The increased CMRO2 and decreased CSF lactate levels after treatment indicate that HBO may improve aerobic metabolism in severely brain injured patients. This is the first study to demonstrate a prolonged effect of HBO treatment on CBF and cerebral metabolism. On the basis of their data the authors assert that shorter, more frequent exposure to HBO may optimize treatment.

The sensitivity of the reverse-transcription -polymerase chain reaction assay is comparable to that of the histopathologic examination of the entire SLN by serial sectioning at 1.5 to 2 mm.

This study quantifies previous observations of methylation in histologically negative samples and provides important assessment of field effects based on epigenetic events in cancer. These molecular approaches set the stage for consideration of such data in prospective trials for assessment of surgical margins and prediction of recurrence.

No abstract

This study examined interactions between the corticostriatal glutamatergic system and the nigrostriatal dopaminergic system via immunocytochemical examination of dopamine (DA) agonist induction of the striatal immediate early gene product Fos following cortical injury. After unilateral aspiration of the medial agranular cortex (AGm) region of prefrontal cortex, rats were tested for orientation to visual, tactile, and auditory stimuli. Fos immunoreactivity induced by d-amphetamine (5 mg/kg) or apomorphine (5 mg/kg) was quantified in dorsolateral and ventrolateral regions of caudate-putamen (CPu) in rats still demonstrating sensory neglect (5 days postsurgery) and in rats recovered from sensory neglect produced by AGm ablation (29+ days postsurgery). The pattern of immunoreactivity of rats still demonstrating neglect differed from that of unlesioned rats or recovered AGm-ablated rats. In rats demonstrating sensory neglect, d-amphetamine or apomorphine induction of Fos in the ipsilateral CPu was reduced by about 40% compared to the contralateral CPu or to comparable readings in unlesioned controls. These asymmetries were restricted to dorsolateral CPu, the region receiving the densest input from AGm. In contrast, recovered AGm-ablated rats had DA agonist-induced striatal Fos immunoreactivity that was symmetrical between the two hemispheres and comparable to control values. These findings indicate that adaptations involving the striatal medium spiny neuron, a site of convergence of cortical glutamatergic and nigral dopaminergic afferents, may contribute to recovery from behavioral deficits resulting from neocortical injury.