Leptin hormone level in serum of opticospinal, neuromyelitisoptica and multiple sclerosis patients

Abstract

Objectives A growing body of evidence shows that leptin acts as a pro-inflammatory cytokine in autoimmune disorders and is related to multiple sclerosis (MS) pathogenesis. The present study was an analysis of serum leptin levels among healthy volunteers and patients with different subtypes of MS, opticospinal MS (OSMS) and neuromyelitis optica (NMO). Methods Leptin concentrations in the sera of 121 healthy volunteers and 201 patients with different subtypes of MS, as well as in 27 NMO and 27 OSMS, were measured. Results Significant differences in leptin serum levels were observed between healthy volunteers, and MS, OSMS and NMO patients (P < 0.001). Furthermore, leptin serum concentration was in correlation with expanded disability status scale (EDSS) in primary progressive MS and secondary progressive MS groups. Interestingly, while the female-to-male ratio of leptin was approximately 2 in each group, the NMO female patients showed sevenfold higher levels of leptin than males. Conclusion The present results show that leptin concentration is important in the pathogenesis of different neuroinflammatory diseases of the central nervous system, in particular NMO. © 2014 Japanese Society for Neuroimmunology.