Characteristic Magnetic Resonance Image Features of Acute Network Injury in Young Patients

Cerebral infarction is known to cause secondary degeneration of the areas connected to the primarily damaged regions. This has been named as acute network injury and is usually recognized in newborns or babies by high signal intensity on diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI). In this article, we present 2 cases demonstrating several characteristics of network injury. Some features are comparable to previous studies and others are distinctive to our cases. The patients not only showed secondary injury in the thorough pyramidal tract along the longitudinal extensions of neural tracts as expected but also followed transverse connections to reach the contralateral hemisphere. The location of network injury varied according to the initial lesion and projected in an omnidirectional manner as long as the brain parts are interconnected. In addition, the cases well demonstrated the temporal changes on brain imaging. Network injury appeared on DWI around a week after major damage and then subsequently disappeared. The overall process of appearance to disappearance was completed within 2 weeks from the symptom onset. As ominous neurological outcomes are thought to be related to acute network injuries, a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon is pivotal in improving diagnosis and management.

Interactive 3D Brain Helps You Learn How the Brain is Organized

Which parts of your brain help you to talk to and understand others? How about recognizing your friends by their faces? Or remembering the last time you ate your favorite dessert? In this article we describe EduCortex, a free educational tool that allows you to play with a 3D brain, to discover how different parts of the brain work together to help you do things. By clicking on the brain, you will see words that are most associated with the selected brain region. For example, by entering a word like “language,” you can see the parts of the brain related to language. EduCortex works by using an online collection of information that automatically checks over 14,000 scientific papers, to see how the content of each paper relates to different brain parts.

Evolutionary Modifications Are Moderate in the Astroglial System of Actinopterygii as Revealed by GFAP Immunohistochemistry

The present paper is the first comparative study on the astroglia of several actinopterygian species at different phylogenetical positions, teleosts (16 species), and non-teleosts (3 species), based on the immunohistochemical staining of GFAP (glial fibrillary acidic protein), the characteristic cytoskeletal intermediary filament protein, and immunohistochemical marker of astroglia. The question was, how the astroglial architecture reflexes the high diversity of this largest vertebrate group. The actinopterygian telencephalon has a so-called ‘eversive’ development in contrast to the ‘evagination’ found in sarcopterygii (including tetrapods). Several brain parts either have no equivalents in tetrapod vertebrates (e.g., torus longitudinalis, lobus inferior, lobus nervi vagi), or have rather different shapes (e.g., the cerebellum). GFAP was visualized applying DAKO polyclonal anti-GFAP serum. The study was focused mainly on the telencephalon (eversion), tectum (visual orientation), and cerebellum (motor coordination) where the evolutionary changes were most expected, but the other areas were also investigated. The predominant astroglial elements were tanycytes (long, thin, fiber-like cells). In the teleost telencephala a ‘fan-shape’ re-arrangement of radial glia reflects the eversion. In bichir, starlet, and gar, in which the eversion is less pronounced, the ‘fan-shape’ re-arrangement did not form. In the tectum the radial glial processes were immunostained, but in Ostariophysi and Euteleostei it did not extend into their deep segments. In the cerebellum Bergmann-like glia was found in each group, including non-teleosts, except for Cyprinidae. The vagal lobe was uniquely enlarged and layered in Cyprininae, and had a corresponding layered astroglial system, which left almost free of GFAP the zones of sensory and motor neurons. In conclusion, despite the diversity and evolutionary alterations of Actinopterygii brains, the diversity of the astroglial architecture is moderate. In contrast to Chondrichthyes and Amniotes; in Actinopterygii true astrocytes (stellate-shaped extraependymal cells) did not appear during evolution, and the expansion of GFAP-free areas was limited.

The dorsoanterior brain of adult amphioxus shares similarities in expression profile and neuronal composition with the vertebrate telencephalon

Background The evolutionary origin of the telencephalon, the most anterior part of the vertebrate brain, remains obscure. Since no obvious counterpart to the telencephalon has yet been identified in invertebrate chordates, it is difficult to trace telencephalic origins. One way to identify homologous brain parts between distantly related animal groups is to focus on the combinatorial expression of conserved regionalisation genes that specify brain regions. Results Here, we report the combined expression of conserved transcription factors known to specify the telencephalon in the vertebrates in the chordate amphioxus. Focusing on adult specimens, we detect specific co-expression of these factors in the dorsal part of the anterior brain vesicle, which we refer to as Pars anterodorsalis (PAD). As in vertebrates, expression of the transcription factors FoxG1, Emx and Lhx2/9 overlaps that of Pax4/6 dorsally and of Nkx2.1 ventrally, where we also detect expression of the Hedgehog ligand. This specific pattern of co-expression is not observed prior to metamorphosis. Similar to the vertebrate telencephalon, the amphioxus PAD is characterised by the presence of GABAergic neurons and dorsal accumulations of glutamatergic as well as dopaminergic neurons. We also observe sustained proliferation of neuronal progenitors at the ventricular zone of the amphioxus brain vesicle, as observed in the vertebrate brain. Conclusions Our findings suggest that the PAD in the adult amphioxus brain vesicle and the vertebrate telencephalon evolved from the same brain precursor region in ancestral chordates, which would imply homology of these structures. Our comparative data also indicate that this ancestral brain already contained GABA-, glutamatergic and dopaminergic neurons, as is characteristic for the olfactory bulb of the vertebrate telencephalon. We further speculate that the telencephalon might have evolved in vertebrates via a heterochronic shift in developmental timing.

Numerical Investigation of Axonal Damage for Regular and Irregular Axonal Distributions

Recently, various researches have revealed the importance of the investigations performed for evaluating mechanical properties and damages of the brain tissues while dealing with the production of surgical ligaments and helmets. Therefore, it is vital to study the structure of the brain both experimentally and numerically. By experimental tests, despite being costly, it is almost impossible to establish stress distribution in micro scale, which causes injury. Micromechanical predictions are effective ways to assess brain behavior. They can be applied to compensate for some experimental test limitations. In this work, a numerical study of the axonal injury in different heterogeneous porcine brain parts with different axon distributions under quasi-static loading is provided. In order to produce a heterogeneous structure, axons are distributed in regular, semi-regular, and irregular patterns inside the representative volume element. To accurately examine the brain tissue time-dependent behavior, a visco-hyperelastic constitutive model is developed. Also, axonal damage is studied under different conditions by applying different levels of load and rate. Because of geometrical complexities, a self-consistent method was applied to study the damage in higher volume fractions of the axon. The results reveal that the regions of the brain enjoying a regular axon distribution would have higher strength. In addition, among the two influential load and loading rate parameters, the brain tissue in all regions shows more sensitivity toward the applying load.

Proliferative Capacity of Adult Mouse Brain

We studied cell proliferation in the postnatal mouse brain between the ages of 2 and 30 months and identified four compartments with different densities of proliferating cells. The first identified compartment corresponds to the postnatal pallial neurogenic (PPN) zone in the telencephalon; the second to the subpallial postnatal neurogenic (SPPN) zone in the telencephalon; the third to the white matter bundles in the telencephalon; and the fourth to all brain parts outside of the other three compartments. We estimated that about 3.4 million new cells, including 0.8 million in the subgranular zone (SGZ) in the hippocampus, are produced in the PPN zone. About 21 million new cells, including 10 million in the subependymal zone (SEZ) in the lateral walls of the lateral ventricle and 2.7 million in the rostral migratory stream (RMS), are produced in the SPPN zone. The third and fourth compartments together produced about 31 million new cells. The analysis of cell proliferation in neurogenic zones shows that postnatal neurogenesis is the direct continuation of developmental neurogenesis in the telencephalon and that adult neurogenesis has characteristics of the late developmental process. As a developmental process, adult neurogenesis supports only compensatory regeneration, which is very inefficient.

Mineral profile and dietary mineral supplements on the concentrations of some minerals in the brain regions of pigs.

The nervous system though largely electrical in action is "powered" by its content of minerals which exist in ionic forms in nature and play a major role in neural action, membrane permeability and excitation. 20 grower boars were randomly assigned to two dietary groups of 10 boars each. The first ration was a conventional grower feed without vitamin/mineral premix while the second diet was supplemented with Agricare® premix* and more common salt than the conventional diet. The animals were fed ad libitum and slaughtered at 60kg body weight. The brains were dissected out into six brain parts namely: cerebellum, amygdala, hippocampus, hypothalamus, cerebral cortex and medulla oblongata, and immediately analysed for electrolytes. Calcium in the cerebellum and hypothalamus of mineral-supplemented pigs was significantly higher (P<0.05) than concentrations in the pigs on unsupplemented diets. Calcium concentrations in the other brain regions did not show significant differences. Sodium concentrations were relatively stable in all the brain parts irrespective of dietary mineral supplementation although higher concentrations were recorded in the brain parts of pigs on mineral supplemented diets. However, sodium concentrations were higher in the cerebellum and cerebral cortex of the mineral-supplemented pigs with values of 15.0 mg di and 14.8 mg dt- which are significantly (P<0.05) higher than concentrations of 11.8 mg dr and11.3 mg dr respectively recorded for the pigs on the unsupplemented diet. This study has established a direct link between dietary minerals and salt on the mineral content of the pig brain

INFLUENCE OF UNDIFFERENTIATED CONNECTIVE TISSUE DYSPLASIA ON SOLID DYSMORPHOGENESIS AND SOFT TISSUES OF THE HEAD AND KEFALOMETRIC INDICATORS OF RESIDENTS OF THE KHMAO – YUGRA 17–20 YEARS

As a result of the study, it was found that 94.4% of boys and girls of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug – Ugra have signs of dysmorphogenesis of hard and soft tissues of the head. In 76% of the examined, connective tissue dysplasia was established. In representatives with connective tissue dysplasia, the signs of dysmorphogenesis of the facial and brain parts of the head are only combined, have sexual dimorphism and are very diverse, aff ecting all areas of the brain and facial parts of the head. The presence of a dysplastic phenotype does not aff ect individual dimensional characteristics of the brain and facial parts of the head, but it aff ects the morphotypological characteristics of these departments and their gender diff erences.

Benzodiazepine tranquilizers abolish the stress-induced increase of the brain ghrelin level in DANIO RERIO

Danio reriohas firmly established itself as a successful model for research in many areas of biology and medicine, first of all for developing new medicines. The aimof our study was to evaluate ghrelin level in zebrafish brain after stress and after phenazepam usage on stressed fish. Methods.In our study 96Danio rerio, predatorCichlasoma nicaraguensishave been used. The fish have been kept at anormal room temperature (2223C) with standard feeding time (twice per day). The level of neuropeptides has been tested by ELISA test. During experiment a fish has been firstly placed in a beaker with a dissolved pharmacological substance, then has been transferred into a tank with predator. In the end of experiment, it has been put into a novel tank for 6 min. The decapitation has been made. Thebrain has been divided into three anatomical parts:telencephalonjust behind the olfactory bulb, the middle partcorpora bigemiaandcerebellum, which is situated behind thecorpora bigemia. After that the material for ELISA test was made using GhrelinFISH, MyBioSource ELISA kit. Results.In the control group ghrelin has been determined only in thecerebellumin 57.14% of all fish. In the experiment with predator ghrelin has been found in all tested brain parts of fish, but in thetelencephalonthere was the highest level. Inthe experiment with phenazepam usage only and phenazepam administration after predator stress, the ghrelin value has not been determined atall. Conclusion.Thus we have found out that the ghrelin value increases after predator stress and the drug phenazepam eliminated it completely after its administration. We may suppose that the administration of anxiolytics such as phenazepam can reduce the anxiety inDanio rerio.