[IgG subclasses intrathecal synthesis patterns in eosinophilic meningoencephalitis due to Angiostrongylus cantonensis]. / Patrones de síntesis intratecal de subclases de IgG en meningoencefalitis eosinofílica por Angiostrongylus cantonensis.

INTRODUCTION: There is a growing interest to know the characteristics of meningoencephalitis due to Angiostrongylus cantonensis because of it is an emergent disease. OBJECTIVE: To describe the intrathecal synthesis pattern of IgG subclasses in pediatric patients suffering from eosinophilic meningoencephalitis due to Angiostrongylus cantonensis. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Ten pediatric patients with the disease were studied. During the firs diagnostic lumbar puncture an eosinophilic pleocitosis was found. Simultaneously a serum sample was taken. Eight days later, a second lumbar and venous puncture was performed. To every serum and cerebrospinal fluid sample IgA, IgM, IgG, albumin and the four subclasses of IgG were quantified by immunodiffusion and a differential cell count. RESULTS: During the first diagnostic lumbar puncture, all the cases had blood cerebrospinal fluid barrier dysfunction with absence of immunoglobulins intrathecal synthesis with a mean of 450 106cells/L and 48% of eosinophils average. In the second lumbar punction there was a 40% patients with dysfunction of the blood cerebrospinal fluid barrier and with a synthesis pattern IgA+IgM+IgG in the 50% o patients and with IgA+IgG in four patients. The synthesis pattern of IgG subclasses was IgG1+IgG2 in six patients, IgG1+IgG2+IgG3 in one patient, IgG1+IgG2+IgG4 in one more patient and two patients without intrathecal synthesis. CONCLUSION: The intrathecal synthesis pattern of IgG subclasses can contribute to eosinophilic meningoencephalitis diagnosis due to Angiostrongylus cantonensis.

Association of ATP synthase alpha-chain with neurofibrillary degeneration in Alzheimer's disease.

Amyloid deposits and neurofibrillary tangles (NFT) are the two hallmarks that characterize Alzheimer's disease (AD). In order to find the molecular partners of these degenerating processes, we have developed antibodies against insoluble AD brain lesions. One clone, named AD46, detects only NFT. Biochemical and histochemistry analyses demonstrate that the labeled protein accumulating in the cytosol of Alzheimer degenerating neurons is the alpha-chain of the ATP synthase. The cytosolic accumulation of the alpha-chain of ATP synthase is observed even at early stages of neurofibrillary degenerating process. It is specifically observed in degenerating neurons, either alone or tightly associated with aggregates of tau proteins, suggesting that it is a new molecular event related to neurodegeneration. Overall, our results strongly suggest the implication of the alpha-chain of ATP synthase in neurofibrillary degeneration of AD that is illustrated by the cytosolic accumulation of this mitochondrial protein, which belongs to the mitochondrial respiratory system. This regulatory subunit of the respiratory complex V of mitochondria is thus a potential target for therapeutic and diagnostic strategies.

Patrones de síntesis intratecal de subclases de IgG en meningoencefalitis eosinofílica por Angiostrongylus cantonensis / Igg subclasses intrathecal synthesis patterns in eosinophilic meningoencephalitis due to Angiostrongylus cantonensis

Introducción. Es de interés creciente conocer las características de las meningoencefalitis por Angiostrongylus cantonensis, pues se trata de una enfermedad emergente. Objetivo. Describir el patrón de síntesis de subclases de IgG en pacientes pediátricos con meningoencefalitis eosinofílica por Angiostrongylus cantonensis. Pacientes y métodos. Se estudiaron 10 pacientes pediátricos con la enfermedad. En la punción lumbar diagnóstica se encontró pleocitosis eosinofílica. Se tomó una muestra simultánea de suero. A los ocho días se realizó una segunda punción lumbar y venosa. En cada muestra de suero y líquido cefalorraquídeo (LCR) se cuantificó IgA, IgM, IgG, albúmina y las cuatro subclases de IgG por inmunodifusión. Además, se realizó un conteo celular diferencial. Resultados. En la primera punción lumbar diagnóstica, todos los casos tenían disfunción de la barrera sangre-LCR, con ausencia de síntesis intratecal de inmunoglobulinas, con un promedio 450 × 106 células/L y un 48 por ciento de eosinófilos. En la segunda punción lumbar, el 40 por ciento permanecía con disfunción de barrera sangre-LCR, con patrón de síntesis IgA+IgM+IgG en el 50 por ciento de los casos e IgA+IgG en otros cuatro pacientes. El patrón de síntesis de subclases fue de IgG1+IgG2 en seis pacientes, de IgG1+IgG2+IgG3 en otro paciente y de IgG1+IgG2+IgG4 en otro. Hubo dos pacientes que no sintetizaron ninguna subclase a nivel intratecal. Conclusiones. El patrón de síntesis intratecal de subclases de IgG puede contribuir al diagnóstico de las meningoencefalitis eosinofílicas por Angiostrongylus cantonensis (AU)

Introduction. There is a growing interest to know the characteristics of meningoencephalitis due to Angiostrongylus cantonensis because of it is an emergent disease. Objective. To describe the intrathecal synthesis pattern of IgG subclasses in pediatric patients suffering from eosinophilic meningoencephalitis due to Angiostrongylus cantonensis. Patients and methods. Ten pediatric patients with the disease were studied. During the firs diagnostic lumbar puncture an eosinophilic pleocitosis was found. Simultaneously a serum sample was taken. Eight days later, a second lumbar and venous puncture was performed. To every serum and cerebrospinal fluid sample IgA, IgM, IgG, albumin and the four subclasses of IgG were quantified by immunodiffusion and a differential cell count. Results. During the first diagnostic lumbar puncture, all the cases had blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier dysfunction with absence of immunoglobulins intrathecal synthesis with a mean of 450 × 106 cells/L and 48% of eosinophils average. In the second lumbar punction there was a 40% patients with dysfunction of the blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier and with a synthesis pattern IgA+IgM+IgG in the 50% o patients and with IgA+IgG in four patients. The synthesis pattern of IgG subclasses was IgG1+IgG2 in six patients, IgG1+IgG2+IgG3 in one patient, IgG1+IgG2+IgG4 in one more patient and two patients without intrathecal synthesis. Conclusion. The intrathecal synthesis pattern of IgG subclasses can contribute to eosinophilic meningoencephalitis diagnosis due to Angiostrongylus cantonensis (AU)

Trichomonas vaginalis: chromatin and mitotic spindle during mitosis.

The mitotic phases and the changes that the chromatin and mitotic microtubules undergo during mitosis in the sexually transmitted parasite Trichomonas vaginalis are described. Parasites arrested in the gap 2 phase of the cell cycle by nutrient starvation were induced to mitosis by addition of fresh whole medium. [(3)H] Thymidine labeling of trichomonad parasites for 24 h showed that parasites have at least four synchronic duplications after mitosis induction. Fixed or live and acridine orange (AO)-stained trichomonads analyzed at different times during mitosis by epifluorescence microscopy showed that mitosis took about 45 min and is divided into five stages: prophase, metaphase, early and late anaphase, early and late telophase, and cytokinesis. The AO-stained nucleus of live trichomonads showed green (DNA) and orange (RNA) fluorescence, and the nucleic acid nature was confirmed by DNase and RNase treatment, respectively. The chromatin appeared partially condensed during interphase. At metaphase, it appeared as six condensed chromosomes, as recently reported, which decondensed at anaphase and migrated to the nuclear poles at telophase. In addition, small bundles of microtubules (as hemispindles) were detected only in metaphase with the polyclonal antibody anti-Entamoeba histolytica alpha-tubulin. This antibody showed that the hemispindle and an atractophore-like structure seem to duplicate and polarize during metaphase. In conclusion, T. vaginalis mitosis involves five mitotic phases in which the chromatin undergoes different degrees of condensation, from chromosomes to decondensed chromatin, and two hemispindles that are observed only in the metaphase stage.

Cellular bases of experimental amebic liver abscess formation.

The complete sequence of morphologic events during amebic liver abscess formation in the hamster has been studied, from the lodgement of amebas in the hepatic sinusoids to the development of extensive liver necrosis. Following intraportal inoculation of live amebas, the early stages of the lesion (from 1 to 12 hours) were characterized by acute cellular infiltration composed of an increasingly large number of polymorphonuclear leukocytes, which surrounded centrally located trophozoites. Histiocytes and lysed leukocytes were situated on the periphery of the lesions. Hepatocytes close to the early lesions showed degenerative changes which led to necrosis; however, direct contact of liver cells with amebas was very rarely observed. At later stages, the extent of necrosis increased, macrophages and epithelioid cells replaced most leukocytes, and well-organized granulomas developed. Extensive necrosis associated with fused granulomas was present by Day 7. The results suggest that Entamoeba histolytica trophozoites do not produce amebic liver abscesses in hamsters through direct lysis of hepatocytes. Rather, tissue destruction is the result of the accumulation and subsequent lysis of leukocytes and macrophages surrounding the amebas.