Assessment of trimethylamine-N-oxide at the blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier: Results from 290 lumbar punctures

Recently, the microbiome-derived trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) was shown to be present in human cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). However, data on the potential of TMAO crossing the blood-CSF barrier are still lacking. This retrospective study aimed at investigating possible associations between the CSF/serum albumin (Q(ALB)) and TMAO (Q(TMAO)) quotient and evaluating Q(TMAO )values in individuals with and without blood-CSF barrier dysfunction. A total of 290 patients, who underwent diagnostic lumbar puncture with Q(ALB) and Q(TMAO )determination, were evaluated. Serum and CSF TMAO measurements were performed on a tandem mass spectrometry SCIEX QTRAP 4500 (Applied Biosystems, Framingham, MA, USA) coupled with an Agilent 1260 Infinity HPLC system (Agilent Technologies Santa Clara, CA, USA). Serum and CSF albumin were measured on the Atellica(® )NEPH 630 system (Siemens Healthineers, Erlangen, Germany). CSF TMAO levels were positively correlated with serum TMAO levels (ρ = 0.709, p < 0.001). The Q(ALB )was significantly associated with the Q(TMAO )(ß-coefficient = 0.312; p < 0.001). A total of 117 patients with blood-CSF barrier dysfunction had significantly higher median (Q1 - Q3) Q(TMAO )values (4.7 (2.8 - 7.5) vs. 3.8 (2.5 - 5.7) x 10(-1), p = 0.002) compared to 173 individuals with normal blood-CSF barrier function. CSF and serum TMAO concentrations were significantly associated in 290 CSF/serum pairs from lumbar punctures of clinical routine. Q(ALB )showed a relevant influence on Q(TMAO). Present results indicate that TMAO may cross the blood-CSF barrier.