["Pseudoneurotransmission" and gut microbiome - brain communication in neuropsychiatric disorders].

The gut microbiome, which comprises symbiotic bacteria colonizing the human digestive tract, undergoes dynamic changes during the lifespan, as evidenced by the fact that the number of species and the diversity of their composition decrease significantly with age. The aim of this review is to illuminate bilateral neuroimmunological pathways that determine the role of gut microbiome dysbiosis, not only as a cause but also as a byproduct of many neurodegenerative diseases of the CNS, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD), but also in the frame of several behavioral and psychiatric pathological conditions such as depressive and anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Dysbiosis, in particular, reveals a model of "deceptive" mimicry of host molecules that might cause abnormal folding ("misfolding") and pathological aggregation of Aβ-peptide, leading to its dispersion through the gut-brain axis, precipitating microglia cell activation.

A HISTORY OF "HUBRIS" AND "NARCISSISM" IN WAR CONFLICTS, PUBLIC HEALTH AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC CRISIS.

It has been recently supported that current war conflict precipitated in Ukraine is the byproduct of Vladimir Putin's succumbing to this gross personality distortion caused by extreme power that has been identified by Owen as "The Hubris Syndrome". Discussion on diagnostic criteria for the demonstration of Hubris Syndrome (HS) in political leaders as well as on further elaboration of the proposed factors that predispose to, or prevent from, the exacerbation of this Syndrome comprises both scientific interest and responsibility for prosocial political behavior. Given the increased complexity that globalization entrains in every crisis that arises in an era of concomitant bio-psychological, socio-economic and warlike threats, we perceive in a more intense way the assumption that HS may never be medically treated and only the enhancement of our democratic reflexes may protect us from leaders whose hubristic personality traits entice them to adopt immature coping mechanisms.

[Cerebellar cognitive affective syndrome and vertebrobasilar ischemia. From cerebello-cerebral diaschisis to "dysmetria of thought"].

Cerebellum, along with it' s role in coordinating motor functions, exercises a significant regulatory influence in fields of cognitive and affective functions. Therefore, studying the effect of cerebrovascular atherosclerotic pathology on mood and cognition should not be limited to stenotic dysfunctions of carotid arteries, but also extend its methodological framework to the consideration of the integrity of vertebrobasilar system (VBS), cerebellar perfusion and posterior cerebral circulation in general, as it has not been yet sufficiently addressed whether VBS insufficiency is associated with deterioration of patients' mental and emotional status and quality of life (QoL). Vertebrobasilar circulatory dysfunction has been pointed out, since decades, as a cause of progressive memory impairment and dementia, due to multiple infarcts in cerebral areas which are topographically critical for mental and emotional functions.

Why selective screening for asymptomatic carotid stenosis is currently appropriate: a special report.

Introduction: Two of the main reasons recent guidelines do not recommend routine population-wide screening programs for asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis (AsxCS) is that screening could lead to an increase of carotid revascularization procedures and that such mass screening programs may not be cost-effective. Nevertheless, selective screening for AsxCS could have several benefits. This article presents the rationale for such a program.

An international, multispecialty, expert-based Delphi Consensus document on controversial issues in the management of patients with asymptomatic and symptomatic carotid stenosis.

Objective: Despite the publication of various national/international guidelines, several questions concerning the management of patients with asymptomatic (AsxCS) and symptomatic (SxCS) carotid stenosis remain unanswered. The aim of this international, multi-specialty, expert-based Delphi Consensus document was to address these issues to help clinicians make decisions when guidelines are unclear.

Methods: Fourteen controversial topics were identified.