scholarly journals A CONTRIBUTION TO THE PATHOLOGY OF EPIDEMIC POLIOMYELITIS

1914 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Flexner ◽  
Paul F. Clark ◽  
Harold L. Amoss

The virus of poliomyelitis is neurotropic, and localizes, and probably is capable of multiplying in the extramedullary parenchymatous nervous organs. It has been demonstrated by inoculation tests in the intervertebral, Gasserian, and abdominal sympathetic ganglia. All the ganglia show histological lesions, more or less severe, similar to those of the spinal cord and brain. The severest occur in the intervertebral ganglia, those next in severity in the Gasserian, while the mildest appear in the abdominal sympathetic ganglia. The interstitial lesions predominate over the parenchymatous, and in preparalytic stages the intervertebral ganglia show interstitial lesions, especially pronounced at the pial covering. Epidemic poliomyelitis is a general disease of the nervous system, although the most prominent and important symptoms are those following injury to the motor neurones of the spinal cord and brain. The virus of poliomyelitis is highly resistant to glycerin, in which it survives for more than two years; to 0.5 per cent. phenol, in which it survives for more than one year; while it succumbs after having been kept frozen constantly for several months. It is unsafe to employ phenol to modify the virus of poliomyelitis for the purpose of active immunization. The cerebrospinal fluid of convalescents tends to be devoid of the neutralizing immunity principles for the virus of poliomyelitis, although they may exceptionally be present within this fluid. Doubtless the immunity principles are not produced locally in the nervous tissues, but elsewhere in the body, and are carried to the nervous organs by the blood.

1967 ◽  
Vol 166 (1005) ◽  
pp. 396-407 ◽  

Sucking pigs about 2 weeks old were held back by undernutrition so that they weighed only 5 to 6 kg when they were a year of age. The brain and cord developed during this time to the size to be expected in a normal pig about 10 weeks old but, although they remained immature for their chronological age, the effect on the various constituents was not uniform. The accumulation of cholesterol was less retarded than that of DNA.P or the increase in brain weight. During rehabilitation on a highly satisfactory diet the final body w eight reached at 3 1/2 years was 80 % of that to be expected in an adult pig and was equivalent only to that of a normal pig two years old. The central nervous system grew to the appropriate size for the body. The percentage of cholesterol in the central nervous system rose during rehabilitation, but, particularly in the forebrain, brain stem and spinal cord, remained subnormal for the chronological age. The deficiency of DNA- P in the rehabilitated brain was even greater, and the absolute amount finally corresponded to that found in the brain of a norm alanimal only one year of age.


Author(s):  
Peggy Mason

The central nervous system develops from a proliferating tube of cells and retains a tubular organization in the adult spinal cord and brain, including the forebrain. Failure of the neural tube to close at the front is lethal, whereas failure to close the tube at the back end produces spina bifida, a serious neural tube defect. Swellings in the neural tube develop into the hindbrain, midbrain, diencephalon, and telencephalon. The diencephalon sends an outpouching out of the cranium to form the retina, providing an accessible window onto the brain. The dorsal telencephalon forms the cerebral cortex, which in humans is enormously expanded by growth in every direction. Running through the embryonic neural tube is an internal lumen that becomes the cerebrospinal fluid–containing ventricular system. The effects of damage to the spinal cord and forebrain are compared with respect to impact on self and potential for improvement.


2001 ◽  
Vol 69 (10) ◽  
pp. 6545-6548 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Fujii ◽  
Yoshimasa Kinoshita ◽  
Takashi Yutsudo ◽  
Hatsumi Taniguchi ◽  
Tom Obrig ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The action of Shiga toxin (Stx) on the central nervous system was examined in rabbits. Intravenous Stx1 was 44 times more lethal than Stx2 and acted more rapidly than Stx2. However, Stx1 accumulated more slowly in the cerebrospinal fluid than did Stx2. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated a predominance of Stx1-dependent lesions in the spinal cord. Pretreatment of the animals with anti-Stx1 antiserum intravenously completely protected against both development of brain lesions and mortality.


2016 ◽  
Vol 115 (5) ◽  
pp. 2421-2433 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne-Christine Schmid ◽  
Jui-Hong Chien ◽  
Joel D. Greenspan ◽  
Ira Garonzik ◽  
Nirit Weiss ◽  
...  

The normal organization and plasticity of the cutaneous core of the thalamic principal somatosensory nucleus (ventral caudal, Vc) have been studied by single-neuron recordings and microstimulation in patients undergoing awake stereotactic operations for essential tremor (ET) without apparent somatic sensory abnormality and in patients with dystonia or chronic pain secondary to major nervous system injury. In patients with ET, most Vc neurons responded to one of the four stimuli, each of which optimally activates one mechanoreceptor type. Sensations evoked by microstimulation were similar to those evoked by the optimal stimulus only among rapidly adapting neurons. In patients with ET, Vc was highly segmented somatotopically, and vibration, movement, pressure, and sharp sensations were usually evoked by microstimulation at separate sites in Vc. In patients with conditions including spinal cord transection, amputation, or dystonia, RFs were mismatched with projected fields more commonly than in patients with ET. The representation of the border of the anesthetic area (e.g., stump) or of the dystonic limb was much larger than that of the same part of the body in patients with ET. This review describes the organization and reorganization of human Vc neuronal activity in nervous system injury and dystonia and then proposes basic mechanisms.


Author(s):  
Peggy Mason

The primary regions and principal functions of the central nervous system are introduced through the story of Jean-Dominique Bauby who became locked in after suffering a brainstem stroke. Bauby blinked out his story of locked-in syndrome one letter at a time. The primary deficit of locked-in syndrome is in voluntary movement because pathways from the brain to motoneurons in the brainstem and spinal cord are interrupted. Perception is also disturbed as pathways responsible for transforming sensory stimuli into conscious awareness are interrupted as they ascend through the brainstem into the forebrain. Homeostasis, through which the brain keeps the body alive, is also adversely affected in locked-in syndrome because it depends on the brain, spinal cord and autonomic nervous system. Abstract functions such as memory, language, and emotion depend fully on the forebrain and are intact in locked-in syndrome, as clearly evidenced by Bauby’s eloquent words.


Author(s):  
Daniel J. Wallace ◽  
Janice Brock Wallace

A fibromyalgia patient frequently complains of pain. The pain of fibromyalgia is different from that of a headache, stomach cramp, toothache, or swollen joint. It has been described as a type of stiffness or aching, often associated with spasm. Unlike the other pains mentioned above, fibromyalgia pain responds poorly to aspirin, acetaminophen (Tylenol), or ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin). In fact, studies have suggested that even narcotics such as morphine are minimally beneficial in ameliorating fibromyalgia pain. Why is it that fibromyalgia patients can take codeine, Darvon, Vicodin, or even Demerol for musculoskeletal aches and have only a slight response? What produces “pain without purpose”? In this chapter, we’ll explore what makes fibromyalgia a pain amplification syndrome. Why does the patient hurt in places where there was often no injury and all laboratory tests are normal? What creates what doctors call allodynia, or a clinical situation that results in pain from a stimulus (such as light touch) that normally should not be painful? Fibromyalgia is a form of chronic, widespread allodynia, as well as sustained hyperalgesia, or greater sensitivity than would be expected to an adverse stimulus. The nervous system consists of several components. The brain and spinal cord comprise the central nervous system. Nerves leaving the spinal cord that tell us to move our arms or legs are part of the “motor” aspects of the peripheral nervous system. Additionally, all sorts of information about touch, taste, chemicals, and pressure are relayed through “sensory” pathways back to the spinal cord, where they are processed and sent up to the brain for a response. The autonomic nervous system consists of specialized peripheral nerves. Fibromyalgia is a disorder characterized by an inappropriate neuromuscular reaction that leads to chronic pain. Patients with fibromyalgia usually react normally to acute pain. Our current concepts of the way the body responds to chronic painful stimuli stem from the gate theory, first proposed by Ronald Melzack and Patrick Wall in 1965. Nerve “wires” go from the periphery to the dorsal horn of the spinal cord. These wires are modulated by feedback loops within the nervous system.


1951 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 271-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. T. EAYRS

The growth of the body and central nervous system and the emergence of stereotyped behaviour have been studied in male and female rats during the first 24 days of life. The effects of daily injections of equine gonadotrophin on these measures have also been investigated. The weight of the body and of the central nervous system was significantly less in the female than in the male. The daily administration of 10 i.u. of equine gonadotrophin was without effect on either. The movements of the trunk and limbs concerned in the body-righting reflex became coordinated more slowly in the gonadotrophin-injected animals than in their litter-mate controls. At 15 days old, male rats were able to right in mid-air more successfully than litter-mate females. The placing reflex appeared earlier in the male than in the female. Its appearance was accelerated in the females given gonadotrophin, but not in the males. In the ventral funiculus of the spinal cord of 24-day-old experimental animals, the axis cylinders occupied more space relative to that occupied by myelin than did those of the controls. The total amount of myelin present was unchanged. There was no sex difference in the progress of myelination in the spinal cord. The significance of these findings in relation to the secretion of sex hormones is discussed. It is suggested that the secretion of androgen may be responsible for an acceleration of nervous maturation.


1984 ◽  
Vol 112 (1) ◽  
pp. 337-357 ◽  
Author(s):  
STEN GRILLNER ◽  
PETER WALLÉN

The lamprey spinal cord, in isolation or with the brainstem, can be used in vitro. The motor patterns underlying the swimming movements can be elicited by: (1) a pharmacological activation of a specific type of neuronal receptor (NMDA-receptor), that may in other systems give rise to an unstable membrane potential, (2) by stimulation of the brainstem or (3) by tactile activation of skin regions left innervated. In the latter case the initiation of ‘fictive’ swimming is partially caused by a release of a transmitter activating NMDA-receptors, as judged by the effect of NMDA-receptor blockers. The central pattern generator (CPG) is strongly influenced by feedback from mechanosensitive elements, which at least partially reside within the spinal cord. The edge cell in the lamprey spinal cord serves as an intraspinal mechanoreceptor. The ability to generate a coordinated motor output is distributed, since spinal cord sections down to 1.5–2 segments can be made to generate alternating activity. Motor neurones receive an approximately synchronous alternating excitatory and inhibitory drive in each swim cycle and do not appear to be part of the CPG. Motor neurones supplying different parts of the body wall on the same side of a body segment have different morphology with ramifications around different descending axons. The input drive signal during fictive locomotion to motor neurones located close to each other but with different morphological characteristics may differ substantially with regard to the γ-relationship (±25%) and the shape of the oscillation. This implies that even at a segmental level motor neurones may be further subdivided, and furthermore that the ipsilateral network generating the drive signal to ipsilateral motor neurones generates a more complex and individualized output than previously assumed. Motor neurones are not part of the rhythm-generating circuit. The large identifiable interneurones are not required for rhythmic activity to occur although they may be phasically active in the swim cycle. The small segmental interneurones have not yet been completely characterized. Many are phasically active during ‘fictive locomotion’ and lack an apparent axon. Their phase relationships in relation to the burst patterns vary over the entire swim cycle.


2022 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Kung ◽  
Kuan-Yu Chen ◽  
Wei-Hao Liao ◽  
Yi-Hua Hsu ◽  
Chueh-Hung Wu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The blood-cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) barrier (BCSFB) is critically important to the pathophysiology of the central nervous system (CNS). However, this barrier prevents the safe transmission of beneficial drugs from the blood to the CSF and thus the spinal cord and brain, limiting their effectiveness in treating a variety of CNS diseases. Methods This study demonstrates a method on SD rats for reversible and site-specific opening of the BCSFB via a noninvasive, low-energy focused shockwave (FSW) pulse (energy flux density 0.03 mJ/mm2) with SonoVue microbubbles (2 × 106 MBs/kg), posing a low risk of injury. Results By opening the BCSFB, the concentrations of certain CNS-impermeable indicators (70 kDa Evans blue and 500 kDa FITC-dextran) and drugs (penicillin G, doxorubicin, and bevacizumab) could be significantly elevated in the CSF around both the brain and the spinal cord. Moreover, glioblastoma model rats treated by doxorubicin with this FSW-induced BCSFB (FSW-BCSFB) opening technique also survived significantly longer than untreated controls. Conclusion This is the first study to demonstrate and validate a method for noninvasively and selectively opening the BCSFB to enhance drug delivery into CSF circulation. Potential applications may include treatments for neurodegenerative diseases, CNS infections, brain tumors, and leptomeningeal carcinomatosis.


PEDIATRICS ◽  
1949 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 432-442
Author(s):  
SVEN GARD ◽  
J. HENNING MAGNUSSON ◽  
F. WAHLGREN ◽  
GUNNAR GILLE

An account is given of congenital toxoplasmosis in a child who died at the age of 43 days. The patient, who was somnolent from birth, showed the following symptoms: bilateral microphthalmia and chronic bilateral uveitis; considerable hydrocephalus internus, mainly symmetric, cerebral calcifications and pronounced typical changes in the cerebrospinal fluid, hypoprothrombinemia and eosinophilia; enlargement of the liver and spleen; marked lability of the body temperature with wide variations. The postmortem findings, both macroscopic and microscopic, were typical in every respect, with pronounced necrotic encephalitis in the cerebrum and characteristic foci of granulomata in the brainstem and the spinal cord. Toxoplasma in the form of pseudocysts were demonstrated in the affected parts of the brain. Typical Toxoplasma were isolated from the spinal fluid on three occasions, from material obtained by liver biopsy and from pieces of brain and spleen removed at autopsy. Serum from the patient as well as from the mother gave a positive neutralization test in rabbits. The in vitro dye test according to Sabin and Feldman yielded a positive result with a high titer value. The strain of Toxoplasma isolated ("G. L.") seems to be serologically identical with the American strains "RH" and "LM."


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