RESUMO
The glio-fibrillar acid protein is considered as a biomarker of astroglyal pathology in case of neurological diseases. The glio-fibrillar acidprotein is intracytoplasmatic filamentous protein specific for cellular skeleton of mature astrocytes playing important role in their differentiation. According publications' data, the highest serum concentrations of glio-fibrillar acid protein are detected in case of neurolepsia, meningitis, febrile schizophrenia, encephalitis, Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, stroke, opened cranial-cerebral injury and other critical conditions related to damage of hematoencephalic barrier. In the recent years, publications appeared considering analysis of glio-fibrillar acid protein in blood of patients with primary and metastatic brain tumors. Purpose of study To compare levels of glio-fibrillar acid protein in blood serum of patients with primary and metastatic brain tumors and also patients with neurological diseases of non-tumorous etiology and healthy individuals. Material and methods. The analysis was applied to levels of glio-fibrillar acid protein in blood serum of neurooncologic patients (n=175) and also patients with pathology of brain of non-tumorous etiology i.e. degenerate and cerebrovascular diseases (n=38). The control group consisted of 52 healthy individuals with no principal differences in gender and age from examined groups of patients. The concentration of glio-fibrillar acid protein was established in blood serum using immune enzyme analysis in reagents of "BioVendor" firm. Results and discussion. The analysis of results of detection of glio-fibrillar acid protein demonstrated that in patients with primary malignant brain tumors the initial levels of marker were reliably higher than compared with groups of healthy individuals, patients with benign neoplasms, patients with cerebral metastases, and also in case of non-tumorous pathology. The levels of glio-fibrillar acid protein achieve their maximum in case of glioblastoma. The obtained results permit assuming existence of relationship between increasing of content of glio-fibrillar acid protein in blood serum and damage of hematoencephalic barrier permeability in case of development of malignant neoplasms of brain. Conclusion. The obtained data testify higher specificity and sensitivity of glio-fibrillar acid protein as a biochemical marker of glioblastoma appropriate to be applied in case of primary examination of patients with brain affection.