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Graphical abstract:

Hericium erinaceushas been widely used in food and medicine because of its various promising bioactivities. This study investigated the effects of Tween series surfactant and agar addition on mycelial growth and β-glucan in liquid submerged culture of the medicinal mushroom H. erinaceus.The addition of Tween 80 in liquid medium resulted in higher dry cell weight (DCW) and β-glucan production, with values of 6.06 and 1.21 g/L for 3.0% (w/v) and 7.27 and 1.22 g/L for 4.0% (w/v), respectively. This corresponded to a 1.82 relative ratio of DCW to control and a 1.86 relative ratio of β-glucan to control for 3.0% (w/v) and a 2.18 relative ratio of DCW to control and a 1.87 relative ratio of β-glucan to control for 4.0% (w/v), respectively. Further, the mycelial pellets were altered by the addition of agar in liquid medium, forming small pellets. The pellet diameter decreased with increasing medium viscosity, and the smallest pellet diameter, 1.5 mm, was attained with the addition of 0.3% (w/v) agar. The medium viscosity was 48.7 mPa s. Moreover, β-glucan production increased with a decreasing pellet diameter, and the highest β-glucan production, 0.86 g/L, was observed with 0.3% (w/v) agar added to the medium. The influence of flask type on DCW and β-glucan production was investigated which were almost 1.2-fold higher in baffled Erlenmeyer flasks than in normal Erlenmeyer flasks. Finally, cultivation with agar addition in a baffled Erlenmeyer flask was determined to be most effective for DCW and β-glucan production, yielding the highest values of 7.74 and 1.43 g/L, respectively.

The majority of tumors of the pineal gland do not arise from pineal cells, but rather from cells of the germ line (cells normally located in the ovaries or testes that give rise to eggs or sperm). These tumors, called dysgerminomas (germinomas), may occur elsewhere in the brain, most notably the hypothalamus and the neural portion of the pituitary gland, the neurohypophysis. The germinoma develops preferentially in structures located along the midline of the brain. When such tumors are found in the pituitary gland, they are sometimes referred to as ectopic pinealomas. It is uncertain where such tumors originate. The authors discuss the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in evaluating seven patients with neurohypophyseal germinomas. The pituitary gland is connected to the hypothalamus by the slender infundibular stalk, which emerges from the brain at the site of the optic chiasm, where the optic nerves partially cross and enter the brain. The pituitary gland itself resides in a bony recess, the sella turcica. In six of the present patients, MRI clearly revealed the portion of the tumor within the sella. In two cases, the entire small germinoma was intrasellar. In four cases of large germinomas, major portions beneath the optic chiasm were visible on MRI, and large intrasellar portions of the tumor could also be identified in these patients. In the remaining case, the tumor was located on the infundibular stalk and within the hypothalamus itself, extending to the third ventricle within the hypothalamus. The most common form of pituitary tumor is the pituitary adenoma, a tumor arising in the anterior lobe of the pituitary. The neurohypophyseal germinoma, arising in the posterior lobe, may be distinguished on the basis of three factors. The dysgerminoma tends to occur in younger patients (often in adolescents, and rarely in patients over 30), the germinoma tends to cause excessive water loss from the kidneys (diabetes insipidus), and the germinoma has distinct appearances on magnetic resonance imaging, illustrated in this report. The rapid diagnosis of neurohypophyseal germinoma is important, since the tumor is especially sensitive to radiation therapy, and early treatment may result in long-term survival. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

The postnatal development and aging of the following midline brain structures were studied with the aid of midsagittal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI): the pituitary gland, the pons (communication between right and left cerebellar hemispheres), the corpus callosum (communication between right and left cerebral hemispheres) and the vermis (a midline, unpaired cerebellar structure). MRI is the noninvasive use of strong magnetic fields and radio frequency energy to produce clear images of internal structures of the body (e.g., portions of the brain). The study included individuals from birth to 60 years of age. The patterns of growth as observed by MRI is reported in detail. The pituitary showed a consistent and progressive growth until approximately 50 years of age when there was some decrease in size. Accelerated pituitary growth occurred during the first year and about the time of puberty (10-15). The pons, cerebellar vermis and corpus callosum all showed explosive growth early in life, followed by a decrease in growth rate; mathematically the growth pattern followed an exponential pattern of growth. There was also some indication of atrophy or decreased size of the pons, cerebellar vermis and corpus callosum after the approximate age of fifty, but this was not statistically significant.