Brain Removal With an Occipital Hinge Preserving Overlying Anatomy.

Brain removal during a gross anatomy course in medical school serves multiple purposes. It allows for the teaching of cranial vault anatomy, as well as the external brain, cranial nerves, and cerebral vasculature. Techniques to remove the brain while preserving these delicate structures generally damage the overlying anatomy of the dura and suboccipital triangle.

A plasmid containing the human metallothionein-II gene selectively distinguishes trivalent lanthanum from several divalent heavy metal cations during monoclonal antibody-assisted agarose gel electrophoresis.

Trivalent lanthanide ions are known for their ability to interact with calcium-binding sites in various proteins. There is a need to assess the bioavailability of lanthanides and other heavy metals introduced into the body as components of implants or as contrast agents. This study aimed to develop a method to address bioavailability and/or presence of trivalent lanthanide ions by examining electrophoretic mobility in an agarose gel of a plasmid harboring the human metallothionein-II gene ().

A plasmid containing the human metallothionein II gene can function as an antibody-assisted electrophoretic biosensor for heavy metals.

Different forms of heavy metals affect biochemical systems in characteristic ways that cannot be detected with typical metal analysis methods like atomic absorption spectrometry. Further, using living systems to analyze interaction of heavy metals with biochemical systems can be laborious and unreliable. To generate a reliable easy-to-use biologically-based biosensor system, the entire human metallothionein-II (MT-II) gene was incorporated into a plasmid (pUC57-MT) easily replicated in Escherichia coli.

Fine needle aspiration cytology of collecting duct carcinoma of the kidney: report of a case with distinctive features and differential diagnosis.

Background: The relative rarity of collecting duct carcinoma (CDC) of the kidney in conjunction with a lack of distinctive cytologic features is a diagnostic challenge for any cytopathologist when dealing with such a tumor on fine needle aspiration cytology. In previous cytologic reports, CDC is not well characterized, and the features overlapped with those of high grade renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Because of the differences in behavior and treatment from conventional RCC, it is important to attempt to diagnose this tumor correctly.