Ectomesenchymal chondromyxoid tumor (ECMT) is a rare tumor, exclusively arising in the anterior tongue. Thirty-eight cases have been reported in the English literature. It usually presents as a sessile protrusion and shows round to spindle cells embedded in myxoid to chondroid stroma. Tumor cells are almost always positive for polyclonal glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP). We report our experience in the recent treatment of a case of ECMT, the third case in 3 years. The mass in the anterior tongue revealed characteristic morphologic features of ECMT and the expression of polyclonal GFAP. Although ECMT should be differentiated from other mesenchymal tumors including myoepithelioma, its clinical, morphological, and immunohistochemical features enable its diagnosis, especially when pathologists are aware of it.
Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein ; Myoepithelioma ; Tongue

The pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma is considered as a special subgroup of gliomas because of its distinctive characteristics regarding age, gross and microscopic features, and perhaps, most importantly, the relatively favorable prognosis despite of pleomorphism and bizarre giant cells in the microscopic picture. Because of rarity of this disease entity, we report a case of pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma with a review of literature.
Giant Cells ; Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein ; Glioma ; Prognosis

Chordoid glioma is an uncommon low-grade tumor of the third ventricle with histologic features of a chordoma and immunolabeling for glial fibrillary acid protein. We present a rare case of a patient with a chordoid glioma of the third ventricle and review the literature regarding this tumor's clinical, radiological and pathologic aspects.
Chordoma ; Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein ; Glioma* ; Humans ; Third Ventricle*

Neurothekeoma is a benign dermal soft tissue tumor that is probably of nerve sheath origin. It usually presents as a slow-growing, solitary papule or nodule that is mainly located on the head and neck or upper extremities except for the hand. There are three histologic subtypes - myxoid, mixed and cellular type - depending on the amount of myxoid stroma. Immunohistochemical markers such as S-100, glial fibrillary acidic protein, nerve growth factor receptor, NK1C3 (CD57) and Ki-M1p can be applied to the tumor cells to distinguish among thesethree subtypes of neurothekeoma. Only one case has been previously reported on the hand in Korea. Herein, we report a rare case of myxoid neurothekeoma on the hand with a review of the related literature.
Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein ; Hand ; Head ; Korea ; Neck ; Nerve Growth Factor ; Neurothekeoma ; Upper Extremity

PURPOSE: Tissue adhesion rate between the amniotic membrane and the retinal tissue and histological change of the retinal tissue was studied. And the inhibition effect of amniotic membrane on the retinal pigment epithelial cell transformation was evaluated. METHODS: The human amniotic membrane and the porcine retinal tissue flap were used. The sensory retinal flap and the retinal pigment epithelial flap were placed on the amniotic membrane in culture disk. Tissue adhesion was evaluated and graded at 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 weeks. Glial fibrillary acidic protein immunohistochemical staining and Masson's trichrome staining were performed for histologic study. Transmitted electron microscope examination was performed to study the stabilization effects of amniotic membrane. RESULTS: Tissue adhesion rates showed no significant change until the 4th week, but tend to decrease in the 5th week of organotissue culture. Tissue adhesion rate was higher in the chorion-side than in the amnion-side culture (p=0.000) and was higher in the retinal pigment epithelial than in the retinal flap (p=0.000). The inhibition of cell transformation was higher in the chorion-side culture than in the amnion-side culture. CONCLUSIONS: Amniotic membrane can be used for prevention of proliferative vitreoretinopathy by its mechanical barrier effect and cell stability effect.
Amnion* ; Epithelial Cells ; Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein ; Humans ; Retinal Pigment Epithelium ; Retinaldehyde* ; Tissue Adhesions ; Vitreoretinopathy, Proliferative

Pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma is known as a rare specialized type of cerebral astrocytoma, which occurs mainly in the temporal loe of the brain in young ages in spite of marked pleomorphism with multinucleated giant cells, lipid-laden xantomatous cells, rich reticulin net-works, and the demonstration of glial fibrillary acidic protein, the prognosis is usually favorable. The authors report three cases of pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma which were presented with headache and review the past literature.
Astrocytoma ; Brain ; Giant Cells ; Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein ; Headache ; Prognosis ; Reticulin

Completely neurotized melanocytic nevi are often clinically and histologically indistinguishable from neurofibromas. We report a 23-year-old female who presented with a dark brown plaque with an underlying soft blue subcutaneous nodule in the left infra-axillary area. The skin biopsy revealed markedly increased melanocytic proliferation and nests of nevus cells within dermo-epidermal junction and upper dermis. Circumscribed, non-encapsulated tumor of the dermis was composed of loosely-spaced spindle cells and wavy stroma. Spindle cells in the lower dermis showed staining for S-100, but failed to express glial fibrillary acidic protein and Leu-7. We present an interesting case because the lesion presented as a soft blue subcutaneous nodule suggested an underlying hemangioma or neurofibroma initially, but was shown to be a neurotized melanocytic nevus based on immunohistochemical examination.
Biopsy ; Dermis ; Female ; Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein ; Hemangioma ; Humans ; Neurofibroma ; Nevus ; Nevus, Pigmented ; Skin ; Young Adult

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Salivary gland tumors are characterized by extreme histological diversity. Even within a single tumor, various histological patterns are observed. The same histological patterns are shared among various tumor types, regardless of the biological behavior, making diagnosis difficult. Although a great number of immunohistochemical studies of major salivary gland tumors have been published, their clinical and diagnostic implications are not fully apparent. We have performed basic immunohistochemical stains of pleomorphic adenoma (PA) and adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) to determine the diagnostic value of c-kit, Ki-67, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and p53. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Paraffin-embedded tissue specimens from 48 cases, who were diagnosed as PA (n=31) and ACC (n=17) from 1993 to 2002, were immunohistochemically stained for c-kit, Ki-67, GFAP and p53. RESULTS: In the immunohistochemical stains of c-kit, Ki-67 and p53, there were no difference between PA and ACC. However, in the immunohistochemical stain of GFAP, there were difference in PA and ACC. GFAP was expressed in 74% of the PA and was not expressed in all cases of ACC. CONCLUSION: These data suggest that GFAP immunoreactivity could be helped in the occasional differential diagnostic dilemma of pleomorphic adenoma versus adenoid cystic carcinoma in salivary gland.
Adenoids ; Adenoma, Pleomorphic ; Carcinoma, Adenoid Cystic ; Coloring Agents ; Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein ; Salivary Glands ; Biomarkers, Tumor

The distinguishing morphological features of the ependyma lining ventriculus terminalis in human fetus have suggested that its differentiation would be somewhat delayed or arrested as compared with the ependyma lining central canal. To demonstrate this hypothesis, GFAP was used as a marker to compare the developmental state of the ependyma lining ventriculus terminalis and central canal along fetal age (18 -to 24 -week -old fetuses were investigat-ed). PCNA was also used as a marker to identify whether proliferation potentiality of the ependyma lining ventriculus terminalis lasted longer than that of the ependyma lining central canal as a result of differentiation delay. GFAP -positive ependymal cells were restricted to dorsal plate at central canal but at ventriculus terminalis, many positive cells were identified in all regions compared with the ependyma lining central canal. The number of PCNA -positive ependymal cells lining central canal decreased sharply about the time of 20th week, but at ventriculus terminalis, many ependymal cells continued to express PCNA after 20th week. As a result, we could conclude that differentiation of the ependyma lining ventriculus terminalis is delayed as compared with the ependyma lining central canal. In accordance with its developmental delay, it lasts longer proliferation potentiality than the ependyma lining central canal.
Ependyma* ; Fetus* ; Gestational Age ; Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein* ; Humans* ; Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen*

Recently, there has been considerable attention focused on the multipotent progenitor cells existing in ependymal and subependymal layer. However, almost all results have been derived from brain or injured CNS researches. So, the studies on the developmental characteristics of intact spinal ependymal layer have been relatively ignored. In the present study, we labeled rat spinal cord with nestin, bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU), and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) antibodies in order to track the differentiation and proliferative capacity of rat ependymal layer cells according to their developmental stages. At embryonic day 14 (E14), a number of cells in the spinal ependymal layer, especially constituting the alar and basal plates, showed extensive nestin immunoreactivities (ir). They also showed active proliferative capacities, because many nuclei of nestin-ir cells were also BrdU-ir. From postnatal day 0 (P0), nestin-ir cells were almost completely disappeared, and from P7, no nestin-ir cells could be detected. However, BrdU-ir nuclei continued to be identified until P14. These results suggested that the cells in the spinal ependymal layer retain their proliferative capacity until later stage of development. On the other hand, no GFAP-ir cells could be identified in the ependymal layer in our experimental period.
Animals ; Antibodies ; Brain ; Bromodeoxyuridine* ; Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein ; Hand ; Nestin* ; Rats* ; Spinal Cord ; Stem Cells