Bilateral diffuse nephroblastomatosis, pancortical type. A case report with immunohistochemical investigations

A variation of Perlman's syndrome of the pancortical type is reported in a male neonate whose parents were cousins. The patient was the product of a 35-week pregnancy, the Apgar score was 3, and the patient died of respiratory failure one hour and 12 minutes after delivery. Autopsy revealed bilateral diffuse nephroblastomatosis, pancortical type, associated with malformations (usually facial), congenital anomalies of the heart, hepatosplenomegaly, pancreatic islet cell hyperplasia, bilateral cryptorchidism, and hyperflexibility of the left knee joint. Renal immunohistochemical investigations revealed positive bindings with peanut and soybean agglutinins and epithelial membrane antigen along the luminal surface of the epithelium in the moderately differentiated tubules, but not in blastoma or primitive epithelium.     

Arpp,a new homolog of carp,is preferentially expressed in type 1 skeletal muscle fibers and is markedly induced by denervation

In this study, we isolated and characterized a murine counterpart of the human Arpp (hArpp) gene. Sequence analysis revealed that the murine Arpp (mArpp) gene is almost identical to the Ankrd2 gene, which has recently been isolated as a mouse gene induced in stretched skeletal muscle. The mArpp gene encodes a protein of 332 amino acids that contains four well-conserved ankyrin-repeat domains in the central portion of the protein. The amino acid sequence of mArpp protein (mArpp) is highly homologous to that of mouse cardiac-restricted ankyrin-repeat protein (Carp), which is proposed to be a putative genetic marker for cardiac hypertrophy. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that mArpp is preferentially expressed in type 1 skeletal muscle fibers, and that mArpp is localized in both the nucleus and the sarcomeric I-band of muscle fibers, suggesting that Arpp may function as a nuclear and sarcomeric protein. Furthermore, mArpp was also expressed in neurons of the cerebellum and cerebrum, the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas, and the esophageal epithelium, suggesting that mArpp may play a functional physiologic role in brain, pancreas, and esophagus as well as in type 1 muscle fibers. Interestingly, although mArpp was localized in both nucleus and cytoplasm in neurons, its localization was restricted to nucleus in pancreas and esophagus, suggesting that intracellular localization of mArpp is regulated in a tissue-specific manner. Furthermore, we found that mArpp- and Carp-expression in skeletal muscle were markedly up-regulated after denervation. Although the elevated expression level of Carp was kept only for two weeks after denervation, that of Arpp was kept at least for 4 weeks, suggesting that mArpp and Carp may play distinct functional roles in denervated skeletal muscle.     

Amplification of the c-erbB-2 gene detected by FISH in gastric cancers

The amplification and overexpression of the c- erbB -2 gene are considered to be Implicated In the process of carcincogenesis of a variety of human tumors. The amplification and overexpression of c- erbB -2 were investigated in 48 surgically resected human gastric cancers by means of fluorescence In situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry. DNA ploidy was determined by flow cytometry. The c- erbB -2 amplification was demonstrated as a cluster of signals, suggesting homogeneously staining region (HSR), in three tumors (6.3%) accompanied by the overexpression of its protein. Such overexpression was detected In another tumor without amplification of the c- erbB -2 gene. All tumors with amplification and overexpression of c- erbB -2 were differentiated adenocarcinoma histologically, but only 10.3 and 13.8% of differentiated carcinomas showed amplification and over-expression of the c- erbB -2 gene, respectively. There was no relationship between the amplification and overexpression of c- erbB -2 and the depth of tumor invaslon and lymph node Involvement. Three of four cases with overexpression of c- erbB -2 were classified Into DNA aneupldd tumor.     

Newcastle disease virus evolution. I. Multiple lineages defined by sequence variability of the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase gene

We compared the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase gene sequence among 13 strains of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) isolated over the last 50 years. Although overall homology was remarkably high, the sequence variability demonstrated the existence of at least three distinct lineages, which must have co-circulated for considerable periods. The sequence variability also appears to reflect some accumulation of mutations over time. Strictly correlating with the lineages, the translation products could be classified into three size classes. One class lacked the interchain disulfide bond, and another represented unusual precursor protein of biologically inactive form. The lineages correlated to some extent with virulence and place of isolation of the strains. However, antigenic variations, which were neither cumulative nor progressive, did not correlate with the lineages. These analyses showing multiple lineages were greatly facilitated by a precise calculation of synonymous substitutions, which had been largely free from selective pressures and had occurred frequently and evenly throughout the coding region.     

AN ELECTRON MICROSCOPIC STUDY ON THE RETICULOENDOTHELIAL CELLS IN THE LYMPH NODES

In an attempt to clarify the cytological characteristics of the RES cells in the lymph nodes and their embryological correlations, lymph nodes and lymph node anlages of germ-free rats, nude mice, and human fetuses were light and electron microscopically examined. On the basis of differences of intracellular organelles, their behaviors for reticulum fibers and of endogenous peroxidatic activity, histiocytes should be reasonably distinguished from the cells conventionally called reticulum cells. Reticulum cells and histiocytes respectively are destined to differentiate in different directions from the early stage of development of the lymph node anlage. Sinus endothelial cells are ontogenetically originated and differentiated from the endothelial lining cells of lymphatic vessels. Primitive reticular cells are differentiated into mature reticulum cells in the lymph nodes, they transform into the lympho-reticular cells, further into lymphoblasts, and finally develop into medium-sized lymphocytes.     

Identification of cryptochrome DASH from vertebrates

A new type of cryptochrome, CRY-DASH, has been recently identified. The CRY-DASH proteins constitute the fifth subfamily of the photolyase/cryptochrome family. CRY-DASHs have been identified from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, Vibrio cholerae, and Arabidopsis thaliana. The Synechocystis CRY-DASH was the first cryptochrome identified from bacteria, and its biochemical features and tertiary structure have been extensively investigated. To determine how broadly the subfamily is distributed within living organisms, we searched for new CRY-DASH candidates within several databases. We found five sequences as new CRY-DASH candidates, which are derived from four marine bacteria and Neurospora crassa. We also found many CRY-DASH candidates from the EST databases, which included sequences from fish and amphibians. We cloned and sequenced the cDNAs of the zebrafish and Xenopus laevis candidates, based on the EST sequences. The proteins encoded by the two genes were purified and characterized. Both proteins contained folate and flavin cofactors, and have a weak DNA photolyase activity. A phylogenetic analysis revealed that the seven candidates actually belong to the new type of cryptochrome subfamily. This is the first report of the CRY-DASH members from vertebrates and fungi.     

Role of ventricular assist devices in the German heart allocation system

The Eurotransplant (ET) allocation algorithm, newly implemented in 2000, gives priority for heart transplantation (HTx) to patients with high urgency (HU) status, but now this status is rescinded upon ventricular assist device (VAD) implantation and only regained if severe complications occur during mechanical circulatory support (MCS). We studied the effects of this change on the patients in our institute who were waiting for HTx with MCS. The median duration of MCS until HTx in adult patients gradually increased from 3.1 months in 1994, reaching a peak of 16.7 months in 2000, and then gradually decreased to 6.0 months in 2003. Among the patients with VAD implantation as a bridge to HTx, two patients were on MCS for more than 1 year (the longest duration of MCS being 1.6 years) at the end of 1999, and this figure increased to nine patients and a maximum MCS duration of 3.7 years at the end of 2003. These data imply that the patients in whom a complication occurred in the early phase of MCS and who had overcome this complication underwent HTx early with HU status, and those who were stable during MCS waited a long time for HTx. Furthermore, the number of patients in the latter group is increasing. The new allocation algorithm imposes on patients with MCS waiting for HTx who are relatively young and free from complications and serious coexisting disease, very long-term MCS without an end to VAD bridging, which is almost equivalent to destination therapy. Part of this paper was presented at the 42nd JSAO Conference (Tokyo, October 5–7, 2004)