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Anatomy.— "On the visual centra in the brain of an anophthalmos.' 

 By Dr. C. T. van Valkenburg and Dr. L. H. J. Mestrom. 

 (Communicated by Prof. C. Winkler.) 



Througli the Director of the lunatic-asylum Maasoord, Dr. Vos, 

 the Central Institute for Brain-Research came into possession of the 

 brain of a female anophthalmos, who had died at fullgrown age. 

 She was moreover an idiot. 



The number of investigations of the central nervous system in 

 cases of congenital anophthalmy is a very modest one. It is also 

 — even with regard to the central visual system - not complete. 

 Moreover very general conclusions were sometimes drawn from the 

 partial investigation of one single case (Bolton). We are consequently 

 of opinion that the communication of the discoveries made in a new 

 case, are not unwelcome. We give a very short account of them 

 in this paper. 



1. Corpus quadrigeminum anticum on both sides flatter than 

 normally ; 



2. Pulvinar thalami optici 'm sagittal direction shorter than normally; 



3. Corpus geniculatum externum almost entirely without the basal 

 prominence ; 



4. Occipital lobe: Besides the remains of a chronical lepto- 

 meningitis (existing still more distinctly in other parts of the cerebrum) 

 both lobi occipitales show a somewhat too feeble development. 

 Though the cerebellum is, in sagittal direction, entirely covered, one 

 sees the central part of the dorsal surface of the cerebellum lying 

 more bare than normally, in consequence of the caudal distention 

 of the two cerebral hemispheres. The latter are slightly tapering. 

 The mediobasal parietes of the occipital lobi are likewise shorter 

 than usual. The configuration of the sulci and gyri there falls inside 

 the line of demarcation of the physiological variation. The sulcus 

 calcarinus to the left bends round the rim of the occipital pole, to 

 the right it finishes at a short distance in front of this pole T- 

 shaped. On the convex side one finds, on both sides, remnants of 

 a sulcus lunatus. 



Microscopical examination. All the above-mentioned visual centra 

 to the left were examined by Pal-preparations and sections coloured 

 according to van Gieson. The right ones were coloured according to 

 NissL (paraffine enclosure, toluidine-blue) the calcarine-region par- 

 tially. The results are as follows : 



1. Corpus quadrigeminum anticum. On account of the absence 

 of the visual fibres of the tractus opticus this ganglion is poorly 



