Microvascular anatomy of the cerebellar parafloccular perforating space.

Objective: The cerebellopontine angle is a common site for tumor growth and vascular pathologies requiring surgical manipulations that jeopardize cranial nerve integrity and cerebellar and brainstem perfusion. To date, a detailed study of vessels perforating the cisternal surface of the middle cerebellar peduncle-namely, the paraflocculus or parafloccular perforating space-has yet to be published. In this report, the perforating vessels of the anterior inferior cerebellar artery (AICA) in the parafloccular space, or on the cisternal surface of the middle cerebellar peduncle, are described to elucidate their relevance pertaining to microsurgery and the different pathologies that occur at the cerebellopontine angle.

Self-closing aneurysm clip: a historical review.

Objective: To analyse the self-closing aneurysm clip historical evolution.

Materials And Methods: The authors reviewed the self-closing aneurysm clip's 50-year history. Major neurosurgical books, journals, testimonials, authors' personal experience, and scientific databases were analysed.

Brain retractor systems.

Objective: Reviews of the brain retractor evolution are described. Instrument characteristics as well as the physiopathological and histopathological damage of the brain are induced by brain retraction.

Materials And Methods: The literature related to the brain retractor was reviewed.

Historical evolution of neuroendovascular surgery of intracranial aneurysms: from coils to polymers.

Objectives: The backbone of neuroendovascular surgery was developed in the decades of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Catheter, balloon and coil technologies were further added to the armamentarium of endovascular treatment of cerebral arterial aneurysms and vasospasm.

Material And Methods: Development of detachable coils in the early 1990s was a major breakthrough in the management of intracranial arterial aneurysms.

Cerebral arterial aneurysms: the early period of neuroendovascular therapy.

Objectives: Anatomical concepts derived by surgical management of intracranial aneurysms provided a pathway to the current integration and practice of aneurysm treatment. These important early developments, such as the surgical microscope in the late 1960s, the development of new surgical techniques and catheters and the evolution of imaging technology, have all provided a fundamental sequence to current clinical practice.

Material And Methods: The 1960s can be recognized as the dawn of the current era of aneurysm management.

Baseball bats: a silent weapon.

Objective: The objective of this work was to understand how the baseball bat is a silent weapon. The baseball bat has been utilized illegally in different areas of the world. In the past, several case reports are known for their lethal effect.

Optical character recognition reading aid for the visually impaired.

Objective: An optical character recognition (OCR) reading machine is a significant help for visually impaired patients.

Materials And Methods: An OCR reading machine is used.

Discussion: This instrument can provide a significant help in order to improve the quality of life of patients with low vision or blindness.

[Neurological sequelae of child abuse. Literature review].

Child abuse is both socially and medically troublesome and many times produces permanent consequences. A review of the literature is done from a neurosurgical standpoint, and the lesions produced at the Central Nervous System are evaluated in detail, including their physiopathology, neurological sequels and implications for rehabilitation treatment and the child's future life.

Stereolithography for posterior fossa cranioplasty.

Posterior fossa cranioplasty has been suggested for improvement of neurological symptoms following craniectomy. However, there is no particular recommendation in the literature about techniques for prosthesis manufacture and implantation. We report our experience using rapid prototyping technology and stereolithography for pre-surgical implant design and production of cranioplasties.

Dobesilate diminishes activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase ERK1/2 in glioma cells.

Fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) and their receptors, regularly expressed at high levels in gliomas, are further upregulated during the transition of the tumor from low- to high-grade malignancy, and are essential for glioma progression. FGFs induce upregulation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling cascade in cultured glioma cells, which suggests that MAPK pathway participates in the FGF-dependent glioma development. Recently, it has been shown that dobesilate, an inhibitor of FGF mitogenic activity, shows antiproliferative and proapoptotic activities in glioma cell cultures.

Dobesilate inhibits the activation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3, and the expression of cyclin D1 and bcl-XL in glioma cells.

Objectives: Because fibroblast growth factor (FGF) causes the intracellular accumulation of activated signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), we assessed whether dobesilate, a synthetic FGF inhibitor that has been reported to show antiproliferative and proapoptotic activities in glioma cell cultures, down-regulates the STAT3 signaling pathway in growing cultures of those cells. Because STAT3 signaling pathway plays pleiotropic roles in tumor proliferation, maintenance of STAT3 in its inactive state may prevent glioma growth and spreading.

Methods: Rat glioma C6 cells were treated with dobesilate and cultures were evaluated immunocytochemically for STAT3 activation and enhancement of the expression rate of cyclin D1 and bcl-XL.

Angiogenic capacity of human omental stem cells.

Objectives: The goals of the present study are to obtain, expand and characterize a stem cell population from human omentum and to evaluate its in vivo angiogenic capacities.

Methods: Human omental CD34+ cells were obtained from samples of human omentum by density gradient centrifugation in Ficoll. Proliferative pattern, marker expression (by flow cytometry) and angiogenic growth factor synthesis by omental cell cultures were determined.

Dihydroxy-2,5 benzenesulphonate (dobesilate) elicits growth arrest and apoptosis in glioma cells.

Objectives: Dihydroxy-2,5 benzenesulphonate (dobesilate) is used as an oral agent for treatment of vascular complications of diabetic retinopathy. We previously showed that blockade of fibroblast growth factor (FGF) driving angiogenesis with dobesilate inhibited new blood vessel formation in a mouse gelatine plug assay. In the present study we assessed the effects of dobesilate in rat glioma cells.

Attenuation of pain perception after transposition of the greater omentum to the cauda equina region of rats--a preliminary observation.

Background: This paper addresses a specific experimental design to suggest the possible role of the greater omentum in the modulation of pain in rats.

Methods: Fifteen male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing between 275 and 325 g were selected. The animals were randomized and then anesthetized with pentobarbital (35 mg/kg) and divided into three groups: (1) sham: laparotomy followed by laminectomy with exposure of the spinal epidural space (n=5); (2) transposition of pedicled omentum (n=5) to the cauda equina epidural space; and (3) transposition of pedicled omentum (n=5) to the cauda equina intradural space.

Bone-like polyethelyne burr-hole cover.

Objective: Several materials are available for covering burr holes but none of them are ideal with respect to biocompatibility, strength and morbidity. With these properties in mind, our objective was to design a porous polyethylene device, which looked like bone and provides protection and cosmesis while being quick and easy to apply.

Methods And Materials/results: A burr-hole cover was created to cover small cranial defects and craniostomies.

Perivascular delivery of neomycin inhibits the activation of NF-kappaB and MAPK pathways, and prevents neointimal hyperplasia and stenosis after arterial injury.

The nuclear transcription factor kappaB (NF-kappaB) is a cytoplasmic dimer that, as the family of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), can directly regulate the expression of early genes and genes involved in the stress response, following a variety of physiological or pathological stimuli. Both of them stimulate the transcription of many proteins, which are considered important during inflammation. A crucial role has been assigned to these factors in cellular proliferation and in neointimal hyperplasia secondary to the endothelial lesion of arterial vessels.

Differentiation-inducing activity of neomycin in cultured rat glioma cells.

Induction of cellular differentiation is an attractive therapeutic strategy against glioma cell proliferation and tumorigenicity. Preliminary in vitro studies have indicated that neomycin inhibits the proliferation of cultured glioma cells and induces changes in cellular morphology, making it potentially useful as a therapeutic agent for gliomas. The purpose of this work was to expand on the preliminary research by investigating the differentiation effect of neomycin in rat C6 glioma cells, using glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) staining as a reliable marker of differentiation for normal astrocytes and for tumors of astrocytic lineage.

Neomycin inhibits glioma cell migration.

Blocking migration is an attractive strategy to inhibit glioma tumorigenesis. Previous studies have indicated that neomycin inhibits glioma cells proliferation. The purpose of this study was to expand on the preliminary research by investigating the antimigratory effect of neomycin.

Bone marrow stromal cell implantation for peripheral nerve repair.

Cell therapy using bone marrow stromal cells is a new promising therapy for regenerative medicine. Previous studies demonstrated that local bone marrow stromal cells implantation in the distal stump of transected sciatic nerve of rats promotes early functional recovery. The purpose of this study was to expand on the preliminary research by investigating the long-term efficacy of bone marrow stromal cells using the same experimental setting.

Current concepts on the expression of neurotrophins in the greater omentum.

The omentum has been utilized in Neurosurgery since the late 1960s. Its overwhelming effects on fibroblast and peripheral nerve growths were soon noticed. However, there was no direct evidence of production of any of the growth factors by the omentum, although substances were shown to be present in the omentum.

Brain retraction injury.

This paper reviews the literature of the brain retraction injury during the last century. The review focused on the instrument characteristic as well as the physiopathological and histopathological damage of the brain induced by brain retraction. It was found that lesions were induced by cerebral ischemia.

Antiproliferative action of neomycin is associated with inhibition of cyclin D1 activation in glioma cells.

The progression of mammalian cells through G1 phase of the cell cycle is governed by the D-type cyclins (D1, D2, D3). These proteins are induced at the beginning of the G1 phase and associate with serine/threonine cyclin-dependent kinases to form holoenzymes. Overexpression of cyclin D1 in human cancers as well as in several cancer cell lines has been reported.

Delayed minimally invasive cranioplasty.

Minimally invasive cranioplasty is presented. Stereolithography is a new technology applied for the manufacture of custom-made cranial prosthesis that can provide an accurate reproduction of difficult anatomical contours of large cranial defects. The pre-operative development of perfect-fit prostheses permits a significant decrease in the operative time, in the overall costs of surgery, as well as on the rate of complications observed in patients with large cranial defects.

Advances in ICP monitoring techniques.

With the advent of newer devices for measuring intracranial pressure (ICP) and cerebral metabolism, more alternatives continue to rise aiming to control ICP. This manuscript presents a proposed analysis of different ICP monitoring devices in order to make appropriate selection of them in our clinical setting including general and pediatric applications. A systematic review of the literature was made analyzing the technical advances in ICP monitoring.