Case of ruptured gastroduodenal arterial pseudoaneurysm with penetration to the duodenum, successfully treated with transcatheter arterial embolization]

A 77-year-old man, who underwent segmental pancreatectomy for intraductal papillary mucinous adenoma in 2001, was referred to our hospital with complaints of hematemesis and melena on January, 2004. Emergency upper gastrointestinal endoscopy showed a pulsating submucosal protrusion in the duodenal bulb, which was identified as a gastroduodenal arterial aneurysm measuring 1.5cm on abdominal CT imaging. Transcatheter arterial embolization of the aneurysm with metallic coils was successfully performed. Periodically repeated endoscopic examination has revealed the coils protruding into the duodenal lumen without any serious complication.     

Primary leiomyosarcoma of the thyroid gland

Primary leiomyosarcoma of the thyroid gland is extremely rare, and to the best of our knowledge only five well-documented cases have been reported in the world literature. We herein report a 58-year-old female patient with primary leiomyosarcoma of the thyroid who was successfully treated by total thyroidectomy with a modified neck dissection. Immunohistochemically, the tumor cells showed positive reactivity to α-smooth muscle actin and vimentin. Radical surgery was thus considered to be essential in the treatment of this rare but rather aggressive malignancy.     

Immunohistochemical localization and dynamics of paraquat in the stomach and esophagus of rats

Summary The dynamics of paraquat in the stomach and esophagus of rats were demonstrated using immunohistochemical techniques. The Rats were killed 3 h, 12 h, 24 h, 3 days, 7 days and 10 days after intravenous administration of paraquat. In the stomach, paraquat was localized in the epithelial cells between 24h and 10 days after injection, whereas in the esophagus, paraquat was localized in epithelial cells and the lamina propria mucosa between 12 h and 10 days after administration. Although these findings were similar to those observed in the intestine of rats, no clear changes in the distribution of paraquat with time were observed; suggesting that the stomach and esophagus are important reservoirs for the redistribution of paraquat.     

Discrete breakpoint mapping and shortest region of overlap of chromosome arm 1q gain and 1p loss in human hepatocellular carcinoma detected by semiquantitative microsatellite analysis

Recurrent chromosomal gain at 1q is one of the most common features of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but how the gain at 1q contributes to hepatocarcinogenesis is still unclear. To identify the target genes, precise determination of the shortest region of overlap (SRO) and of breakpoints is necessary. Similarly, the role of loss at 1p, which is also a major cytogenetic aberration in HCC, needs to be determined. Fifty HCCs were examined with the aid of 59 microsatellite markers distributed throughout both arms of chromosome 1. To detect allelic gain effectively, the cutoff value of the allelic imbalance index was set at 0.70. Alleles showing imbalance were subjected to multiplex PCR, using a retained allele as an internal control, to determine whether the imbalance was the result of chromosomal gain or loss. The SRO of the gains was defined as D1S2878-D1S2619 (1q23.-q25.3, 16.9 Mb), which involved 36 cases (72%). Gains in the number of copies of certain oncogenes within this region seemed to be critical for the pathogenesis of HCC. In contrast, the centromeric breakpoints of these gains varied, but they tended to occur mainly in the pericentromeric region (26 of 50 cases, 52%). Rearrangement of specific genes associated with the gains is unlikely. On the other hand, the SRO of deletion was defined as D1S2893-D1S450 (1p36.32-p36.22, 5.1 Mb). Four known putative tumor-suppressor genes (TP73, RIZ1, NBL1/DAN, and CDKN2C) were outside the SRO, suggesting the presence of other candidate genes with critical roles in hepatocarcinogenesis.     

Immunocytochemical Evidence of Amyloid-enhancing Factor (AEF) in Polymorphonuclear Leukocytes

Amyloid enhancing factor (AEF) was extracted from spleens of mice that had received amyloidogenic stimulation. Sephacryl S 300 gel filtration of the crude AEF yielded five fractions, among which strong AEF activity was present in the first peak (Fl), and confirmed by an amyloid induction experiment. An anti AEF antiserum was obtained from a rabbit by immunization with Fl. This antibody reacted strongly with splenic polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PML) from mice given amyloidogenic stimulation, and weakly with those from normal untreated mice. Isoelectric focusing (IEF) analysis of both Fl and sera from mice given amyloidogenic stimulation was performed. A single band was observed on IEF analysis of Fl, whereas many bands were seen on IEF analysis of the sera. After the substances in the gel had been transferred to nitrocellulose membranes by capillary blotting, the membranes were made to react with the anti-AEF antiserum. The results suggested that AEF is a high molecular-weight substance derived from PML and increases in the serum at the time of, or shortly prior to, amyloid deposition in the spleen. Acta Pathol Jpn 39: 349∼355, 1989.     

Butyrate increases production of human chimeric IgG in CHO-K1 cells whilst maintaining function and glycoform profile

The influence of sodium butyrate on the production and glycosylation of recombinant mouse/human chimeric antibody by transfected CHO-K1 cells was investigated. We selected cells expressing 'wild-type' antibody with a human IgG3 heavy chain and a mutant of this molecule in which Phe 243 is replaced by Ala. These proteins have previously been shown to exhibit very different glycoform profiles with the mutant IgG being comprised of glycoforms having a high galactose and sialic acid content. Cell culture with 0-5 mM butyrate was shown to effect a 2-4-fold increase in antibody production whilst the induction of apoptosis was observed in a dose-dependent manner. The optimal butyrate concentration was observed to be 2 mM. The glycoform profile of each antibody produced in the presence of butyrate was analyzed by HPAEC-PAD and shown to be unchanged, relative to that produced in the absence of butyrate. Biological activity was evaluated by the ability of the antibodies to trigger superoxide generation, through Fc gamma RI, and shown to be independent of production in the presence or absence of butyrate. A similar increase in production was observed for a high antibody-producing cell line when expanded in a hollow fibre bioreactor under low-serum conditions (1%). These results demonstrated that butyrate is of value for increasing the productivity of CHO-K1 for recombinant IgG and does not compromise either glycosylation or biological activity.     

Expression cloning of gamma interferon-inducing antigens of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis

Three recombinant proteins, Map10, Map39, and Map41, produced based on nucleotide sequences obtained from the screening of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis genomic library expressed in Escherichia coli significantly elicited gamma interferon production in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from infected cattle. Two of these proteins were members of the PPE protein family.     

Antigen-induced tolerance by intrathymic modulation of self-recognizing inhibitory receptors

CD1d-restricted invariant natural killer T cell (iNKT cells) have a limited T cell receptor (TCR) repertoire and share characteristics common to T cells and natural killer cells. While intrathymic selection facilitates the production of T cells carrying self major histocompatibility complex-restricted TCRs, natural killer cells carry an appropriate repertoire of self major histocompatibility complex-recognizing receptors to avoid self-reactivity. Here we show that chronic exposure to specific glycolipid antigen resulted in iNKT cell disappearance and thymus-dependent repopulation of iNKT cells with increased expression of inhibitory Ly-49 molecules that resulted in impaired responsiveness. Thymic selection of peripheral Ly-49-expressing iNKT cell repertoire inhibited cytokine production and other functions in vivo. These observations emphasize the acquisition of self-recognizing inhibitory receptors on NKT cells as a previously unknown mechanism of thymic tolerance after chronic antigen exposure.     

Numerical aberrations of chromosome 9 in bladder cancer. A possible prognostic marker for early tumor recurrence

Bilharzial bladder cancer is one of the most common types of malignancy in both men and women in several developing countries including Egypt. It has several unique clinical, epidemiological, and histological characteristics, suggesting that it is an entity distinct from bladder cancer seen in Western countries. Genetic alterations in bilharzial-related bladder cancer have been studied infrequently, especially in the advanced stages of disease, that is, T3 and T4 classifications. The objective of this study was to extend establishing the baseline cytogenetic profile of this type of malignancy to early T1 and T2 classifications. For this purpose, fluorescence in situ hybridization was applied to interphase nuclei of frozen-stored samples with biotinylated repetitive DNA probes specific for all chromosomes to detect numerical chromosome changes in 35 patients presenting with relatively early-stage pT1 and pT2 disease. Eleven cases had squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and 24 had transitional cell carcinoma. Six of 24 transitional cell carcinomas had diploid chromosome counts with all the probes. Numerical chromosome aberrations were detected in 18 cases (75%). In 12 cases, a loss of chromosome 9 was observed. In three cases, an additional loss of chromosome 17 was detected. One case demonstrated a loss of chromosome 10, whereas another two cases showed a gain of chromosome 7, next to a loss of chromosome 9. Loss of chromosome Y was observed in nine of the 27 male cases studied (33.3%), in which only one case showed an abnormality whereas four cases were detected next to loss of chromosome 9, and one case showed gain of chromosome 7. Five cases showed loss of chromosome 19 whereas gain of chromosome 4 was detected in two cases. Two of 11 samples of SCC had normal diploid chromosome counts with all the probes used. In four of 11 cases (36.4%) underrepresentation of chromosome 9, compared with the other chromosomes, was detected. An additional loss of chromosome 17 and gain of chromosome 7, next to loss of chromosome 9, was detected in three cases. One case showed loss of chromosome 17 as the only numerical aberration. Loss of the Y chromosome was detected in three cases of which one case had gain of chromosome 7 and one case had loss of chromosome 19. No correlation was found between any of the clinicopathologic parameters examined in this study and the presence or absence of any numerical chromosomal aberrations except for the significant association between schistosomal history and loss of Y chromosome (P=0.007).