The insulin-like growth factor (IGF)s are believed to one of several growth factors that play an adjunctive role in ovarian follicular development. These factors circulate bound to a family of IGF-binding protein (IGFBP)s. It is known that circulating IGFBPs are involved in the transport of IGFs to tissues and modulate IGFs actions at local tissue. The purposes of this study were to evaluate changes in serum IGFBPs profiles during normal ovulatory menstrual cylce and to compare serum IGFBPs profiles in periovulatory phase of between normal ovulatory menstrual cylce and controlled hyperstimulated cycle. Fasting blood samples were obtained from 15 normal healthy women throughout normal ovulatory menstural cycle and on the day of aspiration of oocyte from 10 patients undergoing ovarian hyperstimuation for in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer. Serum IGFBP-1-IGFBP-4 were measured by western ligand blot and immunoprecipitation. Serum 17beta-estradiol was determined by radioimmunoassay. Type and molecular weight of serum IGFBP did not changed during normal ovulatory menstural cycle. No significant variation in the relative proportion and level of each IGFBP was found throughout normal ovulatory menstural cyle. Also, the relative proportion and level of each IGFBP did not correlated with serum 17beta-estradiol level. There was no significant difference in the relative proportion and level of each serum IGFBP between on the day of ovulation in normal ovulatory menstrual cylce and on the day of aspiration of oocyte in controlled hyperstimulated cycle. Our data indicate that IGFBPs have regulatory functions in ovary through an paracrine and autocrine rather than endocrine mechanism during normal ovulatory menstural cycle.
Fasting ; Female ; Humans ; Immunoprecipitation ; Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Proteins* ; Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins ; Menstrual Cycle* ; Molecular Weight ; Oocytes ; Ovary ; Ovulation ; Radioimmunoassay

No abstract available.
Needles* ; Prostatitis*

No abstract available.
Hysterectomy* ; Lymph Node Excision* ; Lymph Nodes*

No abstract available.
Hysterectomy* ; Lymph Node Excision* ; Lymph Nodes*

Paget's disease is classified, according to location, as mammary or extramammary disease. Extramammary Paget's disease especially in the vulva is extremely rare. Several hundred cases have been described worldwide. Patients with Paget's disease of the vulva are usually white and postmenopausal. The cause of which remains elusive. A case of vulva Paget's disease is presented with brief review of literature.
Humans ; Paget Disease, Extramammary ; Vulva

No abstract available.
Chondrocytes* ; Ear* ; Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins*

Tuberculosis is a common chronic infectious disease, although the spleen is an uncommon organ to harbor tubercle bacilli. Immunocompromised subjects are primarily prone to miliary tuberculosis and in them the spleen is invaded by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Spleen tuberculosis is manifested commonly as a miliary form. The basic pathology is granulomatous inflammation. The CT finding of splenic tuberculosis are multiple, well-defined, roung or ovoid, low-density masses. Lymphadenopathy in the abdomen and mediastinum and pleural effusion can be found. We report two cases with tuberculosis of the spleen proved by computed tomography and histologic identification. One paitient did not improve following antituberculous medication, so splenectomy was performed. The other patient has been treated with antituberculous medication.
Abdomen ; Communicable Diseases ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Lymphatic Diseases ; Mediastinum ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis ; Pathology ; Pleural Effusion ; Spleen* ; Splenectomy ; Tuberculosis* ; Tuberculosis, Miliary ; Tuberculosis, Splenic

CD44 is a hyaluronic acid receptor that exists as a standard 90-kd form (CD44H) as well as several CD44 variants isoforms are produced through alternative splicing. Alternatively spliced variants of the CD44 molecule have been found to be associated with invasive and metastatic potential of cancer cells and poor prognosis in several types of carcinoma. The purpose of the present study is to define the expression of CD44H and CD44v6 in ovarian tumors and to investigate whether the expression of these molecules is associated with adverse prognosis. We evaluated the expression of CD44 isoforms in 58 ovarian tumors by means of immunohistochemistry, and correlated between CD44 expression and the histologic types, tumor grade, peritoneal implants, pseudomyxoma peritonei and FIGO stage. While the CD44H was commonly expressed in ovarian tumors, the CD44v6 was expressed in a minor proportion of serous tumors in comparison with frequent expression of v6 isoform in mucinous tumors. The CD44H expression was significantly higher in stage I/II than in stage III. However, there was no correlation between the expression of CD44 and the presence of peritoneal implants or pseudomyxoma peritonei. These results suggest that CD44H could play an important role in the adhesive function in the lower stage of the ovarian tumor and reduced expression in the higher stage might be related to the metastasis and widespread invasion of ovarian carcinoma cells.
Adhesives ; Alternative Splicing ; Female ; Hyaluronic Acid ; Immunohistochemistry ; Mucins ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Ovary ; Prognosis ; Protein Isoforms ; Pseudomyxoma Peritonei

BACKGROUND: Angiogenesis is an essential component of tumor growth and metastasis, and the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is one of the most important angiogenic factors. Several solid tumors produce substantial amounts of VEGF, which stimulates proliferation and the migration of ednothelial cells, therby inducing neovasculization by a paracrine mechanism. To evaluate the prognostic roles of angiogenesis and VEGF expression in patients with non-small cell lung cancer, the relationship between VEGF expression in tumor tissues, the clinicopathologic features and the overall survival rate were analysed. METHODS: Sixty-nine resected primary non-small cell lung cancer specimens were evaluated. The pareffinembedded tumor tissues were stained by anti-VEGF polyclonal antibodies using an immunohistochemical method to assess VEGF expression. RESULTS: In Forty-one patients (59%), the VEGF antigen was expressed weakly in their tumor tissue, whereas in twenty-eight patients (41%) the VEGF antigen was expressed strongly. The median survival time of the weak VEGF expression group was 24 months, and that of the strong VEGF expression group was 19 months. The three year-survival rates were 35%, 33%, respectively. The survival difference between both groups was not statistically significnat. CONCLUSION: Although results were not statistically significant, the strong expression group tended to poorer prognosis than weak expression group.
Angiogenesis Inducing Agents ; Antibodies ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung* ; Humans ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Prognosis ; Survival Rate ; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A

BACKGROUND: Angiogenesis plays a critical role in human tumor growth and metastasis. Microvessel count, as a measure of tumor angiogenesis, has been significantly correlated with invasive and metastatic patterns in breast, prostate and cutaneous carcinomas. Materials and METHODS: Fifty patients with curatively resected non-small cell lung cancer were evaluated. Tumor tissues embedded in paraffin block were stained by anti CD 31 (PECAM, platelet endothelial cellular adhesion molecule) using immunohistochemical method to assess microvessel count. Microvessels were counted in the most active areas of neovascularization(microscopy, 200×). RESULTS: 1) Mean microvessel count was 47.1 ± 17.7(per 200×field) in total 50 cases. 2) Mean microvessel count of adenocarcinoma (54.4±19.9) was significantly higher than that of squamous cancer(43.9±16.2)(p<0.05), but there were no relationship between microvessel count and TNM stages. 3) Median survival time, 2-year and 5-year survival rates of the low microvascular group(microvessel count<45, 22cases) were 61 months, 80% and 40%, respectively, and those of the high microvascular group(microvessel count ≥ 45, 28 cases) were 46 months, 75% and 12%, respectively. As results, prognosis of low microvascular group is statistically significantly superior to that of the high microvascular group(p=0.0162, Kaplan-Meier, log-rank). CONCLUSION: Angiogenesis assessed by microvessel count can be used as one of the significant prognostic factors in non-small cell lung cancer.
Adenocarcinoma ; Blood Platelets ; Breast ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung* ; Humans ; Microvessels ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Paraffin ; Prognosis ; Prostate ; Survival Rate