Single step capture and assessment of multiple plasma extracellular vesicle biomarkers in Alzheimer's disease detection.

Background: Blood tests for Alzheimer's disease (AD) that measure biomarkers related to neuropathology have demonstrated to be useful, minimally-invasive ways to identify patients for screening into clinical trials. While some AD biomarkers can be detected in plasma, greater sensitivity is needed to make plasma AD tests more effective. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) in plasma carry AD-related biomarkers from the brain and could offer a concentrated source of brain-related biomarkers, though the methodological complexities involved in isolating plasma EVs have hampered its validation for clinical use.

Objective: To explore the feasibility and effectiveness of developing blood tests for AD utilizing extracellular vesicle-bound protein biomarkers.

Methods: We developed a simplified method for isolating EVs directly from plasma using an alternating current electrokinetic (ACE) microchip. No sample pretreatment steps were needed. Protein biomarkers on the EVs were detected by adding fluorescent antibodies to the plasma samples before capture by the chip. This allowed measurement of EV biomarker levels directly on the chip.

Results: AD or non-AD control plasma was measured for ten different AD-related biomarkers. EV-associated NCAM1, pTau231, α-synuclein, and TDP-43 levels were able to distinguish a group of 10 AD, 10 mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and 10 non-AD subjects. pTau231 was different between AD and non-AD (p = 0.0300) and α-synuclein differentiated AD from MCI (p = 0.0148).

Conclusions: This study shows how ACE microfluidic chip technology can help differentiate AD and MCI patients from non-AD controls with clinical relevance. This work also highlights the important diagnostic role of plasma EV biomarkers in neurodegenerative disease.