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      Cerebral amyloid angiopathy-related inflammation presenting with steroid-responsive higher brain dysfunction: case report and review of the literature

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          Abstract

          A 56-year-old man noticed discomfort in his left lower limb, followed by convulsion and numbness in the same area. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed white matter lesions in the right parietal lobe accompanied by leptomeningeal or leptomeningeal and cortical post-contrast enhancement along the parietal sulci. The patient also exhibited higher brain dysfunction corresponding with the lesions on MRI. Histological pathology disclosed β-amyloid in the blood vessels and perivascular inflammation, which highlights the diagnosis of cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA)-related inflammation. Pulse steroid therapy was so effective that clinical and radiological findings immediately improved.

          CAA-related inflammation is a rare disease, defined by the deposition of amyloid proteins within the leptomeningeal and cortical arteries associated with vasculitis or perivasculitis. Here we report a patient with CAA-related inflammation who showed higher brain dysfunction that improved with steroid therapy. In cases with atypical radiological lesions like our case, cerebral biopsy with histological confirmation remains necessary for an accurate diagnosis.

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          Most cited references37

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          Neuropathology of human Alzheimer disease after immunization with amyloid-beta peptide: a case report.

          Amyloid-beta peptide (Abeta) has a key role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer disease (AD). Immunization with Abeta in a transgenic mouse model of AD reduces both age-related accumulation of Abeta in the brain and associated cognitive impairment. Here we present the first analysis of human neuropathology after immunization with Abeta (AN-1792). Comparison with unimmunized cases of AD (n = 7) revealed the following unusual features in the immunized case, despite diagnostic neuropathological features of AD: (i) there were extensive areas of neocortex with very few Abeta plaques; (ii) those areas of cortex that were devoid of Abeta plaques contained densities of tangles, neuropil threads and cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) similar to unimmunized AD, but lacked plaque-associated dystrophic neurites and astrocyte clusters; (iii) in some regions devoid of plaques, Abeta-immunoreactivity was associated with microglia; (iv) T-lymphocyte meningoencephalitis was present; and (v) cerebral white matter showed infiltration by macrophages. Findings (i)-(iii) strongly resemble the changes seen after Abeta immunotherapy in mouse models of AD and suggest that the immune response generated against the peptide elicited clearance of Abeta plaques in this patient. The T-lymphocyte meningoencephalitis is likely to correspond to the side effect seen in some other patients who received AN-1792 (refs. 7-9).
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            Subacute meningoencephalitis in a subset of patients with AD after Abeta42 immunization.

            AD is characterized by cerebral deposition of beta-amyloid plaques with amyloid beta-peptide (Abeta) 42 as the major peptide constituent, along with neurofibrillary tangles and neuronal loss. In transgenic mice, active immunization against Abeta42 removes these plaques and improves cognitive function. A Phase I study in AD patients demonstrated good safety and tolerability of multiple injections of aggregated Abeta42 (AN1792) with QS-21 as adjuvant. Three hundred seventy-two patients with mild to moderate AD were randomized to receive IM injections of AN1792 or placebo (4:1) at baseline and at months 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 in a multicenter Phase II safety, tolerability, and pilot efficacy study. Dosing was terminated after four early reports of meningoencephalitis, but follow-up continued. The study remains blinded, and further results will be reported after its termination. Symptoms and laboratory findings consistent with meningoencephalitis occurred in 18 of 298 (6%) patients treated with AN1792 compared with 0 of 74 on placebo (p = 0.020). Sixteen of the 18 had received two doses, one had received one dose, and one had received three doses of the study drug before symptoms occurred. The median latency from the first and last injections to symptoms was 75 and 40 days. No case occurred later than 6 months after the first immunization. Anti-Abeta42 antibody titers were not correlated with the occurrence or severity of symptoms or relapses. Twelve patients recovered to or close to baseline within weeks, whereas six remain with disabling cognitive or neurologic sequelae. All 18 patients remain alive to date (December 31, 2002), 6 months to >1 year after symptom onset. Postvaccination meningoencephalitis occurred without clear relation to serum anti-Abeta42 antibody titers. Potential mechanisms such as T-cell and microglial activation may be responsible and are under consideration to develop a safer anti-Abeta immunotherapy for AD.
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              Clinical manifestations of cerebral amyloid angiopathy-related inflammation.

              To explore the clinical effects of inflammation associated with vascular deposits of the amyloid beta peptide (A beta), we analyzed 42 consecutive patients with pathologically diagnosed cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) for evidence of an inflammatory response. Inflammation with giant-cell reaction surrounding amyloid-laden vessels was identified in 7 of the 42 cases. The clinical symptoms in each of the seven were subacute cognitive decline or seizure rather than hemorrhagic stroke, the primary clinical presentation in 33 of 35 patients with noninflammatory CAA (p < 0.001). Inflammatory CAA also was associated with radiographic white matter abnormalities, significantly younger age at presentation, and a marked overrepresentation of the apolipoprotein E epsilon 4/epsilon 4 genotype (71% vs 4%, p < 0.001). Of the six inflammatory CAA patients with available follow-up information, five demonstrated clinical and radiographic improvement after immunosuppressive treatment. The syndrome of CAA-related perivascular inflammation appears to represent a subset of CAA with clinically distinct symptoms that may respond to immunosuppressive treatment. These data add to evidence that inflammation against A beta can cause vascular dysfunction, a potential mechanism for the toxic response recently observed in clinical trials of A beta immunization.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                J Neuroinflammation
                Journal of Neuroinflammation
                BioMed Central
                1742-2094
                2011
                14 September 2011
                : 8
                : 116
                Affiliations
                [1 ]Department of Neurology, Faculty of Life Sciences, Kumamoto University 1-1-1 Honjo, Kumamoto 860-0811, Japan
                Article
                1742-2094-8-116
                10.1186/1742-2094-8-116
                3185269
                21914214
                b153e3f4-4651-4024-b896-e15528de1119
                Copyright ©2011 Sakaguchi et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

                This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

                History
                : 20 May 2011
                : 14 September 2011
                Categories
                Case Report

                Neurosciences
                cerebral amyloid angiopathy,higher brain dysfunction,caa-related inflammation

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