Bhavsar Kamini, Tripathi Manjari, Banerjee Jyotirmoy, Srivastava Arpna, Pandey Shivam, Vohora Divya
Department of Pharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (SPER), Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi, India.
Department of Neurology, All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS), New Delhi, India.
Front Neurol. 2025 Apr 11;16:1540915. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2025.1540915. eCollection 2025.
This study aims to evaluate cognitive impairment utilizing the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scale, while also exploring the correlation between cognitive impairment and various serum biomarkers, including Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), Beta Secretase-1 (BACE1), Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors (VEGF), Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), and Interleukin-1 (IL-1β) in adults living with epilepsy.
In this study, 74 participants aged between 18 and 50 years, who were visiting neurology outpatient consultations, were included. The cognitive assessment was executed using the MoCA test. Serum levels of BDNF, BACE1, VEGF, GFAP, and IL-1β were evaluated through ELISA in patients with and without cognitive impairments. To determine the association between MoCA scores and the biomarkers, both Spearman and Pearson correlation analyses, as well as linear regression, were conducted.
Among the 74 PWE, 61 exhibited cognitive impairment as determined by the MoCA assessment. Noteworthy alterations were detected across various MoCA subscales, encompassing visuospatial and executive functions, attention, language, abstraction, and delayed recall, with statistical significance established ( < 0.05). Furthermore, it was revealed that those in the cognitively impaired group presented with reduced serum BDNF levels ( < 0.05). It is important to highlight that no substantial differences were identified in the serum concentrations of BACE-1, VEGF, GFAP, and IL-1β. A moderate and statistically significant correlation was established between BDNF and the Total MoCA score ( < 0.05), in addition to BDNF's relationship with Visuospatial & Executive function ( < 0.05). In the context of regression analysis, BDNF demonstrated a significant association to the Total MoCA score ( < 0.05), a connection that persisted as significant even when adjusted for confounding factors.
We conclude that adult PWE in India demonstrate a significant cognitive impairment. Further, our findings indicate that BDNF may serve as a potential biomarker for evaluating cognitive impairment in adult PWE. Further longitudinal, prospective and multi-center studies are required to confirm the same.
本研究旨在利用蒙特利尔认知评估（MoCA）量表评估认知障碍，同时探讨认知障碍与多种血清生物标志物之间的相关性，这些生物标志物包括脑源性神经营养因子（BDNF）、β-分泌酶-1（BACE1）、血管内皮生长因子（VEGF）、胶质纤维酸性蛋白（GFAP）和白细胞介素-1（IL-1β），研究对象为成年癫痫患者。
本研究纳入了74名年龄在18至50岁之间、前来神经科门诊就诊的参与者。认知评估采用MoCA测试进行。通过酶联免疫吸附测定法（ELISA）评估有认知障碍和无认知障碍患者的血清BDNF、BACE1、VEGF、GFAP和IL-1β水平。为了确定MoCA评分与生物标志物之间的关联，进行了Spearman和Pearson相关性分析以及线性回归分析。
在74名癫痫患者中，61名经MoCA评估显示存在认知障碍。在MoCA各个子量表中均检测到显著变化，包括视觉空间和执行功能、注意力、语言、抽象思维和延迟回忆，差异具有统计学意义（<0.05）。此外，研究发现认知障碍组患者的血清BDNF水平降低（<0.05）。需要强调的是，在BACE-1、VEGF、GFAP和IL-1β的血清浓度方面未发现显著差异。BDNF与MoCA总分之间建立了中度且具有统计学意义的相关性（<0.05），此外，BDNF与视觉空间及执行功能之间也存在相关性（<0.05）。在回归分析中，BDNF与MoCA总分显示出显著关联（<0.05），即使在调整混杂因素后，这种关联仍然显著。
我们得出结论，印度成年癫痫患者存在显著的认知障碍。此外，我们的研究结果表明，BDNF可能作为评估成年癫痫患者认知障碍的潜在生物标志物。需要进一步开展纵向、前瞻性和多中心研究以证实这一点。
