journal article·2026-06-09Open access

Machine Learning‐Enhanced Ultrasensitive Immuno‐CRISPR Array Facilitates Early Diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease by Detecting Multiple Plasma Biomarkers

Liding Zhang, Changwen Yang, Qian Yao, Xuewei Du, Shuai Ding, Yaoqiang Shi, Can Sheng, Ming Wang, Ying Han, Haiming Luo

Abstract

ABSTRACT Early and accurate diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) remains a significant challenge due to the multifactorial and dynamic nature of its pathology. Although plasma‐based biomarkers such as amyloid‐β (Aβ) and phosphorylated tau (p‐tau) have shown promise as diagnostic indicators, current single‐biomarker detection techniques lack the requisite sensitivity and specificity for early‐stage diagnosis. Here, we present the development of an u ltrasensitive C RISPR‐based m ulti‐protein d etection a rray (UCMDA) capable of concurrently detecting six core AD biomarkers, including Aβ 40 , Aβ 42 , p‐tau 181 , p‐tau 217 , p‐tau 231 , and p‐tau 396,404 . By integrating antibody pair‐based multiplex recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) with spatially encoded CRISPR‐Cas12a detection, the UCMDA achieves a detection limit of 1 fg/mL, which is 10 000‐fold more sensitive than conventional ELISA. Clinical validation in a cohort of 155 plasma samples demonstrated that logistic regression (LR)‐based integration of the six biomarkers significantly enhanced diagnostic performance, with the multi‐biomarker model substantially outperforming single‐biomarker approaches in diagnosing AD‐MCI and AD. This platform offers a scalable, cost‐effective, and minimally invasive strategy for early detection and disease monitoring. This work highlights the potential of CRISPR‐based multiplex protein detection technologies combined with machine learning‐assisted analysis to enhance the precision of diagnosing neurodegenerative disorders.
Source: crossref · Quality: baseline

Research context

OpenAlex topics: Alzheimer's disease research and treatments · Single-cell and spatial transcriptomics · CRISPR and Genetic Engineering

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

Key Laboratory of Biomedical Engineering of Hainan Province School of Biomedical Engineering Hainan University Haikou China

MOE Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics Huazhong University of Science and Technology Wuhan China

Department of Clinical Laboratory Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University Wuhan China

Institute of Basic and Clinical Medicine The First People's Hospital of Yunnan Kunming China

Department of Neurology the Affiliated Hospital of Jining Medical University Jining China

Department of Neurology Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University Beijing China

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China

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