Intrathecal catheter-associated inflammatory mass in a neurofibromatosis type-1 patient receiving fentanyl and bupivacaine.

Background: Catheter-associated inflammatory masses (CIMs) are a rare but serious complication of intrathecal drug delivery devices. CIM formation is influenced by local medication concentration, which is determined in part by flow dynamics at the catheter tip. Underlying spinal pathologies, such as neoplasms, may alter flow at the catheter tip, thereby contributing to CIM formation.

Abscess Formation in a Nonfunctioning Pituitary Adenoma.

Background: Pituitary abscesses are rare clinical entities that can occur in the setting of a normal gland or underlying disease, including adenoma, craniopharyngioma, or Rathke cleft cyst. Although once believed to be indolent, when these secondary abscesses occur in the setting of an adenoma, they can be associated with significant clinical morbidity. Most patients present with visual disturbances or headache without fever or meningitis.

Analytical and clinical performance characteristics of the Simplexa BK virus quantitative PCR assay for the diagnosis of polyomavirus-associated nephropathy in renal transplant recipients using plasma and urine specimens.

Background: Polyomavirus-associated nephropathy is a significant cause of kidney rejection in renal transplant recipients. Quantification of BK viral load in plasma and urine can predict the development of polyomavirus-associated nephropathy, though each assay requires careful evaluation of analytical and clinical performance characteristics for optimal use.

Objectives: This study evaluated the analytical and clinical performance characteristics of the Simplexa BK virus quantitative PCR assay.

Early dysregulation of cripto-1 and immunomodulatory genes in the cerebral cortex in a macaque model of neuroAIDS.

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and related primate lentiviruses are known to enter the central nervous system (CNS) during the primary phase of infection. Neuroinvasion by simian immunodeficiency virus and simian human immunodeficiency virus (SHIV) is characterized by transient meningitis and astrocytosis. In this report, we used targeted cytokine cDNA arrays to analyze cortical brain tissue from four pig-tailed macaques inoculated for 2 weeks with pathogenic SHIV(50OLNV) and a normal age-matched pig-tailed macaque.

Serotonin in trigeminal ganglia of female rodents: relevance to menstrual migraine.

Objectives: We examined changes in the serotonin system across the estrous cycle in trigeminal ganglia of female rodents to determine which components are present and which are regulated by the variations in levels of ovarian steroids that occur during the estrous cycle.

Background: Migraine is 2-3 times more prevalent in women than in men and attacks are often timed with the menstrual cycle, suggesting a mechanistic link with ovarian steroids. Serotonin has been implicated in the pathogenesis of migraine, and the effectiveness of triptans, selective 5HT-1B/D/F agonists, has provided further support for this concept.

Altered expression of pro-inflammatory and developmental genes in the fetal brain in a mouse model of maternal infection.

Human studies of unexplained cerebral palsy (CP) suggest an association with maternal infection. We used an established model of maternal infection, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) administration, to investigate the molecular changes in the fetal brain that may link maternal infection and CP. We compared gene expression in brains from mouse pups exposed to LPS in utero to those from saline-treated controls.

Ovarian steroids regulate neuropeptides in the trigeminal ganglion.

Women are more than three times as likely as men to experience migraine headaches and temporomandibular joint pain, and painful episodes are often linked to the menstrual cycle. To understand how hormone levels may influence head and face pain, we assessed expression of pain-associated neuropeptides and estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha) during the natural estrous cycle in mice. Gene expression was analyzed in the trigeminal ganglia of cycling female mice at proestrus, estrus and diestrus using RT-PCR.

Response of the brain to oligemia: gene expression, c-Fos, and Nrf2 localization.

Oligemia is blood flow reduction without acute tissue damage that occurs in shock, migraine, and stroke penumbra. We developed a mouse model of oligemia by lowering mean arterial pressure to 30-40 mm Hg, resulting in a 50% reduction in cerebral blood flow as measured by laser Doppler, and reperfusing the blood after 30 min. Control experiments included anesthesia-only and surgery without blood withdrawal.