Brain-Specific Cytoskeletal Damage Markers in Cerebrospinal Fluid: Is There a Common Pattern between Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis? |
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Authors: | Ahmed Abdelhak Andreas Junker Johannes Brettschneider Jan Kassubek Albert C Ludolph Markus Otto Hayrettin Tumani |
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Affiliation: | 1.Department of Neurology, Ulm University, Oberer Eselsberg 45, 89081 Ulm, Germany; E-Mails: (A.A.); (J.B.); (J.K.); (A.C.L.); (M.O.);2.Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Str 40, 37075 Göttingen, Germany; E-Mail: |
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Abstract: | Many neurodegenerative disorders share a common pathophysiological pathway involving axonal degeneration despite different etiological triggers. Analysis of cytoskeletal markers such as neurofilaments, protein tau and tubulin in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) may be a useful approach to detect the process of axonal damage and its severity during disease course. In this article, we review the published literature regarding brain-specific CSF markers for cytoskeletal damage in primary progressive multiple sclerosis and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in order to evaluate their utility as a biomarker for disease progression in conjunction with imaging and histological markers which might also be useful in other neurodegenerative diseases associated with affection of the upper motor neurons. A long-term benefit of such an approach could be facilitating early diagnostic and prognostic tools and assessment of treatment efficacy of disease modifying drugs. |
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Keywords: | primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) neurofilaments biomarker tau tubulin |
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