Journal of Neuroimmune Pharmacology: the Official Journal of the Society on NeuroImmune Pharmacology

CD8+ T cells can contribute to neuroinflammation by secretion of inflammatory cytokines like interferon γ (IFNγ) and tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα). Astrocytes, a glial cell in the brain, can be stimulated by IFNγ and TNFα to secrete the inflammatory cytokines, monocyte chemotactic protein 1 (MCP-1), interleukin 6 (IL-6), and interferon-γ inducible protein 10 (IP-10). Δ9 -Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the primary psychoactive cannabinoid in Cannabis sativa, possesses potent anti-inflammatory activity...

Cognitive complications persist in antiretroviral therapy(ART)-treated people with HIV. However, the pattern and severity of domain-specific cognitive performance is variable and may be exacerbated by ART-mediated neurotoxicity. 929 women with HIV(WWH) from the Women's Interagency HIV Study who were classified into subgroups based on sociodemographic and longitudinal behavioral and clinical data using semi-parametric latent class trajectory modelling. Five subgroups were comprised of: 1) well-controlled HIV with vascular comorbidities(n = 116); 2) profound HIV legacy effects(CD4 nadir <250 cells/μL; n = 275); 3) primarily <45 year olds with hepatitis C(n = 165); 4) primarily 35-55 year olds(n = 244), and 5) poorly-controlled HIV/substance use(n = 129)...

The Leucine Rich Repeat Kinase 2 (LRRK2) is one of causative genes of familial Parkinson's disease (PD). The M2397T polymorphism in LRRK2 is genetically associated with sporadic Crohn's disease (CD). LRRK2 is expressed in human CD14+ monocytes, induced by interferon-γ (IFN-γ) and suppresses inflammatory activation. We hypothesize that IFN-γ-induced LRRK2 and inflammatory gene expression is altered by LRRK2 genetic polymorphism found in CD and PD cases. A total of 46 CD and 51 control cases, and 16 PD cases and 16 PD-linked LRRK2 mutation cases were recruited...

There is growing interest in using cannabinoids for chronic pain. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials to evaluate the analgesic efficacy and adverse effects of cannabinoids for chronic non-cancer pain. PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane CENTRAL and clinicaltrials.gov were searched up to December 2018. Information on the type, dosage, route of administration, pain conditions, pain scores, and adverse events were extracted for qualitative analysis. Meta-analysis of analgesic efficacy was performed...

Following the introduction of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), the morbidity and mortality from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection has been drastically curtailed and HIV has now become a chronic manageable disease. Persons living with HIV (PLWH) are living longer and experiencing significant co-morbidities and conditions of aging. NeuroHIV, clinically defined as HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Disorders (HAND) and pathologically manifested by persistent inflammation in the CNS despite cART, is a significant co-morbid condition for PLWH...

Dopamine, noradrenaline and adrenaline are catecholamines, and are all produced along the same metabolic pathway. Their discovery dates back to the early 1900s, and they were appreciated until the second half of the century mainly for their role in the brain and in the regulation of autonomic functions. Nonetheless, in the 1970s characterization of the key role of sympathoadrenergic nerve fibers in the cross-talk between the brain and the immune system paved the way to the raise of modern neuroimmunology, and understanding the immune effects of dopamine occurred in the subsequent decades...

This study examines the link between peripheral immune changes in perpetuation of the Alzheimer's disease (AD) neuropathology and cognitive deficits. Our research design using human AD patients and rodent model is supported by past evidence from genomic studies. We observed an active immune response against Aβ as indicated by the increased Aβ specific IgG antibody in the serum of AD and patients with mild cognitive impairments as compared to healthy controls. A similar increase in IgG and decrease in IgM antibody against Aβ was also confirmed in the 5xFAD mouse model of AD...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

Antiretroviral therapy (ART) is inconsistently associated with depression. These associations may depend on factors such as biological sex, age, and health status. Identifying such factors may help optimize treatment of HIV and depression. We implemented a novel approach to examine interindividual variability in the association between ART agents and depressive symptoms. 3434 women living with HIV (WLWH) from the Women's Interagency HIV Study (WIHS) were computationally divided into subgroups based on sociodemographic (e...

Both brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and microglia activation are involved in the pathogenesis of ischemic stroke. Herein, we attempt to ascertain whether Calycosin, an isoflavonoid, protects against ischemic stroke by modulating the endogenous production of BDNF and/or the microglia activation. This study was a prospective, randomized, blinded and placebo-controlled preclinical experiment. Sprague-Dawley adult rats, subjected to transient focal cerebral ischemia by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO), were treated randomly with 0 (corn oil and/or saline as placebo), 30 mg/kg of Calycosin and/or 1 mg/kg of a tropomyosin-related kinase B (TrkB) receptor antagonist (ANA12) at 1 h after reperfusion and once daily for a total of 7 consecutive days...

Epileptic seizures are characterized by synchronized discharges of neurons, leading to the activation of inflammatory responses that in turn contributes to seizure progression. Berberine (BBR), a bioactive constituent extracted from berberis, has been known to relieve seizures in rodent models. In this study, we synthesized two derivatives of berberine (BBR-D1 and BBR-D2) to compare their seizure reducing effect with BBR in pentylenetetrazole (PTZ)-induced seizures in zebrafish. We found a structure-activity relationship between hydrophilic/hydrophobic composition of the derivatives and their anticonvulsant activity...

Cellular arachidonic acid (AA), an unsaturated fatty acid found ubiquitously in plasma membranes, is metabolized to different prostanoids, such as prostacyclin (PGI2 ) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2 ), by the three-step reactions coupling the upstream cyclooxygenase (COX) isoforms (COX-1 and COX-2) with the corresponding individual downstream synthases. While the vascular actions of these prostanoids are well-characterized, their specific roles in the hippocampus, a major brain area for memory, are poorly understood...

Histamine is a major peripheral inflammatory mediator and a neurotransmitter in the central nervous system. We have reported that histamine induces microglia activation and releases proinflammatory factors in primary cultured microglia. Whether histamine has similar effects in vivo is unknown. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the role of histamine and its receptors in the release of inflammatory mediators and activation of microglia in rat brain. We site-directed injected histamine, histamine receptor agonists or histamine receptor antagonists in the rat lateral ventricle using stereotaxic techniques...

The persistence of HIV-1 associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND) in the post-cART era, afflicting between 40 and 70% of HIV-1 seropositive individuals, supports a critical need for the development of adjunctive therapeutic treatments. Selective estrogen receptor β agonists, including S-Equol (SE), have been implicated as potential therapeutic targets for the treatment of neurocognitive disorders. In the present study, the therapeutic efficacy of 0.2 mg SE for the treatment of HAND was assessed to address two key questions in the HIV-1 transgenic (Tg) rat...

Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a devastating posttraumatic neuroinflammatory condition with both autoinflammatory and autoimmune features, characterized by unrelenting severe pain and disability, with the majority of affected patients being unable to function socially or vocationally. Remission is more likely in children than adults, and if treatment is started early. Once established, there are no universally effective treatments, and these are desperately needed. A single limb is often involved, but there can be multi-limb spread, and systemic autonomic manifestations...

People living with HIV (PLWH) in the antiretroviral therapy (ART) era may lose more life-years to tobacco use than to HIV. Yet, smoking rates are more than twice as high among PLWH than the general population, contributing not just to mortality but to other adverse health outcomes, including neurocognitive deficits (neuroHIV). There is growing evidence that synergy with chronic inflammation and immune dysregulation that persists despite ART may be one mechanism by which tobacco smoking contributes to neuroHIV...

Exosomes play an important role in cell-to-cell communication as they can transfer functional molecules such as microRNAs (miRNAs) from one cell to another, exerting biological and immunological functions. Here, we investigated the impact of HIV infection and/or heroin use on the expression of the miRNAs in plasma exosomes. We found that HIV infection or heroin use upregulated the majority (98%) of a panel of plasma exosomal miRNAs associated with immune regulation and inflammation. We also observed the enhanced effect of HIV infection and heroin use on some of these upregulated miRNAs...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

Lung cancer results in more patient deaths each year than any other cancer type. Additional treatment strategies are needed to improve clinical responses to approved treatment modalities and prevent the emergence of resistant disease. Catecholamines including norepinephrine and epinephrine are elevated as a result of chronic stress and mediate their physiological effects through activation of adrenergic receptors on target tissues. Lung cancer cells express β-adrenergic receptors (β-ARs), and numerous preclinical studies indicate that β2-AR signaling on lung cancer cells facilities cellular programs including proliferation, motility, apoptosis resistance, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, metastasis, and the acquisition of an angiogenic and immunosuppressive phenotype...

The renin angiotensin system (RAS), which is classically known for blood pressure regulation, has functions beyond this. There are two axes of RAS that work to counterbalance each other and are active throughout the body, including the CNS. The pathological axis, consisting of angiotensin II (A1-8), angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) and the angiotensin II type 1 receptor (AT1R), is upregulated in many CNS diseases, including multiple sclerosis (MS). MS is an autoimmune and neurodegenerative disease of the CNS characterized by inflammation, demyelination and axonal degeneration...