Objective: To elucidate whether cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) concentrations of the microtubule-associated tau protein are related to the risk for sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (SALS).
Patients/methods: We measured tau concentrations in the CSF of 18 patients with SALS and 75 age- and sex-matched controls, using a specific ELISA method.
Results: The mean CSF concentrations of tau protein did not differ significantly between SALS patient and control groups, were not influenced by the clinical form (spinal vs bulbar) of ALS, and were not correlated with age, age at onset, and duration of the disease.
Conclusions: CSF tau concentrations are not a biochemical marker of ALS.