Neural transplantation cannula and microinjector system: experimental and clinical experience

2000 ◽  
Vol 92 (3) ◽  
pp. 493-499 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivar Mendez ◽  
Murray Hong ◽  
Stephen Smith ◽  
Alain Dagher ◽  
Jacques Desrosiers

✓ The authors present a simple, reliable, and safe system for performing neural transplantation in the human brain. The device consists of a transplantation cannula and microinjector system that has been specifically designed to reduce implantation-related trauma and to maximize the number of graft deposits per injection. The system was evaluated first in an experimental rat model of Parkinson's disease (PD). Animals in which transplantation with this system had been performed showed excellent graft survival with minimal trauma to the brain. Following this experimental stage, the cannula and microinjector system were used in eight patients with PD enrolled in the Halifax Neural Transplantation Program who received bilateral putaminal transplants of fetal ventral mesencephalic tissue. A total of 16 transplantation operations and 64 trajectories were performed in the eight patients, and there were no intraoperative or perioperative complications. Magnetic resonance imaging studies obtained 24 hours after surgery revealed no evidence of tissue damage or hemorrhage. Transplant survival was confirmed by fluorodopa positron emission tomography scans obtained 6 and 12 months after surgery.As neural transplantation procedures for the treatment of neurological conditions evolve, the ability to deliver viable grafts safely will become critically important. The device presented here has proved to be of value in maximizing the number of graft deposits while minimizing implantation-related trauma to the host brain.

1999 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. E4
Author(s):  
Ivar Mendez ◽  
Murray Hong ◽  
Stephen Smith ◽  
Alain Dagher ◽  
Jacques Desrosiers

The authors present a simple, reliable, and safe system for performing neural transplantation in the human brain. The device consists of a transplantation cannula and microinjector system that has been specifically designed to reduce implantation-related trauma and to maximize the number of graft deposits for each injection. The system was evaluated first in an experimental rat model of Parkinson's disease (PD). Animal transplantation with this system showed excellent graft survival with minimal trauma to the brain. Following this experimental stage, the cannula and microinjector system was used in eight patients with PD enrolled in the Halifax Neural Transplantation Program who received bilateral putaminal transplants of fetal ventral mesencephalic tissue. A total of 16 transplantation operations and 64 trajectories were performed in the eight patients, and there were no intra- or perioperative complications. Magnetic resonance imaging studies obtained 24 hours after surgery revealed no evidence of tissue damage or hemorrhage. Transplant survival was confirmed on fluorodopa positron emission tomography scans 6 and 12 months after surgery. As neural transplantation procedures for the treatment of neurological conditions evolve, the ability to deliver viable grafts safely will become of critical importance. The device presented here has been proven to be of value in maximizing the number of graft deposits while minimizing implantation-related trauma to the host brain.


2002 ◽  
Vol 96 (3) ◽  
pp. 589-596 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivar Mendez ◽  
Alain Dagher ◽  
Murray Hong ◽  
Paula Gaudet ◽  
Swarna Weerasinghe ◽  
...  

✓ The main neural transplantation strategy in Parkinson disease (PD) has been focused on reinnervating the striatum. The clinical results reported in patients who receive transplants have been limited and do not justify the use of neural transplantation as a routine therapeutic procedure for PD. Identifying the optimal target for transplantation may be one of the critical factors for optimizing clinical outcomes. Evidence from preclinical studies indicates that simultaneous intrastriatal and intranigral grafts (double grafts) may produce a more complete functional recovery. The authors report the clinical and positron emission tomography (PET) scanning results in three patients enrolled in a safety and feasibility pilot study who received double grafts and who have been followed for up to 13 months posttransplantation. Patients included in the study had idiopathic PD. All patients underwent detailed assessments before and after surgery, in accordance with the Core Assessment Program for Intracerebral Transplantation. The patients received implants of fetal mesencephalic cell suspensions in the putamen and substantia nigra (SN) bilaterally. There were no intraoperative or perioperative complications. Follow-up PET scans demonstrated an increase in the mean fluorodopa uptake constant values in the putamen and SN 12 months postsurgery. Improvements were also noted in the total Unified Parkinson′s Disease Rating Scale, Hoehn and Yahr, Schwab and England, and pronation/supination scores after transplantation. The authors demonstrate the feasibility of reinnervating the SN and striatum by using a double transplant strategy in humans.


2002 ◽  
Vol 97 ◽  
pp. 542-550 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc Levivier ◽  
David Wikler ◽  
Nicolas Massager ◽  
Philippe David ◽  
Daniel Devriendt ◽  
...  

Object. The authors review their experience with the clinical development and routine use of positron emission tomography (PET) during stereotactic procedures, including the use of PET-guided gamma knife radiosurgery (GKS). Methods. Techniques have been developed for the routine use of stereotactic PET, and accumulated experience using PET-guided stereotactic procedures over the past 10 years includes more than 150 stereotactic biopsies, 43 neuronavigation procedures, and 34 cases treated with GKS. Positron emission tomography—guided GKS was performed in 24 patients with primary brain tumors (four pilocytic astrocytomas, five low-grade astrocytomas or oligodendrogliomas, seven anaplastic astrocytomas or ependymomas, five glioblastomas, and three neurocytomas), five patients with metastases (single or multiple lesions), and five patients with pituitary adenomas. Conclusions. Data obtained with PET scanning can be integrated with GKS treatment planning, enabling access to metabolic information with high spatial accuracy. Positron emission tomography data can be successfully combined with magnetic resonance imaging data to provide specific information for defining the target volume for the radiosurgical treatment in patients with recurrent brain tumors, such as glioma, metastasis, and pituitary adenoma. This approach is particularly useful for optimizing target selection for infiltrating or ill-defined brain lesions. The use of PET scanning contributed data in 31 cases (93%) and information that was specifically utilized to adapt the target volume in 25 cases (74%). It would seem that the integration of PET data into GKS treatment planning may represent an important step toward further developments in radiosurgery: this approach provides additional information that may open new perspectives for the optimization of the treatment of brain tumors.


2005 ◽  
Vol 102 (Special_Supplement) ◽  
pp. 247-254 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Sheehan ◽  
Douglas Kondziolka ◽  
John Flickinger ◽  
L. Dade Lunsford

Object. Lung carcinoma is the leading cause of death from cancer. More than 50% of those with small cell lung cancer develop a brain metastasis. Corticosteroid agents, radiotherapy, and resection have been the mainstays of treatment. Nonetheless, median survival for patients with small cell lung carcinoma metastasis is approximately 4 to 5 months after cranial irradiation. In this study the authors examine the efficacy of gamma knife surgery for treating recurrent small cell lung carcinoma metastases to the brain following tumor growth in patients who have previously undergone radiation therapy, and they evaluate factors affecting survival. Methods. A retrospective review of 27 patients (47 recurrent small cell lung cancer brain metastases) undergoing radiosurgery was performed. Clinical and radiographic data obtained during a 14-year treatment period were collected. Multivariate analysis was utilized to determine significant prognostic factors influencing survival. The overall median survival was 18 months after the diagnosis of brain metastases. In multivariate analysis, factors significantly affecting survival included: 1) tumor volume (p = 0.0042); 2) preoperative Karnofsky Performance Scale score (p = 0.0035); and 3) time between initial lung cancer diagnosis and development of brain metastasis (p = 0.0127). Postradiosurgical imaging of the brain metastases revealed that 62% decreased, 19% remained stable, and 19% eventually increased in size. One patient later underwent a craniotomy and tumor resection for a tumor refractory to radiosurgery and radiation therapy. In three patients new brain metastases were demonstrating on follow-up imaging. Conclusions. Stereotactic radiosurgery for recurrent small cell lung carcinoma metastases provided effective local tumor control in the majority of patients. Early detection of brain metastases, aggressive treatment of systemic disease, and a therapeutic strategy including radiosurgery can extend survival.


1971 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 537-543 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard A. Lende ◽  
Wolff M. Kirsch ◽  
Ralph Druckman

✓ Cortical removals which included precentral and postcentral facial representations resulted in relief of facial pain in two patients. Because of known failures following only postcentral (SmI) ablations, these operations were designed to eliminate also the cutaneous afferent projection to the precentral gyrus (MsI) and the second somatic sensory area (SmII). In one case burning pain developed after a stroke involving the brain stem and was not improved by total fifth nerve section; prompt relief followed corticectomy and lasted until death from heart disease 20 months later. In the other case persistent steady pain that developed after fifth rhizotomy for trigeminal neuralgia proved refractory to frontal lobotomy; relief after corticectomy was immediate and has lasted 14 months. Cortical localization was established by stimulation under local anesthesia. Each removal extended up to the border of the arm representation and down to the upper border of the insula. Such a resection necessarily included SmII, and in one case responses presumably from SmII were obtained before removal. The suggestions of Biemond (1956) and Poggio and Mountcastle (1960) that SmII might be concerned with pain sensibility may be pertinent in these cases.


1993 ◽  
Vol 79 (5) ◽  
pp. 729-735 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Barba ◽  
Joseph Hardin ◽  
Jasodhara Ray ◽  
Fred H. Gage

✓ Gene therapy has many potential applications in central nervous system (CNS) disorders, including the selective killing of tumor cells in the brain. A rat brain tumor model was used to test the herpes simplex virus (HSV)-thymidine kinase (TK) gene for its ability to selectively kill C6 and 9L tumor cells in the brain following systemic administration of the nucleoside analog ganciclovir. The HSV-TK gene was introduced in vitro into tumor cells (C6-TK and 9L-TK), then these modified tumor cells were evaluated for their sensitivity to cell killing by ganciclovir. In a dose-response assay, both C6-TK and 9L-TK cells were 100 times more sensitive to killing by ganciclovir (median lethal dose: C6-TK, 0.1 µg ganciclovir/ml; C6, 5.0 µg ganciclovir/ml) than unmodified wild-type tumor cells or cultured fibroblasts. In vivo studies confirmed the ability of intraperitoneal ganciclovir administration to kill established brain tumors in rats as quantified by both stereological assessment of brain tumor volumes and studies of animal survival over 90 days. Rats with brain tumors established by intracerebral injection of wild-type or HSV-TK modified tumor cells or by a combination of wild-type and HSV-TK-modified cells were studied with and without ganciclovir treatments. Stereological methods determined that ganciclovir treatment eliminated tumors composed of HSV-TK-modified cells while control tumors grew as expected (p < 0.001). In survival studies, all 10 rats with 9L-TK tumors treated with ganciclovir survived 90 days while all untreated rats died within 25 days. Curiously, tumors composed of combinations of 9L and 9L-TK cells could be eliminated by ganciclovir treatments even when only one-half of the tumor cells carried the HSV-TK gene. While not completely understood, this additional tumor cell killing appears to be both tumor selective and local in nature. It is concluded that HSV-TK gene therapy with ganciclovir treatment does selectively kill tumor cells in the brain and has many potential applications in CNS disorders, including the treatment of cancer.


1977 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 50-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hiroshi Matsumura ◽  
Yasumasa Makita ◽  
Kuniyuki Someda ◽  
Akinori Kondo

✓ We have operated on 12 of 14 cases of arteriovenous malformation (AVM) in the posterior fossa since 1968, with one death. The lesions were in the cerebellum in 10 cases (three anteromedial, one central, three lateral, and three posteromedial), and in the cerebellopontine angle in two; in two cases the lesions were directly related to the brain stem. The AVM's in the anterior part of the cerebellum were operated on through a transtentorial occipital approach.


1972 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arthur M. Gerber ◽  
Robert A. Moody

✓ Experiments were carried out on rhesus monkeys to determine what physiological parameters were most closely correlated with death due to craniocerebral missile injuries. Observations of intracranial pressure, blood pressure, carotid flow, blood gases, respiratory rate, depth and volume, and electroencephalograms were made. These parameters were compared in survivors and nonsurvivors as were the pathological injuries. The most important single parameter that correlated with death was the drop in carotid flow. As this same correlation has been observed in epidural compression experiments in the monkey, there is a strong suspicion that reduced blood flow to the brain as measured by carotid flow is a common factor in craniocerebral missile injuries and epidural compression injuries.


2000 ◽  
Vol 92 (6) ◽  
pp. 1016-1022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ya Hua ◽  
Guohua Xi ◽  
Richard F. Keep ◽  
Julian T. Hoff

Object. Brain edema formation following intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) appears to be partly related to erythrocyte lysis and hemoglobin release. Erythrocyte lysis may be mediated by the complement cascade, which then triggers parenchymal injury. In this study the authors examine whether the complement cascade is activated after ICH and whether inhibition of complement attenuates brain edema around the hematoma.Methods. This study was divided into three parts. In the first part, 100 µl of autologous blood was infused into the rats' right basal ganglia, and the animals were killed at 24 and 72 hours after intracerebral infusion. Their brains were tested for complement factors C9, C3d, and clusterin (a naturally occurring complement inhibitor) by using immunohistochemical analysis. In the second part of the study, the rats were killed at 24 or 72 hours after injection of 100 µl of blood. The C9 and clusterin proteins were quantitated using Western blot analysis. In the third part, the rats received either 100 µl of blood or 100 µl of blood plus 10 µg of N-acetylheparin (a complement activation inhibitor). Then they were killed 24 or 72 hours later for measurement of brain water and ion contents. It was demonstrated on Western blot analysis that there had been a sixfold increase in C9 around the hematoma 24 hours after the infusion of 100 µl of autologous blood. Marked perihematomal C9 immunoreactivity was detected at 72 hours. Clusterin also increased after ICH and was expressed in neurons 72 hours later. The addition of N-acetylheparin significantly reduced brain edema formation in the ipsilateral basal ganglia at 24 hours (78.5 ± 0.5% compared with 81.6 ± 0.8% in control animals, p < 0.001) and at 72 hours (80.9 ± 2.2% compared with 83.6 ± 0.9% in control animals, p < 0.05) after ICH.Conclusions. It was found that ICH causes complement activation in the brain. Activation of complement and the formation of membrane attack complex contributes to brain edema formation after ICH. Blocking the complement cascade could be an important step in the therapy for ICH.


2000 ◽  
Vol 92 (6) ◽  
pp. 1009-1015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seiji Yamamoto ◽  
Weiyu Teng ◽  
Shigeru Nishizawa ◽  
Takeharu Kakiuchi ◽  
Hideo Tsukada

Object. The hydroxyl radical scavenger (±)-N,N′-propylenedinicotinamide (AVS) has been shown to ameliorate the occurrence of vasospasm following experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) and to reduce the incidence of delayed ischemic neurological deficits (DINDs) in patients with SAH. The authors investigated whether prophylactic administration of AVS could improve cerebral blood flow (CBF) and cerebral glucose utilization (CGU) following SAH in rats.Methods. Anesthetized rats were subjected to intracisternal injection of blood (SAH group) or saline (control group). Either AVS (1 mg/kg/min) or saline (vehicle group) was continuously injected into the rat femoral vein. Forty-eight hours later, positron emission tomography scanning was used with the tracers 15O-H2O and 18F-2-fluoro-d-glucose to analyze quantitatively CBF and CGU, respectively, in the frontoparietal and occipital regions (12 regions of interest/group).In SAH rats receiving only vehicle, CBF decreased significantly (p < 0.05, Tukey's test) and CGU tended to decrease, compared with values obtained in control (non-SAH) rats receiving vehicle. In rats that were subjected to SAH, administration of AVS significantly (p < 0.05, Tukey's test) improved CBF and CGU in both the frontoparietal and occipital regions compared with administration of vehicle alone.Conclusions. Prophylactic administration of AVS improves CBF and CGU in the rat brain subjected to SAH, and can be a good pharmacological treatment for the prevention of DINDs following SAH.


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