Rat superior colliculus encodes the transition between static and dynamic vision modes.

The visual continuity illusion involves a shift in visual perception from static to dynamic vision modes when the stimuli arrive at high temporal frequency, and is critical for recognizing objects moving in the environment. However, how this illusion is encoded across the visual pathway remains poorly understood, with disparate frequency thresholds at retinal, cortical, and behavioural levels suggesting the involvement of other brain areas. Here, we employ a multimodal approach encompassing behaviour, whole-brain functional MRI, and electrophysiological measurements, for investigating the encoding of the continuity illusion in rats.

A rapid-onset diffusion functional MRI signal reflects neuromorphological coupling dynamics.

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) has transformed our understanding of brain function in-vivo. However, the neurovascular coupling mechanisms underlying fMRI are somewhat "distant" from neural activity. Interestingly, evidence from Intrinsic Optical Signals (IOSs) indicates that neural activity is also coupled to (sub)cellular morphological modulations.

Neuroplasticity-driven timing modulations revealed by ultrafast functional magnetic resonance imaging.

Detecting neuroplasticity in global brain circuits in vivo is key for understanding myriad processes such as memory, learning, and recovery from injury. Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) is instrumental for such in vivo mappings, yet it typically relies on mapping changes in spatial extent of activation or via signal amplitude modulations, whose interpretation can be highly ambiguous. Importantly, a central aspect of neuroplasticity involves modulation of neural activity timing properties.

An in vivo study of the orientation-dependent and independent components of transverse relaxation rates in white matter.

Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) provides information that allows the estimation of white-matter (WM) fibre orientation and distribution, but it does not provide information about myelin density, fibre concentration or fibre size within each voxel. On the other hand, quantitative relaxation contrasts (like the apparent transverse relaxation, R2∗) offer iron and myelin-related contrast, but their dependence on the orientation of microstructure with respect to the applied magnetic field, B , is often neglected. The aim of this work was to combine the fibre orientation information retrieved from the DWI acquisition and the sensitivity to microstructural information from quantitative relaxation parameters.

Side effects, complications and outcome of thoracoscopic sympathectomy for palmar and axillary hyperhidrosis in 406 patients.

Background: Thoracic sympathectomy (TS) is the treatment of choice for severe primary hyperhidrosis. However, complications, side effects and satisfaction have not been well defined.

Objective: To analyze the complications, side effects, satisfaction degree and quality of life of patients after TS for primary upper limb hyperhidrosis.

[Indicators of severity in chest trauma].

Objective: We undertook a review of patients with chest trauma attended between January 1992 and June 2005 in order to establish severity criteria in these cases.

Patients And Methods: During the study period, 1,772 cases (1,346 [76%] males) were treated, with ages ranging from 7 to 98 years (mean, 46.4 years).

Elastofibroma of the thoracic wall.

Soft tissue tumors of the chest wall are rare. Between 1998 and 2007 we treated eight cases of elastofibroma of the thoracic wall, an infrequent primary tumor of the chest. Seven females and one male between 44 and 62 years presented with dorsal subscapular tumors of months and even years of evolution.