Defining progression independent of relapse activity (PIRA) in adult patients with relapsing multiple sclerosis: A systematic review.

Background: Progression Independent of Relapse Activity (PIRA) is heterogeneously described in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) regarding the frequency and nature of PIRA. This systematic review was conducted to characterise and define the elements of PIRA.

Method: This systematic review was conducted and reported in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines.

DSP-01 Barriers to the diagnosis of motor neuron disease - a South Australian study.

MND is a progressive neurodegenerative disease characterised by death of upper and lower motor neurons, leading to progressive weakness of the bulbar, limb, thoracic and abdominal muscles. MND has a fairly stereotypical course, with death from respiratory failure occurring 2-4 years after symptom onset in most cases (1). Making the diagnosis of MND can be straightforward when key clinical criteria are met; however, at first presentation, rarely do patients meet these criteria, neurological changes may be subtle and disease progression slow.

Factors contributing to delays in the diagnosis of motor neuron disease - A South Australian study.

Objective(s): To characterize the clinical factors that influence time to diagnosis of motor neuron disease (MND) in a cohort of patients living in South Australia.

Design: A retrospective study.

Setting: Single centre study of patients managed at a tertiary referral hospital.

Neurochemical characterization of extrinsic nerves in myenteric ganglia of the guinea pig distal colon.

Extrinsic nerves to the gut influence the absorption of water and electrolytes and expulsion of waste contents, largely via regulation of enteric neural circuits; they also contribute to control of blood flow. The distal colon is innervated by extrinsic sympathetic and parasympathetic efferent and spinal afferent neurons, via axons in colonic nerve trunks. In the present study, biotinamide tracing of colonic nerves was combined with immunohistochemical labeling for markers of sympathetic, parasympathetic, and spinal afferent neurons to quantify their relative contribution to the extrinsic innervation.

Selective coexpression of synaptic proteins, α-synuclein, cysteine string protein-α, synaptophysin, synaptotagmin-1, and synaptobrevin-2 in vesicular acetylcholine transporter-immunoreactive axons in the guinea pig ileum.

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by Lewy bodies and neurites composed mainly of the presynaptic protein α-synuclein. Frequently, Lewy bodies and neurites are identified in the gut of Parkinson's disease patients and may underlie associated gastrointestinal dysfunctions. We recently reported selective expression of α-synuclein in the axons of cholinergic neurons in the guinea pig and human distal gut; however, it is not clear whether α-synuclein expression varies along the gut, nor how closely expression is associated with other synaptic proteins.

Neurochemical coding compared between varicose axons and cell bodies of myenteric neurons in the guinea-pig ileum.

The discrete functional classes of enteric neurons in the mammalian gastrointestinal tract have been successfully distinguished on the basis of the unique combination of molecules and enzymes in their cell bodies ("chemical coding"). Whether the same chemical coding exists in varicose axons of different functional classes has not been systematically tested. In this study, we quantified the coexistence of markers that define classes of nerve cell bodies in the myenteric plexus of the guinea-pig ileum, in varicose axons of the same neurons.

Selective expression of α-synuclein-immunoreactivity in vesicular acetylcholine transporter-immunoreactive axons in the guinea pig rectum and human colon.

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by motor and nonmotor impairments, including constipation. The hallmark pathological features of Parkinson's disease are Lewy bodies and neurites, of which aggregated α-synuclein is a major constituent. Frequently, Lewy pathology is identified in the distal gut of constipated Parkinson's disease patients.