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Updated: Jun 22, 2026

Real-Time Fluorescent Measurement of Synaptic Functions in Models of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Published on: July 16, 2021
Linking neuron and skin: matrix metalloproteinases in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
Lubin Fang1, Friederike Huber-Abel, Marko Teuchert
1Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Oberer Eselsberg 45, 89081 Ulm, Germany.
Abstract:
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) mainly affects the motor neurons but may also include other organs such as the skin. We aimed to determine whether matrix metalloproteinases could provide a link between neuronal degeneration and skin alterations in ALS. We measured CSF, serum and skin tissue MMP-2 and MMP-9 using ELISA and malondialdehyde (MDA), a marker of lipid peroxidation, using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) in 54 ALS patients and 36 controls. We found CSF and skin MMP-9 to be elevated in ALS as compared to controls (p<0.001, p=0.03, respectively). We observed CSF MMP-9 to be highest in patients with a rapid progressive course of disease (p=0.008). In contrast, we found no significant differences of CSF, serum or skin concentrations of MMP-2 as compared to controls. CSF MMP-2 concentrations decreased with duration of disease (p=0.04, R=-0.31). MDA was elevated in serum of ALS (p<0.001), though no correlation with MMP-2 or MMP-9 was observed. Our findings indicate a general upregulation of MMP-9 in ALS. MMP-9 seems to play a role in both neurodegeneration and skin changes in ALS and could thus be a common factor linking otherwise distant aspects of disease pathology.
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