Radioiodinated 5-iodo-1-(2-fluoro-2-deoxy-beta-D-arabinofuranosyl)uracil (F *IAU) is most commonly used for noninvasive assessment of herpes simplex virus type 1 thymidine kinase (HSV-1-tk) gene expression. However, it does not permeate the intact blood-brain barrier (BBB) because of its moderate lipophilicity. In this work, three iodo-nucleosides, FIAU, IVFRU, and IVFAU, were radiolabeled with iodine-123 and tested for permeation of the BBB in mice and for potential measurement of HSV-1-tk gene expression in gliomas. The results demonstrate that brain uptake and retention of these nucleosides is not directly related to their lipophilicity. The low brain uptake of IVFAU, in conjunction with its higher and constant brain/blood ratio, may reflect greater stability against hydrolysis of the N-glycosidic bond. In vivo PET evaluations of [(124)I]IVFRU and [(124)I]IVFAU in tumor-bearing mice are warranted.

Background: The lateral pterygoid muscle (LPM) has been described in many anatomical and functional studies. The morphology of the LPM is still under debate because of its deep location in the infratemporal fossa and the difficulties to approach this area with different anatomical methods. Although it has been generally accepted that this muscle is mainly composed of two separate parts, other forms have been described in the past. Objectives: To conduct a systematic literature review regarding the anatomy and variations of the LPM. Methods: We included studies published in English, German or French employing anatomical and imaging methods or a combination of the two methods. The cadavers used in the dissections had to be human and without any pathological alterations. Studies were only included when focusing on the anatomy of the LPM or its morphological variations or when taking the frequency of variations into account. We searched 26 biomedical databases including MEDLINE, EMBASE, BIOSIS Previews and Science Citation Index Expanded (part of Web of Science) through October 2014. The review was followed by the dissection of a hemisected head in two different planes. Results: We identified 4279 records (2200 after deduplication) in the databases searches plus 17 articles from manual searches. 81 studies out of these articles were included in this review. 69 articles used anatomical methods, 5 imaging methods and 7 studies a combination of the two methods. 11 studies took into account that the LPM may have variations and also considered the relative frequency of each variation. The frequency of one-headed LPMs ranged between 7.7% and 26.7%, of two-headed LPMs between 61.4% and 91.1% and of three-headed LPMs between 4.0% and 35.0%. Our own dissection showed a three-headed version of the LPM. Discussion: In anatomical studies, different preparation techniques seem to be the main reason for diverging results.

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