Background: Autoantibodies against surface neuronal antigens have been associated with specific neurological presentations including autoimmune encephalitis (AE), with variable association with neoplasia and infections.
Methods: We described the phenotype and environmental associations of patients with neurological syndromes associated with antibodies against neuronal surface antigens who were referred to a tertiary center in the South of Brazil. All patients were tested for neuronal autoantibodies using cell-based assays.
Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) is a rare autoimmune inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. Most of the cases are positive for autoantibodies targeting the water channel aquaporin-4 (AQP4-IgG). Activated B and T cells, innate immunity cells, pro-inflammatory cytokines, and activated complement contribute to the formation of the NMOSD lesions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVaccination has been the most powerful tool to fight the COVID-19 pandemic while the specific treatment options in clinical practice have been under review for approval and authorization by regulatory bodies. After registration of different vaccines, it is important to ensure a post-marketing surveillance to identify potential risks not observed in controlled trials. Authors report on the case of an 80-year-old male patient who developed severe leukocytoclastic vasculitis of skin and oral mucous membrane after receiving the second dose of COVID-19 mRNA vaccine.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDecreased anabolic androgen levels are followed by impaired brain energy support and sensing with loss of neural connectivity during physiological aging, providing a neurobiological basis for hormone supplementation. Here, we investigated whether nandrolone decanoate (ND) administration mediates hypothalamic AMPK activation and glucose metabolism, thus affecting metabolic connectivity in brain areas of adult and aged mice. Metabolic interconnected brain areas of rodents can be detected by positron emission tomography using FDG-mPET.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSevere traumatic brain injury (TBI) is associated with high rates of mortality and long-term disability linked to neurochemical abnormalities. Although purine derivatives play important roles in TBI pathogenesis in preclinical models, little is known about potential changes in purine levels and their implications in human TBI. We assessed cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) levels of purines in severe TBI patients as potential biomarkers that predict mortality and long-term dysfunction.
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