NextGen Jane Discovers Link in Menstrual Fluid Between Estrogen and a Key Marker of Brain Injury

Poster at the 2026 AAN Annual Meeting shows neurofilament light chain (NfL) is detectable in tampon-collected menstrual samples and correlates with estradiol independent of blood content, pointing to a neuro-hormonal signal accessible through routine menstrual sampling for the first time

OAKLAND, Calif., May 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- NextGen Jane, Inc. today announced results from a study showing that neurofilament light chain (NfL), a widely used marker of neuroaxonal injury, is detectable in menstrual fluid and correlates with estradiol levels independent of blood content. The findings, presented at the 2026 American Academy of Neurology (AAN) Annual Meeting in Chicago (April 18–22), suggest that menstrual fluid carries biologically meaningful neurological signals beyond what can be explained by the presence of blood alone.

In a study of 99 tampon-collected menstrual samples from 89 participants, NfL was detected in 98 of 99 samples using automated immunoassay on the Siemens Healthineers Atellica platform. The researchers developed a transferrin-based normalization framework to correct for variable blood content across samples, validating the approach by recovering the well-established age-related decline in anti-Müllerian hormone. Within this framework, menstrual NfL correlated with estradiol even after controlling for blood fraction. This finding was not previously reported in this specimen type and raises the possibility that menstrual fluid captures neuro-hormonal dynamics inaccessible through conventional blood draws. Complementary transcriptomic analysis showed that NEFL gene expression varies nearly 13-fold along the inflammatory resolution trajectory of menstruation, further supporting an active neurological signal within menstrual biology.

"Finding that NfL tracks with estrogen levels in menstrual fluid, independent of how much blood is in the sample, tells us there is real biology here, not just contamination," said Ridhi Tariyal, CEO and co-founder of NextGen Jane. "That changes what this specimen means for neurology."

Building on these results, the company plans prospective studies to evaluate whether menstrual NfL and other neurological protein biomarkers can longitudinally track disease activity in conditions such as multiple sclerosis, leveraging the natural monthly sampling cycle of menstruation.

"The menstrual cycle provides a built-in longitudinal framework: the same individual, the same biological process, month after month," said Stephen Gire, CSO at NextGen Jane. "Coupling the NextGen Jane platform with Siemens Healthineers' highly sensitive NfL assay gives us a path to study neurological biomarker trajectories in a way that has not been possible before."

The NfL assay is not available for sale in the United States. Findings are from a research study and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

About NextGen Jane:

NextGen Jane is rebuilding the foundation of immunology and inflammation (I&I) drug development. By treating menstruation as a controlled inflammatory event, the company pairs next-generation sequencing with menstrual effluence — a uniquely longitudinal, non-invasively collected biological matrix — to curate novel molecular data sets and build computational perturbation models that illuminate disease biology long underserved by traditional research approaches. These insights translate into better targets, development candidates, clinical plans, and diagnostics, both for NextGen Jane's pipeline and its partners. For more information, visit www.nextgenjane.com.

Contact: NextGen Jane, Inc. | [email protected]

SOURCE NextGen Jane