Abstract
Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is a severe neonatal complication responsible for ∼23% of all neonatal deaths. Also, 30-70% of these patients will suffer lifetime disabilities, including learning impairment, epilepsy or cerebral palsy. However, biomarkers for HIE screening, or monitoring disease progression are limited. Herein, we sought to evaluate the clinical usefulness of plasma-type gelsolin (pGSN) and amyloid-beta (Aβ) 40 and 42 as prognostic biomarkers for HIE. pGSN has been previously suggested as a feasible marker in other brain injuries and amyloid-beta 40 and 42 are classically assessed in neurodegenerative diseases. However, to our knowledge, they have not been previously assessed in HIE patients. We have analyzed plasma pGSN and Aβ 40 and 42 levels in 55 newborns (16 controls, 16 mild and 23 moderate-severe HIE) at birth, during 72 h of therapeutic hypothermia, a gold-standard treatment for HIE, and 24 h after hypothermia. Aβ levels were lower in HIE patients, and pGSN levels were progressively reduced in mild and moderate-severe HIE patients. The fact that pGSN reductions could predict the severity of HIE and significantly correlated with the time to undergo hypothermia supports the prognostic value of plasmatic pGSN. Further studies are warranted to investigate the role of pGSN in neonatal HIE.