Keeping the world at hand: rapid visuomotor processing for hand–object interactions

The existence of hand-centred visual processing has long been established in the macaque premotor cortex. These hand-centred mechanisms have been thought to play some general role in the sensory guidance of movements towards objects, or, more recently, in the sensory guidance of object avoidance movements. We suggest that these hand-centred mechanisms play a specific and prominent role in the rapid selection and control of manual actions following sudden changes in the properties of the objects relevant for hand–object interactions. We discuss recent anatomical and physiological evidence from human and non-human primates, which indicates the existence of rapid processing of visual information for hand–object interactions. This new evidence demonstrates how several stages of the hierarchical visual processing system may be bypassed, feeding the motor system with hand-related visual inputs within just 70 ms following a sudden event. This time window is early enough, and this processing rapid enough, to allow the generation and control of rapid hand-centred avoidance and acquisitive actions, for aversive and desired objects, respectively.     

Gemcitabine with or without docetaxel and resection for recurrent osteosarcoma: the experience at Children's Memorial Hospital

It remains unclear how to optimally incorporate gemcitabine and docetaxel into the management of patients with recurrent osteosarcoma. We describe 4 pediatric patients with recurrent osteosarcoma who were treated with gemcitabine ± docetaxel and resection. One patient had a partial response and 2 had stable disease. Two patients subsequently underwent surgical resections. Median duration of response was 8 months and was longer for patients who underwent resection. One patient remains disease-free 57 months from recurrence. Our limited series provides additional support for the use of gemcitabine ± docetaxel for recurrent osteosarcoma and suggests benefit of concurrent local control measures if possible.     

Total fertilization failure in intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection cycles – classification and management

In this retrospective cohort study we intended to propose a classification and preliminary management strategy for couples exhibiting total fertilization failure (TFF) in intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles. Sixteen couples with a total of 27 cycles exhibiting TFF, age <40 and/or more than four M2 oocytes aspirated were enrolled. While TFF occurred in 4.3% of all 3723 ICSI cycles, in women younger than 40 with at least 5 M2 oocytes the TFF rate was 0.7%. Indications for ICSI were severe male factor and unexplained infertility. Of the 16 couples with TFF, 4 demonstrated a single episode of TFF, with either subsequent or former normal fertilizations, thus implying possible sporadic faulty laboratory conditions. Ten couples demonstrated repeated total or very low fertilization rates, hinting at a gamete defect not overcome by ICSI. Two couples experienced TFF in the first and only cycle performed at our unit. We conclude that initial and repeated TFF hints at severe gamete defects for which only donor gametes may prove successful while sporadic TFF events could simply imply a technical modifiable condition.