Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42321679›Full record

ArticleBMC neurology2026

Neurofilament light chain and glial fibrillary acidic protein as biomarkers of peripheral nervous system involvement in multiple sclerosis: diagnostic and prognostic evaluation.

Alina Flintere-Flinte, Vladimirs Krutovs, Elizabete Pantelejeva, Kaj Blennow, Henrik Zetterberg, Maksims Zolovs, Viktorija Kenina

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Article in BMC neurology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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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

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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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

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

7 authors.

Alina Flintere-Flinte *Department of Neurology, Pauls Stradins Clinical University Hospital, Riga, Latvia. alina.flintereflinte@gmail.com.
Vladimirs Krutovs *Department of Neurology, Pauls Stradins Clinical University Hospital, Riga, Latvia.
Elizabete PantelejevaFaculty of Medicine, Riga Stradins University, Riga, Latvia.
Kaj BlennowClinical Neurochemistry Laboratory, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Mölndal, Sweden.
Henrik ZetterbergClinical Neurochemistry Laboratory, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Mölndal, Sweden.
Maksims Zolovs *Statistics Unit, Riga Stradins University, Riga, Latvia.
Viktorija Kenina *Department of Neurology, Pauls Stradins Clinical University Hospital, Riga, Latvia.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMultiple sclerosis is a chronic demyelinating disease of the central nervous system caused by an immune-mediated inflammatory process. Its aetiology remains unclear, and numerous pathogenetic theories have been proposed. The diversity of clinical manifestations and the lack of reliable biomarkers make diagnosis challenging. Serum neurofilament light chain (NfL) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) have been investigated as potential biomarkers for disease progression and response to disease-modifying therapies; however, their specificity and sensitivity remain variable, particularly in the presence of other conditions associated with neuronal damage and neurodegeneration.

methodsThis retrospective study analysed serum NfL and GFAP levels in 149 patients with multiple sclerosis and 40 healthy controls. Additionally, the association between the two biomarkers was evaluated in patients with and without polyneuropathy to assess their reliability and prognostic value for disease severity and progression.

resultsSerum NfL was found to be a reliable marker of disease activity and progression. In contrast, GFAP demonstrated limited specificity and was not suitable as a single, independent biomarker. The presence of co-existing polyneuropathy influenced biomarker levels and complicated their interpretation.

conclusionSerum NfL shows promise as a reliable biomarker for monitoring disease activity and progression in multiple sclerosis. However, GFAP should not be used independently due to its limited specificity. Co-existing polyneuropathy may further reduce the reliability of these biomarkers, highlighting potential diagnostic challenges in clinical practice.

Indexed as

Glial Fibrillary Acidic ProteinMultiple SclerosisNeurofilament ProteinsAdultBiomarkersDisease ProgressionFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPrognosisReproducibility of ResultsRetrospective StudiesSensitivity and SpecificityBiomarkersGFAP protein, humanGlial Fibrillary Acidic Proteinneurofilament protein LNeurofilament ProteinsBiomarkersGlial fibrillary acidic proteinMultiple sclerosisNeurofilament light chainPolyneuropathies

Identifiers

PMID42321679
PMCPMC13425983

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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.