Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35484471›Full record

ArticleGeroScience2022

Elevated α-synuclein and NfL levels in tear fluids and decreased retinal microvascular densities in patients with Parkinson's disease.

Chao-Wen Lin, Tzu-Ting Lai, Szu-Ju Chen, Chin-Hsien Lin

Open access · greenAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in GeroScience, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
20citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
4.0field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

20 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 34 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Retinal microvascular alterations in Parkinson's disease: visual analysis and meta-analysis.Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2025
    Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Review
  5. Review
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. Review
  12. Article
  13. Review
  14. Review
  15. Review
  16. Article
  17. Refining the clinical diagnosis of Parkinson's disease.Parkinsonism & related disorders · 2024
    Review
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Chao-Wen LinDepartment of Ophthalmology, National Taiwan University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Tzu-Ting LaiDepartment of Ophthalmology, En Chu Kong Hospital, New Taipei City, Taiwan.
Szu-Ju ChenDepartment of Neurology, National Taiwan University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, 100, Taiwan.
Chin-Hsien LinDepartment of Neurology, National Taiwan University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, 100, Taiwan. chlin@ntu.edu.tw.ORCID 0000-0001-8566-7573
National Taiwan University Hospital · TWEn Chu Kong Hospital · TW

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The pathognomonic hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD), α-synuclein, has been observed in the retina of PD patients. We investigated whether biomarkers in the tears and retinal microvascular changes associate with PD risk and progression. This prospective study enrolled 49 PD patients and 45 age-matched healthy controls. The α-synuclein and neurofilament light chain (NfL) levels were measured using an electrochemiluminescence immunoassay. Retinal vessel density was assessed using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-A). The Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) and Mini-Mental State Examination score were used to assess motor and cognitive progression. The α-synuclein and NfL levels in the tears were higher in PD patients than in controls (α-synuclein: 55.49 ± 8.12 pg/mL vs. 31.71 ± 3.25 pg/mL, P = 0.009; NfL: 2.89 ± 0.52 pg/mL vs. 1.47 ± 0.23 pg/mL, P = 0.02). The vessel densities in the deep plexus of central macula and the radial peripapillary capillary layer of disc region were lower in PD patients with moderate-stage compared with early-stage PD (P < 0.05). The accuracy of predicting PD occurrence using age and sex alone (area under the curve [AUC] 0.612) was significantly improved by adding α-synuclein and NfL levels and retinal vascular densities (AUC 0.752, P = 0.001). After a mean follow-up of 1.5 ± 0.3 years, the accuracy of predicting motor or cognitive progression using age, sex, and baseline motor severity as a basic model was increased by incorporating retinal microvascular and biofluid markers as a full model (P = 0.001). Our results showed that retinal microvascular densities combined with α-synuclein and NfL levels in tears are associated with risk and progression of PD.

Indexed as

alpha-SynucleinMicrovascular DensityNeurofilament ProteinsParkinson DiseaseRetinal VesselsBiomarkersHumansProspective StudiesRetinaTearsalpha-SynucleinBiomarkersNeurofilament ProteinsNeurofilament light chainOptical coherence tomography angiographyParkinson’s diseaseTearsα-Synuclein

Identifiers

PMID35484471
PMCPMC9213621
OpenAlexW4224983921

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.