Periotitis

This case study presents a rare anatomical anomaly complicating cochlear implantation in the form of patent periotic ducts and Hyrtl's (tympanomeningeal) fissures. Hyrtl's fissures are transient anatomical conduits which normally ossify by the 24th week of gestation. Their persistence may cause inadvertent insertion of the cochlear implant electrode into this channel and prevent a successful outcome. This case study and a review of the relevant literature highlights the importance of recognizing this rare anomaly which is easily missed on preoperative imaging...

Objective : Extensive research using water-diffusion MRI reported age-related modifications of cerebral White Matter (WM). Moreover, water-diffusion parameter modifications have been frequently associated with cognitive performances in the elderly sample, reinforcing the idea of aging inducing microstructural disconnection of the brain which in turn impacts cognition. However, only few studies really assessed over-time modifications of these parameters and their relationship with episodic memory outcome of elderly...

Mammalian cochlear development encompasses a series of morphological and molecular events that results in the formation of a highly intricate structure responsible for hearing. One remarkable event occurs during development is the cochlear lengthening that starts with cochlear outgrowth around E11 and continues throughout development. Different mechanisms contribute to this process including cochlear progenitor proliferation and convergent extension. We previously identified that FGF9 and FGF20 promote cochlear lengthening by regulating auditory sensory epithelial proliferation through FGFR1 and FGFR2 in the periotic mesenchyme...

The family Balaenidae includes two genus and four extant species. Extinct balaenids are known for at least four genus and 10 species. The oldest known record of members of the Balaenidae is known from the early Miocene, but still need more early members of the family to provide better phylogenetic hypotheses. FCCP 1049 from the lower part of the Chippubetsu Formation, Fukagawa Group (3.5-5.2 Ma, Zanclean, early Pliocene) was preliminary described and identified as Balaenula sp. by Furusawa and Kimura in 1982...

BACKGROUND: Sensorineural hearing loss is an understudied consequence of congenital Zika syndrome, and balance disorders are essentially unreported to date. Also lacking is information about the susceptibility and the pathogenesis of the developing inner ear following Zika virus (ZIKV) exposure. To address this, ZIKV was delivered directly into the otic cup/otocyst of chicken embryos and infection of inner ear tissues was evaluated using immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: After injections on embryonic days 2 to 5, ZIKV infection was observed in 90% of the samples harvested 2 to 8 days later; however, the degree of infection was highly variable across individuals...

Some temperate tree species are associated with very low soil nitrification rates, with important implications for forest N dynamics, presumably due to their potential for biological nitrification inhibition (BNI). However, evidence for BNI in forest ecosystems is scarce so far and the nitrifier groups controlled by BNI-tree species have not been identified. Here, we evaluated how some tree species can control soil nitrification by providing direct evidence of BNI and identifying the nitrifier group(s) affected...

A new fossil of Ziphiidae from the upper Miocene Gram Formation ( ca 9.9-7.2 Ma) is described herein. Computed tomographic scanning of the specimen was performed to visualize the mandibles and to obtain a three-dimensional digital reconstruction. It possesses several characters of the derived ziphiids, such as the dorsoventral thickening of the anterior process of the periotic, the dorsoventral compression of the pars cochlearis and the short unfused symphysis. The specimen cannot be identified beyond the family level, because of the unusual nature of the preserved parts consisting of the mandibles, earbones and postcranial remains...

In modern Cetacea, the ear bone complex comprises the tympanic and periotic bones forming the tympano-periotic complex (TPC), differing from temporal bone complexes of other mammals in form, construction, position, and possibly function. To elucidate its functioning in sound transmission, we studied the vibration response of 32 pairs of formaldehyde-glutaraldehyde-fixed TPCs of Globicephala macrorhynchus, the short-finned pilot whale (legally obtained in Taiji, Japan). A piezoelectric-crystal-based vibrator was surgically attached to a location on the cochlea near the exit of the acoustic nerve...

Sepsis-associated encephalopathy (SAE) refers to brain dysfunction, including delirium, occurs during severe infection and is associated with development of post-traumatic stress disorder. SAE has been proposed to be related to reduced cerebral blood flow (CBF), blood-brain barrier breakdown (BBB), white matter edema and disruption and glia cell activation, but their exact relationships remain to be determined. In the present work, we set out to study CBF using Arterial Spin Labeling (ASL) and grey and white matter structure with T2- and diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) in rats with cecal ligation and puncture (CLP)-induced encephalopathy...

Ages of Florida manatees ( Trichechus manatus latirostris ) can be estimated by counting annual growth layer groups (GLGs) in the periotic dome portion of the tympanoperiotic complex of their earbones. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission manages an archive of more than 8,700 Florida manatee earbones collected from salvaged carcasses from 1989 to 2017. Our goal was to comprehensively evaluate techniques used to estimate age, given this large sample size and changes to processing protocols and earbone readers over time...

Megf6, a member of MEGF (multiple EGF-like domains) protein family, is a conserved high molecular weight protein with 30 EGF-like domains. Although many members of the MEGF protein family are essential for embryonic development and homeostasis, the role of Megf6 in development and physiology is still unknown. Here, we generated Megf6-deficient mice using CRISPR-Cas9 technique and showed that Megf6 is dispensable for embryonic development. We also constructed the Megf6Cre allele to study Megf6-expressing cell lineages...

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: To assess the somatosensory dysfunction of the auricle and periotic skin in patients undergoing otitis media surgery. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective study. METHODS: Symptoms of periotic somatosensory function after surgery were investigated in 100 patients (42 males, 58 females, mean age 41.39 years) who underwent otitis media surgery. Questionnaires on periotic somatosensory disturbance were answered after surgery at least over 1 year postoperatively...

BACKGROUND: We report a unique pattern of focal degeneration of the neuroepithelium of cristae ampullares, thick subepithelial extracellular deposits, and neural degeneration in three humans. OBJECTIVE: To characterize the pattern of vestibular degeneration and measure the thickness of subepithelial deposits in these three cases and controls. METHODS: The subepithelial deposits of vestibular end organs in three subject cases and controls were studied using hematoxylin and eosin, periotic acid-Schiff, Gomori trichrome staining, and immunostaining for antineurofilament, antimyosin VIIa, and anticollagen 4a1...

Neobalaenines are an enigmatic group of baleen whales represented today by a single living species: the pygmy right whale, Caperea marginata , found only in the Southern Hemisphere. Molecular divergence estimates date the origin of pygmy right whales to 22-26 Ma, yet so far there are only three confirmed fossil occurrences. Here, we describe an isolated periotic from the latest Miocene of Victoria (Australia). The new fossil shows all the hallmarks of Caperea , making it the second-oldest described neobalaenine, and the oldest record of the genus...

A new small probable Oligocene dolphin from Ecuador represents a new genus and species, Urkudelphis chawpipacha. The new taxon is known from a single juvenile skull and earbones; it differs from other archaic dolphins in features including widely exposed frontals at the vertex, a dorsally wide open vomer at the mesorostral groove, and a strongly projected and pointed lateral tuberosity of the periotic. Phylogenetic analysis places it toward the base of the largely-extinct clade Platanistoidea. The fossil is one of a few records of tropical fossil dolphins...

Oligonucleotide probes are increasingly being used to characterize natural microbial assemblages by Tyramide Signal Amplification-Fluorescent in situ Hybridization (TSA-FISH, or CAtalysed Reporter Deposition CARD-FISH). In view of the fast-growing rRNA databases, we re-evaluated the in silico specificity of eleven bacterial and eukaryotic probes and competitor frequently used for the quantification of marine picoplankton. We performed tests on cell cultures to decrease the risk for non-specific hybridization, before they are used on environmental samples...

The cerebellar floccular and parafloccular lobes are housed in fossae of the periotic region of the skull of different vertebrates. Experimental evidence indicates that the lobes integrate visual and vestibular information and control the vestibulo-ocular reflex, vestibulo-collic reflex, smooth pursuit and gaze holding. Multiple paleoneuroanatomy studies have deduced the behaviour of fossil vertebrates by measuring the floccular fossae (FF). These studies assumed that there are correlations between FF volume and behaviour...

BACKGROUND: Frailty has been associated with increased risk of adverse-health related outcomes including cognitive impairment. However, little is know about the pathogenesis relating frailty to cognitive decline. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to investigate the association between vascular cerebral damage and frailty. METHODS: Cross-sectional study involving 176 community-dwelling participants aged 67-86 years, participating in the AMImage Study, an ancillary neuro-imaging project of the AMI cohort, a French prospective cohort including older farmers living in rural areas...

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the efficacy of combined antistaphylococcal and antipseudomonal preoperative antibiotics for preventing surgical site infections following tympanoplasty and mastoidectomy with contaminated cholesteatoma. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective chart review. METHODS: Medical records of patients who underwent tympanoplasty ± mastoidectomy for cholesteatoma were reviewed. Only cases considered to have contaminated or dirty surgical fields were included...

BACKGROUND: In the inner ear Wnt signaling is necessary for proliferation, cell fate determination, growth of the cochlear duct, polarized orientation of stereociliary bundles, differentiation of the periotic mesenchyme, and homeostasis of the stria vascularis. In neonatal tissue Wnt signaling can drive proliferation of cells in the sensory region, suggesting that Wnt signaling could be used to regenerate the sensory epithelium in the damaged adult inner ear. Manipulation of Wnt signaling for regeneration will require an understanding of the dynamics of Wnt pathway gene expression in the ear...