View clinical trials related to Neuroinflammation.
Filter by:The current study aims to evaluate the aspects of perfusion, fluid diffusivity in the interstitium and the T1 and T2 signal of the PVS and WMH. The current study has the following objectives: a) evaluate the perfusion aspects using the gadolinium-based contrast medium of brain tissues in the short term; b) the direction of flow of fluids at very low speed in the white matter using the DTI sequences configured for this purpose; c) T1-mapping of the lesions of interest. The expected results will help us understand two aspects of neurofluid dynamics: a) how the fluid moves within the central nervous system in the first minutes after the injection of the tracer (in our case the gadolinium-based contrast medium) and b) what is the composition of the fluid within the PVS and WMH and how can investigators characterize them more accurately.
The prospective observational study delves into the complex relationship between neuroinflammation and oxidative stress in post-cardiac surgery complications, focusing on postoperative cognitive dysfunction.
Major depressive disorder (MDD) affects an estimated 350 million people worldwide and is a leading contributor to global disease burden. Commonly used monoamine reuptake-inhibiting treatments for depression are suboptimal, resulting in only 30% of patients achieving remission. This may be because monoamine dysfunction is not the primary pathophysiology in all MDD patients. One avenue for the development of novel MDD treatments is through anti-inflammatory drugs; MDD is linked to a pro-inflammatory phenotype characterized by microglial activation, leading to the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines and upregulation of cellular markers including cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and translocator protein (TSPO; a protein located on the outer membrane of microglia). Relevant to this proposal, TSPO can serve as an in vivo marker of neuroinflammation using the newly developed positron emission tomography (PET) tracer for TSPO, [18F]FEPPA. In support of this, a recent [18F]FEPPA PET study found that MDD patients in a current major depressive episode (MDE) had significantly higher TSPO binding in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and insula, relative to healthy controls. The prefrontal cortex and ACC are both implicated in mood regulation whereas the insula is involved in interoceptive signaling, which is known to be abnormal in MDD. Celecoxib, a selective COX-2 nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), is a promising new treatment for neuroinflammation in MDD. Clinical studies have observed that, in a subset of depressed patients, celecoxib treatment reduced depression severity as assessed by the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS). While these findings demonstrate that celecoxib reduces symptom severity, PET imaging technology is critical for understanding how celecoxib affects the underlying pathophysiology of depression. Here, the team will investigate neuroinflammation as an underlying pathology in depression and test whether neuroinflammation is reduced by celecoxib in MDD patients. Specifically, in the proposed pilot study, MDD patients in a current MDE will receive [18F]FEPPA PET scans prior to and following 8 weeks of treatment with 400mg/day of celecoxib, with HDRS scores obtained at each time point. The investigators hypothesize that following celecoxib treatment, patients will show a significant reduction in neuroinflammation in the PFC, ACC and insula, which will correlate positively with the reduction in depressive symptoms, as measured by the HDRS. The proposed study will use novel imaging technology, [18F]FEPPA PET, to measure the effects of celecoxib on neuroinflammation in MDD patients. Our results will help to 1) identify neuroinflammation as an underlying pathology in MDD and 2) test whether reduction of inflammation is the mechanism of action of celecoxib. As such, the results of this study will aid in the development of targeted clinical treatments to improve remission rates in MDD patients.
Background and objects: Neuroinflammation is an active process detectable in the earliest stages of the neurodegeneration pathway. On the other hand, significant neuroinflammation, such as reactive astrocytosis, can also be observed after cerebral ischemic injury. [18F]THK5351 can monitor the neuroinflammatory process due to its high affinity to astrogliosis, and [18F]PMPBB3 is the novel tau protein radiotracer without significant off-target binding to MAO-B. The investigators hypothesize that the neuroinflammation after acute stroke may induce the tau protein accumulation. In the current proposal, our aims are to 1) explore the interaction between neuroinflammation and tau protein accumulation in acute stroke patients by applying both the [18F]PMPBB3 and [18F]THK5351 PET images and 2) determine their influence on the longterm stroke outcome and cognitive performance. Method: The prospective project plans to recruit 2 groups of participants: one is patients with first-ever acute stroke (Group A, n=50), and the other is healthy people as the control group (Group B, n=30). Within 3 weeks of stroke, [18F]THK5351 and [18F]PMPBB3 PET will be done for imaging cerebral neuroinflammation and tau protein distribution. Brain MRI for obtaining structural and functional information will be done within 3 weeks and 3 months after stroke. Clinical and cognitive outcome will be evaluated at week 3 and months 3 and 12. In addition, APOE genotyping and carotid ultrasound will be performed as well. By obtaining the neuroimaging information, such as severity of white matter change and infarction, cortical and hippocampal atrophy, and SUVRs of [18F]THK5351 and [18F]PMPBB3 PET, the study will be able to investigate the complex interaction between neuroinflammation and tau protein accumulation after stroke, and also evaluate their influence on structural changes, stroke outcome and cognitive performance. Group comparisons will be performed using the Chi-square test, independent t test, Mann-Whitney U test, and multiple linear regression, where appropriate. Anticipation: In this project, the investigators will be able to identify the distribution patterns of neuroinflammation and tau protein accumulation after actue stroke. Secondly, the investigators expect that the presence of neuroinflammation and tau protein accumulation will interfere with the functional connectivity. Finally, the investigators expect that the extent of neuroinflammation and tau protein is correlated with stroke outcome and post-stroke cognitive impairment.