Using ELISA, we confirmed that protein levels of intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1) but not vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1) are increased in the cortex of AD patients compared to either cerebellum from the same individual or the cortex from non-cognitively impaired (NCI) control subjects (Additional file 4). Here, ICAM1 is linked to Alzheimer disease.