Cited by 427Metabolism and Genetic DisordersMitochondrial Function and PathologyFibroblast Growth Factor Research

FGF-21 as a biomarker for muscle-manifesting mitochondrial respiratory chain deficiencies: a diagnostic study

Open access
Suomalainen, Anu, Elo, Jenni M, Pietiläinen, Kirsi H, Hakonen, Anna H, Sevastianova, Ksenia, Korpela, Mari, Isohanni, Pirjo, Marjavaara, Sanna K +17 more·2011·The Lancet Neurology

Abstract

Background Muscle biopsy is the gold standard for diagnosis of mitochondrial disorders because of the lack of sensitive biomarkers in serum. Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF-21) is a growth factor with regulatory roles in lipid metabolism and the starvation response, and concentrations are raised in skeletal muscle and serum in mice with mitochondrial respiratory chain deficiencies. We investigated in a retrospective diagnostic study whether FGF-21 could be a biomarker for human mitochondrial disorders.Methods We assessed samples from adults and children with mitochondrial disorders or non-mitochondrial neurological disorders (disease controls) from seven study centres in Europe and the USA, and recruited healthy volunteers (healthy controls), matched for age where possible, from the same centres. We used ELISA to measure FGF-21 concentrations in serum or plasma samples (abnormal values were defined as >200 pg/mL). We compared these concentrations with values for lactate, pyruvate, lactate-to-pyruvate ratio, and creatine kinase in serum or plasma and calculated sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values for all biomarkers.Findings We analysed serum or plasma from 67 patients (41 adults and 26 children) with mitochondrial disorders, 34 disease controls (22 adults and 12 children), and 74 healthy controls. Mean FGF-21 concentrations in serum were 820 (SD 1151) pg/mL in adult and 1983 (1550) pg/mL in child patients with respiratory chain deficiencies and 76 (58) pg/mL in healthy controls. FGF-21 concentrations were high in patients with mitochondrial disorders affecting skeletal muscle but not in disease controls, including those with dystrophies. In patients with abnormal FGF-21 concentrations in serum, the odds ratio of having a muscle-manifesting mitochondrial disease was 132·0 (95% CI 38·7-450·3). For the identification of muscle-manifesting mitochondrial disease, the sensitivity was 92·3% (95% CI 81·5-97·9%) and specificity was 91·7% (84·8-96·1%). The positive and negative predictive values for FGF-21 were 84·2% (95% CI 72·1-92·5%) and 96·1 (90·4-98·9%). The accuracy of FGF-21 to correctly identify muscle-manifesting respiratory chain disorders was better than that for all conventional biomarkers. The area under the receiver-operating-characteristic curve for FGF-21 was 0·95; by comparison, the values for other biomarkers were 0·83 lactate (p=0·037, 0·83 for pyruvate (p=0·015), 0·72 for the lactate-to-pyruvate ratio (p=0·0002), and 0·77 for creatine kinase (p=0·013).Interpretation Measurement of FGF-21 concentrations in serum identified primary muscle-manifesting respiratory chain deficiencies in adults and children and might be feasible as a first-line diagnostic test for these disorders to reduce the need for muscle biopsy.Funding Sigrid Jusélius Foundation, Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation, Molecular Medicine Institute of Finland, University of Helsinki, Helsinki University Central Hospital, Academy of Finland, Novo Nordisk, Arvo and Lea Ylppö Foundation.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1016/s1474-4422(11)70155-7

Cites

35 of 35 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • FGF21 can be both a therapeutic agent and a biomarker of disease.

    “According to the combination of these variables, FGF21 can be both a therapeutic agent and a biomarker of disease [219].”
  • FGF21 is a stress-induced myokine proposed as a specific serum biomarker of muscle-specific mitochondrial disorders.

    “Moreover, FGF21 is a stress‐induced myokine that has been proposed as a specific serum biomarker of muscle‐specific mitochondrial disorders.17, 20”
  • Skeletal muscle is not only a producer but also a target of FGF21 because it expresses the cofactor β-klotho and the FGFRs.

    “Recent studies reported that skeletal muscle is not only a producer but also a target of FGF21 because it expresses the cofactor β‐klotho and the FGFRs.6, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19”
  • Muscle-dependent systemic release of FGF21 increases with starvation, endoplasmic reticulum stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, obesity, mitochondrial myopathies, and aging.

    “In contrast, muscle‐dependent systemic release of FGF21 increases with starvation, endoplasmic reticulum stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, obesity, mitochondrial myopathies, and aging.6, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19”

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Suomalainen, A., Elo, J. M., Pietiläinen, K. H., Hakonen, A. H., Sevastianova, K., Korpela, M., Isohanni, P., Marjavaara, S. K., Tyni, T., Kiuru-Enari, S., Pihko, H., Darin, N., Õunap, K., Kluijtmans, L. A., Paetau, A., Buzkova, J., Bindoff, L. A., Annunen-Rasila, J., Uusimaa, J., Rissanen, A., Yki-Järvinen, H., Hirano, M., Tulinius, M., Smeitink, J., & Tyynismaa, H.
Affiliations
  • University of Helsinki (FI)
  • Helsinki University Hospital (FI)
  • Tartu University Hospital (EE)
  • Radboud University Medical Center (NL)
  • Haukeland University Hospital (NO)
  • Oulu University Hospital (FI)
  • Columbia University Irving Medical Center (US)
  • University of Gothenburg (SE)
Corresponding author
Suomalainen, Anu
Venue
The Lancet Neurology
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2011-09
Volume
10
Issue
9
Pages
806-818
ISSN
1474-4422 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2121647203
Cited by
427
References
35
Citations by year
2026: 23 · 2025: 26 · 2024: 30 · 2023: 30 · 2022: 31 · 2021: 30 · 2020: 38 · 2019: 31 · 2018: 36 · 2017: 27 · 2016: 30 · 2015: 21 · 2014: 22 · 2013: 25 · 2012: 15
FWCI
12.81
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • The Lancet Neurology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • Radboud Repository (Radboud University) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • Novo Nordisk
  • Sigrid Juséliuksen Säätiö
  • Academy of Finland
  • Jane ja Aatos Erkon Säätiö
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Clinical Biochemistry › Metabolism and Genetic Disorders
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Mitochondrial Function and Pathology
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Fibroblast Growth Factor Research
Keywords
FGF21, mitochondrial respiratory chain deficiency, mitochondrial disease, biomarkers, serum biomarkers, diagnostic accuracy, skeletal muscle, lactate, pyruvate, creatine kinase, dystrophy, lipid metabolism, starvation response
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Child, Child, Preschool, Female, Fibroblast Growth Factors, Humans, Infant, Male, Middle Aged, Retrospective Studies, Biomarkers, Muscle, Skeletal, Mitochondrial Diseases, Young Adult

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review