Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40238207›Full record

ArticleJournal of neuropathology and experimental neurology2025

Digital pathology in tau research: A comparison of QuPath and HALO.

Angelique D Gonzalez, Yannick N Wadop, Benjamin Danner, Kyra M Clarke, Matthew B Dopler, Ali Ghaseminejad-Bandpey, Sahana Babu, Julie Parker-Garza, Cole Corbett, Mohammad Alhneif and 7 more

Erratum issuedAbstract readComparative Study
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of neuropathology and experimental neurology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

6 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Comparison of multiple quantitative strategies for neuropathologic image analyses.Journal of neuropathology and experimental neurology · 2025
    Article
  6. Celebrating neuropathology's contributions to Alzheimer's Disease Research Centers.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2025
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

17 authors.

Angelique D GonzalezGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.ORCID 0009-0008-0653-136X
Yannick N WadopGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.
Benjamin DannerGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.
Kyra M ClarkeGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.ORCID 0000-0002-1913-3992
Matthew B DoplerGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.
Ali Ghaseminejad-BandpeyGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.
Sahana BabuGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.
Julie Parker-GarzaGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.
Cole CorbettGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.ORCID 0009-0003-0671-5736
Mohammad AlhneifGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.
Mallory KeatingGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.
Kevin F BieniekGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.
Gladys E MaestreInstitute of Neurosciences, School of Medicine, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Harlingen, TX, United States.
Sudha SeshadriGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.
Shahroo EtemadmoghadamGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.ORCID 0000-0002-2548-9493
Bernard FongangGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.
Margaret E FlanaganGlenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.ORCID 0009-0008-7078-3545

Funding

South Texas Alzheimer's Disease Research CenterP30AG066546 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCIENCE CENTER · PI Sudha Seshadri · 2021 to 2026
$24.0M
Federated digital pathology platform for AD/ADRD research and diagnosticsU24NS133945 · NINDS · UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY · PI BUMGARDNER, CODY, FLANAGAN, MARGARET E · 2023 to 2025
$4.9M
Characterize neuronal and glial cell-specific vulnerability to proteinopathies in Alzheimer's disease using multimodal single-nuclei genomic and epigenomic approachesR01AG082118 · NIA · CLEVELAND CLINIC LERNER COM-CWRU · PI BONAKDARPOUR, BORNA, CHENG, FEIXIONG · 2023 to 2025
$2.4M
South Texas Medical Scientist Training Program (STX-MSTP)T32GM145432 · NIGMS · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCIENCE CENTER · PI Jose E Cavazos, Ratna K Vadlamudi · 2023 to 2026
$2.3M
Exploring the origins of myelin abnormalities in normal ageing and in vascular dementiaRF1AG072080 · NIA · NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY AT CHICAGO · PI FLANAGAN, MARGARET E, POPKO, BRIAN J · 2021 to 2021
$2.2M
Exploring the origins of myelin abnormalities in normal ageing and in vascular dementiaR01AG072080 · NIA · NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY AT CHICAGO · PI FLANAGAN, MARGARET E, POPKO, BRIAN J · 2024 to 2025
$1.4M
Building Unique Infrastructure for Large-scale Dementia research in French-Speaking Africa (BUILD-FSA) ProjectUG3AG090675 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCIENCE CENTER · PI Bernard Fongang, Alfred Kongnyu Njamnshi · 2025 to 2026
$992k
Delineating the role of the gut microbiota and its derived metabolites in the development of dementia in multi-ethnic populationsK01NS126489 · NINDS · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCIENCE CENTER · PI Bernard Fongang · 2023 to 2026
$882k
nvestigating the role of neuroinflammation in Limbic-predominant age related TDP43 encephalopathyK08AG065463 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCIENCE CENTER · PI FLANAGAN, MARGARET E · 2020 to 2024
$816k
South Texas Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Disorders Training ProgramT32AG082661 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCIENCE CENTER · PI Jose E Cavazos, PETER Thornton FOX · 2023 to 2026
$676k
Baptist Foundation of San Antonio EndowmentNeuropathology Core Leader K08AG065463Neuropathology Core Leader P30AG066546Neuropathology Core Leader R01AG072080Neuropathology Core Leader R01AG082118Neuropathology Core Leader RF1AG072080Neuropathology Core Leader U24NS133945NIA NIH HHS K08 AG065463NIA NIH HHS P30 AG066546NIA NIH HHS R01 AG072080NIA NIH HHS R01 AG082118NIA NIH HHS RF1 AG072080NIA NIH HHS T32 AG082661NIA NIH HHS UG3 AG090675NIGMS NIH HHS T32 GM145432NIH HHSNINDS NIH HHS K01 NS126489NINDS NIH HHS U24 NS133945Owen's Foundation
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The application of digital pathology tools has expanded in recent years, but non-neoplastic human brain tissue presents unique challenges due to its complexity. This study evaluated HALO and QuPath tau quantification performance in the hippocampus and mid-frontal gyrus across various tauopathies. Percent positivity emerged as the most reliable measure, showing strong correlations with Braak stages and CERAD scores, outperforming object and optical densities. QuPath demonstrated superior correlations with Braak stages, while HALO excelled in aligning with CERAD scoring. However, HALO's optical density was less consistent. Paired t-tests revealed significant differences in object and optical densities between platforms, though percent positivity was consistent across both. QuPath's threshold-based object density showed similar agreement with manual counts compared to HALO's AI-dependent approach (all ρ > 0.70). Reanalysis of QuPath further improved its agreement with manual measurements and correlations with Braak and CERAD scores (all ρ > 0.70). HALO offers a user-friendly interface and excels in certain metrics but is hindered by frequent software malfunctions and more limited flexibility. In contrast, QuPath's customizable workflows and superior performance in Braak staging make it more suitable for advanced and larger-scale analyses. Overall, our study highlights the strengths and limitations of these platforms, helping guide their application in neuropathology.

Indexed as

BrainImage Processing, Computer-AssistedTauopathiestau ProteinsAgedAged, 80 and overFemaleHumansMaleMiddle Agedtau ProteinsAIdigital pathologyHALOquantitative image analysisQuPathtautauopathy

Identifiers

PMID40238207
PMCPMC12277702

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
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.