The adult Central Nervous System (CNS) harbors neural progenitor cells (NPCs) in three areas: the subventricular zone (SVZ) of the lateral ventricles and the subgranular zone in the hippocampus and around the central canal in the spinal cord. The NPCs can be isolated and cultured in vitro. To improve recovery after a CNS trauma by using endogenous NPCs as well as by NPC transplantation, it is i...

Split cord malformation and fatty filum are completely different clinical entities and thought to arise via different pathophysiologies. Recognition of these distinct lesions in the same patient is important for appropriate diagnosis and management. A 3 year-old boy presented with skin lesions and mild leg weakness suggestive of spinal malformation. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed type II s...

The case of a 43-year-old woman with a several month history of severe back pain is reported. CT and MR imaging revealed an intramedullary cystic tumor, which was considered a dermoid cyst or teratoma. During surgery, the tumor was found within the base of the filum terminale and completely resected. Microscopic studies revealed a mature teratoma with an intramural carcinoid nodule. Thirteen-mo...

Paragangliomas are neuroendocrine tumors that originate from cells migrating from the neural crest. They have a diverse localizations, and are common in the head, neck, mediastinum or retroperitoneum. Their growth in the filum terminale region is very infrequent. We report the case of a patient who suffered an acute cauda equina syndrome. We give a detailed description of the diagnostic process...

Spinal cord tumours account for about 15% of central nervous system neoplasms. Intramedullary tumours arise within the substance of the spinal cord, whereas extramedullary tumours are extrinsic to the cord. About two thirds of spinal cord tumors in adults are extramedullary in location, among which nerve sheath tumors, meningiomas and Filum terminale ependymomas account for the most. Metastatic...

A 38-year-old man presented with a highly symptomatic lumbar intradural extramedullary tumor. MRI features strongly suggested a myxopapillary ependymoma, with a possible drop metastasis. No filum terminale or spinal-cord attachment to the tumor was seen intraoperatively. Histopathology, surprisingly, indicated a malignant round-cell tumor, strongly CD 99-positive, and FISH indicated a rearrange...