2014 TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY CONFERENCE, WASHINGTON, DC

Ultrasensitive Detection Of Total Tau In Blood In Sport-Related Concussion With The Fully Automated Simoa Analyzer

Andreas Jeromin1*, Jeffrey Randall1, David H Wilson1, Kaj Blennow2, Henrik Zetterberg2,3

1*Quanterix, Inc, Lexington, MA;2Clinical Neurochemistry Laboratory, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Sahlgrenska Academy at University of Gothenburg, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Mölndal, SE-43180 Mölndal, Sweden,3UCL Institute of Neurology, London WC1N1PJ, UK

Background:  There is increasing interest for the assessment of neurodegenerative biomarkers in blood, which have previously been restricted to cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). For example, methods for measuring total tau in serum and plasma have, until recently, been unavailable. We employed a new technology (Single molecule arrays, Simoa) capable of ultrasensitive protein measurements to measure changes of Abeta1-42 and total tau in two different sports-related concussion cohorts. Methods: Reagents for bead-based sandwich immunoassays were developed for a fully automated version of Simoa technology (Simoa HD-1). The limit of detection of the total tau assay in blood is 0.02 pg/ml with overall inter-day precision of less than 10 %, which represents a 1000 fold improvement in sensitivity over current assays.