The prognostic value of discontinuous EEG patterns in postanoxic coma

Objective

To assess the value of background continuity and amplitude fluctuations of the EEG for the prediction of outcome of comatose patients after cardiac arrest.

Cadherin switching in human prostate cancer progression

The progression of carcinomas is associated with the loss of epithelial morphology and a concomitant acquisition of a more mesenchymal phenotype, which in turn is thought to contribute to the invasive and/or metastatic behavior of the malignant process. Changes in the expression of cadherins, "cadherin switching," plays a critical role during embryogenesis, particularly in morphogenetic processes. Loss of E-cadherin is reported to be associated with a poor prognosis; however, thus far, evidence (R. Umbas, et al., Cancer Res. 54: 3929-3933, 1994) for up-regulation of other cadherins has only been reported in vitro, ie., we have found evidence (M. J. G. Bussemakers et al., Int. J. Cancer, 85: 446-450, 2000) for cadherin switching in prostate cancer cell lines (up-regulation of N-cadherin and cadherin-11, two mesenchymal cadherins, in cell lines that lack a functional E-cadherin-catenin adhesion complex). Here, we report on the immunohistochemical analysis of the expression of N-cadherin and cadherin-11 in human prostate cancer specimens. N-cadherin was not expressed in normal prostate tissue; however, in prostatic cancer, N-cadherin was found to be expressed in the poorly differentiated areas, which showed mainly aberrant or negative E-cadherin staining. Cadherin-11 is expressed in the stroma of all prostatic tumors, in the area where stromal and epithelial cells are found. In addition, cadherin-11 is also expressed in a dotted pattern or at the membrane of the epithelial cells of high-grade cancers. In a number of metastatic lesions, N-cadherin and cadherin-11 are expressed homogeneously. These data raise the possibility that cadherin switching plays an important role in prostate cancer metastasis.