Objective: To compare plasma p-tau181 concentration in Parkinson’s disease (PD), Lewy body dementia (LBD) and healthy controls and to examine the relationship between ptau-181 concentration and cognition.
Background: Increased concentrations of the brain-derived proteins b-amyloid and phosphorylated tau (p-tau) are seen at post-mortem in PD and LBD and can be measured in cerebrospinal fluid. Ultrasensitive immunoassays that quantify concentrations of tau phosphorylated at threonine 181 (p-tau181) in plasma have recently been developed and correlate strongly with cerebral measures of tau and b-amyloid in Alzheimer’s disease; these less invasive blood-based markers have advantages in terms of cost and access.
Method: We recruited patients with LBD (n=12) and PD (n=31) from our Lewy Body clinic and affiliated neurology services. Age-matched controls (n=12) were recruited as unaffected spouses and from University databases. We collected information on clinical features, including the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA) to measure cognition. We measured plasma p-tau181 using an ultrasensitive immunoassay on the Simoa platform.
Results: The LBD group was older than the PD group (LBD = 72.2 (SD=7.26), PD = 62.7 (SD=6.18), HC = 68.8 (SD=9.37) and had a shorter disease duration (LBD = 2.81 (2.89), PD = 7.65 (2.86). Patients with LBD had higher p-tau181 concentration compared with controls (p= 0.027, t =2.39) and a trend towards higher concentration than patients with PD (p=0.063, t = 2.01). Furthermore, across the combined patient groups (PD and LBD), higher p-tau181 concentration was associated with a lower MOCA score (r = -0.36, p = 0.017), whilst no association between p-tau181 and MOCA scores was observed in healthy controls (r = 0.003, p = .99).
Conclusion: Plasma-p-tau181 concentration was higher in patients with LBD and associated with cognitive scores compared with PD and healthy controls. This measure has the potential as a cost-effective and accessible marker of cognitive severity in LBD and PD.
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
N. Hannaway, A. Heslegrave, R. Bhome, I. Dobreva, H. Zetterberg, R. Weil. Plasma p-tau181 is increased in Lewy body dementia and relates to cognitive performance [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2022; 37 (suppl 2). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/plasma-p-tau181-is-increased-in-lewy-body-dementia-and-relates-to-cognitive-performance/. Accessed May 18, 2025.« Back to 2022 International Congress
MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/plasma-p-tau181-is-increased-in-lewy-body-dementia-and-relates-to-cognitive-performance/