Sonographic hypoechogenicity of brainstem raphe nucleus is correlated with electroencephalographic spike frequency in patients with epilepsy.

BACKGROUND: Brainstem raphe nucleus (BRN) hypoechogenicity in transcranial sonography (TCS) has been demonstrated in patients with major depression, possibly representing a sonographic manifestation of serotonergic dysfunction in depression. Most patients with epilepsy with comorbid depression exhibit hypoechogenic BRN in TCS. However, the role of BRN in the pathogenesis of epilepsy is unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the correlation of BRN echogenicity with epilepsy itself, and the echogenicity of other midbrain structures and the size of lateral ventricle (LV) will also be evaluated in patients with epilepsy. METHODS: Thirty-six patients with epilepsy without depression and 37 healthy controls were recruited. Sonographic echogenicity of BRN, caudate nucleus (CN), lentiform nucleus (LN), substantia nigra (SN), and the width of frontal horns of the lateral ventricles (LV) and the third ventricle (TV) were evaluated with TCS. The frequency of interictal epileptiform discharges (IEDs) was assessed with ambulatory electroencephalogram (AEEG). RESULTS: Hypoechogenicity of BRN was depicted in 36.1% of patients with epilepsy and 18.9% of controls, showing no significant difference. Patients with epilepsy with BRN hypoechogenicity had higher epileptic discharge index (EDI) than those with normal BRN echogenecity. Especially, higher EDI in patients with BRN hypoechogenicity was observed during the sleep period but not during awake period. The width of TV was significantly larger in patients with epilepsy than that in controls. We did not find any difference between patients with epilepsy and controls in the echogenicity of CN, LN, and SN, as well as in the width of frontal horn of LV. CONCLUSIONS: Hypoechogenic BRN is correlated with a high frequency of epileptic discharges in electroencephalogram (EEG), especially during sleep period but not during awake period, indicating that BRN alterations may play a potential role in the pathogenesis of epilepsy in association with sleep cycle.

Alterations of amygdala volume and functional connectivity in migraine patients comorbid with and without depression.

OBJECTIVE: The comorbid relationship between migraine and depression has been well recognized, but its underlying pathophysiology is unclear. Here, we aimed to explore the structural changes of the amygdala and the abnormal functional connectivity of the centromedial amygdala (CMA) in migraineurs with depression. METHODS: High-resolution T1-weighted and functional magnetic resonance images were acquired from 22 episodic migraineurs with comorbid depression (EMwD), 21 episodic migraineurs without depression (EM), and 17 healthy controls (HC). Voxel-based morphometry and resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) were applied to examine the intergroup differences in amygdala volume. RESULTS: The bilateral amygdala volume was increased in the EMwD and EM groups compared with the HC group, but there were no differences between the EMwD and EM groups. The right CMA exhibited decreased rsFC in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) in the EMwD group compared with the EM group, while rsFC increased between the CMA and the contralateral DLPFC in the EM group compared with the HC group. In addition, the EM group showed decreased rsFC between the left CMA and the left pallidum compared with the HC group. CONCLUSIONS: Enlarged amygdala is an imaging feature of EM and EMwD. The inconsistency of rsFC between CMA and DLPFC between migraineurs with and without depression might indicate that decreased rsFC between CMA and DLPFC is a neuropathologic marker for the comorbidity of migraine and depression. The core regions might be a potential intervention target for the treatment of EMwD in the future.

Case Report: Migraine-Like Headache With Visual Aura Initiated by Endovascular Coiling Treatment for a Posterior Cerebral Artery Aneurysm.

Cervical, anterior, and middle cerebral artery aneurysm is a causative factor for migraine, and endovascular treatment usually improves migraine headache. Posterior cerebral artery (PCA) aneurysm is a rare condition, and its association with migraine is very rarely reported. In addition, endovascular coiling treatment causing migraine-like headache has never been reported. Here, we describe a newly developed migraine-like headache with visual aura after endovascular coiling treatment for PCA aneurysm in a 31-year-old female patient. One month after the endovascular therapy, the patient stopped using the antiplatelet agents clopidogrel and aspirin and presented with an episodic headache attack twice a month with typical migraine features, including visual aura, right-sided temporal throbbing pain accompanied with nausea, vomiting, and photophobia. The recurrence of migraine-like headache with visual aura was terminated by clopidogrel administration. The generation of the migraine-like headache with visual aura is probably associated with microemboli due to endovascular coiling. This case supports the hypothesis that migraine with aura can be associated with microemboli of variant origins.

Rhizobium alkalisoli sp. nov., isolated from Caragana intermedia growing in saline-alkaline soils in the north of China.

Three rhizobial strains (CCBAU 01393(T), CCBAU 01389 and CCBAU 03239) isolated from nodules of Caragana intermedia grown in saline-alkaline soils in the north of China had identical 16S rRNA genes that showed 99.7 and 99.5 % sequence similarities with those of Rhizobium huautlense SO2(T) and Rhizobium galegae USDA 4128(T), respectively. Phylogenies of the housekeeping genes atpD, recA and glnII confirmed their distinct position, differing from recognized Rhizobium species. SDS-PAGE of whole-cell soluble proteins and a series of phenotypic and physiological tests allowed us to differentiate the novel group from all closely related recognized Rhizobium species. The levels of DNA-DNA relatedness between strain CCBAU 01393(T) and R. huautlense SO2(T) and R. galegae USDA 4128(T) were 34.9 and 20.5 %, respectively. Therefore, we propose that strains CCBAU 01393(T), CCBAU 01389 and CCBAU 03239 represent a novel species, Rhizobium alkalisoli sp. nov., with strain CCBAU 01393(T) (=LMG 24763(T)=HAMBI 3051(T)) as the type strain. This strain could form effective nodules on Caragana microphylla, Phaseolus vulgaris and Vigna radiata.