Diagnostic Values of Cerebrospinal Fluid T-Tau and Aβ 42 using Meso Scale Discovery Assays for Alzheimer's Disease

Abstract

Background:

Meso Scale Discovery (MSD) recently established electrochemiluminescence-based assays to measure cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) levels of total tau (t-tau) and amyloid-β 1-42 peptide (Aβ₄₂) that can aid in the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The goal of this investigation is to independently evaluate this platform and establish cut-off values of these biomarkers for AD diagnosis.

Objective:

To validate the analytical and clinical performance of the MSD t-tau and Aβ₄₂ kits and propose diagnostic cut-off values for the field.

Methods:

The analytical performance of the CSF t-tau and Aβ₄₂ assays was determined, followed by assessment of diagnostic performance of CSF t-tau, Aβ₄₂, and t-tau/Aβ₄₂ in three clinically characterized cohorts.

Results:

Both MSD assays demonstrated consistent and stable analytical performance, as well as resistance to several important pre-analytic variables. Diagnostically, t-tau/Aβ₄₂ performed the best.

Conclusions:

Our results independently confirm the analytical and clinical performance of the MSD CSF t-tau and Aβ₄₂ assays. Based on a large, multi-center, clinically-diagnosed cohort, we propose for the first time candidate diagnostic cut-offs for MSD measured CSF t-tau, Aβ₄₂, and t-tau/Aβ₄₂. However, these values needs to be refined as more subjects are included and the assays are tested by other laboratories.