Objective: We aimed to investigate the plasma biomarkers of rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder (RBD) in a large PD cohort.

Background: RBD is one of the most frequent non-motor symptoms and a core characteristic in Parkinson’s disease (PD); however, the pathogenesis of RBD remained unclear and plasma biomarkers for RBD in PD are lacking.

Method: A total of 184 PD patients were included in the prospective cohort study and followed-up annually for 5 years. Plasma biomarkers, including glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), amyloid-beta (Aβ), p-tau181, and neurofilament light chain (NfL) were measured at baseline and at 1- and 2-year follow-ups. RBD was evaluated using the RBD Screening Questionnaire (RBDSQ).

Results: The frequency of RBD in PD increased from 22.3% at baseline to 42.9% after 5 years. The generalized estimating equations model showed that the presence of RBD was associated with plasma NfL levels (OR 1.056 [1.014-1.100], p=0.008) and plasma GFAP levels (OR 1.012 [1.006-1.018], p<0.001). The linear mixed-effects model showed that the score of RBDSQ was associated with plasma NfL levels (β 0.073 [0.032–0.114], p=0.001) and plasma GFAP levels (β 0.014 [0.006-0.021], p=0.001).

Conclusion: Plasma NfL levels and GFAP levels correlated with both the presence and severity of RBD in PD.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/plasma-biomarkers-for-rapid-eye-movement-sleep-behavior-disorder-in-parkinsons-disease-a-prospective-cohort-study/