Long-term effects of neonatal surgery on adulthood pain behavior

Experimental study performed with several Haverford/Bryn Mawr students- first as a thesis project by Stout (BMC \u2702) and Ridgway \u2706; data added to reach publishable state during summer 2003 with Scorr \u2706 and Smith \u2704. Written during \u2703-04 sabbatical, submitted to Pain in Spring 2004, accepted in December 2004, appeared in print in 2005. --author-supplied descriptio

sPDGFRβ and neuroinflammation are associated with AD biomarkers and differ by race:The ASCEND Study

INTRODUCTION: There remains an urgent need to identify preclinical pathophysiological mechanisms of Alzheimer's disease (AD) development in high-risk, racially diverse populations. We explored the relationship between cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) markers of vascular injury and neuroinflammation with AD biomarkers in middle-aged Black/African American (B/AA) and non-Hispanic White (NHW) participants.METHODS: Adults (45-65 years) with a parental history of AD were enrolled (n = 82). CSF and blood biomarkers were collected at baseline and year 2.RESULTS: CSF total tau (t-tau), phosphorylated tau (p-tau), and amyloid beta (Aβ)40 were elevated at year 2 compared to baseline. CSF soluble platelet-derived growth factor receptor β (sPDGFRβ) levels, a marker of pericyte injury, correlated positively with t-tau, p-tau, Aβ40 markers of vascular injury, and cytokines at baseline and year 2. CSF sPDGFRβ and tau were significantly lower in B/AA than NHW.DISCUSSION: Vascular dysfunction and neuroinflammation may precede cognitive decline and disease pathology in the very early preclinical stages of AD, and there are race-related differences in these relationships.HIGHLIGHTS: Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) Alzheimer's disease (AD) biomarkers changed over 2 years in high-risk middle-aged adults. Markers of vascular dysfunction were associated with the CSF biomarkers amyloid beta and tau. AD biomarkers were lower in Black compared to non-Hispanic White individuals. Markers of vascular dysfunction were lower among Black individuals.</p