Jorge Matías-Guiu

One-year prevalence of migraine in Spain: a nationwide population-based survey.

Aim: The purpose of the study was to estimate the one-year prevalence of migraine among a population-based sample of Spanish adults. Method: Men and women aged 18−65 years were selected at random according to quotas for age, sex, size of habitat (<10,000 inhabitants, 10,001−50,000 inhabitants, 50,001−200,000 inhabitants and >200,000 inhabitants) and residence proportional to the population size of the geographical location. A random-digit-dial, computer-assisted telephone interview (CATI) survey was conducted between April and July 2006. The 2004 International Headache Society operational diagnostic criteria were applied. Results: From a total of 70,692 telephone calls and 26,255 (31.7%) valid contacts, 5,668 (21.6%) respondents completed the CATI survey. A total of 476 subjects (8.4%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 7.7−9.1%) with strict migraine and 236 with probable migraine (4.2%, 95% CI 3.7−4.7%) were recorded. The 1-year prevalence of total migraine (N = 712) was 12.6% (95% CI 11.6−13.6) (17.2% in females, 8.0% in males). The prevalence rates showed significant geographic variations, from 7.6% in Navarra to 18% in the Canary Islands. One-half of the subjects had migraine with aura. One-third of subjects were never diagnosed for migraine. Conclusions: The one-year prevalence of migraine in Spain is 12.6%, with a prevalence of migraine with and without aura of 8.4% and probable migraine of 4.2%. These findings add data to the current understanding of migraine.

CSF from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients produces glutamate independent death of rat motor brain cortical neurons: protection by resveratrol but not riluzole.

The neurotoxic effects of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from patients suffering amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), have been reported by various authors. However, variable results have been communicated and the mechanism of such neurotoxicity has been attributed to excess glutamate concentrations in ALS/CSF. We have studied here the properties of 14 CSFs from control patients and 29 CSFs from patients of ALS. We found that while ALS/CSF impairs the viability of rat brain cortical motoneurons maintained in primary cultures, this effect seemed to be exerted through a glutamate-independent mechanism. Resveratrol protected against such neurotoxic effects and antagonized the [Ca(+2)](c) elevation produced by ALS/CSF. However, riluzole did not afford protection and antagonized the resveratrol-elicited neuroprotective effects. We conclude that ALS/CSF elicited neurotoxicity on in vitro cultures of rat brain cortical motor neurons may become a sound microassay to test available novel multitargeted neuroprotective compounds with potential therapeutic application in ALS patients.

Fraude y conductas inapropiadas en las publicaciones científicas

Resumen Introduccion Los editores de revistas cientificas han sido, tradicionalmente, poco conscientes de la existencia de fraudes y conductas inapropiadas, mas preocupados por los temas relacionados con el impacto o con la revision editorial, pero en los ultimos anos, se ha ido comprobando y denunciando que existen comportamientos inadecuados en el ambito cientifico y que ademas no son infrecuentes. Desarrollo Se revisan las conductas inapropiadas de autores mas frecuentes que suponen una vulneracion de las condiciones que debe tener un trabajo cientifico e incluyen fraudes como el plagio, las publicaciones repetidas o las publicaciones redundantes. Se discute su frecuencia y las perspectivas desde la edicion. Conclusiones Muchos editores estan reclamando regulaciones claras para prevenir las conductas inapropiadas. La revision editorial y facilitar herramientas de evaluacion para los revisores son formulas de prevencion, pero no infalibles. Lo destacable puede ser que los equipos editoriales tomen consciencia de su existencia.

Validación de la versión española del test Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination III para el diagnóstico de demencia

INTRODUCTION Addenbrookes Cognitive Examination is a screening test used to diagnose dementia. The third edition of this test (ACE-III) was recently developed. The aim of this study was to translate and validate the ACE-III in Spanish. METHODS The ACE-III was translated and adapted to Spanish. It was then administered to a group of healthy subjects as well as a group of patients with different types of mild dementia treated in 2 hospitals in Spain. RESULTS Internal reliability (Cronbachs alpha = 0.927), inter-rater reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.976) and test-retest reliability (kappa 0.995) were excellent. Age (r = -0.512) and education (r = 0.659) showed a significant correlation with total test scores. The diagnostic accuracy of ACE-III was higher than that of the Mini-Mental State Examination, particularly for the group with the highest educational level. Researchers obtained normative data and cut-off points for the diagnosis of dementia. CONCLUSIONS The Spanish version of the ACE-III is a reliable and valid test for diagnosing dementia. Its diagnostic accuracy is high, especially in patients with a higher level of education.

The Adult Macaque Spinal Cord Central Canal Zone Contains Proliferative Cells And Closely Resembles The Human

The persistence of proliferative cells, which could correspond to progenitor populations or potential cells of origin for tumors, has been extensively studied in the adult mammalian forebrain, including human and nonhuman primates. Proliferating cells have been found along the entire ventricular system, including around the central canal, of rodents, but little is known about the primate spinal cord. Here we describe the central canal cellular composition of the Old World primate Macaca fascicularis via scanning and transmission electron microscopy and immunohistochemistry and identify central canal proliferating cells with Ki67 and newly generated cells with bromodeoxyuridine incorporation 3 months after the injection. The central canal is composed of uniciliated, biciliated, and multiciliated ependymal cells, astrocytes, and neurons. Multiciliated ependymal cells show morphological characteristics similar to multiciliated ependymal cells from the lateral ventricles, and uniciliated and biciliated ependymal cells display cilia with large, star‐shaped basal bodies, similar to the Ecc cells described for the rodent central canal. Here we show that ependymal cells with one or two cilia, but not multiciliated ependymal cells, proliferate and give rise to new ependymal cells that presumably remain in the macaque central canal. We found that the infant and adult human spinal cord contains ependymal cell types that resemble those present in the macaque. Interestingly, a wide hypocellular layer formed by bundles of intermediate filaments surrounded the central canal both in the monkey and in the human, being more prominent in the stenosed adult human central canal. J. Comp. Neurol. 522:1800–1817, 2014.

Amyloid Proteins and Their Role in Multiple Sclerosis. Considerations in the Use of Amyloid-PeT imaging

Thioflavin T derivatives are used in positron-emission tomography (PET) studies to detect amyloid protein deposits in patients with Alzheimer disease. These tracers bind extensively to white matter, which suggests that they may be useful in studies of multiple sclerosis (MS), and that proteins resulting from proteolytic processing of the amyloid precursor protein (APP) may contribute to MS. This article reviews data from both clinical and preclinical studies addressing the role of these proteins, whether they are detected in CSF studies or using PET imaging. APP is widely expressed in demyelinated axons and may have a protective effect in MS and in experimental allergic encephalomyelitis in animals. Several mechanisms associated with this increased expression may affect the degree of remyelination in MS. Amyloid-PET imaging may help determine the degree of demyelination and provide information on the molecular changes linked to APP proteolytic processing experienced by patients with MS.

Astrocitos en las enfermedades neurodegenerativas (I): función y caracterización molecular

INTRODUCTION Astrocytes have been considered mere supporting cells in the CNS. However, we now know that astrocytes are actively involved in many of the functions of the CNS and may play an important role in neurodegenerative diseases. DEVELOPMENT This article reviews the roles astrocytes play in CNS development and plasticity; control of synaptic transmission; regulation of blood flow, energy, and metabolism; formation of the blood-brain barrier; regulation of the circadian rhythms, lipid metabolism and secretion of lipoproteins; and in neurogenesis. Astrocyte markers and the functions of astrogliosis are also described. CONCLUSION Astrocytes play an active role in the CNS. A good knowledge of astrocytes is essential to understanding the mechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases.

Evaluation of the new consensus criteria for the diagnosis of primary progressive aphasia using fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography.

Background: New consensus criteria have been proposed to classify primary progressive aphasia (PPA) into three variants: agrammatic, semantic, and logopenic. Some studies have subsequently addressed the usefulness of these criteria, with controversial results. We aimed to determine the correlation between the clinical diagnosis according to the new criteria and brain topography in 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET). Methods: Patients meeting the PPA criteria were prospectively recruited in a single center during a period of 18 months. They were clinically classified according to the new criteria and underwent FDG-PET. The cerebral metabolism of each patient was compared to a healthy control group using statistical parametric mapping. The expected variant according to the analysis of PET imaging was compared with the clinical diagnosis using the consensus criteria. Results: 32 patients were included. 90% of them fulfilled the consensus criteria and could be classified into one of the three clinical variants. The correlation with the cerebral metabolism was high: the kappa index was 0.91 in the agrammatic variant, 0.71 in the semantic variant, and 0.74 in the logopenic variant. Conclusions: A high correlation with the diagnosis obtained using FDG-PET was found. However, an overdiagnosis of the logopenic variant was observed. These results support the use of the new criteria, but some modifications or complementary studies may still be necessary.

Paroxysmal head pain with backward radiation: will epicrania fugax go in the opposite direction?

Epicrania fugax (EF) has been recently described as a paroxysmal head pain starting in a focal cranial area of the posterior scalp and rapidly spreading forward to the ipsilateral eye or nose along a linear or zigzag trajectory. Here we report two patients presenting with the same clinical features, except for the starting site and the direction of the pain. Unilateral pain paroxysms occurred on either side of the head, with a quick backward radiation along a linear trajectory. The pain always stemmed from a particular point located at the fronto-parietal region, and reached the parieto-occipital region in several seconds. The symptoms did not fit any of the acknowledged headaches and neuralgias, and might correspond to a reverse variant of EF.

The Neuroprotection Exerted by Memantine, Minocycline and Lithium, against Neurotoxicity of CSF from Patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Is Antagonized by Riluzole

In a recent study we found that cerebrospinal fluids (CSFs) from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients caused 20-30% loss of cell viability in primary cultures of rat embryo motor cortex neurons. We also found that the antioxidant resveratrol protected against such damaging effects and that, surprisingly, riluzole antagonized its protecting effects. Here we have extended this study to the interactions of riluzole with 3 other recognized neuroprotective agents, namely memantine, minocycline and lithium. We found: (1) by itself riluzole exerted neurotoxic effects at concentrations of 3-30 µM; this cell damage was similar to that elicited by 30 µM glutamate and a 10% dilution of ALS/CSF; (2) memantine (0.1-30 µM), minocycline (0.03-1 µM) and lithium (1-80 µg/ml) afforded 10-30% protection against ALS/CSF-elicited neurotoxicity, and (3) at 1-10 µM, riluzole antagonized the protection afforded by the 3 agents. These results strongly support the view that at the riluzole concentrations reached in the brain of patients, the neurotoxic effects of this drug could be masking the potential neuroprotective actions of new compounds being tested in clinical trials. Therefore, in the light of the present results, the inclusion of a group of patients free of riluzole treatment may be mandatory in future clinical trials performed in ALS patients with novel neuroprotective compounds.