Integrity of the blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier in early Parkinson's disease

Dysfunction of the blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier (BCB) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD) and other neurodegenerative disorders. Therefore, we assayed serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from 30 parkinsonian patients and 30 controls for concentrations of albumin and IgG. The CSF/serum ratio for albumin (AQ), IgG (GQ), IgG-index as well as determination of oligoclonal bands were used to evaluate BCB function and to quantify humoral immune response within the central nervous system (CNS). Levels of AQ, GQ and IgG-index did not significantly differ in both groups. We found no dysfunction of the blood-CSF barrier or signs of local synthesis of IgG in the central nervous system of parkinsonian patients. Our data do not support the hypothesis of a dysfunctional BCB that contributes to pathophysiological mechanisms underlying PD. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.