Activated m icroglia play a major role in the pathogenesis in neurological disorders. The transition of m icroglia from the normal resting state to the activated state is associated w ith an increased expression of receptors known as peripheral benzodiazepine binding sites, which are abundant on cells of mononuclear phagocyte lineage. PK11195 is a ligand which binds selectively to peripheral be...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE A growing body of evidence suggests that inflammatory processes are involved in the pathophysiology of stroke. Phagocyte cells, involving resident microglia and infiltrating macrophages, secrete both protective and toxic molecules and thus represent a potential therapeutic target. The aim of the present study was to monitor phagocytic activity after focal cerebral ischemi...

The production and deployment of phagocytes are central functions of the hematopoietic system. In the 1950s, radioisotopic studies demonstrated the high production rate and short lifespan of neutrophils and allowed researchers to follow the monocytes as they moved from the marrow through the blood to become tissue macrophages, histiocytes, and dendritic cells. Subsequently, the discovery of the...

Primary immunodeficiencies (PIDs) are heritable disorders of immune system function. These defects are rare, but seem to be more frequent in populations with high consanguinity. The defect may affect T cells, B cells, phagocyte cells or complement proteins. Patients have increased susceptibility to recurrent infections, and may suffer from, allergy, auto-immune disorders or cancers. The assessm...

Evidence suggests that dopaminergic mechanisms in the basal ganglia (BG) are important in the learning of sequential associations. To test the specificity of this hypothesis, we assessed never-medicated patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) using a chaining task. In the training phase of the chaining task, each link in a sequence of stimuli leading...

BACKGROUND Despite 30 years of research, some surprisingly fundamental gaps remain in our understanding of schizophrenic input dysfunctions. METHOD In a provisional test of a 'hyperattention' hypothesis, schizophrenic patients and control subjects performed a behavioural test that was adapted from a paradigm originally developed for characterising vigilance or sustained attention in animals. ...

Billions of cells die via apoptosis every day and are swiftly removed. When a phagocyte engulfs an apoptotic cell, it essentially doubles its cellular contents, raising the question of how a phagocyte may manage the excess metabolic load. This Minireview discusses phagocyte cellular metabolism, the digestion of the ingested apoptotic cell, and the impact of these processes on engulfment.