{
  "abstract": "Introduction: Advances in plasma-based assays have allowed for the study of several tau and p-tau epitopes. P-tau217 has emerged as one of the most robust markers of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathology. Despite their strong diagnostic performance, plasma tau biomarkers require further validation to clarify their clinical utility.\n\nObjective: To investigate the associations between a panel of phosphorylated and non-phosphorylated tau species measured in antemortem plasma and clinical features of autopsy-confirmed AD.\n\nMethods: Cross-sectional data from 123 participants from the BU ADRC who had antemortem blood draws and brain donation following death. Participants completed neuropsychological testing during life as part of their National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center-Uniform Data Set (NACC UDS) evaluation. AD neuropathology was diagnosed using NIA-Reagan criteria. Time interval between testing at last visit and autopsy ranged from 0 to 12 years, mean = 5.54 years. Raw neuropsychological test scores were used for analysis. Sample size ranged from 65 to 91 across the tests. Plasma samples were analyzed using immunoprecipitation mass spectrometry (IP-MS) for phosphorylated tau species (p-tau-181, 199, 202, 205, 217, 231) and non-phosphorylated tau (195–209, 212–221) peptides. Two ratios were analyzed, p-tau217/tau212-221 and p-tau205/tau195-209.\n\nResults: 123 participants took part in this study, 55 (44.7%) female, and 6 (4.9%) Black/African American. The mean (SD) age at blood draw was 78.17 (8.55). The strongest association between plasma biomarkers with neuropsychological test outcomes was observed with the ratio p-tau217/tau212-221 (b = − 0.564–0.404, plow-high = 0.00–0.18), followed by p-tau217 (b = − 0.478–0.377, plow-high = 0.00–0.28), both significantly correlating with six of the eight neuropsychological measures (p < 0.05). Followed by the ratio p-tau205/tau195-209 (b = − 0.513–0.356, plow-high = 0.00–0.55), p-tau205 (b = − 0.365–0.226, plow-high = 0.00–0.44), then p-tau231 (b = − 0.319–0.237, plow-high = 0.02–0.62). Fewer significant relationships and weaker effect sizes were observed among the other biomarkers. The effect sizes of the ratio p-tau217/tau212-221, followed closely by p-tau217 on neuropsychological test outcomes, were observed to be the most similar to the effect sizes of autopsy-confirmed AD (b = − 0.564–0.393).\n\nConclusions: Plasma p-tau217 and p-tau ratios were comparable to autopsy-confirmed AD in predicting clinical outcomes of AD. This study highlights the promise and potential utility of plasma biomarkers for symptom monitoring.\n\nSupplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1007/s00415-026-14232-y.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Boston University Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center and BU CTE Center, Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, 72 E. Concord Street, Instructional Building L-5, Boston, MA 02118 USA",
    "Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Mölndal, Sweden",
    "Department of Biostatistics, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02118 USA",
    "Department of Neurology, Boston University, Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118 USA",
    "VA Boston Healthcare System, U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130 USA",
    "Biostatistics and Epidemiology Data Analytics Center, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02118 USA",
    "Department of Medicine, Boston University, Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118 USA",
    "Department of Psychiatry and Ophthalmology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118 USA",
    "Department of Biomedical, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Boston University College of Engineering, Boston, MA 02215 USA",
    "Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, Boston University, Chobanian an Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118 USA",
    "Department of Psychiatry, Boston University, Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118 USA",
    "Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118 USA",
    "Clinical Neurochemistry Laboratory, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Mölndal, Sweden",
    "Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK",
    "UK Dementia Research Institute, University College London, London, UK",
    "Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI USA",
    "Department of Medicine, UW School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI USA",
    "Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118 USA",
    "Banner Alzheimer’s Institute and University of Arizona, Phoenix, AZ USA",
    "Banner Sun Health Research Institute, Sun City, AZ 85351 USA"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 18,
  "authors": [
    {
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        0
      ],
      "name": "Jacob Labonte",
      "orcid": "0009-0001-6172-2248"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Annalise E. Miner"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Jenna R. Groh"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Laia Montoliu-Gaya"
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    {
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        2
      ],
      "name": "Yorghos Tripodis"
    },
    {
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        0,
        3
      ],
      "name": "Hugo J. Aparicio"
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        3,
        4
      ],
      "name": "Katherine W. Turk"
    },
    {
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        3,
        4
      ],
      "name": "Andrew E. Budson"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
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        5,
        6
      ],
      "name": "Lindsay Farrer"
    },
    {
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        7,
        8
      ],
      "name": "Lee E. Goldstein"
    },
    {
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        3,
        9,
        10
      ],
      "name": "Wei Qiao Qiu"
    },
    {
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      "name": "Jesse Mez"
    },
    {
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        4,
        10,
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      ],
      "name": "Ann C. McKee"
    },
    {
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        12,
        13,
        14,
        15,
        16
      ],
      "name": "Henrik Zetterberg"
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    {
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        7,
        13,
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      "name": "Thor D. Stein"
    },
    {
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        1
      ],
      "name": "Johan Gobom"
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    {
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        18,
        19
      ],
      "name": "Nicholas J. Ashton"
    },
    {
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        3
      ],
      "name": "Michael L. Alosco"
    }
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  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/8t6b33drmaxnw.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1007/s00415-026-14232-y",
  "fulltext_url": "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13723683/",
  "id": "8t6b33drmaxnw",
  "issns": [
    "0340-5354",
    "1432-1459"
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  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1007/s00415-026-14232-y",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-ND-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC-ND 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Original Communication"
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      "2737|Alzheimer's disease research and treatments"
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  "pdf_url": "https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s00415-026-14232-y.pdf",
  "pmcid": "PMC13723683",
  "pmid": "42965704",
  "published": "2026-10-31",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/8t6b33drmaxnw.ris",
  "sources": [
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      "first_seen": "2026-11-04T12:22:16Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13723683",
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      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1007/s00415-026-14232-y"
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  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2737|Alzheimer's disease research and treatments",
      "subfield": "physiology"
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  ],
  "title": "Leveraging immunoprecipitation mass spectrometry and neuropathology to identify the clinical value of different blood tau species in Alzheimer’s disease",
  "title_text": "Leveraging immunoprecipitation mass spectrometry and neuropathology to identify the clinical value of different blood tau species in Alzheimer’s disease",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-05T12:20:27Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/8t6b33drmaxnw",
  "venue": "Journal of Neurology",
  "versions": []
}