title: Biological markers of the inflammatory phase of multiple sclerosis.
abstract: The search for biological markers in multiple sclerosis (MS) has been spoiled by the intrinsic nature of the disease that occurs in a secluded organ which cannot be accessed by routine sampling. Thus, markers obtained so far from the peripheral blood of MS individuals are often of little reproducibility while results obtained from the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) are conveniently linked to the disease process but of little utility due to inaccessibility to repeated sampling. In this review we briefly discuss the biological markers available to date.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences, Ophthalmology and Genetics, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Uccelli
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pedemonte
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Narciso
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mancardi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis*; D015815:Cell Adhesion Molecules; D018925:Chemokines / Q000032:analysis; D016207:Cytokines / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000097:blood / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid; D020782:Matrix Metalloproteinases / Q000032:analysis; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000382:microbiology; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D015815:Cell Adhesion Molecules; D018925:Chemokines; D016207:Cytokines; D009569:Nitric Oxide; D020782:Matrix Metalloproteinases