World Brain Congress December 5-7, 2018 Carlton Palace Hotel, Dubai. UAE

Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (mTBI) patients may have trauma-induced brain lesions detectable using CT scans. However, most patients will be CT-negative. There is thus a need for an additional tool to detect patients at risk. Combining several biomarkers into panels has become increasingly interesting for diagnoses and to enhance classification performance. The present study evaluated 13 proteins individually—H-FABP, MMP-1, MMP-3, MMP-9, VCAM, ICAM, SAA, CRP, GSTP, NKDA, PRDX1, DJ-1, and IL-10—for their capacity to differentiate between patients with and without a brain lesion according to CT results. The best performing proteins were then compared and combined with the S100B and GFAP proteins into a CT scan triage panel. Patients diagnosed with mTBI, with a Glasgow Coma Scale score of 15 and one additional clinical symptoms were enrolled at three different European sites. Patients were divided into two cohorts and further dichotomized into CT-positive and CT-negative groups. Single markers and panels were evaluated using Cohort 1. Four proteins—H-FABP, IL-10, S100B, and GFAP—showed significantly higher levels in CT-positive patients. The best-performing biomarker was H-FABP, with a specificity of 32% (95% CI 23–40) and sensitivity reaching 100%. The best-performing two-marker panel for Cohort 1, subsequently validated in Cohort 2, was a combination of H-FABP and GFAP, enhancing specificity to 46% (95% CI 36–55). When adding IL-10 to this panel, specificity reached 52% (95% CI 43–61) with 100% sensitivity. These results showed that proteins combined into panels could be used to efficiently classify CT-positive and CT-negative mTBI patients.

Specialized in neurobiology, neuropsychology, clinical psychotherapy sciences affective and neurocognitive sciences. Head of the research department at Group Psylux. S.A (www.psylux.eu), member of the scientifi c committee of AVM-Luxembourg, head of Traumainstitut Luxembourg (www.traumainstitut.lu) and neuro academy Luxembourg (www.neuroacademy.lu), lecturer at different institutes such as AAP-Wien, MSK-Cario, Key speaker at World Food Programme (WFP) in Madrid, guest lecturer at Sigmund Freud Private University in Vienna.

 

Negative symptoms in schizophrenic patients include anhedonia, affective impoverishment, speech impoverishment, affective flattening, indifference, reduced drive, reduced psychomotor activities, such as mimic and gestures, limited voice modulation, impoverishment of speech and impulse dysregulation. In addition, there are usually cognitive impairments in the form of attention and concentration disorders. Neuro feedback is an operant method based on spontaneous EEG derivations. We applied a neurofeedback protocol consisting of two main phases to reduce the negative symptoms and to enhance the quality of speech. Each week, over the period of one month, there were five treatment sessions (Monday to Friday, one session per day). The training session took 45 minutes each. We performed pre-treatment and post-treatment assessments and they both included the following tests: GAF, PANSS, CompACT (different go/no-go tasks with measurement of the reaction time and reaction exactitude), QEEG data and speech analyses of speech protocols. The results were significant, as the posttreatment assessment confirmed that the participants no longer met the initial criteria set as preconditions to be met by participants in this study.

International Practiced School Counsellor with 14 years of experience in the education industry. My educational qualifi cation includes but is not limited to master’s in counseling and psychotherapy, Post Graduate Diploma in Child and Youth Counselling & bachelors in psychology. I have gained experience as a school counselor in Saudi Arabia, Australia, and UAE. My articles have been published in many international magazines and newspapers. I love to blog in my free time – Meet Your Counselor. My blog gives clarity to school counselors across UAE on how to run a successful counseling program which is in line with the Ministry of Education Behavior Program.

Aman PS Sohal is a U.K Board certifi ed Consultant Pediatric Neurologist with over 11 years of experience in Pediatrics which includes more than fi ve years of experience as a Consultant in Pediatric Neurology. He completed his comprehensive postgraduate training in General Pediatrics and Neonatology as a pediatric resident and registrar in prestigious Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Liverpool U.K. He obtained his Membership of the Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health (MRCPCH), U.K in 2006. He then trained as a senior registrar in the fi eld of Pediatric Neurology from The Great North Children’s Hospital, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, U.K. He was awarded Completion of Certifi ed Training (CCT) in Pediatric Neurology and Pediatrics by the Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health in 2012. Dr. Sohal is one of the very few Pediatric Neurologists in the U.K who also trained in Pediatric Neurophysiology as a post CCT fellow. Due to his additional experience, he is proficient in interpreting and carrying out pediatric EEG’s, Nerve conduction study and Needle Electromyography.

 

 

Habitual events, behaviors and non-epileptic events can be easily confused with epileptic seizures in children in the absence of clear description and can be challenging, even for an experienced clinician. The aim was to report on the usefulness of adding video-EEG to routine EEG studies of infants and children with frequent atypical paroxysmal events. A retrospective analysis of video-EEG carried over a 2-year period in a tertiary pediatric neurology center. Outcomes were classified as conclusive epileptic, conclusive non-epileptic, unremarkable and inconclusive. 44 children (M: F 19:25) with an age range of 1 to 15 years (mean: 7 years, median: 8.5 years) were analyzed. 30 (68%) children had successful epilepsy classification. A diagnosis of a specific non-epileptic event was reached in 55% of cases. Antiepileptic drugs were discontinued completely in 8 patients (20%) and the total number of antiepileptic drugs was reduced in 13 others (33%). Paroxysmal non-epileptic events can cause diagnostic confusion, particularly in children with developmental delay, epilepsy (especially refractory epilepsy), or those with previous "abnormal" EEG. Accurate diagnosis can be reached in the majority of cases using prolonged video-EEG monitoring.

Anjali Raj has completed her Masters With GPAT scholarship at the age of 25 years from JSS Academy of higher education and research and is currently pursuing her doctoral studies from the same institution. Her major fi eld of interest is Alzheimer’s Disease and aspires to find a cure to the disease which benfi te the sufferers without affecting their quality of life. She is a DST inspire fellow and only has one publication to her credit.                                  

 

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disease pathetically affecting the quality of life of the individual struck by it, especially the geriatric population. Pathologically characterized by A-beta and tau depositions, the AD has a profound functional deficit of the “sense of smell” which remain unnoticed and could possibly be an effective target to diminish the dementia symptoms associated. Lavender oil (LO) is a rich source of linalool and is found to be a potent calming remedy in humans and an effective neuroprotective. Inhalation of LO by an Amyloid beta1-42 ((Aβ) Intracerebroventricular) injected female C57BL/6 mice could significantly reduce the Aβ induced primary olfactory dysfunction followed by memory deficits measured through behavioral studies. Levels of Serotonin, GABA and glutamate neurotransmitters in the olfactory bulb and hippocampus along with acetylcholinesterase levels were proportional to the animal’s behavioral response and provided basic mechanistic support of LO in the enhancement of cognitive domain. Aromatherapy is considered as one of the best alternative solutions to numerous health problems especially those related to brain and our study contributes significant evidence to consider them as an effective replacement to better the disease without affecting the patient’s daily life. Further combinatorial studies could also position them as a viable adjunct along with the conventional treatment routines prescribed for the AD sufferers.

Human protein DJ-1 protects neurons from oxidative stress and early onset of Parkinson’s disease via an unknown mechanism. We have recently demonstrated that a small fraction of hexahistidine-tagged human DJ-1 overexpressed in bacterial cells undergo a transient post-translational modification on reactive cysteine (Cys106) forming a stable carboxymethyl adduct upon purification of DJ-1 from the bacterial lysate. Here, we demonstrate that compared to bacterial expression, a much higher proportion of DJ-1 is modified on Cys106 when the protein is overexpressed in methylotrophic yeast. Since methylotrophic yeast oxidizes methanol using molecular oxygen to generate hydrogen peroxide and formaldehyde, DJ-1 is likely to be exposed to a significant oxidative stress, suggesting that the extent of transient post-translational modification may reflect the severity of oxidant stress. To test this hypothesis we have studied whether the extent of the post-translational modification of Cys106 correlates with oxidative stress. We have found that rotenone-induced oxidative stress increases the amount of posttranslationally modified DJ-1 in mammalian cells. The addition of mouse brain cytosol to cell lysate with overexpressed DJ-1 resulted in a reduction of transiently modified DJ-1 suggesting the existence of a pathway that converts modified DJ-1. We conclude that an unknown metabolite reacts with Cys106 of DJ-1 to result in a relatively stable post-translational modification. This modification is different from simple oxidation to sulfinic or sulfonic acids and confers altered binding properties to DJ-1 suggesting that it may serve as a signal for sensing of oxidant stress.

 

Mariam Chighladze has completed her Ph.D. from Saint Andrew the First-Called Georgian University of the Patriarchate of Georgia. She is working as a Laboratory Assistant at Ivane Beritashvili Center of Experimental Biomedicine-Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Functions. She has published more than 4 papers.

Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease that causes progressive cognitive and behavioral impairment in the elderly. It is widely believed that changes in the cerebral activity of protein phosphatases have been implicated in the pathogenesis of AD. Okadaic acid (OA) is a potent and selective inhibitor of protein phosphatases. OA induced memory deficit and elevation of Ca2+ was found to be correlated with neurotoxicity and N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor emerged as a plausible link. According to available data, the NMDA receptor antagonists (including memantine) have the potential to perform a neuroprotective role in neurodegenerative processes caused by Ca2+ ionotoxicity. In the present study, the possible beneficial effect of memantine on the Okadaic Acid (OA) induced spatial short-term memory impairment was examined in spatial alternation task. OA was dissolved in artificial cerebrospinal fluid (aCSF) and injected intracerebroventricularly (ICV) 200 ng in a volume of 10 μl bilaterally. Vehicle control received aCSF ICV bilaterally. Control and OA injected rats were divided into 2 subgroups injected i.p. with saline or memantine (5 mg/kg,) Memantine or saline were given daily for 13 days starting from the day of OA injection. The behavioral study showed that bilateral ICV microinjection of OA induced impairment in spatial short-term memory and chronic administration of memantine effectively attenuated OA induced spatial short-term memory impairment. Therefore, ICV injection of OA can be used as an experimental model to study mechanisms of neurodegeneration and define novel therapeutic targets for AD pathology.

Mariya Kilina is an ungraduated student at the Humanitarian Institute of Novosibirsk State University. Alexander Savostyanov has completed his Ph.D. at the age of 24 years from Institute of Physiology and Basic Medicine and Scientifi c Doctor Degree at the age of 31 years from Saint-Petersburg State University. He is the Full Professor at the Novosibirsk State University, and the head of the laboratory of Psychological Genetics at the Institute of Cytology and Genetics of SB RAS, and the staff-leading scientist at the Institute of Physiology and Basic Medicine, Novosibirsk, Russia. He has published more than 50 papers in reputed journals.

Event-related potentials (ERPs) represent different phases of external signal recognition. The aim of our research was to compare the responses to adjectives referenced to self and other among subjects who differ in their personalities. 42 Novosibirsk State University students, all healthy and right-handed, were invited as participants (mean age is 22.6 years). All of them replied to psychological questionnaires defining their personality traits. 90 words in Russian describing people’s personalities were used. They were divided into 3 equal categories: emotionally neutral, positive and negative. Subjects were asked to consistently attribute each word to four people: self, loved one, unpleasant one and neutral one. EEG was recorded on a 128-channel Brain Products amplifier, Germany. Event-related potentials were chosen as a measure of brain activity in the condition of a task execution. We showed that the P300 component reflects reference to one of four people. The largest amplitude was observed when subjects matched adjectives to an unpleasant person. N600 component reflects the emotionality of the word itself. The largest amplitude of this component was observed in response to emotionally positive words. The amplitudes of these components correlated with such personality characteristics as extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism measured by the Goldberg’s questionnaire. In conclusion, ERPs reflect both semantic peculiarities of recognized words and the subject’s personality in self- and other-referenced adjectives recognition task. The study was supported by the Russian Science Foundation, grant 17-18-01019.

Dr. Zogopoulos Panagiotis is a neurosurgeon specialized in medical acupuncture. He has completed his PhD

from the University of Athens (School of Medicine) and has received advanced clinical training (clinical research fellowship) at the Neurosurgery department of Osaka University hospital in Japan. He is currently the Chief of Medical Acupuncture Department at Metropolitan hospital (Athens, Greece) and has published a large number of papers in various international scientific journals.