Neuroscience & neurology

The purpose of the study was to demonstrate the J-coupling connectivity network between the amide, aliphatic, and aromatic proton resonances of metabolites in human brain using two-dimensional (2D) localized correlated spectroscopy (L-COSY). Two different global water suppression techniques were combined with L-COSY, one before and another after localizing the...

Background: Patients that do not achieve therapeutic response with over the counter non-triptan medications may benefit from triptan-based treatments. Objective: Phase IV, open-label, multi-center, prospective cohort study assessing the effectiveness of rizatriptan in the management of migraines for patients that have not responded to non-triptan treatment. Methods: Patients were treated with one...

Of the major components of the kynurenine pathway for the oxidative metabolism of tryptophan, most attention has focussed on the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor agonist quinolinic acid, and the glutamate receptor blocker kynurenic acid. However, there is increasing evidence that the redox-active compound 3-hydroxyanthranilic acid may also have potent actions on...

Introduction: While central nervous system serotonin has been implicated in a variety of problematic impulsive behaviors, biological manipulation of brain serotonin using acute tryptophan depletion for studying changes in impulsive behavior has received little attention. Methods: Using identical treatment conditions, we examined the effects of reduced serotonin synthesis for each of...

This review presents an up-to-date assessment of the role of the tryptophan metabolic and catabolic pathways in neurodegenerative disease and HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder. The kynurenine pathway and the effects of each of its enzymes and products are reviewed. The differential expression of the kynurenine pathway in cells within the brain,...

The endogenous neuroinhibitory amino acid receptor antagonist kynurenic acid (KYNA) has been hypothetically linked to physiological processes and to the pathogenesis of several brain disorders. The aim of this study was to search KYNA metabolism i.e. KYNA levels and enzymes synthesising KYNA kynurenine aminotransferase I and II (KAT I and...

Aim: To assess serum Cu/Zn SOD (Superoxide Dismutase) concentration in children with ADHD and evaluate its possible relationship to Cu and Zn levels. Subjects and methods: Serum from 22 children with ADHD and 20 healthy control children without ADHD and 19 autistic children without ADHD were tested for Cu/Zn SOD using...

Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) is one of the most common neurological diseases characterized by an urge to move the legs, often associated with unpleasant sensations relieved by movement. It is engendered by rest, and is worse in the evening or at night. Patients affected by severe RLS should be treated pharmacologically....

The infectious agent of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) was assumed to be the aggregate of abnormal prion protein isoform (PrPsc). We observed that lowering the pH of 3% SDS-inoculated plasma or brain homogenate after PK digestion to 4.5 (acidic SDS condition) enabled to precipitate proteinase K-resistant prion protein (PrPres) in...

Purpose: To provide a review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the efficacy and safety of zonisamide as an adjunctive treatment for partial-onset seizures in epilepsy patients ages 12 years and above. Methods: Medline literature search for published double-blind RCTs involving zonisamide as adjunctive treatment for simple partial, complex...

Objective: To provide a comprehensive overview on the emerging treatments used for the treatment management of multiple sclerosis (MS). Data Sources: PubMed, MEDLINE, Cochrane, and Toxnet databases were used to conduct all comprehensive literature searches over the time period of 1989 to 2009. Search terms such as: multiple sclerosis and oral...

Anticonvulsant drugs continue to be the mainstay of epilepsy treatment but benefits of seizure control need to be balanced with the psychotropic potential of this class of compounds. The present paper is aimed at discussing positive and negative effects of anticonvulsant drugs on mood in patients with epilepsy. In general...

Tremor is the most common movement disorder encountered during daily practice. Most forms of tremor are currently managed with drugs. However, the response of tremor to pharmacotherapy is variable and a combination of agents is often required. Surgery is considered when the response is not sufficient. In particular deep brain...

The drug Levodopa (LD) is an efficient compound for the treatment of patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Its short half life generates plasma behaviour of LD with peaks and troughs. Therefore, following the LD transport into the brain and the conversion to dopamine, an alternating stimulation of nigrostriatal postsynaptic dopamine...

Skewed sex ratios indicative of a greater preponderance of males over females (approximating 4:1) has perhaps been the most constant collective finding in autism spectrum conditions. More recent investigations have indicated a potential change to traditional estimates of gender ratios. We undertook analysis to calculate contemporaneous gender ratios based on...

Lamotrigine (LTG) is a newer antiepileptic medication that has multiple indications for epilepsy including add-on therapy for partial onset epilepsy in adults. The primary antiseizure mechanism of action is blockage of voltage-sensitive sodium channels which stabilizes neuronal membranes and inhibits excitatory presynaptic neurotransmitter release. It has linear pharmacokinetics with rapid...

Kynurenic acid (KYNA) is an endogenous metabolite of tryptophan. Studies have revealed increased brain KYNA levels in patients with schizophrenia. Prepulse inhibition (PPI) is a behavioral model for sensorimotor gating and found to be reduced in schizophrenia. Previous studies have shown that pharmacologically elevated brain KYNA levels disrupt PPI in...

Time sensitive acute stroke treatments and the growing shortage of vascular neurologists compound to create a gap in the delivery of care to meet the American Stroke Association guidelines in underserviced regions. Audio/video consultation (telemedicine), which has been evolving since the late 1990’s, is a putative solution. While telemedicine can...

Narcolepsy is a complex disease with multiple symptoms that include excessive daytime sleepiness, cataplexy, hypnagogic hallucinations, and sleep paralysis. Pharmacologic management of patients with narcolepsy is based on treating these symptoms. Sodium oxybate, a neurotransmitter product of γ-amino butyric acid (GABA), is a Schedule III controlled substance in the US,...

Lennox-Gastaut syndrome is an epileptic encephalopathy starting in early childhood consisting of the triad of cognitive impairment, multiple seizures types and slow spike-wave complexes in the electroencephalogram. Global developmental delay is usually evident before the onset in patients with symptomatic LGS whereas children with cryptogenic LGS might have a normal...

A patient with a history of severe head injury 10 years ago regained ability to walk after years of being bound to a wheelchair. During the last psychiatric hospitalization, quetiapine was increased to therapeutic dose using a normal titration. As a result the patient developed dystonia of multiple muscle groups...

In this study we used incorporation of the DNA synthesis marker 5-bromo-2’-deoxyuridine or BrdU to visualize cell proliferation in the visual system of the adult mouse as a response to monocular enucleation. We detected new BrdU-labeled cells in different subcortical retinal target regions and we established a specific time frame...

Bevacizumab is a humanised monoclonal antibody targeted to the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). VEGF is the ligand for VEGF receptors (VEGFR), which are important for the development and maintenance of the angiogenic phenotype in high-grade solid tumors, including malignant gliomas. An overview of angiogenesis, VEGF, VEGFR, and the pharmacology...

The serotonin-noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor duloxetine is a second-generation antidepressant for the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD). Its inhibitory potency for serotonin (5-HT) and noradrenaline (NA) reuptake has been demonstrated in animal and in vitro studies. Human studies of peripheral markers of neurotransmission show inhibition of 5-HT reuptake by duloxetine...

We report a case of 30-year-old man presenting chorea in his legs. A brain computed tomography (CT) scan showed bilateral symmetric calcifications in the basal ganglia, thalamus, cerebellum and subcortical white matter. Laboratory studies showed no abnormalities of serum calcium, phosphate, PTH, lactic acid, pyruvic acid and cerebrospinal fluid. Under...

Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) is characterized by acute and symmetric flaccid paraparesis and areflexia. Involvement of the central nervous system has been infrequently reported. In the current issue of Clinical Medicine: Case reports, an unusual case of GBS with asymmetric muscle weakness was reported. Corticomotoneuronal dysfunction was invoked as a possible...

Postoperative complications resulting from bariatric surgery can lead to severe vitamin-deficiency states. A patient who underwent bariatric bypass surgery and later developed Wernicke’s encephalopathy prompted us to present her interesting case history for discussion. Although bariatric surgery is known to be a risk factor for Wernicke’s encephalopathy, this diagnosis is...

Recent studies on the anatomical and functional organization of GABAergic networks in central auditory circuits of the zebra finch have highlighted the strong impact of inhibitory mechanisms on both the central encoding and processing of acoustic information in a vocal learning species. Most of this work has focused on the...

Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) is a neurological disorder characterized by unpleasant sensations in the legs and an irresistible urge to move them to relieve discomfort. Evidence-based guidelines consider dopaminergic therapy to be the mainstay of treatment for RLS. Ropinirole is a modern, non-ergoline dopamine agonist which has been widely studied...