Mediterranean Diet Prior to Ischemic Stroke and Potential Circulating Mediators of Favorable Outcomes.

. A Mediterranean diet (MD) has been associated with neuroprotective effects. We aimed to assess the MD's association with stroke prognosis and the potential mediators involved.

Peripheral, Interictal Serum S100B Levels are Not Increased in Chronic Migraine Patients.

Background: The trigemino-vascular system (TVS) plays a key role in migraine pathophysiology. Glial cells are abundant in the TVS system and mainly in the trigeminal ganglion. S100B protein is a calcium-binding protein, found in the cytoplasm of glial cells in the central nervous system, which is released in response to inflammatory stimuli.

Characterization of Plasma-Derived Extracellular Vesicles Isolated by Different Methods: A Comparison Study.

Extracellular vesicles (EV) are small membrane structures released by cells that act as potent mediators of intercellular communication. The study of EV biology is important, not only to strengthen our knowledge of their physiological roles, but also to better understand their involvement in several diseases. In the field of biomedicine they have been studied as a novel source of biomarkers and drug delivery vehicles.

Neuropeptides as a Marker for Chronic Headache.

Purpose Of Review: The purpose of this review is to revise current evidence on trigemino-vascular system (TVS) neuropeptides as potential biomarkers for chronic primary headaches, mainly for chronic migraine (CM).

Recent Findings: Within sensory neuropeptides, released by an activated trigeminal nerve, calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) levels seem to be a good biomarker of acute migraine and somewhat sensitive and specific for CM. CGRP, however, is not increased in 20-30% of CM patients, which suggests that CGRP is not the only neuropeptide involved in migraine pain generation and maintenance.

Calcitonin gene-related peptide in peripheral blood as a biomarker for migraine.

Purpose Of Review: There is no available biomarker for any of the primary headaches, including migraine. As demonstrated in jugular blood, during a migraine attack, trigeminal activation releases several neuropeptides, very especially calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), which gives rise to the typical throbbing migraine pain. Here, we review the current evidence for measurement of peripheral CGRP levels as a potential biomarker for trigemino-vascular activation in migraine.

No Change in Interictal PACAP Levels in Peripheral Blood in Women With Chronic Migraine.

Objective: To determine total pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide (PACAP) in peripheral blood as a potential marker of the activation of the parasympathetic arm of the trigemino-vascular system in chronic migraine (CM) in a case-control study.

Methods: Women older than 17 and diagnosed as CM were recruited. Healthy women with no headache history and women with episodic migraine (EM) served as control groups.

Development of a rapid lateral flow immunoassay test for detection of exosomes previously enriched from cell culture medium and body fluids.

Exosomes are cell-secreted nanovesicles (40-200 nm) that represent a rich source of novel biomarkers in the diagnosis and prognosis of certain diseases. Despite the increasingly recognized relevance of these vesicles as biomarkers, their detection has been limited due in part to current technical challenges in the rapid isolation and analysis of exosomes. The complexity of the development of analytical platforms relies on the heterogeneous composition of the exosome membrane.

Point-of-care detection of extracellular vesicles: Sensitivity optimization and multiple-target detection.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are membrane-bound nanovesicles delivered by different cellular lineages under physiological and pathological conditions. Although these vesicles have shown relevance as biomarkers for a number of diseases, their isolation and detection still has several technical drawbacks, mainly related with problems of sensitivity and time-consumed. Here, we reported a rapid and multiple-targeted lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) system for the detection of EVs isolated from human plasma.

RhoB controls endothelial barrier recovery by inhibiting Rac1 trafficking to the cell border.

Endothelial barrier dysfunction underlies chronic inflammatory diseases. In searching for new proteins essential to the human endothelial inflammatory response, we have found that the endosomal GTPase RhoB is up-regulated in response to inflammatory cytokines and expressed in the endothelium of some chronically inflamed tissues. We show that although RhoB and the related RhoA and RhoC play additive and redundant roles in various aspects of endothelial barrier function, RhoB specifically inhibits barrier restoration after acute cell contraction by preventing plasma membrane extension.

[Arterial pathology in migraine: endothelial dysfunction and structural changes in the brain and systemic vasculature].

Introduction: The pathophysiology underlying the association between migraine and other non-atherosclerotic vascular diseases is largely unknown. Endothelial dysfunction has been proposed as a common link. Besides, endothelial dysfunction is considered as a predictor of structural changes in the arterial walls.

Prevalence of cranial autonomic parasympathetic symptoms in chronic migraine: Usefulness of a new scale.

Background: Cranial autonomic symptoms (CAS) seem to appear in around half of migraine patients.

Objective: Our aim was to analyse the prevalence and profile of CAS, mainly of cranial autonomic parasympathetic symptoms (CAPS), in a series of patients with chronic migraine (CM) according the new criteria for autonomic symptoms in the current IHS classification.

Patients And Methods: We recruited consecutive CM patients attending our headache clinic.

Increased natural killer cell chemotaxis to CXCL12 in patients with multiple sclerosis.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory and neurodegenerative disease characterized by leukocyte infiltration into the central nervous system (CNS). Migration of lymphocyte subpopulations towards CXCL12 was analyzed coupled to six-color flow cytometry in untreated patients in the remitting phase, during relapse, in patients with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS), and in healthy volunteers. Significantly higher migration rates of natural killer cells (CD45+CD3-CD16/56+) were observed in patients in remission and CIS patients than in patients during relapse and in controls.

OnabotulinumtoxinA decreases interictal CGRP plasma levels in patients with chronic migraine.

OnabotulinumtoxinA (onabotA) has shown efficacy in chronic migraine (CM). Its mechanism of action, however, remains obscure. We have analysed whether treatment with onabotA is able to induce changes in interictal plasma calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) concentrations, which have been shown to be increased in patients with CM.

Long-term experience with onabotulinumtoxinA in the treatment of chronic migraine: What happens after one year?

Background: OnabotulinumtoxinA (onabotA) has shown its efficacy over placebo in chronic migraine (CM), but clinical trials lasted only up to one year.

Objective: The objective of this article is to analyse our experience with onabotA treatment of CM, paying special attention to what happens after one year.

Patients And Methods: We reviewed the charts of patients with CM on onabotA.

Microparticles in multiple sclerosis and clinically isolated syndrome: effect on endothelial barrier function.

Background: Cell-derived microparticles are secreted in response to cell damage or dysfunction. Endothelial and platelet dysfunction are thought to contribute to the development of multiple sclerosis (MS). Our aim here is, first, to compare the presence of microparticles of endothelial and platelet origin in plasma from patients with different clinical forms of MS and with clinically isolated syndrome.

Apicobasal polarity controls lymphocyte adhesion to hepatic epithelial cells.

Loss of apicobasal polarity is a hallmark of epithelial pathologies. Leukocyte infiltration and crosstalk with dysfunctional epithelial barriers are crucial for the inflammatory response. Here, we show that apicobasal architecture regulates the adhesion between hepatic epithelial cells and lymphocytes.

Receiver operating characteristic curve generalization for non-monotone relationships.

The receiver operating characteristic curve is a popular graphical method frequently used in order to study the diagnostic capacity of continuous markers. It represents in a plot true-positive rates against the false-positive ones. Both the practical and theoretical aspects of the receiver operating characteristic curve have been extensively studied.

Increased VIP levels in peripheral blood outside migraine attacks as a potential biomarker of cranial parasympathetic activation in chronic migraine.

Aim: The aim of this article is to determine vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) levels outside migraine attacks in peripheral blood as a potential biomarker for chronic migraine (CM).

Methods: Women older than 17 and diagnosed as CM were recruited. Matched healthy women with no headache history and women with episodic migraine (EM) served as control groups, together with a series of patients with episodic cluster headache in a pain-free period.

L-plastin is involved in NKG2D recruitment into lipid rafts and NKG2D-mediated NK cell migration.

Membrane rafts are microdomains of the plasma membrane that have multiple biological functions. The involvement of these structures in the biology of T cells, namely in signal transduction by the TCR, has been widely studied. However, the role of membrane rafts in immunoreceptor signaling in NK cells is less well known.

CGRP and VIP levels as predictors of efficacy of Onabotulinumtoxin type A in chronic migraine.

Background: Onabotulinumtoxin type A (onabotA) has shown efficacy in chronic migraine (CM). Its precise mechanism of action, however, is unknown.

Objective: To analyze a potential relationship between calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) levels and response to onabotA in CM.

Chronic migraine does not increase posterior circulation territory (PCT) infarct-like lesions.

Unlabelled: Two population-based studies have found an increased prevalence of posterior circulation territory (PCT) infarct-like lesions in migraine, which seemed to increase with attack frequency.

Objective: To determine whether chronic migraine (CM) patients are at increased risk of PCT infarct-like lesions.

Methods: We prospectively obtained brain MRIs from adult women fulfilling CM criteria.

NKG2D- and CD28-mediated costimulation regulate CD8+ T cell chemotaxis through different mechanisms: the role of Cdc42/N-WASp.

The activating receptor NKG2D is mainly expressed in NK cells and CD8(+) T cells. NKG2D and CD28 recruit the p85 subunit of PI3K to propagate their signals through the YXXM signaling motif. The function of CD28 as a costimulatory molecule is well-established in T cells.

Interictal increase of CGRP levels in peripheral blood as a biomarker for chronic migraine.

Objective: To determine calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) levels outside migraine attacks in peripheral blood as a potential biomarker for chronic migraine (CM).

Methods: Women older than 17 years and diagnosed with CM were recruited. Matched healthy women with no headache history and women with episodic migraine (EM) served as control groups, together with a series of patients with episodic cluster headache in a pain-free period.