TGF-beta1 expression was studied in 25 patients with tuberculosis (lung, 9 cases and lymph node, 16 cases) using a polyclonal antibody in formalin-fixed paraffin embedded tissue. Nineteen cases (76.0%) out of 25 cases showed TGF-beta1 expression. TGF-beta1 was present in cytoplasm of epithelioid cells and Langhans' giant cells. Pulmonary tuberculosis and tuberculous lymphadenitis showed different patterns of staining. Five of 9 cases of pulmonary tuberculosis were positive for TGF-beta1: four of acid-fast bacilli positive cases (4/5, 80.0%) and one of acid-fast bacilli negative cases (1/4, 25.0%). However, high expression of TGF-beta1 was detected in tuberculous lymphadenitis of both acid-fast bacilli positive group (3/4, 75.0%) and acid-fast bacilli negative group (11/12, 91.7%). TGF-beta1 was also expressed in all of 6 cases of BCG-induced tuberculous lymphadenitis: 2 acid-fast bacilli positive and 4 acid-fast bacilli negative cases. TGF-beta1 expression was shown in 19 cases (86.4%) of 22 in active tuberculosis, while no TGF-beta1 expression was detected in any cases of inactive, healed tuberculosis (p<0.008). This study supports that the TGF-beta1 expression of epithelioid cells may alter their function resulting in the impaired antimycobacterial activity. Thus the increased production of TGF-beta1 may be one of the important mechanisms by which Mycobacterium tuberculosis avoids destruction by host macrophages.
Cytoplasm ; Epithelioid Cells ; Giant Cells ; Granuloma* ; Humans ; Lymph Nodes ; Macrophages* ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis ; Paraffin ; Transforming Growth Factor beta1* ; Tuberculosis ; Tuberculosis, Lymph Node ; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary

Oncocytic type intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm is a newly defined subgroup of intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms. A 35-year-old woman presented complaining of epigastric pain for one month. Enhanced computed tomography revealed a multilocular cystic mass in the distal body and tail of the pancreas. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography showed no communication between the mass and the main pancreatic duct. The patient underwent a distal pancreatectomy and splenectomy. Microscopical examination showed a fibrous cyst wall; polypoid tumors exhibiting thin stalks, with extensive arborizing papillary growths from these stalks; and a focally cribriform pattern, lined by plump cells with abundant eosinophilic and granular cytoplasm. Red granules were detected in the cytoplasm of tumor cells on modified Gomori trichrome stain. Ultrastructurally, the tumor cells contained abundant cytoplasm packed with numerous mitochondria and intracellular and intercellular lumina. We describe an oncocytic type intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm having the clinical characteristics of a mucinous cystic neoplasm.
Female ; Humans ; Cysts

Mn (manganese) is known to induce Parkinsonian neurological disorder. Several lines of evidence suggest that apoptosis is involved not only in physiological cell death during normal development but also in neurodegenerative disease. The mechanism of Mn induced cell death remains poorly understood. In the present study, we evaluated the morphologic changes and apoptotic profile in basal ganglia using rat model of Mn toxicity. The rats were divided into three groups: the first group was a control; the second group was subdivided by administration dosage of Mn into group A (5, 10 mg MnC12/ kg) and group B (20, 40 mg MnC12/kg). The rats of each subgroup received a injection of Mn via tail vein every week for 4 weeks. The second group received 4 repeated injection of 10 mg MnC12/kg in the same manner and the rats were sacrificed at day 1, 3 & 7 in group I and at day 10, 21, 42, and 90 in group II after the last injection. A significant loss of neuron and gliosis were observed in the basal ganglia in the experimental groups (p<0.05), which were more pronounced in group II than in the control or group I. No significant difference in number of nerve cells or degree of gliosis was identified in the substantia nigra. Apoptotic cells were also increased in basal ganglia of experimental groups and appeared among neurons (10%), glial cells (10%), and endothelial cells (60%). Apoptotic figures were consistently noted through the entire experimental period after Mn injection in basal ganglia. In conclusion, these results demonstrate that Mn-induced cytopathic insult affects various cell types in basal ganglia and shows variable sensitivity in the different regions of brain, especially in the apoptotic cell death of the neuron. The overaccumulation of Mn in the brain might be attributed from the breakdown of blood-brain barrier due to the injury through the apoptosis.
Animals ; Apoptosis ; Basal Ganglia* ; Blood-Brain Barrier ; Brain ; Cell Death ; Endothelial Cells ; Gliosis ; Manganese* ; Models, Animal ; Nervous System Diseases ; Neurodegenerative Diseases ; Neuroglia ; Neurons ; Rats* ; Substantia Nigra ; Veins

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to examine the expression of CD10 and CD15 in tumor cells, stromal cells and infiltrating inflammatory cells during colorectal carcinoma (CRC) development and to investigate their expression levels between the tumor center and invasive front and compare them to clinicopathological parameters in invasive CRC. METHODS: We performed immunohistochemical staining for CD10, CD15, and E-cadherin in 42 cases of CRC, 49 of tubular adenoma, 15 of hyperplastic polyp, and 17 of non-neoplastic colon. RESULTS: CD10 was expressed in tumor cells (tCD10), stromal cells (sCD10) and infiltrating inflammatory cells (iCD10), and CD15 was expressed in tumor cells (tCD15) and infiltrating inflammatory cells (iCD15). Their expressions were progressively increased during CRC development and the iCD10 expression level was significantly correlated with the iCD15 expression level in invasive CRC. Invasive front revealed a higher expression level of iCD10 and iCD15 than the tumor center. Moreover, the iCD15 expression level of invasive front was significantly correlated with the degree of tumor budding and tCD15 in whole tissue sections was closely associated with tumor depth. CONCLUSIONS: The present study suggests that the expression of CD10 and CD15 is associated with the development and progression of CRC.
Adenoma ; Antigens, CD15 ; Cadherins ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; Neprilysin ; Polyps ; Stromal Cells

Heterotopic pregnancy, simultaneous intrauterine and extrauterine pregnancy, is an extremely rare case. The incidence of heterotopic pregnancy was about 1 to 30,000 pregnancies, but it has increased after wider use of assisted reproductive technology. The rising incidence presents a serious problem as the diagnosis of this potentially fatal condition is often missed. Careful pelvic examination combined with serial beta-hCG determinations, and transvaginal sonography to evaluate the adnexal region are necessary prerequisites for early diagnosis. We report a case of heterotopic pregnancy following in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer(IVF-ET) with a brief review of literature.
Diagnosis ; Early Diagnosis ; Embryo Transfer* ; Embryonic Structures* ; Fertilization in Vitro* ; Gynecological Examination ; Incidence ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy, Heterotopic* ; Reproductive Techniques, Assisted

PURPOSE: To determine referring physicians 'general attitudes, preferred reporting types, and opinions on radiologic reports. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A survey questionnaire was distributed to the 315 staff and residents of four university hospitals with 400 to 800 beds, and a total of 228 physicians responded. The questionnaire aimed to determine of the general attitude of referring physicians to radiologic reports, the type of report they preferred, and other opinions and suggestions. The responses elicited, as well as discrepancies among residents, staff, internist, and surgeons, were analyzed. RESULTS: Most referring physicians replied that they read an entire report regardless of its length, and the second majority read the conclusion first and then the remainder of the report only if clarification was required. With regard to report length, physicians answered that reports describing the findings of conventional radiography were often too short, while those dealing with MRI were verbose. The majority experienced occasional confusion when reading a report, the major cause being grammatical errors and incomprehensible sentence structure. When confused, most physicians consulted the radiologist; staff showed a greater inclination than residents to pursue this option. Most physicians preferred brief phrases or telegraphic-style sentences to a style which stressed completeness and detail, a preference which was statistically higher among residents than staff. Whereas physicians favored a brief radiologic report in cases of normal radiologic findings, conventional radiologic studies or no clinical findings, they wished to see a more detailed report in cases of abnormal radiologic findings, specific radiologic studies (special radiographs, US, CT, or MRI), or positive clinical findings. This need for more detail was expressed more frequently by internists than by surgeons. CONCLUSION: If implemented, the results of this study can be expected to enhance the quality and comprehensibility of radiologic reports, and may also lead to more efficient communication between radiologists and physicians.
Hospitals, University ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Radiography

Injuries from sea urchins are induced by from penetration of the calcareous spines into the skin. Apart from the transient episode of excruciating pain, there is usually no residual disability. Complications arise, however, when spines are embedded over bony prominences, or within joints. Two cases are reported with injury and protracted disability of fingers resulting from contact with the purple sea urchin, Anthocidaris crassispina, a common echinoderm inhabitant of the Korean east coast. After a latent period of several months in both cases, Case 1 presented as caseating granulomas in the synovium and case 2 exhibited as the usual soft tissue nonsynovial foreign body and noncaseating granulomas. There appears to be a paucity of published data regarding the effects of puncture wounds caused by the spines of this animal. The granulomas have appeared after a latent interval of several months in a proportion of the sufferers, suggests a delayed hyperserisitivity reaction similar to that produced by Mycobacterium species.
Animals ; Anthocidaris ; Bites and Stings* ; Fingers ; Foreign Bodies ; Granuloma ; Hand* ; Hypersensitivity, Delayed ; Inflammation* ; Joints ; Mycobacterium ; Punctures ; Sea Urchins* ; Skin ; Spine ; Strongylocentrotus purpuratus ; Synovial Membrane ; Wounds and Injuries

Most silica-contaminated wounds of the skin heal without complications. Cutaneous silica granuloma is a poorly understood, uncommon condition resembling a sarcoidosis. We report a case of silica granuloma after intermittent intramuscular injections. A 70-year-old man presented a painless mass in his right buttock for 2 weeks. He had received intermittent intramuscular injections of antihistamine drugs due to chronic dermatitis for 30 years. The histolopathological findings showed numerous hyalinized collagenous nodules with concentric layers, and an ill-defined chronic granulomatous inflammation containing foreign material. A polarized light microscopic examination revealed birefrigent particles. The presence of silica components was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis.
Aged ; Buttocks ; Collagen ; Dermatitis ; Electron Probe Microanalysis ; Granuloma* ; Humans ; Hyalin ; Inflammation ; Injections, Intramuscular* ; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning ; Sarcoidosis ; Silicon Dioxide* ; Skin ; Wounds and Injuries

Spontaneous regression of cancer is a rare phenomenon seldom described in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. A 54-year-old Korean woman suffered from cytologically-proved advanced hepatocellular carcinoma, for which she received no treatment. Papanicolaou's smears revealed high cellularity. Many clusters of polygonal cells showed long, thick anastomosing cords covered by flattened endothelial cells. The polygonal cells showed small hepatocytoid appearance, characterized by increased nuclear/cytoplasmic ratio. She remained in good clinical condition and, at 4 years of follow-up, the hepatocellular carcinoma could not be visualized radiologically. To date, only 14 case reports of apparently spontaneous regression of hepatocellular carcinoma have been published in the English literature. The mechanisms underlying this intriguing phenomenon remain unknown.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/pathology+ACo- ; Case Report ; Female ; Human ; Liver Neoplasms/pathology+ACo- ; Middle Age ; Neoplasm Regression, Spontaneous+ACo-

Transfonning growth factor-beta (TGP-beta) is a multipotent growth factor affecting development, homeostasis, and tissue repair. We evaluate the significance of the expression of TGF-beta1 and TGF-beta2 and correlation with prognostic factors in prostate cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In order to investigate the expression of TGF-beta1 and TGF-beta2, we analyzed Immunohistochemical staining from paraffin blocks of 22 cases of the prostate carcinoma and adjacent normal prostate. RESULTS: The expressions of TGF-beta1 and TGF-beta2 were noted in the cytoplasm of tumor cells, normal epithelial cells and stroma. The staining intensity and areas were examined and scored from 0 to 5. The TGF-beta1 staining scores of the tumor cells were higher than that of the adjacent normal epithelial cells (p=0.001). The TGF-beta2 staining scores of the tumor cells were also higher than that of the adjacent normal epithelial cells (p=0.003). However, there were no correlation between tumor surrounding stroma and normal stroma in TGF-beta1 and TGF-beta2 staining scores. The serum PSA level, the clinical stage, the Gleason score and the lymph node metastasis of the tumor did not correlated with the staining score of TGF-beta1 and TGF-beta2. CONCLUSION: These results indicate that the prostatic cancer was associated with alteration of TGF-beta1 and TGF-beta2 expression by prostatic epithelial cells which play a role in prostatic carcinogenesis.
Carcinogenesis ; Cytoplasm ; Epithelial Cells ; Homeostasis ; Lymph Nodes ; Neoplasm Grading ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Paraffin ; Prostate ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; Transforming Growth Factor beta1* ; Transforming Growth Factor beta2*