Roadmap and standard operating procedures for biobanking and discovery of neurochemical markers in ALS

Abstract

Despite major advances in deciphering the neuropathological hallmarks of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), validated neurochemical biomarkers for monitoring disease activity, earlier diagnosis, defining prognosis and unlocking key pathophysiological pathways are lacking. Although several candidate biomarkers exist, translation into clinical application is hindered by small sample numbers, especially longitudinal, for independent verification. This review considers the potential routes to the discovery of neurochemical markers in ALS, and provides a consensus statement on standard operating procedures that will facilitate multicenter collaboration, validation and ultimately clinical translation.

Key words::

• Biomarker
• biobank
• proteomics
• cerebrospinal fluid
• brain bank

Acknowlegements

This work was supported by World Federation of Neurology. The name Volcano Group was chosen because the first meeting of the group had to be postponed as several group members were stranded somewhere in the world because of the eruption of the Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland in April 2010.

We also acknowledge the comment of Mamede de Carvalho.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.