Challenging the clinical utility of the 14-3-3 protein for the diagnosis of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
BACKGROUND
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is a rapidly progressive and fatal neurodegenerative disorder for which there is no noninvasive and disease-specific test for premortem diagnosis. Previous studies have suggested that, in the proper clinical context, the 14-3-3 protein in cerebrospinal fluid is a reliable marker for sporadic CJD.


OBJECTIVE
To assess the sensitivity of the cerebrospinal fluid 14-3-3 protein test among patients with definite sporadic CJD.


METHODS
We reviewed cases of sporadic CJD referred to our institution that were ultimately proved by pathological examination and on which cerebrospinal fluid 14-3-3 testing had been performed.


METHODS
Patients with CJD referred to our institution for clinical and/or pathological evaluation (biopsy- or autopsy-confirmed diagnosis) from January 1, 1998, through July 15, 2002, and on whom 14-3-3 testing had been performed. Thirty-two such patients with definite sporadic CJD were identified. Main Outcome Measure The 14-3-3 test results, from various laboratories, in these 32 patients.


RESULTS
Seventeen of the 32 patients had a positive result for the 14-3-3 test, yielding a sensitivity of only 53%. A positive 14-3-3 result was significantly correlated with a shorter time between disease onset and the lumbar puncture for the 14-3-3 test.


CONCLUSIONS
Testing for the 14-3-3 protein is only modestly sensitive to sporadic CJD, and we caution against ruling out a diagnosis of the disease on the basis of a negative 14-3-3 result.
Geschwind
Michael D
MD
Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco Medical Center, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA. mgeschwind@memory.ucsf.edu
Martindale
Jennifer
J
Miller
Deborah
D
DeArmond
Stephen J
SJ
Uyehara-Lock
Jane
J
Gaskin
David
D
Kramer
Joel H
JH
Barbaro
Nicholas M
NM
Miller
Bruce L
BL
D048948:14-3-3 Proteins; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015415:Biomarkers; D019411:Clinical Laboratory Techniques / Q000592:standards; D007562:Creutzfeldt-Jakob Syndrome / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015151:Immunoblotting; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012015:Reference Standards; D014446:Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid*; D014481:United States
D048948:14-3-3 Proteins; D015415:Biomarkers; D014446:Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase