Clinical value of decreased superoxide dismutase 1 in patients with epilepsy

PURPOSE Our previous study using proteomic analysis showed that superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) was significantly decreased in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with epilepsy. However, the relevance of CSF-SOD1 alterations for the pathophysiology of epilepsy is currently unknown. The present study was intended to add to our understanding of this issue by measuring SOD1 levels in the CSF of patients with resistant epilepsy and non-resistant epilepsy. METHODS A total of 52 patients with epilepsy were recruited. 29 were non-resistant, 23 drug-resistant. 20 individuals with no evidence of any neurological diseases were used as control. The concentration of CSF and serum SOD1 was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS The concentration of CSF-SOD1 was decreased in both the drug-resistant (0.13 ± 0.12 ng/ml) and the non-resistant epilepsy subgroups (0.29 ± 0.23 ng/ml) compared to the control group (0.40 ± 0.35 ng/ml). SOD1 was significantly lower in the drug-resistant than the non-resistant epilepsy subgroup (P<0.05). CONCLUSION SOD1 levels are decreased in the CSF of patients with epilepsy, especially of patients with intractable epilepsy. Low CSF-SOD1 levels may be a predictor of antiepileptic drug resistance in patients with epilepsy.