GDF15 is a dynamic biomarker of the integrated stress response in the central nervous system

Aim: Characterize Growth Differentiation Factor 15 (GDF15) as a secreted biomarker of the integrated stress response (ISR) within the central nervous system (CNS).

Methods: We determined GDF15 levels utilizing in vitro and in vivo neuronal systems wherein the ISR was activated. Primarily, we used the murine model of vanishing white matter disease (VWMD), a neurological disease driven by persistent ISR in the CNS, to establish a link between levels of GDF15 in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and ISR gene expression signature in the CNS. GDF15 was also determined in the CSF of VWM patients.

Results: GDF15 expression was increased concomitant to ISR activation in stress-induced primary astrocytes as well as in retinal ganglion cells following optic nerve crush, while treatment with 2Bact, a specific eIF2B activator, suppressed both the ISR and GDF15. In the VWMD model, CSF GDF15 levels corresponded with the magnitude of the ISR and were reduced by 2BAct. In VWM patients, mean CSF GDF15 was elevated >20-fold as compared to healthy controls, whereas plasma GDF15 was undifferentiated.

Conclusions: These data suggest that CSF GDF15 is a dynamic marker of ISR activation in the CNS and may serve as a pharmacodynamic biomarker for ISR-modulating therapies.