Afnan Atallah

By Omar Deeb, Afnan Atallah and Sawsan Salameh

Huntington’s disease (HD) is a progressive, non-curative, autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disease characterized by prominent psychiatric problems, as well as progressive deterioration in both cognitive function and motor control. The success of therapeutic interventions in HD patients cannot be easily examined without reliable and practical measurements by using effective biomarkers. Many clinical trials have been held to evaluate biomarkers efficacies in disease-modifying treatment before the manifestation of the disease or its severity. Biofluid (wet) biomarkers have potential advantages of direct quantification of biological processes at the molecular level, imaging biomarkers, on the other hand, can quantify related changes at a structural level in the brain. The most robust biofluid and imaging biomarkers are being investigated for their clinical use and development of future treatment and can offer complementary information, providing a more comprehensive evaluation of disease stage and progression.

Part of the book: From Pathophysiology to Treatment of Huntington's Disease

By Omar Deeb, Sawsan Salameh and Afnan Atallah

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a central nervous system inflammatory illness that begins with immune system dysregulation and impairs information flow inside the brain as well as between the brain and the rest of the body. The cause of MS is yet unknown. The interplay of genetic predispositions with environmental/lifestyle factors, such as smoking, obesity, viral exposure, and insufficient sun exposure, has led to numerous theories. This is reinforced by a major discovery of gene–environment (GxE) interaction, which could provide information on the disease’s molecular pathways to aid in the identification of new therapy and preventative strategies, as well as steer disease exploration to new lifestyle suggestions. While some persons with the major susceptibility to MS have a human leukocyte antigen (HLA) Class II gene, according to genetic studies. We will cover recent studies relating to several genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors, as well as their impact on MS, in this chapter.

Part of the book: Multiple Sclerosis