Gamma knife radiosurgery for breast cancer brain metastasis: survival outcomes, prognotic factors, and the role of repeat treatment.

Purpose: This study evaluated prognostic factors and longitudinal outcomes associated with gamma knife radiosurgery (GKRS) in treating brain metastases from breast cancer, and assessed the efficacy of repeated GKRS in prolonging intracranial disease control.

Methods: In this retrospective study, we reviewed 159 breast cancer patients involving 640 brain metastases who underwent GKRS at a tertiary medical center. Overall survival (OS), local control (LC), and distant intracranial control were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method.

Repeated stereotactic radiosurgery for high grade meningioma.

Background And Objectives: Atypical and anaplastic meningioma (World Health organization [WHO] Grades II and III) present therapeutic challenges due to their aggressive behavior and high risk of recurrence. This study addressed the lack of data related to the effectiveness and safety of repeated stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) in managing high-grade recurrent or residual meningioma.

Methods: This study analyzed data extracted from the medical records of 112 patients (mean age of 57.

White matter microdissection of the lateral aspect of the brain: 2-dimensional video demonstration.

Background: The white matter dissection technique owes its modern recognition to Josef Klingler, whose fixation protocol enabled detailed fiber bundle visualization and led to an outstanding and still relevant atlas of white matter anatomy. After a period of decline in the late twentieth century, the technique was reintroduced into neurosurgical training with the aid of the surgical microscope, emphasizing the importance of fiber dissection and its practical applications in clinical neuroanatomy. This article provides a structured, step-by-step demonstration of white matter microdissection, progressing from superficial anatomy to deeper fiber layers.

Bevacizumab alternating chemotherapy for improving the survival of patients with recurrent high-grade glioma.

Background: High-grade glioma (HGG) is an aggressive tumor for which there are no effective therapies at recurrence, especially for isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH)-wild-type glioblastoma. This retrospective study compared survival outcomes between patients receiving bevacizumab alternating chemotherapy (BAC) and those receiving bevacizumab (BEV) alone.

Methods: We collected data from 95 adult patients with rHGG who were treated at our institute between January 2018 and August 2023.

Recurrent meningioma treated with boron neutron capture therapy: a feasibility study with dosimetric and clinical correlates.

Background: Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a targeted radiotherapy modality that has shown promise in the treatment of recurrent gliomas and head and neck cancers. Although meningiomas are generally slow-growing, recent studies have demonstrated favorable uptake of boron-containing compounds, particularly boronophenylalanine (BPA), suggesting a potential role for BNCT in recurrent meningioma.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 13 patients with recurrent meningiomas treated with salvage BNCT at the Tsing Hua Open-Pool Reactor between August 2020 and May 2024.

Xenotransplantation of Human Umbilical Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Derived from Wharton's Jelly Mitigates Mouse Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a motor neuron disease characterized by progressive degeneration of motor neurons in the cerebral cortex, brainstem, and spinal cord, eventually leading to paralysis, respiratory failure, and death. Currently, no effective treatment exists for ALS.

Methods: This study examined the therapeutic potential of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stromal cells (HUMSCs) by transplanting 2 × 10⁶ HUMSCs into the spinal canal of transgenic mice expressing mutant human superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) at 8 weeks of age.

Auto-segmentation of cerebral cavernous malformations using a convolutional neural network.

Background: This paper presents a deep learning model for the automated segmentation of cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs).

Methods: The model was trained using treatment planning data from 199 Gamma Knife (GK) exams, comprising 171 cases with a single CCM and 28 cases with multiple CCMs. The training data included initial MRI images with target CCM regions manually annotated by neurosurgeons.

Repeated stereotactic radiosurgery for residual intracranial dural arteriovenous fistulas.

Objective: Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) is widely used for the treatment of intracranial dural arteriovenous fistulas (DAVFs); however, the outcomes of repeated SRS to deal with residual DAVFs are unclear. This study assessed the benefits and potential negative consequences of repeated SRS in patients with residual DAVFs.

Methods: This retrospective study examined all patients who underwent two SRS procedures for DAVFs in a single academic medical center between January 1998 and December 2022.

Description of a new music frog (Anura, Ranidae, ) critically endangered in Taiwan.

(Boettger, 1895) is a small-sized ranid species belonging to the East Asian genus Dubois, 1992. Previous studies have indicated that this species was exclusively distributed on Ishigaki and Iriomote islands in the southern Ryukyus, as well as two extremely small wetland habitats in central Taiwan. Such a restricted distribution makes it one of the most endangered frog species in both Taiwan and Japan.

Optimizing Non-Thermal Magnetic Field to Minimize Weight Loss and Tissue Degradation: Identifying Possible Enzyme Inhibition Mechanisms.

This research investigates potential mechanisms of novel magnetic field (MF) treatments in inhibiting cell-wall-degrading enzymes, aiming to reduce weight loss and preserve the post-harvest quality of tomatoes ( L.) as a climacteric fruit. The optimization of the processing parameters, including MF intensity (1, 2, 3 mT), frequency (0, 50, 100 Hz), and duration (10, 20, 30 min), was accomplished by applying an orthogonal array design.

Mining expressed sequence tag (EST) microsatellite markers to assess the genetic differentiation of five Hynobius species endemic to Taiwan.

Taiwan harbors five endemic species of salamanders (Hynobius spp.) that inhabit distinct alpine regions, contributing to population fragmentation across isolated "sky islands". With an evolutionary history spanning multiple glacial-interglacial cycles, these species represent an exceptional paradigm for exploring biogeography and speciation.

Brain tumor grading diagnosis using transfer learning based on optical coherence tomography.

In neurosurgery, accurately identifying brain tumor tissue is vital for reducing recurrence. Current imaging techniques have limitations, prompting the exploration of alternative methods. This study validated a binary hierarchical classification of brain tissues: normal tissue, primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL), high-grade glioma (HGG), and low-grade glioma (LGG) using transfer learning.

Frame-based versus robot-assisted stereo-electro-encephalography for drug-resistant epilepsy.

Background: Stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) is an effective presurgical invasive evaluation for drug-resistant epilepsies. The introduction of robotic devices provides a simplified, accurate, and safe alternative to the conventional SEEG technique. We report our institutional experience with robot-assisted SEEG and compare its in vivo accuracy, operation efficiency, and safety with the more traditional SEEG workflow.

RAPID-ED: A predictive model for risk assessment of patient's early in-hospital deterioration from emergency department.

Introduction: The objective of this multi-center retrospective cohort study was to devise a predictive tool known as RAPID-ED. This model identifies non-traumatic adult patients at significant risk for cardiac arrest within 48 hours post-admission from the emergency department.

Methods: Data from 224,413 patients admitted through the emergency department (2016-2020) was analyzed, incorporating vital signs, lab tests, and administered therapies.

Automated identification and quantification of metastatic brain tumors and perilesional edema based on a deep learning neural network.

Purpose: This paper presents a deep learning model for use in the automated segmentation of metastatic brain tumors and associated perilesional edema.

Methods: The model was trained using Gamma Knife surgical data (90 MRI sets from 46 patients), including the initial treatment plan and follow-up images (T1-weighted contrast-enhanced (T1cWI) and T2-weighted images (T2WI)) manually annotated by neurosurgeons to indicate the target tumor and edema regions. A mask region-based convolutional neural network was used to extract brain parenchyma, after which the DeepMedic 3D convolutional neural network was in the segmentation of tumors and edemas.

The learning curve for cavernous sinus surgery illustrated by symptomatic intracavernous aneurysm clipping through a pretemporal transcavernous approach.

Objective: The anatomy of the cavernous sinus (CS) has been well studied in the laboratory for decades; however, performing surgery in and around the CS is still a challenge. To reveal the learning curve for CS surgery via the pretemporal transcavernous approach (PTTC), surgical procedures were examined. The authors proposed 4 levels of surgical difficulty in opening the walls of the CS through this approach.

Stereo-EEG for Epileptogenic Focus Localization in Schizencephaly: A Single-center Experience in Four Patients.

Objective: Schizencephaly is a congenital cerebral malformation characterized by clefts in the hemispheres of the brain, where variations in semiology often make it difficult to localize epileptogenic focus. Here, we report on a series of patients who underwent stereo-encephalography (SEEG) for epileptogenic focus localization and subsequent SEEG-guided surgical intervention.

Methods: Four patients (ages 27, 33, 27, 25 years) with a mean seizure history of 16 years (range 8-22 years) were analyzed.

Imaging markers of cerebral amyloid angiopathy and hypertensive arteriopathy differentiate Alzheimer disease subtypes synergistically.

Background: Both cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) and hypertensive arteriopathy (HA) are related to cognitive impairment and dementia. This study aimed to clarify CAA- and HA-related small vessel disease (SVD) imaging marker associations with cognitive dysfunction and Alzheimer disease (AD) subtypes.

Methods: A sample of 137 subjects with clinically diagnosed late-onset AD identified from the dementia registry of a single center from January 2017 to October 2021 were enrolled.

Environment is associated with chytrid infection and skin microbiome richness on an amphibian rich island (Taiwan).

Growing evidence suggests that the origins of the panzootic amphibian pathogens Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) and Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal) are in Asia. In Taiwan, an island hotspot of high amphibian diversity, no amphibian mass mortality events linked to Bd or Bsal have been reported. We conducted a multi-year study across this subtropical island, sampling 2517 individuals from 30 species at 34 field sites, between 2010 and 2017, and including 171 museum samples collected between 1981 and 2009.

Plasma Matrix Metalloproeteinase-9 Is Associated with Seizure and Angioarchitecture Changes in Brain Arteriovenous Malformations.

Both angiogenesis and inflammation contribute to activation of matrix metalloproeteinase-9 (MMP-9), which dissolves the extracellular matrix, disrupts the blood-brain barrier, and plays an important role in the pathogenesis of brain arteriovenous malformations (BAVMs). The key common cytokine in both angiogenesis and inflammation is interleukin 6 (IL-6). Previous studies have shown elevated systemic MMP-9 and decreased systemic vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in BAVM patients.