Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and oxidative stress

Objectives - Substantial evidence supports the hypothesis that oxygen free radicals are involved in various neurodegenerative disorders. To assess the presence of oxidative stress in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) we examine d the concentrations of malondialdehyde (MDA) as an established marker of l ipid peroxidation. Material and methods - MDA was quantified by high perfor mance liquid chromatography (HPLC) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF; n=12) and i n serum (n=11) samples of CJD patients and healthy controls (n=15). Results - Mean values in healthy controls: 2.56 nmol/ml +/- 0.46 (CSF) and 1.94 nm ol/ml +/- 0.67 (serum); mean values in CJD patients: 2.64 nmol/ml +/- 0.67 (CSF) and 1.68 nmol/ml +/- 0.79 (serum). No significant (P > 0.05) differen ce between CJD patients and controls was observed. Conclusions - The result s indicated that the CSF and serum of CJD patients showed no higher endogen ous levels of MDA as compared to normal healthy controls. These findings pr ovide no evidence for an additional role of oxidative stress in the pathoge netic mechanism underlying CJD neurodegeneration.