TY - JOUR T1 - Novel evidence associates higher plasma α-synuclein levels and cognitive impairment in Parkinson’s disease JF - Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry JO - J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry SP - 808 LP - 808 DO - 10.1136/jnnp-2017-315821 VL - 88 IS - 10 AU - Dag Aarsland AU - Anto P Rajkumar AU - Abdul Hye Y1 - 2017/10/01 UR - http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/88/10/808.abstract N2 - Cognitive impairment is common in Parkinson’s disease (PD) and is linked to cortical alpha-synuclein (α-syn) pathology. Biomarkers predicting time and rate of cognitive decline in PD are needed.1 Levels of total, oligomeric, and phosphorylated α-syn in peripheral tissues and body fluids of people with PD have been extensively evaluated.2 Most studies have used cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), but findings have been disappointing. A recent meta-analysis that included 17 studies (n=3311) reported significantly lower levels of CSF α-syn in PD, compared with healthy or neurological controls, but concluded that CSF α-syn levels alone are not sufficient for diagnosing PD early.3 4 Factors leading to variation among studies include different technical platforms and antibody variability. An additional complicating factor is the … ER -