Aquaporin-4 (AQP4) exists as two major isoforms that differ in the length of the N terminus, the shorter AQP4-M23 and the longer AQP4-M1. Both isoforms form tetramers, which can further aggregate in the plasma membrane to form typical orthogonal arrays of particles (OAPs) whose dimension depends on the ratio of the M1 and M23. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that the M23 isoform can be produced directly by the M1 mRNA
Abstract Background: Neuromyelitis optica (NMO, Devic syndrome) is an inflammatory disorder of the central nervous system of putative autoimmune etiology that primarily affects the optic nerves and spinal cord. NMO is frequently associated with immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies to aquaporin-4 (AQP4-IgG), which are thought to be involved in the pathogenesis of the disease
OBJECTIVE: In the present study, we examined some demographic and clinical features of Turkish LDDD patients and we compared these features with Turkish conventional MS patients, on the basis of demographic, clinical and immunological features. BACKGROUND: So called limited disseminated demyelinating diseases (LDDDs) includes optic neuritis (ON), transverse myelitis (TM), optic-spinal multiple sclerosis (OSMS) and neuromyelitis optica (NMO). OSMS and NMO select the involvement of optic nerve and spinal cord more than conventional multiple sclerosis (CMS)