Home › Research › Biomarkers
Plasma Tau and Neurofilament Light in Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration and Alzheimer Disease
Illán-Gala I, Lleo A, Karydas A, Staffaroni AM, Zetterberg H, Sivasankaran R, Grinberg LT, Spina S et al.. Neurology, 2020-11-16
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Objective To test the hypothesis that plasma total tau (t-tau) and neurofilament light chain (NfL) concentrations may have a differential role in the study of frontotemporal lobar degeneration syndromes (FTLD-S) and clinically diagnosed Alzheimer disease syndromes (AD-S), we determined their diagnostic and prognostic value in FTLD-S and AD-S and their sensitivity to pathologic diagnoses. Methods We measured plasma t-tau and NfL with the Simoa platform in 265 participants: 167 FTLD-S, 43 AD-S, and 55 healthy controls (HC), including 82 pathology-proven cases (50 FTLD-tau, 18 FTLD-TDP, 2 FTLD-FUS, and 12 AD) and 98 participants with amyloid PET. We compared cross-sectional and longitudinal biomarker concentrations between groups, their correlation with clinical measures of disease severity, progression, and survival, and cortical thickness. Results Plasma NfL, but not plasma t-tau, discriminated FTLD-S from HC and AD-S from HC. Both plasma NfL and t-tau were poor discriminators between FLTD-S and AD-S. In pathology-confirmed cases, plasma NfL was higher in FTLD than AD and in FTLD-TDP compared to FTLD-tau, after accounting for age and disease severity. Plasma NfL, but not plasma t-tau, predicted clinical decline and survival and correlated with regional cortical thickness in both FTLD-S and AD-S. The combination of plasma NfL with plasma t-tau did not outperform plasma NfL alone. Conclusion Plasma NfL is superior to plasma t-tau for the diagnosis and prediction of clinical progression of FTLD-S and AD-S. Classification of evidence This study provides Class III evidence that plasma NfL has superior diagnostic and prognostic performance vs plasma t-tau in FTLD and AD.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Illán-Gala, I., Lleo, A., Karydas, A., Staffaroni, A. M., Zetterberg, H., Sivasankaran, R., et al. (2021). Plasma Tau and Neurofilament Light in Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration and Alzheimer Disease. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.0000000000011226
Vancouver
Illán-Gala I, Lleo A, Karydas A, Staffaroni AM, Zetterberg H, Sivasankaran R, et al. Plasma Tau and Neurofilament Light in Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration and Alzheimer Disease. Neurology. 2021. doi:10.1212/wnl.0000000000011226. PMID: 33199433.
BibTeX
@article{illangala2021-33199433,
author = {Illán-Gala, I. and Lleo, A. and Karydas, A. and Staffaroni, A. M. and Zetterberg, H. and Sivasankaran, R. and Grinberg, L. T. and Spina, S. and others},
title = {{Plasma Tau and Neurofilament Light in Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration and Alzheimer Disease}},
journal = {Neurology},
year = {2021},
doi = {10.1212/wnl.0000000000011226},
pmid = {33199433},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.0000000000011226}
}
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's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
Key findings
- Results Plasma NfL, but not plasma t-tau, discriminated FTLD-S from HC and AD-S from HC.
- In pathology-confirmed cases, plasma NfL was higher in FTLD than AD and in FTLD-TDP compared to FTLD-tau, after accounting for age and disease severity.
Why it matters
In 265 participants, plasma NfL but not plasma t-tau discriminated frontotemporal lobar degeneration and Alzheimer disease from healthy controls, and both were poor at telling the two apart. Plasma NfL predicted clinical decline and survival, but this concerns diagnosis and prognosis, not treatment, cure or prevention.
New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Blood tests & biomarkers →
Study details
- Study designcross-sectional
- Participants265
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 65/100
Published in a leading specialty journal, and it is a snapshot of people at one point in time. Scored zero for effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Neurology: journal h-index 525 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| 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 | 2 / 4 | 265 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 145 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 20.7 citations a year over 7 year(s) since 2021 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 12.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 17 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 69 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Julio C. Rojas: h-index 41 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University College London: institution h-index 2,029 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 8 institution(s) in 4 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 33199433) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 65 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1212/wnl.0000000000011226
- PubMed: 33199433
- Original source →
- Free full text: PubMed Central →
Full text: free to read — PubMed Central lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 10 Oct 2026).
Studies this one cites
Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here. Showing 12 of 26.
Later studies that cite this one
17 studies in the alzhub library list this one in their references. Showing the 8 highest-scoring.
Related studies in Biomarkers
Also tagged “phosphorylated”
732 studies in the library carry the topic tag “phosphorylated”; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed, alphabetical-by-hash tour of them, not the closest in content. All 732 tagged studies.