Neurofilament Light Chain Is a Potential MS Biomarker, Study Suggests

The level of neurofilament light chain (NfL) is significantly higher in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) than in healthy control patients, bolstering evidence that it is a potential prognostic biomarker to monitor the progression, activity, and treatment efficacy of MS, according to the findings of a new meta-analysis.

Given the need to identify MS biomarkers in order to make an early diagnosis and monitor disease progression, researchers at the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University in Jiangxi, China, designed a meta-analysis to assess the value of NfL levels as a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) or blood biomarker in patients with MS. NfL is a structural protein that is exclusive to neurons.

The meta-analysis included the results of 15 studies in English evaluating NfL’s utility in the diagnosis of MS. In all, 10 studies (comprising 795 participants) measured NfL in CSF, and 5 studies (comprising 1856 participants) measured NfL in blood.

Based on the results of the meta-analysis, the authors concluded that the elevated levels in CSF and blood in patients with MS show that NfL can be used to distinguish persons with MS from those without it, and that it can predict disease activity and response to treatment. “There is promising evidence that NFL levels could be used as a useful prognostic biomarker to monitor disease progression, disease activity, and treatment efficacy in the future,” they wrote.

—Michael Gerchufsky

Reference:

Cai L, Huang J. Neurofilament light chain as a biological marker for multiple sclerosis: a meta-analysis study. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2018;14:2241-2254. https://doi.org/10.2147/NDT.S173280.