Neurofilament Light Chain in Aqueous Humor as a Marker of Neurodegeneration in Glaucoma
Jonathan B Lin,1 Kristen M Pitts,1 Hani El Helwe,1 Cameron Neeson,1 Nathan E Hall,1 Henisk Falah,1 Stephanie A Schultz,2 Silas L Wang,1 Kristine Lo,1 Christian Song,1 Milica A Margeta,1,* David Solá-Del Valle1,* 1Department of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts E...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Dove Medical Press
2023-08-01
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| Series: | Clinical Ophthalmology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.dovepress.com/neurofilament-light-chain-in-aqueous-humor-as-a-marker-of-neurodegener-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-OPTH |
| _version_ | 1797755211987550208 |
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| author | Lin JB Pitts KM El Helwe H Neeson C Hall NE Falah H Schultz SA Wang SL Lo K Song C Margeta MA Solá-Del Valle D |
| author_facet | Lin JB Pitts KM El Helwe H Neeson C Hall NE Falah H Schultz SA Wang SL Lo K Song C Margeta MA Solá-Del Valle D |
| author_sort | Lin JB |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Jonathan B Lin,1 Kristen M Pitts,1 Hani El Helwe,1 Cameron Neeson,1 Nathan E Hall,1 Henisk Falah,1 Stephanie A Schultz,2 Silas L Wang,1 Kristine Lo,1 Christian Song,1 Milica A Margeta,1,* David Solá-Del Valle1,* 1Department of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Boston, MA, USA; 2Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: David Solá-Del Valle; Milica A Margeta, Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology, Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical School, 243 Charles Street, Boston, MA, 02114, USA, Email david_sola-delvalle@meei.harvard.edu; milica_margeta@meei.harvard.eduPurpose: Neurofilament light chain (NfL) is a neuronal cytoskeletal protein that has been identified as a marker of neurodegeneration in diseases of the central nervous system. In this study, we investigated whether NfL in the aqueous humor (AH) can serve as a marker of neurodegeneration in glaucoma in a racially diverse North American population.Design: Single-center, case–control study.Participants: We enrolled patients with various types and stages of glaucoma undergoing planned ophthalmic surgery as part of their routine care and compared them with patients without glaucoma undergoing phacoemulsification for age-related cataract.Methods: We collected AH from 39 glaucoma patients and 10 patients without glaucoma. AH NfL was quantified using the Single-Molecule Array (Simoa)® NF-light assay (Quanterix). Demographic information, such as age, body mass index, sex, and self-reported race, as well as clinical information, such as pre-operative intraocular pressure (IOP), maximum IOP, and number of pre-operative glaucoma medications, was obtained by reviewing the medical record.Main Outcome Measures: Levels of AH NfL.Results: In a model controlling for age and body mass index (BMI), NfL was significantly elevated in AH from glaucoma patients (mean: 429 pg/mL; standard deviation [SD]: 1136 pg/mL) compared to AH from patients without glaucoma (mean: 3.1 pg/mL; SD: 1.9 pg/mg): P = 0.002. Higher AH NfL was associated with higher maximum IOP (R = 0.44, P = 0.005), higher pre-operative IOP (R = 0.46, P = 0.003), and more pre-operative glaucoma medications (Rs = 0.61, P < 0.001). There was no association between AH NfL and Humphrey visual field mean deviation (R = − 0.20, P = 0.220), retinal nerve fiber layer thickness as measured with optical coherence tomography (R = 0.07, P = 0.694), or glaucoma stage (Rs = 0.015, P = 0.935).Conclusion: Our findings suggest that AH NfL may have clinical utility as a marker of glaucomatous neurodegeneration.Keywords: neurofilament light chain, glaucoma, neurodegeneration, biomarker |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T17:44:32Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-531febb6a44443719cfe5b5be3feb571 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1177-5483 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T17:44:32Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | Dove Medical Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Clinical Ophthalmology |
| spelling | doaj.art-531febb6a44443719cfe5b5be3feb5712023-08-03T19:02:12ZengDove Medical PressClinical Ophthalmology1177-54832023-08-01Volume 172209221785625Neurofilament Light Chain in Aqueous Humor as a Marker of Neurodegeneration in GlaucomaLin JBPitts KMEl Helwe HNeeson CHall NEFalah HSchultz SAWang SLLo KSong CMargeta MASolá-Del Valle DJonathan B Lin,1 Kristen M Pitts,1 Hani El Helwe,1 Cameron Neeson,1 Nathan E Hall,1 Henisk Falah,1 Stephanie A Schultz,2 Silas L Wang,1 Kristine Lo,1 Christian Song,1 Milica A Margeta,1,* David Solá-Del Valle1,* 1Department of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Boston, MA, USA; 2Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: David Solá-Del Valle; Milica A Margeta, Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology, Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical School, 243 Charles Street, Boston, MA, 02114, USA, Email david_sola-delvalle@meei.harvard.edu; milica_margeta@meei.harvard.eduPurpose: Neurofilament light chain (NfL) is a neuronal cytoskeletal protein that has been identified as a marker of neurodegeneration in diseases of the central nervous system. In this study, we investigated whether NfL in the aqueous humor (AH) can serve as a marker of neurodegeneration in glaucoma in a racially diverse North American population.Design: Single-center, case–control study.Participants: We enrolled patients with various types and stages of glaucoma undergoing planned ophthalmic surgery as part of their routine care and compared them with patients without glaucoma undergoing phacoemulsification for age-related cataract.Methods: We collected AH from 39 glaucoma patients and 10 patients without glaucoma. AH NfL was quantified using the Single-Molecule Array (Simoa)® NF-light assay (Quanterix). Demographic information, such as age, body mass index, sex, and self-reported race, as well as clinical information, such as pre-operative intraocular pressure (IOP), maximum IOP, and number of pre-operative glaucoma medications, was obtained by reviewing the medical record.Main Outcome Measures: Levels of AH NfL.Results: In a model controlling for age and body mass index (BMI), NfL was significantly elevated in AH from glaucoma patients (mean: 429 pg/mL; standard deviation [SD]: 1136 pg/mL) compared to AH from patients without glaucoma (mean: 3.1 pg/mL; SD: 1.9 pg/mg): P = 0.002. Higher AH NfL was associated with higher maximum IOP (R = 0.44, P = 0.005), higher pre-operative IOP (R = 0.46, P = 0.003), and more pre-operative glaucoma medications (Rs = 0.61, P < 0.001). There was no association between AH NfL and Humphrey visual field mean deviation (R = − 0.20, P = 0.220), retinal nerve fiber layer thickness as measured with optical coherence tomography (R = 0.07, P = 0.694), or glaucoma stage (Rs = 0.015, P = 0.935).Conclusion: Our findings suggest that AH NfL may have clinical utility as a marker of glaucomatous neurodegeneration.Keywords: neurofilament light chain, glaucoma, neurodegeneration, biomarkerhttps://www.dovepress.com/neurofilament-light-chain-in-aqueous-humor-as-a-marker-of-neurodegener-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-OPTHneurofilament light chainglaucomaneurodegenerationbiomarker |
| spellingShingle | Lin JB Pitts KM El Helwe H Neeson C Hall NE Falah H Schultz SA Wang SL Lo K Song C Margeta MA Solá-Del Valle D Neurofilament Light Chain in Aqueous Humor as a Marker of Neurodegeneration in Glaucoma Clinical Ophthalmology neurofilament light chain glaucoma neurodegeneration biomarker |
| title | Neurofilament Light Chain in Aqueous Humor as a Marker of Neurodegeneration in Glaucoma |
| title_full | Neurofilament Light Chain in Aqueous Humor as a Marker of Neurodegeneration in Glaucoma |
| title_fullStr | Neurofilament Light Chain in Aqueous Humor as a Marker of Neurodegeneration in Glaucoma |
| title_full_unstemmed | Neurofilament Light Chain in Aqueous Humor as a Marker of Neurodegeneration in Glaucoma |
| title_short | Neurofilament Light Chain in Aqueous Humor as a Marker of Neurodegeneration in Glaucoma |
| title_sort | neurofilament light chain in aqueous humor as a marker of neurodegeneration in glaucoma |
| topic | neurofilament light chain glaucoma neurodegeneration biomarker |
| url | https://www.dovepress.com/neurofilament-light-chain-in-aqueous-humor-as-a-marker-of-neurodegener-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-OPTH |
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