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Ye XG, She FZ, Yu DN, Wu LQ, Tang Y, Wu BZ, Dong SW, Dai JM, Zhou X, Liu ZG. Increased expression of NLRP3 associated with elevated levels of HMGB1 in children with febrile seizures: a case-control study. BMC Pediatr 2024; 24:44. [PMID: 38218765 PMCID: PMC10787487 DOI: 10.1186/s12887-024-04533-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2022] [Accepted: 01/03/2024] [Indexed: 01/15/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND High mobility group box-1 (HMGB1) is an endogenous danger signal that mediates activation of the innate immune response including NLR pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome activation and proinflammatory cytokine release. Although HMGB1 and NLRP3 have been implicated in the pathophysiology of seizures, the correlation between HMGB1 and NLRP3 expression has not been determined in children with febrile seizures (FS). To explore the relationship between extra-cellular HMGB1 and NLRP3 in children with FS, we analyzed serum HMGB1, NLRP3, caspase-1, and proinflammatory cytokines in patients with FS. METHODS Thirty children with FS and thirty age-matched febrile controls were included in this study. Blood was obtained from the children with FS within 1 h of the time of the seizure; subsequently, the serum contents of HMGB1, NLRP3, caspase-1, interleukin (IL)-1β, interleukin (IL)-6, and tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The Mann‒Whitney U test was used to compare serum cytokine levels between FS patients and controls. Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was calculated to detect significant correlations between cytokine levels. RESULTS Serum levels of HMGB1, NLRP3, caspase-1, IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α were significantly higher in FS patients than in febrile controls (p < 0.05). Serum levels of HMGB1 were significantly correlated with levels of NLRP3 and caspase-1 (both, p < 0.05). Serum levels of caspase-1 were significantly correlated with levels of IL-1β (p < 0.05). Serum levels of IL-1β were significantly correlated with levels of IL-6 and TNF-α (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS HMGB1 is up-regulated in the peripheral serum of FS patients, which may be responsible, at least in part, for the increased expression of NLRP3 and Caspase-1. Increased expression of caspase-1 was significantly associated with elevated serum levels of IL-1β. Given that activated Caspase-1 directly regulates the expression of mature IL-1β and positively correlates with activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome, our data suggest that increased levels of peripheral HMGB1 possibly mediate IL-1β secretion through the activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome in children with FS. Thus, both HMGB1 and NLRP3 might be potential targets for preventing or limiting FS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xing-Guang Ye
- Department of Pediatrics, Foshan Women and Children Hospital, Foshan, 528000, Guangdong, China
| | - Feng-Zhi She
- Department of Pediatrics, Foshan Women and Children Hospital, Foshan, 528000, Guangdong, China
| | - Dong-Ni Yu
- Department of Pediatrics, Foshan Women and Children Hospital, Foshan, 528000, Guangdong, China
| | - Li-Qian Wu
- Department of Pediatrics, Foshan Women and Children Hospital, Foshan, 528000, Guangdong, China
| | - Yan Tang
- Department of Pediatrics, Foshan Women and Children Hospital, Foshan, 528000, Guangdong, China
| | - Ben-Ze Wu
- Department of Pediatrics, Foshan Women and Children Hospital, Foshan, 528000, Guangdong, China
| | - Shi-Wei Dong
- Department of Pediatrics, Foshan Women and Children Hospital, Foshan, 528000, Guangdong, China
| | - Jie-Min Dai
- Department of Pediatrics, Foshan Women and Children Hospital, Foshan, 528000, Guangdong, China
| | - Xing Zhou
- Department of Pediatrics, Foshan Women and Children Hospital, Foshan, 528000, Guangdong, China
| | - Zhi-Gang Liu
- Department of Pediatrics, Foshan Women and Children Hospital, Foshan, 528000, Guangdong, China.
- The Second School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
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Stredny C, Rotenberg A, Leviton A, Loddenkemper T. Systemic inflammation as a biomarker of seizure propensity and a target for treatment to reduce seizure propensity. Epilepsia Open 2023; 8:221-234. [PMID: 36524286 PMCID: PMC9978091 DOI: 10.1002/epi4.12684] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
People with diabetes can wear a device that measures blood glucose and delivers just the amount of insulin needed to return the glucose level to within bounds. Currently, people with epilepsy do not have access to an equivalent wearable device that measures a systemic indicator of an impending seizure and delivers a rapidly acting medication or other intervention (e.g., an electrical stimulus) to terminate or prevent a seizure. Given that seizure susceptibility is reliably increased in systemic inflammatory states, we propose a novel closed-loop device where release of a fast-acting therapy is governed by sensors that quantify the magnitude of systemic inflammation. Here, we review the evidence that patients with epilepsy have raised levels of systemic indicators of inflammation than controls, and that some anti-inflammatory drugs have reduced seizure occurrence in animals and humans. We then consider the options of what might be incorporated into a responsive anti-seizure system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Coral Stredny
- Division of Epilepsy and Clinical Neurophysiology, Department of NeurologyBoston Children's HospitalBostonMassachusettsUSA
- Department of NeurologyHarvard Medical SchoolBostonMassachusettsUSA
| | - Alexander Rotenberg
- Division of Epilepsy and Clinical Neurophysiology, Department of NeurologyBoston Children's HospitalBostonMassachusettsUSA
- Department of NeurologyHarvard Medical SchoolBostonMassachusettsUSA
| | - Alan Leviton
- Division of Epilepsy and Clinical Neurophysiology, Department of NeurologyBoston Children's HospitalBostonMassachusettsUSA
- Department of NeurologyHarvard Medical SchoolBostonMassachusettsUSA
| | - Tobias Loddenkemper
- Division of Epilepsy and Clinical Neurophysiology, Department of NeurologyBoston Children's HospitalBostonMassachusettsUSA
- Department of NeurologyHarvard Medical SchoolBostonMassachusettsUSA
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Dehkordi HT, Bijad E, Saghaei E, Korrani MS, Amini-Khoei H. Chronic stress but not acute stress decreases the seizure threshold in PTZ-induced seizure in mice: role of inflammatory response and oxidative stress. NAUNYN-SCHMIEDEBERG'S ARCHIVES OF PHARMACOLOGY 2022; 396:973-982. [PMID: 36542120 DOI: 10.1007/s00210-022-02364-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2022] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Seizure is paroxysmal abnormal electrical discharges in the cerebral cortex. Inflammatory pathways and oxidative stress are involved in the pathophysiology of seizures. Stress can induce an oxidative stress state and increase the production of inflammatory mediators in the brain. We investigated the effects of acute and chronic stresses on the seizure threshold in pentylenetetrazol (PTZ)-induced seizures in mice, considering oxidative stress and inflammatory mediators in the prefrontal cortex. In this study, 30 male Naval Medical Research Institute (NMRI) mice were divided into 3 groups, including acute stress, chronic stress, and control groups. PTZ was used for the induction of seizures. The gene expression of inflammatory markers (IL-1β, TNF-α, NLRP3, and iNOS), malondialdehyde (MDA) level, nitrite level, and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) were assessed in the prefrontal cortex and serum. Our results showed that stress could increase the expression of inflammatory cytokines genes and oxidative stress in the prefrontal cortex of the brain and serum following PTZ-induced seizures, which is associated with increased seizure sensitivity and decreased the seizure threshold. The effects of chronic stress were much more significant than acute stress. We concluded that the effects of chronic stress on seizure sensitivity and enhancement of neuroinflammation and oxidative stress are much greater than acute stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hossein Tahmasebi Dehkordi
- Medical Plants Research Center, Basic Health Sciences Institute, Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Iran
| | - Elham Bijad
- Medical Plants Research Center, Basic Health Sciences Institute, Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Iran
| | - Elham Saghaei
- Medical Plants Research Center, Basic Health Sciences Institute, Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Iran
| | - Mehrdad Shahrani Korrani
- Medical Plants Research Center, Basic Health Sciences Institute, Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Iran
| | - Hossein Amini-Khoei
- Medical Plants Research Center, Basic Health Sciences Institute, Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Iran.
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Su FZ, Bai CX, Luo Y, Zhang WS, Cui N, Wang YY, Sun YP, Zhu WB, Zhao MY, Yang BY, Kuang HX, Wang QH. Cattle Bile Arisaema Aqueous Extracts Protect Against Febrile Seizures in Rats Through Regulating Neurotransmitters and Suppressing Neuroinflammation. Front Pharmacol 2022; 13:889055. [PMID: 35712708 PMCID: PMC9196122 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2022.889055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2022] [Accepted: 04/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Cattle bile Arisaema (CBA) is a traditional medicine used for the treatment of febrile seizures (FS) for thousands of years in China. However, its application is greatly limited due to cost reasons, and pig bile Arisaema (PBA) is the main commercial product instead. Additionally, the underlying mechanism of CBA for the treatment of FS still remains unknown. In this study, we investigated the anti-convulsant effect and potential mechanism of the CBA aqueous extract for the first time through a hot-water bath-induced FS rat model. Our results showed that pre-treatment with CBA dramatically lowered the incidence rate and generation times and prolonged the latency of FS. In addition, CBA effectively ameliorated neuronal damage and regulated neurotransmitter disorder induced by FS in the rat hippocampus. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, western blotting, immunohistochemical, and qRT-PCR results exhibited that CBA suppressed the expression of GFAP, TLR4, NF-κB, HMGB1, NLRP3, TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 and consequently inhibited the neuroinflammation induced by FS. Interestingly, although the CBA and PBA aqueous extracts possessed the same trend on the changes caused by FS, the improvement of FS by CBA is markedly better than that by PBA. These findings indicate that CBA exerts a protective effect on febrile seizures through regulating neurotransmitter disorder and suppressing neuroinflammation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fa-Zhi Su
- Key Laboratory of Basic and Application Research of Beiyao (Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine), Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
| | - Chen-Xi Bai
- Key Laboratory of Basic and Application Research of Beiyao (Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine), Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
| | - Yumeng Luo
- Key Laboratory of Basic and Application Research of Beiyao (Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine), Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
| | - Wen-Sen Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Basic and Application Research of Beiyao (Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine), Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
| | - Na Cui
- Key Laboratory of Basic and Application Research of Beiyao (Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine), Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
| | - Yang-Yang Wang
- Key Laboratory of Basic and Application Research of Beiyao (Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine), Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
| | - Yan-Ping Sun
- Key Laboratory of Basic and Application Research of Beiyao (Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine), Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
| | - Wen-Bo Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Basic and Application Research of Beiyao (Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine), Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
| | - Ming-Yang Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Basic and Application Research of Beiyao (Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine), Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
| | - Bing-You Yang
- Key Laboratory of Basic and Application Research of Beiyao (Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine), Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
| | - Hai-Xue Kuang
- Key Laboratory of Basic and Application Research of Beiyao (Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine), Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
- *Correspondence: Hai-Xue Kuang, ; Qiu-Hong Wang,
| | - Qiu-Hong Wang
- Key Laboratory of Basic and Application Research of Beiyao (Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine), Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
- School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Guangdong Pharmaceutical University, Guangzhou, China
- *Correspondence: Hai-Xue Kuang, ; Qiu-Hong Wang,
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Shaker T, Chattopadhyaya B, Amilhon B, Cristo GD, Weil AG. Transduction of inflammation from peripheral immune cells to the hippocampus induces neuronal hyperexcitability mediated by Caspase-1 activation. Neurobiol Dis 2021; 160:105535. [PMID: 34673150 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2021.105535] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2021] [Revised: 07/30/2021] [Accepted: 10/17/2021] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Recent studies report infiltration of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) into the central nervous system (CNS) in epileptic disorders, suggestive of a potential contribution of PBMC extravasation to the generation of seizures. Nevertheless, the underlying mechanisms involved in PBMC infiltrates promoting neuronal predisposition to ictogenesis remain unclear. Therefore, we developed an in vitro model mimicking infiltration of activated PBMCs into the brain in order to investigate potential transduction of inflammatory signals from PBMCs to the CNS. METHODS To establish our model, we first extracted PBMCs from rat spleen, then, immunologically primed PBMCs with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), followed by further activation with nigericin. Thereafter, we co-cultured these activated PBMCs with organotypic cortico-hippocampal brain slice cultures (OCHSCs) derived from the same rat, and compared PBMC-OCHSC co-cultures to OCHSCs exposed to PBMCs in the culture media. We further targeted a potential molecular pathway underlying transduction of peripheral inflammation to OCHSCs by incubating OCHSCs with the Caspase-1 inhibitor VX-765 prior to co-culturing PBMCs with OCHSCs. After 24 h, we analyzed inflammation markers in the cortex and the hippocampus using semiquantitative immunofluorescence. In addition, we analyzed neuronal activity by whole-cell patch-clamp recordings in cortical layer II/III and hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons. RESULTS In the cortex, co-culturing immunoreactive PBMCs treated with LPS + nigericin on top of OCHSCs upregulated inflammatory markers and enhanced neuronal excitation. In contrast, no excitability changes were detected after adding primed PBMCs (i.e. treated with LPS only), to OCHSCs. Strikingly, in the hippocampus, both immunoreactive and primed PBMCs elicited similar pro-inflammatory and pro-excitatory effects. However, when immunoreactive and primed PBMCs were cultured in the media separately from OCHSCs, only immunoreactive PBMCs gave rise to neuroinflammation and hyperexcitability in the hippocampus, whereas primed PBMCs failed to produce any significant changes. Finally, VX-765 application to OCHSCs, co-cultured with either immunoreactive or primed PBMCs, prevented neuroinflammation and hippocampal hyperexcitability in OCHSCs. CONCLUSIONS Our study shows a higher susceptibility of the hippocampus to peripheral inflammation as compared to the cortex, mediated via Caspase-1-dependent signaling pathways. Thus, our findings suggest that Caspase-1 inhibition may potentially provide therapeutic benefits during hippocampal neuroinflammation and hyperexcitability secondary to peripheral innate immunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tarek Shaker
- Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec H3C 3J7, Canada; CHU Sainte-Justine Research Centre, Montréal, Québec H3T 1C5, Canada.
| | | | - Bénédicte Amilhon
- Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec H3C 3J7, Canada; CHU Sainte-Justine Research Centre, Montréal, Québec H3T 1C5, Canada
| | - Graziella Di Cristo
- Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec H3C 3J7, Canada; CHU Sainte-Justine Research Centre, Montréal, Québec H3T 1C5, Canada
| | - Alexander G Weil
- Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec H3C 3J7, Canada; CHU Sainte-Justine Research Centre, Montréal, Québec H3T 1C5, Canada.
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Mohseni-Moghaddam P, Roghani M, Khaleghzadeh-Ahangar H, Sadr SS, Sala C. A literature overview on epilepsy and inflammasome activation. Brain Res Bull 2021; 172:229-235. [PMID: 33964347 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2021.05.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2021] [Revised: 04/29/2021] [Accepted: 05/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Epilepsy is one of the most prevalent serious brain disorders worldwide. Accumulating evidence has suggested that inflammation participates in the progression and pathogenesis of epilepsy. During inflammation, a cytosolic multimolecular complex called the "inflammasome" is activated, driving the innate immune response. This inflammatory pathway by sensing various pathogens and molecules from damaged cells and then activation of caspase-1 enzyme initiates inflammatory responses. Activated caspase-1 leads to the proteolytic cleavage of the pro-inflammatory cytokines, interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and interleukin-18 (IL-18), and also induction of an inflammatory programmed cell death termed pyroptosis. NLR family pyrin domain-containing 1 (NLRP1) and NLRP3 are the two best-characterized inflammasome members, and both basic and clinical research has reported their activation during epilepsy. This overview is intended to summarize the current literature concerning NLRP1 and NLRP3 inflammasome activation and epilepsy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Parvaneh Mohseni-Moghaddam
- Electrophysiology Research Center, Neuroscience Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
| | - Mehrdad Roghani
- Neurophysiology Research Center, Shahed University, Tehran, Iran
| | - Hossein Khaleghzadeh-Ahangar
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran; Immunoregulation Research Center, Health Research Institute, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran
| | - Seyed Shahabeddin Sadr
- Electrophysiology Research Center, Neuroscience Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Carlo Sala
- CNR Neuroscience Institute, Milan, Italy
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Vezzani B, Carinci M, Patergnani S, Pasquin MP, Guarino A, Aziz N, Pinton P, Simonato M, Giorgi C. The Dichotomous Role of Inflammation in the CNS: A Mitochondrial Point of View. Biomolecules 2020; 10:E1437. [PMID: 33066071 PMCID: PMC7600410 DOI: 10.3390/biom10101437] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2020] [Revised: 10/07/2020] [Accepted: 10/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Innate immune response is one of our primary defenses against pathogens infection, although, if dysregulated, it represents the leading cause of chronic tissue inflammation. This dualism is even more present in the central nervous system, where neuroinflammation is both important for the activation of reparatory mechanisms and, at the same time, leads to the release of detrimental factors that induce neurons loss. Key players in modulating the neuroinflammatory response are mitochondria. Indeed, they are responsible for a variety of cell mechanisms that control tissue homeostasis, such as autophagy, apoptosis, energy production, and also inflammation. Accordingly, it is widely recognized that mitochondria exert a pivotal role in the development of neurodegenerative diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases, as well as in acute brain damage, such in ischemic stroke and epileptic seizures. In this review, we will describe the role of mitochondria molecular signaling in regulating neuroinflammation in central nervous system (CNS) diseases, by focusing on pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) signaling, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, and mitophagy, giving a hint on the possible therapeutic approaches targeting mitochondrial pathways involved in inflammation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bianca Vezzani
- Department of Medical Sciences, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (B.V.); (M.C.); (S.P.); (M.P.P.); (P.P.)
- Laboratory of Technologies for Advanced Therapy (LTTA), Technopole of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (A.G.); (N.A.); (M.S.)
| | - Marianna Carinci
- Department of Medical Sciences, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (B.V.); (M.C.); (S.P.); (M.P.P.); (P.P.)
- Laboratory of Technologies for Advanced Therapy (LTTA), Technopole of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (A.G.); (N.A.); (M.S.)
| | - Simone Patergnani
- Department of Medical Sciences, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (B.V.); (M.C.); (S.P.); (M.P.P.); (P.P.)
- Laboratory of Technologies for Advanced Therapy (LTTA), Technopole of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (A.G.); (N.A.); (M.S.)
| | - Matteo P. Pasquin
- Department of Medical Sciences, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (B.V.); (M.C.); (S.P.); (M.P.P.); (P.P.)
- Laboratory of Technologies for Advanced Therapy (LTTA), Technopole of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (A.G.); (N.A.); (M.S.)
| | - Annunziata Guarino
- Laboratory of Technologies for Advanced Therapy (LTTA), Technopole of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (A.G.); (N.A.); (M.S.)
- Department of BioMedical and Specialist Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Nimra Aziz
- Laboratory of Technologies for Advanced Therapy (LTTA), Technopole of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (A.G.); (N.A.); (M.S.)
- Department of BioMedical and Specialist Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Paolo Pinton
- Department of Medical Sciences, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (B.V.); (M.C.); (S.P.); (M.P.P.); (P.P.)
- Laboratory of Technologies for Advanced Therapy (LTTA), Technopole of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (A.G.); (N.A.); (M.S.)
- Maria Cecilia Hospital, GVM Care & Research, 48033 Cotignola (RA), Italy
| | - Michele Simonato
- Laboratory of Technologies for Advanced Therapy (LTTA), Technopole of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (A.G.); (N.A.); (M.S.)
- Department of BioMedical and Specialist Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
- School of Medicine, University Vita-Salute San Raffaele, 20132 Milan, Italy
| | - Carlotta Giorgi
- Department of Medical Sciences, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (B.V.); (M.C.); (S.P.); (M.P.P.); (P.P.)
- Laboratory of Technologies for Advanced Therapy (LTTA), Technopole of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (A.G.); (N.A.); (M.S.)
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Peripheral blood expression levels of inflammasome complex components in two different focal epilepsy syndromes. J Neuroimmunol 2020; 347:577343. [PMID: 32731050 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2020.577343] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2020] [Revised: 07/03/2020] [Accepted: 07/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Although the role of inflammation in epilepsy pathogenesis has been extensively investigated, the inflammasome complex, a key component of neuroinflammation, has been understudied in epilepsy patients. METHODS To better understand the involvement of this system in epilepsy, levels of inflammasome complex components (NLRP1, NLRP3, CASP1, ASC), end-products of inflammasome complex activity [IL-1β, IL-18, nitric oxide synthase (NOS) isoforms] and other inflammatory factors (NFκB, IL-6, TNF-α) were measured in peripheral blood of patients with focal epilepsy of unknown cause (FEoUC) (n = 47), mesial temporal lobe epilepsy with hippocampal sclerosis (MTLE-HS) (n = 35) and healthy controls using real time qPCR and/or ELISA. RESULTS Inflammasome complex associated factors were either downregulated or unchanged in epilepsy patients. Likewise, flow cytometry studies failed to show an increase in ratios of NLRP3-expressing CD3+ and CD14+ peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) in epileptic patients. Anti-neuronal antibody positive epilepsy patients showed increased NLRP1 and neuronal NOS mRNA expression levels, whereas patients under poly-therapy showed reduced serum inflammasome levels. FEoUC patients demonstrated increased PBMC NFκB mRNA expression levels and serum IL-1β and IL-6 levels. Both MTLE-HS and FEoUC patients displayed higher ratios of NFκB-expressing CD14+ PBMC than healthy controls. CONCLUSIONS Although previous clinical studies have implicated increased inflammasome complex expression levels in epilepsy, our results indicate suppressed inflammasome complex activity in the peripheral blood of focal epilepsy patients. Alternatively, the IL-6-NFκB signaling pathway, appears to be activated in focal epilepsy, suggesting that factors of this pathway might be targeted for future theranostic applications.
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