Evidence suggests that pathogen-associated pattern recognition receptors (Toll-like receptors, TLRs) are implicated in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. TLRs are important in both peripheral immune responses and neuronal plasticity. However, the relationship between peripheral TLR expression and regional brain volumes is unknown in schizophrenia. We therefore assessed 30 drug-naïve, first-episode patients with schizophrenia. TLR4+/TLR1+ monocytes were measured using flow-cytometry. High resolution magnetic resonance images (T1 MRI) were obtained and analyzed with FreeSurfer. Results revealed significant negative correlations between the percentage of TLR4+ monocytes, mean fluorescent intensities, and brain volumes in frontal and anterior cingulate regions. The measures of TLR1+ monocytes did not show significant relationships with regional brain volumes. These results raise the possibility that abnormal TLR-activation is associated with decreased brain volumes in schizophrenia.

Objective - Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is the most common cause of recurrent vertigo. Inflammation is a hypothetic etiological factor in BPPV. The aim of this study was to evaluate inflammatory biomarker levels in BPPV patients and compare these with the healthy subjects. Materials and methods - This prospective case-control study was conducted with 114 newly diagnosed BPPV patients and age- and sex- matched 83 healthy subjects. The laboratory investigations included serum hemogram, full biochemistry profiles, vitamin levels, thyroid hormone profiles, high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR). Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and monocyte to HDL-cholesterol ratio (MHR) values were calculated and compared between the patients and healthy subjects. Results - The mean age was 39.1 ± 12.4 years for patients, and 37.0 ± 11.9 for controls. Vitamin B12, hematocrit (Hct), creatinine, urea, and fT4 values, lymphocyte, total bilirubin, direct bilirubin and indirect bilirubin levels were significantly lower in BPPV patients (p ˂ 0.05), while HDL, SGOT, and ESR values were significantly higher. In the BPPV patients the mean NLR, PLR, and mean platelet volume (MPV) values were significantly higher than in the control subjects. Neutrophil, platelet, monocyte, MHR, and CRP values were similar in both groups (p ˃ 0.05). Conclusion - Our result suggests that NLR, PLR, MPV, ESR, and bilirubin levels should be taken into account as potential biomarkers of BPPV. As they are inexpensive parameters and widely available, they can be used in clinical practice for prediction of BPPV. However, further large-scale studies are required to confirm this relationship.

[Assessment of early atherosclerosis and decreased arterial elasticity to recognise the cardiovascular dysfunction in high-risk patients has gained importance in the past decade. Since 1990, more than 630 papers have been published in the adult and pediatric literature. Methods of early risk assessment in adults are well determined in international recommendations. The aim of the present work is to review the suggestions of the American Heart Association helping us to find the most appropriate method for the non invasive methods of cardiovascular assessment of young adults and children. Furthermore, multicentric studies should be conducted to create a Framingham like score system for pediatric patients, to render cardiovascular risk assessment much easier for the every day routine.]

[INTRODUCTION - An association of Chlamydia pneumoniae (C. pneumoniae) with coronary heart disease has been found with seroepidemiological methods. This organism was demonstrated in atheromatous plaques by electron microscopy, immunohistochemistry, and polymerase chain reaction. MATERIAL AND METHODS - To better understand the significance of the presence of C. pneumoniae in atheromatous plaques, we examined coronary artery segments from young adults (15-34 years) with and without atherosclerosis. 74 samples of left anterior descending artery were examined immunohistochemically for the presence of C. pneumoniae by the monoclonal antibody RR402. RESULTS - C. pneumoniae was identified in the atheroma in 11 of 17 cases (65%) and in preatheroma in 6 of 15 cases (40%), in fatty streak in 7 of 23 cases (30%) and in intimal thickening in 1 of 14 cases (7%). C. pneumoniae was not found in the intimal and medial layer of the normal-appearing coronary arteries. C. pneumoniae was detected in the adventitia in 51 cases (67%) of the coronary arteries: in the normal arteries and initial lesions in 27 of 42 cases (63%), and in the advanced lesions in 24 of 32 cases (75%). Correlation was observed between the C. pneumoniae positive cases and cigarette smoking. CONCLUSION - Our results suggest that C. pneumoniae may relate to the severity of atherosclerosis in the youth, thus may initiate atherosclerotic injury or facilitate its progression along with other risk factors.]

Background - Lumbar disc herniation (LDH) causes major disabilities worldwide. Several studies in the literature had reported the correlation between radiculopathy and inflammatory markers. Mean platelet volume (MPV), red cell distribution width (RDW) and neutrophil to lymphocyte (N/L) ratio are parameters of hemogram which have been found to be associated with inflammatory conditions. Purpose - Since inflammation has an important role in lumbar disc hernias, and RDW, MPV and N/L ratio are also known to be in correlation with inflammation, we have investigated these parameters of the patients with lumbar disc hernias and compared them with the results of the healthy subjects. Methods - Our study group was composed of patients with lumbar disc hernia, whereas the control group was consisted of healthy volunteers whom visited our outpatient clinics for a routine check-up. Patient characteristics and hemogram parameters of the study cohort were obtained from computerized database system of our institution. SPSS software (SPSS 15.0 for Windows, Chicago, IL, USA) was used for the analysis. Results - There was no significant difference between study and control groups in terms of WBC, neutrophil count, lymphocyte count, neu\lym ratio, Hb, Htc, MCV, and PLT levels (all p>0.05). RDW was significantly increased in study group [15.6 (12.3-22.5)] when compared to control group [14.5(11.9-16.3)] (p=0.004). And MPV in the study group [9.25 (6.38-14.5)] was also significantly increased in comparison to the control subjects [8.8 (6-10.1)] (p=0.013). Discussion - In this retrospective study, we found that, RDW and MPV values in hemograms were increased in patients with lumbar disc herniation when compared to the control group. Conclusions - We suggest that, elevated RDW and MPV may help physicians in decision taking to order radiological imagings in patients with symptoms which can be associated with possible LDH diagnosis. However, for the sake of precision, prospective studies with larger populations are needed.