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Potential Diagnostic Value of Red Blood Cells α-Synuclein Heteroaggregates in Alzheimer's Disease
Baldacci F, Daniele S, Piccarducci R, Giampietri L, Pietrobono D, Giorgi FS, Nicoletti V, Frosini D et al.. Molecular neurobiology, 2019-03-02
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
A plethora of complex misfolded protein combinations have been found in Alzheimer disease (AD) brains besides the classical pathological hallmarks. Recently, α-synuclein (α-syn) and its heterocomplexes with amyloid-β (Aβ) and tau have been suggested to be involved in the pathophysiological processes of neurodegenerative diseases. These pathological features are not limited to the brain, but can be also found in peripheral fluids. In this respect, red blood cells (RBCs) have been suggested as a good model to investigate the biochemical alterations of neurodegeneration. Our aim is to find whether RBC concentrations of α-syn and its heterocomplexes (i.e., α-syn/Aβ and α-syn/tau) were different in AD patients compared with healthy controls (HC). The levels of homo- and heteroaggregates of α-syn, Aβ and tau, were analyzed in a cohort of AD patients at early stage either with dementia or prodromal symptoms (N = 39) and age-matched healthy controls (N = 39). All AD patients received a biomarker-based diagnosis (low cerebrospinal fluid levels of Aβ peptide combined with high cerebrospinal fluid concentrations of total tau and/or phospho-tau proteins; alternatively, a positivity to cerebral amyloid-PET scan). Our results showed lower concentrations of α-syn and its heterocomplexes (i.e., α-syn/Aβ and α-syn/tau) in RBCs of AD patients with respect to HC. RBC α-syn/Aβ as well as RBC α-syn/tau heterodimers discriminated AD participants from HC with fair accuracy, whereas RBC α-syn concentrations differentiated poorly the two groups. Although additional investigations are required, these data suggest α-syn heteroaggregates in RBCs as potential tool in the diagnostic work-up of early AD diagnosis.
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APA 7th
Baldacci, F., Daniele, S., Piccarducci, R., Giampietri, L., Pietrobono, D., Giorgi, F. S., et al. (2019). Potential Diagnostic Value of Red Blood Cells α-Synuclein Heteroaggregates in Alzheimer's Disease. Molecular neurobiology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12035-019-1531-4
Vancouver
Baldacci F, Daniele S, Piccarducci R, Giampietri L, Pietrobono D, Giorgi FS, et al. Potential Diagnostic Value of Red Blood Cells α-Synuclein Heteroaggregates in Alzheimer's Disease. Molecular neurobiology. 2019. doi:10.1007/s12035-019-1531-4. PMID: 30826968.
BibTeX
@article{baldacci2019-30826968,
author = {Baldacci, F. and Daniele, S. and Piccarducci, R. and Giampietri, L. and Pietrobono, D. and Giorgi, F. S. and Nicoletti, V. and Frosini, D. and others},
title = {{Potential Diagnostic Value of Red Blood Cells α-Synuclein Heteroaggregates in Alzheimer's Disease}},
journal = {Molecular neurobiology},
year = {2019},
doi = {10.1007/s12035-019-1531-4},
pmid = {30826968},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s12035-019-1531-4}
}
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Key findings
- Our aim is to find whether RBC concentrations of α-syn and its heterocomplexes (i.e., α-syn/Aβ and α-syn/tau) were different in AD patients compared with healthy controls (HC).
- Our results showed lower concentrations of α-syn and its heterocomplexes (i.e., α-syn/Aβ and α-syn/tau) in RBCs of AD patients with respect to HC.
Why it matters
Red blood cells from people with early Alzheimer disease had lower levels of alpha-synuclein and its complexes with amyloid-beta and tau than healthy controls. This suggests a possible peripheral marker, but the study was small and did not show whether measuring it helps diagnosis or treatment.
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Study details
- Participants39
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 43/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Molecular neurobiology) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Molecular Neurobiology: journal h-index 176 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| 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 | 2 / 5 | 2019 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 1 / 4 | 39 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 | 3 / 7 | Cited 36 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 4.0 citations a year over 9 year(s) since 2019 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 3.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 13 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Claudia Martini: h-index 58 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | University of Pisa: institution h-index 907 (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 30826968) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 43 / 100 | — |
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