Abstract WMP52: Markers Of Endothelial Glycocalyx Damage In Patients Withvascular Cognitive Impairment Associated With Cerebral Small Vessel Disease

Introduction: Cerebral small vessel disease (cSVD) involves a myriad of pathogenic mechanisms affecting small vessels of the brain, leading to a significant impact on motor and cognitive functions, and it is the main cause of Vascular cognitive impairment (VCI). The endothelial glycocalyx (EG), the layer lining the vascular endothelium, has a pivotal player in maintaining the proper function of neurovascular unit, and its degradation may be involved in VCI due to cSVD. Objectives: to investigate the relationship between markers of EG damage and VCI related to cSVD. Methods: Cross-sectional study based on clinical data and serum samples for the quantification of EG damage markers (syndecan-1, hyaluran) of VCI related to cSVD patients and of a control group derived from a dataset of healthy workers from the same institution. We used an automatic logarithm for segmentation and volumetric evaluation of white matter lesions on brain MRI of the patients. Logistic regression models and c-statistics were used to identify the independent variables related to VCI and investigate the accuracy of syndecan-1 to detect VCI. We studied the association of thebiomarkers and MoCA scores, index of independence in activities of daily living and whitematter lesion burden respectively. Results: Between July 2019 and March 2020, we studied 22 patients with VCI associated with cSVD and compared them with a dataset of 22 healthy workers from the same institution. Patients with VCI were older, had a higher prevalence of diabetesmellitus and hypertension, had a worse index of independence for daily activities, and higherlevels of syndecan-1 (78,4 vs 24; p < 0,01). There was no difference in hyaluran levels between both groups. In multivariate analysis, only age (OR 1,35;CI 1,04 - 1,76; p = 0,02) and syndecan-1 levels (OR 1,08;CI 1,01 - 1,15;p = 0,01) related to VCI. The ROC curve ofsyndecan-1 levels to predict VCI had a area under de curve of 0,78 (CI 0,64 - 0,92) and there was a correlation between syndecan-1 levels and MoCA scores (rho = - 0,34;p = 0,02). There were no correlations between syndecan-1 and hyaluran levels and index of independence and white matter lesion burden respectively. Conclusions: Syndecan-1, but not hyaluran, is a potential biomarker for VCI associated with cSVD.