Blood and cerebrospinal fluid anomalies in brain ageing and Alzheimer's disease.

The glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), myelin basic protein (MBP), S100 protein (S100), gamma gamma-enolase and neurofilament proteins were determined in the CSF of neurological patients. In Alzheimer's disease (AD), the GFAP values were very often increased but this was not specific to this disease. In 2 cases of familial AD, increases in neurofilament protein were detected. The determination of autoantibodies against neurofilament proteins in blood showed rather low values in AD, although they were higher than in subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) and Chagas' disease. Increases were observed in diseases not related to AD such as vascular disorders and Parkinson's disease.