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Cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers and cognitive functions at multiple sclerosis diagnosis

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Abstract

Cognitive impairment (CI) is a frequent and disabling symptom in Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Axonal damage may contribute to CI development from early stages. Nevertheless, no biomarkers are at the moment available to track CI in MS patients. We aimed to explore the correlation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) axonal biomarkers, in particular: light-chain neurofilaments (NFL), Tau, and Beta-amyloid protein (Abeta) in MS patients with CI at the diagnosis. 62 newly diagnosed MS patients were enrolled, and cognition was evaluated using the Brief International Cognitive Assessment for MS (BICAMS) battery. CSF NFL, Abeta, and Tau levels were determined with commercial ELISA. Patients with CI (45.1%) did not differ for demographic, clinical, and MRI characteristics (except for lower educational level), but they displayed greater neurodegeneration, exhibiting higher mean CSF Tau protein (162.1 ± 52.96 pg/ml versus 132.2 ± 63.86 pg/ml p:0.03). No differences were observed for Abeta and NFL. The number of impaired tests and Tau were significantly correlated (r:0.32 p:0.01). Tau was higher in particular in patients with slowed information processing speed (IPS) (p:0.006) and a linear regression analysis accounting for EDSS, MRI, and MS subtype confirmed Tau as a weak predictor of IPS and cognitive impairment. In conclusion, CI has an important burden on the quality of life of MS patients and should be looked for even at diagnosis. Axonal damage biomarkers, and in particular Tau, seem to reflect cognition impairment in the early stages.

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Data are available upon reasonable request.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Translational Medicine, Neurology Unit, Maggiore Della Carità Hospital, University of Piemonte Orientale, Corso Mazzini 18, 28100, Novara, Italy

    Eleonora Virgilio, Domizia Vecchio, Paolo Barbero, Giulia Galli & Roberto Cantello

  2. Phd Program in Medical Sciences and Biotechnologies, Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy

    Eleonora Virgilio

  3. Department of Translational Medicine, Neurology Unit, S. Andrea Hospital, University of Piemonte Orientale, Vercelli, Italy

    Eleonora Virgilio & Cristoforo Comi

  4. Department of Health Sciences, Interdisciplinary Research Center of Autoimmune Diseases (IRCAD), University of Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy

    Domizia Vecchio, Umberto Dianzani & Cristoforo Comi

  5. Department of Health Sciences, Clinical Biochemistry, University of Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy

    Ilaria Crespi, Chiara Puricelli & Umberto Dianzani

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  1. Eleonora Virgilio
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  2. Domizia Vecchio
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  3. Ilaria Crespi
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  4. Chiara Puricelli
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  5. Paolo Barbero
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  6. Giulia Galli
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  7. Roberto Cantello
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  8. Umberto Dianzani
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  9. Cristoforo Comi
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Contributions

Conceptualization, EV, DV and CC; methodology C.C; formal analysis, EV, IC, CP; investigation, EV, DV, PB, GG; resources, CC; data curation, E.V, D.V; writing—original draft preparation, EV; writing—review and editing, D.V, C.C., U.D, R.C; supervision, C.C, U.D, R.C. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Eleonora Virgilio.

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The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki, and approved by the Ethics Committee of AOU Ospedale Maggiore della Carità di Novara (reference no: CE 190/19).

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Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.

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Virgilio, E., Vecchio, D., Crespi, I. et al. Cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers and cognitive functions at multiple sclerosis diagnosis. J Neurol 269, 3249–3257 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00415-021-10945-4

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