Increased intrathecal production of apolipoprotein D in multiple sclerosis.

Apolipoprotein D (apoD) is a small glycoprotein responsible for the local transport of small hydrophobic ligands. Within the nervous system, apoD may be an acute phase protein that is upregulated in a variety of neuropathological conditions and is involved in the removal of lipids during nerve cell degeneration and provision of lipids during the regenerative phase. In this study, we measured cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum apoD levels in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP), Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS), infectious inflammatory neurological diseases (IND) and non-inflammatory neurological diseases (NND). We found that mean CSF apoD levels are significantly increased in patients with CIDP/GBS reflecting an acute blood-nerve barrier leakage. In contrast, MS is characterized by an increased intrathecal apoD release as measured by the apoD index. Thus, the results of our study provide the first evidence of an increased intrathecal production of apoD in MS. Moreover, we demonstrate that mean apoD indices are highest in MS patients at the time of their first clinical exacerbation. CSF apoD levels and apoD indices correlate with MS disease duration but not with disability or age. Finally, we found that corticosteroid treatment resulted in significantly elevated CSF apoD levels.