Current neurovascular research
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We investigated the effects of cerebral arterial microemboli on amyloid β protein (Aβ) deposition in the hippocampal region of amyloid precursor protein/presenilin 1 (APP/PS1) double transgenic mice and evaluated the role of cerebral arterial microemboli in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis. The mice were divided into a wild-type sham surgery group (n = 15), a wild-type coupled with microemboli group (n =15), an APP/PS1 double transgenic sham surgery group (n =15) and an APP/PS1 double transgenic coupled with microemboli group (n =15). The microemboli mice were injected via the left internal carotid artery with 300 µL of a normal saline suspension containing 100 whole blood clot-derived microemboli (25-50 µm). ⋯ No difference was detected between time points in the sham groups. Cerebral microemboli increased Aβ deposition in the hippocampal region of APP/PS1 double transgenic mice. MMP-9 and GFAP expression may play an important role in excess Aβ deposition, which is caused by an imbalance between the protein's synthesis and removal.
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Meningitis is a complex and severe acute infectious disease of the central nervous system and is caused mainly by bacteria and viruses. However, the distinction between aseptic and bacterial meningitis can be difficult for clinicians because the symptoms and the results of laboratory assays are often similar and overlapping, particularly when the use of antibiotics is administered prior to examining the cerebrospinal fluid. ⋯ Therefore, TNF-α and IL-1β are useful markers for the prediction of the bacterial meningitis and levels may represent an accurate method that is useful for the differentiation between bacterial and aseptic meningitis.