Progesterone and cortisol levels in sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (sALS): correlation with prognostic factors

GARGIULO MONACHELLI GM; MEYER M; RODRIGUEZ G; GARAY L; SICA REP; DE NICOLA AF; GONZALEZ DENISELLE M.C

Hormone Molecular Biology and Clinical Investigation

De Gruyter

Año: 2011 vol. 6 p. 167 - 173

1868-1891

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disorder. Worse prognostic factors in ALS are: a) advanced age; b) bulbar onset; c) short time between onset and diagnosis. Progesterone (PROG) has been associated with neuroprotective and promyelinating activities in injury, ischemia and degeneration of the central and peripheral nervous system (CNS and PNS). Cortisol, is connected to the response to stress situations and might contribute to neuronal damage. The goals of the study were i) to investigate whether PROG levels are modified by ALS prognostic factors; ii) to determine whether cortisol follows the same pattern. We determined serum steroid levels in 27 patients with sporadic ALS (sALS) and 21 controls. Both steroid hormones showed significantly increased levels in ALS patients versus controls (mean ± SEM: PROG ALS vs control: 0.54 ± 0.05 vs 0.39 ± 0.04 ng/ml, p