Pediatric brain tumors, particularly those affecting the brainstem, present a significant challenge due to their intricate anatomical location and diverse classification. This review explores the classification, anatomical considerations, and surgical approaches for pediatric brainstem tumors, focusing on recent updates from the World Health Organization (WHO) classification. Brainstem tumors encompass a spectrum from diffuse gliomas to focal intrinsic and exophytic types, each presenting unique clinical and surgical challenges.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBacterial endophytes constitute a very diverse community and they confer important benefits which help to improve agricultural yield. Some of these benefits remain underexplored or little understood, mainly due to the bottlenecks associated with the plant feature, a low number of endophytic bacterial cells in relation to the plant, and difficulties in accessing these bacteria using cultivation-independent methods. Enriching endophytic bacterial cells from plant tissues, based on a non-biased, cultivation-independent physical enrichment method, may help to circumvent those problems, especially in the case of sugarcane stems, which have a high degree of interfering factors, such as polysaccharides, phenolic compounds, nucleases, and fibers.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMastery of the expanded endoscopic endonasal approach (EEA) requires anatomical knowledge and surgical skills; the learning curve for this technique is steep. To a great degree, these skills can be gained by cadaveric dissections; however, ethical, religious, and legal considerations may interfere with this paradigm in different regions of the world. We assessed an artificial cranial base model for the surgical simulation of EEA and compared its usefulness with that of cadaveric specimens.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe present the case of a 50-year-old female with a 1-year history of right-side facial numbness, as well as an electric shock-like sensation on the right-side of the face and tongue. She was previously diagnosed with vertigo and trigeminal neuralgia. MRI was obtained showing a large right cerebellopontine angle mass.
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