Monday, February 20, 2017

Hunched Over a Microscope, Santiago Ramon y Cajal Sketched the Secrets of How the Brain Works



Last month, the Weisman Art Museum in Minneapolis opened a traveling exhibit that is the first dedicated solely to Ramón y Cajal’s work. According to a New York Times article, it will make stops in Minneapolis; Vancouver, British Columbia; New York City; Cambridge, Mass.; and Chapel Hill, N.C., through April 2019.

Ramon y Cajal in his laboratory, circa 1885
 Thanks to Drs. Mark Cohen and John Evans for alerting me to this exhibit.

Thursday, February 16, 2017

Best Post of November 2016: Calcifying Pseudoneoplasm of the Neuroaxis (CAPNON)


The next in our "Best of the Month" series is from November 11, 2016:

Approximately 59 cases of CAPNON have been reported in the literature, A non-neoplastic entity that can be found in either an intra-axial or extra-axial location, the pathogenesis of CAPNON is unclear but a reactive process has been favored. The outcome is generally considered to be excellent, with gross total resection typically curative. This case is somewhat unique in that it harbors adipose tissue.

Foci of calcification and fat are present in this midline example


Nodules of basophilic calcification


The calcifications have a chondromyxoid appearance


Surgery was complicated as the lesion encased the anterior cerebral arteries


References:
Aiken AH, Akgun H, Tihan T, Barbaro N, Glastonbury C. Calcifying pseudoneoplasms of the neuroaxis: CT, MR Imaging, and Histologic Features. American Journal of Neuroradiology 30 (2009) 1256-1260.

Duque SG, Lopez DM, de Mendivil AO, Fernandez JD. Calcifying pseudoneoplasms of the neuroaxis: Report of four cases and review of the literature. Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery 143 (2016) 116-120.

Friday, February 3, 2017

Ophthalmologist and Eye Pathologist David Wilson Visits University of Colorado Pathology Department

Dr. David Wilson (left) with residents and attendings at University of Colorado Pathology Dept today
The pathology department was one stop made by Dr. David Wilson, ophthalmologist and eye pathologist from Oregon Health and Science University, when he visited the University of Colorado today.

Dr. Diamandis develops network to help pathologists interface with AI computational scientists

A neuropathology colleague in Toronto (Dr. Phedias Diamandis) is developing some amazing AI-based tools for pathology and academia. He hel...