From Molecular Mechanisms to Clinical Therapy: Understanding Sepsis-Induced Multiple Organ Dysfunction.

Sepsis-induced multiple organ dysfunction arises from the highly complex pathophysiology encompassing the interplay of inflammation, oxidative stress, endothelial dysfunction, mitochondrial damage, cellular energy failure, and dysbiosis. Over the past decades, numerous studies have been dedicated to elucidating the underlying molecular mechanisms of sepsis in order to develop effective treatments. Current research underscores liver and cardiac dysfunction, along with acute lung and kidney injuries, as predominant causes of mortality in sepsis patients. This understanding of sepsis-induced organ failure unveils potential therapeutic targets for sepsis treatment. Various novel therapeutics, including melatonin, metformin, palmitoylethanolamide (PEA), certain herbal extracts, and gut microbiota modulators, have demonstrated efficacy in different sepsis models. In recent years, the research focus has shifted from anti-inflammatory and antioxidative agents to exploring the modulation of energy metabolism and gut microbiota in sepsis. These approaches have shown a significant impact in preventing multiple organ damage and mortality in various animal sepsis models but require further clinical investigation. The accumulation of this knowledge enriches our understanding of sepsis and is anticipated to facilitate the development of effective therapeutic strategies in the future.

Effects of salt and stress on blood pressure parameters and antioxidant enzyme function in the heart and aorta of borderline hypertensive rats.

NEW FINDINGS: What is the central question of this study? Although the involvement of reactive oxidative species in triggering hypertension has been documented, there are no data about the role of antioxidant enzymes in the heart and aorta of borderline hypertensive rats kept in baseline conditions or exposed to high salt with or without repeated stress. What is the main finding and its importance? In borderline hypertensive rats, high salt intake and stress contribute significantly to increase blood pressure and antioxidative defence in the aorta but decrease it in the heart. Elucidating the early changes that accompany elevated blood pressure could provide new therapeutical venues for prevention and treatment of the condition. ABSTRACT: Hypertension and its complications are a leading cause of death in the human population. Several factors can contribute to development of hypertension, such as genetic predisposition, high salt intake and environmental stressors, underlying oxidative stress as one of its key trademarks. We studied the effects of increased salt intake and chronic stress on blood pressure parameters and the activity and protein levels of antioxidant enzymes in the heart and aorta of borderline hypertensive rats (BHRs) with genetic susceptibility to hypertension. All animals were randomized into four groups: (1) Wistar rats kept in baseline conditions; (2) BHRs kept in baseline conditions; (3) BHRs drinking 0.9% saline solution; and (4) BHRs drinking 0.9% saline solution and exposed to repeated heterotypic stress. The BHRs exhibited significantly higher blood pressure, mitochondrial superoxide dismutase (SOD2) and catalase (CAT) protein levels and lower glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and glutathione reductase (GR) activities in the aorta, followed by lower CAT and GPx protein levels and higher CAT and GR activities in the heart, compared with normotensive Wistar rats. In the BHR aorta, high salt intake elevated CAT and GPx activities, and when combined with stress it increased GPx and GR activities. In BHR hearts, high salt intake provoked lower CAT activity. Adding repeated stress to salt treatment further decreased CAT activity, in addition to Cu2+ -Zn2+ superoxide dismutase (SOD1) and GR activities. The protein level of CAT was lower, whereas SOD2 and GPx increased. Overall, our results suggest that BHR hearts are better adapted to oxidative pressure, compared with the aorta, when exposed to salt and stress.

Serum High-Mobility Group Box 1 and Heme Oxygenase-1 as Biomarkers in COVID-19 Patients at Hospital Admission.

The careful monitoring of patients with mild/moderate COVID-19 is of particular importance because of the rapid progression of complications associated with COVID-19. For prognostic reasons and for the economic management of health care resources, additional biomarkers need to be identified, and their monitoring can conceivably be performed in the early stages of the disease. In this retrospective cross-sectional study, we found that serum concentrations of high-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), at the time of hospital admission, could be useful biomarkers for COVID-19 management. The study included 160 randomly selected recovered patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 on admission. Compared with healthy controls, serum HMGB1 and HO-1 levels increased by 487.6 pg/mL versus 43.1 pg/mL and 1497.7 pg/mL versus 756.1 pg/mL, respectively. Serum HO-1 correlated significantly with serum HMGB1, oxidative stress parameters (malondialdehyde (MDA), the phosphatidylcholine/lysophosphatidylcholine ratio (PC/LPC), the ratio of reduced and oxidative glutathione (GSH/GSSG)), and anti-inflammatory acute phase proteins (ferritin, haptoglobin). Increased heme catabolism/hemolysis were not detected. We hypothesize that the increase in HO-1 in the early phase of COVID-19 disease is likely to have a survival benefit by providing protection against oxidative stress and inflammation, whereas the level of HMGB1 increase reflects the activity of the innate immune system and represents levels within which the disease can be kept under control.

The Effects of a Meldonium Pre-Treatment on the Course of the LPS-Induced Sepsis in Rats.

A dysregulated and overwhelming response to an infection accompanied by the exaggerated pro-inflammatory state and metabolism disturbance leads to the fatal outcome in sepsis. Previously we showed that meldonium, an anti-ischemic drug clinically used to treat myocardial and cerebral ischemia, strongly increases mortality in faecal-induced peritonitis (FIP) in rats. We postulated that the same mechanism that is responsible for the otherwise strong anti-inflammatory effects of meldonium could be the culprit of the increased mortality. In the present study, we applied the LPS-induced model of sepsis to explore the presence of any differences from and/or similarities to the FIP model. When it comes to energy production, despite some shared similarities, it is evident that LPS and FIP models of sepsis differ greatly. A different profile of sympathoadrenal activation may account for this observation, as it was lacking in the FIP model, whereas in the LPS model it was strong enough to overcome the effects of meldonium. Therefore, choosing the appropriate model of sepsis induction is of great importance, especially if energy homeostasis is the main focus of the study. Even when differences in the experimental design of the two models are acknowledged, the role of different patterns of energy production cannot be excluded. On that account, our results draw attention to the importance of uninterrupted energy production in sepsis but also call for much-needed revisions of the current recommendations for its treatment.

Static magnetic field on behavior, hematological parameters and organ damage in spontaneously hypertensive rats.

Previous studies showed contradictory results of static magnetic field (SMF) influence on behavior, hematological parameters and organ damage. The aim of this study was to investigate influence of subchronic continuous exposure to upward and downward oriented SMF of moderate intensity on behavior, hematological characteristics, heart and kidney tissue of spontaneously hypertensive rats. SH rats exposed to downward oriented SMF demonstrated lack of anxious-like behavior. SMF of either orientation caused decrease in the number of platelets in peripheral blood, granulocytes in the spleen and bone marrow and increase in the number of erythrocytes in the spleen, in both exposed groups. We also demonstrated that spontaneously hypertensive rats exposed to upward oriented SMF exhibited decreased lymphocytes count in blood, decreased bone marrow erythrocytes count and rats exposed to downward oriented SMF had increased lymphocytes count in bone marrow. The results showed adverse effect of differently oriented SMF on hematological parameters of spontaneously hypertensive rats. Also, exposure to different oriented SMF didn't affect their heart and kidney morphological characteristics.

The Effects of a Meldonium Pre-Treatment on the Course of the Faecal-Induced Sepsis in Rats.

Sepsis is a life-threatening condition caused by the dysregulated and overwhelming response to infection, accompanied by an exaggerated pro-inflammatory state and lipid metabolism disturbance leading to sequential organ failure. Meldonium is an anti-ischemic and anti-inflammatory agent which negatively interferes with lipid metabolism by shifting energy production from fatty acid oxidation to glycolysis, as a less oxygen-demanding pathway. Thus, we investigated the effects of a four-week meldonium pre-treatment on faecal-induced sepsis in Sprague-Dawley male rats. Surprisingly, under septic conditions, meldonium increased animal mortality rate compared with the meldonium non-treated group. However, analysis of the tissue oxidative status did not provide support for the detrimental effects of meldonium, nor did the analysis of the tissue inflammatory status showing anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic, and anti-necrotic effects of meldonium. After performing tissue lipidomic analysis, we concluded that the potential cause of the meldonium harmful effect is to be found in the overall decreased lipid metabolism. The present study underlines the importance of uninterrupted energy production in sepsis, closely drawing attention to the possible harmful effects of lipid-mobilization impairment caused by certain therapeutics. This could lead to the much-needed revision of the existing guidelines in the clinical treatment of sepsis while paving the way for discovering new therapeutic approaches.

Cardiovascular variability and ß-ARs gene expression at two stages of doxorubicin - Induced cardiomyopathy.

Using comprehensive analysis of heart rate (HRV) and blood pressure (BPV) short-term variability we estimated the time course of changes of autonomic nervous system remodeling in two stages of doxorubicin-induced cardiomyopathy (DCM). We also investigated the level of gene expression of cardiac ß-1 (ß-1AR) and ß-2 (ß-2AR) adrenoceptors. Experiments were performed in adult male Wistar rats equipped with indwelling catheters for BP recording and blood withdrawal. A 15 mg/kg total cumulative dose of doxorubicin was injected i.p. to rats to induce DCM or saline for control (n=18). Rats were assessed for general toxicity, cardiovascular hemodynamic and echocardiography before treatment (n=6), 35 days (DOX35; n=6) and 70 days (DOX70; n=6) post-treatment. HRV was evaluated by spectral analysis, Poincaré plots, sample and approximate entropy. Expression of ß-1AR and ß-2AR mRNA was evaluated by RT-qPCR. Doxorubicin-treated rats exhibited poor general condition and lower survival than saline-treated rats. In DOX35 rats, there were no echocardiography signs of decompensation, no increase in serum cardiac troponins, but there was an increase of HRV and decrease of HR complexity. In these rats typical microscopic signs of cardiotoxicity were seen along with over-expression of ß-1AR mRNA. 70 days post-treatment echocardiography revealed signs of decompensation and serum cardiac troponin T was increased. At this stage BPV decreased. In conclusion, HRV increase matches transient over-expression of cardiac ß-1AR mRNA in compensate stage of DCM while decompensate stage of DCM is characterized by a decrease of BPV and no changes in ß-1AR and ß-2AR gene expression.

Near-Infrared Activatable Phthalocyanine-Poly-L-Glutamic Acid Conjugate: Enhanced in Vivo Safety and Antitumor Efficacy toward an Effective Photodynamic Cancer Therapy.

We previously developed a new zinc(II) phthalocyanine (ZnPc) derivative (Pc 1) conjugated to poly-L-glutamic acid (PGA) (1-PG) to address the limitations of ZnPc as part of an antitumor photodynamic therapy approach, which include hydrophobicity, phototoxicity, and nonselectivity in biodistribution and tumor targeting. During this study, we discovered that 1-PG possessed high near-infrared (NIR) light absorptivity (λmax = 675 nm), good singlet oxygen generation efficiency in an aqueous environment, and enhanced photocytotoxic efficacy and cancer cell uptake in vitro. In the current study, we discovered that 1-PG accumulated in 4T1 mouse mammary tumors, with a retention time of up to 48 h. Furthermore, as part of an antitumor PDT, low dose 1-PG (2 mg of Pc 1 equivalent/kg) induced a greater tumor volume reduction (-74 ± 5%) when compared to high dose ZnPc (8 mg/kg, -50 ± 12%). At higher treatment doses (8 mg of Pc 1 equivalent/kg), 1-PG reduced tumor volume maximally (-91 ± 6%) and suppressed tumor size to a minimal level for up to 15 days. The kidney, liver, and lungs of the mice treated with 1-PG (both low and high doses) were free from 4T1 tumor metastasis at the end of the study. Telemetry-spectral-echocardiography studies also revealed that PGA (65 mg/kg) produced insignificant changes to the cardiovascular physiology of Wistar-Kyoto rats when administered in vivo. Results indicate that PGA displays an excellent cardiovascular safety profile, underlining its suitability for application as a nanodrug carrier in vivo. These current findings indicate the potential of 1-PG as a useful photosensitizer candidate for clinical PDT.

Cardiac haemangioma associated with a duct-dependent congenital heart disease in a newborn infant.

Cardiac haemangiomas are exceedingly rare; however, they can cause significant haemodynamic impairment and disturbances in heart rhythm. Rarely, cardiac tumours may also coexist with congenital heart lesions. We present an extremely unusual case of a cardiac haemangioma in the setting of complex transposition of the great arteries that caused functional tricuspid atresia. To our knowledge, this is the first such case described in the literature.

Clinicopathological characteristics and survival in Serbian patients with renal cell carcinoma: a retrospective analysis.

PURPOSE: Indications of kidney cancer outcome in lowerincome countries are based on an incidence/mortality ratio due to lack of survival information. This study was conducted to provide outcome data in Serbian patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and to identify prognostic factors that could affect their overall survival (OS). METHODS: This retrospective study included 185 patients who underwent nephrectomy. We assessed certain clinicopathological data including age, gender, tumor size, grade, stage and histological subtypes for their possible impact on OS. RESULTS: The 5-year OS was 63.2%. Significant association was found between OS and age (log-rank 12.455, p=0.006), tumor size (log-rank 26.425, p=0.000), grade (log-rank 13.249, p=0.000) and stage (log-rank 43.235, p=0.000). Univariate analysis indicated size (p=0.000), grade (p=0.001) and stage (p=0.000) as prognostic factors for OS. In multivariate analysis, grade (p=0.014) and stage (p=0.000) remained significant predictors of OS. CONCLUSION: Tumor grade and stage were identified as independent prognostic factors of OS survival in Serbian patients with RCC.

Immunohistochemical expression of caspases 9 and 3 in adenoid cystic carcinoma of salivary glands and association with clinicopathological parameters.

PURPOSE: Adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) is one of the most common malignant salivary gland tumors. It is characterized by a high rate of recurrence, perineural invasion and development of distant metastases many years after removal of the primary tumor. Disorders of the induction of apoptosis and its cascade reactions where caspases are involved may be significant in the pathogenesis of this tumor. METHODS: The immunohistochemical expression of caspase 9 and caspase 3 was analyzed by tissue microarray (TMA) in 50 cases of ACC in relation with different clinicopathological parameters (gender, age, localization, histological type and overall survival). RESULTS: Caspase 9 was expressed in the cytoplasm and nuclei of ACC tumor cells with varying degrees of staining intensity (1+, 6%; 2+, 54%, 3+, 40%). Comparison of caspase 9 expression in tumor cells with clinicopathological parameters (gender, age, localization, histological type and overall survival) showed no statistically significant difference except that the expression was more pronounced in females. Caspase 3 was expressed in the cytoplasm of tumor cells with varying degrees of staining intensity (1+, 22%; 2+, 36%; 3+, 42%). No correlation between the expression of caspase 3 and clinicopathological parameters was noticed. CONCLUSIONS: The expression of caspases 9 and 3 in ACC of the salivary glands can contribute in the better characterization of molecules involved in apoptosis of tumor cells.

Multidrug-Resistant Profiles in Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma Patient-Derived Cells: Implications for Personalized Approaches with Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors.

The impact of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) on multidrug resistance (MDR) in non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) is a critical aspect of cancer therapy. While TKIs effectively target specific signaling pathways of cancer cells, they can also act as substrates for ABC transporters, potentially triggering MDR. The aim of our study was to evaluate the response of 17 patient-derived NSCLC cultures to 10 commonly prescribed TKIs and to correlate these responses with patient mutational profiles. Using an ex vivo immunofluorescence assay, we analyzed the expression of the MDR markers ABCB1, ABCC1, and ABCG2, and correlated these data with the genetic profiles of patients for a functional diagnostic approach. NSCLC cultures responded differently to TKIs, with erlotinib showing good efficacy regardless of mutation burden or EGFR status. However, the modulation of MDR mechanisms by erlotinib, such as increased ABCG2 expression, highlights the challenges associated with erlotinib treatment. Other TKIs showed limited efficacy, highlighting the variability of response in NSCLC. Genetic alterations in signaling pathways associated with drug resistance and sensitivity, including TP53 mutations, likely contributed to the variable responses to TKIs. The relationships between ABC transporter expression, gene alterations, and response to TKIs did not show consistent patterns. Our results suggest that in addition to mutational status, performing functional sensitivity screening is critical for identifying appropriate treatment strategies with TKIs. These results underscore the importance of considering drug sensitivity, off-target effects, MDR risks, and patient-specific genetic profiles when optimizing NSCLC treatment and highlight the potential for personalized approaches, especially in early stages.

Comparable Toxicity of Surface-Modified TiO2 Nanoparticles: An In Vivo Experimental Study on Reproductive Toxicity in Rats.

Nanoparticles (NPs), a distinct class of particles ranging in size from 1 to 100 nm, are one of the most promising technologies of the 21st century, and titanium dioxide NPs (TiO2 NPs) are among the most widely produced and used NPs globally. The increased application of TiO2 NPs raises concerns regarding their global safety and risks of exposure. Many animal studies have reported the accumulation of TiO2 NPs in female reproductive organs; however, evidence of the resultant toxicity remains ambiguous. Since the surface area and chemical modifications of NPs can significantly change their cytotoxicity, we aimed to compare the toxic effects of pristine TiO2 powder with surface-modified TiO2 powders with salicylic acid (TiO2/SA) and 5-aminosalicylic acid (TiO2/5-ASA) on the ovaries, oviducts, and uterus on the 14th day following acute oral treatment. The results, based on alterations in food and water intake, body mass, organ-to-body mass ratio, hormonal status, histological features of tissues of interest, and antioxidant parameters, suggest that the modification with 5-ASA can mitigate some of the observed toxic effects of TiO2 powder and encourage future investigations to create NPs that can potentially reduce the harmful effects of TiO2 NPs while preserving their positive impacts.

Raman microspectroscopy as a biomarking tool for in vitro diagnosis of cancer: a feasibility study.

AIM: To elucidate whether Raman spectroscopy aided by extensive spectral database and neural network analysis can be a fast and confident biomarking tool for the diagnosis of various types of cancer. METHODS: Study included 27 patients with 11 different malignant tumors. Using Raman microscopy (RM) a total of 540 Raman spectra were recorded from histology specimens of both tumors and surrounding healthy tissues. Spectra were analyzed using the principal component analysis (PCA) and results, along with histopathology data, were used to train the neural network (NN) learning algorithm. Independent sets of spectra were used to test the accuracy of PCA/NN tissue classification. RESULTS: The confident tumor identification for the purpose of medical diagnosis has to be performed by taking into account the whole spectral shape, and not only particular spectral bands. The use of PCA/NN analysis showed overall sensitivity of 96% with 4% false negative tumor classification. The specificity of distinguishing tumor types was 80%. These results are comparable to previously published data where tumors of only one tissue type were examined and can be regarded satisfactorily for a relatively small database of Raman spectra used here. CONCLUSION: In vitro RM combined with PCA/NN is an almost fully automated method for histopathology at the level of macromolecules. Supported by an extensive tumor spectra database, it could become a customary histological analysis tool for fast and reliable diagnosis of different types of cancer in clinical settings.

Paroxetine mitigates cardiac remodelling by doxorubicin and increases survival.

Doxorubicin (DOX) is an effective anticancer drug. However, its use is hampered by the development of very mortal cardiomyopathy. Here, we investigate whether the co-administration of the antidepressant paroxetine (P), known to exert beneficial cardiovascular effects, would provide effective cardioprotection. Experiments were performed in male Wistar rats randomly assigned to control group (0.5 mL/kg 0.9% NaCl, i.v., n = 7), DOX group (DOX 5 mg /kg i.v., n = 23) and DOX+P group (DOX 5 mg/kg, i.v. plus P 10 mg/kg p.o. daily, beginning five days before DOX administration and during the follow-up period, n = 11). Rats' body weight and echocardiography parameters were monitored before and after drug/vehicle administration. Cardiac histology was performed post-mortem, as well as beta1-adrenergic receptor (ß1-AR), beta2-adrenergic receptor (ß2-AR), G protein-coupled receptor kinases type 2 (GRK2), type 3 (GRK3), beta-arrestin 1, and beta-arrestin 2 gene expression using RT-qPCR. DOX-treated rats exhibited bad general condition, adynamia, loss of body weight, and low survival. Echocardiography revealed two phenotypes: cardiomyopathy with left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy (DOX-HCM) and cardiomyopathy with LV dilation (DOX-DCM). In DOX-HCM rats only, there was an increased GRK2 and GRK3 gene expression and synthesis. DOX+P co-treated rats exhibited good general condition, normal spontaneous behaviour, gained weight over time, had increased survival, and preserved LV morphology and contractility. In these rats, gene expression and synthesis of GRK2 and GRK3 were decreased, while ß1-AR and ß2-AR were increased. Present results show for the first time that P effectively reduces DOX-induced cardiotoxicity and enhances survival.

Immunohistochemical expression of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors p16 and p57 in rhabdomyosarcoma.

Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is a highly malignant cancer and is the most common soft tissue sarcoma in children and adolescents, but it is rare in adults (<1% of all adult malignancies). Altered expression and molecular abnormalities of cell-cycle-regulatory proteins are one of the most prominent features in RMS. Therefore, we evaluated the expression of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors p57 and p16, as well as p16 methylation status, along with clinicopathological characteristics and overall survival (OS) in RMS patients. This analysis was conducted on 23 pediatric and 44 adult patients. There was a male predominance in both groups and extremities were the most frequent tumor site. In adults, alveolar and pleomorphic types were almost equally represented. The majority of pediatric tumors were low grade, whereas, in adults, only one patient had a low-grade tumor. Seven pediatric (30.43%) and eight adult (18.18%) patients had a low p16 expression. The analysis of methylation status of the p16 promoter showed the presence of methylated allele only in one sample with pleomorphic histology. Six (26.1%) pediatric and 15 (34.1%) adult patients had low p57 expression, while in 17 (73.9%) pediatric and 29 (65.9%) adult patients it was assessed as high. Ninetyone percent of the pediatric patients and 32.6% of adults were alive at the end of the observational period. In adults, significant associations were found between OS and age (P = 0.020), gender (P = 0.027), tumor size (P < 0.001), lymph node status (P < 0.001), presence of metastases (P = 0.015), and p57 expression (P = 0.039). Stratification by histological type showed the correlation of low p57 expression (P = 0.030) and worse OS of patients with alveolar RMS. Univariate analysis identified age > 50 yrs. (HR 2.447), tumors > 5 cm (HR 21.31), involvement of regional lymph nodes (HR 3.96), the presence of metastases (HR 2.53), and low p57 expression (HR 2.11) as predictors of lower OS. Tumor size, regional lymph nodes involvement, and metastases were the independent predictors after multivariate analysis, while p57 did not predict OS in an independent way. In summary, although p57 was not confirmed to be an independent predictor of OS, our results indicate that its low expression may be the marker of aggressive phenotype and poor prognosis in adult RMS patients. Also, our findings suggest that epigenetic inactivation of p16 is not important in the pathogenesis of rhabdomyosarcoma.

Immunohistochemical analysis of cyclin A expression in Wilms tumor.

BACKGROUND: Cyclin A overexpression is found in a variety of human tumors and correlates with unfavorable outcome. We analyzed immunohistochemical expression of cyclin A in Wilms tumor (WT) in relation to clinicopathological characteristics, preoperative chemotherapy (PrOpChTh), and overall survival (OS). METHODS: This retrospective study involved 43 patients who underwent nephrectomy from January 1996 to October 2010. Tumor stage and histological subtype were determined by revised Societé International d'Oncologie Pediatrique protocol, based on histological components/alterations caused by PrOpChTh, within the prognostic group of low, intermediate and high risk, and with criteria for anaplasia. The regressive/necrotic changes in total tumor mass of primary tumor and the proportion of epithelial, blastemal, and stromal components in the remaining viable tumor tissue were also determined. Cyclin A expression was evaluated by immunohistochemistry using a polyclonal rabbit, antihuman antibody (H-432). RESULTS: Cyclin A overexpression was found in 34.3% of WTs, with higher frequency in tumors with epithelial (31.3%) and blastemal (37.1%) components than those with stromal component (17.7%). Regarding histological type, cyclin A overexpression was found most often in focal anaplasia (100%), stromal (60%), and diffuse anaplastic (66.7) WTs. The overexpression was also more frequent in stages 3 and 4 (77.8% and 66.7%, respectively) compared to tumors in stages 1 and 2 (13.3% and 12.5%, respectively; p = 0.004) in all components, as well as in blastemal component in stages 3 and 4 (77.8% and 66.7%, respectively) vs. stages 1 and 2 (13.3% and 25%, respectively, p = 0.009). Cyclin A overexpression in all components was 66.7% in WTs with metastasis and 31.3% in WTs without metastasis (p = 0.265, Fisher test). Log-rank testing revealed differences of OS regarding stage (p = 0.000), prognostic groups (p = 0.001), and cyclin A expression in blastemal component (p = 0.025). After univariate analysis, tumor stage (p = 0.001), prognostic group (p = 0.004), and cyclin A expression in blastemal component (p = 0.042) were significant prognostic factors for OS; however, after multivariate analysis, none of these factors were confirmed as independent predictors of survival. DISCUSSION: This study showed that cyclin A overexpression might be associated with the development and progression of WT with anaplasia. Also, cyclin A overexpression was more often observed in advanced stages (3 and 4) of WT, in the group of high-risk WTs, and in focal and diffuse anaplasia WTs. There was no relation of cyclin A overexpression and metastatic ability of WT. Although this study has not confirmed the prognostic value of cyclin A overexpression, its association with unfavorable prognosis should be further evaluated.

Sensitivity and specificity of ex vivo dermatoscopy: a case series.

BACKGROUND: Sensitivity and specificity of ex vivo dermatoscopy (EVD) for malignancy detection of skin tumors is unknown. We sought to assess whether the use of EVD could be a useful adjunct to histopathological diagnosis of pigmented skin tumors, including cases where complete clinical information is inadequate or missing. MATERIALS AND METHODS: EVD was performed on 195 excised, formalin-fixed pigmented skin tumors. RESULTS: Of 183 eligible lesions, 104 (56.8%) were melanocytic and 79 (43.2%) nonmelanocytic. Overall, 54 (29.5%) were malignant: 10 melanomas, 39 basal cell carcinomas, and five squamous cell carcinomas. Ex vivo images were devoid of red color. The following colors were seen: light and dark brown, grey, blue, black, and white. All structures typical for pigmented melanocytic and nonmelanocytic lesions were observed. In malignant nonmelanocytic lesions, diagnostic accuracy and sensitivity for malignant/benign decision was not better when combining visual assessment and EVD but diagnostic specificity improved by 3.0%. For melanoma, combined diagnostics improved diagnostic accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity for 9.6, 30.0, and 7.5%, respectively. CONCLUSION: For dermatopathologists, EVD offers increased specificity for all categories of tumors and increased diagnostic accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity for melanoma. With EVD view, the dermatopathologist can instantly find areas of interest, thus minimizing the possibility for missing a malignant lesion.