Search

Neurodegenerative diseases are common causes of impaired mobility and cognition in the elderly. Among them, tauopathies and α-synucleinopathies were considered. The neurodegenerative processes and relative differential diagnosis were addressed through a qEEG non-linear analytic method. Study aims were to test accuracy of the power law exponent β applied to EEG in differentiating neurodegenerative diseases and to explore differences in neuronal connectivity among different neurodegenerative processes based on β. N = 230 patients with a diagnosis of tauopathy or α-synucleinopathy and at least one artifact-free EEG recording were selected. Periodogram was applied to EEG signal epochs from continuous recordings. Power law exponent β was determined by the slope of the signal power spectrum versus frequency in logarithmic scale. A data-driven clustering based on β values was performed to identify independent subgroups. Data-driven clustering based on β differentiated tauopathies (overall lower β values) from α-synucleinopathies (higher β values) with high sensitivity and specificity. Tauopathies also presented lower values in the correlation coefficients matrix among frontal sites of recording. In conclusion, significant differences in β values were found between tauopathies and α-synucleinopathies. Hence, β is proposed as a possible biomarker of differential diagnosis and neuronal connectivity., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: Differential diagnosis between idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) associated with parkinsonism (iNPH-P) and Parkinson's disease (PD) may prove difficult when evaluating patients with early parkinsonism. The objective of this study was to evaluate differences in mobility during standardized tasks between iNPH-P and PD., Methods: We selected 21 iNPH-P and 21 pharmacologically untreated PD patients. They all performed the instrumented Timed Up and Go test at the time of diagnosis., Results: Turning tasks showed longer duration and lower speed in iNPH-P than in PD. Vertical variation in acceleration during the sit-to-stand phase was lower in iNPH-P patients, whereas the duration of the stand-to-sit phase was longer. On walking, iNPH-P showed smaller stride length and a longer gait cycle duration. In multivariate analysis adjusting for age and cognitive status as potential confounders, average angular speed on turning before sitting was the discriminating parameter between the two groups., Conclusions: Patients with iNPH-P showed specific abnormal mobility performances with respect to untreated PD, specifically during the turning-to-sitting transition., (© 2022 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.)

Background: During the worldwide mass vaccination campaign against SARS-CoV-2, multiple side effects have been observed. We described the case of a patient who developed pure sensitive chronic inflammatory axonal polyneuropathy (CIAP) in a close temporal relationship with the administration of the BNT162b2 (Pfizer®) vaccine., Case Report: An 82-year-old woman developed lower limb sensory loss and "pricking" associated with marked gait imbalance after she had received her second dose of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. At the electroneurographic examination, the motor nerves conduction study was normal. Median, ulnar, and sural nerves sensory compound nerve action potential (CNAP) were bilaterally absent. Somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEPs) were not recordable. Spine MRI demonstrated roots enhancement from C3 to Th2 and diffuse enhancement of cauda equina nerve roots. She was treated with IV methylprednisolone whit benefit. A follow-up visit was made 4 months after the disease onset; a diagnosis of pure sensitive CIAP has been made., Discussion: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first description of CIAP occurring in a close temporal relationship with the administration of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine., (© 2021. Fondazione Società Italiana di Neurologia.)

Picornaviridae are positive-sense single stranded RNA viruses with a similar genomic structure lacking a cap at the 5' end, but with a highly structured 5'-untranslated region (UTR) containing an internal ribosome entry site (IRES). IRES allows ribosomes to be recruited by the viral RNA and initiate translation in a cap-independent manner. Coxsackie virus type B (CV-B) belong to Picornaviridae and are widespread in human population. They usually cause subclinical infections but, occasionally, also severe diseases with various clinical manifestations. CV-B have no specific therapy. DEAD-box polypeptide 3 (DDX3) is a member of the Asp-Glu-Ala-Asp (DEAD)-box family with an ATP-dependent RNA unwinding helicase activity. Recently, several positive-sense single strand RNA viruses have been shown to need DDX3 for their translation. Here, we show that several DDX3 inhibitors reduced CV-B replication and production of viral protein, particularly when added within 12 h of infection. Based on in vitro and in silico data, we hypothesized that DDX3 inhibitors hamper interaction between DDX3 and viral IRES in a stereodynamic fashion. Accordingly, the DDX3 inhibitors tested have no activity against the Vesicular Stomatitis virus and Measles virus, which are negative-sense single stranded RNA viruses and use cap-dependent translation. This study suggests that DDX3 is required by RNA viruses lacking a cap and show that this enzyme is a valuable target to design antiviral molecules against CV-B. Thus, DDX3 is dispensable for cap-dependent translation, but required for translation of transcripts containing secondary structure in their UTRs., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no competing financial interest., (Copyright © 2020. Published by Elsevier B.V.)