Inflammatory Proteins and the Severity of Dilated Virchow-Robin Spaces in the Elderly

Article type: Short Communication

Authors: Satizabal, Claudia L.^{a; b} | Zhu, Yi-Cheng^c | Dufouil, Carole^{a; d} | Tzourio, Christophe^{a; d; *}

Affiliations: [a] INSERM U708 “Neuroepidemiology”, Bordeaux, France | [b] Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France | [c] Department of Neurology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Beijing, China | [d] Université Victor Segalen Bordeaux-2, Bordeaux, France

Correspondence: [*] Correspondence to: Prof. Christophe Tzourio, INSERM U708, Université Victor Segalen, 146 rue Léo Saignat – Case 11, 33076 cedex, Bordeaux, France. Tel.: +33 557571659; Fax: +33 142162541; E-mail: christophe.tzourio@inserm.fr.

Abstract: Recent studies suggest dilated Virchow-Robin Spaces (dVRS) could be a manifestation of cerebral small-vessel disease, but little is known about their risk factors. As inflammation has been associated with other brain MRI findings, we investigated whether interleukin-6 and C-reactive protein were associated with the severity of dVRS in the eldery. dVRS were assessed in basal ganglia and white matter and rated on a severity scale. We found that elevated interleukin-6 levels were associated with higher severity of dVRS in basal ganglia, suggesting that inflammation might be associated with the burden of dVRS in the elderly.

Keywords: Aged, cerebral small vessel diseases, dilated Virchow-Robin spaces, inflammation, magnetic resonance imaging

DOI: 10.3233/JAD-2012-120874

Journal: Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, vol. 33, no. 2, pp. 323-328, 2013