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Description:
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Alzheimer’s disease (AD ) is a progressive , irreversible , neurodegenerative disease that affects more than 5 million people in USA alone and is expected to increase to 7 million by 2020 . Currently , there are no drugs available that can halt or prevent the progression of this disease . This may be due to the complex nature of this disease with a number of proteins , mediators and factors involved or that there are some low abundance proteins not yet identified that may play a major role in the pathogenesis of AD . In this regard , with rapidly improving proteomics technologies it is possible to identify less abundant but potentially important functional molecules that may play an important role in the pathogenesis of AD . The objective of this study was to identify novel proteins expressed in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF ) of AD compared to age matched CSF samples from non -neurodegenerative cohorts . Using highly sensitive mass spectrometry techniques (MALDI -TOF /TOF ) , 260 protein spots from 18 AD and 14 control CSF samples were analyzed . Of the 141 proteins identified nine proteins were solely found in AD CSF but absent in the control CSF . Similarly eleven proteins identified in control CSF were not identified in AD CSF . Proteins identified include apolipoprotein E , cystatin C , orosomucoid , prostaglandin D2 , enolase , and transthyretin . The results suggest that with proteomic profiling technology it will be possible to identify unique , low abundance proteins which may provide new insights into the pathogenesis of AD . |