The Top Twenty-Five BrainImmune Stories of 2020
– The greatest gift is the gift of learning (Native American saying) Introduced a few years ago as our new annual feature, we publish a list of our readers’ favorite BrainImmune stories. Our #1 most-read story this year is Thyroid Hormone Modulation of Immune Responses in Physiologic And Stressful Conditions. This review is authored by […]
Stress, Dyshomeostasis and COVID-19 Mortality: A Big Picture View
Commentary Note that the information contained herein is NOT instructional for medical diagnosis or treatment, see the BrainImmune DISCLAIMER at the end of this article! The pandemic viral illness COVID-19 is especially life-threatening in the elderly and in people with any of a variety of underlying medical conditions. No conceptual framework has been offered as […]
β2-Adrenoceptor-Mediated Upregulation of IL-17 May Contribute to Pulmonary Immunopathology in COVID-19: Does Blockade of IL-17 and β-Adrenergic Effects Hold a Therapeutic Potential?
Research Hypothesis Note that this is a research hypothesis – the information contained herein is NOT instructional for medical diagnosis or treatment, see the BrainImmune DISCLAIMER at the end of this article! It has been reported that nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain 2 (NOD2) can also function as a cytoplasmic viral pattern recognition receptor (PRR) by triggering […]
Parkinson’s Disease: Peripheral Immunity Links Neurodegeneration and the Intestinal Microbiota
Commentary By Marco Cosentino, Cristoforo Comi and Franca Marino On the study by Matheoud D et al., Nature, 2019; 571(7766):565-569; Doi: 10.1038/s41586-019-1405-y, Intestinal infection triggers Parkinson’s disease-like symptoms in Pink1-/- mice. Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disease affecting 7 to 10 million people worldwide, 1% above 60 years of age and up to […]
The Emerging Role of Neuro-Immune Synapses and the Immunological Homunculus in the Context of the Systematic Lymphoid Organs Innervation
Evolving concept By Clemens Wülfing, Fenja Amrei Schuran, Inga Hölge, Julia Urban, Jasmin Oehlmann and Hauke Simon Günther Nearly all body tissues are connected to the central nervous system through the axonal terminals of neurons. But with regard to lymphoid organs, this direct innervation, its extent and significance, as well as the role of afferent […]
Neuroendocrine Immune Implications in Rheumatoid Arthritis and Polymyalgia Rheumatica: Past and Present Unresolved Issues and Optimising Glucocorticoid Treatment
Editorial Introduction and background The dramatic effects of cortisone and pituitary adrenocortical hormone therapy on rheumatoid arthritis (RA) were discovered almost seven decades ago (1) and even longer for the significant disease amelioration during pregnancy as reported by Hench in 1938 (2). However, major questions persist about the underlying adrenocortical and hypothalamic pituitary axis (HPA) […]
Microglia: gatekeepers for neuropathic pain
Evolving Concepts Introduction Where acute pain protects an individual from further damage, chronic pain serves no adaptive purpose. Approximately 1 in 5 people suffer from chronic pain, which exacts a substantial toll on the both the individual and on national economies [1–3]. Chronic pain can arise due to unresolved inflammation (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis), damage to […]
The Cross-talk between the Dopaminergic System and Innate Immunity: An Evolving Concept
Evolving Concept Dopamine (DA) is a well-known neurotransmitter in the central nervous system (CNS). An increasing body of evidence, however, indicates that DA is also an important communication mediator at the neural-immune interface [1-3]. Most research and studies to date have put the emphasis on DA and it’s regulation of adaptive immunity. Comparatively little is […]
An Evolving Concept: The Pathologic Level of Brain TNF is a Therapeutic Target for Chronic Pain Treatment
Evolving Concept Chronic pain is a serious healthcare dilemma with many treatment options available, such as antidepressants, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, opioids, and anticonvulsants; nevertheless, chronic pain presently is not appropriately managed. A fundamental reason for the lack of effective treatment is that none of these drugs specifically target a process that is essential in eliciting […]
New Evidence for Key Factors that Drive COVID-19 Severity
Posted on July 23, 2020 By Gabriel Bassi Commentaries
Commentary On: Viral and host factors related to the clinical outcome of COVID-19, by Zhang et al., Nature, 2020 Jul;583(7816):437-440. doi: 10.1038/s41586-020-2355-0. The COVID-19 outbreak was first identified in Wuhan, China. Despite the causal agent being closely related to a bat coronavirus (RaTG13), several questions remain regarding the origin, evolution and host interaction of COVID-19. […]