From:  Respiratory pathogen to brain degeneration: a review of Chlamydia pneumoniae’s role in Alzheimer’s disease

 Diagnostic techniques for detecting C. pneumoniae in AD.

MethodTargetSensitivityLimitations
PCRDNAMediumCannot distinguish active infection
IHCAntigensVariableCross-reactivity, inconsistency
NGSMetagenomeHighExpensive, requires expertise
PET imagingNeuroinflammationEmergingIndirect marker

AD: Alzheimer’s disease; PCR: polymerase chain reaction; IHC: immunohistochemistry; NGS: next-generation sequencing; PET: positron emission tomography.