Affiliations: [a] Interdisciplinary Research Center of Autoimmune Diseases (IRCAD), “A. Avogadro” University of Eastern Piedmont, Novara, Italy | [b] Department of Neurology, “A. Avogadro” University of Eastern Piedmont, Maggiore Hospital, Novara, Italy | [c] Neurorehabilitation Institute “M.L. Novarese”, Moncrivello (VC), Italy | [d] Department of Medical Sciences, “A. Avogadro” University of Eastern Piedmont, Maggiore Hospital, Novara, Italy | [e] Department of Neurological Sciences, Dino Ferrari Center, University of Milan, IRCCS Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy
Correspondence:
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Correspondence to: Cristoforo Comi, MD, PhD, Department of Neurology, University “A. Avogadro” of Eastern Piedmont, via Solaroli 17, I-28100 Novara, Italy. Tel.: +39 0321 3733965; Fax: +39 0321 3733298; E-mail: [email protected].
Abstract: Inflammation is believed to play a role in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Osteopontin (OPN) is a molecule involved in macrophage recruitment and activation and implicated in neurodegeneration. In order to elucidate the role of OPN in AD, we evaluated its levels in serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of 67 AD patients, 46 frontotemporal dementia (FTD) patients, and 69 controls. We found that OPN levels: i) are significantly increased in the CSF of AD patients; ii) correlate with MMSE score; and iii) are higher in the early disease phases (⩽ 2 years). These findings support a role of OPN in AD pathogenesis.
Keywords: Disease progression, early Alzheimer's disease, Eta-1, microglia, neuroinflammation
