Caspian Journal of Neurological Sciences
Volume:1 Issue: 2, Jul 2015

Leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) is a neurortophic cytokine which plays an important role in the neural cell survival. Expression of LIF and its receptor, LIFR, in different brain regions has been demonstrated. Based on evidences LIF plays an important role in the modulation of neurogenesis and glial responses to injury. Up-regulation of LIF after central nervous system (CNS) damage is an endogenous response that limits injury by a direct protection of neurons and oligodendrocytes. More importantly LIF is an important cytokine that stimulates oligodendrocyte proliferation in vitro. Also Opalin is a unique molecular marker of mature oligodendrocyte. It is a transmembrane protein which is specifically expressed by myelinating oligodendrocytes. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of LIF on Opalin expression in the Balb/c mouse cerebral cortex. LIF was administered intraperitoneally (IP) to 6 to 8 weeks mice. The second group (SHAM) was injected IP by normal saline and third group was left without injection as the control group (n=9 for each group). One day after injection, the mice were killed by overdose of anaesthetic (sodium pentobarbitone) and brains were removed for further analysis. Using Western blotting we showed that administration of LIF increases Opalin expression in the cerebral cortex extracts. The results from this study suggest that LIF increases Opalin expression in the cerebral cortex in vivo.

Stroke is a multifactorial disorder, the most common cause being arterial occlusion. Transcranial Doppler Ultrasonography (TCD) is a common non-invasive method available for assessment the arterial blood flow of the brain. Assessment the hemodynamic parameters of cerebral arteries, using TCD device in patients suffering ischemic stroke. This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on patients with ischemic stroke in 2014 in Iran after being approved by ethics committee of Researches and Technology Vice-chancellorship of Guilan University of Medical Sciences. After obtaining informed consent, all patients underwent TCD. Demographic details and TCD findings were recorded. Data were analysed in SPSS software 21 using independent t-test, Chi-square, and Fisher''s exact tests. The descriptive results were presented as mean ± SD and frequency. A total of 102 patients (69 men and 33 women) with ischemic stroke and mean age of 63.72 ± 12.64 years participated in this study. Among 49.02% of patients at least one hemodynamic abnormality was diagnosed. Small Vessel Disease (SVD), extracranial stenosis (ECS) and intracranial stenosis (ICS) were found in 29.41%, 20.59% and 11.76% of patients respectively. Abnormal Pulsatility Index (PI), Peak Systolic Velocity (PSV) and Mean Blood Flow Velocity (Vm) were reported in 32.25%, 20.59% and 9.8% of them respectively. A significant relationship was found between PSV parameter and also presence of ECS and gender (p = 0.047). Moreover, SVD and abnormal PI were found significantly related to age (p = 0.002). TCD results showed almost half of the patients with ischemic stroke were found to have at least one hemodynamic abnormality.

Temporal variation of stroke onset is suggested in some studies contained somewhat varieties. It is proposed that some predisposing changes occur in some ascertained times consequently resulted in stroke occurrence in some special times. To determine the circadian and circaseptan variation of stroke onset. This cross sectional study was conducted from March 2012 to February 2013 in an academic hospital in the North of Iran. All patients with acute onset of neurological symptoms were enrolled in the study after being diagnosed as a stroke patient. The diagnosis was made by a neurologist using brain imaging. Age, gender, history of diabetes and hypertension, time and date of stroke onset were recorded for all patients. The data were analysed using Chi-square test in SPSS software version19. A total of eight hundred sixty-nine patients with mean age of 67.5±12.4 years (55.6% women 44.4% men) were admitted during one year study. Eighty-five percent of stroke cases were ischemic in nature and the others were hemorrhagic type. Distribution of cases during a day was not uniform (p < 0.0001). The peak of stroke onset occurred in the mornings (7-9 a.m.) followed by a second peak in the evenings (7-9 p.m.). In addition, the distribution of cases during the week was also not uniform (p < 0.016). Stroke occurrence has a diurnal variation probably resulted from circadian physiologic changes. Although there is a circaseptan variation in the times of stroke record, it seemingly isn’t related to physiologic changes.

Diabetes mellitus is a common metabolic disorder worldwide. It imposes excessive psychological stress on patients which negatively affect the course of the disease. The brain-behavioral systems have a role in dealing with stressful events such as chronic disorders. Comparison the brain-behavioral systems and psychological distress in diabetic patients and non-diabetics. This causal-comparative study was conducted on patients with diabetes type II and controls that were selected by simple sampling method from January to March 2015 in Tehran, Iran. A demographic questionnaire and also Behavioral Inhibition/Activation systems scale (BIS/BAS) and Depression, Anxiety, Stress Scale (DASS) were used to assess subjects. The data were analysed in SPSS 18 software using descriptive statistics and multi-variate analysis of variance (MANOVA). A total of forty-three subjects (22 female and 21 male) were included in each group of diabetic and control subjects with mean age of 41.77±5.34 and 40.21±6.47 years respectively (p>0.01). The groups had a significant difference in terms of brain-behavioral systems activity [F(5, 80)= 22.33, p < 0.001] with significant differences in BAS and its subscales of drive and pleasure seeking, while no significant difference was observed between the two groups in BIS activity or BAS subscale of reply to reward. Also results demonstrated significant differences as the matter of psychological distress [F(3, 82)=26.26, p<0.001] with difference in all of its dimensions. People with diabetes are prone to psychological distress, also strong behavioral activation system can be considered as factors in the persistence and exacerbation diabetes.

Professional identity is a part of human identity and career has a beneficial impact on psychological health. The importance of personality in job achievement has also been increasingly concerned in economics. To compare the Big Five personality factors between employed and unemployed persons. This study was an applied cross sectional analytic descriptive research of a comparative type which was conducted from January 2012 to March 2012. The sample size was thirty in each group of employed and unemployed subjects, chosen randomly from male population of a city in the North of Iran with purposive sampling method. Age and education level of subjects were controlled according to labor market conditions. For collecting data, the NEO inventory was used; five factors of personality can be assessed by which. The data were analyzed by SPSS software version 19 through descriptive and inferential statistics using independent t-test. A total of thirty employed and 30 unemployed men in the age range of 20-50 years participated in the study. The neuroticism score was higher in unemployed persons (p = 0.001). The openness score resulted in no significant difference between employed and unemployed people (p = 0.96). The scores of extroversion, agreeableness and conscientiousness were significantly higher among employed people rather the unemployed ones (p = 0.01, 0.001 and 0.01, respectively). Personality traits except openness have significant relationship with employment, neuroticism may have a negative relationship, and the other personality traits maybe in the positive relationships with employment.

Today, stem cell transplantation is a hot topic in scientific circles as a novel therapeutic approach to repair the structure and function of central nervous system. The safe and neuroprotective effects of cell therapy in models and traumatic brain injury patients were evaluated in many experimental and clinical studies in recent decade and somewhat promising results were provided to the scientific community. Nevertheless, there are still obstacles in translating experimental studies in the laboratory into clinical practice that should not be overlooked. In this review study, a brief explanation is provided about biological events and endogenic neurogenesis and angiogenesis after TBI; the performance of transplanted cells in restoration of damaged neurons; the role and potential use of mesenchymal stem cells as adult stem cells preferred in cell transplantation and clinical trials ever conducted in this area; features of cell transplant candidates who will most benefit from transplantation, the type of and proper time for cell transplantation, optimal method for conducting transplant to deliver cells to the brain, and the best dose for effectiveness of transplantation. Finally, the various neuroimaging techniques are discussed, which are used to track and evaluate the survival and implantation of transplanted cells.

Anti-N-Methyl-D-Aspartate-Receptor (NMDA-R) encephalitis is a new autoimmune disorder, often paraneoplastic in nature, presenting with complex neuropsychiatric symptoms. Diagnosed serologically, this disorder is often responsive to immunosuppressant treatment. We here in report the case of a 56-year-old man with anti NMDA-R encephalitis presenting initially with disorientation and hallucination. He later developed bilateral ophthalmoplegia and spastic tetraparesis. Neurological examination showed mild consciousness disturbance and bilateral ophthalmoplegia on admission, spastic tetraparesis with limbs hyperreflexia. Cerebrospinal fluid samples showed mild pleocytosis. MRI disclosed some small hypersignal lesions in the FLAIR. Anti-NMDA-R antibody was diagnosed upon detection of antibody in the serum. Psychiatrists and neurologists should pay more attention to the cranial, mental and behavioral involvement due to this potentially fatal disease.