Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) and neurological diseases Failure in detecting TNFα in the cerebrospinal fluid from patients with multiple sclerosis, AIDS dementia complex, and brain tumours

Abstract

The presence of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα)/cachetin was investigated in 180 paired cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum samples from patients with neurological diseases, and in five paired CSF and serum samples of Macacus cynomolgus monkeys with acute monophasic experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (AMEAE). TNFα was never detected in human CSF, even when an extensive demyelination was documented (active multiple sclerosis, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) dementia complex). Only one Macacus with AMEAE had detectable levels of TNFα in CSF but not in serum, suggesting an intrathecal synthesis of this cytokine in AMEAE.