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Diagnosis and longitudinal monitoring of neurological diseases are limited by the poor specificity and limited resolution of currently available techniques. Analysis of circulating cells in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) has emerged as a promising strategy for the diagnosis, molecular characterization, and monitoring of neurological disease. In comparison to bulk sequencing analysis, single-cell sequencing studies can provide novel insights into rare cell populations and uncover heterogeneity in gene expression at a single-cell resolution, which has several implications for understanding disease pathology and treatment. Parallel development of standardized biofluid collection protocols, pre-processing strategies, reliable single-cell isolation strategies, downstream genomic analysis, and robust computational analysis is paramount for comprehensive single-cell sequencing analysis. Here we perform a comprehensive review of studies focusing on single-cell sequencing of cells in the CSF of patients with oncological or non-oncological diseases of the central nervous system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Central nervous system (CNS) tumors are the leading cause of cancer death in pediatric patients. Though these tumors typically require invasive surgical procedures to diagnose, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) liquid biopsy presents a potential method for rapid and noninvasive detection of markers of CNS malignancy. To characterize molecular biomarkers that can be used in the diagnosis, prognosis, and monitoring of pediatric cancer patients, a literature review was conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. PubMed and EMBASE were searched for the terms biomarkers, liquid biopsy, cerebrospinal fluid, pediatric central nervous system tumor, and their synonyms. Studies including pediatric patients with CSF sampling for tumor evaluation were included. Studies were excluded if they did not have full text or if they were case studies, methodology reports, in languages other than English, or animal studies. Our search revealed 163 articles of which 42 were included. Proteomic, genomic, and small molecule markers associated with CNS tumors were identified for further analysis and development of detection tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrocephalus can develop secondarily to a disturbance in production, flow and/or absorption of cerebrospinal fluid. Experimental models of hydrocephalus, especially subacute and chronic hydrocephalus, are few and limited, and the effects of hydrocephalus on the subventricular zone are unclear. The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of long-term obstructive hydrocephalus on the subventricular zone, which is the neurogenic niche lining the lateral ventricles. We developed a new method to induce hydrocephalus by obstructing the aqueduct of Sylvius in the mouse brain, thus simulating aqueductal stenosis in humans. In 120-day-old rodents (n = 18 per group), the degree of ventricular dilatation and cellular composition of the subventricular zone were studied by immunofluorescence and transmission electron microscopy. In adult patients (age > 18 years), the sizes of the subventricular zone, corpus callosum, and internal capsule were analyzed by magnetic resonance images obtained from patients with and without aqueductal stenosis (n = 25 per group). Mice with 60-day hydrocephalus had a reduced number of Ki67 + and doublecortin + cells on immunofluorescence, as well as decreased number of neural progenitors and neuroblasts in the subventricular zone on electron microscopy analysis as compared to non-hydrocephalic mice. Remarkably, a number of extracellular matrix structures (fractones) contacting the ventricular lumen and blood vessels were also observed around the subventricular zone in mice with hydrocephalus. In humans, the widths of the subventricular zone, corpus callosum, and internal capsule in patients with aqueductal stenosis were significantly smaller than age and gender-matched patients without aqueductal stenosis. In summary, supratentorial hydrocephalus reduces the proliferation rate of neural progenitors and modifies the cytoarchitecture and extracellular matrix compounds of the subventricular zone. In humans, this similar process reduces the subventricular niche as well as the width of corpus callosum and internal capsule. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]