The bcl-2 oncoprotein confers a survival advantage to cells by blocking programmed cell death. Overexpression of bcl-2 probably plays a role in tumorigenesis, and the expression of the bcl-2 protein has been investigated in many kinds of tumors. However, there have been only a few reports on expression of bcl-2 in human gastric adenocarcinoma. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the expression of bcl-2 protein and several clinical and pathological parameters such as age, tumor site, size, histological type, depth of invasion, Lauren's classification, and grade. Immunohistochemical staining using monoclonal bcl-2 protein antibody, clone 124, was performed on paraffin embedded specimens from 23 gastric adenomas and from 45 gastric adenocarcinomas. The results are as follows. 1. Variable intensity of epithelial staining was noted from case to case, although the lymphocytic component showed similar intensity in all examples. The staining was located at the gland and mucous neck region of non-neoplastic epithelium. 2. The more differentiated type of gastric adenocarcinoma showed the higher expression rate and intensity. 3. The relationship between the expression rates of bcl-2 protein and tumor grade (adenoma early gastric adenocarcinoma advanced gastric adenocarcinoma) was statistically significant. The reactivity in adenoma was somewhat stronger with a uniform pattern, while in adenocarcinoma it was much weaker with a heterogenous pattern. 4. Intestinal type carcinomas by Lauren's criteria showed a higher expression rate and intensity than diffuse type. These results suggest that the bcl-2 expression would be found in the early phase of gastric tumorigenesis, and the expression rate and intensity would decrease according to the tumor progression.
Adenocarcinoma* ; Adenoma* ; Carcinogenesis ; Cell Death ; Classification ; Clone Cells ; Epithelium ; Humans ; Neck ; Paraffin

Intracranial teratomas which were first described by Maier in 1861 are uncommon. Those presenting at birth are very rare and in our knowledge no case has been reported in Korea. In November, 1988, we experience a case of congenital intracrainal teratoma which replaced almost all cerebral tissue, filled out the oral cavity, and was protruded from the mouth. A female fetus was artificially delivered by a 25-year-old primigravida at 22 weeks of gestation, because of marked hydramnios and fetal hydrocephalus which were detected by prenatal ultrasonography. Microscopically, tissues from all three germ layers, including a lot of neuroepithelim and primitive mesenchymal tissue, were shown. A brief review of the literature was done.
Female ; Humans

Desmoplastic trichoepithelioma is a solitary tumor of the hair follicle with female preponderance, most commonly located on the face. Clinically, the lesions appear annular and firm with a raised border and a depressed nonulcerated center, but the appearance is not so distinctive to hair follicle tumors that definite diagnosis is established by the histopathologic findings. We report a case of desmoplastic trichoepithelioma in a 67-year-old woman who had an asymptomatic, hard, annular lesion measuring 0.8 cm in diameter, with a raised border and a depressed center on the right cheek. Histopathologic findings showed narrow strands of basaloid cells, horny cysts, and desmoplastic stroma, with the features corresponding to the desmoplastic trichoepithelioma.
Female ; Humans

Infection by pseudallescheria boydii is an occasional cause of mycetoma, corneal ulcers, endophthalitis, sinusitis, pneumonia, endocarditis, meningitis, arthritis, and osteomyelitis. But, it also causes serious disseminated or localized infection in immunocompromised patients. We report a case of pulmonary pseudallescheriasis developed in a 32-year-old man who has been a sofa manufacturer for several years. He presented with a cystic mass in the lung, 5cm in the largest dimension. Dark green necrotic material was evacuated from the cavity. Microscopically, the cystic wall and adjacent lung parenchyme were infiltrated by histiocytes rather than eosinophils and there was little fibrosis in the wall. The P. boydii was isolated from the cystic contents, which revealed white floccose colonies in Sabouraud dextrose agar and revealed single or multiple-celled oval conidia being produced on short hyalinated hyphae and on the elongated annellides in the slide culture. The differential findings with aspergillosis are discussed.
Adult ; Agar ; Arthritis ; Aspergillosis ; Endocarditis ; Eosinophils ; Fibrosis ; Glucose ; Histiocytes ; Humans ; Hyalin ; Hyphae ; Immunocompromised Host ; Lung ; Meningitis ; Mycetoma ; Osteomyelitis ; Pneumonia ; Pseudallescheria ; Pulmonary Aspergillosis* ; Sinusitis ; Spores, Fungal ; Ulcer

Loss of E-cadherin (E-cad) expression has been found in multiple cancers and is postulated to facilitate tumor cell dissociation and metastais. Promotor methylation may provides an alternative pathway for loss of gene function. This study evaluated the role of hypermethylation in the down-regulation of E-cad in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). We examined the E-cad expression by immunohistochemical staining and detected methylation status by methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP) in 20 OSCC tissues. Overally, 12 (60 %) cases of hypermethylation of E-cad were detected and we found there were no correlation between methylation and age, histologic grade, lympn node metastasis, tumor size and clinical stage. However, Eleven (73.3 %) of 15 samples which was negative for E-cad staining showed hypermethylation of E-cad promotor region. On the other hand, only one (20 %) of 5 E-cad positive sample was observed with methylated status. The underexpression of E-cad was found to be related to promotor hypermethylation (p=0.035). In conclusion, we suggest that hypermethylation play a role in inactivation of E-cad gene and may be a appreciable biomarker for diagnosis and treatment of OSCC.
Cadherins ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; Dissociative Disorders ; Down-Regulation ; Hand ; Methylation ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Promoter Regions, Genetic

Loss of E-cadherin (E-cad) expression has been found in multiple cancers and is postulated to facilitate tumor cell dissociation and metastais. Promotor methylation may provides an alternative pathway for loss of gene function. This study evaluated the role of hypermethylation in the down-regulation of E-cad in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). We examined the E-cad expression by immunohistochemical staining and detected methylation status by methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP) in 20 OSCC tissues. Overally, 12 (60 %) cases of hypermethylation of E-cad were detected and we found there were no correlation between methylation and age, histologic grade, lympn node metastasis, tumor size and clinical stage. However, Eleven (73.3 %) of 15 samples which was negative for E-cad staining showed hypermethylation of E-cad promotor region. On the other hand, only one (20 %) of 5 E-cad positive sample was observed with methylated status. The underexpression of E-cad was found to be related to promotor hypermethylation (p=0.035). In conclusion, we suggest that hypermethylation play a role in inactivation of E-cad gene and may be a appreciable biomarker for diagnosis and treatment of OSCC.
Cadherins ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; Dissociative Disorders ; Down-Regulation ; Hand ; Methylation ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Promoter Regions, Genetic

Pulmonary hamartoma is an uncommon benign tumor consisting of a mixture of loose fibromyxoid tissue, cartilage, fat, and cleft-like spaces lined by cuboidal or ciliated epithelium. Cytologically, the presence of a mesenchymal component is essential for the diagnosis of pulmonary hamartoma. We report the fine needle aspiration cytologic findings of two cases of pulmonary hamartoma. Case 1 was a 71-year-old woman with a mass, measuring 1.8X1.5 cm in the upper lobe of the right lung. Case 2 was a 51-year-old woman with a mass, measuring 2.3 x 2.0 cm in the lower lobe of the right lung. Fine needle aspiration cytology of both pulmonary masses revealed several sheets of loose fibromyxoid tissue fragments with focal cartilaginous differentiation and a few clusters of bland cuboidal epithelial cells on the bloody background. The diagnosis was histologically confirmed by needle biopsy.
Aged ; Biopsy, Fine-Needle* ; Biopsy, Needle ; Cartilage ; Diagnosis ; Epithelial Cells ; Epithelium ; Female ; Hamartoma* ; Humans ; Lung ; Middle Aged

BACKGROUND: Blood supply circumstances in Korea have changed in recent decades because of blood supplier diversification and restructuring of hospital blood donation centers. The purpose of this study is to understand the current status of hospital blood donation centers and their satisfaction levels with the Korean Red Cross Blood Center (KRCBC) and compare with the previous results for sustainable development of the blood supply system. METHODS: During one month in November 2014, we conducted a questionnaire survey through e-mail in 64 hospital blood donation centers which are approved by government. The response rate was 97% (62/64 hospitals). Responses from 62 hospitals were analyzed. RESULTS: The number of hospital blood donation centers were reduced by half from 129 in 2004 to 64 in 2014. There was no blood donation center in hospitals less than 400 beds, except 2 hospitals; 23 hospital (37.1%) blood banks collected no blood components. More than 80% of hospitals were satisfied with the KRCBC service such as donor record lookup and nucleic acid amplification Test (NAT) results lookup. Hospitals with more than 1,000 beds replied that they would not take account of transferring the collection services to KRCBC because of the directed and autologous donation and unexpected emergency blood transfusion. CONCLUSION: The government should be the subject of national blood policy and establish a committee or agency for its comprehensive and consistent execution through close cooperation with the KRCBC and hospitals.
Blood Banks ; Blood Donors* ; Blood Transfusion ; Natural Resources ; Electronic Mail ; Emergencies ; Humans ; Korea ; Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques ; Red Cross* ; Tissue Donors

BACKGROUND: The aims of our study were to determine the correlation of the strain variation and degree of homogeneity of infecting Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) with their disease outcomes, and the relevance of duodenal H. pylori expression of cagA and/or vacA gene to the development of duodenal ulcer in Korean patients. METHODS: One hundred and twenty bacterial colonies isolated from different anatomical sites of the stomach and duodenum were used. The study population was consisted of 40 Korean patients, 21 with duodenal ulcer, 7 with gastric ulcer, 3 with combined gastric and duodenal ulcer, and 9 with chronic gastritis. Genomic characteristics of each strain were analyzed by random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) fingerprinting. The cagA and vacA genes were detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). RESULTS: PCR-based RAPD was proved to be a reliable method for the discrimination of individual bacterial genomic characteristics. Genomic fingerprinting showed a varying degree of inter- and intra-patient variation. Thirteen patients (32.5%) were colonized by a single strain throughout the corpus, antrum and duodenum, whereas the other 27 (67.5%) harbored multiple H. pylori strains. Thirty-six isolates (90.0%) each from the corpus and antrum, and 34 (85.0%) from the duodenum, expressed the cagA gene. The prevalence of duodenal H. pylori expression of the cagA gene was not different between patients with chronic gastritis and those with duodenal ulcer. All isolates were positive for both genes vacA s1 and vacA s1a. CONCLUSION: These results suggested that many of the H. pylori-infected Korean patients were actually colonized with mixed populations of different H. pylori strains and that the prevalence of duodenal H. pylori expression of the cagA and/or vacA gene was not correlated with the development of duodenal ulcer in Korean patients.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Antigens, Bacterial/*analysis/genetics ; Bacterial Proteins/*analysis/genetics ; DNA, Bacterial/*analysis ; Female ; Genome, Bacterial ; Helicobacter Infections/epidemiology/*microbiology ; Helicobacter pylori/*genetics/isolation & purification ; Human ; Korea/epidemiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Peptic Ulcer/*microbiology ; Prevalence ; Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA Technique ; Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Red cells that express extremely low levels of D antigen that cannot be detected by routine serologic tests are designated as DEL. Most DEL blood donors are typed as D-negative. However, DEL red blood cells can be recognized by serological adsorption and elution test or molecular RHD genotyping. Anti-D production in patients with D-negative who received transfusion containing DEL blood has reported, therefore distinction between DEL variant and true D- negative is clinically important. This review highlights a transfusion strategy and laboratory update on the DEL variant in the Korean population.
Adsorption ; Blood Donors ; Erythrocytes ; Humans ; Serologic Tests