Biomarkers of neuroinflammation in the diagnosis of traumatic brain injury and neurodegenerative diseases: a literature review

Abstract

Inflammatory processes accompanied by damage to the cell bodies of neurons are combined into the group of neuroinflammation. At the molecular, cellular and tissue levels, neuroinflammation serves as a sanogenetic response to a variety of injuries, including post-traumatic conditions and neurodegeneration. However, inflammatory changes in long-lived cells such as neurons inevitably trigger a range of adverse effects. As a result, prognosis often depends on the severity of neuroinflammation. In this work, we review the spectrum of biomarkers involved in two key mechanisms of neuroinflammation: immune-mediated and mechanical injury, that have a potential clinical application: cytokines, neurospecific proteins and their proteolysis products, markers of oxidative stress, matrix metalloproteinases and endocrine parameters. Over the past decades, a significant pool of data on neuroinflammation biomarkers has been accumulated and continues to grow, but no consensus has been reached on the actual gradation of their clinical significance. Applied branches of medicine require further systematization of information on biomarkers of neuroinflammation for effective prognostic decisions.