57/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a snapshot of people at one point in time. Scored zero for sample size, effect reported and randomised / 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, multi-centre collaboration and free to read, so those were left out: it earned 32 of the 56 points we could judge it on, which is 57 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Scientific reports) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Study design | 4 / 12 | A snapshot of people at one point in 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 | 3 / 5 | 2021 — within 6 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 | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (pubmed indexes it as a clinical or observational study) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation 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 |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 34183688) |
| Free to read | — / 2 | Access not recorded — left out of this score |
| Points | 32 / 56 | Scored on 10 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 32 of the 56 points we could judge it on is 57 out of 100. |
| Total | 57 / 100 | — |
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record names 7 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
He, L., Morley, J. E., Aggarwal, G., Nguyen, A. D., Vellas, B., Barreto, P. d. S., et al. (2021). Plasma neurofilament light chain is associated with cognitive decline in non-dementia older adults. Scientific reports. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-91038-0
Vancouver
He L, Morley JE, Aggarwal G, Nguyen AD, Vellas B, Barreto PdS, et al. Plasma neurofilament light chain is associated with cognitive decline in non-dementia older adults. Scientific reports. 2021. doi:10.1038/s41598-021-91038-0. PMID: 34183688.
BibTeX
@article{he2021-34183688,
author = {He, Lingxiao and Morley, John E and Aggarwal, Geetika and Nguyen, Andrew D and Vellas, Bruno and Barreto, Philipe de Souto and {MAPT/DSA Group}},
title = {{Plasma neurofilament light chain is associated with cognitive decline in non-dementia older adults}},
journal = {Scientific reports},
year = {2021},
doi = {10.1038/s41598-021-91038-0},
pmid = {34183688},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-91038-0}
}
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