AlzBiomarker

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (Genetic) vs Alzheimer's Disease: YKL-40 (CSF)

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YKL-40 is thought to be a marker of glial activation and inflammation. YKL-40 is somewhat elevated in the cerebrospinal fluid of Alzheimer's patients compared with controls (effect size approximtely 1.4). YKL-40 appears to be even further elevated in the CSF of people with genetically-determined Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (caused by the E200K mutation in PRNP): Meta-analysis showed that CSF YKL-40 in these patients is about 30 percent higher than in people with AD (effect size = 1.304, p = 0.0012). However, a paucity of data limited the meta-analysis, with only two eligible studies and a small number of gCJD patients.

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How to interpret a forest plot: Each individual effect size (ES) is a ratio of the mean biomarker level in one condition over the mean level in another condition. An ES equal to 1 means that the two conditions had identical mean values. An ES > 1 indicates higher levels in the first condition, whereas an ES < 1 indicates lower levels in the first condition. The overall ES, indicated by a black diamond, is a weighted average of the individual effect sizes. The weight of each data point was determined by the inverse of the variance and is reflected in the size of each square. The width of the overall ES diamond is determined by the 95 percent confidence interval. Data out of range of the scale, including ES and confidence intervals, are indicated by an arrowhead at the edge of the plot, when applicable. 

Version 3.0, July 2021.