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Tau forms in CSF as a reliable biomarker for progressive supranuclear palsy
Borroni B, Malinverno M, Gardoni F, Alberici A, Parnetti L, Premi E, Bonuccelli U, Grassi M et al.. Neurology, 2008-10-29
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Objective In CSF, extended (55 kDa) and truncated (33 kDa) tau forms have been previously recognized, and the tau 33 kDa/55 kDa ratio has been found significantly reduced in progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) vs in other neurodegenerative disorders. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic value of the CSF tau form ratio as a biomarker of PSP and to correlate the structural anatomic changes as measured by means of voxel-based morphometry (VBM) to CSF tau form ratio decrease. Methods A total of 166 subjects were included in the study (21 PSP, 20 corticobasal degeneration syndrome, 44 frontotemporal dementia, 29 Alzheimer disease, 10 Parkinson disease, 15 dementia with Lewy bodies, and 27 individuals without any neurodegenerative disorder). Each patient underwent a standardized clinical and neuropsychological evaluation. In CSF, a semiquantitative immunoprecipitation was developed to evaluate CSF tau 33 kDa/55 kDa ratio. MRI assessment and VBM analysis was carried out. Results Tau form ratio was significantly reduced in patients with PSP (0.504 +/- 0.284) when compared to age-matched controls (0.989 +/- 0.343), and to patients with other neurodegenerative conditions (range = 0.899-1.215). The area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristic analysis in PSP vs other subgroups ranged from 0.863 to 0.937 (PSP vs others, AUC = 0.897, p Conclusions Truncated tau production, which selectively affects brainstem neuron susceptibility, can be considered a specific and reliable marker for PSP. Tau form ratio was the lowest in progressive supranuclear palsy with no overlap with any other neurodegenerative illness.
Key findings
- Objective In CSF, extended (55 kDa) and truncated (33 kDa) tau forms have been previously recognized, and the tau 33 kDa/55 kDa ratio has been found significantly reduced in progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) vs in other neurodegenerative disorders.
- Results Tau form ratio was significantly reduced in patients with PSP (0.504 +/- 0.284) when compared to age-matched controls (0.989 +/- 0.343), and to patients with other neurodegenerative conditions (range = 0.899-1.215).
Why it matters
A ratio of two tau forms in cerebrospinal fluid was significantly reduced in people with progressive supranuclear palsy compared with controls and people with other neurodegenerative conditions, including Alzheimer disease. This concerns a biomarker for diagnosing progressive supranuclear palsy, not a treatment, cure or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Participants166
- Effect sizeAUC = 0.897
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 55/100
Published in a leading specialty journal. Scored zero for study design 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 | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2008 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 166 participants |
| Effect reported | 3 / 3 | Effect reported with a statistic (interval, p-value, ratio or similar) |
| 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 105 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 5.2 citations a year over 20 year(s) since 2008 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 7.7× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 4 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 9 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Alessandro Padovani: h-index 102 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | University of Milan: institution h-index 1,023 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 6 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 18971445) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 55 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
- DOI: 10.1212/01.wnl.0000335941.68602.39
- PubMed: 18971445
- Original source →
- Free full text: Radboud Repository (Radboud University) →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
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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
Borroni, B., Malinverno, M., Gardoni, F., Alberici, A., Parnetti, L., Premi, E., et al. (2008). Tau forms in CSF as a reliable biomarker for progressive supranuclear palsy. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1212/01.wnl.0000335941.68602.39
Vancouver
Borroni B, Malinverno M, Gardoni F, Alberici A, Parnetti L, Premi E, et al. Tau forms in CSF as a reliable biomarker for progressive supranuclear palsy. Neurology. 2008. doi:10.1212/01.wnl.0000335941.68602.39. PMID: 18971445.
BibTeX
@article{borroni2008-18971445,
author = {Borroni, B. and Malinverno, M. and Gardoni, F. and Alberici, A. and Parnetti, L. and Premi, E. and Bonuccelli, U. and Grassi, M. and others},
title = {{Tau forms in CSF as a reliable biomarker for progressive supranuclear palsy}},
journal = {Neurology},
year = {2008},
doi = {10.1212/01.wnl.0000335941.68602.39},
pmid = {18971445},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1212/01.wnl.0000335941.68602.39}
}
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