Natural killer (NK) cell neoplasms are a group of rare but highly malignant tumors. We report here one case of NK cell leukemia. A 54-yr-old woman presented with a 2-month history of progressive left neck mass. Based on the positive result of tissue PCR for Mycobacterium tuberculosis, she was at first diagnosed with tuberculous lymphadenopathy. After two weeks, she developed generalized lymphadenopathy, hepatosplenomegaly, fever and anemia. Subsequent evaluation was performed including bone marrow aspiration and biopsy. Peripheral blood smear showed leukoerythroblastic features with 31% blasts. Bone marrow was packed with agranular blastoid cells, which were periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) positive and myeloperoxidase (MPO) negative. Immunophenotyping showed that these cells were positive for CD45 and HLA-DR, whereas negative for CD3, CD5, CD7, CD10, CD13, CD14, CD19, CD20, CD22, CD33, CD34, and CD61. Because of the absence of the markers of T-cell, B-cell, and myeloid lineage-specific antigens, we added CD16/56 for the immunophenotyping and the blasts were positive (94%). The tumor cells of biopsied lymph node were only positive for CD56, consistent with NK cell lymphoma. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) was not detected by RNA in situ hybridization. Culture for M. tuberculosis was negative. Thus this patient was diagnosed with blastic NK cell lymphoma/leukemia involving bone marrow and lymph node.
Antigens, CD45/metabolism ; Bone Marrow/pathology ; Female ; HLA-DR Antigens/metabolism ; Humans ; Killer Cells, Natural/immunology/*pathology ; Leukemia/*diagnosis/immunology/pathology ; Middle Aged ; Tuberculosis, Lymph Node/diagnosis

Granular cell tumors (GCTs) have been reported in various tissues, especially the skin and subcutaneous soft tissue of the head and neck. We report a 60-year-old man who presented with intermittent headache and dizziness for 3 months, but no other neurological symptoms. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed the presence of a mass in the pituitary stalk, and contrast-enhanced MRI showed nodular enhancement in this region. The lesion was completely excised microscopically via a frontotemporal (pterional) approach. On pathological examination, a final diagnosis of a typical GCT was made.
Diagnosis ; Dizziness ; Granular Cell Tumor* ; Head ; Headache ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Middle Aged ; Neck ; Pituitary Gland* ; Pituitary Neoplasms ; Skin

OBJECTIVE: Recently some reports suggested substance P and CGRP might be important factors for inflammation and hyperalgesia. This study was performed to see whether substance P or CGRP containing nerve fibers might be changed by mustard oil-induced inflammation. METHODS: After injection of mustard oil(5%) into uterine lumen, the uteri were removed and examined with immunohistochemical methods for substance P and CGRP. RESULTS: In the normal uterus, most of the substance P- or CGRP-immunoreactive nerve fibers were observed along the vascular structure and some in the myometrium, only few in the endometrium. Mustard oil did not changed this pattern of nerve fiber distribution but after 48 hrs, the amount of substance P or CGRP immunoreactive nerve fibers were greatly reduced compared with the normal uterus. It is not clear whether the decrease of substance P and CGRP immunoreactive fibers in the uterus was resulted from the depletion of the neuropeptides in the nerve fibers or the retraction of nerve fibers. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that the inflammation should cause the change of nerve fibers included in the nociception. This change may attribute the generation of inflammation and inflammatory hyperalgesia.
Animals ; Endometrium ; Female ; Hyperalgesia ; Inflammation* ; Mice ; Mustard Plant ; Myometrium ; Nerve Fibers ; Neuropeptides ; Nociception ; Rats* ; Substance P* ; Uterus*

Allergic angitis and granulomatosis is a kind of rare systemic vasculitis, with various manifestations of disease of lung, heart, skin, musculoskeletal system, nervous system and hepatobiliary tract. There was no report of a case with manifestation of pleuritis and pericarditis, while several cases had been reported in Korea. So we here report a case of allergic angitis and granulomatosis with manifestations of pleuritis and pericarditis. The case also showed clinical manifestations of hypereosinophilia, asthma, rhinitis, pulmonary infilterates with eosinophilia and nephritis. Open lung biopsy showed arteritis with heavy infilteration of activated eosinophil in lung, pleura and pericardium. The involvement of heart might cause critical complication leading death. The patients who are supposed as allergic angitis and granulomatosis should be examined for the involvement of heart.
Arteritis ; Asthma ; Biopsy ; Eosinophilia ; Eosinophils ; Heart ; Humans ; Korea ; Lung ; Musculoskeletal System ; Nephritis ; Nervous System ; Pericarditis* ; Pericardium ; Pleura ; Pleurisy* ; Rhinitis ; Skin ; Systemic Vasculitis

Melkersson-Rosenthal syndrome(MRS) is a rare disorder, having a symptom triad of recurrent facial palsy, orofacial swelling and fissured tongue(lingua plicata). This disorder is usually recurrent or progressive, and monosymptomatic or oligosymptomatic forms have been reported to be more common than classic forms. Generally, MRS occurs in young adults at the end of the second decade of life and incidence of the disease in childhood is known to be very low. Although the clinical manifestation of MRS in children is similar to that in adults, early diagnosis and management is essential to avoid long-lasting functional disorders and psychological problems. We experienced MRS in a 13 year old boy with a history of recurrent facial palsy. We report this case with review of related literature.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; Early Diagnosis ; Facial Paralysis ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Melkersson-Rosenthal Syndrome* ; Young Adult

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Determining the cause of suspected biliary stricture is often challenging in clinical practice. We aimed to compare the diagnostic yields of endoscopic ultrasound-guided tissue sampling (EUS-TS) and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography-guided tissue sampling (ERCP-TS) in patients with suspected biliary stricture at different primary lesions. METHODS: We enrolled patients who underwent same-session EUS- and ERCP-TS for the evaluation of suspected biliary stricture. Forceps biopsy and/or brush cytology of intraductal lesions and fine-needle aspiration for solid mass lesions were performed during ERCP and EUS, respectively. RESULTS: One hundred and twenty-five patients treated at our institution between January 2011 and September 2016, were initially considered for the study. However, 32 patients were excluded due to loss of follow-up (n=8) and ERCP-TS on the pancreatic duct (n=20) or periampullary lesions (n=4). Of the 93 patients included, 86 had a malignant tumor including cholangiocarcinoma (n=39), pancreatic cancer (n=37), and other malignancies (n=10). Seven patients had benign lesions. EUS-TS had higher rate of overall diagnostic accuracy than ERCP-TS (82.8% vs. 60.2%, p=0.001), and this was especially true for patients with a pancreatic lesion (84.4% vs. 51.1%, p=0.003). CONCLUSIONS: EUS-TS was found to be superior to ERCP-TS for evaluating suspected biliary strictures, especially those caused by pancreatic lesions.
Biopsy ; Biopsy, Fine-Needle ; Cholangiocarcinoma ; Cholangiopancreatography, Endoscopic Retrograde ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Diagnosis ; Endosonography ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Pancreatic Ducts ; Pancreatic Neoplasms ; Surgical Instruments

Background/Aims: Endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle biopsy (EUS-FNB) is integral to the diagnosis of gastrointestinal (GI) subepithelial tumors (SETs). The impact of different EUS-FNB tissue sampling techniques on specimen adequacy and diagnostic accuracy in SETs has not been fully evaluated. This study aimed to compare the diagnostic outcomes of slow-pull (SP) and standard suction (SS) in patients with GI SETs. Methods: In this retrospective comparative study, 54 patients were enrolled. Medical records were reviewed for location and size of the target lesion, FNB needle type/size, technical order, specimen adequacy, diagnostic yield, and adverse events. The acquisition rate of adequate specimens and diagnostic accuracy were compared according to EUS-FNB techniques. Results: The mean lesion size was 42.6±36.4 mm, and most patients were diagnosed with GI stromal tumor (75.9%). The overall diagnostic accuracies of the SP and SS techniques were 83.3% and 81.5%, respectively (p=0.800). The rates of obtaining adequate core tissue were 79.6% and 75.9%, respectively (p=0.799). No significant clinical factors affected the rate of obtaining adequate core tissue, including lesion location and size, FNB needle size, and final diagnosis. Conclusions SP and SS had comparable diagnostic accuracies and adequate core tissue acquisition for GI SETs via EUS-FNB.

PURPOSE: Regulatory T (Treg) cells are key modulators in the immune system. Recent studies have shown that atopic dermatitis (AD) patients have higher numbers of Treg cells; however, little is known about the specific phenotype and function of Treg cells in AD. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To identify differentially expressed proteins in peripheral induced Treg cells in AD and naturally derived Treg cells in normal controls, CD4?CD25? Treg cells were isolated from thymus tissue of normal mice and the spleens of AD mice. Membrane proteins were extracted, and quantitative proteomics labeling with Tandem Mass Tags (TMT) was performed, followed by one-dimensional liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry analysis. RESULTS: Using TMT labeling, we identified 510 proteins, including 63 membrane proteins and 16 plasma membrane proteins. CD47 was one of the upregulated proteins in Treg cells in AD spleens. Although CD47 was expressed in all CD4? and CD8? T cells, a significantly higher expression of CD47 was observed in the Treg cells of AD mice and AD patients than in those of normal mice and healthy controls. Furthermore, Treg cells from the spleen showed a significantly higher expression of CD47 than those from the thymus. CONCLUSION: We found that CD47 is highly expressed in the Treg cells of AD mice, particularly in the spleen. Based on our results, we propose that CD47(high) Treg cells are likely induced Treg cells and that upregulated CD47 in the Treg cells of AD patients may play a role in the increased population of Treg cells in AD.
Animals ; Cell Membrane ; Dermatitis, Atopic* ; Humans ; Immune System ; Mass Spectrometry ; Membrane Proteins ; Mice ; Phenotype ; Proteomics ; Spleen ; T-Lymphocytes ; T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory* ; Thymus Gland ; Up-Regulation*

PURPOSE: Regulatory T (Treg) cells are key modulators in the immune system. Recent studies have shown that atopic dermatitis (AD) patients have higher numbers of Treg cells; however, little is known about the specific phenotype and function of Treg cells in AD. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To identify differentially expressed proteins in peripheral induced Treg cells in AD and naturally derived Treg cells in normal controls, CD4?CD25? Treg cells were isolated from thymus tissue of normal mice and the spleens of AD mice. Membrane proteins were extracted, and quantitative proteomics labeling with Tandem Mass Tags (TMT) was performed, followed by one-dimensional liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry analysis. RESULTS: Using TMT labeling, we identified 510 proteins, including 63 membrane proteins and 16 plasma membrane proteins. CD47 was one of the upregulated proteins in Treg cells in AD spleens. Although CD47 was expressed in all CD4? and CD8? T cells, a significantly higher expression of CD47 was observed in the Treg cells of AD mice and AD patients than in those of normal mice and healthy controls. Furthermore, Treg cells from the spleen showed a significantly higher expression of CD47 than those from the thymus. CONCLUSION: We found that CD47 is highly expressed in the Treg cells of AD mice, particularly in the spleen. Based on our results, we propose that CD47(high) Treg cells are likely induced Treg cells and that upregulated CD47 in the Treg cells of AD patients may play a role in the increased population of Treg cells in AD.
Animals ; Cell Membrane ; Dermatitis, Atopic* ; Humans ; Immune System ; Mass Spectrometry ; Membrane Proteins ; Mice ; Phenotype ; Proteomics ; Spleen ; T-Lymphocytes ; T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory* ; Thymus Gland ; Up-Regulation*

Most of neuroendocrine tumors are usually found in the gastrointestinal tract. Recently, the incidence of gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors seems to have increased. However, only a few cases of neuroendocrine tumor arising from the minor duodenal papilla have been reported. Currently, several options are available to treat the tumors of the minor duodenal papilla. Endoscopic papillectomy is increasingly performed as a minimally invasive alternative treatment to conventional surgical resection. We present two cases of neuroendocrine tumor arising from minor duodenal papilla, which were successfully resected by endoscopic papillectomy. Although surgical resection is considered to be a standard treatment for gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors, our experience suggests that endoscopic papillectomy can be a minimally invasive alternative treatment for neuroendocrine tumors arising from the minor duodenal papilla.
Gastrointestinal Tract ; Incidence ; Neuroendocrine Tumors* ; Pancreatic Ducts