Zhang Qinghao, Li Ziteng, Xie Liangyu, Cao Shengnan, Cui Zhonghao, Shi Bin, Chen Yuanzhen
Bone Biomechanics Engineering Laboratory of Shandong Province, Shandong Medicinal Biotechnology Center (School of Biomedical Sciences), Neck-Shoulder and Lumbocrural Pain Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China.
School of Acupuncture and Tuina, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China.
Front Neurol. 2023 Mar 6;14:1120446. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2023.1120446. eCollection 2023.
Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipoprotein (NGAL), a protein encoded by the lipocalcin-2 (LCN2) gene, has been reported to be involved in multiple processes of innate immunity, but its relationship with spinal cord injury (SCI) remains unclear. This study set out to determine whether NGAL played a role in the development of cognitive impairment following SCI.
At the Neck-Shoulder and Lumbocrural Pain Hospital, a total of 100 SCI patients and 72 controls were enrolled in the study through recruitment. Through questionnaires, baseline data on the participants' age, gender, education level, lifestyle choices (drinking and smoking) and underlying illnesses (hypertension, diabetes, coronary heart disease, and hyperlipidemia) were gathered. The individuals' cognitive performance was evaluated using the Montreal Cognitive Scale (MoCA), and their serum NGAL levels were discovered using ELISA.
The investigation included 72 controls and 100 SCI patients. The baseline data did not differ substantially between the two groups, however the SCI group's serum NGAL level was higher than the control group's ( < 0.05), and this elevated level was adversely connected with the MoCA score ( < 0.05). According to the results of the ROC analysis, NGAL had a sensitivity of 58.24% and a specificity of 86.72% for predicting cognitive impairment following SCI.
The changes in serum NGAL level could serve as a biomarker for cognitive impairment in SCI patients, and this holds true even after taking in account several confounding variables.
中性粒细胞明胶酶相关脂蛋白（NGAL）是一种由脂质运载蛋白2（LCN2）基因编码的蛋白质，据报道其参与天然免疫的多个过程，但其与脊髓损伤（SCI）的关系仍不清楚。本研究旨在确定NGAL是否在SCI后的认知障碍发展中起作用。
在颈肩腰腿痛医院，通过招募共纳入了100例SCI患者和72例对照者进行研究。通过问卷调查收集参与者的年龄、性别、教育水平、生活方式选择（饮酒和吸烟）以及基础疾病（高血压、糖尿病、冠心病和高脂血症）的基线数据。使用蒙特利尔认知评估量表（MoCA）评估个体的认知表现，并使用酶联免疫吸附测定法（ELISA）检测其血清NGAL水平。
该调查包括72例对照者和100例SCI患者。两组之间的基线数据没有显著差异，然而SCI组的血清NGAL水平高于对照组（<0.05），且这种升高水平与MoCA评分呈负相关（<0.05）。根据ROC分析结果，NGAL对预测SCI后的认知障碍的敏感性为58.24%，特异性为86.72%。
血清NGAL水平的变化可作为SCI患者认知障碍的生物标志物，即使在考虑了几个混杂变量后也是如此。
