[Probable toxic shock syndrome following pleural drainage].

Toxic shock syndrome (TSS) is rare complication after minor surgical procedure. A 22-year-old man was admitted our hospital with spontaneous pneumothorax on the right side. Few days after pleural drainage, he developed a high fever often over 40 degrees C and a rash, most demonstrating a truncal, "sunburn" pattern. Initially, he was diagnosed as right pylothorax, but the clinical course was not typical and antibiotic treatment was not effective. Two weeks later, desquamation of the hands and feet were noted, and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolated from the pleural effusion were identified as TSS toxin (TSST)-1 and enterotoxin-C producing. He was diagnosed as probable TSS, and recovered by steroid therapy. Early awareness and recognition of this disease is necessary for surgeons.

Morphological and biochemical studies of human beta-mannosidosis: identification of a novel beta-mannosidase gene mutation.

BACKGROUND: There are seven well-known lysosomal storage diseases that produce angiokeratoma corporis diffusum clinically. beta-Mannosidosis (MANB1; OMIM248510), first reported in humans in 1986, is a rare hereditary lysosomal storage disease caused by a deficiency of the enzyme beta-mannosidase. Since then, 13 cases of beta-mannosidase deficiency in ten families have been described. A human beta-mannosidase mutation has been reported only by Alkhayat et al. in 1998. OBJECTIVES: To clarify its pathogenesis we did electron microscopic, biochemical and molecular biological investigations of a Japanese patient with beta-mannosidosis. METHODS: Ultrastructural analyses, enzyme assays, cell culture and mRNA and genomic DNA were sequenced to find mutations in the beta-mannosidase gene. RESULTS: Electron microscopy of skin biopsy specimens from the patient showed cytoplasmic vacuolation of lysosomes in blood and lymph vessels, endothelial cells, fibroblasts, secretory portions of eccrine sweat glands, neural cells and basal keratinocytes in the epidermis. This vacuolation was also observed in cultured keratinocytes and fibroblasts. Assays of seven enzyme activities in plasma and cultured skin fibroblasts showed a marked decrease of beta-mannosidase activity. Sequencing the beta-mannosidase cDNA revealed a four-base (ATAA) insertion between exons 7 and 8, resulting in a frameshift at codon 321 and termination at codon 325. Analysis of the patient's genomic DNA revealed a novel homozygous A(+1)-->G splice site mutation in intron 7. CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, this is the first case of beta-mannosidosis reported in Japan and the second report in which a gene mutation is identified. The biological importance of beta-mannose moieties in glycoproteins in basal keratinocytes is suggested.

A case of erythema elevatum diutinum associated with B-cell lymphoma: a rare distribution involving palms, soles and nails.

We report a case of erythema elevatum diutinum (EED) in association with malignant B-cell lymphoma. A 62-year-old man developed EED with an unusual distribution involving the palms, soles and nails. Treatment with dapsone was effective for his skin and nails until he developed generalized lymphadenopathy which turned out to be malignant lymphoma. Many haematological diseases, e.g. IgA paraproteinaemia and myeloma, have been reported in association with EED, but not malignant lymphoma. Even though it may just be a coincidence, we would like to add malignant lymphoma as one of the diseases associated with EED because the activity of EED and malignant lymphoma fluctuated in parallel.

Nodular localized cutaneous amyloidosis: further demonstration of monoclonality of infiltrating plasma cells in four additional Japanese patients.

Nodular localized cutaneous amyloidosis (NLCA) is a disorder characterized by deposition of amyloid derived from immunoglobulin light chains. We used semi-nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to analyse archival paraffin-embedded sections from a previous patient and from four additional, previously reported patients with NLCA to determine whether involvement of monoclonal plasma cells is a universal feature of this condition. The semi-nested PCR analysis revealed one or two amplified bands, around 100-120 bp, for all five cases of NLCA, although the yields varied from case to case. These results suggest that clonal expansion of plasma cells in NLCA may occur locally.

Eosinophilic pustular folliculitis (Ofuji's disease). Immunohistochemical analysis.

BACKGROUND: Eosinophilic pustular folliculitis is a distinctive dermatosis that was first described in Japan. Although the histopathologic feature of eosinophilic pustular folliculitis is characterized by follicular infiltrates with numerous eosinophils, its pathophysiology remains unclear. The lesional skin of five patients with eosinophilic pustular folliculitis was examined using several monoclonal antibodies including a variety of anti-leukocyte adhesion molecules: endothelial cell adhesion molecule 1, vascular cell adhesion molecule 1, and intercellular adhesion molecule 1, by means of immunohistochemical techniques. OBSERVATION: Intercellular adhesion molecule 1 expression by keratinocytes was observed on follicular epithelium, but not on epidermis. The migration of eosinophils and lymphocytes, which were intensely positive for antilymphocyte function-associated antigen 1, was limited to follicular epithelium. Endothelial cell adhesion molecule 1 and vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 expression of vascular endothelium was more often observed around hair follicles. There was no reactivity for interleukin 8 in follicular epithelium. CONCLUSIONS: These findings may explain the selective migration of eosinophils and lymphocytes to the hair follicles in eosinophilic pustular folliculitis.

Placental glutathione-S-transferase-pi mRNA is abundantly expressed in human skin.

Four overlapping cDNA clones were isolated from a lambda gt11 human placenta cDNA library using purified human IgG antibody, from a patient with bullous pemphigoid. The sequence was homologous to human placenta glutathione-S-transferase-pi (GST-pi). Using the placenta clone, epidermal cDNA clones were isolated from a human keratinocyte library. Expression of GST-pi mRNA in human skin, cultured keratinocytes and fibroblasts, and disorders of squamous hyperplasia was demonstrated by Northern blotting and in situ hybridization. Human epidermal and placental cDNA clones hybridized to the same genomic DNA fragments. Hybridization of placental cDNA to interspecific somatic cell hybrids showed retention of chromosome 11, confirming the assignment of GST 3 to the long arm of chromosome 11 by molecular means. Anti-GST-pi antibody did not give a basement membrane zone pattern, although some normal and BP sera contained antibodies to GST-pi. Human skin expresses glutathione-S-transferase-pi, which belongs to an enzyme family important for detoxification and carcinogenesis.