[Preliminary study of the temporal variables of continuous speech in patients with neurodegenerative syndromes of the frontotemporal lobar degeneration spectrum]. / Estudio preliminar de variables temporales del habla continua en pacientes con síndromes neurodegenerativos del espectro degeneración lobar frontotemporal.

INTRODUCTION: Neurodegenerative diseases, especially frontotemporal lobar degeneration and Alzheimer's disease, often lead to impaired language functions, and so speech analysis can provide objective measures with which to classify the different syndromes. AIM: To study the nature, cognitive correlates and clinical utility of 21 variables related to speech and silence times. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Derivation of acoustic variables with Praat in three spontaneous speech tasks conducted in 22 subjects, distributed in six diagnostic groups (five with neurodegenerative diseases + control). A descriptive analysis is performed, with ROC and principal component curves, to study how acoustic variables are related to the different neurodegenerative syndromes and what information they can provide. RESULTS: Three groups of variables are identified related, respectively, to: a) total number of silent pauses and total duration of the task; b) variability of the phonic groups; and c) variability of the periods of silence. These components correlate differentially with the different syndromes studied. CONCLUSIONS: Detailed analysis of speech and silence times can provide relevant information for the diagnosis of different neurodegenerative syndromes that are not reflected in traditional neuropsychological assessments. Thus, the total number of silent pauses may be a valuable aid in discriminating patients with lexical access deficits, phonic group parameters seem to reflect motor speech problems, and pause variability is associated with dysexecutive and global impairment.

TITLE: Estudio preliminar de variables temporales del habla continua en pacientes con síndromes neurodegenerativos del espectro degeneración lobar frontotemporal.Introducción. Las enfermedades neurodegenerativas, especialmente la degeneración lobar frontotemporal y la enfermedad de Alzheimer, conllevan a menudo una alteración de las funciones del lenguaje, por lo que el análisis del habla puede proporcionar medidas objetivas para clasificar los diferentes síndromes. Objetivo. Estudiar la naturaleza, correlatos cognitivos y utilidad clínica de 21 variables relacionadas con el tiempo de habla y de silencio. Sujetos y métodos. Derivación de variables acústicas con Praat en tres tareas de habla espontánea en 22 sujetos, distribuidos en seis grupos de diagnóstico (cinco con enfermedades neurodegenerativas + control). Se realiza un análisis descriptivo, con curvas ROC y de componentes principales, para estudiar cómo las variables acústicas se relacionan con los distintos síndromes neurodegenerativos y qué información pueden aportar. Resultados. Se identifican tres grupos de variables relacionadas, respectivamente, con: a) número total de pausas silenciosas y duración total de la tarea; b) variabilidad de los grupos fónicos, y c) variabilidad de los períodos de silencio. Dichas componentes se correlacionan diferencialmente con los distintos síndromes estudiados. Conclusiones. El análisis detallado del tiempo de habla y de silencio puede aportar información relevante para el diagnóstico de diferentes síndromes neurodegenerativos, no reflejado en las evaluaciones de neuropsicología tradicionales. Así, el número total de pausas silenciosas puede tener valor para discriminar los pacientes con déficits de acceso léxico, los parámetros del grupo fónico parecen reflejar los problemas motores del habla, mientras que la variabilidad de las pausas se asocia con el deterioro disejecutivo y global.

Differential levels of Neurofilament Light protein in cerebrospinal fluid in patients with a wide range of neurodegenerative disorders.

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers are useful in the diagnosis and the prediction of progression of several neurodegenerative diseases. Among them, CSF neurofilament light (NfL) protein has particular interest, as its levels reflect neuroaxonal degeneration, a common feature in various neurodegenerative diseases. In the present study, we analyzed NfL levels in the CSF of 535 participants of the SPIN (Sant Pau Initiative on Neurodegeneration) cohort including cognitively normal participants, patients with Alzheimer disease (AD), Down syndrome (DS), frontotemporal dementia (FTD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and corticobasal syndrome (CBS). We evaluated the differences in CSF NfL accross groups and its association with other CSF biomarkers and with cognitive scales. All neurogenerative diseases showed increased levels of CSF NfL, with the highest levels in patients with ALS, FTD, CBS and PSP. Furthermore, we found an association of CSF NfL levels with cognitive impairment in patients within the AD and FTD spectrum and with AD pathology in DLB and DS patients. These results have implications for the use of NfL as a marker in neurodegenerative diseases.

Correlations between plasma and PET beta-amyloid levels in individuals with subjective cognitive decline: the Fundació ACE Healthy Brain Initiative (FACEHBI).

BACKGROUND: Peripheral biomarkers that identify individuals at risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (AD) or predicting high amyloid beta (Aß) brain burden would be highly valuable. To facilitate clinical trials of disease-modifying therapies, plasma concentrations of Aß species are good candidates for peripheral AD biomarkers, but studies to date have generated conflicting results. METHODS: The Fundació ACE Healthy Brain Initiative (FACEHBI) study uses a convenience sample of 200 individuals diagnosed with subjective cognitive decline (SCD) at the Fundació ACE (Barcelona, Spain) who underwent amyloid florbetaben(18F) (FBB) positron emission tomography (PET) brain imaging. Baseline plasma samples from FACEHBI subjects (aged 65.9 ± 7.2 years) were analyzed using the ABtest (Araclon Biotech). This test directly determines the free plasma (FP) and total plasma (TP) levels of Aß40 and Aß42 peptides. The association between Aß40 and Aß42 plasma levels and FBB-PET global standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR) was determined using correlations and linear regression-based methods. The effect of the APOE genotype on plasma Aß levels and FBB-PET was also assessed. Finally, various models including different combinations of demographics, genetics, and Aß plasma levels were constructed using logistic regression and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) analyses to evaluate their ability for discriminating which subjects presented brain amyloidosis. RESULTS: FBB-PET global SUVR correlated weakly but significantly with Aß42/40 plasma ratios. For TP42/40, this observation persisted after controlling for age and APOE ε4 allele carrier status (R2 = 0.193, p = 1.01E-09). The ROC curve demonstrated that plasma Aß measurements are not superior to APOE and age in combination in predicting brain amyloidosis. It is noteworthy that using a simple preselection tool (the TP42/40 ratio with an empirical cut-off value of 0.08) optimizes the sensitivity and reduces the number of individuals subjected to Aß FBB-PET scanners to 52.8%. No significant dependency was observed between APOE genotype and plasma Aß measurements (p value for interaction = 0.105). CONCLUSION: Brain and plasma Aß levels are partially correlated in individuals diagnosed with SCD. Aß plasma measurements, particularly the TP42/40 ratio, could generate a new recruitment strategy independent of the APOE genotype that would improve identification of SCD subjects with brain amyloidosis and reduce the rate of screening failures in preclinical AD studies. Independent replication of these findings is warranted.

[Prevalence of hepatitis C virus infection in school children in an urban and suburban area of Madrid]. / Prevalencia de infección por el virus de la hepatitis C en escolares de un área urbana y periurbana de Madrid.

OBJECTIVE: To find the prevalence of hepatitis C virus infection. DESIGN: Cross sectional study. SETTING: School children of the Autonomous Community of Madrid. PATIENTS AND OTHER PARTICIPANTS: 560 school children of 4 and 17 years-old. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: ELISA II the anti-HCV appeared in 0,36% of population. CONCLUSIONS: Our prevalence is the same a other studies and we think that it haven't different factors in our community different of others with a similar prevalence in adults population.

[The seroepidemiology of the hepatitis A virus in children and adolescents]. / Seroepidemiología del virus de la hepatitis A en niños y adolescentes.

OBJECTIVE: To know the prevalence of antibodies against hepatitis A virus (anti-HAV) in a population of children and teenagers pertaining to three municipalities of the Autonomous Community of Madrid (CAM). DESIGN: Cross-study. SITE. The study was conducted in three public schools centers of the municipalities located in the Southeast of the (CAM). PATIENTS AND OTHER PARTICIPANTS: Students between the ages of 6 and 17 whose parents authorized them to be tested. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The presence of anti-HAV antibodies in the serum of 729 students was investigated. Thirty eight of them presented a positive mark, which indicates a prevalence of 5.34%. In the males, the prevalence was 5.7% and in the females it was 5%. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of anti-HAV antibodies is low in our population, agreeing with the delay in the age that the infection is acquired according to various publications.

[The seroepidemiology of the varicella-zoster virus in children and adolescents]. / Seroepidemiología del virus de la varicela zoster en niños y adolescentes.

OBJECTIVE: To know the sero-protection level existing of varicella-zoster virus in a population of children and adolescents from Madrid. METHODS: To carry out this work we have had a total 560 serum from children and adolescents between 1 and 15 years old. Later to detect the title of antibodies against the varicella zoster virus (IgG VZV), we used enzymo immuno-analysis (PLATEST). RESULTS: The 96.5% of them were positive. Distributing this percentage in a similar way for every age, we get 100% at 8, 9, 10, 11 and 15 years old; 97.5% at 5, 6, 7, 12 and 13 years; 95% at 14 years old; 92.5% at 4 years old and 85% at 1 years old and 84% at 2 years old. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence gradually increases with the age, from 20% at 1 year old to 100% at 15, finding the smallest prevalence in 84% to reach rapidly 100%.