scholarly journals Biochemical Features and Physiological Roles of hNP22 in the Central Nervous System

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ji Wu ◽  
Yun-Yi Wang ◽  
Xi-Wen Yang ◽  
Xiao-Tian Zhang ◽  
Jia-Yi Tang
Keyword(s):  
Neural Plasticity ◽  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
Neural Differentiation ◽  
Specific Protein ◽  
Physical Structure ◽  
Biological Functions ◽  
Neuronal Processes ◽  
Associated Proteins ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Biochemical Features

hNP22, a novel neuron-specific protein that interacts with both actin filaments and microtubules, was found to be highly homologous to the smooth muscle cell cytoskeleton-associated proteins human SM22α and rat acidic calponin. In recent years, functions of hNP22 such as the promotion of neural differentiation and enhancement of neural plasticity, have been described, as well as potential roles of hNP22 in schizophrenia and alcohol-related brain damage (ARBD). Because of the potential roles of hNP22 in neuronal processes and its potential implications in diseases, hNP22 has emerged as a research target. In this paper, we review the gene structure, possible modifications, and functions of the hNP22 protein, as well as its potential clinical significance. Based on its physical structure and previous studies, we speculate that hNP22 has potential biological functions in neurological disorders, such as schizophrenia and ARBD.

scholarly journals MicroRNA-124: A Key Player in Microglia-Mediated Inflammation in Neurological Diseases

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiuhan Zhao ◽  
Zhenwei He ◽  
Jialu Wang
Keyword(s):  
Therapeutic Target ◽  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
Neurological Diseases ◽  
Innate Immune ◽  
Innate Immune Cells ◽  
Biological Functions ◽  
Neuroinflammatory Response ◽  
New Ideas ◽  
The Central Nervous System

Neurological disorders are mainly characterized by progressive neuron loss and neurological deterioration, which cause human disability and death. However, many types of neurological disorders have similar pathological mechanisms, including the neuroinflammatory response. Various microRNAs (miRs), such as miR-21, miR-124, miR-146a, and miR-132 were recently shown to affect a broad spectrum of biological functions in the central nervous system (CNS). Microglia are innate immune cells with important roles in the physiological and pathological activities of the CNS. Recently, abnormal expression of miR-124 was shown to be associated with the occurrence and development of various diseases in CNS via regulating microglia function. In addition, miR-124 is a promising biomarker and therapeutic target. Studies on the role of miR-124 in regulating microglia function involved in pathogenesis of neurological disorders at different stages will provide new ideas for the use of miR-124 as a therapeutic target for different CNS diseases.

Structure, Function and Modulation of Striatal-enriched Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase (STEP)

2021 ◽  
Vol 28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao Liang ◽  
Xuben Hou ◽  
Hao Fang
Keyword(s):  
Central Nervous System ◽  
Nervous System ◽  
Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase ◽  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
Tyrosine Phosphatase ◽  
Nervous System Diseases ◽  
Biological Functions ◽  
Protein Tyrosine ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Further Development

: Striatal-enriched protein tyrosine phosphatase (STEP) is exclusively expressed in the central nervous system and regulates various neuronal signaling factors through the dephosphorylation of different substrates. Dysregulated expression or uncontrollable enzymatic activity of STEP contributes to neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, which makes it a promising pharmaceutical target. Herein, we reviewed the structure and biological functions of STEP, as well as the recent development of small- molecule STEP modulators. We hope this review will provide a reference for the further development of more potent and selective STEP inhibitors for the treatment of nervous system diseases.

scholarly journals Virtual Reality Augmented Feedback Rehabilitation Associated to Action Observation Therapy in Buccofacial Apraxia: Case Report

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 117954762199457
Author(s):  
Daniele Emedoli ◽  
Maddalena Arosio ◽  
Andrea Tettamanti ◽  
Sandro Iannaccone
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Neural Plasticity ◽  
Action Observation ◽  
Voluntary Movements ◽  
Augmented Feedback ◽  
Lower Face ◽  
Facial Movements ◽  
Upper Face ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Buccofacial Apraxia

Background: Buccofacial Apraxia is defined as the inability to perform voluntary movements of the larynx, pharynx, mandible, tongue, lips and cheeks, while automatic or reflexive control of these structures is preserved. Buccofacial Apraxia frequently co-occurs with aphasia and apraxia of speech and it has been reported as almost exclusively resulting from a lesion of the left hemisphere. Recent studies have demonstrated the benefit of treating apraxia using motor training principles such as Augmented Feedback or Action Observation Therapy. In light of this, the study describes the treatment based on immersive Action Observation Therapy and Virtual Reality Augmented Feedback in a case of Buccofacial Apraxia. Participant and Methods: The participant is a right-handed 58-years-old male. He underwent a neurosurgery intervention of craniotomy and exeresis of infra axial expansive lesion in the frontoparietal convexity compatible with an atypical meningioma. Buccofacial Apraxia was diagnosed by a neurologist and evaluated by the Upper and Lower Face Apraxia Test. Buccofacial Apraxia was quantified also by a specific camera, with an appropriately developed software, able to detect the range of motion of automatic face movements and the range of the same movements on voluntary requests. In order to improve voluntary movements, the participant completed fifteen 1-hour rehabilitation sessions, composed of a 20-minutes immersive Action Observation Therapy followed by a 40-minutes Virtual Reality Augmented Feedback sessions, 5 days a week, for 3 consecutive weeks. Results: After treatment, participant achieved great improvements in quality and range of facial movements, performing most of the facial expressions (eg, kiss, smile, lateral angle of mouth displacement) without unsolicited movement. Furthermore, the Upper and Lower Face Apraxia Test showed an improvement of 118% for the Upper Face movements and of 200% for the Lower Face movements. Conclusion: Performing voluntary movement in a Virtual Reality environment with Augmented Feedbacks, in addition to Action Observation Therapy, improved performances of facial gestures and consolidate the activations by the central nervous system based on principles of experience-dependent neural plasticity.

scholarly journals Mitochondrial DNA Heteroplasmy as an Informational Reservoir Dynamically Linked to Metabolic and Immunological Processes Associated with COVID-19 Neurological Disorders

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
George B. Stefano ◽  
Richard M. Kream
Keyword(s):  
Mitochondrial Dna ◽  
Mitochondrial Function ◽  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
Nuclear Dna ◽  
Mitochondrial Dynamics ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Tissue Specific ◽  
Copy Numbers ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Mitochondrial Dna Heteroplasmy

AbstractMitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) heteroplasmy is the dynamically determined co-expression of wild type (WT) inherited polymorphisms and collective time-dependent somatic mutations within individual mtDNA genomes. The temporal expression and distribution of cell-specific and tissue-specific mtDNA heteroplasmy in healthy individuals may be functionally associated with intracellular mitochondrial signaling pathways and nuclear DNA gene expression. The maintenance of endogenously regulated tissue-specific copy numbers of heteroplasmic mtDNA may represent a sensitive biomarker of homeostasis of mitochondrial dynamics, metabolic integrity, and immune competence. Myeloid cells, monocytes, macrophages, and antigen-presenting dendritic cells undergo programmed changes in mitochondrial metabolism according to innate and adaptive immunological processes. In the central nervous system (CNS), the polarization of activated microglial cells is dependent on strategically programmed changes in mitochondrial function. Therefore, variations in heteroplasmic mtDNA copy numbers may have functional consequences in metabolically competent mitochondria in innate and adaptive immune processes involving the CNS. Recently, altered mitochondrial function has been demonstrated in the progression of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) due to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Accordingly, our review is organized to present convergent lines of empirical evidence that potentially link expression of mtDNA heteroplasmy by functionally interactive CNS cell types to the extent and severity of acute and chronic post-COVID-19 neurological disorders.

scholarly journals Genetic Approaches Using Zebrafish to Study the Microbiota–Gut–Brain Axis in Neurological Disorders

Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 566
Author(s):  
Jae-Geun Lee ◽  
Hyun-Ju Cho ◽  
Yun-Mi Jeong ◽  
Jeong-Soo Lee
Keyword(s):  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
Genetic Model ◽  
Molecular Genetic ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Behavioral Abnormalities ◽  
Bidirectional Signaling ◽  
Intestinal Dysbiosis ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
The Brain

The microbiota–gut–brain axis (MGBA) is a bidirectional signaling pathway mediating the interaction of the microbiota, the intestine, and the central nervous system. While the MGBA plays a pivotal role in normal development and physiology of the nervous and gastrointestinal system of the host, its dysfunction has been strongly implicated in neurological disorders, where intestinal dysbiosis and derived metabolites cause barrier permeability defects and elicit local inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract, concomitant with increased pro-inflammatory cytokines, mobilization and infiltration of immune cells into the brain, and the dysregulated activation of the vagus nerve, culminating in neuroinflammation and neuronal dysfunction of the brain and behavioral abnormalities. In this topical review, we summarize recent findings in human and animal models regarding the roles of the MGBA in physiological and neuropathological conditions, and discuss the molecular, genetic, and neurobehavioral characteristics of zebrafish as an animal model to study the MGBA. The exploitation of zebrafish as an amenable genetic model combined with in vivo imaging capabilities and gnotobiotic approaches at the whole organism level may reveal novel mechanistic insights into microbiota–gut–brain interactions, especially in the context of neurological disorders such as autism spectrum disorder and Alzheimer’s disease.

scholarly journals Meningitis Caused by Salmonella Newport in a Five-Year-Old Child

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-4
Author(s):  
Ana De Malet ◽  
Sheila Ingerto ◽  
Israel Gañán
Keyword(s):  
Central Nervous System ◽  
Nervous System ◽  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
Invasive Disease ◽  
Salmonella Typhi ◽  
Gram Negative ◽  
Negative Bacillus ◽  
Salmonella Newport ◽  
Gram Negative Bacillus ◽  
The Central Nervous System

Salmonella Newport is a Gram-negative bacillus belonging to the Enterobacteria family and the nontyphi Salmonella (NTS), usually related to gastroenteritis. Main difference between NTS and Salmonella typhi is that the last one evolves to an invasive disease easier than NTS. These can progress to bacteremias in around 5% of cases and secondary focuses can appear occasionally, as in meningitis. An infection of the central nervous system is uncommon, considering its incidence in 0.6–8% of the cases; most of them are described in developing countries and mainly in childhood, especially neonates. Bacterial meningitis by NTS mostly affects immunosuppressed people in Europe. Prognosis is adverse, with a 50% mortality rate, mainly due to complications of infection: hydrocephalus, ventriculitis, abscesses, subdural empyema, or stroke. Choice antibiotic treatments are cefotaxime, ceftriaxone, or ceftazidime. The aim of this paper is to present a case of meningitis caused by Salmonella Newport diagnosed in a five-year-old girl living in a rural area of the province of Ourense (Spain), with favorable evolution and without neurological disorders.

scholarly journals Intestinal Microbiota as an Alternative Therapeutic Target for Epilepsy

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiaying Wu ◽  
Yuyu Zhang ◽  
Hongyu Yang ◽  
Yuefeng Rao ◽  
Jing Miao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Immune Responses ◽  
Intestinal Microbiota ◽  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
Digestive System ◽  
Hygiene Hypothesis ◽  
Host Susceptibility ◽  
Immune Disorders ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Symbiotic Microbiota

Epilepsy is one of the most widespread serious neurological disorders, and an aetiological explanation has not been fully identified. In recent decades, a growing body of evidence has highlighted the influential role of autoimmune mechanisms in the progression of epilepsy. The hygiene hypothesis draws people’s attention to the association between gut microbes and the onset of multiple immune disorders. It is also believed that, in addition to influencing digestive system function, symbiotic microbiota can bidirectionally and reversibly impact the programming of extraintestinal pathogenic immune responses during autoimmunity. Herein, we investigate the concept that the diversity of parasitifer sensitivity to commensal microbes and the specific constitution of the intestinal microbiota might impact host susceptibility to epilepsy through promotion of Th17 cell populations in the central nervous system (CNS).

scholarly journals Emerging Synaptic Molecules as Candidates in the Etiology of Neurological Disorders

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Viviana I. Torres ◽  
Daniela Vallejo ◽  
Nibaldo C. Inestrosa
Keyword(s):  
Central Nervous System ◽  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
Neuronal Development ◽  
Protein Complexes ◽  
Synaptic Proteins ◽  
Excitatory Synapses ◽  
Complex Structures ◽  
Disease Phenotype ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Invertebrate Models

Synapses are complex structures that allow communication between neurons in the central nervous system. Studies conducted in vertebrate and invertebrate models have contributed to the knowledge of the function of synaptic proteins. The functional synapse requires numerous protein complexes with specialized functions that are regulated in space and time to allow synaptic plasticity. However, their interplay during neuronal development, learning, and memory is poorly understood. Accumulating evidence links synapse proteins to neurodevelopmental, neuropsychiatric, and neurodegenerative diseases. In this review, we describe the way in which several proteins that participate in cell adhesion, scaffolding, exocytosis, and neurotransmitter reception from presynaptic and postsynaptic compartments, mainly from excitatory synapses, have been associated with several synaptopathies, and we relate their functions to the disease phenotype.

Intake of Anti-Epileptic Drugs and their Influences on Sexual Dysfunctions

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Roheela Yasmeen ◽  
Nida Mobeen ◽  
Muhammad Amjad Khan ◽  
Irfan Aslam ◽  
Samia Chaudhry
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Sexual Dysfunction ◽  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
Penile Erection ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Psychiatric Problems

Epilepsy which is also called seizures disorder is an uncontrolled action of the central nervous system. Itis not a single disease but a set of neurological disorders. Actually in this situation, the brain does notreceive a precise signal and as a result an abnormal condition is produced that is usually involuntary inaction. In this review, we aimed to focus on the relationship of anti-epileptic drugs with sexual dysfunctionand adaptation of better remedies that improve a patient’s family life. Sexual dysfunction is a commoncomorbidity in people with epilepsy which badly affects their quality of life. Sexual dysfunction is causedby different factors like psychiatric problems, anti-epileptic drugs (AEDs) and social factors etc. Sexualdysfunctions include ejaculatory failure, lessen libido, penile erection in men and irregular menstrual cyclein women. Common drugs such as Topiramate, Gabapentin (GBP), Valproate (VA), Carbamazepine (CBZ),Olanzapine (OL) and Risperidone (RTG) that are in practice to treat epilepsy usually produced adverseeffect on sexual dysfunction. Even though a lot of studies have been carried out to control sexualdysfunction in epilepsy’s patient, but still research is going on. Medicine such as Cyproheptadine,Mianserin, Buspirone, Yohimbine were found better to treat epilepsy with minimum side effects of sexualdysfunction. Moreover, it is also seen that certain vasodilators, folate , and vitamin supplements areeffective in improving the quality of life.

scholarly journals Proteolytic maturation of α2δ represents a checkpoint for activation and neuronal trafficking of latent calcium channels

eLife ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan Kadurin ◽  
Laurent Ferron ◽  
Simon W Rothwell ◽  
James O Meyer ◽  
Leon R Douglas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Calcium Channels ◽  
Proteolytic Cleavage ◽  
Proteolytic Processing ◽  
Calcium Currents ◽  
Cleavage Sites ◽  
Voltage Dependent ◽  
Neuronal Processes ◽  
Associated Proteins ◽  
Synaptic Boutons

The auxiliary α2δ subunits of voltage-gated calcium channels are extracellular membrane-associated proteins, which are post-translationally cleaved into disulfide-linked polypeptides α2 and δ. We now show, using α2δ constructs containing artificial cleavage sites, that this processing is an essential step permitting voltage-dependent activation of plasma membrane N-type (CaV2.2) calcium channels. Indeed, uncleaved α2δ inhibits native calcium currents in mammalian neurons. By inducing acute cell-surface proteolytic cleavage of α2δ, voltage-dependent activation of channels is promoted, independent from the trafficking role of α2δ. Uncleaved α2δ does not support trafficking of CaV2.2 channel complexes into neuronal processes, and inhibits Ca2+ entry into synaptic boutons, and we can reverse this by controlled intracellular proteolytic cleavage. We propose a model whereby uncleaved α2δ subunits maintain immature calcium channels in an inhibited state. Proteolytic processing of α2δ then permits voltage-dependent activation of the channels, acting as a checkpoint allowing trafficking only of mature calcium channel complexes into neuronal processes.

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