Prostate leiomyosarcoma with perineal exophytic mass

Report on one case of prostate leiomyosarcoma, an infrequent and usually highly aggressive urologic neoplasia. Emphasis on the imaging and pathoanatomical diagnosis, highlighting the high value of the later as immunohistochemistry is usually essential to establish its nature. Choice treatment is oncologically radical surgery. Quite often this is impossible to carry out and so chemo- and radiotherapy schedules are commonly associated as neoadjuvant, adjuvant or palliative therapies. The reported case showed aggressive evolution unresponsive to management. Also, during the condition development a rare complication such as occurrence of an exophytic tumoral mass in the perineum appeared.     

Infravesical obstructive uropathy secondary to extreme vulval atrophy

Lower urinary tract obstruction in women is an uncommon condition resulting from multiple either organic or functional disorders. This paper contributes one case of obstructive uropathy secondary to presence of almost complete vulvar synechia due to extreme genital atrophy, a rare entity that may appear in postmenopausal women. Partial and incomplete vulvar fusion usually occurs in significant postmenopausal atrophies, sometimes associated to urethral meatus stricture; this, however, has no significant repercussion on urination dynamics. No other comparable case was found in the reviewed literature.     

Hemodynamic changes during laparoscopic surgery. Preliminary study

The haemodynamic changes produced by laparoscopic surgery in children have been evaluated. A transesophageal echocardiographic study on 13 patients (7 males and 6 females, 10.8 +/- 2.7 years old) has been performed before, during and after peritoneal CO2 gas insufflation. A change on the Doppler waves pattern of the infradiaphragmatic veins along with an increase in blood flow velocity were observed. Pulmonary veins suffered minimal changes showing an increase on either the systolic pressure and on atrial contraction. Diastolic retrograde flow in aorta reflected an increase in peripheral vascular resistance. Cardiac output increased minimally. All haemodynamic changes returned to basal after gas peritoneal desufflation. These data show that laparoscopic surgery could produce important cardiac derangements in children with ventricular dysfunction or in patients presenting left ventricular outlet obstruction. In these patients laparoscopic surgery might be precluded.     

Detection of lignin biopolymer- and vitamin E-stimulated reduction of DNA strand breaks in H2O2- and MNNG-treated mammalian cells by the comet assay

In this study the possible protective effects of water-soluble sulfur-free lignin biopolymer and vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) on DNA in human VH10 cells and hamster V79 cells exposed to H2O2 and N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) were investigated. The level of DNA damage (DNA strand breaks) was measured using single-cell gel electrophoresis, i.e., comet assay. Lignin biopolymer and vitamin E exhibited a protective effect against the overall DNA damage induced after H2O2 treatment. If H2O2-treated human cells were incubated for 90 minutes to ligate frank breaks of DNA, two lesion-specific enzymes, endonuclease III and formamidopyrimidine DNA glycosylase (FPG), significantly increased the level of DNA strand breaks originating from oxidized pyrimidines and purines. Preincubation of cells with lignin or vitamin E reduced mainly the level of oxidized pyrimidines. Reduction of oxidized purines was less evident. In addition, lignin biopolymer exhibited a protective effect against MNNG-induced DNA damage, whereas vitamin E exhibited a protective effect only against H2O2-induced DNA damage. These findings suggest that the antioxidant nature of lignin biopolymer enables a reduction of the level of frank breaks and of oxidized DNA bases in H2O2-treated cells, and its adsorptive capacity enables binding of nitroso compounds and reduction of alkylation in MNNG-treated cells.     

Modulation of acute and chronic inflammatory processes by cacospongionolide B, a novel inhibitor of human synovial phospholipase A2

1. Cacospongionolide B is a novel marine metabolite isolated from the sponge Fasciospongia cavernosa. In in vitro studies, this compound inhibited phospholipase A2 (PLA2), showing selectivity for secretory PLA2 (sPLA2) versus cytosolic PLA2 (cPLA2), and its potency on the human synovial enzyme (group II) was similar to that of manoalide. 2. This activity was confirmed in vivo in the 8 h zymosan-injected rat air pouch, on the secretory enzyme accumulating in the pouch exudate. Cacospongionolide B, that is bioavailable when is given orally, reduced the elevated levels of sPLA2 present in paw homogenates of rats with adjuvant arthritis. 3. This marine metabolite showed topical anti-inflammatory activity on the mouse ear oedema induced by 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol acetate (TPA) and decreased carrageenin paw oedema in mice after oral administration of 5, 10 or 20 mg kg(-1). 4. In the mouse air pouch injected with zymosan, cacospongionolide B administered into the pouch, induced a dose-dependent reduction in the levels of eicosanoids and tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) in the exudates 4 h after the stimulus. It also had a weak effect on cell migration. 5. The inflammatory response of adjuvant arthritis was reduced by cacospongionolide B, which did not significantly affect eicosanoid levels in serum, paw or stomach homogenates and did not induce toxic effects. 6 Cacospongionolide B is a new inhibitor of sPLA2 in vitro and in vivo, with anti-inflammatory properties in acute and chronic inflammation. This marine metabolite was active after oral administration and able to modify TNFalpha levels, and may offer an interesting approach in the search for new anti-inflammatory agents.     

Comparison of the effects of aging in vivo and of oxygen free radicals in vitro on high-affinity choline uptake and hemicholinium-3 binding in the rat brain

The effects of aging in vivo (Wistar rats aged 3-26 months) and of an oxygen free-radical generating system in vitro (Fe(2+)/ascorbic acid) on high-affinity choline uptake in the hippocampus and on (3H)hemicholinium-3 binding sites in the cortex and hippocampus are compared. The high-affinity choline transport system was found to be more damaged than the low-affinity system during aging (Na(+)-dependent part of the uptake drops to 76%: Na(+)-independent part increases to 120%). The decrease in high-affinity choline uptake values is probably more influenced by the impairment of correct function of carriers (the fall in the turnover rate of each carrier) than by a decrease in the number of transport sites (no change of the density of the carriers in the hippocampus and cortex). The causes of the defect in high-affinity choline transport during aging are discussed.     

Inhibition of butyrylcholinesterase activity by some isoquinoline alkaloids

The inhibition of butyrylcholinesterase activity in human serum by protoberberine, benzophenanthridine and aporphine alkaloids as well as four model compounds has been studied. The mechanism of the inhibition is discussed on the basis of the different types of interaction of these compounds with butyrylcholinesterase and acetylcholinesterase.