METHODS: Seventeen patients with alcohol dependence admitted for de-addiction treatment and 12 healthy controls were enrolled in the study. Blood samples were collected at baseline, after one-week, and after one-month, and CD200 levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit and compared with the healthy controls.
RESULTS: The serum level of the neuroimmune regulatory protein CD200 in alcohol dependent group (at baseline) was significantly lower compared to healthy controls (p=0.003), and increased after one-week, and one-month period.
CONCLUSION: The present study indicates that decrease of CD200 serum levels in alcohol dependent patients and its rise during alcohol withdrawal and abstinence may provide a preliminary evidence of the role of neuroimmune regulatory proteins in neuroadaptation during alcohol withdrawal.