Neonatal estrogen treatment with β-estradiol 17-cypionate induces in post-pubertal mice inflammation in the ductuli efferentes,epididymis, and vas deferens,but not in the testis,provoking obstructive azoospermia

Neonatal estrogen treatment (NET) induces morphological changes in male reproductive organs. NET with β-estradiol 17-cypionate is reported to induce inflammation with stromal-epithelial abnormalities in the prostate and seminal vesicles in post-pubertal mice. The aim of this study was to investigate the histopathology of the testis, ductuli efferentes, epididymis, and vas deferens in mice after NET with β-estradiol 17-cypionate. No morphological changes in these organs were observed until 4 weeks after NET. However, some inflammatory cells were found in epididymis and vas deferens 6 weeks after NET. Eight weeks after NET, inflammatory cells spread to the ductuli efferentes and inflammation was severe from 6 to 12 weeks after NET. Inflammatory cells were never seen in the whole testis, but cystic dilatation of the rete testes with spermatogenic disturbance was found around the mediastinum testis. Many inflammatory cells emigrated into the lumen of the epididymis, resulting in complete absence of spermatozoa in the vas deferens. Most of the inflammatory cells penetrating into the epithelial layers of epididymal ducts were neutrophils. These results indicate that in post-pubertal mice, NET with β-estradiol 17-cypionate induces inflammation in the ductuli efferentes, epididymis, and vas deferens, but not in the testis, provoking obstructive azoospermia.     

Bronchioloalveolar carcinoma of mixed mucinous and nonmucinous type: immunohistochemical studies and mutation analysis of the p53 gene

Bronchioloalveolar carcinoma of mixed mucinous and nonmucinous type fulfilling the 1999 WHO criteria is rare. Here, we report a case of this type of tumor determined entirely by histological examinations. A 57-year-old man was incidentally found to have a demarcated 3cm mass in his lower lobe of the right lung. The tumor was composed of tall columnar cells containing cytoplasmic mucins, cuboidal cells without mucins, and intermediate cell types with lepidic growth patterns. Tumor cells were distributed within a region of 2cm in diameter, and no stromal, vascular, or pleural invasion was observed. Immunohistochemically, both the mucinous and nonmucinous components were positive for cytokeratin 7, TTF-1, and E-cadherin, and negative for cytokeratin 20, consistent with the results for nonmucinous bronchioloalveolar carcinoma. No mutations were detected in exons 5-8 of the p53 gene. The present tumor was composed mainly of morphologically mucinous bronchioloalveolar carcinoma, but presented different immunohistochemical profiles of ordinary mucinous bronchioloalveolar carcinoma. This case suggests that the mucinous component in bronchioloalveolar carcinoma of mixed mucinous and nonmucinous type has characters dissimilar to conventional mucinous bronchioloalveolar carcinoma, and is probably derived from the nonmucinous component.     

A case of an additional right external iliac vein surrounding the right external iliac artery and lacking the right common iliac vein

A case of an additional right external iliac vein lacking a right common iliac vein was found in an 84-year-old female cadaver during a dissection course at Aichi Medical University in 2014. The findings are reported and discussed from the embryological and clinical viewpoints. The right and left iliac venous systems were macroscopically observed with attention to the homonymous arteries and the inferior vena cava. In this cadaver, a preaortic external iliac vein originated from a right external iliac vein and drained directly into the inferior vena cava. The preaortic and right external iliac veins surrounded the right external iliac artery. In addition, the right internal iliac vein drained into the left common iliac vein, and the right obturator vein drained into the right external iliac vein. Our findings suggested that normal external iliac veins developed from the ventral limb of the iliac venous system in this case. Our case has clinical importance for surgical complications such as hemorrhages in pelvic operations, phlebography, and especially central venous cauterization of the right femoral vein.     

Involvement of an Skp-Like Protein,PGN_0300, in the Type IX Secretion System of Porphyromonas gingivalis

The oral Gram-negative anaerobic bacterium Porphyromonas gingivalis is an important pathogen involved in chronic periodontitis. Among its virulence factors, the major extracellular proteinases, Arg-gingipain and Lys-gingipain, are of interest given their abilities to degrade host proteins and process other virulence factors. Gingipains possess C-terminal domains (CTDs) and are translocated to the cell surface or into the extracellular milieu by the type IX secretion system (T9SS). Gingipains contribute to the colonial pigmentation of the bacterium on blood agar. In this study, Omp17, the PGN_0300 gene product, was found in the outer membrane fraction. A mutant lacking Omp17 did not show pigmentation on blood agar and showed reduced proteolytic activity of the gingipains. CTD-containing proteins were released from bacterial cells without cleavage of the CTDs in the omp17 mutant. Although synthesis of the anionic polysaccharide (A-LPS) was not affected in the omp17 mutant, the processing of and A-LPS modification of CTD-containing proteins was defective. PorU, a C-terminal signal peptidase that cleaves the CTDs of other CTD-containing proteins, was not detected in any membrane fraction of the omp17 mutant, suggesting that the defective maturation of CTD-containing proteins by impairment of Omp17 is partly due to loss of function of PorU. In the mouse subcutaneous infection experiment, the omp17 mutant was less virulent than the wild type. These results suggested that Omp17 is involved in P. gingivalis virulence.     

A comparative study of gut‐associated lymphoid tissue in calf and chicken

The calf contains two types of Peyer's patches (PPs): jejunal and ileal. The ileal PP has been thought to be equivalent to the bursa of Fabricius (BF) as a central lymphoid organ. The morphologies of ileal and jejunal PPs in the calf were compared with those of the BF and the caecal tonsil (CT) in the chicken. Immunoglobulin G–positive (IgG⁺) cells appear in the follicles of them all and exhibited a dendritic appearance after birth. We investigated whether the IgG in these follicles was produced in situ. IgG‐producing cells were detected in the follicular medullas of the jejunal PP and the CT, but not in those of the ileal PP and the BF. CD4⁺ cells were distributed in the follicular medullas of the jejunal PP and the CT, but not in those of the ileal PP and the BF. The data suggest that Ig class switching occurs in both jejunal PP follicles and CT follicles, but does not occur in either the ileal PP follicles or the bursal follicles. Because CD4⁺ T cells would be prerequisite for Ig class switching in these follicles, IgG⁺ cells of the follicular medullas in the ileal PP and the BF would trap immune complexes from the gut lumen. The primary B‐cell repertoire might be selected by gut‐derived antigens in the ileal PP and the BF before seeding the periphery. Anat Rec 266:207–217, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Gastric motility in patients with recurrent gastric ulcers.

The existence of abnormal gastric motility in gastric ulcer disease remains controversial. The aim of this study was to characterize gastric motility in patients with recurrent gastric ulcers. Studies were performed in 10 control subjects and in 24 patients with recurrent active gastric ulcer disease as diagnosed by gastrointestinal endoscopy. Gastric motility was evaluated by cutaneous electrogastrography (EGG) and by gastric semi-liquid meal emptying. The EGG was recorded before and after ingestion of a test meal containing 20 mg/kg of acetaminophen. Patients with a dominant EGG frequency of greater than 0.06 Hz were defined as tachygastria, while those with a frequency of less than 0.04 Hz were defined as bradygastria. A transient frequency decrease, called postprandial dip (PD), was identified visually. The degree of gastric emptying was determined from the serum acetaminophen concentration 45 minutes after the meal. Control subjects showed no irregularity in their dominant EGG frequency in tither fasting or postprandial states. PD was observed in 8 control subjects. In patients presenting with active gastric ulcers, abnormal patterns in the dominant EGG frequency (either as tachygastria or bradygastria) were observed in 14 of the 24 patients when fasting and in 15 of them in the postprandial state. After successful treatment, the number of patients with abnormal patterns in their dominant EGG frequency remained unchanged, while PD was observed in 11 patients. No significant difference was observed in the EGG power ratio as a result of successful treatment. Gastric emptying was significantly delayed compared with controls in both the active and healed stages. These findings suggest that abnormal gastric motility, including gastric electrical abnormalities and delayed gastric emptying, plays an important role in the pathophysiology of recurrent gastric ulcers.     

Activation of Human Monocytes for Enhanced Production of Interleukin 8 During Transendothelial Migration in Vitro

Interleukin-8 (IL-8) is a chemokine for polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) and lymphocytes, which promotes the extravasation of these inflammatory cells. In this study, we investigated IL-8 synthesis induced by the adhesive interaction between monocytes and endothelial cells during transmigration and the capacity of transmigrated monocytes to produce IL-8. Cocultured human monocytes and human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) monolayers induced the synefgistic production of IL-8, compared with cultures of either monocytes or HUVEC monolayers alone. Coculture-induced IL-8 production almost doubled after HUVECs were stimulated with IL-1. The induced IL-8 mRNA expression was consistent with the protein data, indicating the de novo synthesis of IL-8 by the coculture. Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against IL-8 inhibited the transendothelial chemotactic activity of the supernatants for PMNs by 55%. Immunohistochemistry revealed that both adherent and transmigrated monocytes and unstimulated HUVECs expressed IL-8 protein, whereas nonadherent monocytes did little. Transmigrated monocytes spontaneously secreted a 3.8-fold greater amount of IL-8 than the initial monocytes. Coculture-induced IL-8 production was inhibited about 30% by polyclonal Abs against IL-, IL-1, or tumor necrosis factor , while it was not affected by mAbs against intercellular adhesion molecule 1 or vascular cell adhesion molecule 1. The results suggested that adhesive interaction during the transmigration of monocytes through HUVEC monolayers activates both cell types to produce IL-8 and that transmigrated monocytes are capable of producing ample IL-8.