Primary extragastrointestinal stromal tumor of the seminal vesicles.

Primary tumors originating from the seminal vesicles are extremely rare. We report a unique, previously unreported primary extragastrointestinal stromal tumor (EGIST) of the seminal vesicles in a 40-year-old man.

Strontium ranelate prevents bone loss in a rat model of localized muscle paralysis.

Twenty-one 3.5-month-old female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to three groups: BTX group, in which each rat received a single intramuscular injection of 2 U of Clostridium botulinum toxin (BTX) in the quadriceps femoris muscle of the right hind limb; BTX + SR group, in which each rat received a BTX injection and a dose of strontium ranelate (dose level of 625 mg/kg/day); and the control group. All the rats were killed at 9 weeks post-treatment. It was showed that BTX-induced rats a rapid loss of body weight in the first 3 weeks, after which their body weight showed a slow increase similar to that observed in the control rats. The net body weight loss was mainly attributed to muscle atrophy. BTX caused remarkable bone degradation in either the trabecular bone or the cortical bone of the disuse femur. The deteriorations in the bone mass and bone microstructure were locally limited and could be prevented by strontium ranelate treatment. Biomechanical analysis showed that strontium ranelate treatment improved the mechanical performance of the tibia in BTX-treated rats. It was showed that a clinical-corresponding dose of strontium ranelate could prevent bone loss in long-term immobilized rats.

OPG knockout mouse teeth display reduced alveolar bone mass and hypermineralization in enamel and dentin.

Recent studies showed that local injection or upregulation of OPG gene would result in early temporal retardation of tooth development. It was assumed that this retardation might cause defective tooth mineralization and pulp formation as the long-term effects. However, since those OPG treatments were transient, any possible long-term effects of OPG addition could not be assessed previously. In the present study, a high-resolution microCT was used to evaluate the long-term effect of OPG gene deprivation on the mineralization and morphology of mouse tooth. Our results showed that the mineralization of alveolar bone in OPG(-/-) mouse tooth was decreased while those of enamel and dentin were increased, compared with the wild-type (WT) group. The labial and lingual dentin thicknesses of OPG(-/-) group were significantly higher and with larger area in enamel and dentin than those of WT group. The size of pulp chamber was also substantially decreased in OPG(-/-) mouse incisor. Different responses in mineralization and morphogenesis to OPG gene deprivation were found between bone and tooth. These effects may be independent of the early odontogenesis, and further studies are warranted to investigate the molecular mechanism of the effect of OPG gene expression on bone formation and later tooth development.

Clinical significance of Fas and FasL protein expression in gastric carcinoma and local lymph node tissues.

AIM: To investigate the relation of Fas and Fas ligand (FasL) protein expression with carcinogenesis and metastasis of gastric carcinoma. METHODS: Immunohistochemistry was used to detect Fas and FasL protein expression in 64 gastric carcinoma tissue samples and 20 normal gastric tissue samples. Relation between FasL and Fas expression, age and gender of gastric cancer patients, and pathological subtype and lymph node metastasis of gastric cancer was analyzed. RESULTS: The Fas expression level was significantly higher in normal gastric tissue samples than in gastric carcinoma tissue samples (85.0% vs 25.0%, P < 0.001), while the FasL expression level was significantly lower in normal gastric tissue samples than in gastric carcinoma tissue samples (30.0% vs 81.3%, P < 0.001). The Fas expression level was significantly higher in invasive lymph nodes than in non-invasive lymph nodes (82.9% vs 56.5%, P < 0.003) and in well-differentiated gastric carcinoma tissue samples than in poorly-differentiated gastric carcinoma tissue samples (50.0% vs 18.0%, P = 0.015). The FasL expression level was significantly lower in well-differentiated gastric carcinoma tissue samples than in poorly- differentiated gastric carcinoma tissue samples (42.9% vs 84.0%, P = 0.021). The Fas and FasL expression levels (25.0% and 81.3%) were significantly different in gastric carcinoma tissue samples (P < 0.001), but had a non-linear correlation (P = 0.575). CONCLUSION: Abnormal Fas and FasL expressions in gastric carcinoma and lymph node tissues are involved in carcinogenesis and metastasis of gastric cancer.

Thyroid teratoma in an 11-month-old infant.

We report a case of congenital benign thyroid teratoma in an 11-month-old male infant who was found to have right thyroid gland mass since birth. The tumor was 25 x 20 x 15 mm with whole thin capsule and could be easily dissected from the surrounding normal thyroid tissue at surgery. Histologically, tumor had mature derivatives of the three primordial germ layers with a variety of benign and well-differentiated elements. It was the most conspicuous feature that the tumor was composed mainly of the neurological tissue resembling brain tissue with glial cells and ependymal epithelium components. There were a few anastomosing variably sized tubules and cysts lined by ependymal epithelial cells with papillary feature and retinal pigment epithelial cells. In summary, benign teratoma of thyroid gland in an 11-month-old infant was morphologically and immunophenotypically identified.

Glial choristoma of the tongue: report of a case and review of the literature.

Glial choristoma of the tongue is an extremely rare developmental malformation. The authors report a case of a 5-month-old male baby with a congenital glial choristoma located on the posterior part of midline of the left dorsal tongue. Histological examination of the resected specimen revealed a poorly demarcated submucosal mass containing neuroglial tissue, scattered neuron, choroids plexus and ependyma. In addition to neuroglial tissue, a sheet of leptomeningeal tissue was observed more rarely in the case. The clinical and pathological characteristics of previous cases and their probable embryogenesis were also reviewed.

[Expression of VEGF-C and angiogenesis, and lymphangiogenesis in papillary thyroid carcinoma].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor C (VEGF-C) and angiogenesis and lymphangiogenesis in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). METHODS: Seventy-two PTC cases were divided into 3 groups according to the level of invasion: papillary microcarcinoma group (PMC group), intrathyroid carcinoma group (IPC group), and extrathyroid carcinoma group (EPC group). They were again divided into 2 groups according to lymph node metastasis: lymph node metastasis group and lymph node no-metastasis group. The expressions of VEGF-C, CD105 and vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-3 (VEGFR-3) were detected by SP method of immunohistochemical staining. The expression of VEGF-C was analyzed quantitatively by image analysis system, and the PI of VEGF-C (VEGF-C-PI), the number of MVD (microvessel density), and LVD (lymphaticvessel density) were obtained. RESULTS: The VEGF-C-PI of lymph node metastasis group (23.15 +/- 3.75) was higher than that of lymph node non-metastasis group (14.54 +/- 2.93) (P <0.01). MVD was 35.25 +/- 2.06 in the PMC group, 41.75 +/- 5.46 in the IPC group, and 52.58 +/- 4.16 in the EPC group, which showed the elevatory tendency with the increase of invasion (P < 00.5). LVD was 6.00 +/- 0.81 in the PMC group, 13.80 +/- 1.81 in the IPC group, and 19.17 +/- 2.96 in the EPC group, which again showed the elevatory tendency with the increase of invasion (P <0.05). The LVD of lymph node metastasis group (19.56 +/- 2.45) was significantly higher than that of lymph node non-metastasis group (12.48 +/- 2.84) (P < 0.05). VEGF-C was positively correlated with MVD and LVD (r = 0.743, 0.90, P <0.01). CONCLUSION: The expressions of VEGF-C and LVD are related to lymph node metastasis of PTC. MVD and LVD are related to the invasion of PTC. VEGF-C may play an important role in the angiogenesis and lymphangiogenesis.

[Expression and clinical significance of MMP-2, MMP-9,TIMP-1, and TIMP-2 in breast carcinoma].

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE: Expression imbalance between matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and tissue inhibitors of matrix metalloproteinases (TIMPs) play pivotal roles in tumor invasion and metastasis. But little is known about the correlation between their expression and breast cancer prognosis. The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of MMP-2, MMP-9, TIMP-1, and TIMP-2 in breast carcinomas and to seek their relationship with breast cancer invasion, metastasis, and prognosis. METHODS: Sixty-six patients of breast cancer with clinical features and survival data were enrolled. The mRNA expression of TIMP-2, MMP-2 were determined using in situ hybridization. The protein expression of MMP-2, MMP-9, TIMP-1, and TIMP-2 were determined using immunohistochemistry. The results were analyzed using chi-square test, Kaplan-Meier method, and Cox multivariate regression analysis. RESULTS: The positive expression rates of TIMP-2 mRNA, MMP-2 mRNA and MMP-2, MMP-9, TIMP-1, and TIMP-2 protein were 66.7% (44/66), 65.2% (43/66) and 71.2% (47/66), 68.2% (45/66), 40.9% (27/66), 69.7% (46/66), respectively. The expression of MMP-2 protein had positive correlation with those of MMP-2 mRNA and MMP-9 protein(P< 0.01). The expression of TIMP-2 mRNA had positive correlation with that of TIMP-2 protein. Negative correlation between expression of TIMP-1 protein and MMP-9 protein was found (P< 0.01). Overexpression of MMP-2 and MMP-9 protein were higher in breast cancers with lymph node metastases than those without lymph node metastases, whereas TIMP-2 mRNA and TIMP-1 protein expression were lower in breast cancers with lymph node metastases than those without lymph node metastases (P< 0.05). MMP-2 mRNA and MMP-9 protein were positively associated with the tumor size and shortened survival time(P< 0.05, P< 0.01). Increased expression of MMP-9 protein was correlated with high TNM classification(P< 0.01). The patients of menopause and ER negative expression had higher expression of MMP-2 mRNA (P< 0.05). Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that MMP-2 mRNA, MMP-2 and MMP-9 proteins were linked with unfavorable prognosis(P< 0.01,P< 0.05). CONCLUSION: Overexpression of MMP-2, MMP-9 and expression imbalance between MMP-9 and TIMP-1 protein might play critical roles in degradation of extracellular matrix to enhance the invasive and metastatic capacity of breast cancer. MMP-2 protein might be applied as an independent prognostic indicator for primary breast cancer.