Central nervous system (CNS) neoplasms are the second most common childhood malignancy after leukemia and the most common solid organ neoplasm in children. Diagnostic dilemmas with small specimens from CNS neoplasms are often the result of multifactorial etiologies such as frozen or fixation artifact, biopsy size, or lack of knowledge about rare or unfamiliar entities. Since the late 1950s, ultrastructural examination has been used in the diagnosis of CNS neoplasms, though it has largely been replaced by immunohistochemical and molecular cytogenetic studies. Nowadays, pathologic diagnosis of CNS neoplasms is achieved through intraoperative cytology, light microscopy, immunohistochemistry, and molecular cytogenetic results. However, the utility of electron microscopy (EM) in the final diagnosis of CNS neoplasms and investigation of its pathogenetic origin remains critical. Here, we reviewed the distinguishing ultrastructural features of pediatric CNS neoplasms and emphasize the continuing value of EM in the diagnosis of CNS neoplasms.
Artifacts ; Biopsy ; Central Nervous System Neoplasms* ; Central Nervous System* ; Child ; Cytogenetics ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Leukemia ; Microscopy ; Microscopy, Electron

Here, we report the case of a 43-year-old female who was diagnosed with a cotyledonoid dissecting leiomyoma (CDL) of the uterus. CDL is a recently described and extremely rare variant of a benign leiomyoma that can grossly masquerade as a malignancy. The 13-cm sized tumor was located primarily on the extrauterine surface as an intrauterine continuity, which showed dark red, congested, bulbous protuberances. It was multinodular appearance, encasing the bilateral adnexae and the left iliac vein. Microscopically, the nodules were separated by extensive hydropic degeneration. The nodules were composed of cigar-shaped spindle cells with no mitosis, cellular pleomorphism or coagulation necrosis. They also showed an intravascular luminal growth pattern. CDL with intravascular growth was diagnosed after excluding intravascular leiomyomatosis, disseminated peritoneal leiomyomatosis, and benign metastasizing leiomyoma. The present case is the second reported case of CDL in Korea. Recognition of this rare and bizarre, malignancy-mimicking leiomyoma is crucial to prevent inappropriate treatment.
Adult ; Estrogens, Conjugated (USP) ; Female ; Humans ; Iliac Vein ; Korea ; Leiomyoma* ; Leiomyomatosis ; Mitosis ; Necrosis ; Phenobarbital* ; Uterus*

Adenocarcinomas with micropapillary patterns are generally aggressive and show lymphotropism. Only a few reports on pulmonary adenocarcinoma with micropapillary patterns have described cytologic findings. A 70-year-old Korean woman was admitted to the hospital because of intermittent dry cough and chest pain. Cytology after bronchial washing showed neoplastic cells in small, angulated, cohesive clusters consisting of 3-20 cells without a fibrovascular core. The resected right middle lobe showed a tumor occupying almost the entire lobe. Histologically, about 90% of neoplastic cells proliferated with micropapillary morphology in the background of bronchioloalveolar carcinoma. Cytologic smears of a bronchial washing showing tumor cells in small, cohesive clusters without a fibrovascular core may indicate an adenocarcinoma with micropapillary pattern.
Adenocarcinoma ; Adenocarcinoma, Bronchiolo-Alveolar ; Aged ; Chest Pain ; Cough ; Female ; Humans ; Lung

We evaluated the usefulness of cervicovaginal cytology as a primary screening test by analyzing the cytologic and histological diagnoses of 2,254 women. Cervicovaginal cytology had 93.0% sensitivity, 86.1% specificity, 88.2% positive predictive value, and 91.7% of negative predictive value. Cervicovaginal cytology as a primary screening test showed much higher specificity but slightly lower sensitivity than HPV DNA testing. However, the sensitivity of cervicovaginal cytology will be improved continuously due to the development of liquid-based cytology. We regard cervicovaginal cytology as a good primary screening test for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia or carcinoma.
Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia ; Female ; Human Papillomavirus DNA Tests ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Sensitivity and Specificity

OBJECTIVE: Left ventricular ejection fraction is an important clinical variable with respect to diagnosis, treatment and prognosis in various cardiovascular diseases. Measurement of left ventricular ejection fraction is performed by three commonly used methods, M-mode and two dimensional echocardiography, radionuclide angiography and contrast cineangiography. We compared echocardiographic and contrast cinean-giographic ejection fraction by correlation coefficiency to determine the accuracy of echocardiography determined ejection fraction at our institution and to assess the agreement of left ventricular ejection fraction between two methods. METHODS: We measured left ventricular ejection fraction by M-mode, two-dimensional echocardiography and contrast cineangiography in 144 cases of normal and cardiovascular heart disease patients from September 1993 to April 1995 in the cardiology division of Ewha Womans University hospital. The echocar-diography and contraat cineangiography were performed within 7 days of each other. RESULTS: M-mode echocardiographic ejection fraction correlated with contrast cineangiographic ejection fraction (r=0.7841). M-mode echocardiographic ejection fraction corrected with two-dimensional echocardiography in the presence of regional wall motion abnormality correlated with contrast cineangiographic ejection fraction (r=0.8149). By agreement analysis, the difference of mean of ejection fraction measured by M-mode echocardiography and contrast cineangiography was within 95% confidence limits. The mean was 4.08% and the standard deviation was 8.29%. The difference of mean of ejection fraction corrected by two-dimensional echocardiography and contrast cineangiography was within 95% confidence limits. The mean was -3.19% and the standard deviation was 7.74% CONCLUSION: The values of left ventricular ejection fraction by echocardiography showed good correlation with those of contrast cineangiographic ejection fraction, Therefore, echocardiography would be a useful tool as contrast cineangiography in evaluating the left ventricular function.
Cardiology ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Cineangiography* ; Diagnosis ; Echocardiography* ; Female ; Heart Diseases ; Humans ; Prognosis ; Radionuclide Angiography ; Stroke Volume* ; Ventricular Function, Left

Baicalin is flavonoid and major component of PC-SPES. Flavonoids including baicalin have been reported to not only function as anti-oxidant but also cause cytotoxic effect. Baicalin hydrate has been reported to induce cell death, however the mechanism by which baicalin hydrate induces the apoptosis of cancer cells is still unclear. To evaluate the mechanistic insights of apoptosis by baicalin hydrate, we tested the activities of apoptosis signaling pathway in HeLa cells. The viability of HeLa and HeLa s3 cells was markedly decreased by baicalin hydrate in a dose- and time- dependent method. Baicalin hydrate induced the apoptotic death of HeLa cells, which was characterized by the chromatin condensation of the nuclei and phosphorylation of histone H2AX. Baicalin hydrate increased the sub-G1 DNA content of HeLa cell lines. Baicalin hydrate digested Bid protein, increased Bak protein level and also, induced mitochondrial dysfunction disrupted as shown as the mitochondrial membrane potential. It activated caspase-3, thereby resulted in cleavage of poly (ADP) ribose polymerase (PARP).
Apoptosis ; bcl-2 Homologous Antagonist-Killer Protein ; BH3 Interacting Domain Death Agonist Protein ; Caspase 3 ; Cell Death ; Chromatin ; DNA ; Flavonoids ; HeLa Cells ; Histones ; Humans ; Membrane Potential, Mitochondrial ; Phosphorylation ; Ribose ; Signal Transduction*

No abstract available.
Adenocarcinoma* ; Myxoma*

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether oxidants are formed as part of the cisplatin-induced apoptotic process, intracellular markers of oxidative stress were examined. METHODS: Apoptotic death of HeLa cells by cisplatin was confirmed by flow cytometry. RESULTS: The pre-treatment with glutathione (GSH) significantly attenuated cisplatin-induced apoptosis through the reduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation and diminished caspases-3 and 9 protease activity. Furthermore, z-VAD-fmk, an inhibitor of pan-caspase, effectively inhibited the activation of caspases and prevented apoptosis by cisplatin, although cisplatin-induced ROS generation was not attenuated. CONCLUSION: These data indicate that ROS may play a role as an upstream mediator of caspases. Taken together, our results suggest that oxidative stress mediates cisplatin-induced apoptosis in HeLa cells.
Apoptosis* ; Caspases ; Cisplatin ; Flow Cytometry ; Glutathione ; HeLa Cells* ; Humans ; Oxidants ; Oxidative Stress* ; Reactive Oxygen Species

A 51-yr-old man presented with an enlarged right testis for two months. The radically resected testis showed a relatively well-circumscribed ovoid mass, nearly replacing the normal architecture with central cystic changes. Microscopically, the mass was composed of ovoid shaped tumor cells of a moderately differentiated squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). The central portion of the mass was filled with well-formed laminated keratinous materials and the remnant cavity lined by dysplastic squamous epithelium, indicated SCC may be derived from an epidermal cyst. SCC is among the most common types of neoplasm afflicting human beings, but it is rare in the testis. To our knowledge, this is the second report of the testicular squamous cell carcinoma occurring in a patient without other primary tumors, and the firstly reported case in Korea.
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/diagnosis/*pathology ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Testicular Neoplasms/diagnosis/*pathology

Dengue fever is an acute febrile illness caused by dengue virus infection. Found predominantly in tropical urban areas, dengue virus is transmitted to humans by a female mosquito vector, Aedes aegypti. The clinical features of dengue fever include fever, headache, skin rash and bleeding. These symptoms are usually mild and not fatal, but dengue hemorrhagic fever is life threatening without proper management. The diagnosis of dengue fever can be established with a dengue virus-infected cell culture or with isolated dengue IgM. No specific treatment exists for dengue fever except for symptomatic management. With the recent global increase of dengue fever incidence, the number of cases of dengue fever in returning travelers is on the increase in Korea. Therefore, it is possible that Korean primary physicians will confront dengue fever cases. We report two cases of dengue fever that we experienced in the Department of Family Medicine in 2007.
Aedes ; Cell Culture Techniques ; Culicidae ; Dengue ; Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever ; Dengue Virus ; Exanthema ; Female ; Fever ; Headache ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin M ; Incidence ; Korea