A mediastinal mass was aspirated by fluoroscope-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy in a 47 years old female patient. The first aspiration smears were not diagnostic, because of hemorrhagic background and cell paucity. On the second aspiration, the smears were composed of some clusters of benign epithelial cells in hemorrhagic background. Cells were arranged in mostly solid sheets and tended to form glandular lumina in part. Their nuclei were round and vesicular. Nucleoli were not prominent. These findings were suggestive of benign glandular tissue, which was finally confirmed as mediastinal thyroid gland by open thoracotomy specimen.
Biopsy ; Biopsy, Fine-Needle ; Epithelial Cells ; Female ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Necrosis* ; Nephritis* ; Risk Factors* ; Thoracotomy ; Thyroid Gland

No abstract available.
Tretinoin*

PURPOSE:This study was designed to clarify the mechanism of proteinuria in nephrotic syndrome patients by using puromycin aminonucleoside (PAN) nephrosis model. METHODS:Following administration of various concentrations of PAN and antioxidants we observed the changes of podocyte cytoskeletons in cultured rat glomerular epithelial cells (GEpC) by method of scanning electron microscope, reactive oxyten species (ROS) analysis, permeability assay, confocal microscope, and Western blot assay. RESULTS:PAN not only induced the ultrastructural changes of GEpC, such as shortening and fusion of microvilli, but also separated the intercellular gaps and linear ZO-1. PAN induced oxidative stresses in time and dose dependent manners and increases of intercellular permeability in anti-oxidants inhibitable manners. High concentration of PAN induced not only actin polymerization and disorganization, but also the conglomerulation and internal dislocation of alpha-actinin protein. The intensities of fluorescences of ZO-1 protein were diminished and internalized by PAN in a dose-dependent manner, which were inhibited by anti anti-oxidants. CONCLUSION:PAN induced the changes of podocytes cytoskeleton and junctional barriers by way of increasing ROS in GEpC that resulted in increasing their permeability in a antioxidatn-inhibitable manner. Glomerular hyperpermeability induced by PAN mediateing through oxidative stresses is thought to take part in the mechanism of proteinuria in nephrotic syndrome. (Korean J Pediatr 2008;51:54-61)
Actinin ; Actins ; Animals ; Antioxidants ; Ascorbic Acid ; Blotting, Western ; Cytoskeleton ; Dislocations ; Electrons ; Epithelial Cells ; Glycyrrhetinic Acid ; Humans ; Microvilli ; Nephrosis ; Nephrotic Syndrome ; Oxidative Stress ; Permeability ; Podocytes ; Polymerization ; Polymers ; Proteinuria ; Puromycin ; Puromycin Aminonucleoside ; Rats

No abstract available.
Asphyxia* ; Evoked Potentials, Auditory* ; Humans ; Infant* ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature* ; Parturition*

No abstract available.
Gaucher Disease* ; Humans ; Siblings*

PURPOSE: We describe the changes of rat glomerular epithelial cells when exposed to high levels of glucose and advanced glycosylation endproducts(AGE) in the in vitro diabetic condition. We expect morphological alteration of glomerular epithelial cells and permeability changes experimentally and we may correlate the results with a mechanism of proteinuria in DM. METHODS: We made 0.2 M glucose-6-phsphate solution mixed with PBS(pH 7.4) containing 50 mg/mL BSA and protease inhibitor for preparation of AGE. As control, we used BSA. We manufactured and symbolized five culture dishes as follows; B5 - normal glucose(5 mM) + BSA, B30 - high glucose(30 mM) + BSA, A5 - normal glucose(5 mM) + AGE, A30 - high glucose(30 mM) + AGE, A/B 25 - normal glucose(5 mM) + 25 mM of mannitol(osmotic control). After the incubation period of both two days and seven days, we measured the amount of heparan sulfate proteoglycan(HSPG) in each dish by ELISA and compared them with the B5 dish at 2nd and 7th incubation days. We observed the morphological changes of epithelial cells in each culture dish using scanning electron microscopy(SEM). We tried the permeability assay of glomerular epithelial cells using cellulose semi-permeable membrane measuring the amount of filtered BSA through the apical chamber for 2 hours by sandwich ELISA. RESULTS: On the 2nd incubation day, there was no significant difference in the amount of HSPG between the 5 culture dishes. But on the 7th incubation day, the amount of HSPG increased by 10% compared with the B5 dish on the 2nd day except the A30 dish(P<0.05). Compared with the B5 dish on the 7th day the amount of HSPG in A30 and B30 dish decreased to 77.8% and 95.3% of baseline, respectively(P>0.05). In the osmotic control group (A/B 25) no significant correlation was observed. On the SEM, we could see the separated intercellular junction and fused microvilli of glomerular epithelial cells in the culture dishes where AGE was added. The permeability of BSA increased by 19% only in the A30 dish on the 7th day compared with B5 dish on the 7th day in the permeability assay(P<0.05). CONCLUSION: We observed not only the role of a high level of glucose and AGE in decreasing the production of HSPG of glomerular epithelial cells in vitro, but also their additive effect. However, the role of AGE is greater than that of glucose. These results seems to correlate with the defects in charge selective barrier. Morphological changes of the disruption of intercellular junction and fused microvilli of glomerular epithelial cells seem to correlate with the defects in size-selective barrier. Therefore, we can explain the increased permeability of glomerular epithelial units in the in vitro diabetic condition.
Animals ; Cellulose ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Epithelial Cells ; Glucose* ; Glycosylation* ; Heparan Sulfate Proteoglycans ; Heparitin Sulfate ; Intercellular Junctions ; Membranes ; Microvilli ; Permeability* ; Protease Inhibitors ; Proteinuria ; Rats

No abstract available.
Diagnosis* ; Female ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy, Ectopic* ; Ultrasonography*

The term 'rhombencephalitis' refers to inflammatory diseases affecting the hindbrain. We experienced a case of rhombencephalitis in a 14 years old girl, who presented with fever, headache, and intractable hiccup for one week prior to admission. Brain MRI on admission showed bilateral high signal intensities in the dorsal portion of the medulla oblongata on T2WI and FLAIR. Examination of cerebrospinal fluid showed increased WBC count (33/mm3, Lymphocyte 81%), normal protein and glucose level. Immunoserologic study showed decreased C3, C4 level and increased Anti-ds DNA level. However, FANA was negative. The hiccup was controlled by administration of IVIG (1 g/kg/day for 2 days) and steroid (30 mg/kg/day for 3days) without any neurologic symptoms. We report a case with the brief review of related literatures.
Brain ; DNA ; Encephalitis ; Fever ; Glucose ; Headache ; Hiccup ; Immunoglobulins, Intravenous ; Lymphocytes ; Medulla Oblongata ; Neurologic Manifestations ; Rhombencephalon

PURPOSE: It is not clear that the development of glomerular injury and aggravation by tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) is related to intrarenal or serum concentration of TNF-alpha. So, we studied the relationship between the concentration of TNF-alpha and aggravation of glomerular damage in the Henoch-Schonlein nephritis(HSN) and idiopathic nephrotic syndrome(INS). METHODS: We collected the sera and urines of 21 patients with Henoch-Schonlein purpura(HSP) and 22 patients with INS visited Chungbuk National University hospital from March 1998 to March 2001. The concentration of TNF-alpha in the sera and urines were measured by sandwich ELISA. RESULTS: Serum TNF-alpha levels in the HSP patients with renal involvement were significantly higher than those without renal involvement(P=0.009). But urine TNF-alpha levels have no correlation with renal involvement(P=0.088). In the HSN patients, proteinuria have a significant correlation with serum TNF-alpha levels(P=0.004) but less correlation with urine TNF-alpha levels(P=0.053). Otherwise, proteinuria have no correlation with serum TNF-alpha levels(P=0.763) but have a significant correlation with urine TNF-alpha levels(P=0.007) in INS. CONCLUSION: These result suggest that the serum concentration of TNF-alpha would be important to glomerular involvement in HSP. And, it is interesting that proteinuria shows a significant relation with serum TNF-alpha levels in the HSN, but with urine TNF-alpha levels in the INS. This means the major production of TNF-alpha may be originated by extrarenal inflammation in the HSN and by intrarenal tubulo-interstitial damage due to proteinuria in the INS.
Chungcheongbuk-do ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Nephritis* ; Nephrotic Syndrome* ; Proteinuria* ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha*

This study compared the effect of preservative-containing (PC) and preservative-free (PF) prostaglandin analogue (PGA) formulations on the ocular surface, especially on the meibomian gland (MG) in patients with open-angle glaucoma (OAG). This is a retrospective study of treatment-naïve patients with OAG (n=80) and healthy controls (n=40). OAG patients were randomized into groups using either PC-PGA or PF-PGA for 12 months. All participants underwent ocular surface and MG examinations including their meibum score, meiboscore, and lid margin abnormality score (LAS). Eighty OAG patients were randomized into two groups (n=42 in PC, n=38 in PF). All PGA and control groups showed similar ocular surface and MG parameters at the baseline. Both PC- and PF-PGA groups showed increased meibum scores, meiboscores, and LASs at 12 months compared to the baseline (all p<0.05). At the 12-months visit, PC-PGA group showed severe OSDI, shorter TBUT, greater OSS, and worse MG parameters than those of the other two groups (all p<0.05). In addition, PF-PGA group showed worse meiboscores, meibum scores, and severe OSS scores than those of the control group (all p<0.05). Both PC and PF formulations can cause damage to the MG in patients using PGA. However, PC formulations induced more ocular discomfort, poorer ocular surface, and more severe MG loss compared to PF formulations. Therefore, it would be advisable to use PF formulations in patients with a preexisting or concomitant ocular surface disease or MGD.
Benzalkonium Compounds ; Glaucoma ; Glaucoma, Open-Angle ; Humans ; Meibomian Glands ; Preservatives, Pharmaceutical ; Prostaglandins, Synthetic ; Retrospective Studies