Biofluid Markers of Equine Neurological Disorders Reviewed From Human Perspectives.
Authors: Mayaki Abubakar Musa, Abdul Razak Intan Shameha, Noraniza Mohd Adzahan, Mazlina Mazlan, Rasedee Abdullah
Journal: Journal of equine veterinary science
Summary
# Editorial Summary Neurological disorders in horses carry grave consequences, frequently culminating in euthanasia decisions based primarily on clinical presentation and differential diagnosis—a diagnostic pathway that remains frustratingly limited compared to advances in human neurology. Musa and colleagues conducted a comprehensive literature review examining blood and cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers established in human neurological disease diagnosis, evaluating their potential transferability to equine practice. The authors identified several promising neurobiomarkers including phosphorylated tau, neurofilament light chain, and glial fibrillary acidic protein, which have demonstrated diagnostic utility in humans but remain largely unexplored in equine populations. For equine practitioners, this review signifies that objective, fluid-based diagnostic markers—detectable in blood or CSF alongside traditional imaging and histopathology—could substantially improve diagnostic accuracy and potentially enable earlier intervention before irreversible neurological damage occurs. The challenge now lies in developing validated assays and reference ranges for horses, which would transform how we approach cases of equine encephalitis, degenerative myeloencephalopathy, and other conditions where rapid, definitive diagnosis currently proves elusive.
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Practical Takeaways
- •Blood and cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers may offer more objective diagnostic tools for equine neurological disorders beyond current clinical and imaging approaches
- •Familiarize yourself with emerging biomarker research from human neurology as potential applications for equine cases may develop in coming years
- •Consider biomarker testing as a complementary diagnostic tool that could help confirm or rule out neurological conditions earlier and more definitively than clinical assessment alone
Key Findings
- •Human neurobiomarkers in blood and CSF could potentially be translated to equine neurological disorder diagnosis
- •Current equine neurological diagnosis relies on clinical signs, differential diagnoses, CSF analysis, histopathology, and imaging rather than specific biomarkers
- •Advances in human biofluid biomarkers represent an untapped diagnostic opportunity for equine neurological conditions