Transverse-momentum and pseudorapidity distributions of charged hadrons in pp collisions at square root of s = 7 TeV.

Charged-hadron transverse-momentum and pseudorapidity distributions in proton-proton collisions at square root of s = 7  TeV are measured with the inner tracking system of the CMS detector at the LHC. The charged-hadron yield is obtained by counting the number of reconstructed hits, hit pairs, and fully reconstructed charged-particle tracks. The combination of the three methods gives a charged-particle multiplicity per unit of pseudorapidity dN(ch)/dη|(|η|<0.

Safety and efficacy of natalizumab in children with multiple sclerosis.

Objective: To describe the effect of natalizumab in the treatment of subjects with active multiple sclerosis (MS) treated before the age of 18 years.

Methods: Nineteen pediatric subjects with MS (mean age 14.6 +/- 2.

BK channels play a counter-adaptive role in drug tolerance and dependence.

Disturbance of neural activity by sedative drugs has been proposed to trigger a homeostatic response that resists unfavorable changes in net cellular excitability, leading to tolerance and dependence. The Drosophila slo gene encodes a BK-type Ca(2+)-activated K(+) channel implicated in functional tolerance to alcohol and volatile anesthetics. We hypothesized that increased expression of BK channels induced by these drugs constitutes the homeostatic adaptation conferring resistance to sedative drugs.

The management of multiple sclerosis in children: a European view.

About 3-5% of all patients with multiple sclerosis experience the onset of their disease under the age of 16. A significant proportion of paediatric multiple sclerosis patients develop significant cognitive disturbances and persistent physical disability. The high relapse rate and the morbidity in the paediatric multiple sclerosis population has triggered the use of disease-modifying therapies that have been shown to reduce relapse rate, disease progression and cognitive decline in adult patients with multiple sclerosis.

Brain macro- and microscopic damage in patients with paediatric MS.

Objective: To characterise, using conventional and diffusion tensor (DT) MRI, the nature and distribution of lesions and the extent of damage in the brain normal-appearing white matter (NAWM) and grey matter (GM) from a relatively large population of paediatric multiple sclerosis (MS) patients.

Methods: Brain conventional and DT MRI scans were acquired from 48 patients with paediatric MS (10 clinically isolated syndromes (CIS), 38 relapsing remitting (RR) MS), 30 adult CIS, 27 adult RRMS, 15 paediatric healthy controls (HC) and 18 adult HC. T2-lesion probability maps and DT MRI of lesions, NAWM and GM were compared among controls and MS groups.

Efficacy and tolerability of natalizumab in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients: a post-marketing observational study.

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of natalizumab in patients with active relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS). We included 285 MS patients receiving natalizumab. Clinical, neuroradiological and safety data were registered every 6 months.

Progranulin gene variability increases the risk for primary progressive multiple sclerosis in males.

Progranulin (GRN) gene variability has been analyzed in a sample of 354 patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) compared with 343 controls. No significant differences were observed, but by stratifying according to MS subtypes, a significant increased frequency of the rs2879096 TT genotype was found in primary progressive MS (PPMS) patients versus controls (16.0 vs 3.

Psychosocial issue in children and adolescents with multiple sclerosis.

In adult-onset multiple sclerosis (MS) cases, major depression, fatigue and psychological distress are common, whereas there is little information on these issues in children with the disease. The aim of this study was to assess psychosocial disorders in an Italian cohort of children and adolescent with MS. We evaluated 56 patients through self-assessment scales of depression (Children Depression Inventory) and fatigue (Fatigue Severity Scale), a psychiatric interview [Kiddie-SADS-Present and Lifetime Version (K-SADS-PL)] and an interview on school and everyday activities.

Recovery of rat growth and lipid profiles in adult rats subjected to fetal protein malnutrition with a fructose-rich diet.

There is evidence suggesting an association between fructose consumption and the development of metabolic syndrome. In turn, protein malnutrition in utero is proposed to "program" the fetal tissues, making them more susceptible to nutritional associated disorders. To test this hypothesis, the present study was designed to analyze body growth and metabolic aspects of rats subjected to fetal protein malnutrition and subsequently fed a fructose-rich diet.

Functional and structural connectivity of the motor network in pediatric and adult-onset relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis.

Purpose: To elucidate the factors associated with the preservation of function in relapsing-remitting (RR) multiple sclerosis (MS) by investigating effective connectivity changes of the sensorimotor network in pediatric RR MS patients in comparison with adult patients with either clinically isolated syndromes (CIS) suggestive of MS or RR MS and in adult healthy control subjects by using functional magnetic resonance imaging (MR) imaging and a dynamic causal model approach and to assess the correlation between effective connectivity changes and structural damage to the corpus callosum and the corticospinal tracts (CSTs).

Materials And Methods: The study was conducted with institutional review board approval. Written informed consent was obtained from each participant.

Lack of replication of KIF1B gene in an Italian primary progressive multiple sclerosis cohort.

Background: KIF1B gene represents the first non-inflammatory gene with a putative role on axonal loss and neurodegeneration found to be associated with multiple sclerosis (MS). The objective of this study is to test the association of the rs10492972 C allelic variant of KIF1B gene in a large Italian cohort of patients with primary progressive and progressive relapsing MS (PPMS and PRMS), which represents a subtype of MS mainly driven by neurodegenerative phenomena.

Methods: rs10492972 has been genotyped in an outbred sample of 222 primary PPMS and PRMS and 221 healthy controls of unique northern Italian origin using the TaqMan assay.

Validation of the DYMUS questionnaire for the assessment of dysphagia in multiple sclerosis.

Swallowing problems can complicate the course of multiple sclerosis (MS). However, no validated questionnaire for the assessment of dysphagia in MS is currently available. We previously developed a 10-item DYsphagia in Multiple Sclerosis questionnaire (DYMUS).

Deep gray matter T2 hypointensity is present in patients with clinically isolated syndromes suggestive of multiple sclerosis.

Gray matter (GM) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) T2 hypointensity, a putative marker of iron deposition, is a frequent finding in patients with clinically definite (CD) multiple sclerosis (MS). The objective of this study was to assess: (a) how early deep GM T2 hypointensity occurs in MS, by studying patients with clinically isolated syndromes (CIS) suggestive of MS, and (b) whether they contribute to predict subsequent evolution to CDMS. Dual-echo scans using two different acquisition protocols were acquired from 47 CIS patients and 13 healthy controls (HC).

Real-life impact of early interferon beta therapy in relapsing multiple sclerosis.

Objective: Recent findings support greater efficacy of early vs. delayed interferon beta (IFNbeta) treatment in patients with a first clinical event suggestive of multiple sclerosis (MS). We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of early IFNbeta treatment in definite relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and to assess the optimal time to initiate IFNbeta treatment with regard to the greatest benefits on disability progression.

Antiacquaporin 4 antibodies detection by different techniques in neuromyelitis optica patients.

Background: Antibodies against aquaporin-4 (AQP4), a water channel particularly expressed on perivascular astrocytic podocytes, are proposed as a marker for the diagnosis of neuromyelitis optica (NMO). However, a consensus on seroprevalence and optimal detection method has not yet been reached.

Objectives: To investigate the performance of different assays to detect anti-AQP4 antibodies.

Post-marketing of disease modifying drugs in multiple sclerosis: an exploratory analysis of gender effect in interferon beta treatment.

Background: There are a few and conflicting results from randomised controlled trials (RCTs) pertaining to the influence of gender in response to currently used disease modifying drugs in Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Observational studies may be especially valuable for answering effectiveness questions in subgroups not studied in RCTs.

Objective: To conduct a post-marketing analysis aimed to evaluate the gender effect on Interferon beta (IFNbeta) treatment response in a cohort of relapsing (RR) MS patients.

Long-term results of immunomodulatory treatment in children and adolescents with multiple sclerosis: the Italian experience.

The main objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of immunomodulatory agents (IMAs) (Interferon-Beta, Glatiramer Acetate) in a large cohort of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with disease onset in childhood or adolescence, treated before 16 years of age, after a long-term follow-up. A total of 130 patients were identified, 77 were treated with Avonex, 39 with Rebif/Betaferon, 14 with Copaxone. After a mean (SD) treatment duration of 53.

The brief neuropsychological battery for children: a screening tool for cognitive impairment in childhood and juvenile multiple sclerosis.

Background: A critical problem with neuropsychological assessment in children and adolescents with multiple sclerosis (MS) is the absence of a standardized, well-validated neuropsychological battery specifically tailored for detecting disease-related cognitive problems in this age range.

Objective: To develop a Brief Neuropsychological Battery for Children (BNBC) with MS.

Methods: We assessed cognitive functions in 61 patients with childhood and juvenile MS and 58 demographically matched healthy controls through an extensive neuropsychological battery.

CREB regulation of BK channel gene expression underlies rapid drug tolerance.

Pharmacodynamic tolerance is believed to involve homeostatic mechanisms initiated to restore normal neural function. Drosophila exposed to a sedating dose of an organic solvent, such as benzyl alcohol or ethanol, acquire tolerance to subsequent sedation by that solvent. The slo gene encodes BK-type Ca(2+)-activated K(+) channels and has been linked to alcohol- and organic solvent-induced behavioral tolerance in mice, Caenorhabditis elegans (C.

Is a preserved functional reserve a mechanism limiting clinical impairment in pediatric MS patients?

We evaluated the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) correlates of simple movement performance in patients with pediatric multiple sclerosis (MS) and their relation with the extent of T2 lesion volume (LV), to improve our understanding of the mechanisms leading to their short/medium term favorable clinical course. We obtained fMRI during repetitive flexion-extension of the last four fingers of the right hand and brain dual-echo scans from 17 right-handed patients with pediatric relapsing-remitting MS and 9 sex- and age-matched right-handed healthy controls. T2 LV was measured using a local thresholding segmentation technique.

Corpus callosum damage and cognitive dysfunction in benign MS.

Corpus callosum (CC), the largest compact white matter fiber bundle of the human brain involved in interhemispheric transfer, is frequently damaged in the course of multiple sclerosis (MS). Cognitive impairment is one of the factors affecting quality of life of patients with benign MS (BMS). The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the cognitive profile of BMS patients and the extent of tissue damage in the CC.

Imaging of cranio-meningeal infectious and inflammatory involvement.

A pictorial review was performed (with added acquisition technique optimization guidelines) on CT and MR imaging of intracranial meningeal involvement from infectious or inflammatory origin, on the inherent main differential diagnoses, and on the topography of contiguous extension of lesions.

Induction and add-on therapy with mitoxantrone and interferon beta in multiple sclerosis.

We retrospectively analyzed data from 70 multiple sclerosis (MS) patients treated with mitoxantrone (MX) before Interferon-beta (IFN-beta) because of clinically and MRI very active isolated syndrome (CIS) or relapsing-remitting MS (induction therapy) or due to breakthrough/persistently active disease in spite of IFN-beta (add-on/combination therapy), or for increased disability suggesting a secondary progression (rescue therapy). After almost 2-year follow-up, relapse rate and disability decreased very significantly in the two former groups while MX was essentially ineffective as rescue therapy. Induction therapy is a valid option for very aggressive/active CIS and MS at onset.

Glatiramer acetate is a treatment option in neutralising antibodies to interferon-beta-positive patients.

Neutralising antibodies develop in 15% of interferon-beta (IFNbeta)-treated patients, causing the reduction of the clinical effects of the treatment. This is the first study that shows that switching patients from IFNbeta to glatiramer acetate (GA) in case of neutralising antibodies (NAb) positivity is effective in reducing relapse rate and in delaying the time to first relapse. In conclusion, our data suggest the use of GA in NAb-positive patients.