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The presence of Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) DNA in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and peripheral blood (PB) samples collected from 55 patients with clinical and radiologically-active relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and 51 subjects with other neurological diseases was determined using standardized commercially available kits for viral nucleic acid extraction and quantitative EBV DNA detection. Both cell-free and cell-associated CSF and PB fractions were analyzed, to distinguish latent from lytic EBV infection. EBV DNA was detected in 5.5% and 18.2% of cell-free and cell-associated CSF fractions of patients with RRMS as compared to 7.8% and 7.8% of controls; plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) positivity rates were 7.3% and 47.3% versus 5.8% and 31.4%, respectively. No significant difference in median EBV viral loads of positive samples was found between RRMS and control patients in all tested samples. Absence of statistically significant differences in EBV positivity rates between RRMS and control patients, despite the use of highly sensitive standardized methods, points to the lack of association between EBV and MS disease activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The release of newly produced B and T lymphocytes from the production sites was analyzed in 30 multiple sclerosis patients treated with interferon-beta by measuring T-cell receptor excision circles and k-deleting recombination excision circles. We found that the therapy induces opposite effects on B- and T-cell mobilization in 33% of patients. New B-cell production, which peaks after 6months of therapy and then decreases to levels that, however, are still higher than in controls, may cause a renewal of the B-cell compartment. On the contrary, the decreased number of newly produced T lymphocytes observed at 12months of treatment and the association between reduced thymic output and low peripheral T lymphocytes can be a cause of leukopenia, a frequent side effect of the therapy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Opsoclonus–myoclonus syndrome (OMS) is characterized by opsoclonus and arrhythmic-action myoclonus that predominantly involves the trunk, limbs, and head. Human herpes virus-6 (HHV-6) can rarely cause encephalitis in immunocompetent children and adults. Here we report on a case of OMS associated with HHV-6 rhomboencephalitis. HHV-6 infection should be considered in OMS adults and detection of cell-free viral DNA, indicative of active infection, is mandatory in such cases. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: We report the case of a woman with natalizumab-treated Multiple Sclerosis (MS) that developed progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) with atypical MRI features at early onset. This case shows that PML can have variable radiological patterns in natalizumab-treated MS patients thus expanding the possible MRI patterns at onset in these patients. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]