Efficacy Of Neuroprotective Treatments Research Articles

Purkinje Cell Survival in Organotypic Cerebellar Slice Cultures.

Organotypic slice culture is a powerful in vitro model that mimicks in vivo conditions more closely than dissociated primary cell cultures. In early postnatal development, cerebellar Purkinje cells are known to go through a vulnerable period, during which they undergo programmed cell death. Here, we provide a detailed protocol to perform mouse organotypic cerebellar slice culture during this critical time. The slices are further labeled to assess Purkinje cell survival and the efficacy of neuroprotective treatments. This method can be extremely valuable to screen for new neuroactive molecules.

Tests neurológicos para la evaluación del pronóstico funcional en modelos de ictus isquémico en roedores

A critical aspect in all models is the assessment of the final outcome of the modelling procedure. In the case of a focal ischaemic brain injury, apart from the determination of the size of the lesion, another valuable tool is the evaluation of the final functional deficit. Indeed, ischaemic damage leads to the appearance of different degrees of sensoriomotor and cognitive impairments, which may yield useful information on location and size of the lesion and on the efficacy of neuroprotective treatments after the acute injury. In addition, the magnitude of these impairments may also be useful to predict final outcome and to evaluate neuro-restorative therapies in a long-term scenario. To this aim, a wide range of tests has been developed which allow the quantification of all these neurological symptoms. This review intends to compile the most useful behavioural tests designed to assess neurological symptoms in studies of focal experimental cerebral ischemia in rodents induced by middle cerebral artery occlusion, the most commonly used model of ischaemic stroke.

Pharmacology Review

Although the evidence supporting the efficacy of neuroprotective treatments for hypoxic-ischemic injury in human newborns is limited, efforts to develop effective treatments continue in laboratory studies. In this article, we review some of the treatments that have found their way from the laboratory to clinical studies in newborns. Specifically, the evidence for use of magnesium sulfate, allopurinol, opioids, and hypothermia as possible treatments of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy are discussed.

Recent developments in the management of peripheral neuropathy using skin biopsy

Summary Skin biopsy has become a widely used tool to investigate small calibre nerve fibres in peripheral neuropathies. This technique is safe, minimally invasive, painless, easy to perform, and cheap. It provides diagnostic information in patients with small fibre neuropathy in whom routine neurophysiological tests are commonly normal. Moreover, it allows investigating the innervation of sweat glands, thus giving information on the autonomic nervous system. Biopsy of the hairy skin is used to investigate unmyelinated and small myelinated fibres, whereas biopsy of the glabrous skin can be taken to examine large myelinated fibres. The applications of skin biopsy for diagnostic and research purposes cover the spectrum of peripheral nervous system diseases, from painful axonal neuropathies to sensory neuronopathies and immune-mediated and inherited demyelinated neuropathies. Finally, studies on axon regeneration in human and experimental models suggest that skin biopsy has a potential usefulness to monitor the progression of neuropathy and the efficacy of neuroprotective treatments.