Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia found in all human populations worldwide, while vascular dementia (VaD) is the second most common form of dementia. New biomarkers for early and specific diagnosis of AD and VaD are needed to achieve greater insight into changes occurring in the brain and direct therapeutic strategies. The objective of this explorative study was to discover candidate protein biomarkers for the differential diagnosis between VaD and AD. Surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization (SELDI) TOF-MS was used to differentially profile proteins and peptides in CSF samples from 28 AD patients and 21 patients with VaD. A combination of univariate (Kruskal-Wallis) and multivariate (independent component analysis) statistical approaches produced a list of 27 proteins and peptides that could differentiate between VaD and AD. These markers represent various physiological processes, such as protein degradation (ubiquitin), protease inhibition (cystatin C and alpha-1-antichymoptrypsin), and inflammation (C3a and C4a) that are known to be represented in neurodegenerative diseases.
Highlights
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is one of the most devastating brain disorders in the elderly
Levels of Amyloid Beta 1–42 were significantly decreased in patients with AD and levels of Total Tau and Phosphorylated Tau were significantly increased in the same patient group compared to patients with vascular dementia (VaD)
The albumin ratio was significantly higher in patients with VaD and the folate ratio was significantly lower for the same patient group as described before [10]
Summary
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is one of the most devastating brain disorders in the elderly. AD is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that represents the most common form of dementia today [1]. Age is the single most prominent risk factor with the incidence doubling every five years from the age of 65 [2]. Vascular dementia (VaD) is a heterogeneous disorder that accounts for about 20% of all cases of dementia. Vascular dementia is characterized by neuronal death due to vascular lesions such as lacunar, cortical or subcortical infarcts, cerebral hemorrhage, and cardiogenic embolism, contributing to cognitive decline [3]. Vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s disease frequently occur together and they may often act in combination to cause dementia and it is clinically challenging to separate these two diseases
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