Unlocking the Sensitivity and Specificity of Neurodegenerative Protein Biomarkers with SPEAR

AAIC 2025 Product Theater Presentation

In this presentation, entitled “Unlocking the Sensitivity and Specificity of Neurodegenerative Protein Biomarkers with SPEAR“, Spear Bio VP of Application Support, Laurel Provencher PhD, provides a comprehensive overview of the fundamentals of SPEAR Technology and the practical advantages of its homogeneous assay format with two-factor authentication. The unparalleled sensitivity, specificity, precision, and robustness offered by this unique assay design impart superior performance of SPEAR UltraDetect™ assays, as compared to ultra-sensitive, heterogeneous platforms currently on the market.

Xuemei Zeng, PhD of UPMC then shares recent data generated on two AD cohorts, using SPEAR UltraDetect pTau 217. The research findings indicate that the SPEAR UltraDetect pTau217 assay enables highly sensitive and reproducible quantification of plasma pTau217 using only a minimal volume of plasma. In a Memory Clinic Cohort, the assay demonstrated exceptional accuracy in detecting Aβ PET positivity, achieving an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.95. This performance surpassed that of other biomarker assays, including Simoa pTau217, pTau181, GFAP, and NfL. Similarly, in a community-based preclinical cohort, UltraDetect™ pTau217 outperformed both Lumipulse pTau217 and additional Simoa biomarkers such as pTau181, pTau231, GFAP, and NfL, achieving an AUC of 0.906 for identifying Aβ PET positivity. Furthermore, the assay exhibited high tolerance to repeated freeze-thaw cycles, maintaining its robust performance even after six such cycles. These results underscore the assay’s strong diagnostic accuracy, reliability, and practical utility in both clinical and preclinical settings