Serum cholesterol linoleate levels in multiple sclerosis

Abstract

Cholesterol linolate levels were determined in serum samples from 35 patients with multiple sclerosis and 23 controls. The controls included eight healthy subjects and 15 patients suffering from neurological disorders other than primary demyelinating conditions. When the levels of either total cho-lesterol esters or cholesterol linoleate samples from the normal subjects and neurological controls were compared, there was no significant difference. These 2 groups, there, were combined into one group of 23 controls. The patients with multiple sclerosis were classified into 3 grades as follows: patients with only slight neurological disability, showing only slight recent de -terioration and whose condition clinically was considered stationary; patients showing moderate recent deterioration and evidence of a more severe increase in disability; and patients showing rapid and extensive recent deterioration. Results showed that the mean level of total cholesterol esters in the overall group of multiple sclerosis patients did not significantly differ from the mean of the control group. The cholesterol linoleate levels in patients with multiple sclerosis, however, show a wide deviation from the controls and are reduced in the greater proportion of patients. Grade C patients show a mean level of 1.52 [mu] moles/ml. as compared with a control mean level of 2.17 [mu] moles/ml. This difference is highly significant, P< 0.001. Grade B patients differ from the control mean at a probability level of 0.05. Since the unsaturated linoleate ester is predominantly affected, the possibility of a disturbance in a transesterification process between cholesterol and the [beta] -linked unsaturated fatty acid of a phospholipid is considered.