Institute of Physiology, Centre for Physiology and Pharmacology, Medical University of Vienna, Schwarzspanierstrasse 17, 1090 Vienna, EU, Austria.
Acta Neuropathol Commun. 2014 Jun 16;2:65. doi: 10.1186/2051-5960-2-65.
Peripheral biomarkers play an indispensable role in quick and reliable diagnoses of any kind of disease. With the population ageing, the number of people suffering from age-related diseases is expected to rise dramatically over the coming decades. In particular, all types of cognitive deficits, such as Alzheimer's disease, will increase. Alzheimer's disease is characterised mainly by coexistence of amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in brain. Reliable identification of such molecular characteristics antemortem, however, is problematic due to restricted availability of appropriate sample material and definitive diagnosis is only possible postmortem. Currently, the best molecular biomarkers available for antemortem diagnosis originate from cerebrospinal fluid. Though, this is not convenient for routine diagnosis because of the required invasive lumbar puncture. As a consequence, there is a growing demand for additional peripheral biomarkers in a more readily accessible sample material. Blood platelets, due to shared biochemical properties with neurons, can constitute an attractive alternative as discussed here. This review summarises potential platelet Alzheimer's disease biomarkers, their role, implication, and alteration in the disease. For easy comparison of their performance, the Hedge effect size was calculated whenever data were available.
外周生物标志物在快速可靠地诊断任何类型的疾病方面发挥着不可或缺的作用。随着人口老龄化，未来几十年内，患与年龄相关疾病的人数预计将大幅上升。特别是各种认知障碍，如阿尔茨海默病，将会增加。阿尔茨海默病的主要特征是大脑中存在淀粉样斑块和神经纤维缠结。然而，由于适当样本材料的可用性有限，可靠地鉴定此类分子特征在生前是有问题的，只有在死后才能做出明确的诊断。目前，可用于生前诊断的最佳分子生物标志物来自脑脊液。尽管如此，由于需要进行有创的腰椎穿刺，这并不方便用于常规诊断。因此，人们对外周生物标志物的需求越来越大，需要更易获取的样本材料。血小板由于与神经元具有共同的生化特性，可以作为一种有吸引力的替代物，正如这里所讨论的那样。这篇综述总结了潜在的血小板阿尔茨海默病生物标志物及其在疾病中的作用、意义和变化。为了便于比较它们的性能，只要有数据，就计算 Hedge 效应大小。
