Mucocele arised at the vermiform appendix is uncommon, either benign or malignancy and their clinical presentation is not specific. The preoperative diagnosis is rare,1 and their diagnosis is an incidental event. Mucocele seems to be developed due to chronic obstruction of the lumen of the appendix. Higa and Cowerkers2 classified 73 cases of "mucocele" into three clinicopathologic entities; focal or diffuse mucosal hyperplasia, mucinous cystadenoma, mucinous cystadenocarcinoma. Appendiceal mucoceles are rare lesions of the appendix, characterized by a gross enlargement of the appendix from accumulation of mucoid substance within the lumen. It is encountered in only 0.1-0.4% of all appendectomies with a female predominance and an average age at the time of diagnosis over 50 years. A case of appendiceal mucocle found during total hysterectomy is presented with a brief review of the literatures.
Appendectomy ; Appendix ; Cystadenocarcinoma, Mucinous ; Cystadenoma, Mucinous ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Hyperplasia ; Hysterectomy* ; Mucocele*

OBJECTIVES: To determine the influence of parental behaviors on the onset and severity of eating disorders, this study compared aspects of perceived parental styles, according to eating disorder subtypes and age at onset in Korean women with eating disorders. METHODS: One hundred and sixty-seven patients with eating disorders[Anorexia Nervosa (AN), N=49; Bulimia Nervosa(BN), N=118] were recruited for this study. Perceived parent behaviors were assessed with Parental Behavior Inventory(PBI) self-rating scale. The study subjects also completed the Eating Disorder Inventory -2 (EDI-2) to assess the severity of eating disorder symptoms. RESULTS: In anorexia nervosa, early onset group(<16 years) reported low paternal affection and high paternal rational expression, low maternal interference than group with age at onset over 16 years. The severity of eating disorder symptoms was negatively associated with mother affection and rational expression in two subtypes of eating disorder(AN and BN). On stepwise regression analysis, paternal affection and maternal over-protection were associated with age of onset only in AN group and maternal affection was associated with the severity of symptoms in both groups of eating disorder. CONCLUSIONS: Considering the role of family function and perceived parental styles could help improve the management of eating disorders. These results emphasize the importance of fathers' role in the eating disorder on the age of onset, a relatively unexplored area of eating disorder research. Also, we investigated the importance of mothers' affection on the severity of symptoms.
Age of Onset ; Anorexia Nervosa* ; Bulimia ; Bulimia Nervosa* ; Eating ; Eating Disorders ; Female ; Humans ; Mothers ; Parents*

OBJECTIVE: To obtain information on the growth inhibition effect of arsenic compounds and gene expression profiles using cDNA microarray technique in SiHa cell lines. METHODS: We cultured 103 SiHa cell in 96 well plate and we investigated growth inhibition effects using MTT assay and also we performed gene expression profile experiment using 384 cDNA chip in SiHa cell after exposure of arsenics (As2O3, As4O6 - 1 (micro)M) for 48 hrs. RESULTS: Arsenics (As2O3, As4O6) inhibit the growth of SiHa cells (As2O3: 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 (micro)M - 9.2, 56, 89, 93, 96, 96%, As4O6: 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 (micro)M- 54, 84, 84, 85, 85, 87%) in 4 days culture. As2O3 and As4O6 induced apoptosis in SiHa cells. After exposure of As2O3, 47 genes were changed more than 2 times (eg, thymidylate synthetase, cyclin B1, CDC 20). In case of As4O6, 78 genes were changed more than 2 times (eg, CDC 20, cyclin B1, primase, proliferating cell nuclear antigen). CONCLUSION: we observed arsenic compound (As2O3, As4O6) inhibit the growth of SiHa cell. In gene expression profiling experiment, 78 genes was changed the expression level 2 times more than that of reference RNA after treatment of As4O6 and 47 genes after treatment of As2O3. Through these result, we thought more study need in functional genomics after arsenic treated cervical cancer cells.
Apoptosis ; Arsenic* ; Arsenicals ; Cell Line ; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.) ; Cyclin B1 ; DNA Primase ; DNA, Complementary* ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Gene Expression* ; Genomics ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis* ; RNA ; Thymidylate Synthase ; Transcriptome* ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms

Acardia is a very rare congenital anomaly occurring in less than 1 in 35,000 deliveries. Acardiac parabiotic twin has been reported only in multiple, monochronic pregnancies. This anomalous fetus is sustained in utero by parasitic anastomoses to the circulation of its usually normal co-twin and is therefore not compatible with extrauterine survival. A case of an acardiac parabiotic twin is described, and the literature concerning the incidence, classification and etiology of acardiac is reviewed.
Classification ; Fetus ; Humans ; Incidence ; Pregnancy

Despite an aggressive surgical debulking followed by front-line chemotherapy, most patients with advanced ovarian carcinoma die of drug-resistant disease. Drug resistance can be overcome in a subset of patients with hematologic malignancies and lymphoma with high-dose therapy (HDT) and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, suggesting that this therapy may also be value in ovarian carcinoma. We report the successful outcome of HDT and peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT) in a 41-year-old nulliparous woman who initially was diagnosed with advanced ovarian carcicnoma with FIGO stage IIIc. Her disease relapsed after 19 months from initial therapy of definitive surgery and intra- and post-operative chemotherapy. Subsequently, she received optimal debulking surgery and salvage chemotherapy followed by HDT with triple- alkylating regimen, composed of cyclophosphamide (100 mg/kg), thiotepa (500 mg/m2), and melphalan (100 mg/m2). Her pretranplant characteristics were platinum-sensitive and complete response state. She showed rapid hematologic recovery and mild regimen-related toxicity (Bear man's toxicity criteria), stomatitis (grade I), cardiac toxicitiy (grade II). She has been followed up for 36 months after the inital therapy and is doing well without relapse.
Adult ; Cyclophosphamide ; Drug Resistance ; Drug Therapy ; Female ; Glycogen Storage Disease Type VI ; Hematologic Neoplasms ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation ; Humans ; Lymphoma ; Melphalan ; Ovarian Neoplasms ; Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation* ; Recurrence ; Stomatitis ; Thiotepa

OBJECTIVE: A constituent of green tea, (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), has been known to possess anti-diabetes, anti-hypertension and anti-cancer properties. In this study, we investigated the anticancer effects of EGCG on human ovarian cancer cell lines. The growth inhibitory mechanism(s) and regulation of cell cycle-related proteins by EGCG were also evaluated. METHODS: To carry out cell counting assay to observe the anti-proliferative effects, we treated 25, 50, and 100 uM EGCG to both ovarian cancer cell lines SKOV-3 and OVCAR-3, respectively. Also, we treated EGCG to PA-1 cells with 6.25, 12.5 and 25 uM, respectively. Six days later, we examined the characteristics of apoptosis and changes in cell cycle regulation by cell counting assay, Annexin V-FITC staining and DNA fragmentation assay, and FACS analysis. In addition, protein and gene expression patterns in SKOV-3 cell were investigated by using cell cycle cDNA chip, RT-PCR, and Western blot analyses. RESULTS: Inhibition of cell growth by cell counts showed in SKOV-3 cells with 48.8%, 82.5%, 99.2% after six days of the treatment with 25, 50, 100 uM of EGCG, respectively. OVCAR-3 cells showed 53.9%, 84.8%, and 97.7% growth inhibition patterns. And PA-1 cells showed 17.1%, 48.4%, and 74.1%, as compared to control. When SKOV-3 cells were tested for EGCG-induced apoptosis, apoptotic cells were observed with 8.6, 11.4, and 23.3-fold at 25, 50, 100 uM EGCG, respectively. And PA-1 cells showed 1.7, 2.4, and 4.2-fold, as compared to control. In contrast, OVCAR-3 did not show EGCG-induced apoptosis. When SKOV-3 cells were tested for their gene expression using cell cycle cDNA chip after treatment with 24.5 uM of EGCG, up-regulations of p21, Bax and cyclin G were shown, while down-regulations of CDK6, E2F-4, and cyclin A were shown. In Western blot assay, up-regulations of Bax and p21 proteins were shown, while down- regulations of cyclin D1, Bcl-XL, Rb, CDK2, E2F-1, E2F-4, PCNA proteins were shown. CONCLUSION: These data support that EGCG can inhibit ovarian cancer cell growth through induction of apoptosis and cell cycle arrest as well as regulation of gene and protein expressions. Thus, EGCG likely provides an additional option for a new and potential drug approach for ovarian cancer.
Apoptosis ; Blotting, Western ; Cell Count ; Cell Cycle ; Cell Cycle Checkpoints ; Cell Line* ; Cyclin A ; Cyclin D1 ; Cyclin G ; DNA Fragmentation ; DNA, Complementary ; Gene Expression ; Humans ; Ovarian Neoplasms* ; Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen ; Social Control, Formal ; Tea*

OBJECTIVES: After LEEP conization of cervical precancerous lesions, cytologic follow-up and colposcopy is frequently unsatisfactory. This study was performed to investigate the relationship between the presence of human papillomavirus (HPV) and abnormal follow-up results. METHODS: Between March 1995 and Feburary 1999, 98 patients treated by LEEP for cervical dysplasia and CIS were included. All patient had initially done HPV testing by Hybrid Capture System (Digene Co., U.S.A.). Patients were followed up with PAP, colposcopy and HPV test. RESULTS: After mean follow-up 10.9-month follow-up, 9 patients (9.2%) had the abnormal cytology (>ASCUS). After treatment, there were 2 abnormal cytologic follow-up cases (13.3%) in the groups of koilocytosis and CIN I in initial tissue pathology, 7 abnormal follow-up cases (8.4%) in groups of CIN II/III and CIS. There was no significant difference between the recurrence rates of these two group (P=0.27). The presence of high-risk HPV DNA after LEEP was done in 26 cases. Of the HPV-positive follow-up cases, 4 patients (50%) had abnormal cytologic results. But none had abnormal cytology in HPV-negative patients. CONCLUSION: Participants with positive follow-up HPV test have a higher recurrence rate than those with negative HPV test. Our study suggests the value of supplementary HPV DNA testing during follow-up of patients treated for cervical precancerous lesions.
Colposcopy ; Conization ; DNA ; Follow-Up Studies* ; Human Papillomavirus DNA Tests ; Humans ; Pathology ; Recurrence

PURPOSE: Allelic deletion of p53 tumor suppressor gene have been observed frequently in a variety of human tumors. These losses are believed to contribute to the development of human cancers. But the loss of heterozygosity (LOH) data on chromosome 17p are rare and controversial with respect to cervical carcinomas. So, we tried to elucidate the frequency of p53 locus LOH in primary cervical carcinoma and compared the LOH data with clinicopathological parameters. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In order to detect LOH within one of the well-known tumor suppressor gene, p53, three intragenic polymorphisms (exon 1, exon 4, and intron 6) and one microsatellite distal to the p53 gene (D17S5) were examined. Paired DNA samples from 55 primary uterine cervical carcinomas and normal bloods were studied for the chromosomal allelic loss of p53 gene locus by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), the presence of human papilloma virus (HPV), and the presence of p53 gene point mutation by PCR-single conformation polymorphism (SSCP) analysis. And the relationships between allelic losses of this gene and conventional clinicopathological parameters were evaluated. RESULTS: We could increase the heterozygosity of the p53 gene up to 1 (100%). The observed allelic loss rate of the p53 locus in informative cases was 5.5% (3/55) and the observed allelic loss rate of the D17S5 locus in informative cases was 8.7% (4/46) . Only one of the four patients with LOH at the D17S5 locus showed a concomittant allelic loss of the p53 gene. The overall LOH incidence of the chromosomal region comprising 17p13.1 (p53) to 17p13.3 (D13S5) was 10.9% (6/55). All the samples contained at least one of the oncogenic HPV type 16 and/or 18 sequences. No shifted bands were observed in the PCR-SSCP analysis of the p53 gene. The LOH of the p53 gene was not related to other parameters including clinical stage, histological type, and degree of differentiation. CONCLUSION: Concerning with the results above, we conclude that the allelic imbalance of the p53 gene itself is not implicated as a major contributing factor in the malignant transformation or the tumor progression in HPV-positive cervical cancers. Another putative tumor suppressor gene which has more important function than p53 gene in cervical carcinogenesis might exist between these two loci [p53 (17p13.1) and D17S5 (17p13.3)].
Allelic Imbalance ; Carcinogenesis ; DNA ; Exons ; Genes, p53* ; Genes, Tumor Suppressor ; Humans ; Incidence ; Introns ; Loss of Heterozygosity* ; Microsatellite Repeats ; Papilloma ; Point Mutation ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms

Telomerase, a ribonucleoprotein reverse transcriptase that extends telomeres of eukaryotic chromosomes is repressed in normal somatic cells but is activated during development and neoplasia. The regulation mechanism of telomerase activity in cancer cells is not clearly known. In this report, a possible affect of PKC on telomerase activity was examined using HeLa and CUMC-6 cervical cancer cell lines. Exposure of cells to PKC inhibitor, bisindolylmaleimide I and Go6976, and high levels of PKC activator, 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol 13-acetate (TPA) resulted in the inhibition of PKC activity in both cells. Telomerase activities were also inhibited by bisindolyl-maleimide I and Go6976, respectively, in a time-dependent manner. As PKC activity changes in TPA-treated cervical cancer cells, telomerase activities were increased at low dose of TPA and decreased at high dose. The expression levels of human telomerase subunits, human telomerase RNA (hTR) were not influenced by PKC modulating drugs. In contrast, the expression of full-length human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) was decreased after exposure to bisindolylmaleimide I and Go6976 in a time-dependent manner. hTERT expression was not affected by low dose of TPA. In contrast, high dose of TPA inhibited hTERT expression level. But the expression patterns of beta-deletion transcript of hTERT after 72 h of treatment with PKC inhibitors or high dose of TPA exposure were not discernable as compared with those of full-length hTERT transcripts to PKC modulating drugs. These results suggest that PKC-modulating drugs altered telomerase activities by affecting full-length hTERT expression profile in human cervical cancers.
Alternative Splicing ; Carbazoles/pharmacology ; Catalytic Domain ; Cervix Neoplasms/*enzymology ; Enzyme Inhibitors/metabolism ; Female ; Hela Cells ; Human ; Indoles/pharmacology ; Maleimides/pharmacology ; Protein Kinase C/antagonists & inhibitors/*metabolism ; RNA, Messenger/metabolism ; Support, Non-U.S. Gov't ; Telomerase/antagonists & inhibitors/genetics/*metabolism ; Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate/pharmacology ; Tumor Cells, Cultured

OBJECTIVE: To obtain information on the variation of Mllerian Inhibiting Substance (MIS) levels according to gestational age and to understand the physiologic effects of MIS during pregnancy. METHODS: We measured MIS levels in 325 serum samples from pregnant women and in 59 serum samples from nonpregnant women by ELISA. This study was also designed to enlighten the possibility for early diagnosis of genetic diseases by discriminate the fetal sex at early stage of pregnancy by measuring maternal MIS serum level. RESULTS: These data showed that the mean MIS serum concentration plus or minus standard error was 2.66+/-0.12 ng/ml in pregnant women, which was significantly higher than 2.05+/-0.29 ng/ml in non-pregnant women (p<0.05). The median MIS level for pregnant women (2.2 ng/ml) was approximately two-fold greater than that for non-pregnant women (1.2 ng/ml). There was significant negative relationship between MIS concentration and gestational age (r2=0.0434, p<0.01). The MIS concentration of the pregnant women decreased 0.0069 ng/ml per day as gestational age increased. There was no significant difference in MIS levels for women pregnant with males (2.75+/-0.17 ng/ml) versus females (2.43+/-0.19 ng/ml). CONCLUSION: The MIS may play an important role as a inhibiting hormone of quiescent ovary during pregnancy. These data will enable normal and abnormal levels of MIS during pregnancy to be differentiated with higher precision and will facilitate the clinical application of MIS determination as a tumor marker for selected gonadal tumors during pregnancy.
Early Diagnosis ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Female ; Gestational Age ; Gonads ; Granulosa Cells ; Humans ; Male ; Ovary ; Pregnancy ; Pregnant Women*