Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42436533›Full record

ArticleAlzheimer's research & therapy2026

Analytical and clinical validation of a novel proximity extension assay-based plasma biomarker panel in a cohort of prevalent neurodegenerative dementias.

Giuseppe Mario Bentivenga, Angela Mammana, Simone Baiardi, Erica Vittoriosi, Andrea Mastrangelo, Edoardo Ruggeri, Claudia Marina Vargiu, Barbara Polischi, Michelangelo Stanzani-Maserati, Giovanni Rizzo and 4 more

Abstract readValidation Study
In one paragraph

Article in Alzheimer's research & therapy, 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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1 · What the graph read from it

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

14 authors.

Giuseppe Mario Bentivenga *Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences (DiBiNeM), University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Angela Mammana *IRCCS, Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Simone BaiardiDepartment of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences (DiBiNeM), University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Erica VittoriosiDepartment of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences (DiBiNeM), University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Andrea MastrangeloDepartment of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences (DiBiNeM), University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Edoardo RuggeriIRCCS, Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Claudia Marina VargiuIRCCS, Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Barbara PolischiIRCCS, Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Michelangelo Stanzani-MaseratiIRCCS, Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Giovanni RizzoIRCCS, Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Roberta PantieriIRCCS, Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Alberto RaggiUnit of Neurology, G.B. Morgagni - L. Pierantoni Hospital, Forlì, Italy.
Sabina CapellariDepartment of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences (DiBiNeM), University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Piero ParchiDepartment of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences (DiBiNeM), University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy. piero.parchi@unibo.it.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9444-9524

Funding

Ministero della Salute Ricerca Corrente
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundBlood-based biomarkers are increasingly recognized as promising tools for the diagnosis and monitoring of neurodegenerative diseases, offering a minimally invasive alternative to cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) testing. We evaluated the analytical performance and clinical utility of the Olink Target 48 Neurodegeneration panel, a novel multiplex proteomic platform based on the proximity extension assay (PEA) technology, in a large, clinically diverse dementia cohort.

methodsWe retrospectively analyzed plasma samples from 238 patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), dementia with Lewy bodies, frontotemporal dementia, progressive supranuclear palsy, and corticobasal degeneration, along with 65 healthy controls, quantifying 41 proteins in each sample. We assessed analytical performance using intra- and inter-assay coefficients of variation, evaluated diagnostic accuracy through receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, and investigated associations between biomarker levels, clinical severity measures, and pathology-specific CSF biomarkers for AD and Lewy body pathology (LBP) using general linear models.

resultsThe platform quantified 32 proteins with variable analytical performance; nine were excluded due to poor detectability. Strong correlations were observed between PEA-based measurements and established immunoassays for plasma pTau217, NEFL, and GFAP (all p < 0.001). Plasma pTau217 demonstrated superior diagnostic accuracy for AD, achieving an area under the curve (AUC) exceeding 0.91 against all comparison groups. Novel ratios combining NEFL with markers of immune function or synaptic integrity (NEFL/ITGB2, NEFL/ITGAM, NEFL/SCG2) achieved AUCs exceeding 0.93 for discriminating patients from controls, significantly outperforming NEFL alone (all p < 0.001). Thirteen proteins, spanning markers of neuroaxonal damage, myelin-associated processes, and immune function (i.e., Abeta40, Abeta42, BMP7, CLSTN3, ENO2, KLK8, MMP10, NEFL, NPTXR, OMG, RTN4R, SCG2, SDC4, all p < 0.01) showed significant independent associations with disease stage as measured by the Clinical Dementia Rating scale. Four proteins (i.e., pTau217, GFAP, SYT1, and SDC4) were significantly associated with AD pathology, while three (ENO2, ITGAM, and ITGB2) showed significant associations with LBP (all p < 0.05).

conclusionsThis multiplex platform provides multiplex biomarker measurements with potential utility for AD diagnosis and disease staging across neurodegenerative disorders. These findings support further validation studies for its implementation in clinical and research settings.

Indexed as

BiomarkersDementiaNeurodegenerative DiseasesProteomicsAgedAged, 80 and overAlzheimer DiseaseCohort StudiesFemaleHumansLewy Body DiseaseMaleMiddle AgedReproducibility of ResultsRetrospective StudiesROC CurveBiomarkersAlzheimer’s diseaseCorticobasal syndromeDementia with Lewy bodiesFrontotemporal dementiaPlasmaPlasma tau phosphorylated at threonine 217Primary progressive aphasiaProgressive supranuclear palsyProteomicsProximity extension assay

Identifiers

PMID42436533
PMCPMC13647865

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