Fighting fire with fire: the revival of thermotherapy for gliomas.

In 1891, an orthopedic surgeon in New York noted the disappearance of an inoperable sarcoma in a patient after a febrile illness. This observation resulted in experiments assessing the utility of heat therapy or thermotherapy for the treatment of cancer. While it initially fell from favor, thermotherapy has recently made a resurgence, sparking investigations into its anticancer properties.

Characterizing phospholipase A2-induced spinal cord injury-a comparison with contusive spinal cord injury in adult rats.

To assess whether phospholipase A2 (PLA2) plays a role in the pathogenesis of spinal cord injury (SCI), we compared lesions either induced by PLA2 alone or by a contusive SCI. At 24-h post-injury, both methods induced a focal hemorrhagic pathology. The PLA2 injury was mainly confined within the ventrolateral white matter, whereas the contusion injury widely affected both the gray and white matter.

A novel role of phospholipase A2 in mediating spinal cord secondary injury.

Objective: To investigate whether phospholipase A2 (PLA2) plays a role in the pathogenesis of spinal cord injury (SCI).

Methods: Biochemical, Western blot, histological, immunohistochemical, electron microscopic, electrophysiological, and behavior assessments were performed to investigate (1) SCI-induced PLA2 activity, expression, and cellular localization after a contusive SCI; and (2) the effects of exogenous PLA2 on spinal cord neuronal death in vitro and tissue damage, inflammation, and function in vivo.

Results: After SCI, both PLA2 activity and cytosolic PLA2 expression increased significantly, with cytosolic PLA2 expression being localized mainly in neurons and oligodendrocytes.