An animal’s nervous system consists of two major parts the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system. The brain and spinal cord make up the central nervous system. The somatic nerves* and autonomic nerves make up the peripheral nervous system. One function of the nervous system is to organize the physical movement of the body. Another function is to respond to the actions of all the ...

We present a patient with a subacute asymmetrical sensorimotor polyneuropathy. The pathological features were predominantly loss of nerve fibers, axonal degeneration and healed vasculitis. The epineural vessels were involved, while endoneurial capillaires were preserved. Muscle biopsy revealed neurogenic features with normal blood vessels. After three years, motor and sensory function was almos...

8 Special Topics....................................................................... 36 8.1 Spinal Cord ............................................................................ 36 8.2 Plexus of Nerves.................................................................... 39 8.3 Peripheral Nerves Histology and Functional Anatomy ....... 39 8.4 Intraoperative Radiotherapy .......................

The special architecture of neurons in the peripheral nervous system, with axons extending for long distances, represents a major challenge for the intracellular transport system. Two recent studies show that mutations in the small heat shock protein HSPB1, which cause an axonal type of Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) neuropathy, affect microtubule dynamics and impede axonal transport. Intriguingly, ...

OBJECTIVES PNS is involved in Systemic Sclerosis (SSc) since the earliest phases. Our aim is to perform an ultrastructural study on skin PNS fibers in SSc. METHODS Skin biopsies were taken from forearms of 8 patients affected by limited SSc (lSSc) and 3 controls and processed for transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The semithin sections (2 mm) were observed at light microscope and optical...

In this review, the first four papers deal with an important chapter in peripheral nerve surgery: cranial nerve reconstruction after injury occurring during skull base surgery. The last paper discusses the problem of peripheral nerves affected by a ganglion cyst. Damage to a cranial nerve is no longer considered to be an absolutely irreparable event. The first two studies are related to facial ...

Nitric oxide (NO) is a neurotransmitter and neuromodulator in the central nervous system, but this small labile substance also seems to serve as a peripheral neurotransmitter. Abundant evidence is now available that NO, synthesized from L-arginine by NO synthase (NOS), is a nonadrenergic noncholinergic relaxant transmitter of gastrointestinal smooth muscle. Electrically induced nonadrenergic no...

Most nerve tumors (benign and malignant) do not arise from the nerves per se, but from the supporting cells; tumors arising from the cells of Schwann are termed schwannoma or neurilemmoma-benign or malignant. Surgical extirpation is the most effective treatment for these tumors. Radiation therapy can offer significant palliation and prolongation of life, but no cures have been observed. Benign ...