Publications by authors named "Valeria Morales-Ruiz"

Background: Immunomodulatory drugs and immunotherapies are being evaluated in clinical trials for the treatment of neuroinflammation, as the latter is an essential mechanism for the development and progression of Parkinson's disease.

Objective: The objective of the study is to review recent evidence on the evaluation of immunomodulators in randomized controlled clinical trials measuring improvement of motor symptoms.

Methods: A meta-analysis of Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson's disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS III) scores extracted from seven articles selected after an online search of PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Clarivate's Web of Science for randomized controlled clinical trials published between 2000 and July 2023 was performed.

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In Parkinson's disease (PD), exosomes carry α-synuclein (α-syn), a fibrillar protein aggregates with potential value as a biomarker. Evidence on blood levels of exosomal α-syn in PD patients and controls was reviewed for their consistency. Thirty-six studies on exosomal α-syn concentrations in PD were identified in a systematic literature search and meta-analysis.

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The ability to modulate the host immune response has allowed some parasites to establish themselves in the tissues of an immunocompetent organism. While some parasite excretion/secretion products (ESPs) were recently reported to induce differentiation of regulatory T cells (Tregs), their identity is not known. This work is aimed to identify and characterize ESPs of Taenia crassiceps cysticerci linked with Treg induction in vivo.

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Background: Corticosteroids are the first-line treatment for several common autoimmune neurological diseases. Other therapeutic approaches, including intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) and plasmapheresis, have shown mixed results in patient improvement.

Objective: To compare the efficacy of IVIg administration with that of corticosteroids, plasmapheresis, and placebo in autoimmune neurological diseases like Guillain-Barré syndrome, myasthenia gravis, chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, optic neuritis, and multiple sclerosis.

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Article Synopsis
  • Murine cysticercosis serves as a model for studying human neurocysticercosis, with genetic and immune differences influencing susceptibility in mouse strains.
  • The study focuses on T regulatory cells (Tregs) and their role in parasite establishment, comparing responses in susceptible BALB/cAnN and non-susceptible C57BL/6 mice.
  • Findings suggest that higher Treg levels in BALB/cAnN mice aid in parasite survival, while non-susceptible strains may rely on Tregs for immune balance rather than infection support.
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Article Synopsis
  • The flatworm Taenia solium causes cysticercosis in humans and pigs, leading to a serious condition called neurocysticercosis, particularly in rural areas of Mexico and other developing countries.
  • This study focuses on identifying and characterizing proteins secreted by T. solium cysticerci from infected pigs using advanced proteomic techniques.
  • The research identified 108 conserved and 186 differential proteins, including 14 potentially vaccine-targeting proteins, and revealed a link between the parasite's signaling pathways and human cancer, along with the novel mechanism of protein release via exosome-like structures.
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