Serum Levels of Glial Fibrillaryacidic Protein in Meningioma

Background: Glial fibrillaryacidic protein (GFAP), an intermediate filament protein, is mainly expressed by astrocytes, but some other cells like enteric glia and non-myelinating Schwann cells can also express GFAP. GFAP elevation has been reported in some types of meningioma and malignant brain tumors. In the present study, we analyzed the association between serum levels of GFAP with meningioma.  Methods: Sixty-eight newly diagnosed patients with meningioma and 28 healthy individuals (control group) were included. Serum levels of GFAP were measured by ELISA. Results: There was no significant difference in GFAP serum levels between the two groups. Subdivision of the patients also revealed no significant association between GFAP and meningioma.  Conclusion: We studied serum levels of GFAP in meningioma in Iranian patients for the first time. We did not observe a significant association between meningioma and GFAP. A larger study including a larger number of different subtypes of meningioma patients may discover a weakly significant difference if it exists.