Phase I clinical trial of intracerebroventricular transplantation of allogeneic neural stem cells in people with progressive multiple sclerosis.

We report the analysis of 1 year of data from the first cohort of 15 patients enrolled in an open-label, first-in-human, dose-escalation phase I study (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT03282760, EudraCT2015-004855-37) to determine the feasibility, safety, and tolerability of the transplantation of allogeneic human neural stem/progenitor cells (hNSCs) for the treatment of secondary progressive multiple sclerosis. Participants were treated with hNSCs delivered via intracerebroventricular injection in combination with an immunosuppressive regimen.

Raw Water and ALS: A Unifying Hypothesis for the Environmental Agents Involved in ALS.

Different studies identified the presence of several altered genes in familial and sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) forms. The experimental data, together with the epidemiological data, would seem to suggest the existence of molecular mechanisms (e.g.

Persistent hemiplegia with normal intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring in supratentorial neurosurgery: a case report and review of literature.

Intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring (IONM) is needed for evaluating and demonstrating the integrity of the central and peripheral nervous system during surgical manoeuvres that take place in proximity to eloquent motor and somatosensory nervous structures. The integrity of the monitored motor pathways is not always followed by consistent clinical normality, particularly in the first hours/days following surgery, when surgical resection involves brain structures such as the supplementary motor areas (SMA). We report the case of a patient who underwent surgical excision of a right frontal glioblastoma with normal preoperative, intraoperative (IONM), and postoperative central motor conduction, but with persistent postoperative hemiplegia (> 6 months).

Is Chronic Exposure to Raw Water a Possible Risk Factor for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis? A Pilot Case-Control Study.

Background: The etiopathogenesis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is still largely unknown.

Methods: We performed a case-control study (33 cases and 35 controls) in Umbria, Italy. We investigated associations between common lifestyle, clinical factors, as well as environmental exposures potentially implicated with ALS onset.

Survival, growth and toxicity of Microcystis aeruginosa PCC 7806 in experimental conditions mimicking some features of the human gastro-intestinal environment.

Cyanotoxins (CTX) are widely produced by several cyanobacteria (CB), increasingly spreading in most water bodies and terrestrial habitats, and represent a risk for human health. CB are prokaryotes, and although mostly autotrophic, several examples of heterotrophy in symbiotic relationship with different organisms have been described. In addition to the known routes of exposure, it has been hypothesized that CB might 'colonize' human intestine with relevant implications for human health.

A novel L67P SOD1 mutation in an Italian ALS patient.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder affecting motor neurons. We describe a novel L67P mutation located in exon 3 of the Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase gene in a patient with pure lower motor neuron signs. To date, 11 mutations involving exon 3 of SOD1 have been described, including the present one.

Sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis as an infectious disease: a possible role of cyanobacteria?

The available epidemiological data for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) support an infectious etiology and lead us to propose a new hypothesis. We examined older epidemiological data concerning categories of the population with increased incidence (aged people, people living in rural areas, farmers, breeders), more recent epidemiological reports regarding Italian soccer players, AIDS patients, people living in highly polluted areas, and reports of cases of conjugal and pregnancy-associated ALS. The toxic and infectious hypotheses lead us to suggest a role for cyanobacteria in the production of endogenous beta-N-methylamino-L-alanine.

Functional 1H-MRS findings in migraine patients with and without aura assessed interictally.

The present study was aimed at investigating changes in brain metabolites due to visual cortex activation in migraineurs and normal subjects by (1)H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). Twenty-two migraine patients with aura, 22 migraine patients without aura, and 10 control subjects were assessed. The volume of interest (about 8 cm(3)) was placed on the visual cortex area and the visual stimulus was applied using MR-compatible goggles with a flashing red light at a frequency of 8 Hz and an intensity of 14 lx.