Clinical Proteomic Research for the Brain

The purpose of this study is to learn how the brain responds to vascular injuries such as
stroke and/or to various medical or surgical treatments. The researchers will do this by
examining naturally occurring proteins in the blood and urine using state-of-the-art
proteomics techniques.

Proteomics enables a "snapshot" of the body's chemistry at a specific time, either as part
of normal daily function, or in response to a disease or treatment. Studying these
snapshots will help scientists to better understand how people react to neurological
disorders and treatments (such as thrombolysis or other interventions to save damaged
brain).

In the future, this knowledge may allow scientists to better tailor treatments, or to find
the treatment that will be best for an individual person. The long-term goal is to use
these snapshots to improve the ability to guide potentially life-saving therapy with a risky
profile such as tissue plasminogen activator, or tPA, and finding new targets of
intervention.

CASE:

Inclusion Criteria:

- Ischemic brain injury within 12 hours of symptom onset

- Including primary ischemic brain injury from embolism or arterial occlusion or
secondary due to increased ICP after trauma, subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Exclusion Criteria:

- Patients who are hemodynamically unstable for venipunctures

- Anemic patients

- Children

- Pregnant women

CONTROLS:

Inclusion Criteria:

- Healthy adults without any neurologic or systemic disease

- Inpatient or outpatient adults with a chronic stroke (greater than 3 months) or
chronic neurologic disease such as neurodegenerative disease, movement disorder,
demyelinating disease

- Inpatient or outpatient adults with systemic vascular disease.

Exclusion Criteria:

- Patients who are hemodynamically unstable for venipunctures

- Anemic patients

- Children

- Pregnant women