Adenosine A_2A Receptor Expression in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells of Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment

Article type: Short Communication

Authors: Arosio, Beatrice^{; *} | Viazzoli, Chiara | Mastronardi, Luigina | Bilotta, Claudio | Vergani, Carlo | Bergamaschini, Luigi

Affiliations: Department of Internal Medicine, Università degli Studi di Milano, Geriatric Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Cà Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milano, Italy

Correspondence: [*] Correspondence to: Beatrice Arosio, Ph.D., Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Pace 9, 20122 Milan, Italy. Tel.: +39 0255035405; Fax: +39 0250320712; E-mail: beatrice.arosio@unimi.it.

Abstract: Adenosine suppresses immune responses through the adenosine A2A receptors (A2AR). We evaluated the expression of A2AR in blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), Alzheimer's disease (AD), and controls in order to verify if it may help distinguish different forms of cognitive decline. There was a significant linear increase in both mRNA levels and receptor density from multiple cognitive domain MCI (mcd-MCI) to amnestic MCI (a-MCI), spanning through AD and controls, without any significant difference between the latter two groups of subjects. These data, which need to be confirmed in a larger number of patients, suggest that expression of A2AR in PBMCs may be a valuable means of differentiating a-MCI and mcd-MCI.

Keywords: Adenosine receptors, Alzheimer's disease, inflammation, mild cognitive impairment

DOI: 10.3233/JAD-2010-090814

Journal: Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, vol. 20, no. 4, pp. 991-996, 2010