Henoch-Schönlein syndrome and cerebellar hemorrhage: report of an adolescent case and literature review.

Background: Henoch-Schönlein syndrome (HSS) is a systemic necrotizing vasculitis predominantly affecting children. Symptoms are usually self-limited and only rarely do they involve the central nervous system. Only five published reports describe cases of radiologically proven intracranial hemorrhages complicating HSS.

Intraspinous postlaminectomy pseudomeningocele.

Pseudomeningoceles are uncommon complications of lumbar surgery. They are encapsulated cerebrospinal fluid collections developing extradurally as a consequence of incidental dural tears. They are typically located in the paraspinal compartment and occasionally reach the subcutaneous space.

Pericranial flap fixation using titanium miniplates and screws.

Opening the frontal sinuses is a common occurrence during neurosurgical procedures involving the anterior cranial base. Obliteration of the exposed sinuses is usually accomplished packing them with various materials and/or covering them with an anteriorly-based pericranial flap. In the absence of more extensive cranial base defects, the flap only needs to be wrapped around the sinus and secured against its posterior wall.

Inclusiveness and crossed categorization: effects on co-joined category evaluations of in-group and out-group primes.

This experiment builds on preliminary work (Crisp & Hewstone, 2000b) that revealed moderation of crossed-category evaluations via priming with an in-group inclusive pronoun (e.g. 'we').

Dose-dependent inhibition of mitochondrial ATP synthase by 17 beta-estradiol.

Mitochondria produce energy through oxidative phosphorylation. A key enzyme in this pathway is F0F1-ATP synthase, catalyzing ATP production from ADP and inorganic phosphate. Recently a subunit of F0F1-ATP synthase, oligomycin sensitivity-conferring protein, was identified as a new estradiol-binding protein.

Intramedullary neurenteric cyst with a false mural nodule: case report.

Objective And Importance: Spinal neurenteric cysts are rare congenital lesions that may occur either alone or in the context of a complex malformative disorder including typical vertebral and cutaneous abnormalities. The interest of the case of a spinal neurenteric cyst described here lies in its rare intramedullary location and in the false mural nodule image on the preoperative magnetic resonance imaging scan. A further distinctive feature is the association with a cleft spinal cord.

Postpartum cerebral ischaemia after accidental dural puncture and epidural blood patch.

Puerperal women are reported to have a rate of cerebral infarction 13 times greater than non-pregnant females. We report a case of cerebral ischaemia in a 30-yr-old healthy parturient after epidural analgesia for labour, complicated by dural puncture treated with two epidural blood patches. Investigations showed the development of cerebral ischaemia on postpartum day 14.

Gas-containing otogenic brain abscess.

Background: Gas-containing brain abscesses are very rare. Two mechanisms may be responsible for the presence of intracavitary gas: bacterial fermentation or penetration through an abnormal communication between the exterior and the intracranium. The need to search for this potential communication is considered an indication for open surgery.

Rapid, symptomatic enlargement of a lumbar juxtafacet cyst: case report.

Study Design: A case is reported in which a 45-year-old man developed cauda equina syndrome caused by enlargement of an L4-L5 juxtafacet cyst diagnosed 4 months earlier.

Objectives: To highlight the short interval that can elapse between the discovery of a juxtafacet cyst and its remarkable progression.

Summary Of Background Data: Although juxtafacet cysts are acquired lesions, how long they take to develop remains unclear.

Discontinuous myelotomy: an alternative to standard myelotomy in the surgical treatment of intramedullary spinal cord tumours.

Background: Myelotomy is an essential step for the removal of intramedullary tumours. Often, this manoeuvre requires division of large vessels surfacing the midline, contributing to the development of postoperative sensory deficits. We developed a technique of discontinuous myelotomy to preserve the integrity of these large spinal cord vessels.

Atypical tentorial meningioma 30 years after radiotherapy for a pituitary adenoma.

Although the human central nervous system used to be considered relatively resistant to the carcinogenic action of ionizing radiation, several lines of evidence now document a high incidence of secondary tumors in irradiated patients. The numerous reports of radiation-induced cerebral meningiomas generally distinguish those induced by high-dose radiation from those induced by low-dose radiation. We describe the case of patient who underwent subtotal resection of a chromophobe pituitary adenoma at the age of 18 years, who was successively treated by conventional fractionated radiotherapy with gamma rays emitted by a source of 60Co until a total dose of 41 Gy.

Fluorescence resonance energy transfer between coumarin-derived mitochondrial F(1)-ATPase gamma subunit and pyrenylmaleimide-labelled fragments of IF(1) and c subunit.

We introduced a reporting group into a critical position of the mitochondrial F(1)-ATPase in order to gain structural information about enzyme-ligand complexes. Incubation of 7-diethylamino-3-(4'-maleimidylphenyl)-4-methylcoumarin (CPM) with bovine heart mitochondrial F(1)-ATPase pretreated with 1 nM sodium arsenite modified the only cysteine residue in the gamma subunit (gamma-Cys(78)), resulting in an enzyme-CPM fluorescent complex (CPM-F(1)) with an ATPase activity similar to that of the native enzyme. Transferred fluorescence of F(1)-bound CPM occurred when different peptide fragments of naturally binding polypeptides carrying a pyrenylmaleimide (PM) moiety were bound to the enzyme.

Purification, cloning and characterisation of odorant- and pheromone-binding proteins from pig nasal epithelium.

Two distinct classes of lipocalin isoforms (OBP-IIs and OBP-IIIs) were purified and identified from porcine nasal mucosa of male and female individuals. Using primers designed on their N-terminal sequence, the complete primary structures of the mature polypeptides were determined. Mass spectrometry analysis confirmed the identity of the cDNA-derived sequences and provided information regarding their post-translational modifications.

Radiation injury involving the internal carotid artery. Report of two cases.

Radiation therapy is an uncommon cause of stenosis and occlusions of the cervical internal carotid artery (ICA). We describe two cases of cerebral ischemia due to ICA stenosis in patients irradiated for malignant tumors (lymphoma and breast cancer). The first patient, a 32-year-old man, presented with an episode of cerebral ischemia.

Cloning, post-translational modifications, heterologous expression and ligand-binding of boar salivary lipocalin.

Boar submaxillary glands produce the sex-specific salivary lipocalin (SAL), which binds steroidal sex pheromones as endogenous ligands. The cDNA encoding SAL was cloned and sequenced. From a single individual, two protein isoforms, differing in three amino acid residues, were purified and structurally characterized by a combined Edman degradation/MS approach.

Mass spectrometry study of ecto-5'-nucleotidase from bull seminal plasma.

The structure of ecto-5'-nucleotidase from bull seminal plasma, containing a glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol anchor, was studied using mass spectrometry. MALDI-MS analysis of intact protein indicated a mass of 65 568.2 Da for the monomeric form, and it also showed a heterogeneous population of glycoforms with the glycosidic moiety accounting for approximately 6000 Da.

Multiple meningiomas in different neuraxial compartments. Report of two cases.

Multiple meningiomas in different neuraxial compartments are quite rare. The authors report two new cases of association between cranial and spinal meningiomas, one of them in a patient operated upon for multiple intracranial meningiomas. The first case was a 60-year-old woman with progressive paraparesis who had been operated on 13 years earlier for multiple intracranial meningiomas.

Porcine odorant-binding protein: structural stability and ligand affinities measured by fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and fluorescence spectroscopy.

Infrared spectra show that the binding of the odorants 2-isobuthyl-3-methoxypyrazine (PYR) and 3,7-dimethyl-1-octanol (DMO) stabilises the tertiary structure of porcine OBP-I against thermal denaturation. The fluorescence emission spectrum of the single tryptophan shows a lambdamax at 337 nm, indicating that the residue is not directly exposed to the solvent. Tryptophan does not appear to be involved in the odorant binding process and it is not accessible to the fluorescence quenchers NaI, CsCl and acrylamide.

Amino acid sequence, post-translational modifications, binding and labelling of porcine odorant-binding protein.

An odorant-binding protein, migrating in SDS-PAGE with an apparent molecular weight of 22 kDa and an isoelectric point of 4.2, has been purified from pig nasal mucosa. Its complete amino acid sequence was determined by a combination of mass spectrometry and Edman degradation procedures.

Chronic subdural haematoma: a possible relationship with tamoxifen.

Five patients operated on between 6 months and 7 years earlier for breast cancer were surgically treated for chronic subdural haematoma. This unusual association may be explained on the basis of known factors such as coagulative impairment subsequent to chemotherapy, a degree of cerebral atrophy or mild trauma. On the other hand, since four of the patients were taking antioestrogen therapy to control the disease, it is speculated that the oestrogenic properties of tamoxifen may have contributed to subdural bleeding.

Solitary cerebral metastases from intestinal carcinoma.

The authors report 34 cases of solitary cerebral metastases from intestinal cancer. In 24 cases the tumour was localized in the colonrectum and in 10 in the small intestine. In 8 patients (23%) neurological symptoms were the first clinical sign of systemic spread of the tumour; in 26 cases (77%) there was a long interval between treatment of the primary and appearance of the cerebral metastasis (average 24 months).

Paramedian diencephalic syndrome.

The clinical characteristics of paramedian diencephalic syndrome (PDS) are described on the basis of two recently observed cases: one with paramedian thalamic infarct, the other with paramedian thalamopeduncular infarct. Analysis of the clinical symptoms and the results of CBF study show that PDS is a complex neurological syndrome characterized by symptoms due to both anatomical lesions and functional disconnections.