Correlation analysis of serum neurofilament light chain and glial fibrillary acidic protein levels with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Neurofilament light chain (NFL) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) are considered to be a promising biomarker for the diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and assessment of disease progression. To investigate the correlation between serum neurofilament light chain protein (NFL) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) levels and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Serum NFL and GFAP levels were measured in 12 ALS patients and 12 healthy controls (HC) using the Single-molecule array (Simoa) technique. Serum NFL and GFAP levels in ALS patients were 81.49 ± 47.06 pg/mL and 104.42 ± 37.31 pg/mL, respectively, significantly higher than those in healthy controls (9.21 ± 3.05 pg/mL and 57.71 ± 11.64 pg/mL; P < 0.001). Serum NFL and GFAP levels in ALS patients were correlated with the duration of the disease as respectively (r = 0.746, P = 0.005; r = 0.668, P = 0.018). In this study, we investigated the diagnostic value of serum NFL and GFAP levels in the ALS population and their clinical significance using the Simoa technique. The results showed that serum NFL and GFAP levels may be potential biomarkers for ALS diagnosis, and is positively correlated with disease progression. However, its diagnostic specificity awaits further studies that include disease controls.