Identification of biomarkers for diagnosis and progression of MS by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry

Introduction: Body fluid biomarkers for clinical subtyping and monitoring of disease progression are of considerable interest in multiple sclerosis (MS). Proteomics tools are optimal for the unbiased simultaneous detection of large series of peptides and proteins.Objectives: To identify novel candidate biomarkers discriminating patients with MS from patients with other neurological diseases (OND), and for subtyping of relapsing–remitting (RR), secondary progressive (SP) and primary progressive (PP) MS patients using a high-throughput MALDI-TOF-based mass spectrometry method.Methods: Paired cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum samples of 41 RRMS, 30 SPMS, 13 PPMS patients and 25 patients with OND were analysed.Results: Out of a total of 100 detected peptides in CSF and 200 peptides in serum, 11 peptides were differentially regulated in serum and two in CSF between patients with MS and the OND control group. Eleven peptides were differentially regulated in both serum and CSF between relapse-onset MS and PPMS...