The MDR1 gene product, P-glycoprotein (P-gp), was shown to confer multidrug resistance to cancer cells, but its overexpression is also suggested to be involved in pharmacoresistance of epilepsy by acting as an energy-dependent drug-efflux pump in the blood-brain barrier (BBB). In normal brain tissue, P-gp is almost exclusively expressed by capillary endothelial cells (EC) of the BBB, whereas li...

Human brain atlases [1] are indispensable tools to achieve a better understanding of the multilevel organization of the brain through integrating and analyzing data from different brains, sources, and modalities while considering the functionally relevant topography of the brain [4]. The spatial resolution of most of these electronic atlases is in the range of millimeters, which does not allow ...

Multidrug efflux transporters of the ATP-Binding cassette (ABC) family, P-glycoprotein (Pgp), multidrug-resistance associated protein 4 (MRP4) and breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP), located on endothelial cells lining brain vasculature play important roles in limiting movement of substances into and enhancing their efflux from the brain. Signals from the surrounding brain normally maintai...

Detailed knowledge about the anatomical organization of axonal connections is important for understanding normal functions of brain systems and disease-related dysfunctions. Such connectivity data are typically generated in neuroanatomical tract-tracing experiments in which specific axonal connections are visualized in histological sections. Since journal publications typically only accommodate...

BACKGROUND Intraoperative monitoring of motor evoked potentials by transcranial electric stimulation is popular in neurosurgery for monitoring motor function preservation. Some authors have reported that the peg-screw electrodes screwed into the skull can more effectively conduct current to the brain compared to subdermal cork-screw electrodes screwed into the skin. The aim of this study was to...

Three radioligands have been commonly used to label putative nicotinic cholinoceptors in the mammalian central nervous system: the agonists [3H]nicotine and [3H]acetylcholine (C3H]ACh-in the presence of atropine to block muscarinic receptors), and the snake venom extract, [1251]-a-bungarotoxin([‘251]BTX), which acts as a nicotinic antagonist at the neuromuscular junction. Binding studies employ...

This review is divided into comments on two separate sections, one for extremely-low frequency (ELF) and the other for radiofrequency (RFR) studies. Comments are presented to address deficiencies in the Preliminary Opinion on EMF issued by the SCENIHR Committee. The comments are relevant to sections of the BioInitiative Working Group letter including brain tumors, oxidative damage, genomic inst...

Objective of our study was to define a diagnostic-therapeutic pathway for proper treatment of not-palpable testicular masses, that may be benign in 38% of cases. Since the intraoperative diagnosis is difficult to reach in particular in small lesion (< 8 mm) and the risk of tissue loss in frozen section analysis occurs frequently, we propose a diagnostic flow chart for the best management of ...

The main goal of this study was to develop a tool to manage digital maps of the brain and information related to specific regions in the brain. This tool integrates 3D models of deep brain structures referenced in original Magnetic Resonance and Visible Human Project cross-sections with anatomical, functional, pathological and surgical information for any specific brain region. Digital brain ma...