Medical Library

Obituary: Francis Clark Howell (1925-2007).

Wood B.

CASHP, Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052 and Human Origins Program, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20560.

Primary central nervous system vasculitis: Is biopsy appropriate?

Goldstein LB.

Department of Medicine (Neurology), Center for Cerebrovascular Disease, Duke University, and Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, NC.

Insights from the inside: Histological analysis of abnormal enamel microstructure associated with hypoplastic enamel defects in human teeth.

We studied the abnormalities in enamel microstructure associated with enamel hypoplasia in human teeth from the early medieval (5th-7th century AD) cemetery of Barbing, Germany, using light and scanning electron microscopy. The main aim of the study was to test the hypothesis that by analyzing the microstructure of fully formed enamel it is possible to reconstruct the reaction pattern of secretory ameloblasts to stress events leading to enamel hypoplasia. From the histological findings, a sequence of increasing impairment of secretory ameloblast function involving three thresholds was deduced. Surpassing of each of these thresholds is assumed to result in characteristic changes in enamel microstructure attributable to specific functional/morphological alterations of secretory ameloblasts. Based on our results we propose a model identifying the principal factors influencing the reaction of secretory ameloblasts to stress. The present study demonstrates that by including microscopic analysis in the study of enamel hypoplasia, it is possible to obtain a more complete picture of the formation of these developmental defects than is possible by inspection of crown surface features alone, and to draw more substantiated conclusions about the possible nature of developmental defects of enamel. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2008. (c) 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Witzel C, Kierdorf U, Schultz M, Kierdorf H.

Department of Biology, University of Hildesheim, D‐31141 Hildesheim, Germany.

Ectocranial suture closure in Pan troglodytes and Gorilla gorilla: Pattern and phylogeny.

The order in which ectocranial sutures undergo fusion displays species-specific variation among primates. However, the precise relationship between suture closure and phylogenetic affinities is poorly understood. In this study, we used Guttman Scaling to determine if the modal progression of suture closure differs among Homo sapiens, Pan troglodytes, and Gorilla gorilla. Because DNA sequence homologies strongly suggest that P. troglodytes and Homo sapiens share a more recent common ancestor than either does with G. gorilla, we hypothesized that this phylogenetic relationship would be reflected in the suture closure patterns of these three taxa. Results indicated that while all three species do share a similar lateral-anterior closure pattern, G. gorilla exhibits a unique vault pattern, which, unlike humans and P. troglodytes, follows a strong posterior-to-anterior gradient. P. troglodytes is therefore more like Homo sapiens in suture synostosis. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2008. (c) 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Cray J Jr, Meindl RS, Sherwood CC, Lovejoy CO.

Department of Anthropology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260.

Evaluation of juvenile stature and body mass prediction.

This investigation evaluates the performance of juvenile stature (from tibia and radius lengths) and body mass (from breadth of the femoral distal metaphysis) prediction equations based on the Denver Growth Study sample (Ruff C. 2007. Am J Phys Anthropol 133 698-716). The sample used here for evaluation is an independent sample of juveniles brought to the Franklin County (Ohio) Coroner in 1990-1991. The Ohio sample differs somewhat from the Denver reference sample: it includes approximately 25% African-Americans (rather than all European-Americans), a significant number of right limb bones were measured (rather than all left side), it includes a wider range of economic statuses and it includes individuals who died from disease and trauma. As such the composition and measures of the Ohio sample correspond more generally to that seen in skeletal samples so that the accuracy of the estimates from the present sample should approach those found in practical applications of these methods. Results indicate that both juvenile body mass and stature are estimated relatively accurately. Accuracy of body mass estimates for 1-13-year-old juveniles is similar for African-American and European-American males and females. The least accurate estimates are for individuals in the 8-13 years age class (excluding individuals with body mass indices greater than the age specific 95th percentile): n = 9, +/- 2.9 kg, 95% confidence interval 1.4-4.4 kg. Accuracy of stature estimates for 1-17-year-old juveniles is comparable for the tibia and radius and, as with body mass estimates, are similar for African-American and European-American males and females. For combined age, sex, and ancestry groups average accuracies are in the +/-3.5 to +/-6.5 cm range. Some limitations of the methods are discussed. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2008. (c) 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Sciulli PW, Blatt SH.

Department of Anthropology, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210.

Technical note: A rapid diagnostic test detects plague in ancient human remains: An example of the interaction between archeological and biological approaches (southeastern France, 16th-18th centuries).

A rapid diagnostic test (RDT) that detects Yersinia pestis F1 antigen was applied to 28 putative plague victims exhumed from seven burial sites in southeastern France dating to the 16th-18th centuries. Yersinia pestis F1 antigen was detected in 19 of the 28 (67.9%) samples. The 27 samples used as negative controls yielded negative results. Soil samples taken from archeological sites related to both positive and negative samples tested negative for F1 antigen. The detection threshold of the RDT for plague (0.5 ng/ml) is sufficient for a preliminary retrospective diagnosis of Y. pestis infection in human remains. The high specificity and sensitivity of the assay were confirmed. For two sites positive to F1 antigen (Lambesc and Marseille), Y. pestis-specific DNA (pla gene) had been identified previously by PCR-sequence based analyses. Specifically, the positive results for two samples, from the Lambesc cemetery and the Marseille pit burial, matched those previously reported using PCR. Independent analyses in Italy and France of different samples taken from the same burial sites (Draguignan and Martigues) led to the identification of both Y. pestis F1 antigen and Y. pestis pla and gplD genes. These data are clear evidence of the presence of Y. pestis in the ancient human remains examined in this study. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2008. (c) 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Bianucci R, Rahalison L, Massa ER, Peluso A, Ferroglio E, Signoli M.

Università di Torino, Dipartimento di Biologia Animale e dell\’Uomo, Laboratorio di Antropologia, 10123 Turin, Italy.

Cerebral vasculopathy does not equal primary central nervous system vasculitis.

Elkind MS, Wright C.

Department of Neurology, Columbia University, New York, NY.

Cell-specific alterations of glutamate receptor expression in tuberous sclerosis complex cortical tubers.

OBJECTIVE: Genetic loss of TSC1/TSC2 function in tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) results in overactivation of the mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 pathway, leading to cellular dysplasia. We hypothesized that the dysplastic cells in TSC tubers are heterogeneous, including separable classes on a neuronal-glial spectrum, and that these dysplastic cells express glutamate receptor (GluR) patterns consistent with increased cortical network excitability. METHODS: Surgically resected human cortical tubers and nondysplastic epileptic cortical samples were analyzed by double-label immunocytochemistry for coexpression of neuronal and glial markers, the TSC1/TSC2 pathway downstream molecule phospho-S6 (pS6) and GluR subunits, and compared with control cortical tissue. Western blotting was used to quantify changes in GluR subunit expression in tubers versus controls. RESULTS: We demonstrate that cortical tubers contain a broad spectrum of cell types including disoriented pyramidal cells, dysplastic neurons, giant neuroglial cells, dysplastic astroglia, and reactive astrocytes. Dysplastic neurons, giant cells, and dysplastic astroglia express high levels of pS6 and demonstrate altered GluR subunit composition, resembling those of normal immature neurons and glia. In contrast, nondysplastic neurons in TSC and non-TSC epileptic lesions express lower pS6 levels and display changes in GluR subunit expression that are distinct from the patterns seen in tuber dysplastic cells. INTERPRETATION: This work significantly expands the spectrum of abnormal cells recognized in tubers beyond the classic tuber giant cell and demonstrates cell-specific abnormalities in GluR expression that may contribute to seizure pathogenesis in TSC. Furthermore, these results suggest that subunit-specific antagonists may be of potential use in the treatment of epilepsy in TSC. Ann Neurol 2008.

Talos DM, Kwiatkowski DJ, Cordero K, Black PM, Jensen FE.

Department of Neurology, Children\’s Hospital, Boston, MA.

Evidence-based medicine vs medicine-based evidence.

Sethi NK, Sethi PK.

Department of Neurology, New York Presbyterian‐Weill Cornell Medical Center, New York, NY.

Lag effect of particulate air pollution on lung function in children.

We assessed the relationship between particle air pollution and changes in lung function in children as measured by spirometry over time. Data were collected from air pollution and family health examinations of 181 subjects, aged 9-19 years, in a Korean community. The children performed lung function tests, and their height and weight were measured. Their parents responded to an interview regarding the children\’s history of disease. Data on air pollution were obtained from the Environmental Management Corporation, which is part of the Korean Ministry of the Environment. We found evidence that the declines in forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV(1)) were significantly associated with the PM(10) concentration for 37-60 hr preceding the lung function tests. The associations were consistent in the two-pollutant models. Our findings suggest that exposure to PM(10) may increase the risk of adverse health effects in children with respiratory symptoms or diseases. Pediatr Pulmonol. (c) 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Min JY, Min KB, Cho SI, Paek D.

School of Public Health and Institute of Health and Environment, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.