Endometrial pneumatosis (emphysematous endometritis).

Endometrial pneumatosis, also referred to as pneumopolycystic or emphysematous endometritis, is a rare condition reported only twice previously in the literature and only once as an isolated finding. We report a case of endometrial pneumatosis in a 43-yr-old patient who underwent hysterectomy and bilateral salpingectomy for treatment of a symptomatic uterine leiomyoma. No predisposing factors towards pneumatosis were identified and in particular there was no evidence of immune impairment, diabetes mellitus, uterine infection, or prior surgical intervention. Endometrial pneumatosis remains an enigmatic condition of uncertain etiology but it appears to be self-limited with no known pathologic sequelae.

Effect of Metal Chelators on γ-Secretase Indicates That Calcium and Magnesium Ions Facilitate Cleavage of Alzheimer Amyloid Precursor Substrate.

Gamma-secretase is involved in the production of Aß amyloid peptides. It cleaves the transmembrane domain of the amyloid precursor protein (APP) at alternative sites to produce Aß and the APP intracellular domain (AICD). Metal ions play an important role in Aß aggregation and metabolism, thus metal chelators and ligands represent potential therapeutic agents for AD treatment. A direct effect of metal chelators on γ-secretase has not yet been investigated. The authors used an in vitro γ-secretase assay consisting of cleavage of APP C100-3XFLAG by endogenous γ-secretase from rodent brains and human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y, and detected AICD production by western blotting. Adding metalloprotease inhibitors to the reaction showed that clioquinol, phosphoramidon, and zinc metalloprotease inhibitors had no significant effect on γ-secretase activity. In contrast, phenanthroline, EDTA, and EGTA markedly decreased γ-secretase activity that could be restored by adding back calcium and magnesium ions. Mg(2+) stabilized a 1,000 kDa presenilin 1 complex through blue native gel electrophoresis and size-exclusion chromatography. Data suggest that Ca(2+) and Mg(2+) stabilize γ-secretase and enhance its activity.