Table 1_Circulating oligodendrocyte-derived extracellular vesicle surface markers in athletes exposed to repetitive head impacts: an exploratory study.xlsx

Current clinical assessments rely primarily on symptoms and acute neurological findings, limiting the ability to detect and longitudinally monitor biological responses that may occur in the absence of clinically recognized concussion. This exploratory study investigated surface-associated biomarkers on circulating oligodendrocyte-derived extracellular vesicles (ODEs) as candidate blood markers of biological responses associated with RHI exposure.</p>Methods<p>Plasma ODEs were captured using an anti-myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) antibody and probed for ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and α-synuclein (α-syn), selected to reflect neural repair, neuroinflammatory, and neurodegenerative processes, respectively.

Unlike conventional EV analyses focused primarily on intravesicular cargo, this platform preserves vesicle integrity and quantifies biomolecules associated with the external surface of captured ODEs. Assays for each biomarker were analytically characterized prior to application to the athletic cohorts.</p>Results<p>Longitudinal measurements were obtained from boxing and mixed martial arts fighters (n = 18; pre-event to 5 weeks post-event), high school American football players (n = 34; sampled monthly from July through November), and college rugby players (n = 14; sampled 3–4 times annually from 2014 to 2017).