Yu Shuyi, Fan Jing, Zong Shuai, Yu Qian, Cheng Qian, Wang Yunshan, Li Ming, Lu Zhiming
Shandong Provincial Hospital, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, China.
Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong, China.
Ann Med. 2025 Dec;57(1):2493767. doi: 10.1080/07853890.2025.2493767. Epub 2025 Apr 18.
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are promising biomarkers for neurodegeneration. Alu elements are retrotransposons increasingly expressed with age and may be involved in aging-related diseases.
To determine the potential of Alu RNA in plasma-derived EVs as a biomarker for brain aging and neuronal injury.
EVs were isolated from plasma samples across different age groups. EV Alu RNA levels were measured and their associations with biomarkers of brain aging, including plasma neurofilament light chain (NfL), plasma amyloid-beta (Aβ42 and Aβ40), and plasma phosphorylated tau (p-Tau181), were analyzed.
EV Alu RNA levels were increased significantly with age and were strongly correlated with plasma NfL, suggesting a strong association between EV Alu RNA and neuronal injury. Significant correlations were also found between EV Alu RNA and plasma amyloid-beta levels, while no significant association was observed with tau pathology.
EV Alu RNA levels are elevated with age and associated with neuronal injury, highlighting their potential as a novel, non-invasive biomarker for brain aging and neurodegeneration.
细胞外囊泡（EVs）是神经退行性变很有前景的生物标志物。Alu元件是随着年龄增长而表达增加的逆转座子，可能参与与衰老相关的疾病。
确定血浆来源的细胞外囊泡中Alu RNA作为脑衰老和神经元损伤生物标志物的潜力。
从不同年龄组的血浆样本中分离细胞外囊泡。测量细胞外囊泡Alu RNA水平，并分析其与脑衰老生物标志物的相关性，包括血浆神经丝轻链（NfL）、血浆淀粉样β蛋白（Aβ42和Aβ40）以及血浆磷酸化tau蛋白（p-Tau181）。
细胞外囊泡Alu RNA水平随年龄显著增加，且与血浆NfL密切相关，表明细胞外囊泡Alu RNA与神经元损伤之间存在密切关联。细胞外囊泡Alu RNA与血浆淀粉样β蛋白水平之间也存在显著相关性，而与tau病理无显著关联。
细胞外囊泡Alu RNA水平随年龄升高且与神经元损伤相关，凸显了其作为脑衰老和神经退行性变新型非侵入性生物标志物的潜力。
