Inflammation biomarkers in acute ischemic stroke according to different etiologies

High throughput technologies provide new opportunities to further investigate the pathophysiology of ischemic strokes. The present cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate potential associations between the etiologic subtypes of ischemic stroke and blood-based proteins.

We investigated the associations between ischemic stroke subtypes and a panel of circulating inflammation biomarkers in 364 patients included in the Stroke Cohort Augsburg (SCHANA). Stroke etiologies were categorized according to the TOAST (Trial of Org 10172 in Acute Stroke Treatment) classification. Serum concentrations of 52 biomarkers were measured using the Bio-Plex Pro™ Human Cytokine Screening Panel, ICAM-1 set and VCAM-1 set, plus the Pro™ Human TH17 cytokine sCD40L set and IL31 set (all Bio-Rad, USA). Multivariable linear regression models were used to examine associations. Point estimates were calculated as the mean difference in $$ -standardized cytokine levels on the log₂ -scale.

Stromal-cell-derived-factor 1 alpha (SDF-1a) showed significantly higher serum levels in cardioembolic compared with large vessel atherosclerotic stroke (β = 0.48; 95% CI 0.22; 0.75; P_adj  = 0.036). Significantly lower levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) (β = -0.53; 95% CI -0.84; -0.23; P_adj  = 0.036) and macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) (β = -0.52; 95% CI -0.84; -0.21; P_adj  = 0.043) were found in the small vessel versus large vessel stroke subtype.

Immune dysregulations observed in different stroke subtypes might help uncover pathophysiological mechanisms of the disease. Further studies are needed to validate identified biomarkers in diverse study populations before they can potentially be used in clinical practice to further improve stroke management and patient outcomes.