Exosomal Angiogenin as a Potential Biomarker in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Abstract—Exosomes are extracellular vesicles that represent an important mode of intercellular communication. It is thought that exosomes can carry biologically active molecules associated with the progressive spreading of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). ALS is a fatal neurodegenerative disease characterized by the progressive death of motor neurons. Angiogenin is likely to be important in the pathogenesis of ALS. This paper analyzes the content of angiogenin in blood plasma, CSF, and exosome fractions obtained from blood plasma and CSF in ALS. The study included 30 patients with ALS and 26 age and gender matched healthy controls. The relative amount of angiogenin in plasma and CSF was significantly higher than in exosome fractions (p < 0.05). A comparison of angiogenin content in plasma and exosome fraction revealed lower angiogenin levels in patients with ALS compared to healthy volunteers (p < 0.05), which may indicate a protective role of angiogenin. Higher concentrations of angiogenin in plasma and its exosome fractions tended to correlate with better functional states in patients. Therefore, a reduction of angiogenin levels in plasma and the exosome fraction from plasma may be a marker of disease progression, but these data need to be confirmed in a larger cohort.