The human tongue slows down to speak: muscle fibers of the human tongue.

Little is known about the specializations of human tongue muscles. In this study, myofibrillar adenosine triphosphatase (mATPase) histochemical staining was used to study the percentage and distribution of slow twitch muscle fibers (slow MFs) within tongue muscles of four neurologically normal human adults and specimens from a 2-year-old human, a newborn human, an adult with idiopathic Parkinson's disease (IPD), and a macaque monkey. The average percentage of slow MFs in adult and the 2-year-old muscle specimens was 54%, the IPD was 45%, while the neonatal human (32%) and macaque monkey (28%) had markedly fewer slow MFs.

Anatomical localization of motor endplate bands in the human biceps brachii.

Objectives: : Botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT) reduces disabling muscle contraction in numerous disorders with muscle overactivity. While motor endplates are the primary site of action for BoNT, their location is unknown in most human muscles. This study localized the motor endplate bands (MEB) within human biceps brachii (BB) muscles in relation to external landmarks.

Autologous cartilage grafts enhanced by a novel transplant medium using fibrin sealant and fibroblast growth factor.

Objective: To introduce and assess a system for the delivery of fibroblast growth factor to autologous cartilage grafts using fibrin sealant and analyze whether this "enhancement" results in reduced rates of cartilage resorption and greater preservation of normal architectural features compared with "unenhanced" cartilage grafts.

Methods: Auricular cartilage segments measuring 1 cm(2) were harvested from 12 New Zealand white rabbits, morselized, and implanted into the subcutaneous dorsum of the upper back for 3 months. The conditions included (1) cartilage alone; (2) cartilage + fibrin sealant; (3/4) cartilage + acidic or basic fibroblast growth factor (aFGF or bFGF); and (5/6) cartilage + fibrin sealant + aFGF or bFGF.