Adult Still's disease reflects a Th2 rather than a Th1 cytokine profile

Adult Still's disease (ASD) is a chronic multisystemic disease. Extraordinarily high serum levels of IL-18 in ASD patients have been described, whereas the mechanism remains to be clarified. This study aimed to evaluate proinflammatory cytokines and to consider their pathological roles. In patients with rheumatic diseases (n = 151), blood samples were taken at the active phase and the serum levels of IL-18 and other proinflammatory cytokines were measured by ELISA. The extra-high levels of IL-18 were confirmed selectively in ASD patients (n = 10). In the active phase of ASD patients, the levels of IL-6 were elevated accordingly, but IL-1beta and TNF-alpha were undetectable. As to Th1-Th2 cytokines, the levels of IL-4 and IL-13, but not INF-gamma, IL-12, or IL-2, were elevated in all ASD patients examined. Moreover, the serum levels of IL-18 showed a good correlation with those of IL-4, suggesting that ASD reflects a Th2 rather than a Th1 cytokine profile.     

Primary osteosarcoma of the uterine corpus: case report and review of the literature

A rare case of rapidly growing osteosarcoma that developed in the uterine corpus of a 62-year-old woman is presented. The tumor occupied almost the entire pelvic cavity and extended into the abdominal cavity, with marked involvement of the intestines. Histopathologically, the tumor was composed of an osteoblastic component, accompanied by conspicuous bone formation, and a fibroblastic component. The tumor cells were positive for vimentin and osteocalcin, as well as desmin, alpha-smooth muscle actin and muscle-specific actin, but negative for h-caldesmon. The results indicated myofibroblastic differentiation in a part of the tumor. A review of 14 reported cases and our case of uterine osteosarcoma revealed that this tumor has a biologically aggressive nature, although its histopathological and immunohistochemical features are similar to those of osteosarcomas in soft tissue and bone. As the prognosis of patients with this tumor is poor, it is of importance to differentiate this tumor from other types of tumors arising from the uterine corpus.     

Changes in hypothalamic temperature of rats after daily exposure to heat at a fixed time

Rats were subjected to an ambient temperature (T_a) of 33°C for ca. 5 h during the last half of the dark phase for 5, 14 or 28 consecutive days (heat-exposed rats, HE), while control rats were kept at a constant T_a of 24°C. After the heat exposure schedule, the levels of hypothalamic temperature (T_hy) as an index of body core temperature in the HE were significantly lower than those of the controls for 2–4 h in the last half of the dark phase. The low levels of T_hy persisted during the specific period for 1, 3 and 6 days after the end of the 5-, 14- and 28-day heat exposure schedules, respectively. These results confirm that, in rats subjected to daily heat exposure for ca. 5 h at a fixed time per day, their T_hy falls during the period when the rats were previously exposed to heat, and suggest that the duration of the specific T_hy change observed after completing the heat exposure schedule depends on the length of the heat exposure schedule.     

Scanning electron microscopic studies of reticular framework in the rat mesenteric lymph node

Background: The reticular framework in the lymph node has in the past been studied mainly by light microscopy of silver-impregnated specimens. The aim of the present study is to understand three-dimensionally the ultrastructure and organization of the reticular framework better than before. Methods: The mesenteric lymph nodes of the rat were prepared either an alkali-water maceration method or a conventional method and were observed in a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Results: The SEM study of alkali-water macerated tissues visualized directly the reticular fiber network in the lymph node. The reticular fibers consisted of thin bundles of collagem fibrils. They were continuous with the collagen fibriliar sheaths of blood vessels and lymphatic sinuses as well as with the fibrous capusule, thus acting as a skeleton of the lymph node. The arrangement of the reticulum was variable, depending on individual compartments. The SEM study of conventionally treated tissues, on the other hand, clarified the shape of reticular cells and their relationship with the reticular fibers. The sinus reticular cells connected with the sinus lining cells but separated from the parenchymal reticular cells, indicating that the former two originate from lymphatic endothelial cells. The parenchymal reticular cells varied in shape depending on their locations but essentially shared features with fibroblasts. Conclusions: The arrangements of the reticular fibers in the parenchyma were closely related to the associated reticular cells, showing the possibility that the reticular cells maintain the shape of the reticular framework suitable for each compartment of the lymph node. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Immunohistochemical,ultrastructural and biochemical studies of an amylase-producing breast carcinoma

Summary We describe a breast cancer with ectopic production of amylase, found in the patient's serum, urine and in the tumour. Clinically, serum amylase levels reflected both the progression of the disease and regression induced by various therapies. Using agarose gel electrophoresis and a wheat protein inhibitor assay, the predominant serum amylase appeared to be identical to pancreatic-type isoenzyme. However, the action mode analysis using a new fluorogenic substrate revealed that the serum contained non-salivary, non-pancreatic amylase. The tumour had microscopic features of invasive ductal carcinoma with some argyrophilic differentiation. The component cells stained positively for amylase, and ultrastructurally numerous secretory granules were seen.     

Somatic mosaicism of CAG repeat in dentatorubral-pallidoluysian atrophy (DRPLA)

An unstable expansion of CAG repeat in the coding region ofthe DRPLA gene on chromosome 12p is the mutation specific forhereditary dentatorubralpallidoluysian atrophy (DRPLA). We studiedthe CAG expansion in brain and other tissues from six unre latedDRPLA patients. The CAG repeat lengths showed distinct difterencesbetween tissues. The sizes of the CAG expansion in various regionsof the brain except the cerebellum were generally larger byseveral repeats than in other peripheral tissues. Brain samplesshowed greater variation of the expansion compared with othertissues, but neither the size of the CAG expansion nor the degreeof CAG repeat variation parallels the detailed findings of neuropathologicalinvolvement. We conclude that somatic instabilities of the CAGrepeat cause tissue variability of the CAG repeat size in DRPLAbut other region or cell type-specific factors would be involvedto explain the selectivity of cell damage in DRPLA.     

Effects of succinylated concanavalin A on infectivity and syncytial formation of human immunodeficiency virus

The effects of various lectins on the infectivity of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1 was investigated. Among the 25 lectins investigated, 2 types of concanavalin A (Con A) and 3 types of phytohemagglutinin were found to inhibit HIV infection. Succinylated Con A (S-Con A) efficiently blocked HIV-induced formation of syncytia in a coculture of MOLT-4 cells and blocked cell-free infection by HIV of MT-4 cells. The HIV-binding study revealed that S-Con A only partially inhibited viral binding to cells, although the control Leu-3a monoclonal antibody strongly inhibited it. When S-Con A was added to cultures after the initiation of viral adsorption, the number of HIV antigen-positive cells that developed depended on the time interval before addition of the compound. S-Con A inhibited HIV infection even after viral binding to cells at 0 °C and further incubation at 37 °C for 1 day. These data suggest that S-Con A inhibited mainly the fusion process rather than viral binding to cells in exerting its anti-HIV activity.