Quantitative analysis of influence of sevoflurane on the reactivity of microglial cells in the course of the experimental model of intracerebral haemorrhage.

Background: Microglial cells play an important role in the pathophysiology of intracerebral haemorrhage. We have examined the possible influence of sevoflurane on the reactivity of microglial cells during intracranial haemorrhage.

Methods: Forty adult male rats were divided into two groups.

The effect of propofol on astro- and microglial reactivity in the course of experimental intracerebral haemorrhage in rats.

The glial cells play an important role in pathophysiology of the intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH). Thus the attempt at evaluating the possible influence of the propofol on the reactivity of astro- and microglial cells in the course of ICH was performed. 50 rats were divided into two groups depending on the applied anaesthesia.

Apoptosis in the course of experimetal intracerebral haemorrhage in the rat.

Intracerebral haematoma was produced in 25 adult rats by infusion of 100 microl of autologous blood into the striatum. The animals' brains were removed at 1, 3, 7, 14 and 21 days after production of the haematoma. The TUNEL method was used to detect DNA fragmentation and TUNEL-positive cells were qualified.

The influence of sevoflurane on the reactivity of astrocytes in the course of the experimental intracerebral haemorrhage in rat.

40 adult Wistar rats were divided into two groups depending on the applied anaesthesia. In both groups animals were generally anaesthetized with fentanyl, dehydrobenzperidol administered intraperitoneally and midazolam given intramuscularly. In the second group (SEVO) animals received sevoflurane of 2.

Do the asymmetry and the size of the structures of the temporal lobe persist in early stages of schizophrenia?

A total of 14 patients of various ages diagnosed with schizophrenia and, as an age-matched control group, 12 healthy subjects were examined using the MRI method of neuro-imaging. The volume of the following structures was evaluated in the right and left hemispheres: the superior temporal gyrus, the basolateral temporal area (the region including the middle temporal gyrus, inferior temporal gyrus and fusiform gyrus), the parahippocampal gyrus, the hippocampal head, the amygdaloid body and the inferior horn of the lateral ventricle. In schizophrenia a significant increase in the volume of the amygdaloid body on both the left and right sides was observed.

A magnetic resonance volumetric study of the temporal lobe structures in depression.

Depression is one of the most common psychiatric disorders and is associated with considerable morbidity. In recent years structural-imaging technology has provided an opportunity to examine the brain anatomy in patients with the psychiatric illness. 10 patients of various ages and, as the control group, 16 healthy subjects were examined using the MRI method of neuroimaging.

Evolution of microglial and astroglial response during experimental intracerebral haemorrhage in the rat.

Intracerebral haemorrhage is a strong stimulus for both microglial and astroglial activations. There are some important pathophysiological features during haemorrhage that do not occur in ischaemic or traumatic brain injuries, and may influence the dynamics and intensity of glial activation. Studies on the evolution of glial reaction may have practical importance to the introduction of new therapeutic methods for influencing the inflammatory reaction during haemorrhage.

The shape of the inferior horn of the lateral ventricle in relation to collateral and occipitotemporal sulci.

The shape of the inferior horn of the lateral ventricle has been investigated in 100 (50 right and 50 left) human brain hemispheres which were fixed in 40% formaldehyde solution and cut frontally. It has been found that the shape of the inferior horn depends on the course and depth of the collateral and occipitotemporal sulci. In most cases a part from two main ventricular surfaces: the hippocampal and superolateral, there is one surface more, either the inferior-collateral eminence (Type I--97% of cases in the posterior part of the inferior horn, 49%--in the middle and 42%--in the anterior part) or the inferolateral, adjecent to the occipitotemporal sulcus (Type II--0%, 26% and 35%, respectively).

Ultrastructural organization of the visual zone in the claustrum of the cat.

Data obtained by using ultrastructural and morphometric approaches revealed three types of neurons in the cat visual claustrum. The most numerous were medium-sized and large ones. They formed 3/4 of the cell population.

Visual zone of the claustrum shows localizational and organizational differences among rat, guinea pig, rabbit and cat.

The retrograde axonal transport method was used to compare the topography and organization of the visual zone of the claustrum in rat, guinea pig, rabbit and cat. First, massive Fluoro-Gold injections were placed into the primary visual cortex and the secondary areas. Experiments showed differences in the location of the visual zone among the animals under study.

The cortico-related zones of the rabbit claustrum-study of the claustrocortical connections based on the retrograde axonal transport of fluorescent tracers.

The claustrocortical connections in the rabbit were assessed for the first time by the method of axonal retrograde transport of two fluorescent tracers (Fast Blue and Diamidino Yellow). The material consisted of 23 adult New Zealand rabbits. Projection zones of spindle-like form, connected with the precentral, postcentral, temporal and occipital cortices have been delineated.

Rat's claustrum shows two main cortico-related zones.

Methods of retrograde axonal transport were employed to evaluate the topography and overlap of claustroneocortical connections in the rat. Fluorescent tracers Fast Blue (FB) and Diamidino Yellow (DY) were injected simultaneously in various combinations into the motor, somatosensory, auditory and visual cortical areas. Experiments showed that claustroneocortical projections are organized in two main cortico-related zones: sensorimotor and visuoauditory.

Some claustral neurons projecting to various neocortical areas show morphological differences.

The morphology of claustral neurons projecting to the motor, somatosensory, auditory and visual cortical areas in the rat was analyzed by means of combination of axonal retrograde transport and morphometric analysis. Fluoro-Gold (FG) injections placed into various cortical fields resulted in labeling in the claustrum four neuronal types: pyramidal with thick main dendrite, oval with a few thin dendrites spreading out in various directions, fusiform possessing two main dendrites arising from opposite poles of the cell body and polygonal. Pyramidal neurons prevailed in populations of neurons projecting to the motor cortex of the contralateral hemisphere.

Acetylcholinesterase activity as a marker of maturation of the basolateral complex of the amygdaloid body in the rat.

Development and maturation of the basolateral complex of the amygdaloid body were studied in fetal and postnatal rat brains. In cresyl violet-stained sections the basolateral complex was distinguishable at the 17th prenatal day. On about the 14th postnatal day, it showed all the features of the adult structure.

Division of the human claustrum according to its architectonics and morphometric parameters.

The topography and cytoarchitectonics of the claustrum as well as morphometric parameters of its neurons were studied in 10 human brains obtained from patients without any detectable neuropathological changes. We distinguished four parts of the claustrum: dorsal, orbital, temporal and paraamygdalar. The dorsal and orbital parts contain larger cells, than those of the temporal and paraamygdalar parts, although these differences were statistically non significant.

Alzheimer's disease severely affects areas of the claustrum connected with the entorhinal cortex.

Pathological changes in the claustrum and its main parts (dorsal, temporal, orbital and paramygdalar) were studied on ten brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease and five control brains. The brains after fixation in formalin were embedded in paraffin, coronal-8-micron-thick serial sections were cut and stained either with cresyl violet or with immunocytochemical methods for amyloid and tangles. Morphometrical studies were performed in all parts of the claustrum along its whole extension.

Amyloid deposits and loss of neurones in the claustrum of the aged dog.

In dogs under 17 years of age no amyloid deposits were observed in the claustrum. After that age amyloid deposits were found in all the brains studied. The number of amyloid deposits increases rapidly between 17 and 19 years of age.

Lateral tuberal nucleus in man and macaca comparative morphometric investigations.

Cytoarchitectonics of the lateral tuberal nucleus--a phylogenetically new hypothalamic structure--was investigated using morphometric methods. The most characteristic feature of the human lateral tuberal nucleus is an extremely great variability of its shape and segmentation. The lateral tuberal nucleus consists mostly of several separated neuronal groups; in each brain the arrangement of these groups is different.

The second layer neurones of the entorhinal cortex and the perforant path in physiological ageing and Alzheimer's disease.

The hippocampal formation was studied in 5 brains of younger (29 to 52 years of age) and 6 brains of elderly (61 to 89 years of age) subjects without signs of dementia, as well as in 11 brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease (65 to 91 years of age). The 8-microns-thick sections were stained either with cresyl violet, Weil method or with immunocytochemical methods for amyloid (4G8) and neurofibrillary tangles (Tau-1). Cell bodies, senile plaques and tangles were counted in all brains.

Variability of the parahippocampal surface of the transverse fissure in the human brain.

The parahippocampal (ventral) surface of the lateral part of the transverse fissure (LTF), formed by the parahippocampal gyrus, was examined in 53 human brain hemispheres without pathological changes. Cytoarchitectonics of this region was studied on the frontal histological sections stained either with cresyl violet or with Weil method. Four types of the shape of the parahippocampal surface of LTF were distinguished.

Relationship of corticoclaustral axon terminals to neurons of the claustrum in the cat.

A dark type degeneration of axon terminals was observed in the dorsocaudal part of the claustrum following lesions of the visual cortex. Most of the degenerating axon terminals had synapses mainly with dendritic spines (64.1%) and small dendrites (25.

The insular claustrum in the methylazoxymethanol acetate (MAM) treated rats shows two different populations of neurons.

Methylazoxymethanol acetate (MAM) is a substance that inhibits migration of neurons in the embryonic brain. After intraperitoneal injection of two different doses of MAM to pregnant rats, microcephaly with or without complete development of the cerebral cortex was observed in every litter. High MAM doses (30 mg/kg) resulted in the lack of superficial layers (II-IV) of the cerebral cortex when the deep layers (V, VI) were seen.

Morphometric parameters of some hypothalamic nuclei: age-related changes.

The morphometric analysis of some hypothalamic nuclei was performed on 20 brains of subjects of both sexes aged from 29 to 79 years. They were divided into two groups: below and above the age of 60. Supraoptic (SON), lateral tuberal (LTN) and lateral mammillary (LMN) nuclei were investigated.

Insular claustrum of the dog--a morphometric investigation of cellular structure.

Investigation of the dog's insular claustrum was performed using morphometric methods. The brains of 14 dogs (7-14 year-old) were studied. The size, shape and density of neurons are different in various parts of the insular claustrum.