Novel Polyethylene Terephthalate Screw Sleeve Implant: Salvage Treatment in a Case of Spine Instability after Vertebroplasty Failure.

Introduction: The management of osteoporotic fractures is sometimes rather challenging for spinal surgeons, and considering the longer life expectancy induced by improved living conditions, their prevalence is expected to increase. At present, the approaches to osteoporotic fractures differ depending on their severity, location, and the patient's age. State-of-the-art treatments range from vertebroplasty/kyphoplasty to hardware-based spinal stabilization in which screw augmentation with cement is the gold standard.

Treatment of thoracolumbar burst fractures: SpineJack posterior arthrodesis-comparison of clinical and radiological outcomes.

Background: Thoracolumbar fractures sometimes require anterior support and post-traumatic deformity correction. SpineJack proved favorable results in cadaveric and clinical studies, with satisfactory pain relief, vertebral height restoration, and low rates of above adjacent fractures, in neurologically intact fractures. We compared patients' clinical and radiological outcomes of thoracolumbar fractures treated either with posterior arthrodesis or SpineJack.

Unilateral Compressive Optic Neuropathy As the Presenting Manifestation of Clival Chordoma: A Case Report.

The optic nerve(s) may be compressed by a number of intracranial and intraorbital masses. Compression may be isolated to the optic nerve or may involve other intracranial or intraorbital structures with variable presentation. A 26-year-old man presented with complaints of progressive painless visual loss in the right eye for eight months.

Toolbox for Genetic Transformation of Non-Conventional Yeasts: High Efficiency Transformation of Yeasts Belonging to the Genus.

Non-conventional yeasts are increasingly being investigated and used as producers in biotechnological processes which often offer advantages in comparison to traditional and well-established systems. Most biotechnologically interesting non-conventional yeasts belong to the subphylum, including those already in use (, etc.), as well as those that are promising but as yet insufficiently characterized.

A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Outcomes and Adverse Events for Juxtafacet Cysts Treatment.

Background: Different procedures have been used for the treatment of lumbar juxtafacet cysts (JFCs). Recently, full-endoscopic cyst excision has been suggested as a reasonable alternative. We performed a meta-analysis to assess the overall rates of favorable outcomes and adverse events for each available treatment and determine the outcome and complication rates concerning spine stability.

Frozen overnight: Acute orbital apex syndrome caused by aspergillosis.

Purpose: to describe a rare case of orbital apex syndrome caused by aspergillosis with acute presentation.

Case Description: retrospective case report of a 70-year-old man who developed unilateral ophthalmoplegia overnight. He was initially given the diagnosis of suspect Tolosa-Hunt syndrome, but biopsy of the involved tissue showed aspergillosis.

Supersaturated-oxygen aeration effects on a high-loaded membrane bioreactor (HL-MBR): Biological performance and microbial population dynamics.

Conventional diffused aeration systems (such as fine-bubble diffusers) exhibit a poor oxygen transfer in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), particularly when operating at sludge concentrations higher than 15 g L. The supersaturated dissolved oxygen (SDOX) system has been proposed as an alternative for supplying dissolved oxygen (DO) at high mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS) concentrations. The advantages introduced by such technology include the possibility of operating WWTPs at much higher than usual MLSS concentrations, increasing the treatment capacity of WWTPs.

Metabolically engineered Lactobacillus gasseri JCM 1131 as a novel producer of optically pure L- and D-lactate.

High-quality environmentally-friendly bioplastics can be produced by mixing poly-L-lactate with poly-D-lactate. On an industrial scale, this process simultaneously consumes large amounts of both optically pure lactate stereoisomers. However, because optimal growth conditions of L-lactate producers often differ from those of D-lactate producers, each stereoisomer is produced in a specialised facility, which raises cost and lowers sustainability.

Size-dependent antirecombinogenic effect of short spacers on palindrome recombinogenicity.

Palindromic sequences in DNA can instigate genetic recombination and genome instability, which can result in devastating conditions such as the Emmanuel syndrome. Palindrome recombinogenicity increases with its size and sequence similarity between palindrome arms, while quasipalindromes with long spacers are less recombinogenic. However, the minimal spacer length, which could reduce or abolish palindrome recombinogenicity in the eukaryotic genome, was never determined.

Novel Approach in the Construction of Bioethanol-Producing Hybrids.

Bioethanol production from lignocellulosic hydrolysates requires a producer strain that tolerates both the presence of growth and fermentation inhibitors and high ethanol concentrations. Therefore, we constructed heterozygous intraspecies hybrid diploids of by crossing two natural isolates, YIIc17_E5 and UWOPS87-2421, a good ethanol producer found in wine and a strain from the flower of the cactus resistant to inhibitors found in lignocellulosic hydrolysates, respectively. Hybrids grew faster than parental strains in the absence and in the presence of acetic and levulinic acids and 2-furaldehyde, inhibitors frequently found in lignocellulosic hydrolysates, and the overexpression of gene increased their survival.

Photophobia as the Presenting Symptom of Internal Carotid Artery Dissection.

A 53-year-old man developed right eye photophobia after a hypertensive crisis, followed by right-sided headache and retro-orbital pain. On examination, a right Horner syndrome was evident and an urgent brain and neck Computed Tomography confirmed the suspicion of an internal carotid artery (ICA) dissection. While photophobia may occur in many neurological disorders, to our knowledge, it has never been described when the ICA is involved.

The dark side of the (half) moon.

A 71-year-old man was referred to neuro-ophthalmology for evaluation of reading problems associated with pituitary adenoma. Perimetry showed a right temporal crescent syndrome ("half moon" syndrome) suggesting left occipital disease. Cranial magnetic resonance imaging, electroencephalogram, and cerebrospinal fluid examination (14-3-3 protein) were consistent with a diagnosis of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae gene targeting fidelity depends on a transformation method and proportion of the overall length of the transforming and targeted DNA.

Gene replacement is one of the most essential approaches in construction of the genetically modified yeast strains. However, the fidelity of gene targeting and the effort needed for construction of a particular strain can vary significantly. We investigated the influence of two important factors-the choice of the transformation method and the design of the transforming DNA fragment, which can vary in overall length (including flanking regions and selectable marker) compared to the length of the targeted region in the genome.

Improved electroporation procedure for genetic transformation of Dekkera/Brettanomyces bruxellensis.

Yeast Dekkera/Brettanomyces bruxellensis is one of the most common contaminants in wine industry, but also one of the most promising candidates for large-scale bioethanol production. Brettanomyces bruxellensis not only produces and tolerates high ethanol concentrations, but can also ferment cellobiose and adapt to lignocellulose hydrolasate. Furthermore, genome sequences of several B.

Considerations when communicating with awake patients undergoing image-guided neuro-interventions.

The authors empirically evaluated the context of intra-procedural physician-patient communication during imaging-guided procedures in a radiology/neuroradiology interventional clinical framework. Different intra-procedural communicative scenarios are reported.They conclude that the quality of intra-procedural physician-patient communication should be considered an important element of individual and team ethical and professional behaviour, able to strongly influence the therapeutic alliance.

Sgs1 and Exo1 suppress targeted chromosome duplication during ends-in and ends-out gene targeting.

Gene targeting is extremely efficient in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. It is performed by transformation with a linear, non-replicative DNA fragment carrying a selectable marker and containing ends homologous to the particular locus in a genome. However, even in S.

Template switching during break-induced replication is promoted by the Mph1 helicase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Chromosomal double-strand breaks (DSBs) that have only one end with homology to a donor duplex undergo repair by strand invasion followed by replication to the chromosome terminus (break-induced replication, BIR). Using a transformation-based assay system, it was previously shown that BIR could occur by several rounds of strand invasion, DNA synthesis, and dissociation. Here we describe a modification of the transformation-based assay to facilitate detection of switching between donor templates during BIR by genetic selection in diploid yeast.

Genetic transformation of the yeast Dekkera/Brettanomyces bruxellensis with non-homologous DNA.

Yeast Dekkera/Brettanomyces bruxellensis is probably the most common contaminant in wineries and ethanol production processes. The considerable economic losses caused by this yeast, but also its ability to produce and tolerate high ethanol concentrations, make it an attractive subject for research with potential for industrial applications. Unfortunately, efforts to understand the biology of D.

CT angiography in an acute stroke protocol: correlation between occlusion site and outcome of intravenous thrombolysis.

Thrombolysis with intravenous rt-PA is the current therapy for acute ischemic stroke. Unlike other outcome factors, relatively little is known about the prognostic value of the occlusion site on treatment outcome. We compared the effectiveness and safety of intravenous thrombolysis in patients with different levels of occlusion identified by CT angiography (CTA) in anterior circulation stroke, and analyzed the influence of the occlusion site on treatment outcome in relation to other outcome factors.

Complications in the treatment of intracranial aneurysms with silk stents: an analysis of 30 consecutive patients.

Flow-diverting stents (Silk and PED) have radically changed the approach to intracranial aneurysm treatment from the use of endosaccular materials to use of an extraaneurysmal endoluminal device. However, much debate surrounds the most appropriate indications for the use of FD stents and the problems raised by several possible complications.We analysed our technical difficulties and the early (less than ten days after treatment) and late complications encountered in 30 aneurysms treated comprising 13 giant lesions, 12 large, five with maximum diameters <10 mm and one blister-like aneurysm.

A minimally invasive treatment for lumbar disc herniation: DiscoGel® chemonucleolysis in patients unresponsive to chemonucleolysis with oxygen-ozone.

A multitude of therapies is available to treat disc herniation, ranging from conservative methods (medication and physical therapy) to minimally invasive (percutaneous) treatments and surgery. O₂-O₃ chemonucleolysis (O₂-O₃ therapy) is one of the minimally invasive treatments with the best cost/benefit ratio and lowest complication rate. Another substance recently made available exploiting the chemical properties of pure ethanol is DiscoGel®, a radiopaque gelified ethanol more viscous than absolute alcohol 8,9.

Treatment of intracranial aneurysms using flow-diverting silk stents (BALT): a single centre experience.

The Silk stent (Balt, Montmorency, France) is a retractable device designed to achieve curative reconstruction of the parent artery associated with an intracranial aneurysm. We present our initial experience with the Silk flow-diverting stent in the management and follow-up of 25 patients presenting with intracranial aneurysms.Twenty-five patients (age range, 34-81 years; 24 female) were treated with the Silk flow-diverting device.

Intracerebral large artery disease in Aicardi-Goutières syndrome implicates SAMHD1 in vascular homeostasis.

Aim: To describe a spectrum of intracerebral large artery disease in Aicardi-Goutières syndrome (AGS) associated with mutations in the AGS5 gene SAMHD1.

Method: We used clinical and radiological description and molecular analysis.

Results: Five individuals (three males, two females) were identified as having biallelic mutations in SAMHD1 and a cerebral arteriopathy in association with peripheral vessel involvement resulting in chilblains and ischaemic ulceration.

A Little Talk on Adamkiewicz's Artery. Some Practical Considerations on the Pre-Operative Identification of this Artery Starting from a Single Team Experience in Pre-Surgical Selective Embolization of Vascularized Spinal Lesions.

The major radicular artery eponymically named "Adamkiewicz's artery" (AKA) is an important vessel supplying the spinal cord, especially the lumbar enlargement. This report emphasizes the importance of anatomical knowledge of this artery and highlights the concept of the potential risk of neurological complications during different procedures: spine orthopedic/neurosurgery, aortic repair (vascular surgery) and endovascular selective embolizations performed by interventional neuro/radiologists. Anatomical considerations are made on the spinal cord arterial circulation with a special focus on the AKA.

The use of flow-diverting stents in the treatment of giant cerebral aneurysms: preliminary results.

The treatment of giant cerebral aneurysms has always been a challenge for neurosurgeons and neuroradiologists. Flow-diverting stents (Silk; Pipeline Embolization Device) are new endovascular devices introduced for the treatment of intracranial aneurysms without release of intrasaccular coils. They are tubular bimetallic endoluminal devices with low porosity.