Serum neurofilament light chain may represent a biomarker of progression in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Researchers have evaluated whether serum neurofilament light chain (sNfL) is predictive of disease duration, progression, and tracheostomy invasive ventilation (TIV) in 1,378 people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) from 12 centers in Germany.
There was a strong significant correlation between age-adjusted sNfL levels and ALS progression rate, and people with ALS duration of 5–10 years or greater than 10 years had significantly lower age-adjusted sNfL levels than those with an ALS duration of less than 5 years. The study authors say that these results point to favorable prognosis with low sNfL and provide support for sNfL as a biomarker of progression.
In patients with TIV, there was a significant association between decreasing age-adjusted sNfL levels and longer duration of TIV.