C Croia

Pathophysiology of fibromyalgia: a comparison with the tension-type headache, a localized pain syndrome.

Fibromyalgia (FM) is thought to occur because of the combination of interactions among neurotransmitters, such as neuropeptide Y (NPY), stressors, hormones, cytokines, and both the immune and sympathetic nervous systems. The aim of this study was to evaluate serum concentrations of cytokines, antipolymer antibodies (APA), and NPY in 51 patients with FM, 25 with tension‐type headache (TTH), and 15 healthy controls. Serum concentrations of eight different cytokines, APA and NPY, were measured. Interleukin (IL)‐1RA, IL‐6, IL‐10, and tumor necrosis factor‐alpha were higher in serum of FM patients compared with TTH patients and a significant correlation between IL‐10 and Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire score was observed. There was a significant difference between FM and TTH versus controls in NPY levels, but not in APA levels. Cytokines and NPY take part in pain modulation and even if they are altered in FM they cannot be considered as measurable biomarkers of disease.

Pathophysiology of fibromyalgia: A comparison with the tension-type headache, a localized pain syndrome: Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences

Fibromyalgia (FM) is thought to occur because of the combination of interactions among neurotransmitters, such as neuropeptide Y (NPY), stressors, hormones, cytokines, and both the immune and sympathetic nervous systems. The aim of this study was to evaluate serum concentrations of cytokines, antipolymer antibodies (APA), and NPY in 51 patients with FM, 25 with tension‐type headache (TTH), and 15 healthy controls. Serum concentrations of eight different cytokines, APA and NPY, were measured. Interleukin (IL)‐1RA, IL‐6, IL‐10, and tumor necrosis factor‐alpha were higher in serum of FM patients compared with TTH patients and a significant correlation between IL‐10 and Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire score was observed. There was a significant difference between FM and TTH versus controls in NPY levels, but not in APA levels. Cytokines and NPY take part in pain modulation and even if they are altered in FM they cannot be considered as measurable biomarkers of disease.

Nucleosome accumulation and reduction of C-reactive protein are associated with the generation of anti-nuclear antibodies in patients with rheumatoid arthritis treated with adalimumab, but not with etanercept

During the last decade, three tumour necrosis factor (TNF)α antagonists have been approved for the treatment of moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis (RA).1 These new drugs, while extremely powerful, can induce puzzling biological phenomena such as the production of autoantibodies whose extent seems to vary accordingly to the drug used.2,3 A dysregulation of apoptosis with exposition of nuclear antigens and consequent rapid (within hours) accumulation of nucleosomes has been evoked to explain autoantibody occurrence in patients treated with infliximab.4 In addition (or in alternative) to an increased release of nuclear antigens, a defect in clearance mechanisms can play a role in the generation of autoantibodies.5 We studied autoantibody profiles (anti-nuclear antibody (ANA), anti-double stranded …