Antibodies against GM1 in demented patients.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the levels of anti-GM1 in demented patients, correlating them with the type and severity of dementia as well as with the eventually coexistent polyneuropathy. Anti-GM1 concentrations were measured in the sera of 33 demented patients with a male-to-female ratio of 1:2.7 (the mean age was 69.7 years for males and 70.1 years for females). Eighty-two percent of the patients revealed increased values of anti-GM1, but only 18.2% demonstrated polyneuropathies. Fifty-nine percent of the patients suffered from vascular dementia. The most severely demented patients demonstrated a Mini-Mental State Examination score of 5 to 23 out of 30 and revealed the most increased levels of anti-GM1 (>40 EU/mL). The findings of this study are indicative of a possible correlation between the levels of anti-GM1 and the severity of dementia, mainly of the vascular type.
Neuroimmunological Laboratory of the 1st Department of Neurology Aristotelian University, AHEPA Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece.
Eleni
E
Hatzifilippou
Ephrosini
E
Koutsouraki
Tania
T
Banaki
Maria
M
Traka
Vassiliki G
VG
Costa
Stavros J
SJ
Baloyannis
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000276:immunology*; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D015897:Comorbidity; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000276:immunology*; D015140:Dementia, Vascular / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D005677:G(M1) Ganglioside / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008609:Mental Status Schedule / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011115:Polyneuropathies / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
D001323:Autoantibodies; D007075:Immunoglobulin M; D005677:G(M1) Ganglioside