Search Our Scientific Publications & Authors

Br J Pharmacol 2020 Jul 1. Epub 2020 Jul 1.

Brain and Mind Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.

Background And Purpose: Extracts from the cannabis plant can dramatically improve the health of children suffering from refractory epilepsies such as Dravet syndrome. These extracts typically contain cannabidiol (CBD), a phytocannabinoid with well-documented anticonvulsant effects, but may also contain Δ -tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ -THC). It is unclear whether the presence of Δ -THC modulates the anticonvulsant efficacy of CBD. Read More

BMC Med Genet 2020 Jun 26;21(1):136. Epub 2020 Jun 26.

Institute of Bioinformatics, International Technology Park, Bangalore, 560066, India.

Background: Alkuraya-Kučinskas syndrome is an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by brain abnormalities associated with cerebral parenchymal underdevelopment, arthrogryposis, club foot and global developmental delay. KIAA1109, a functionally uncharacterized gene is identified as the molecular cause for Alkuraya-Kučinskas syndrome. Most of the reported mutations in KIAA1109 gene result in premature termination of pregnancies or neonatal deaths while a few mutations have been reported in surviving patients with global developmental delay and intellectual disability. Read More

Paediatr Int Child Health 2020 Jun 25:1-20. Epub 2020 Jun 25.

Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics and Internal Medicine, University of Saskatchewan , Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada.

Coronaviruses, seven of which are known to infect humans, can cause a spectrum of clinical presentations ranging from asymptomatic infection to severe illness and death. Four human coronaviruses (hCoVs)-229E, HKU1, NL63 and OC43-circulate globally, commonly infect children and typically cause mild upper respiratory tract infections. Three novel coronaviruses of zoonotic origin have emerged during the past two decades: severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-1), Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) and the recently discovered severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which is the cause of the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Read More

Front Neurosci 2020 11;14:644. Epub 2020 Jun 11.

Pediatric Neurology and Muscular Diseases Unit, IRCCS Istituto "Giannina Gaslini", Genoa, Italy.

Mutations in the gene cause a broad range of ultra-rare neurodevelopmental and brain degenerative disorders, associated with a high likelihood of premature death in animal models as well as in humans. The encoded Wwox protein is a WW domain-containing oxidoreductase that participates in crucial biological processes including tumor suppression, cell growth/differentiation and regulation of steroid metabolism, while its role in neural development is less understood. We analyzed the exomes of a family affected with multiple pre- and postnatal anomalies, including cerebellar vermis hypoplasia, severe neurodevelopmental impairment and refractory epilepsy, and identified a segregating homozygous mutation leading to a premature stop codon. Read More

Blood Adv 2020 Jul;4(13):2851-2864

Institute of Infection and Global Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.

Microvascular thrombosis and blood-brain barrier (BBB) breakdown are key components of cerebral malaria (CM) pathogenesis in African children and are implicated in fatal brain swelling. How Plasmodium falciparum infection causes this endothelial disruption and why this occurs, particularly in the brain, is not fully understood. In this study, we have demonstrated that circulating extracellular histones, equally of host and parasite origin, are significantly elevated in CM patients. Read More

Hum Gene Ther 2020 Jun 24. Epub 2020 Jun 24.

Institute of Ophthalmology, Molecular Therapy, London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses (NCLs), often referred to as Batten disease, are inherited lysosomal storage disorders that represent the most common neurodegeneration during childhood. Symptoms include seizures, vision loss, motor and cognitive decline and premature death. The development of brain-directed treatments for NCLs has made noteworthy progress in recent years. Read More

Zhonghua Wei Zhong Bing Ji Jiu Yi Xue 2020 May;32(5):590-594

Department of Pediatrics, Danzhou People's Hospital, Danzhou 571799, Hainan, China. Corresponding author: Lin Lieju, Email:

Objective: To explore the value of serum copeptin, S100B protein and uric acid (UA) levels in the prognosis of children with traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Methods: Eighty-six children with TBI admitted to Danzhou People's Hospital from January 1st, 2017 to December 31st, 2019 were selected. The gender, age, body mass index (BMI), cause of TBI, and baseline data of body temperature, heart rate (HR) and respiratory rate (RR) were collected, and the serum copeptin, S100B protein and UA levels were recorded on the 1st, 3rd and 5th day after admission. Read More

Crit Care Med 2020 Jul;48(7):977-984

Department of Intensive Care and Hyperbaric Medicine, The Alfred Hospital, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.

Objectives: The manipulation of arterial carbon dioxide tension is associated with differential mortality and neurologic injury in intensive care and cardiac arrest patients; however, few studies have investigated this relationship in patients on venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. We investigated the association between the initial arterial carbon dioxide tension and change over 24 hours on mortality and neurologic injury in patients undergoing venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for cardiac arrest and refractory cardiogenic shock.

Design: Retrospective cohort analysis of adult patients recorded in the international Extracorporeal Life Support Organization Registry. Read More

Oncol Lett 2020 Jul 15;20(1):99-112. Epub 2020 Apr 15.

Department of Orthopaedics, Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Haizhu, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510282, P.R. China.

Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common and destructive primary bone malignancy to affect children and adolescents. Metastases remain the primary cause of death in patients with OS. In the present study, weight gene co-expressed network analysis (WGCNA) and differentially-expressed gene analysis were used to identify key genes associated with the metastasis of OS. Read More

Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol 2020 Jul;8(7):594-605

Academic Center For Thyroid Disease, Department of Internal Medicine, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, Netherlands. Electronic address:

Background: Disordered thyroid hormone transport, due to mutations in the SLC16A2 gene encoding monocarboxylate transporter 8 (MCT8), is characterised by intellectual and motor disability resulting from cerebral hypothyroidism and chronic peripheral thyrotoxicosis. We sought to systematically assess the phenotypic characteristics and natural history of patients with MCT8 deficiency.

Methods: We did an international, multicentre, cohort study, analysing retrospective data from Jan 1, 2003, to Dec 31, 2019, from patients with MCT8 deficiency followed up in 47 hospitals in 22 countries globally. Read More

Cancers (Basel) 2020 Jun 11;12(6). Epub 2020 Jun 11.

Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School, 55 Fruit St, Boston, MA 02114, USA.

Cancer is a leading cause of death in children with tumors of the central nervous system, the most commonly encountered solid malignancies in this population. Radiotherapy (RT) is an integral part of managing brain tumors, with excellent long-term survival overall. The tumor histology will dictate the volume of tissue requiring treatment and the dose. Read More

Cell Death Dis 2020 Jun 15;11(6):457. Epub 2020 Jun 15.

Department of Medical Molecular Biology, Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, 100850, Beijing, China.

A further understanding of tumor angiogenesis is urgently needed due to the limited therapeutic efficacy of anti-angiogenesis agents. However, the origin of endothelial cells (EC) in tumors remains widely elusive and controversial. Snail has been thoroughly elucidated as a master regulator of the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), but its role in endothelium generation is not yet established. Read More

ACS Sens 2020 Jun 30. Epub 2020 Jun 30.

Departments of Medicine and Biochemistry, Stanford University, Stanford 94305, California, United States.

Elevated blood ammonia (hyperammonemia) may cause delirium, brain damage, and even death. Effective treatments exist, but preventing permanent neurological sequelae requires rapid, accurate, and serial measurements of blood ammonia. Standard methods require volumes of 1 to 3 mL, centrifugation to isolate plasma, and a turn-around time of 2 h. Read More

Front Cell Dev Biol 2020 27;8:275. Epub 2020 May 27.

Institute of Molecular Biology and Pathology, National Research Council, Rome, Italy.

Medulloblastoma (MB) is the most common pediatric brain tumor and a primary cause of cancer-related death in children. Until a few years ago, only clinical and histological features were exploited for MB pathological classification and outcome prognosis. In the past decade, the advancement of high-throughput molecular analyses that integrate genetic, epigenetic, and expression data, together with the availability of increasing wealth of patient samples, revealed the existence of four molecularly distinct MB subgroups. Read More

Neurobiol Dis 2020 Jun 8;142:104958. Epub 2020 Jun 8.

Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia; Department of Anatomy and Neuroscience, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia. Electronic address:

Huntington's disease (HD) is an extraordinary disorder that usually strikes when individuals are in the prime of their lives, as was the case for the influential 20th century musician Woody Guthrie. HD demonstrates the exceptionally fine line between life and death in such 'genetic diseases', as the only difference between those who suffer horribly and die slowly of this disease is often just a handful of extra tandem repeats (beyond the normal polymorphic range) in a genome that constitutes over 3 billion paired nucleotides of DNA. Furthermore, HD presents as a complex and heterogenous combination of psychiatric, cognitive and motor symptoms, so can appear as an unholy trinity of 'three disorders in one'. Read More

Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand 2020 Jun 11. Epub 2020 Jun 11.

Division of Neuroradiology and Musculoskeletal Radiology, Department of Radiology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.

Introduction: Fetal tumors are rare and usually followed by poor outcome. We describe our single-center experience with fetal tumors evaluated by ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Our aims were to evaluate mortality and morbidity including long-term outcome and to determine which ultrasound and MRI characteristics were helpful for pre- and perinatal management. Read More

Pediatr Res 2020 Jun 10. Epub 2020 Jun 10.

Neonatology, Institute for Women's Health, University College London, London, UK.

Background: Exposure to inflammation exacerbates injury in neonatal encephalopathy (NE). We hypothesized that brain biomarker mRNA, cytokine mRNA and microRNA differentiate inflammation (E. coli LPS), hypoxia (Hypoxia), and inflammation-sensitized hypoxia (LPS+Hypoxia) in an NE piglet model. Read More

Acta Neuropathol 2020 Jun 10. Epub 2020 Jun 10.

Department of Tumor Cell Biology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA.

Pediatric brain tumors are the leading cause of cancer-related death in children. Patient-derived orthotopic xenografts (PDOX) of childhood brain tumors have recently emerged as a biologically faithful vehicle for testing novel and more effective therapies. Herein, we provide the histopathological and molecular analysis of 37 novel PDOX models generated from pediatric brain tumor patients treated at St. Read More

J Health Pollut 2020 Jun 26;10(26):200606. Epub 2020 May 26.

Department of Veterinary and Pest Control Services, Federal Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Development, Abuja, Nigeria.

Background: In early 2010, outbreaks of lead poisoning due to artisanal gold mining in villages in the northwest Nigerian state of Zamfara have resulted in the death of hundreds of children < 5 years old. There have also been unconfirmed reports of high mortality of geese within these villages.

Objectives: To report a case of lead poisoning in three domestic free-range chickens found in one of the affected communities where illegal small-scale gold mining activities take place. Read More

Health Qual Life Outcomes 2020 Jun 4;18(1):166. Epub 2020 Jun 4.

Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University of Munich Medical Center, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany.

Background: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the leading cause of death and disability among children and young adults in industrialized countries, but strikingly little is known how patients cope with the long-term consequences of TBI. Thus, the aim of the current study was to elucidate health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and outcome predictors in chronic TBI adults.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 439 former patients were invited to report HRQoL up to 10 years after mild, moderate or severe TBI using the QOLIBRI (Quality of Life after Brain Injury) questionnaire. Read More

Ann Clin Transl Neurol 2020 Jun 4. Epub 2020 Jun 4.

Henan Key Laboratory of Child Brain Injury, Institute of Neuroscience and Third Affiliated Hospital, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, China.

Objective: Acute bilirubin encephalopathy (ABE) remains one of the important causes of neonatal mortality and child disability, early identification, and intervention which could improve outcomes. The purpose of this study was to evaluate early predictors of adverse outcomes in infants with ABE.

Methods: Newborns of gestational age ≥ 35 weeks and diagnosed with ABE were included in the study. Read More

Camb Q Healthc Ethics 2020 Jul;29(3):338-345

When talking about decisionmaking for children with a life-threatening condition, the death of children with brain tumors deserves special attention. The last days of the lives of these children can be particularly harsh for bystanders, and raise questions about the suffering of these children themselves. In the Netherlands, these children are part of the group for whom a wide range of end-of-life decisions are discussed, and questions raised. Read More

Transl Pediatr 2020 Apr;9(2):144-156

Department of Pediatrics, Division of Child Neurology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA.

Brain cancer is now the leading cause of cancer death in children and adolescents, surpassing leukemia. The heterogeneity and invasiveness of pediatric brain tumors have historically made them difficult to treat. Although surgical intervention and standard of care therapies such as radiation and chemotherapy have improved the outlook for those affected, results are often transient and lend themselves to tumor recurrence or resistance. Read More

J Proteomics 2020 May 28;225:103832. Epub 2020 May 28.

Department of Pediatric Neurosurgery, Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Capital Medical University, China National Clinical Research Center for Neurological Diseases, Center of Brain Tumor, Beijing Institute for Brain Disorders, Beijing Key Laboratory of Brain Tumor, China. Electronic address:

Objective: To identify candidate urinary protein biomarkers to distinguish medulloblastoma (MB) patients from healthy patients or benign brain disease control patients.

Methods: The tandem mass tag (TMT)-labeled quantitative proteomics approach was used to identify differential proteins in the urinary proteome of 9 pre- and postsurgery MB patients and 9 healthy control patients, respectively. Ingenuity pathway analysis was used for functional annotation of differential proteins. Read More

Prenat Diagn 2020 May 28. Epub 2020 May 28.

Center for Precision Environmental Health, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA.

Every year nearly 6 percent of children worldwide are born with a serious congenital malformation, resulting in death or lifelong disability. In the United States, birth defects remain one of the leading causes of infant mortality. Among the common structural congenital defects are conditions known as neural tube defects (NTDs). Read More

Microorganisms 2020 May 25;8(5). Epub 2020 May 25.

Instituto Universitario de Enfermedades Tropicales y Salud Pública de Canarias (IUETSPC), Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Avda. Astrofísico Fco. Sánchez s/n, 38203 La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain.

is an opportunistic pathogenic free-living amoeba which is able to rapidly colonize the central nervous system (CNS) and causes a lethal infection known as primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). Furthermore, more than 98% of the known cases of PAM are fatal and affect mainly children under 12 and young adults. Until now, no fully effective therapeutic agents against are available and hence the urgent need to find novel agents to treat PAM. Read More

J Child Psychol Psychiatry 2020 May 28. Epub 2020 May 28.

Division of Adolescent and School Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA.

Background: There are known associations between mental health symptoms and transgender identity among adults. Whether this relationship extends to early adolescents and to gender domains other than identity is unclear. This study measured dimensions of gender in a large, diverse, sample of youth, and examined associations between diverse gender experiences and mental health. Read More

J Neurotrauma 2020 May 28. Epub 2020 May 28.

The University of Queensland Child Health Research Centre, 541177, Paediatric Critical Care Research Group, South Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.

Predictive modelling is foundational to treatment and long-term management of children with traumatic brain injury. Assessment of injury severity in the acute-care setting enables early stratification of patients based on their risk of death, lifelong disability or unfavourable outcome. This review evaluates predictive models which have been developed or validated for paediatric traumatic brain injury patients. Read More

Epilepsia 2020 Jun 26;61(6):1142-1155. Epub 2020 May 26.

Institute for Regional Health Services, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.

Objective: To define the phenotypic spectrum of phosphatidylinositol glycan class A protein (PIGA)-related congenital disorder of glycosylation (PIGA-CDG) and evaluate genotype-phenotype correlations.

Methods: Our cohort encompasses 40 affected males with a pathogenic PIGA variant. We performed a detailed phenotypic assessment, and in addition, we reviewed the available clinical data of 36 previously published cases and assessed the variant pathogenicity using bioinformatical approaches. Read More

Biochem Pharmacol 2020 May 22;178:114050. Epub 2020 May 22.

Department of Molecular Animal Physiology, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Centre for Neuroscience, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Department of Molecular Neurobiology, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Centre for Neuroscience, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands. Electronic address:

Efavirenz (EFV) is used for antiretroviral treatment of HIV infection, and successfully inhibits viral replication and mother-to-child transmission of HIV during pregnancy and childbirth. Unfortunately, the drug induces neuropsychiatric symptoms such as anxiety and depressed mood and potentially affects cognitive performance. EFV acts on, among others, the serotonin transporter and serotonin receptors that are expressed in the developing brain. Read More

Neurocrit Care 2020 May 22. Epub 2020 May 22.

Department of Critical Care Medicine, Mayo Clinic Hospital, 5777 East Mayo Blvd, Phoenix, AZ, 85054, USA.

The UK adopted the opt-out system (deemed or presumed consent) in end-of-life organ donation enforceable in May 2020. Presumed consent applies to adults but not children. Transplant advocates have recommended that all children on end-of-life care should be referred for potential organ donation to increase the supply of transplantable organs in the UK. Read More

Neurochem Res 2020 May 22. Epub 2020 May 22.

Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Dokuz Eylul University, Izmir, Turkey.

In neonates supraphysiological oxygen therapy has been demonstrated to cause neuronal death in hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, parietal cortex, and retrosplenial cortex. There is a need for the detection of novel neuroprotective drugs. Neuroprotective effects of lacosamide or memantine have been demonstrated in adult patients with ischemia, trauma and status epilepticus. Read More

Crit Care Med 2020 May 18. Epub 2020 May 18.

Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University of Munich Medical Center, Munich, Germany.

Objectives: Traumatic brain injury is the number one cause of death in children and young adults and has become increasingly prevalent in the elderly. Decompressive craniectomy prevents intracranial hypertension but does not clearly improve physical outcome 6 months after traumatic brain injury. However, it has not been analyzed if decompressive craniectomy affects traumatic brain injury patients' quality of life in the long term. Read More

Clin Pediatr (Phila) 2020 May 20:9922820922532. Epub 2020 May 20.

Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.

This study evaluated an intervention for low-income new mothers, half from Spanish-speaking homes, that provides education around infant crying and abusive head trauma (AHT). At enrollment, non-US-born mothers were less likely than US-born mothers to have heard of shaken baby syndrome (60% vs 89%, ≤ .0001) or to know shaking babies could lead to brain damage or death (48% vs 80%, < . Read More

Linacre Q 2019 Nov 25;86(4):275-282. Epub 2019 Sep 25.

College of Medicine, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA.

Brain death during the second trimester of pregnancy creates a unique situation in which the mother is deceased, but life of the developing fetus still depends on somatic functions in the mother's body. In this article, I show that when a pregnant woman becomes brain dead during the second trimester, it is morally licit, though not morally obligatory, to continue somatic support while the fetus develops. The interventions on the mother's body are justified for the life of the fetus, especially in light of the unique mother-child dyad and the responsibilities the mother has for her child. Read More

Cancer Lett 2020 Aug 16;486:38-45. Epub 2020 May 16.

Division of Pediatric Neurosurgery, Pediatric Clinical Neuroscience Center, Seoul National University Children's Hospital, Seoul, South Korea; Department of Neurosurgery, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea. Electronic address:

Atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor (AT/RT) is the most malignant tumor of the central nervous system that generally occurs in young children. Despite the use of intensive multimodal therapy for AT/RT, the prognosis is still poor. The brain tumor initiating cells in AT/RT cells has been suggested as one of the challenges in AT/RT treatment. Read More

Case Rep Crit Care 2020 1;2020:5329420. Epub 2020 May 1.

Ryan White Center for Pediatric Infectious Disease and Global Health, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA.

A two-year-old female presented with acutely altered mental status following eight days of fever and rash. She had been camping at an Indiana campground 11 days prior to the onset of illness and was evaluated twice for her fever and rash prior to admission. Laboratory evaluation on admission revealed thrombocytopenia, hyponatremia, and elevated transaminases. Read More

Front Neurol 2020 30;11:345. Epub 2020 Apr 30.

Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the leading cause of death and disability in children. It includes a range of different pathologies that differ considerably from adult TBI. Analyzing and understanding injury patterns of pediatric TBI is essential to establishing new preventive efforts as well as to improve clinical management. Read More

Neuroimage 2020 Aug 15;217:116894. Epub 2020 May 15.

Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine and Department of Radiology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Biomedical Imaging & Technology Graduate Program, New York University School of Medicine, USA. Electronic address:

Niemann-Pick Type C (NPC) is a rare genetic disorder characterized by progressive cell death in various tissues, particularly in the cerebellar Purkinje cells, with no known cure. Mouse models for human NPC have been generated and characterized histologically, behaviorally, and using longitudinal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Previous imaging studies revealed significant brain volume differences between mutant and wild-type animals, but stopped short of making volumetric comparisons of the cerebellar sub-regions. Read More

Lancet Child Adolesc Health 2020 Jun 12;4(6):444-454. Epub 2020 May 12.

University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

Background: Very low birthweight or preterm infants are at increased risk of adverse outcomes including sepsis, necrotising enterocolitis, and death. We assessed whether supplementing the enteral diet of very low-birthweight infants with lactoferrin, an antimicrobial protein, reduces all-cause mortality or major morbidity.

Methods: We did a multicentre, double-blind, pragmatic, randomised superiority trial in 14 Australian and two New Zealand neonatal intensive care units. Read More

Pediatr Infect Dis J 2020 May 12. Epub 2020 May 12.

From the Department of Infectious Diseases, Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark.

Background: The long-term prognosis of brain abscess is unclear.

Methods: Using nationwide, population-based medical registries, we included all individuals <20 years of age hospitalized with first-time diagnosis of brain abscess in Denmark from 1982 to 2016. A comparison cohort individually matched for age, sex and residence was identified, as were siblings of all study participants. Read More

Pediatr Neurol 2020 Jul 8;108:106-112. Epub 2020 May 8.

The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, Ohio; Division of Hematology, Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio. Electronic address:

Background: Metastatic atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumors (AT/RTs) are aggressive central nervous system tumors that present during infancy and are associated with dismal outcomes. Patients receive multimodal treatment including surgical resection, systemic chemotherapy, and one or more of intrathecal chemotherapy (IT), marrow-ablative chemotherapy with autologous hematopoietic cell rescue (AuHCR) and radiation therapy (XRT). While data regarding treatment modalities for AT/RT patients exist, no comprehensive data have been published regarding the metastatic patients. Read More

Emerg Med Int 2020 29;2020:1965231. Epub 2020 Jan 29.

Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, College of Health Sciences, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Background: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the most common cause of death/disability in children. The Glasgow coma scale and other parameters are used for treatment/follow-up of TBI. Childhood TBI data are scarce from sub-Saharan Africa. Read More

J Clin Res Pediatr Endocrinol 2020 May 12. Epub 2020 May 12.

Metabolic Medicine, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust, London UK.

Background: Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) is an X-linked, metabolic disorder caused by deficiency of peroxisomal ALD protein resulting in accumulation of very-long chain fatty acids (VLCFA) primarily in the adrenal cortex and central nervous system. Approximately 35-40% of boys with ALD develop cerebral ALD (CALD), which causes rapidly progressive cerebral demyelination, loss of neurologic function, and death. Approximately 70-80% of boys with ALD have impaired adrenal function prior to the onset of neurologic symptoms. Read More

BMC Pulm Med 2020 May 7;20(1):124. Epub 2020 May 7.

Department of Neonatology, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health and Disorders, China International Science and Technology Cooperation base of Child development and Critical Disorders, Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing Key Laboratory of Pediatrics, Chongqing, People's Republic of China.

Background: Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) has been increasingly used for severe neonatal respiratory failure refractory to conventional treatments. To systematically evaluate the complications and mortality of venovenous ECMO (VV ECMO) in the treatment of neonatal respiratory failure, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of all the related studies.

Methods: PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library were searched. Read More

Front Neurol 2020 16;11:274. Epub 2020 Apr 16.

Section of Neurosurgery, Department of Neuroscience, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.

Traumatic brain injury is the leading cause of death in children. Children with severe TBI are in need of neurointensive care where the goal is to prevent secondary brain injury by avoiding secondary insults. Monitoring of cerebral blood flow (CBF) and autoregulation in the injured brain is crucial. Read More

Front Neurosci 2020 21;14:296. Epub 2020 Apr 21.

Human Metabolomics, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa.

A new paradigm in neuroscience has recently emerged - the brain-gut axis (BGA). The contemporary focus in this paradigm has been gut → brain ("bottom-up"), in which the gut-microbiome, and its perturbations, affects one's psychological state-of-mind and behavior, and is pivotal in neurodegenerative disorders. The emerging brain → gut ("top-down") concept, the subject of this review, proposes that dysfunctional brain health can alter the gut-microbiome. Read More

Brain Sci 2020 May 1;10(5). Epub 2020 May 1.

Division of Analytical Psychopharmacology, Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, 140 Old Orangeburg Rd, Orangeburg, NY 10962, USA.

Alcohol consumption by pregnant women may produce neurological abnormalities that affect cognitive processes in children and are together defined as fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). However, the molecular underpinnings are still poorly defined. In our earlier studies, we found that ethanol exposure of postnatal day 7 (P7) mice significantly induced widespread neurodegeneration mediated via endocannabinoids (eCBs)/cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1R). Read More

Neuropediatrics 2020 May 5. Epub 2020 May 5.

Paediatric Neurology and Neurophysiology Unit, Department of Women's and Children's Health, University Hospital of Padua, Padova, Italy.

Background:  Cardiac disorders are the second leading cause of pediatric arterial ischemic stroke (AIS). Limited literature is available on pediatric AIS caused by cardiac myxoma, a rare tumor in childhood.

Methods:  We describe a new case of pediatric AIS due to a previously unknown atrial myxoma and we conduct a literature review on children with AIS due to cardiac myxoma. Read More