(Re)organisation of the somatosensory system after early brain lesion: A lateralization index fMRI study

ObjectiveTo evaluate the relationship between neural (re)organization of the somatosensory cortex and impairment of sensory function (2-point discrimination [2PD]) in individuals with unilateral cerebral palsy.MethodsWe included 21 individuals with unilateral cerebral palsy. 2PD thresholds were evaluated on thumb pads, and activation of the somatosensory cortex was recorded by functional MRI (fMRI) during passive movements of the affected hand. A lateralization index (LI) was calculated for the primary sensory (S1) and secondary sensory (S2) cortices and the correlation between the LI and 2PD thresholds was analysed.ResultsWe found a significant negative correlation between the 2PD thresholds and the S2 LI (r = −0.5, one-tailed P-value = 0.01) and a trend towards a negative correlation with the S1 LI (r = −0.4, one-tailed P-value = 0.05).ConclusionHigh levels of activation in the contralesional hemisphere were associated with high levels of sensory impairment in individuals with unilateral cerebral palsy. The interhemispheric (re)organization of the somatosensory system may not effectively compensate for somatosensory impairment.     

Long-Term Subdural Strip Electrocorticographic Monitoring of Ictal Déjà Vu

Summary: We report a series of 8 patients with ictal déjà vu. Subdural strip electrocorticographic (ECoG) monitoring localized the ictal epileptogenic focus as follows: right (n = 6) and left (n = 2) mesiotemporal lobe. In all 8 patients, the left hemisphere was dominant for language function based on intracarotid amytal testing. In 6 right-handed patients, ictal déjà vu was associated with a right temporal lobe focus. However, in the 2 left-handed patients, the ictal focus was left temporal lobe. Although ictal déjà vu localizes the epileptic focus to temporal lobe, this experiential phenomenon appears to lateralize to the hemisphere nondominant for handedness.     

氟马西尼造成的脑弥散成像改变对癫痫灶的定位研究

目的探讨癫痫患者应用氟马西尼之后,用磁共振弥散成像(diffusion-weighted magnetic imaging,DWI)检测脑组织发生的改变,从而确定癫痫灶的位置。方法选择准备手术的癫痫患者20例,其中检查前2个月内服用过苯二氮卓类药物(benzodiazepine,BZD)有9人,另取17位未发做过癫痫的健康者作为对照。在患者清醒和完全的发作间期进行磁共振弥散成像基线扫描,然后静脉推注氟马西尼(flumazenil,FMZ),注射10min后,再次进行DWI检查。所有的病人测量下列双侧结构的表观弥散系数(apparent diffusion coefficient,ADC):海马、海马旁回、丘脑、中央白质、与癫痫灶相连的皮质。健康对照者进行了DWI检查,测量了上述结构。我们还对20位患者进行了注射FMZ前后的视频脑电图比较。结果与健康对照者对比,颞叶癫痫患者发病侧海马的发作间期ADC基线明显升高(P<0.05)。在注射氟马西尼后,不同感兴趣区的平均ADC变化如下:近期服用过BZD的患者癫痫发作侧的海马ADC下降(P<0.05);癫痫发作侧的海马旁回ADC下降(P<0.05),而近期没有服用过BZD的患者,未发现上述变化。在视频脑电监测中,服用BZD的患者也更易用FMZ诱发出癫痫波。在颞叶以外癫痫我们没有观察到统一的变化模式。结论近期服用过BZD药物的颞叶癫痫患者中,注射氟马西尼引起的ADC改变和癫痫灶的位置密切相关。核磁共振弥散成像清楚地表明了颢叶癫痫患者潜在癫痫灶的位置,是一个有效检测方法。     

Decreased sensitivity to experimental pain in adjustment disorder.

An altered perception of pain has been described for several psychiatric disorders. To date the influence of adjustment disorders (AD) on pain perception has not been described. Here, we investigated perception of experimentally induced pain in 15 patients suffering from AD (subtype with depressive symptoms) and controls matched for age and sex. Thresholds and tolerances were assessed for thermal and electrical pain on both sides of the body. We found an overall increase of pain thresholds and tolerances in AD patients as compared to controls, predominately on the right side of the body. Analogue findings have been reported for pain perception in major depressive disorder (MDD). Of the data obtained, only thermal pain threshold on the right arm correlated with the severity of depressive symptoms. Although the underlying pathology is elusive it is likely that the mechanisms for reduced pain sensitivity are comparable in MDD and AD.     

Lateral and medial sub-divisions within the olivocerebellar zones of the paravermal cortex in lobule Vb/c of the cat anterior lobe

Summary The olivocerebellar projection to the c₁,c₂ and c₃ zones in the paravermal cortex of lobule Vb/c has been investigated in the cat using a combined electrophysiological/neuroanatomical tracing technique. The zonal boundaries in the paravermal cortex were located by recording, on the cerebellar surface, climbing fibre field potentials evoked in response to percutaneous stimulation of one or more paws. A small (10–30 nl) injection of WGA-HRP was then made either into the centre or into the medial or lateral geographical half of a chosen zone and the resultant distribution of retrogradely labelled cells within the contralateral inferior olive was plotted. The c₁ and c₃ zones were each found to consist of two mediolaterally oriented sub-zones which could be distinguished by their olivocerebellar input. The medial part of the c₁ zone received climbing fibre input from the rostromedial part of the dorsal accessory olive (DAO) while the lateral part of the c₁ zone received climbing fibre input from middle/rostral regions of the medial accessory olive (MAO). Both medial and lateral sub-zones within the c₃ zone were found to receive climbing fibre input from the rostral pole of DAO but, whereas there was heavy overlap between the olivary territories projecting to the medial c₁ and medial c₃ subzones, olivary cells projecting to the lateral part of c₃ were located more rostrally within DAO. The c₂ zone was found not to be divisible into mediolaterally oriented subzones and to receive climbing fibre input from a region of MAO located rostral and somewhat lateral to the region projecting to the lateral part of the c₁ zone. The sub-zonal organisation of the olivocerebellar projection to the c₁, c₂ and c₃ zones is discussed in relation to the functional properties of the different zones.     

输尿管狭窄的应用解剖学研究

目的:探讨输尿管生理狭窄的数目、位置及狭窄的程度,为选择性CT分段扫描诊断输尿管结石提供解剖学依据.方法:解剖30例国人成人尸体60条输尿管(男40条,女20条),分段观测输尿管形态、狭窄的数目、位置和管腔内径.结果:各段输尿管形态多样,主要有四类.输尿管生理狭窄的程度依次为膀胱壁内段＞输尿管盆段＞输尿管髂血管段＞输尿管腹段.结论:输尿管生理狭窄的数目不恒定.生理狭窄的部位除膀胱壁内段外其余部位均不恒定,膀胱壁内段狭窄程度最大.     

Lateralized rewarding brain stimulation affects forepaw preference in rats

Rats trained to reach for food pellets into a narrow tubular feeder consistently prefer to perform this stereotype instrumental movement with either the left or right forepaw. In 16 rats with established handedness electrodes were implanted into both lateral hypothalami. The animals were rewarded by intracranial self stimulation (ICSS, 300 msec, 50 Hz, 20-60 microA) for reaching into a modified feeder for a plastic ball operandum, the movement of which between the bottom and entrance of the feeder was monitored by mechanical contacts. The rats readily continued to reach when ICSS was delivered immediately after the photoelectrically detected reach or after the displacement of the operandum. Most rats learned in a single session to modify the movement when ICSS delivery was made contingent upon holding the operandum between the bottom and entrance of the feeder for 256 or 512 msec. The efficiency of reaching (ratio of successful reaches to all reaches) decreased with increasing holding time; only a few animals were able to master a 1024 msec delay. Reaching was supported by ICSS of either lateral hypothalamus. Whereas in 8 rats the strongly expressed forepaw preference was not changed by lateralized ICSS, in 8 latently ambidextrous animals stimulation of the lateral hypothalamus ipsilateral to the preferred forepaw increased reaching with the normally non-preferred forepaw from 15% to 60%. Stimulation of the lateral hypothalamus contralateral to the preferred forepaw did not change the preference. The preference shift was equally well expressed in simple and difficult versions of the task. It is concluded that lateralization of motivational influences can be reflected in the asymmetry of the neural mechanisms processing the lateralized sensory signals and/or elaborating the lateralized motor output.     

Asymmetrical hemispheric EEG activation evoked by stimulus position during the Simon task

The Simon effect has been previously shown to be asymmetric at both the behavioral and electrophysiological levels. The present investigation was aimed to clarify whether, during a Simon task, hemispheric asymmetry is also observed in the early phases of stimulus processing. In a group of healthy subjects performing the Simon task, we analyzed scalp potentials evoked by the first lateralized cue (left or right), instead of the classical readiness potential preceding the motor response. ERP results showed a significant left cortical activation to stimuli presented in the right visual field at the 140–160 ms time window. Instead, left stimuli elicited a significant activation of the right versus left hemisphere starting at the next 160–180 ms time interval. We linked this asymmetry to that observed in behavioral data: the Simon effect recorded with left stimuli is smaller than the Simon effect recorded with right stimuli. Results confirm the hypothesis that in right handed subjects, left hemisphere is specialized for motor response selection and is able to process right stimuli faster than the right hemisphere does for left stimuli.     

癫癎患者脑血流速度改变与癫癎灶定侧的关系

目的 :探讨癫发作间期脑血流变化对癫灶定侧的价值。方法 :4 7例癫病人发作间期行经颅多普勒超声脑血流速度测定 ,并与临床、脑电图定位和MRI/CT病灶对比分析。结果 :根据临床症状确定病灶侧的 19例病人中 ,病灶侧脑血流速度改变 (升高和降低 )的比率显著高于双侧脑血流速度对称者 ;在脑电图确定病灶侧的 2 4例病人中 ,病灶侧脑血流速度升高比率显著高于脑血流速度降低和双侧脑血流速度对称者 ;在MRI确定病灶侧的 13例病人中 ,病灶侧脑血流速度增快 7例 ,减慢 2例 ,双侧血流速度对称 4例。结论 :癫病人一侧脑血流速度增高 ,高度提示癫病灶侧。     

Laterality of 40 Hz EEG and EMG During Cognitive Performance

Task-dependent lateralization of the 40 Hz EEG rhythm was investigated in 15 right-handed male adults during the performance of verbal analogy and geometric figure rotation tasks. Forty Hz EMG recorded from the temporal and splenius muscles was similarly examined. Results indicate that 40 Hz EEG is asymmetrically distributed during cognitive performance, varying as a function of cognitive processsing. The range of laterality scores also varied by condition, with the largest variation present during baseline conditions and smallest recorded during the presentation of the verbal analogies task, suggesting that individual cognitive styles tend to vary more during less structured situations. No relationship between 40 Hz EMG and task was obtained.