NSE (human) (rec.)

Enolase (2-phosphoglycerate hydrolyase or phosphopyruvate hydrates) is a glycolytic enzyme that catalyzes the dehydration and conversion of 2-phosphoglycerate to phosphoenolpyruvate. It comprises three distinct subunits, alpha, beta and gamma. The gammagamma and alphagamma dimeric forms of enolase, referred to as neuron-specific enolase (NSE), are localized mainly in neurons and neuroectodermal tissue. NSE has a high stability in biological fluids and can easily diffuse to the extracellular medium and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) when neuronal membranes are injured. NSE is used clinically as a sensitive and useful marker of neuronal damage in several neurological disorders including stroke, hypoxic brain damage, status epilepticus, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and herpetic encephalitis.