Such adenosine analogs are potentially clinically useful since they can be taken orally. Anti-inflammatory properties
Adenosine is believed to be an anti-inflammatory agent at the A2A receptor. Topical treatment of adenosine to foot wounds in diabetes mellitus has been shown in lab animals to drastically increase tissue repair and reconstruction. Topical administration of adenosine for use in wound-healing deficiencies and diabetes mellitus in humans is currently under clinical investigation. Methotrexates anti-inflammatory effect may be due to its stimulation of adenosine release. Central nervous system
In general, adenosine has an inhibitory effect in the central nervous system (CNS). Caffeines stimulatory effects are credited primarily (although not entirely) to its capacity to block adenosine receptors, thereby reducing the inhibitory tonus of adenosine in the CNS. This reduction in adenosine activity leads to increased activity of the neurotransmitters dopamine and glutamate. Experimental evidence suggests that adenosine and adenosine agonists can activate Trk receptor phosphorylation through a mechanism that requires the adenosine A2A receptor. Hair
Adenosine has been shown to promote thickening of hair on people with thinning hair. A 2013 study compared topical adenosine with minoxidil in male androgenetic alopecia, finding it was as potent as minoxidil (in overall treatment outcomes) but with higher satisfaction rate with patients due to “faster prevention of hair loss and appearance of the newly grown hairs” (further trials were called for to clarify the findings). Sleep
The principal component of cannabis delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and the endocannabinoid anandamide (AEA) induce sleep in rats by increasing adenosine levels in the basal forebrain.
A study in 268 MS patients and 155 controls reported more a frequency of CCSVI in the MS group that was more than twice as high as in the controls group and was also higher in the progressive MS group than in the non-progressive MS group. This study found no relationship between CCSVI and HLA DRB1*1501, a genetic variation that has been consistently linked to MS. Diagnosis
CCSVI was first described using specialized extracranial and transcranial doppler sonography. Five ultrasound criteria of venous drainage have been proposed to be characteristic of the syndrome, although two are considered sufficient for diagnosis of CCSVI:
reflux in the internal jugular and vertebral veins,
reflux in the deep cerebral veins,
high-resolution B-mode ultrasound evidence of stenosis of the internal jugular vein,
absence of flow in the internal jugular or vertebral veins on Doppler ultrasound, and
reverted postural control of the main cerebral venous outflow pathways.It is still not clear whether magnetic resonance venography, venous angiography, or Doppler sonography should be considered the gold standard for the diagnosis of CCSVI. Use of magnetic resonance venography for the diagnosis of CCSVI in MS patients has been proposed by some to have limited value, and should be used only in combination with other techniques. Others have stated that magnetic resonance venography is a valid measure which has advantages over Doppler including the fact that results are more operator-independent.Diagnostic criteria have been criticized. Both the number of criteria and the need of being positive for two of them as enough for diagnosis are arbitrary ideas.