Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein in Serum is Increased in Alzheimer’s Disease and Correlates with Cognitive Impairment

Reliable blood biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease (AD) are missing. We measured astroglial GFAP in patients with AD (n = 28), frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD, n = 35), Parkinson's disease (n = 11), Lewy body dementias (n = 19), and controls (n = 34). Serum GFAP was increased in AD (p < 0.001) and DLB/PDD (p < 0.01), and cerebrospinal fluid GFAP was increased in all neurodegenerative diseases (p < 0.001). Serum GFAP correlated with the Mini-Mental State Examination score (r= -0.42, p < 0.001) and might be a follow-up marker in clinical trials. Sensitivity and specificity of serum GFAP for AD versus bvFTD was 89% and 79% and might be the first blood biomarker in the differential diagnosis of AD and bvFTD.