Association of High Serum Levels of Growth Factors with Good Outcome in Ischemic Stroke: a Multicenter Study

Abstract

The main objective of this research work was to study the association of serum levels of growth factors (GF) and SDF-1α with the functional outcome and reduction of lesion volume in ischemic stroke patients. In this multicenter study, 552 patients with nonlacunar stroke (male, 62.1%; mean age, 68.2 ± 11.4) were included within 24 h from symptom onset. The main outcome variable was good functional outcome (modified Rankin Scale [mRS] ≤ 2) at 12 months. Secondary outcome variable was infarct volume (in mL) after 6 ± 3 months. Serum levels of VEGF, Ang-1, G-CSF, BDNF, and SDF-1α were measured by ELISA at admission, 7 ± 1 days, at 3 ± 1 months, and 12 ± 3 months. Except for BDNF, all GF and SDF-1α serum levels showed a peak value at day 7 and remained elevated during the first 3 months (all p < 0.01). High serum levels at day 7 of VEGF (OR, 19.3), Ang-1 (OR, 14.7), G-CSF (OR, 9.6), and SDF-1α (OR, 28.5) were independently associated with good outcome at 12 months (all p < 0.0001). On the other hand, serum levels of VEGF (B, − 21.4), G-CSF (B, − 14.0), Ang-1 (B, − 13.3), and SDF-1α (B, − 44.6) measured at day 7 were independently associated with lesion volume at 6 months (p < 0.01). In summary, high serum levels of VEGF, Ang-1, G-CSF, and SDF-1α at day 7 and 3 months after ischemic stroke are associated with good functional outcome and smaller residual lesion at 1 year of follow-up.

Serum BDNF Levels in Acute Stroke: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Sobrino et al explored the association between various serum biomarkers and functional outcome after ischemic stroke [ 35 ]. In this multicenter study, they included 552 patients within the first 24 h after stroke (non-lacunar etiology).…”

“…Twenty-five studies reported both the serum BDNF levels and the NIHSS during the acute stroke phase. Thirteen studies, despite measuring BDNF and scoring NIHSS, do not examine the in-between correlation [ 20 , 21 , 22 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 39 , 40 , 41 ]. Amongst the rest, nine were further meta-analyzed [ 14 , 15 , 23 , 28 , 32 , 36 , 37 , 42 , 43 ].…”

“…Sobrino et al examined the correlation between multiple serum biomarkers and ischemic stroke volume measured at various time-points (admission, day 7, 3rd month, 12th month) [ 35 ]. No correlation between the two was noted at any time-point (MANOVA test, p = 0.081).…”

Serum BDNF’s Role as a Biomarker for Motor Training in the Context of AR-Based Rehabilitation after Ischemic Stroke

“…The possible existence of a disequilibrium state during the initial few days may also explain the conflicting results obtained with respect to the relationship between initial BDNF levels and outcomes. Wang et al found evidence for an association between BDNF and outcomes after 3 months [ 39 ], but the findings of others were negative for outcomes after 90 days [ 40 , 41 , 42 ] and 12 months [ 42 ].…”

The Effect of HRE-Regulated VEGF Expression and Transfection on Neural Stem Cells in Rats

“…Hypoxic-ischemic brain damage (HIBD) is a common central nervous system lesion in perinatal neonates, and 25% of neonatal HIBD can develop into severe and permanent neuropsychological sequelae, including developmental delay, cerebral palsy and epilepsy, and there is still no effective therapy for the disease (Liang et al, 2010;Sobrino et al, 2020;Truttmann et al, 2020). Gene therapy for brain damage has become a popular research field, due to its potential for long-lasting and stable effects.…”