FROM JAMA NEUROLOGY
Baseline levels of visinin-like protein 1 in the cerebrospinal fluid were significant predictors of whole brain and regional brain atrophy, based on data from an observational study of 87 adults.
Cerebrospinal fluid visinin-like protein 1 (VILIP-1) has shown potential as a sign of neurodegeneration, said Dr. Rawan Tarawneh of Washington University, St. Louis. In this study, Dr. Tarawneh and her associates assessed the potential of VILIP-1 to predict rates of brain atrophy (JAMA Neurol. 2015 April 13 [doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2015.0202]).
Overall, VILIP-1 predicted brain atrophy in AD patients as well as tau and p-tau181 levels. In addition, cognitively normal controls with VILIP-1, tau, or p-tau181 levels in the highest tercile had significantly higher rates of whole-brain, hippocampal, and entorhinal atrophy than those in the two lower terciles.
The study population comprised 23 community-dwelling adults with mild Alzheimer’s disease and 64 healthy controls who were part of a larger study on healthy aging and dementia; the mean age of the participants was 72 years, and 45% were women. Brain volume was assessed via magnetic resonance imaging.
“In our cohort, individuals with baseline VILIP-1, tau, or p-tau181 values in the upper tercile had higher rates of whole-brain and regional atrophy compared with individuals in the lower 2 terciles over time,” the researchers wrote.
Although the study results were limited by the small sample size and short follow-up period, the findings suggest that VILIP-1 may ultimately be used to monitor disease progression and evaluate responses to disease-modifying therapies, the researchers noted.
The study was funded in part by the National Institutes of Health, Eli Lilly, the JPB Foundation, Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics, and the Charles F. and Joanne Knight Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center. Dr. Tarawneh had no disclosures. Several coauthors disclosed ties with pharmaceutical and device companies, but not those involved in funding this study.
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