Amplification of Herpes simplex type 1 and Human Herpes type 5 viral DNA from formalin-fixed Alzheimer brain tissue.

It is known that nucleic acids from formalin-fixed tissues are not nearly as good templates for DNA amplification as those extracted from fresh tissues. However, specimens stored in most pathologic archives are initially fixed in formalin. The possibility of an infectious etiology of several diseases including Alzheimer's underscores the usefulness of archived tissue in assessing the association of infectious agents with specific pathology.

Late-developing cerebral arteropathy after pyogenic meningitis.

Background: Although vasculopathy is a recognized complication during acute meningitis, to our knowledge, no previous reports have been published of this phenomenon developing months after successful treatment.

Objective: To report a unique case of a late-developing vasculopathy after pyogenic meningitis in an adult.

Report Of A Case: A 51-year-old woman was seen with severe headache 2 months after treatment of Haemophilus influenzae type C meningitis.

Fulminant radiation-induced necrosis after stereotactic radiation therapy to the posterior fossa. Case report and review of the literature.

The problem of radiation-induced necrosis of normal brain surrounding the target area has been a major catalyst for the development of stereotactically focused radiation therapy. According to current opinion, the effects of stereotactic irradiation are confined to the region targeted. The authors present a case in which the administration of a conventional dose of stereotactically focused irradiation for treatment of a pilocytic astrocytoma produced fulminant necrosis that necessitated a combination of intensive surgical and medical management, after which the patient improved over the course of 1 year.

Fatal hyperthermia in hot baths in individuals with multiple sclerosis.

The authors report the case of a 47-year-old black man with a history of multiple sclerosis who was found dead in a bathtub, head above water, with a body temperature of 105.7 F. Results of a complete autopsy and toxicologic screen were negative.

Myofibrillar myopathy: no evidence of apoptosis by TUNEL.

The pathogenesis of myofibrillar myopathy (MFM) is not known. Muscle biopsy specimens demonstrate increased expression of cell cycle regulatory proteins as well as the ectopic expression of lamin B and nuclear matrix protein in the cytoplasm, suggesting the possibility of apoptosis. The authors investigated for apoptosis using the TUNEL method in six muscle biopsy specimens from patients with MFM.