Full-length ArticleCirculating inflammatory biomarkers in relation to brain structural measurements in a non-demented elderly population

•Association between inflammatory biomarkers and brain measures was examined.•Higher interleukin-6 level was associated with smaller brain volume.•Higher α1-antichymotrypsin level was associated with thinner cortical thickness.•Results suggest peripheral inflammation may be involved in the brain atrophy.

The aim of this investigation was to determine whether circulating inflammatory biomarkers c-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL6), and alpha 1-antichymotrypsin (ACT) were related to structural brain measures assessed by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).High-resolution structural MRI was collected on 680 non-demented elderly (mean age 80.1 years) participants of a community-based, multiethnic cohort. Approximately three quarters of these participants also had peripheral inflammatory biomarkers (CRP, IL6, and ACT) measured using ELISA. Structural measures including brain volumes and cortical thickness (with both global and regional measures) were derived from MRI scans, and repeated MRI measures were obtained after 4.5 years. Mean fractional anisotropy was used as the indicator of white matter integrity assessed with diffusion tensor imaging. We examined the association of inflammatory biomarkers with brain volume, cortical thickness, and white matter integrity using regression models adjusted for age, gender, ethnicity, education, APOE genotype, and intracranial volume.A doubling in CRP (b = −2.48, p = 0.002) was associated with a smaller total gray matter volume, equivalent to approximately 1.5 years of aging. A doubling in IL6 was associated with smaller total brain volume (b = −14.96, p < 0.0001), equivalent to approximately 9 years of aging. Higher IL6 was also associated with smaller gray matter (b = −6.52, p = 0.002) and white matter volumes (b = −7.47, p = 0.004). The volumes of most cortical regions including frontal, occipital, parietal, temporal, as well as subcortical regions including pallidum and thalamus were associated with IL6. In a model additionally adjusted for depression, vascular factors, BMI, and smoking status, the association between IL6 and brain volumes remained, and a doubling in ACT was marginally associated with 0.054 (p = 0.001) millimeter thinner mean cortical thickness, equivalent to that of approximately 2.7 years of aging. None of the biomarkers was associated with mean fractional anisotropy or longitudinal change of brain volumes and thickness.Among older adults, increased circulating inflammatory biomarkers were associated with smaller brain volume and cortical thickness but not the white matter tract integrity. Our preliminary findings suggest that peripheral inflammatory processes may be involved in the brain atrophy in the elderly.