Proinflammatory Cytokines Are Elevated in Serum of Patients with Multiple System Atrophy

BACKGROUND: Despite several lines of evidence from preclinical and post-mortem studies suggesting that inflammation is involved in Multiple System Atrophy (MSA), no previous studies have measured peripheral indices of inflammation in MSA patients. METHODS: We measured C-reactive protein, interleukin (IL)-6, soluble IL-2 receptor and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α in blood samples from MSA patients (n = 14) and healthy controls (n = 40). RESULTS: IL-6 and TNF-α were significantly elevated in MSA patients compared to healthy controls. After controlling for the potentially confounding effects of age, gender, and somatic co-morbidities, a diagnosis of MSA was still significantly associated with high levels of TNF-α. Higher TNF-α levels were associated with less severe motor symptoms and earlier disease stage. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings are in line with the hypothesis that inflammation might be involved at an early stage of MSA pathophysiology.