A review finds extracellular vesicle biomarkers for ALS promising but not ready for clinical use
Original source
Extracellular vesicles as a liquid biopsy for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. (opens in a new tab)Compass summarised this from the study's abstract.
Study details
- Study type
- Systematic review
- Studied in
- Human
A systematic review and meta-analysis of 41 studies found that extracellular vesicle biomarkers, including proteins and RNAs, may help detect amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Across 11 studies, diagnostic accuracy was moderate, with an area under the curve of 0.839. The researchers reported substantial methodological variation and limited independent replication.
Why this matters
These findings may guide research into less invasive ALS biomarkers. They do not currently change diagnosis or treatment for people with ALS, because the markers still need standardized testing and independent validation.
Limitations and context
This was a review of existing studies rather than a new clinical test study. Results for extracellular vesicle-associated TDP-43 were highly heterogeneous, and the RNA studies had little overlap. Some data were reconstructed from figures or obtained from study authors, and the diagnostic accuracy estimates were exploratory. The review found no evidence that these biomarkers are ready for routine clinical use.