We induced apoptosis in normal rats by intramuscular injection of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and immunohistochemically evaluated the thymus for the TdT-mediated dUTP biotin nick end labelling on the 1st, 3rd, 6th, 9th, 15th and 21st days following the bolus intramuscular injection. The injections of 5-FU induced a greater extent of apoptosis in the thymus. In the thymus, a mild increase in apoptosis was observed 24 hours after injection. The greatest number of apoptotic cells were seen at 72 hours. The size of the thymus decreased and the cortex thinned with hypocellularity. The injection of 5-FU caused massive cell loss in the thymus. Most apoptotic cells were scattered in the cortex and lower levels of apoptosis were also observed in the medulla. After 72 hours, the level of apoptosis returned to the control level. Considering the above results, we think that 5-FU induced toxicity may be related to 5-FU induced apoptosis in normal tissue, especially the thymus.
Animals ; Apoptosis* ; Biotin ; Fluorouracil* ; Injections, Intramuscular* ; Rats* ; Thymus Gland*

Mesothelioma originates in several sites including the pleura, peritoneum, pericardium, and tunica vaginalis. The pleura is the most common site of origin, but cases originating in the per- itoneum is relatively rare. Mesothelial lesions of the peritoneum may pose significant diagnostic problems. Yet, the accurate identification of this lesion is important because of its distinctive behavior and treatment modality. We herein report a case of malignant mesothelioma of the peritoneum arising in the capsule of the liver. The accuracy of our diagnosis has been confirmed by the immunohistochemical study and electron microscopic examination.
Diagnosis ; Liver* ; Mesothelioma* ; Pericardium ; Peritoneum* ; Pleura

Chronic hepatitis associated with the idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome has been very rarely reported worldwide. Recently, we experienced a case of chronic hepatitis with piecemeal necrosis as the clinical feature of the idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome. The patient was a 49-year-old woman who complained of a mild fever, nausea, vomiting, and pain in the right upper quadrant. The eosinophil count of peripheral blood increased up to 14,020/microliter (64% of WBC). Liver biopsy specimen showed severe porto-periportal inflammation with marked eosinophilic infiltration and ballooning degeneration of hepatocytes. Corticosteroid therapy significantly normalized the eosinophil count of peripheral blood.
Biopsy ; Eosinophils ; Female ; Fever ; Hepatitis, Chronic* ; Hepatocytes ; Humans ; Hypereosinophilic Syndrome* ; Inflammation ; Liver ; Middle Aged ; Nausea ; Necrosis ; Vomiting

Neuroblastomas are derived from the neural crest ectoderm, and are the most common solid abdominal masses of infancy. Congenital neuroblastoma, however, is rare. We report a rare case of congenital neuroblastoma with multiple metastases found at autopsy, performed at 2 days after birth. He was born by cesarian section and weighed 2,350 g. His respiration was weak and abdomen was distended. The patient died 2 days after birth. Postmortem examination revealed a relatively well demarcated ovoid mass, in the left adrenal, with necrosis and hemorrhage. Multiple small metastatic tumor nodules in the liver, lung, kidney, brain, rib, thyroid glands, and spleen, were noted. The histopathological pictures confirmed the diagnosis of neuroblastoma of the adrenal with multiple metastasis.
Adrenal Gland Neoplasms/congenital/*diagnosis/pathology ; Autopsy ; Chromogranins/biosynthesis ; Cytoplasm/metabolism ; Human ; Immunohistochemistry ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Necrosis ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Neuroblastoma/congenital/*diagnosis/pathology ; Phosphopyruvate Hydratase/biosynthesis

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to elucidate whether or not splenectomy alters the acute toxic effects on rat tissue induced by barium sulfate. METHODS: A total of 80 Sprague-Dawely male rats were divided into three groups; the control group and the barium sulfate treated groups with and without splenectomy. The pathologic changes in the solid organs were examined at the time after intraperitoneal treatment with barium sulfate. The changes of white blood cell count were also examined. RESULTS: The barium induced toxicity was most prominent in the spleen. The changes in the other organs were proportional to the experimental duration, and the changes in the barium only treatment group were more severe than the observed changes in the splenectomy and barium treated group. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that the degree of barium toxicity of barium only treated group was more severe than that of the splenectomy group.
Animals ; Barium Sulfate* ; Barium* ; Humans ; Leukocyte Count ; Male ; Rats* ; Spleen ; Splenectomy*

Here we report a case of Strongyloides stercoralis infection of the gastric and pancolonic mucosa in a 79-year-old female with a monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance. Endoscopic biopsies were performed in gastric antrum, cecum, distal ascending colon, and hepatic flexure of the colon. On microscopic examination, there were many adult worms, larvae and eggs in the gastric and colonic mucosa. Worms, larvae, and eggs were located in the crypts and within the lumen of the crypts. The body wall of the adult worm was composed of cuticle and a weak muscle layer. A routine stool examination failed to detect larvae or ova. Based on the histopathologic examination, these parasites were confirmed as S. stercoralis.
Adult ; Aged ; Biopsy ; Cecum ; Colon ; Colon, Ascending ; Eggs ; Female ; Humans ; Larva ; Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance ; Mucous Membrane ; Muscles ; Ovum ; Paraproteinemias ; Parasites ; Pyloric Antrum ; Stomach ; Strongyloides stercoralis ; Strongyloidiasis

Here we report a case of Strongyloides stercoralis infection of the gastric and pancolonic mucosa in a 79-year-old female with a monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance. Endoscopic biopsies were performed in gastric antrum, cecum, distal ascending colon, and hepatic flexure of the colon. On microscopic examination, there were many adult worms, larvae and eggs in the gastric and colonic mucosa. Worms, larvae, and eggs were located in the crypts and within the lumen of the crypts. The body wall of the adult worm was composed of cuticle and a weak muscle layer. A routine stool examination failed to detect larvae or ova. Based on the histopathologic examination, these parasites were confirmed as S. stercoralis.
Adult ; Aged ; Biopsy ; Cecum ; Colon ; Colon, Ascending ; Eggs ; Female ; Humans ; Larva ; Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance ; Mucous Membrane ; Muscles ; Ovum ; Paraproteinemias ; Parasites ; Pyloric Antrum ; Stomach ; Strongyloides stercoralis ; Strongyloidiasis

Schwannomas arise from the neural crest-derived Schwann cells. Their most common locations are the extremities, neck, mediastinum, retroperitoneum, and cerebellopontine angle. They have rarely been reported to occur in the breast. We herein report on a case of schwannoma of the breast in a 30-year-old woman. The ultrasonographic examination showed a well defined ovoid hypoechoic mass in the upper outer quadrant of her left breast. A presumptive diagnosis of fibroadenoma was made, and the mass was then removed. The histopathologic and immunohistochemical features confirmed the diagnosis of schwannoma of the breast.
Adult ; Breast* ; Cerebellopontine Angle ; Diagnosis ; Extremities ; Female ; Fibroadenoma ; Humans ; Mediastinum ; Neck ; Neurilemmoma* ; Schwann Cells

Sclerosing hemangioma (SH) of the lung is an uncommon type of tumor, which is composed of polygonal and cuboidal cells. This disease is generally regarded as benign but extremely rare cases with lymph node metastasis have been reported. We report a case of SH with a metastasis to the regional lymph nodes. A 19-year-old girl presented with a 2-year history of coughing. A chest X-ray and a CT scan indicated a large mass in the lower lobe. As a result, a left lower lobectomy with a dissection of the hilar and interlobar lymph nodes was performed. The tumor was a well-defined huge mass with partial adhesion to the mediastinal and parietal pleura. The dissected hilar, interlobar, and intrapulmonary lymph nodes demonstrated metastasis. Histologically, the primary and metastatic tumor consisted of polygonal and cuboidal cells. Both types of tumor cells were uniformly immunoreactive to the epithelial membrane antigen (EMA) and the thyroid transcription factor-1 (TTF-1). However, the cuboidal cells tested positive for pancytokeratin, whereas the polygonal cells tested consistently negative. Postoperatively, the patient received chemotherapy and no recurrence or metastasis 2 years after surgery was noted. Although a pulmonary SH is considered to be benign, this case highlights the need for the evaluation of lymph node metastasis.
Adult ; Female ; Hemangioma/*pathology ; Human ; Lung Neoplasms/*pathology ; *Lymphatic Metastasis ; Sclerosis

BACKGROUND: While qualitative analysis of methylation has been reviewed, the quantitative analysis of methylation has rarely been studied. We evaluated the methylation status of CDKN2A, RARbeta, and RASSF1A promoter regions in non-small cell lung carcinomas (NSCLCs) by using pyrosequencing. Then, we evaluated the association between methylation at the promoter regions of these tumor suppressor genes and the clinicopathological parameters of the NSCLCs. METHODS: We collected tumor tissues from a total of 53 patients with NSCLCs and analyzed the methylation level of the CDKN2A, RARbeta, and RASSF1A promoter regions by using pyrosequencing. In addition, we investigated the correlation between the hypermethylation of CDKN2A and the loss of p16INK4A immunoexpression. RESULTS: Hypermethylation of CDKN2A, RARbeta, and RASSF1A promoter regions were 16 (30.2%), 22 (41.5%), and 21 tumors (39.6%), respectively. The incidence of hypermethylation at the CDKN2A promoter in the tumors was higher in undifferentiated large cell carcinomas than in other subtypes (p=0.002). Hyperrmethylation of CDKN2A was significantly associated with p16INK4A immunoexpression loss (p=0.045). With regard to the clinicopathological characteristics of NSCLC, certain histopathological subtypes were found to be strongly associated with the loss of p16INK4A immunoexpression (p=0.016). Squamous cell carcinoma and undifferentiated large cell carcinoma showed p16INK4A immunoexpression loss more frequently. The Kaplan-Meier survival curves analysis showed that methylation level and patient survival were barely related to one another. CONCLUSION: We quantitatively analyzed the promoter methylation status by using pyrosequencing. We showed a significant correlation between CDKN2A hypermethylation and p16INK4A immunoexpression loss.
Carcinoma, Large Cell ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; DNA Methylation ; Evaluation Studies as Topic ; Genes, p16 ; Genes, Tumor Suppressor ; Humans ; Incidence ; Kaplan-Meier Estimate ; Lung ; Methylation ; Promoter Regions, Genetic ; Receptors, Retinoic Acid ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; Tumor Suppressor Proteins