Home › Research › Tau biomarkers
Soluble TAM receptors sAXL and sTyro3 predict structural and functional protection in Alzheimer's disease
Brosseron F, Maass A, Kleineidam L, Ravichandran KA, González PG, McManus RM, Ising C, Santarelli F et al.. Neuron, 2022-01-06
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
There is an urgent need to improve the understanding of neuroinflammation in Alzheimer's disease (AD). We analyzed cerebrospinal fluid inflammatory biomarker correlations to brain structural volume and longitudinal cognitive outcomes in the DELCODE study and in a validation cohort of the F.ACE Alzheimer Center Barcelona. We investigated whether respective biomarker changes are evident before onset of cognitive impairment.
Key findings
- We analyzed cerebrospinal fluid inflammatory biomarker correlations to brain structural volume and longitudinal cognitive outcomes in the DELCODE study and in a validation cohort of the F.ACE Alzheimer Center Barcelona.
- We investigated whether respective biomarker changes are evident before onset of cognitive impairment.
- YKL-40; sTREM2; sAXL; sTyro3; MIF; complement factors C1q, C4, and H; ferritin; and ApoE protein were elevated in pre-dementia subjects with pathological levels of tau or other neurodegeneration markers, demonstrating tight interactions between inflammation and accumulating neurodegeneration even before onset of symptoms.
- Intriguingly, higher levels of ApoE and soluble TAM receptors sAXL and sTyro3 were related to larger brain structure and stable cognitive outcome at follow-up.
Why it matters
This study found that certain cerebrospinal fluid inflammatory proteins, including sAXL and sTyro3, were linked to better brain structure and cognitive outcomes in people with Alzheimer's disease. It is an observational study and does not show that targeting these proteins would treat or prevent the disease.
New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Blood tests & biomarkers →
Study details
- Study designlongitudinal study
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 59/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a longitudinal study following the same people over time. Scored zero for sample size, effect reported, 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 (Neuron) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Neuron: journal h-index 689 (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 | 3 / 5 | 2022 — 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 | 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 64 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 10.7 citations a year over 6 year(s) since 2022 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 7.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 3 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 44 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Michael Thomas Heneka: h-index 113 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University College London: institution h-index 2,029 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 3 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 32 institution(s) in 7 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 34995486) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 59 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
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
Brosseron, F., Maass, A., Kleineidam, L., Ravichandran, K. A., González, P. G., McManus, R. M., et al. (2022). Soluble TAM receptors sAXL and sTyro3 predict structural and functional protection in Alzheimer's disease. Neuron. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2021.12.016
Vancouver
Brosseron F, Maass A, Kleineidam L, Ravichandran KA, González PG, McManus RM, et al. Soluble TAM receptors sAXL and sTyro3 predict structural and functional protection in Alzheimer's disease. Neuron. 2022. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2021.12.016. PMID: 34995486.
BibTeX
@article{brosseron2022-34995486,
author = {Brosseron, F. and Maass, A. and Kleineidam, L. and Ravichandran, K. A. and González, P. G. and McManus, R. M. and Ising, C. and Santarelli, F. and others},
title = {{Soluble TAM receptors sAXL and sTyro3 predict structural and functional protection in Alzheimer's disease}},
journal = {Neuron},
year = {2022},
doi = {10.1016/j.neuron.2021.12.016},
pmid = {34995486},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2021.12.016}
}
Studies this one cites
Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here. Showing 12 of 20.
Later studies that cite this one
3 studies in the alzhub library list this one in their references.
Related studies in Tau biomarkers
Also tagged “mice”
1,150 studies in the library carry the topic tag “mice”; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed, alphabetical-by-hash tour of them, not the closest in content. All 1,150 tagged studies.