Blood vessels and excretory apparatus of the kidney in some wild animals.

On 110 preparations of the kidney in some wild animals (hare, fox, wolf, bear, boar and chamois), the blood vessels and the excretory apparatus were studied by dissection, injection-corrosion and microscope. Only the bear has a markedly split kidney, whereas the kidneys of the other animals are unsplit. In the fox there is an obvious split of the renal artery into anterior and posterior branches which supply the anterior and posterior portion, respectively, of the renal parenchyma, being separated from each other, so that we may speak of an anterior and posterior kidney. In the fox, wolf, hare and chamois the interlobar arteries pass through the renal calices in a loop composed of adipose tissue, invested by the epithelium of the renal calyx. The renculi of the bear kidney show complete autonomy in relation to the blood vessels as well as in relation to the excretory apparatus. The relation of the surface of the excretory apparatus to the whole kidney was studied. Thus we have found the fox to have relatively the largest excretory apparatus, whose surface amounts to 31% of the whole kidney. In the remainder of the animals investigated this percentage is considerably less, ranging from 21.7% (boar) to 26.7% (bear).

[A case of brain malformation without a change in skull configuration]. / Ein Fall von Hirnfehlbildung ohne Veränderung der Schädelkonfiguration.

The brain of a 5-months old female baby was investigated. The baby died following operation for myelomeningocystocoele of the lumbosacral region. The post mortem finding showed that there were no other malformations present besides the changes at the level of the central nervous system. Lack of the falx was observed on the dura mater, while the tentorium cerebelli was well developed. The cerebrum was on the whole of a bulbular form with a larger transversal diameter and was not divided into 2 hemispheres. A complete lack of the rhinencephalon was observed on the basal aspect of the brain. Between the dorsal surface of the cerebral trunk and the cerebrum there was a specious transversal fissure through which a considerable part of the choroidal plexus emerged from the ventricle and was positioned extraventricularly. The posterior edge of this fissure is formed by the commissura hippocampi behind which there are well developed gyri dentati which are interconnected in the medial line. The cerebellum is normally developed but antepositioned, with a considerably pronounced vermis cerebelli. Frontal sections of the brain showed an emphasised contrast between the gray and the white brain substance which is indicative of a higher level of brain maturity. The third brain ventricle, as well as the frontal horns of the lateral ventricle were missing, and there was a developed central common cavity and the temporal horns. The basal ganglia were merged with the central gray matter spread in a transversal direction which was separated from the cortex by an arc-formed white brain substance.

Contribution to the knowledge of the brain in the newborn.

On 50 brains of newborns of either sex, the exterior and interior morphology was studied. The exterior morphology of the brain was conformable to the configuration of the skull. The insula is relatively large, but extremely inadequately grooved. The subcortical masses are well pronounced but there is in general a very slight difference between the white and gray matter of the brain. The convolutions and grooves of the cerebellum are very distinctly marked, the nucleus dentatus is large and white matter is prevalent. The brain stem is rather well formed, distinctly plastic, this being particularly true for the region of the rhomboid fossa and medulla oblongata.