Cerebrospinal fluid corticotropin-releasing hormone in neurodegenerative diseases: reduction in spinocerebellar degeneration.

Levels of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were examined in patients with spinocerebellar degeneration (SCD) including olivopontocerebellar atrophy (OPCA), dentatorubropallidoluysian atrophy (DRPLA) and Friedreich's ataxia, Parkinson's disease (PD) and senile dementia of the Alzheimer type (SDAT), and normal aged subjects. CRH concentrations in CSF were significantly reduced in SCD compared to SDAT, PD and CSF and normal aged subjects. It is likely that degeneration not only of the cerebral cortex and the limbic system but also of the subcortical structures such as the brainstem and the cerebellum alters levels of CRH in CSF. Together with the recent anatomical and physiological evidence, the results suggest pathophysiological relevance of CRH for the cerebellar symptoms in SCD.