Cerebrospinal Fluid Biomarkers of Central Nervous System Inflammation Predict Cortical Decline in Bipolar Disorder and Ventricular Enlargement in Healthy Controls.

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

Associations of serum TNF-α, IL-8, and IL-18 levels with the clinical symptoms in acute schizophrenia: a cross-sectional study.BMC psychiatry · 2025
Article
Research Hotspots and Emerging Trends of Schizophrenia and Immune Response: A Bibliometric Analysis.Brain and behavior · 2025
Article

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Tobias Bellaagh JohanssonDepartment of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.

Anna Luisa KlahnDepartment of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.

Andreas GötesonDepartment of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.

Christoph AbéDepartment of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.

Carl M SellgrenDepartment Physiology and Pharmacology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.

Mikael LandénDepartment of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionBipolar disorder has been associated with significant structural brain changes, potentially driven by central nervous system (CNS) inflammation. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between inflammation biomarkers in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and longitudinal structural brain changes.

methodsWe included 29 individuals with bipolar disorder and 34 healthy controls, analyzing three selected inflammation-related biomarkers - interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8), and chitinase-3-like protein 1 (YKL-40) - in both blood serum and CSF. Structural brain changes were assessed through magnetic resonance imaging at two timepoints, focusing on cortical thickness of the middle temporal cortex and inferior frontal gyrus, as well as ventricular volume.

resultsIn healthy controls, baseline CSF levels of YKL-40 predicted ventricular enlargement in both hemispheres. Among individuals with bipolar disorder, higher baseline levels of IL-8 were associated with a decline in cortical thickness in the right and left middle temporal cortex, as well as the right inferior frontal gyrus. No significant associations were observed with serum biomarkers.

conclusionsThese findings suggest that CSF IL-8 may contribute to cortical decline in bipolar disorder. The lack of association between serum biomarkers and brain changes highlights the specificity of CNS inflammation in these processes. Additionally, the observed link between CSF YKL-40 and ventricular enlargement in healthy controls may indicate a role of CNS inflammation processes in normal brain aging.