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Quantification of tau in cerebrospinal fluid by immunoaffinity enrichment and tandem mass spectrometry
McAvoy T, Lassman ME, Spellman DS, Ke Z, Howell BJ, Wong O, Zhu L, Tanen M et al.. Clinical chemistry, 2014-02-24
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Background Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tau is a common biomarker for Alzheimer disease (AD). Measurements of tau have historically been performed using immunoassays. Given the molecular diversity of tau in CSF, the selectivity of these immunoassays has often been questioned.
Key findings
- Measurements of tau have historically been performed using immunoassays.
- Given the molecular diversity of tau in CSF, the selectivity of these immunoassays has often been questioned.
- Therefore, we aimed to develop an analytically sensitive and selective immunoaffinity liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) (IA-MS) assay.
- Methods IA-MS sample analysis involved the addition of an internal standard, immunoaffinity purification of tau using a tau monoclonal antibody coupled to magnetic beads, trypsin digestion, and quantification of a surrogate tau peptide by LC-MS/MS using a Waters Trizaic nanoTile ultraperformance LC microfluidic device.
Why it matters
This study describes a new laboratory method for measuring tau in cerebrospinal fluid using immunoaffinity enrichment and tandem mass spectrometry. It is a technical measurement study and does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Blood tests & biomarkers →
Study details
- Effect size3.2% to 8.1%; 7.8% to 18.9%
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 42/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Clinical chemistry) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Clinical Chemistry: journal h-index 323 (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 | 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 | 2 / 3 | Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 4 / 7 | Cited 75 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 5.4 citations a year over 14 year(s) since 2014 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 6.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 1 / 6 | Cited by 1 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 5 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Omar Laterza: h-index 32 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA (United States): institution h-index 926 (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 24566260) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 42 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
May need a subscription OpenAlex found no free copy of the full text (checked 6 Feb 1020), so the publisher may charge for it. The PubMed abstract is free.
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's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
McAvoy, T., Lassman, M. E., Spellman, D. S., Ke, Z., Howell, B. J., Wong, O., et al. (2014). Quantification of tau in cerebrospinal fluid by immunoaffinity enrichment and tandem mass spectrometry. Clinical chemistry. https://doi.org/10.1373/clinchem.2013.216515
Vancouver
McAvoy T, Lassman ME, Spellman DS, Ke Z, Howell BJ, Wong O, et al. Quantification of tau in cerebrospinal fluid by immunoaffinity enrichment and tandem mass spectrometry. Clinical chemistry. 2014. doi:10.1373/clinchem.2013.216515. PMID: 24566260.
BibTeX
@article{mcavoy2014-24566260,
author = {McAvoy, T. and Lassman, M. E. and Spellman, D. S. and Ke, Z. and Howell, B. J. and Wong, O. and Zhu, L. and Tanen, M. and others},
title = {{Quantification of tau in cerebrospinal fluid by immunoaffinity enrichment and tandem mass spectrometry}},
journal = {Clinical chemistry},
year = {2014},
doi = {10.1373/clinchem.2013.216515},
pmid = {24566260},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1373/clinchem.2013.216515}
}
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