Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0085584 (encephalopathy)
 18,178 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

IFN-alpha was detected in cerebrospinal fluid and/or sera from 7 of 8 patients with a progressive familial encephalopathy associated with calcifications of the basal ganglia and white matter alterations. The secretion of IFN-alpha was prolonged, as shown by its presence at different times between birth and 5 years, and was not associated with IFN-gamma. Virological investigations excluded various congenital infections. In only 2 patients, high levels of Epstein-Barr virus antibodies were observed, indicating the possibility of an abnormal response to viral infection rather than a congenital infection. Further investigations are required for characterization of the recessive autosomal trait of this syndrome and its relation to the IFN system.
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PMID:Intrathecal synthesis of interferon-alpha in infants with progressive familial encephalopathy. 283 39

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection of astrocytes has been demonstrated in the brains of patients with AIDS dementia complex (ADC) and may play an important role in neuropathological pathways of HIV-related encephalopathy. SIVmac-infected monkeys develop an acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) with CNS involvement which is quite similar to that seen in human AIDS. We investigated the in vitro infection of primary astrocytes derived from adult macaques with SIVmac251 or an isogenic virus that expresses a non-functional Nef protein (SIVmac251-DeltaNef). In both cases we observed that viral expression was mostly limited to early regulatory genes after a transient phase of late viral gene expression (i.e. env and gag), as reported for HIV-1-infected astrocytes in vivo. Late viral gene expression could be reactivated by TNF-alpha, GM-CSF and IFN-gamma treatment of SIVmac251-infected astrocytes but not by similarly treated SIVmac251-DeltaNef-infected cells. Our findings suggest that Nef is not involved in the restricted expression of SIV in astrocytes, but may be important for astrocytes to function as a viral reservoir in the CNS. In additional experiments, we demonstrated Rev and Nef expression in 17 of 27 primary astrocyte cultures derived from macaques infected by SIVmac251. Nef was located in the cytoplasm of astrocytes infected by SIVmac251 in vivo, but displayed perinuclear localisation after infection in vitro. Attempts to activate late viral gene expression by astrocytes infected in vivo using cytokines or by coculture with human cord blood mononuclear cells were unsuccessful.
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PMID:Simian immunodeficiency virus mac251 infection of astrocytes. 1087 8

The CXC chemokine gamma interferon (IFN-gamma)-inducible protein CXCL10/IP-10 is markedly elevated in cerebrospinal fluid and brain of individuals infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and is implicated in the pathogenesis of HIV-associated dementia (HAD). To explore the possible role of CXCL10/IP-10 in HAD, we examined the expression of this and other chemokines in the central nervous system (CNS) of transgenic mice with astrocyte-targeted expression of HIV gp120 under the control of the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) promoter, a murine model for HIV-1 encephalopathy. Compared with wild-type controls, CNS expression of the CC chemokine gene CCL2/MCP-1 and the CXC chemokine genes CXCL10/IP-10 and CXCL9/Mig was induced in the GFAP-HIV gp120 mice. CXCL10/IP-10 RNA expression was increased most and overlapped the expression of the transgene-encoded HIV gp120 gene. Astrocytes and to a lesser extent microglia were identified as the major cellular sites for CXCL10/IP-10 gene expression. There was no detectable expression of any class of IFN or their responsive genes. In astrocyte cultures, soluble recombinant HIV gp120 protein was capable of directly inducing CXCL10/IP-10 gene expression a process that was independent of STAT1. These findings highlight a novel IFN- and STAT1-independent mechanism for the regulation of CXCL10/IP-10 expression and directly link expression of HIV gp120 to the induction of CXCL10/IP-10 that is found in HIV infection of the CNS. Finally, one function of IP-10 expression may be the recruitment of leukocytes to the CNS, since the brain of GFAP-HIV gp120 mice had increased numbers of CD3(+) T cells that were found in close proximity to sites of CXCL10/IP-10 RNA expression.
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PMID:Interferon-independent, human immunodeficiency virus type 1 gp120-mediated induction of CXCL10/IP-10 gene expression by astrocytes in vivo and in vitro. 1143 87

Shiga toxins (Stxs) have been specifically implicated as a causal factor of hemolytic uremic syndrome and acute encephalopathy. The first step of Stx-induced brain damage is considered to injure endothelial cells cooperating with tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha). Gamma interferon (IFN-gamma) is one of the proinflammatory cytokines as well as TNF-alpha is critical in activation of endothelial cells. Therefore we focused on the possibility of IFN-gamma-mediated lethality of Stx1 or Stx2 in mice. All of mice died within 3-4 days after injection with 400 ng of Stx1 and 37.5% of mice, which had been injected with 133 ng, survived. In contrast, a lethal dose of Stx2 was 40 times lower than that of Stx1. When mice were given 400 ng of Stx1 or 10 ng of Stx2, IFN-gamma mRNA was detected in the spleens 24h after injection. Moreover, when mice were injected with 133 ng of Stx1 or 3.3 ng of Stx2, survival rates of IFN-gamma-deficient mice and TNF-alpha-deficient mice were significantly higher than that of wild-type mice. The present study using cytokine-gene knockout mice directly demonstrated that not only TNF-alpha but also IFN-gamma is involved in lethality of Stx1 and Stx2.
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PMID:Roles of gamma interferon and tumor necrosis factor-alpha in shiga toxin lethality. 1212 99

In this report we describe pertussis toxin-induced reversible encephalopathy dependent on monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) overexpression (PREMO), a novel animal model that exhibits features of human encephalopathic complications of inflammatory disorders such as viral meningoencephalitis and Lyme neuroborreliosis as well as the mild toxic encephalopathy that commonly precedes relapses of multiple sclerosis (MS). Overexpression of the mouse MCP-1 gene product (classically termed JE) in astrocytes, the major physiological CNS cellular source of MCP-1, failed to induce neurological impairment. Unexpectedly, transgenic (tg) mice overexpressing MCP-1 at a high level (MCP-1(hi)) manifested transient, severe encephalopathy with high mortality after injections of pertussis toxin (PTx) plus complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA). Surviving mice showed markedly improved function and did not relapse during a prolonged period of observation. Tg mice that expressed lower levels of MCP-1 were affected minimally after CFA/PTx injections, and tg expression of other chemokines failed to elicit this disorder. The disorder was significantly milder in mice lacking T-cells, which therefore play a deleterious role in this encephalopathic process. Disruption of CC chemokine receptor 2 (CCR2) abolished both CNS inflammation and encephalopathy, identifying CCR2 as a relevant receptor for this disorder. Proinflammatory and type 1 cytokines including TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, IFN-gamma, IL-2, RANTES, and IP-10 were elevated in CNS tissues from mice with PREMO. These studies characterize a novel model of reversible inflammatory encephalopathy that is dependent on both genetic and environmental factors.
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PMID:Pertussis toxin-induced reversible encephalopathy dependent on monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 overexpression in mice. 1248 56

We describe a 3.5-year-old female with Alpers disease with a POLG genotype of p.A467T/p.G848S and with a lethal outcome. Laboratory investigation revealed elevated CSF neopterin, IL-6, IL-8, IFN-gamma, reduced CSF 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5MTHF), and increased serum as well as CSF folate receptor blocking autoantibodies. Treatment with oral Leucovorine (5-formyl-tetrahydrofolate) was initiated at 0.25mg/kg bid, and later increased to 4mg/kg bid. Under treatment CSF levels of 5MTHF, seizure frequency and communicative abilities improved. Over a time span of 17months, CSF levels of IL-6 and IFN-gamma decreased, levels of folate receptor blocking autoantibodies continued to raise, whereas CSF IL-8 remained elevated 1500-fold above normal. The child died without apparent stress at the age of 5.5years. Alpers disease, a neurodegenerative disease usually presents in the first years of life as a progressive encephalopathy with multifocal myoclonic seizures, developmental regression, cortical blindness and early death. The underlying genetic defect has been attributed to mutations of the catalytic subunit of the mitochondrial DNA polymerase-gamma leading to an organ-specific mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome with reduced activity of respiratory chain enzyme complexes in the brain and the liver. A curative therapy is not available. This case report of Alpers disease provides new insights into the pathophysiology of Alpers disease, where mitochondrial dysfunction in conjunction with inflammatory cytokines and blocking folate receptor autoantibodies may lead to a secondary cerebral folate deficiency syndrome. The treatment of the latter provides relief to the patient without stopping the underlying disease.
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PMID:Cerebral folate deficiency and CNS inflammatory markers in Alpers disease. 1976 16