title: Marked Elevation of Excitatory Amino Acids in Cerebrospinal Fluid Obtained From Patients With Rotavirus-Associated Encephalopathy.
abstract: Rotavirus is the most common cause of severe gastroenteritis in young children; however, its pathogenesis and immunity are not completely understood. Even less well recognized is rotavirus-induced central nervous system (CNS) involvement, which has been associated with seizure, encephalopathy and death, among others. To elucidate the host response to rotavirus infection, we retrospectively examined neurotransmitter amino acids in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of 19 children with CNS involvement associated with rotavirus infection. Subjects were classified into two groups: those with encephalopathy followed by prolonged seizure (encephalopathy group) and those who had experienced afebrile, brief cluster of seizures without encephalopathy (cluster group). The levels of glutamate, glycine, and taurine in the encephalopathy group were significantly higher than those in the cluster group. Increased levels of excitatory amino acids in the CSF may induce neurological disorders and be related to disorder severity. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report regarding amino acids in the CSF obtained from patients with rotavirus-induced CNS involvement. Further study is necessary to elucidate the role of CSF amino acid levels in rotavirus-induced CNS involvement.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Tokyo Medical University, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasuyo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kashiwagi
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Tokyo Medical University, Japan.
authors.forename: Hisashi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kawashima
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Tokyo Medical University, Japan.
authors.forename: Shunsuke
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Tokyo Medical University, Japan.
authors.forename: Shigeo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nishimata
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Tokyo Medical University, Japan.
authors.forename: Koji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Takekuma
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Tokyo Medical University, Japan.
authors.forename: Akinori
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hoshika
mesh_terms: D001927:Brain Diseases / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid* / Q000821:virology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D018846:Excitatory Amino Acids / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid*; D005260:Female; D018698:Glutamic Acid / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D012401:Rotavirus / Q000502:physiology*; D012400:Rotavirus Infections / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid* / Q000821:virology*
chemical_list: D018846:Excitatory Amino Acids; D018698:Glutamic Acid
keywords: CNS; CSF; EAAs; IAAs; rotavirus infection