Microarchitectural changes during development of the cerebellar cortex

The cerebellum is a highly conserved structure in the Central Nervous System (CNS) of vertebrates, and is involved in the coordination of voluntary motor behaviour. Supporting this function, the cerebellar cortex presents a layered structure which requires a precise spatial and temporal coordination of proliferation, migration and differentiation events. One of the characteristics of the developing cortex is the formation of the external granule cell layer (EGL) in the outermost part. The EGL is a highly proliferative transient layer which disappears when cells migrate inwards to form the inner granule cell layer. The balance between proliferation and migration leads to changes in EGL thickness, and might be related to >indentations> observed in the surface of the developing chick cerebellum. We have extended the observation of this feature to quail and mouse, supporting the idea that this phenomenon forms part of the mechanisms of cerebellar morphogenesis. Different factors involved in both mitotic activity and migration were analyzed in this study. Our results indicate that proliferation, more than formation of raphes for cell migration, is involved in the formation of indentations in the EGL. In addition, we show that vessels penetrating from the pial surface divide the EGL into regular regions at the time of the appearance of bulges and furrows. We conclude that indentations are the result of a coincidence in time of both the increase in thickness of the EGL and the establishment of the embryonic vascular pattern, which confers a characteristic transitory morphology to the surface of folia. © 2009.Peer Reviewe

Temporal lobe surface anatomy and the bony relieves in the middle cranial fossa. The case of the El Sidrón (Spain) Neandertal sample

Resumen del póster presentado en: 3rd Annual Meeting of the European Society for the study of Human Evolution, 19-21 September 2013, Vienna/AustriaCGL 2012-36682 and CGL 2012-37279 (MINECO, Spain). Field work is supported by Consejería de Cultura del Principado de Asturias, Grant sponsor: Convenio Universidad de Oviedo-CSIC, Grant number: 060501040023Peer reviewe

Estudio: ''Factores de riesgo y protección de la población escolarizada en el municipio de Candelaria''

El estudio que se presenta a continuación se ha llevado a cabo con el objetivo de conocer los hábitos de vida, las actividades y los estilos de vida, las situaciones que han vivido en los últimos seis meses, y la información y conocimiento de los y las menores sobre las drogas y adicciones de la población escolarizada del municipio de Candelaria. Se ha realizado en el municipio de Candelaria, en la isla de Tenerife, llevando a cabo 474 entrevistas a chicos y chicas de Educación Secundaria Obligatoria de los centros educativos de carácter público del municipio de Candelaria. Los resultados obtenidos en los respectivos institutos de educación secundaria del municipio se presentan son los siguientes: Se observo que donde el alumnado declara un mayor consumo es en cuanto al alcohol (63,3%) seguido por el tabaco en un 29,1% y el cannabis en un 16,2%, Además, las mujeres consumen significativamente más alcohol que los hombres y, por otro lado, el cannabis es consumido significativamente más por ellos que por ellas. Al analizar el principal motivo de consumo entre los y las jóvenes del estudio se observó que el de hacerlo por diversión es lo más habitual entre los y las estudiantesThe present study it has carried out to know the life habits, the activities and life styles, the situations lived in the last six months, and the information and knowledge of students about the drugs and the addictions, of the educated population students in the municipality of Candelaria. It has realized in the municipality of Candelaria, in the Tenerife Island, carrying out 474 interviews to boys and girls of secondary education in the different publics schools in the municipality of Candelaria. The results obtained in the respective schools of secondary education of the municipality are: a 63,3% of students has consumed alcohol, a 29,1% has consumed tobacco and a 16,2% has consumed cannabis. Also, on the one hand the girls consume more alcohol tan the boys, and on the other hand the boys consume more cannabis than the girls. Moreover, the principal cause to the consumption in the young students is because fun

Grapheme-color synesthetes show peculiarities in their emotional brain: cortical and subcortical evidence from VBM analysis of 3D-T1 and DTI data

Grapheme-color synesthesia is a neurological phenomenon in which viewing achromatic letters/numbers leads to automatic and involuntary color experiences. In this study, voxel-based morphometry analyses were performed on T1 images and fractional anisotropy measures to examine the whole brain in associator grapheme-color synesthetes. These analyses provide new evidence of variations in emotional areas (both at the cortical and subcortical levels), findings that help understand the emotional component as a relevant aspect of the synesthetic experience. Additionally, this study replicates previous findings in the left intraparietal sulcus and, for the first time, reports the existence of anatomical differences in subcortical gray nuclei of developmental grapheme-color synesthetes, providing a link between acquired and developmental synesthesia. This empirical evidence, which goes beyond modality-specific areas, could lead to a better understanding of grapheme-color synesthesia as well as of other modalities of the phenomenon

Evolution of the base of the brain in highly encephalized human species

The increase of brain size relative to body size-encephalization-is intimately linked with human evolution. However, two genetically different evolutionary lineages, Neanderthals and modern humans, have produced similarly large-brained human species. Thus, understanding human brain evolution should include research into specific cerebral reorganization, possibly reflected by brain shape changes. Here we exploit developmental integration between the brain and its underlying skeletal base to test hypotheses about brain evolution in Homo. Three-dimensional geometric morphometric analyses of endobasicranial shape reveal previously undocumented details of evolutionary changes in Homo sapiens. Larger olfactory bulbs, relatively wider orbitofrontal cortex, relatively increased and forward projecting temporal lobe poles appear unique to modern humans. Such brain reorganization, beside physical consequences for overall skull shape, might have contributed to the evolution of H. sapiens' learning and social capacities, in which higher olfactory functions and its cognitive, neurological behavioral implications could have been hitherto underestimated factors. © 2011 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.Peer Reviewe

Low and high dietary folic acid levels perturb postnatal cerebellar morphology in growing rats

The brain is particularly sensitive to folate metabolic disturbances, because methyl groups are critical for brain functions. This study aimed to investigate the effects of different dietary levels of folic acid (FA) on postnatal cerebellar morphology, including the architecture and organisation of the various layers. A total of forty male OFA rats (a Sprague–Dawley strain), 5 weeks old, were classified into the following four dietary groups: FA deficient (0 mg/kg FA); FA supplemented (8 mg/kg FA); FA supra-supplemented (40 mg/kg FA); and control (2 mg/kg FA) (all n 10 per group). Rats were fed ad libitum for 30 d. The cerebellum was quickly removed and processed for histological and immunohistochemical analysis. Slides were immunostained for glial fibrillary acidic protein (to label Bergmann glia), calbindin (to label Purkinje cells) and NeuN (to label post-mitotic neurons). Microscopic analysis revealed two types of defect: partial disappearance of fissures and/or neuronal ectopia, primarily in supra-supplemented animals (incidence of 80 %, P≤0·01), but also in deficient and supplemented groups (incidence of 40 %, P≤0·05), compared with control animals. The primary fissure was predominantly affected, sometimes accompanied by defects in the secondary fissure. Our findings show that growing rats fed an FA-modified diet, including both deficient and supplemented diets, have an increased risk of disturbances in cerebellar corticogenesis. Defects caused by these diets may have functional consequences in later life. The present study is the first to demonstrate that cerebellar morphological defects can arise from deficient, as well as high, FA levels in the diet

Differential growth and development of the upper and lower human thorax

The difficulties in quantifying the 3D form and spatial relationships of the skeletal components of the ribcage present a barrier to studies of the growth of the thoracic skeleton. Thus, most studies to date have relied on traditional measurements such as distances and indices from single or few ribs. It is currently known that adult-like thoracic shape is achieved early, by the end of the second postnatal year, with the circular cross-section of the newborn thorax transforming into the ovoid shape of adults; and that the ribs become inclined such that their anterior borders come to lie inferior to their posterior. Here we present a study that revisits growth changes using geometric morphometrics applied to extensive landmark data taken from the ribcage. We digitized 402 (semi) landmarks on 3D reconstructions to assess growth changes in 27 computed tomography-scanned modern humans representing newborns to adults of both sexes. Our analyses show a curved ontogenetic trajectory, resulting from different ontogenetic growth allometries of upper and lower thoracic units. Adult thoracic morphology is achieved later than predicted, by diverse modifications in different anatomical regions during different ontogenetic stages. Besides a marked increase in antero-posterior dimensions, there is an increase in medio-lateral dimensions of the upper thorax, relative to the lower thorax. This transforms the pyramidal infant thorax into the barrel-shaped one of adults. Rib descent is produced by complex changes in 3D curvature. Developmental differences between upper and lower thoracic regions relate to differential timings and rates of maturation of the respiratory and digestive systems, the spine and the locomotor system. Our findings are relevant to understanding how changes in the relative rates of growth of these systems and structures impacted on the development and evolution of modern human body shapeCGL2012-37279 (Spanish Ministry for Economy and Competition) Fyssen-foundation (http://www.fondationfyssen.fr

Desarrollo de un espacio web de prácticas de neuroanatomía y embriología humanas

Presentamos dos proyectos que se relacionan, el primero con la mejora en las prácticas de neuroanatomía para alumnos de segundo de medicina, y el segundo con la enseñanza de la embriología humana, un proyecto bastante complejo del que presentamos aquí su inicio, pero que deseamos convertirlo a medio plazo en una asignatura virtual

Anatomía Comparada del Aparato Genital Masculino de Mamíferos Domésticos. Herramienta de Aprendizaje Virtual para Veterinarios, Biólogos y Médicos

Esta aplicación es una herramienta útil para estudiantes y profesores de diferentes campos. Permitirá conocer y estudiar el aparato genital masculino, señalando gráficamente la estructura a memorizar, ver su contenido teórico y autoevaluarse

Anatomía comparada del aparato urinario de mamíferos domésticos. Herramienta de aprendizaje virtual para veterinarios, biólogos y médicos.

Esta aplicación es una herramienta útil para estudiantes, profesores y profesionales de diferentes campos. Permitirá conocer y estudiar el aparato urinario, señalando gráficamente la estructura a memorizar, ver su contenido teórico y autoevaluarse