In vitro models of microglia: a comparative study.

Microglia perform key homeostatic functions to protect the central nervous system (CNS). However, in many brain disorders their protective functions are abrogated, contributing to disease progression. Therefore, studies of microglial function are critical to developing treatments for brain disorders.

A survey of paediatric epilepsy surgery in Asia and Australasia.

Purpose: In this study, we aimed to define the scope of paediatric epilepsy surgery performed in Asia and Australasia.

Methods: Representative surgeons from each county were emailed a survey about paediatric epilepsy surgery as it is practiced in their country. The survey covered topics including what investigations, operations and number of surgeries are performed and by whom (adult or paediatric neurosurgeons).

False alarms and the burden of shunt failure in pediatric patients with hydrocephalus: a longitudinal study.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the burden of CSF shunt failure and false alarms on pediatric patients with hydrocephalus, their caregivers, and the healthcare system.

Methods: This retrospective longitudinal study examined pediatric patients who underwent CSF shunt procedures at Auckland City Hospital from January 2014 to December 2019. The study included patients aged 18 years or younger living within the hospital's catchment area.

Optic neuropathy from hypovitaminosis A in a series of children with severe dietary restrictions.

Aim: Hypovitaminosis A is a leading cause of preventable childhood blindness, especially in developing nations. Vitamin A is a fat-soluble essential micronutrient that serves vital functions in the visual system and in regulating bone resorption. We report on a series of four children with mixed nutritional and compressive optic neuropathy and provide a review of the literature.

Non-recurrent laryngeal nerve injury associated with an aberrant right subclavian artery: a case report.

Background: Injury to the recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) is a recognised complication of surgery in the neck. The presence of a non-recurrent laryngeal nerve (NRLN) significantly increases the risks of a nerve injury. Given that NRLNs are strongly associated with vascular abnormalities that can be visualised on preoperative imaging, we describe a case to raise awareness of this association with the aim of reducing the risk of iatrogenic nerve injury.

Involvement of the tumour necrosis factor receptor system in glioblastoma cell death induced by palbociclib-heptamethine cyanine dye conjugate.

Glioblastoma is the most common and aggressive primary brain tumour in adults. The development of anti-brain cancer agents are challenged by the blood-brain barrier and the resistance conferred by the local tumour microenvironment. Heptamethine cyanine dyes (HMCDs) are a class of near-infrared fluorescence compounds that have recently emerged as promising agents for drug delivery.

Primary intraventricular synovial sarcoma of the brain with recurrence - case presentation.

Background: We report a case of recurrent primary intraventricular synovial sarcoma of the brain with no extracranial primary, initially reported as a haemangiopericytoma. We believe this is the first reported case of primary intraventricular synovial sarcoma at this site.

Case Presentation: A 27-year-old male presented to hospital with a new onset of seizures.

Single-cell image analysis reveals over-expression of organic anion transporting polypeptides (OATPs) in human glioblastoma tissue.

Background: Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and aggressive primary brain tumor in adults. Whilst the role of the efflux transporters are well established in GBM, the expression and function of uptake transporters, such as the organic anion transporting polypeptide (OATP) family, are not well understood. OATPs possess broad substrate specificity that includes anti-cancer agents; therefore, we sought to investigate the expression of four OATP isoforms in human GBM cell types using patient tumor tissue.

Pericytes take up and degrade α-synuclein but succumb to apoptosis under cellular stress.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterised by the progressive loss of midbrain dopaminergic neurons and the presence of aggregated α-synuclein (α-syn). Pericytes and microglia, two non-neuronal cells contain α-syn in the human brain, however, their role in disease processes is poorly understood. Pericytes, found surrounding the capillaries in the brain are important for maintaining the blood-brain barrier, controlling blood flow and mediating inflammation.

Characterisation of PDGF-BB:PDGFRβ signalling pathways in human brain pericytes: evidence of disruption in Alzheimer's disease.

Platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB):PDGF receptor-β (PDGFRβ) signalling in brain pericytes is critical to the development, maintenance and function of a healthy blood-brain barrier (BBB). Furthermore, BBB impairment and pericyte loss in Alzheimer's disease (AD) is well documented. We found that PDGF-BB:PDGFRβ signalling components were altered in human AD brains, with a marked reduction in vascular PDGFB.

Routine culture and study of adult human brain cells from neurosurgical specimens.

When modeling disease in the laboratory, it is important to use clinically relevant models. Patient-derived human brain cells grown in vitro to study and test potential treatments provide such a model. Here, we present simple, highly reproducible coordinated procedures that can be used to routinely culture most cell types found in the human brain from single neurosurgically excised brain specimens.

The Safety of Micro-Implants for the Brain.

Technological advancements in electronics and micromachining now allow the development of discrete wireless brain implantable micro-devices. Applications of such devices include stimulation or sensing and could enable direct placement near regions of interest within the brain without the need for electrode leads or separate battery compartments that are at increased risk of breakage and infection. Clinical use of leadless brain implants is accompanied by novel risks, such as migration of the implant.

Identification of a Novel Fusion and Comparative Analysis with Other Ewing Sarcoma Fusion Proteins.

Ewing sarcoma is a pediatric bone cancer defined by a chromosomal translocation fusing one of the FET family members to an ETS transcription factor. There have been seven reported chromosomal translocations, with the most recent reported over a decade ago. We now report a novel FET/ETS translocation involving and detected in a patient with Ewing sarcoma.

Single-cell image analysis reveals a protective role for microglia in glioblastoma.

Background: Microglia and tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) constitute up to half of the total tumor mass of glioblastomas. Despite these myeloid populations being ontogenetically distinct, they have been largely conflated. Recent single-cell transcriptomic studies have identified genes that distinguish microglia from TAMs.

Sport-Related Structural Brain Injury and Return to Play: Systematic Review and Expert Insight.

Background: Sport-related structural brain injury (SRSBI) is intracranial pathology incurred during sport. Management mirrors that of non-sport-related brain injury. An empirical vacuum exists regarding return to play (RTP) following SRSBI.

Cardiac glycosides target barrier inflammation of the vasculature, meninges and choroid plexus.

Neuroinflammation is a key component of virtually all neurodegenerative diseases, preceding neuronal loss and associating directly with cognitive impairment. Neuroinflammatory signals can originate and be amplified at barrier tissues such as brain vasculature, surrounding meninges and the choroid plexus. We designed a high content screening system to target inflammation in human brain-derived cells of the blood-brain barrier (pericytes and endothelial cells) to identify inflammatory modifiers.

Isolation and culture of functional adult human neurons from neurosurgical brain specimens.

The ability to characterize and study primary neurons isolated directly from the adult human brain would greatly advance neuroscience research. However, significant challenges such as accessibility of human brain tissue and the lack of a robust neuronal cell culture protocol have hampered its progress. Here, we describe a simple and reproducible method for the isolation and culture of functional adult human neurons from neurosurgical brain specimens, adult human neurons form a dense network and express a plethora of mature neuronal and synaptic markers.

Extent of resection affects prognosis for patients with glioblastoma in non-eloquent regions.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is a malignant cerebral neoplasm carrying poor prognosis. The importance of extent of resection (EoR) in GBM patient outcomes has been argued in the literature. Previous studies included tumors in eloquent regions of the brain.

Human in vitro systems for examining synaptic function and plasticity in the brain.

The human brain shows remarkable complexity in its cellular makeup and function, which are distinct from nonhuman species, signifying the need for human-based research platforms for the study of human cellular neurophysiology and neuropathology. However, the use of adult human brain tissue for research purposes is hampered by technical, methodological, and accessibility challenges. One of the major problems is the limited number of in vitro systems that, in contrast, are readily available from rodent brain tissue.

Metastatic melanoma: Surgical treatment of brain metastases - Analysis of 110 patients.

New Zealand has one of the highest rates of melanoma in the world. In up to 10% of cases, the disease is metastatic at diagnosis. Cerebral metastatic involvement carries a particularly poor prognosis.

PU.1 regulates Alzheimer's disease-associated genes in primary human microglia.

Background: Microglia play critical roles in the brain during homeostasis and pathological conditions. Understanding the molecular events underpinning microglial functions and activation states will further enable us to target these cells for the treatment of neurological disorders. The transcription factor PU.

Unique and shared inflammatory profiles of human brain endothelia and pericytes.

Background: Pericytes and endothelial cells are critical cellular components of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and play an important role in neuroinflammation. To date, the majority of inflammation-related studies in endothelia and pericytes have been carried out using immortalised cell lines or non-human-derived cells. Whether these are representative of primary human cells is unclear and systematic comparisons of the inflammatory responses of primary human brain-derived pericytes and endothelia has yet to be performed.

Metastatic choriocarcinoma induced separate simultaneous intracerebral haemorrhages: a very rare occurrence and its novel association with Klinefelter syndrome.

Non-traumatic separate simultaneous intracerebral haemorrhages (SSIHs) are rare. Relevant aetiologies are diverse and their diagnosis challenging. We report a unique case of SSIH in an 18-year-old male with a background of previously undiagnosed testicular choriocarcinoma and Klinefelter syndrome.

Severe Acute Subdural Hematoma in a Child following a Minor Head Trauma in the Context of a Recent Antecedent Head Injury: A Case Report.

Knowledge of the force required to generate a subdural hematoma is important when considering the veracity of histories given by family members of young children. Traditional wisdom is that a substantial impact is required to cause an acute subdural hematoma. We present a case of acute subdural hematoma following a low-level fall in a 3-year-old patient.

MRI interactions of a fully implantable pressure monitoring device.

Purpose: To investigate the potential patient risk and interactions between a prototype implantable pressure monitoring device and a 3T clinical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine to guide device design towards MR Conditional safety approval.

Materials And Methods: The pressure monitor device contained a catheter-mounted piezo-resistive pressure sensor, rechargeable battery, wireless communication system, and inductive pickup coil. Standard testing methods were used to guide experiments to investigate static field induced force and torque, radiofrequency (RF)-induced heating, image artifacts, and the MR's effect on device function.