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Background The importance of autoimmune encephalitis and its overlap with infectious encephalitides are not well investigated in South-East Asia. Methods We report autoantibody testing, using antigen-specific live cell-based assays, in a series of 134 patients (cerebrospinal fluid and sera) and 55 blood donor controls (sera), undergoing lumbar puncture for suspected meningoencephalitis admitted in Vientiane, Lao People's Democratic Republic (PDR). Results Eight of 134 (6%) patients showed detectable serum neuronal autoantibodies, against the N-methyl-D-aspartate and gamma-aminobutyric acid A receptors (NMDAR and GABAAR), and contactin-associated protein-like 2 (CASPR2). Three of eight patients had accompanying autoantibodies in cerebrospinal fluid (two with NMDAR and one with GABAAR antibodies), and in two of these the clinical syndromes were typical of autoimmune encephalitis. Three of the other five patients had proven central nervous system infections, highlighting a complex overlap between diverse infectious and autoimmune causes of encephalitis. No patients in this cohort were treated with immunotherapy, and the outcomes were poor, with improvement observed in a single patient. Conclusions In Lao PDR, autoimmune encephalitis is underdiagnosed and has a poor prognosis. Empiric immunotherapy should be considered after treatable infectious aetiologies are considered unlikely. Awareness and diagnostic testing resources for autoimmune encephalitis should be enhanced in South-East Asia.

WOS:000556540500002 ; Since December 2019, the disease caused by a new type of coronavirus called "New Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19)" has spread rapidly from Wuhan to other provinces of the Republic of China, and then to the entire world (1). With this pandemic around the world and in Turkey, very strong and shocking changes occurred in the flow of life, lifestyle, habits, education, politics, and the economy. Many issues related to COVID-19 have been discussed in the media, mostly new faces, new opinions, new expressions, mostly of scientists and physicians who have rarely been seen before have started to appear in media. With this fast-developing situation threatening the existence of all humanity, the perception of life, today and the future, has differentiated, and death has been considered more than ever before. In this process, new terms and concepts, which have never been used before or used very little, have started to be used frequently

Infectious agents have been investigated, developed, and used by both governments and terrorist groups as weapons of mass destruction. CNS infections, though traditionally considered less often than respiratory diseases in this scenario, may be very important. Viruses responsible for encephalitides can be highly infectious in aerosol form. CNS involvement in anthrax is ominous but should change treatment. Brucellosis, plague, Q fever, and other bacteria can uncommonly manifest with meningoencephalitis and other findings. Emerging diseases may also pose threats. We review infectious agents of particular concern for purposes of biowarfare with respect to CNS manifestations and imaging features.

AbstractBackground Listeria monocytogenes is an opportunistic gram-positive, facultative intracellular bacterium that causes invasive diseases mostly in pregnant women and immunosuppressed patients. Despite the predilection toward the central nervous system (CNS), it usually causes meningitis and meningoencephalitis, whereas brain abscesses are very uncommon.Case presentation We describe the case of a 69-year-old homeless patient with a brain abscess due to L. monocytogenes who was successfully treated surgically by a guided stereotactic aspiration and antibiotic therapy with ampicillin and gentamicin. Our patient was discharged after 4 weeks of therapy without neurologic deficits. Additionally, we provide a review of the literature of brain abscesses caused by L. monocytogenes.Conclusions This case highlights the need to drain cerebral abscesses and culture pus to correctly treat patients with antibiotics, especially given the high mortality rate of this infectious entity.

This work was supported with Fonds Européens de Développement Régional funds from the European Union within the Project "Programme de Coopération Scientifique sur les Maladies Animales Emergentes dans l'Océan Indien." ; International audience ; Rift Valley fever (RVF) is caused by a Phlebovirus (family Bunyaviridae) transmitted by a wide range of mosquitoes (1). This zoonotic disease is present in Africa, the Middle East, and Madagascar. Infections by RVF virus (RVFV) in ruminants cause massive abortions in livestock and high death rates in young animals, which result in major economic consequences. Humans are infected by mosquito bites, contact, or inhalation of aerosols. RVF is frequently unapparent or mild for humans, inducing an influenza-like illness that occasionally leads to more serious complications such as hemorrhage, meningoencephalitis, retinopathy, or even death. The improvement of the Comorian veterinary services and the setting up of surveillance programs are essential to limit the risk of introducing devastating diseases in the area.

This work was supported with Fonds Européens de Développement Régional funds from the European Union within the Project "Programme de Coopération Scientifique sur les Maladies Animales Emergentes dans l'Océan Indien." ; International audience ; Rift Valley fever (RVF) is caused by a Phlebovirus (family Bunyaviridae) transmitted by a wide range of mosquitoes (1). This zoonotic disease is present in Africa, the Middle East, and Madagascar. Infections by RVF virus (RVFV) in ruminants cause massive abortions in livestock and high death rates in young animals, which result in major economic consequences. Humans are infected by mosquito bites, contact, or inhalation of aerosols. RVF is frequently unapparent or mild for humans, inducing an influenza-like illness that occasionally leads to more serious complications such as hemorrhage, meningoencephalitis, retinopathy, or even death. The improvement of the Comorian veterinary services and the setting up of surveillance programs are essential to limit the risk of introducing devastating diseases in the area.

This work was supported with Fonds Européens de Développement Régional funds from the European Union within the Project "Programme de Coopération Scientifique sur les Maladies Animales Emergentes dans l'Océan Indien." ; International audience ; Rift Valley fever (RVF) is caused by a Phlebovirus (family Bunyaviridae) transmitted by a wide range of mosquitoes (1). This zoonotic disease is present in Africa, the Middle East, and Madagascar. Infections by RVF virus (RVFV) in ruminants cause massive abortions in livestock and high death rates in young animals, which result in major economic consequences. Humans are infected by mosquito bites, contact, or inhalation of aerosols. RVF is frequently unapparent or mild for humans, inducing an influenza-like illness that occasionally leads to more serious complications such as hemorrhage, meningoencephalitis, retinopathy, or even death. The improvement of the Comorian veterinary services and the setting up of surveillance programs are essential to limit the risk of introducing devastating diseases in the area.

This work was supported with Fonds Européens de Développement Régional funds from the European Union within the Project "Programme de Coopération Scientifique sur les Maladies Animales Emergentes dans l'Océan Indien." ; International audience ; Rift Valley fever (RVF) is caused by a Phlebovirus (family Bunyaviridae) transmitted by a wide range of mosquitoes (1). This zoonotic disease is present in Africa, the Middle East, and Madagascar. Infections by RVF virus (RVFV) in ruminants cause massive abortions in livestock and high death rates in young animals, which result in major economic consequences. Humans are infected by mosquito bites, contact, or inhalation of aerosols. RVF is frequently unapparent or mild for humans, inducing an influenza-like illness that occasionally leads to more serious complications such as hemorrhage, meningoencephalitis, retinopathy, or even death. The improvement of the Comorian veterinary services and the setting up of surveillance programs are essential to limit the risk of introducing devastating diseases in the area.

Vilyuisk encephalomyelitis (VEM) is a degenerative disease of the central nervous system, in the acute form it is manifested by meningoencephalitis that tends to develop into a prolonged chronically progressive pan-encephalitis. Rapidly progressive variant of the disease is characterized by fatal consequences within 12 months. Despite 60 years of investigation of Vilyui encephalomyelitis by experienced scholars, the cause of the disease has not been yet clarified, however, there are some obvious clinical, pathological and epidemiological evidences that VEM is a contagious infectious disease that distributes as latent and chronic infections. In the structure of VEM, a special place is occupied by unique variants of the disease with a two-phase course of the disease. We assume that this group of diseases is caused by serotypes Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV). If VEM is caused by TMEV, it is likely that these viruses have a special mechanism of transmission to susceptible populations of Homo sapiens. The disease may be caused by the non-structural L* protein of the virus.