Deep Brain Stimulation Leads to Long-term Improvement of Neuropathic Tremor due to Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy: A Case Report.

Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) is a peripheral neuropathy caused by immune-mediated demyelination, causing tremors in 3.9%-58% of affected patients. This neuropathic tremor may persist after treatment and is known to be refractory to conventional medication.

Low-temperature and elastic properties of the 1/1 Tsai-type quasicrystal approximant GdCdinvestigated by ultrasonic measurements.

Low-temperature and elastic properties of the quasicrystal approximant GdCdhave been investigated by means of an ultrasonic measurement. Salient elastic anomalies were observed in the temperature and magnetic field dependence of the principal elastic constants, most probably being associated with the successive multiple magnetic phase transitions showing up at low temperatures. Based on the experimental data, a magnetic field vs temperature phase diagram was constructed.

Aspiration Surgery with Appropriate Antibiotic Treatment Yields Favorable Outcomes for Bacterial Brain Abscess.

Background: Even in the era of advanced medical treatment, brain abscess still has a high mortality rate. At our institution, brain abscess has been treated mainly using stereotactic or echo-guided aspiration followed by relatively long-term antibiotic treatment, achieving favorable outcomes. To evaluate the efficacy of our strategy involving less-invasive aspiration surgery and long-term selective antibiotic administration for brain abscess, a single-institution series of cases was investigated.

Improved accuracy in high-frequency AC transport measurements in pulsed high magnetic fields.

We show theoretically and experimentally that accurate transport measurements are possible even within the short time provided by pulsed magnetic fields. For this purpose, a new method has been devised, which removes the noise component of a specific frequency from the signal by taking a linear combination of the results of numerical phase detection using multiple integer periods. We also established a method to unambiguously determine the phase rotation angle in AC transport measurements using a frequency range of tens of kilohertz.

Natural Dural Defect of the Posterior Fossa Dura as a Risk Factor for Postoperative Cerebrospinal Fluid Leakage.

Background: During microvascular decompression surgery (MVD), small (2-3 mm diameter) natural dural defects have been noticed occasionally but never reported. These tiny dural defects cannot be detected by preoperative imaging studies or even in anatomical cadaver dissection, but may lead to complications including cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage. Our objective was to analyze the features of these natural defects in the posterior fossa dura.

Preservation of the Lesser Occipital Nerve Prevents Occipital Sensory Disturbance After Microvascular Decompression: Long-Term Results.

Background: In microvascular decompression (MVD) surgery for hemifacial spasm (HFS), preservation of the lesser occipital nerve (LON) will prevent occipital sensory disturbance, a frequent complication of MVD, but the long-term outcome is unknown. This study was designed to evaluate the long-term efficacy of LON preservation.

Methods: This retrospective study included 257 patients with HFS who underwent suboccipital craniotomy with MVD.

A Large Mass Mimicking Calcified Hematoma of the Skull Showing Involvement of Myeloma Cells and a Good Response to Irradiation.

Patients with multiple myeloma often show skull bone involvement, although in most cases this is manifested as skull erosion and large masses develop only rarely. Here we report a patient who presented with a large cranial mass mimicking a subdural hematoma with calcification. The tumor shrunk with 37.

Single-Site Non-Fermi-Liquid Behaviors in a Diluted 4f^{2} System Y_{1-x}Pr_{x}Ir_{2}Zn_{20}.

Electrical resistivity ρ(T) and specific heat C(T) measurements have been made on the diluted 4f^{2} system Y(Pr)Ir_{2}Zn_{20}. Both data of ρ and magnetic specific heat C_{m} per Pr ion are well scaled as a function of T/T_{0}, where T_{0} is a characteristic temperature of non-Fermi-liquid (NFL) behaviors. Furthermore, the temperature dependences of ρ and C_{m}/T agree with the NFL behaviors predicted by the two-channel Kondo model for the strong coupling limit.

A vitamin B derivative catalyzed electrochemical trifluoromethylation and perfluoroalkylation of arenes and heteroarenes in organic media.

The electrochemical trifluoromethylation and perfluoroalkylation of aromatic compounds mediated by a vitamin B derivative as a cobalt-based catalyst has been developed. The Co(i) species of a vitamin B derivative, prepared by controlled-potential electrolysis at -0.8 V vs.

Does arteriosclerosis contribute to hemifacial spasm?

Background: Hemifacial spasm (HFS) is caused by pulsative vascular compression of the root exit zone (REZ) of the facial nerve. However, the mechanism that causes the offending vessels to compress the REZ has not been clarified. Elongation of intracranial arteries due to arteriosclerosis is one possibility, but such arteriosclerotic changes are not observed very frequently among patients with HFS.

The cholinergic system in the olfactory center of the terrestrial slug Limax.

Acetylcholine plays various important roles in the central nervous system of invertebrates as well as vertebrates. In the olfactory center of the terrestrial slug Limax, the local field potential (LFP) oscillates, and the change in its oscillatory frequency is thought to correlate with the detection of odor that potentially changes an ongoing behavior of the animal. Acetylcholine is known to upregulate the frequency of the LFP oscillation, and is one of the candidates for the neurotransmitters that are involved in such higher cognitive functions.

Preoperative assessment of hemifacial spasm by the coronal heavily T2-weighted MR cisternography.

Background: Microvascular decompression (MVD) has become a well-established surgical procedure for hemifacial spasm (HFS). Before surgery, it is essential to evaluate any possible deformity of the brainstem and establish the precise location of the offending vessels. In the present study of HFS patients we examined coronal sections taken by heavily T2-weighted MR cisternography in addition to routine axial sections, and assessed the usefulness of these images through comparison with intraoperative findings.

Successful treatment of hemorrhagic congenital intracranial immature teratoma with neoadjuvant chemotherapy and surgery.

Congenital intracranial immature teratomas carry a dismal prognosis, and the usefulness of chemotherapy for these tumors has not been elucidated. The authors report on the successful management of a case of congenital intracranial immature teratoma by using neoadjuvant chemotherapy and surgery after the failure of an initial attempt at resection. The patient was an infant who had begun vomiting frequently at the age of 12 days and had been admitted to a hospital at the age of 18 days with continued vomiting, increased head circumference, and disturbance of consciousness.

Target innervation is necessary for neuronal polyploidization in the terrestrial slug Limax.

The brain of gastropod mollusks contains many giant neurons with polyploid genomic DNAs. Such DNAs are generated through repeated DNA endoreplication during body growth. However, it is not known what triggers DNA endoreplication in neurons.

Target innervation is necessary for neuronal polyploidization in the terrestrial slug Limax.

The brain of gastropod mollusks contains many giant neurons with polyploid genomic DNAs. Such DNAs are generated through repeated DNA endoreplication during body growth. However, it is not known what triggers DNA endoreplication in neurons.

O⁶-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase promoter methylation in 45 primary central nervous system lymphomas: quantitative assessment of methylation and response to temozolomide treatment.

Favorable responses to temozolomide chemotherapy have recently been reported in primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) patients who are refractory to high-dose methotrexate therapy. The gene encoding the DNA repair enzyme O (6)-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) is transcriptionally silenced by promoter methylation in several human tumors, including gliomas and systemic lymphomas. MGMT promoter methylation is also a prognostic marker in glioblastoma patients treated with temozolomide.

[Aquired stuttering in addition to a recurrence of developmental stuttering caused by brain tumor in the corpus callosum].

We reported a 66-year-old right-handed man, in whom developmental stuttering had almost been cured previously, who suffered a brain tumor. He developed not only left hemiparesis but also speech dysfluency such as acquired stuttering and aphasia. MRI showed a brain tumor in the body of the corpus callosum.

MRP3: a molecular target for human glioblastoma multiforme immunotherapy.

Background: Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is refractory to conventional therapies. To overcome the problem of heterogeneity, more brain tumor markers are required for prognosis and targeted therapy. We have identified and validated a promising molecular therapeutic target that is expressed by GBM: human multidrug-resistance protein 3 (MRP3).

Glycoprotein nonmetastatic melanoma protein B, a potential molecular therapeutic target in patients with glioblastoma multiforme.

Purpose: More brain tumor markers are required for prognosis and targeted therapy. We have identified and validated promising molecular therapeutic glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) targets: human transmembrane glycoprotein nonmetastatic melanoma protein B (GPNMB(wt)) and a splice variant form (GPNMB(sv), a 12-amino-acid in-frame insertion in the extracellular domain).

Experimental Design: We have done genetic and immunohistochemical evaluation of human GBM to determine incidence, distribution, and pattern of localization of GPNMB antigens in brain tumors as well as survival analyses.

Okadaic acid stimulates the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor gene.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a specific mitogen for vascular endothelial cells and has been implicated in tumor angiogenesis. Okadaic acid, an inhibitor of protein phosphatases 1 and 2A, is a non-12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA)-type tumor promoter in two-stage carcinogenesis experiments in mouse skin. To elucidate the role of VEGF in the angiogenesis of these experimental tumors, the effect of okadaic acid on VEGF gene expression was examined.