The functional anatomy of organisms is maintained by the coordination of different systems, that often rely on particular interactions between specialized cells and between macromolecules. The immune system works with the circulatory and the lymphatic systems to protect most of the organs. However, some organs are considered immune privileged due to the presence of highly selective and regulated barriers, such as the blood-brain barrier (BBB) within the brain. The BBB controls periphery-brain molecule exchange and prevents immune effector cells from entering the homeostatic brain. BBB-associated elements, such as endothelial cells, pericytes, astrocytes, and microglia, potentially can function as antigen-presenting cells (APC). Pathological scenarios that induce dysfunction of the BBB and its associated cells may lead to the infiltration of lymphocytes crossing over from the blood to brain. Similarly, traumas can also enable B and T lymphocytes to pass bidirectionally between the CNS and the periphery, via the meningeal lymphatic vessels which drain into the cervical lymph nodes. Research in animals and in humans has revealed that B and T cells are involved in the progression of neurological diseases. It has been showed that under particular conditions, T cells establish themselves and become resident in the brain (T RM cells), from where they can either exert beneficial or detrimental effects on brain function. Amazing efforts have been made to further comprehend interactions between brain-specific cells and peripheral immune cells, and especially their roles and impact on the onset, progression, and eventual resolution of diverse brain pathologies.

Dr. David Schlossberg presents his fifth volume in the series Clinical Topics in Infectious Disease, Infections of the Nervous System. This edited monograph brings together the leading authorities in infectious disease, neurology, and radiology to review the diagnosis and treatment of all major neurological infections. Topics covered include meningitis; acute CNS inflammation; infections of CNS shunts; brain and spinal epidural abscesses; the cerebellum and CNS infection; post-infection complications and syndromes; acute viral encephalitis; neurodegenerative peripheral nerve diseases; myelitis; CNS tuberculosis; cryptococcal, fungal, and parasitic infections; neurosyphilis, AIDS; Lyme disease; diagnostic imaging of CNS infection and inflammation; and evaluation of spinal fluid.

With the contribution from more than one hundred CNS neurotrauma experts, this book provides a comprehensive and up-to-date account on the latest developments in the area of neurotrauma including biomarker studies, experimental models, diagnostic methods, and neurotherapeutic intervention strategies in brain injury research. It discusses neurotrauma mechanisms, biomarker discovery, and neurocognitive and neurobehavioral deficits. Also included are medical interventions and recent neurotherapeutics used in the area of brain injury that have been translated to the area of rehabilitation research. In addition, a section is devoted to models of milder CNS injury, including sports injuries.

This book opens a new page of neuro-immunobiology providing substantive experimental and clinical data to support current understanding in the field, and potential applications of this knowledge in the treatment of disease. The volume is a collection of complex, new data drawn from multiple areas of investigation in the field. The contents summarize current understanding on the presence and function of CNS cytokines and their receptors in a variety of CNS cells during health and disease. The chapters are a collection of complex, new data demonstrating the presence and synthesis of cytokines in brain cells, as well as their receptors on cell membranes in health and disease. The strength of the volume are the descriptions of the authors own investigations, together with those of others in the field pertaining to a large number of cytokines in brain function, as well as mechanisms involved in the development of CNS disorders, including multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer's disease. Also included are novel approaches to the treatment of CNS disorders based on new experimental data. The contributors to this volume are internationally known scientists and clinical researchers in their respective fields of investigation and treatment.*Opens a new page of neuro-immunobiology and provides substantive evidence for the promise of this field in the treatment of disease*Summarizes current understanding on the presence and function of central nervous system (CNS) cytokines and their receptors in a variety of CNS cells during health and disease*Includes novel approaches to the treatment of CNS disorders based on new experimental data*Offers new insight into triggers for the development of autoimmune diseases in the brain and the possibilities for treatment

This detailed, practical textbook focuses on immune mediated disorders of the nervous system with particular focus on systemic autoimmune disorders. Divided into three sections, the first discusses the neuroanatomical and pathophysiologic basis of immune mediated disorders of the nervous system. Following this are 25 chapters devoted to individual clinical conditions. To conclude, the final section explains what is known about the mechanisms of immunomodulatory treatments and practical points about monitoring patients on these treatments. Neurorheumatology: A Comprehensive Guide to Immune Mediated Disorders of the Nervous System bridges the gaps among different branches of medicine and is an indispensable resource for rheumatologists and neurologists looking to develop a firm understanding of these dynamic disorders

There is now considerable genetic evidence that the type 4 allele of the apolipoprotein E gene is a major susceptibility factor associated with late-onset Alzheimer's disease, the common form of the disease defined as starting after sixty years of age. The role of apolipoprotein E in normal brain metabolism and in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease are new and exciting avenues of research. This book, written by the most outstanding scientists in this new filed, is the first presentation of results concerning the implications of apolipoprotein E on the genetics, cell biology, neuropathology, biochemistry, and therapeutic management of Alzheimer's disease.

The skin, the body’s largest organ, is strategically located at the interface with the external environment where it detects, integrates and responds to a diverse range of stressors, including solar radiation. It has already been established that the skin is an important peripheral neuroendocrine-immune organ that is closely networked with central regulatory systems. These capabilities contribute to the maintenance of peripheral homeostasis. Specifically, epidermal and dermal cells produce and respond to classical stress neurotransmitters, neuropeptides and hormones, production which is stimulated by ultraviolet radiation (UVR), biological factors (infectious and non-infectious) and other physical and chemical agents. Examples of local biologically active products are cytokines, biogenic amines (catecholamines, histamine, serotonin and N-acetyl-serotonin), melatonin, acetylocholine, neuropeptides including pituitary (proopiomelanocortin-derived ACTH, b-endorphin or MSH peptides, thyroid stimulating hormone) and hypothalamic (corticotropin-releasing factor and related urocortins, thyroid-releasing hormone) hormones, as well as enkephalins and dynorphins, thyroid hormones, steroids (glucocorticoids, mineralocorticoids, sex hormones, 7-δ steroids), secosteroids, opioids and endocannabinoids. The production of these molecules is hierarchical, organized along the algorithms of classical neuroendocrine axes such as the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis (HPA), hypothalamic-thyroid axis (HPT), serotoninergic, melatoninergic, catecholaminergic, cholinergic, steroid/secosteroidogenic, opioid and endocannabinoid systems. Disruptions of these axes or of communication between them may lead to skin and/or systemic diseases. These local neuroendocrine networks also serve to limit the effect of noxious environmental agents to preserve local and consequently global homeostasis. Moreover, the skin-derived factors/systems can also activate cutaneous nerve endings to alert the brain to changes in the epidermal or dermal environments, or alternatively to activate other coordinating centers by direct (spinal cord) neurotransmission without brain involvement. Furthermore, rapid and reciprocal communications between epidermal and dermal and adnexal compartments are also mediated by neurotransmission including antidromic modes of conduction. Lastly, skin cells and the skin as an organ coordinate and/or regulate not only peripheral but also global homeostasis.