Alzheimer's disease and multiple sclerosis: a possible connection through the viral demyelinating neurodegenerative trigger (vDENT).

Alzheimer's disease (AD) and multiple sclerosis (MS) are two CNS disorders affecting millions of people, for which no cure is available. AD is usually diagnosed in individuals age 65 and older and manifests with accumulation of beta amyloid in the brain. MS, a demyelinating disorder, is most commonly diagnosed in its relapsing-remitting (RRMS) form in young adults (age 20-40).

Herpes Simplex Virus 1 Induces Brain Inflammation and Multifocal Demyelination in the Cotton Rat Sigmodon hispidus.

Demyelinating central nervous system (CNS) disorders like multiple sclerosis (MS) and acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM) have been difficult to study and treat due to the lack of understanding of their etiology. Numerous cases point to the link between herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection and multifocal CNS demyelination in humans; however, convincing evidence from animal models has been missing. In this work, we found that HSV-1 infection of the cotton rat via a common route (lip abrasion) can cause multifocal CNS demyelination and inflammation.

Psychiatric comorbidity is associated with disability progression in multiple sclerosis.

Objective: Emerging evidence suggests that comorbidity may influence disability outcomes in multiple sclerosis (MS); we investigated the association between psychiatric comorbidity and MS disability progression in a large multiclinic population.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study accessed prospectively collected information from linked clinical and population-based health administrative databases in the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Nova Scotia. Persons with MS who had depression, anxiety, or bipolar disorder were identified using validated algorithms using physician and hospital visits.

Effect of adherence to the first-generation injectable immunomodulatory drugs on disability accumulation in multiple sclerosis: a longitudinal cohort study.

Objective: To examine the association between optimal adherence to the first-generation injectable immunomodulatory drugs (IMDs) for multiple sclerosis (MS) and subsequent disability accumulation.

Methods: We accessed prospectively collected linked clinical and administrative health data from British Columbia, Canada. Subjects with MS treated with a first-generation injectable IMD at an MS clinic (1996-2004) were followed until their last clinic visit before 2009.

A NK complex-linked locus restricts the spread of herpes simplex virus type 1 in the brains of C57BL/6 mice.

The most frequent cause of sporadic viral encephalitis in western countries is Herpes simplex virus (HSV). Despite treatment, mortality rates reach 20-30% while survivors often suffer from significant morbidity. In mice, resistance to lethal Herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE) is multifactorial and influenced by mouse and virus strain as well as route of infection.

The effect of mouse strain on herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) infection of the central nervous system (CNS).

Background: Mice infected with HSV-1 can develop lethal encephalitis or virus induced CNS demyelination. Multiple factors affect outcome including route of infection, virus and mouse strain. When infected with a sub-lethal dose of HSV-1 strain 2 via the oral mucosa, susceptible SJL/J, A/J, and PL/J mice develop demyelinating lesions throughout the brain.

Redundancy in the immune system restricts the spread of HSV-1 in the central nervous system (CNS) of C57BL/6 mice.

Resistance to lethal encephalitis in mice infected with HSV-1 via the oral mucosa is mouse strain dependent. In susceptible BALB/c, HSV-1 spreads throughout the CNS but in resistant BL/6 mice, virus is restricted to the brainstem. To examine the contribution of cellular immunity in restricting viral spread, we used a combination of antibody depleted and KO mice.

Clinical relapses of multiple sclerosis are associated with 'novel' valleys in natural killer cell functional activity.

Natural killer (NK) cells are implicated in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS). Nine relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) patients along with age, sex, and NK responder status matched controls were studied serially. Although the average NK cell functional activity (FA) was not significantly different between both groups, four clinical relapses in RRMS patients were associated with the development of 'novel' valleys in FA.

Oligodendrocytes from human donors differ in resistance to herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1).

Primary cultures of human oligodendrocytes (HOLs) were established from six different donors. Differences in resistance to infection with herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) were determined between the primary cultures of HOL in tissue culture infective dose 50 (TCID(50)), indirect immunofluoresence (IF), and serial electron microscopy (EM) studies. Virus production at different multiplicities of infection (MOIs) indicated that differences in HSV-1 replication were statistically significant and MOI-dependent.