Secondary reconstruction of the orbit and conjunctival sac - a case report.

The authors present a novel modification of vastus lateralis muscle free flap based orbital reconstruction in a 41-year-old patient, with a secondary defect to an injury with technical oil under high pressure. The patient underwent multiple reconstructive procedures in different medical centers with poor functional and esthetic results including simple local plasty techniques. The patient underwent simultaneous reconstruction of the soft tissues of the orbit, and conjunctival sac based on a prelaminated vastus lateralis free flap. The two-stage reconstruction of these structures is beneficial both for the patient's psychical and mental condition and for health system finances. Therefore, whenever it's possible, we should try to decrease the number of required procedures. The authors believe that their technique can significantly improve the quality of life of patients after exenteration but simultaneously they emphasize the need to carry out more procedures in order to refine it.

[Update from the soft tissue tumour registry in Jena]. / Neues aus dem Jenaer Weichteiltumor-Register.

The Jena Institute of Pathology has been serving as a consultation and reference center for soft tissue tumors in Germany since 1978. The present study provides an overview of the clinicopathological data from a two-year period and an update on diagnostics and research. Retrospectively, 7043 cases sent to the institute in the years 2006 and 2007 were analyzed. The majority of cases (>77.7%) were soft tissue tumors, of which 49% were categorized as malignant, 11.4% as intermediate, 35% as benign and 4.6% as tumors of uncertain biological potential. Neoplasms with fibroblastic differentiation were the most frequent. The mean age of patients with a sarcoma was 63 years. The molecular pathological analysis of soft tissue tumors has attained a major role in diagnosis. This is further advanced at the Jena institute in the context of a German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) project for molecular sarcoma diagnosis with the aim of developing and validating DNA probes for in situ hybridization detection of translocations and their associated chromosomal breaks on the one hand, and DNA chips for the detection of fusion transcripts on the other. Research projects relate to the analysis of specific biomarkers in large tumor collectives and the pathomechanisms in several sarcoma entities.

Quantum dots modulate leukocyte adhesion and transmigration depending on their surface modification.

Although different nanosized materials, including quantum dots (QDs), are intended to be used for biomedical applications, their interactions with microvessels and their inflammatory potential are largely unknown. In this in vivo study we report that leukocyte recruitment is modulated in the presence of quantum dots. We found that the surface chemistry of QDs strongly affects their localization in postcapillary venules, their uptake by perivascular macrophages, and their potential to modify steps of leukocyte recruitment.

Appearance of the bona fide spiral tubule of ORF virus is dependent on an intact 10-kilodalton viral protein.

Parapoxviruses can be morphologically distinguished from other poxviruses in conventional negative staining electron microscopy (EM) by their ovoid appearance and the spiral tubule surrounding the virion's surface. However, this technique may introduce artifacts. We have examined Orf virus (ORFV; the prototype species of the Parapoxvirus genus) by cryoelectron microscopy (cryo-EM) and cryo-negative staining EM. From these studies we suggest that the shape and unique spiral tubule are authentic features of the parapoxviruses. We also constructed an ORFV mutant deleted of a gene encoding a 10-kDa protein, which is an orthologue of the vaccinia virus (VACV) 14-kDa fusion protein, and investigated its ultrastructure. This mutant virus multiplied slowly in permissive cells and produced infectious but morphologically aberrant particles. Mutant virions lacked the spiral tubule but displayed short disorganized tubules similar to those observed on the surface of VACV. In addition, thin extensions or loop-like structures were appended to the ORFV mutant particles. We suggest that these appended structures arise from a failure of the mutant virus particles to properly seal and that the sealing activity is dependent on the 10-kDa protein.