Blood-CSF barrier integrity in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Abstract

The integrity of the blood-CSF barrier plays a major role in inflammation, but also in shielding the CNS from external and systemic - potentially toxic - factors. Here we report results of measurements of the albumin quotient - which is thought to mirror the integrity of the blood-CSF barrier - in 1059 patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The results were compared with groups of patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease, facial palsy and tension headache. The albumin quotient, an accepted measure of the blood-CSF barrier integrity, was not significantly different from control populations. In addition, we found that the albumin quotient correlated with survival of the patients; this effect was mainly driven by male patients and influenced by age, body mass index and diabetes mellitus. We conclude that the blood-CSF barrier is intact in this large cohort of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and that the albumin quotient correlates with survival. Whether this is important for the pathogenesis of the disease, requires mechanistic studies.