Mult Scler. 2012 Jul 3. [Epub ahead of print] Central nervous system aquaporin-4 autoimmunity presenting with an isolated cerebral abnormality.
Julien Ratelade 1 , Jeffrey L. Bennett 2 , A
?Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the degree of blood-brain barrier disruption in patients with neuromyelitis optica (NMO) and to clarify whether the levels of soluble intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (sICAM-1) and soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (sVCAM-1) in patients with NMO can be useful biomarkers for blood-brain barrier breakdown.
Rituximab is increasingly used for prevention of relapses of neuromyelitis optica (NMO), a condition that is highly associated with serum anti-aquaporin-4 (AQP4) antibodies. However, B-cell depletion also induces systemic B-cell activating factor (BAFF), which may promote antibody production. We collected serial serum samples from a total of seven patients with NMO prior to, and following, treatment with rituximab
Increased blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption can be found in patients with neuromyelitis optica (NMO); however, its clinical implication and association with disability at acute attack remains obscure. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the clinical significance of BBB disruption and the subsequent cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)/serum IgG gradient in NMO.
Matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) plays an important role in some neuroinflammatory diseases through the blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption.
The aquaporin-4 (AQP4) water channel antibody is used in the diagnosis of neuromyelitis optica (NMO) due to its high sensitivity and high specificity. However, some patients are reported to have neither optic neuritis nor myelitis despite being positive for the AQP4-autoantibody (AQP4-Ab). Therefore, recent reports suggest that such patients should be diagnosed as having ‘AQP4-autoimmune syndrome’.
Background: Neuromyelitis Optica (NMO) serology is a powerful tool for differential diagnosis from Multiple Sclerosis (MS). This study aims to perform a post-marketing evaluation of the first indirect immunofluorescence assay (IIFA) commercially available for NMO serology
OBJECTIVE: To explore the relationship between serum lipoproteins and clinical presentations of NMO patients. To investigate the differences of serum lipoprotein levels between NMO and MS patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Serum lipoprotein levels were measured in 56 NMO patients, 53 MS patients and 54 health subjects.
We report a 25-year-old woman who developed optic neuritis and encephalomyelitis following primary Sjogren’s syndrome (SjS).
Interferon-b (IFN-b) is the major treatment for multiple sclerosis. However, this treatment is not always effective. Here we have found congruence in outcome between responses to IFN-b in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) and relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS).