The Serum Levels of Resistin and Its Relationship with Other Proinflammatory Cytokines in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease

Objective: The present study aims to analyze the levels of resistin, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin (IL)-1 beta, IL-6, IL-18, and C-reactive protein (CRP) in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and also investigate a potential relationship between resistin levels and TNF-alpha, IL-1 beta, IL-6, IL-18, and CRP levels in patients with AD. Methods: The study included fifty patients with AD and 30 healthy controls with normal cognitive functions. The serum resistin, TNF-alpha, IL-1 beta, IL-6, IL-18, and CRP levels were assessed. We performed a Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) to evaluate the general cognitive performance. Results: The mean serum resistin, IL-1 beta, IL-18, and TNF-alpha levels were significantly higher in patients with AD compared with the controls (p=0.026, p=0.002, p=0,003, and p=0.038, respectively). The IL-6 and CRP levels did not differ between the groups (p=0.874 and p=0.941). The resistin levels were positively correlated with the levels of CRP and IL-18 (r=0.526, p<0.001; r=0.402, r=0.004, respectively). MMSE scores and inflammatory markers were not correlated (p>0.05 for all). Conclusion: Serum resistin levels were significantly increased and correlated with some inflammatory markers in AD patients, suggesting that resistin might play a role in the inflammatory process of AD.