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CSF Beta-Synuclein, SNAP-25, and Neurogranin in Infectious and Autoimmune Inflammatory Neurologic Diseases

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Beta-synuclein (beta-syn), synaptosomal-associated protein 25 (SNAP-25), and neurogranin are CSF biomarkers of synaptic damage, which have been poorly investigated in non-neurodegenerative neurologic diseases. In this study, we examined the diagnostic and prognostic role of these markers compared with the neuroaxonal damage marker neurofilament light chain protein (NfL) in infectious and autoimmune inflammatory neurologic diseases (IINDs and AINDs). METHODS: This cohort study included CSF samples from patients with different etiologies of IIND (varicella-zoster virus, herpes simplex virus, tick-borne meningoencephalitis, bacterial meningitis/(meningo)encephalitis, neuroborreliosis, or other/unknown etiology) or AIND (autoimmune encephalitis or other etiology) as well as controls. RESULTS: < 0.001) compared with those with mRS scores of 0-2. Accordingly, higher levels of synaptic markers were associated with poorer short-term outcomes in patients with IINDs, but not in those with AINDs. DISCUSSION: Elevated CSF levels of beta-syn, neurogranin, and NfL may suggest a common pattern of synaptic and neuroaxonal damage in both IINDs and AINDs. Although these biomarkers have limited value in distinguishing between different diseases, they are associated with clinical severity and with short-term outcome, particularly in patients with IINDs.

Source: Neurology Neuroimmunology & Neuroinflammation

DOI: 10.1212/nxi.0000000000200491