Acute demyelinating lesions with restricted diffusion in multiple sclerosis: a new variant?

Typical acute demyelinating lesions in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) exhibit vasogenic edema with increased diffusion, as demonstrated by the appearance of a bright signal on apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps using diffusion weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI),[1] while acute ischemic stroke lesions demonstrate restricted diffusion and low signal on ADC maps.

Letter from the Editors-in-Chief

Under the joint collaboration of all the Editorial Board Member, Neuroimmunology and Neuroinflammation (NN) has achieved outstanding success with 224 articles published since its launch date on June 27th, 2014. On behalf of all staff and faculty members, the Editors-in-Chief would like to convey our sincere gratitude to all readers and supporters. Many thanks to you all.

Letter from the Editors-in-chief

With the collaboration of all Editorial Board Members,Neuroimmunology and Neuroinflammation has achieved a great success with the formal publication of over 169 articles since its beginning in June 27,2014.As Editors-in-Chief of this promising journal,we,on the behalf of all the staff and faculty,would like to convey our sincere gratitude to all readers and supporters.Thank you very much!

letter from Editor-in-Chief

With the collaboration of all Editorial Board Members, Neuroimmunology and Neuroinflammation has achieved a great success with the formal publication of over 145 articles since its beginning in June 27, 2014. As Editors-in-Chief of this promising journal, we, on the behalf of all the staff and faculty, would like to convey our sincere gratitude to all readers and supporters. Thank you very much.

Differentiation of radiation necrosis from glioblastoma recurrence after radiotherapy

The standard treatment of glioblastoma,the most common type of primary-brain-tumor,involves radiotherapy with concomitant temozolomide chemotherapy.A patient with glioblastoma,post radiotherapy developed magnatic resonance imaging(MRI)changes consistent with either radiation-induced tumor necrosis or tumor recurrence.Perfusion MRI was suggestive of radiation necrosis,but magnetic resonance spectroscopy and 99mTc-Tetrofosmin single photon emission computed tomography was indicative of tumor recurrence.Positron emission tomography scan was not available.Tumor recurrence was documented by biopsy.Several advanced imaging methods are available to differentiate tumor recurrence from radiation necrosis in glioblastoma patients.However,in inconclusive cases,brain biopsy should be performed for definite diagnosis.

Status epilepticus in scleromyxedema

Scleromyxedema is a rare dermatologic disorder,characterized by erythematous or yellowish lichenoid waxy papules.Neurological manifestations are rare but well-recognized.A 51-year-old woman,diagnosed with scleromyxedema,was admitted to the hospital with status epilepticus,caused by brain lesions,as disclosed in a brain magnetic resonance imaging(MRI).The patient was treated with anticonvulsants and corticosteroids and gradually recovered fully.A complete remission of the lesions was shown in a follow-up brain MRI.In cases with scleromyxedema and the presence of neurological manifestations,we need to pay attention to central nervous system involvement,especially when combined with brain MRI lesions,and treat the patient appropriately.

Immunotherapeutic strategies for glioma treatment

Glioblastoma is the most common and malignant primary brain tumor.Despite intensive clinical investigation and several novel therapeutic approaches,the median survival continues to remain poor and it is usually in the range of fifteen months.Immunotherapy is a beacon of hope for cancer treatment and offers a different approach against glioma.Various approaches have been used,such as dendritic cell based vaccines,peptide vaccines,T-cell-based therapies and immune checkpoint blockade with promising results.This paper provided an overview of the results of the most exciting immune therapeutic strategies for the treatment of gliomas.

Disc herniation or ependymoma recurrence?

In this paper,a 41-year-old female with previous history of ependymoma is reported.The patient underwent gross-total resection of the tumor and ventriculo-peritoneal shunt placement,followed by radiotherapy to the posterior fossa and the upper-cervical spinal cord region.Three years later she developed numbness in her right arm,body and leg.Magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)of the entire neuraxis revealed no evidence of tumor recurrence,while a small enhancing area was noted in the left anterolateral spinal cord at the level of the C1-C2 vertebrae and a left posterior-lateral herniated disk in the C5-C6 level which was not present in the earlier MRI at initial diagnosis.Lumbar punctures were negative for malignant cells.The patient’s symptoms were first attributed to radiation-induced effect.Follow-up results of brain and the cervical spine MRI were performed which showed disappearance of the small abnormality in the left C2 spinal cord area but persistence of the herniated C5-C6 disk.Thus,the current diagnosis of right-sided numbness due to pressure of the left anterolateral spinothalamic tracts from the herniated C5-C6 disk was made.This is a unique case,in which herniated disk pressuring effects needed to be differentiated from both radiation-induced treatment effect and tumor recurrence.

Targeting glioblastoma with oncolytic adenovirus delta 24

ONCOLYTIC VIRUSES Oncolytic viruses have been introduced in cancer treatment in the last two decades,offering new opportunities and hopes for ultimate therapy.Earlier studies had also tried to take advantage of the antineoplastic activity of natural viral species,but it was genetic engineering that led to the production of modified viral strains selectively infecting and killing neoplastic cells.[1]The two major characteristics of oncolytic viruses are their tropism for malignant cells and their augmented cytotoxicity.

Letter form the Editors-in-Chief

Under the joint collaboration of all the Editorial Board Members,Neuroimmunology and Neuroinflammation (NN) has achieved outstanding success with 203 articles published since its launch date on June 27th,2014.