Researchers at the Henry M. Jackson Foundation (HJF) and the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) identified a novel marker (ICAM-5) for enriching neuronally derived extracellular vesicles (NEVs) from human biofluids. NEVs can address key challenges in biomarker identification for neurological disorders.

Applications and Advantages

• The ability of neuronally derived extracellular vesicles (NEVs) to cross the blood-brain barrier makes them ideal candidates for discovery of biomarkers of neurodegenerative disorders.
• NEVs can be concentrated from a larger volume of plasma, which would overcome the detection of biomarkers that are found at very low concentration.
• NEVs are specific and detection of biomarkers from them reflect biomarkers of neuronal origin.
• ICAM-5 is a specific neuronal marker present on NEVs and offers a highly specific method for NEVs enrichment that will enhance the sensitivity and accuracy of biomarker detection for neurodegenerative diseases.
• Our research shows that ICAM-5-derived NEVs offer a highly promising approach for diagnosing traumatic brain injury (TBI). We found these specific NEVs carry a significantly higher concentration of the TBI biomarker UCH-L1 compared to total EVs and other known NEV markers. This enhanced concentration and specificity could lead to more accurate and reliable diagnostic tests.

Innovation Description

The market for neurological biomarker diagnostics and technology related to Parkinson’s Disease (PD), Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), TBI, and similar ailments is likely to grow. With this in mind, researchers are trying to identify usable diagnostic biomarkers, but appropriate targets have not yet been identified. For this reason, researchers are focused on the enrichment of NEVs from human biofluids to detect and discover biomarkers of neurodegenerative disorders at various stages. Diagnostics are very much needed for athletes, the military, the elderly, and in the pediatric population. Use of ICAM-5 could help enrich NEVs for the detection of biomarkers specific to multiple brain diseases to improve detection and appropriate treatment methods. For example, the elderly are more at risk for AD and PD, while athletes, children and members of the military have a higher risk for TBIs. Additional markets for neurologic diagnostics exist among those working in mining, construction, or other potentially hazardous fields. The potential use for the ICAM-5 enrichment spans across TBI, AD and PD. Any diagnostic would be relevant for both civilian and military populations.

Inventors

• Manish Bhomia, Ph.D. (HJF)
• Barbara Knollmann-Ritschel, MD (USU)

Innovation Status

Dr. Bhomia presented his research at the International Society for Extracellular Vesicles annual meeting in April 2025. A Provisional patent application has been filed.