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Gaur A, Gallagher D, Herrmann N, Chen JJ, Marzolini S, Oh P, Amemiya Y, Seth A, Kiss A, Lanctôt KL. Neurofilament Light Chain as a Biomarker of Global Cognition in Individuals With Possible Vascular Mild Cognitive Impairment. J Geriatr Psychiatry Neurol 2024:8919887241254469. [PMID: 38757180 DOI: 10.1177/08919887241254469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/18/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Neurofilament Light Chain (NfL) is a biomarker of axonal injury elevated in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's disease dementia. Blood NfL also inversely correlates with cognitive performance in those conditions. However, few studies have assessed NfL as a biomarker of global cognition in individuals demonstrating mild cognitive deficits who are at risk for vascular-related cognitive decline. OBJECTIVE To assess the relationship between blood NfL and global cognition in individuals with possible vascular MCI (vMCI) throughout cardiac rehabilitation (CR). Additionally, NfL levels were compared to age/sex-matched cognitively unimpaired (CU) controls. METHOD Participants with coronary artery disease (vMCI or CU) were recruited at entry to a 24-week CR program. Global cognition was measured using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and plasma NfL level (pg/ml) was quantified using a highly sensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS Higher plasma NfL was correlated with worse MoCA scores at baseline (β = -.352, P = .029) in 43 individuals with vMCI after adjusting for age, sex, and education. An increase in NfL was associated with worse global cognition (b[SE] = -4.81[2.06], P = .023) over time, however baseline NfL did not predict a decline in global cognition. NfL levels did not differ between the vMCI (n = 39) and CU (n = 39) groups (F(1, 76) = 1.37, P = .245). CONCLUSION Plasma NfL correlates with global cognition at baseline in individuals with vMCI, and is associated with decline in global cognition during CR. Our findings increase understanding of NfL and neurobiological mechanisms associated with cognitive decline in vMCI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amish Gaur
- Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Damien Gallagher
- Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Nathan Herrmann
- Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Jinghan Jenny Chen
- Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Susan Marzolini
- KITE Research Institute, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Paul Oh
- KITE Research Institute, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Yutaka Amemiya
- Genomics Core Facility, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Arun Seth
- Genomics Core Facility, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Alex Kiss
- Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Krista L Lanctôt
- Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- KITE Research Institute, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
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