Methodological approach for trace and essential elements assessment in prostate tissue by SRIXE method.

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this contribution is to present and familiarize the medical community with the method for the assessment of trace and essentials elements in prostate tissue sections. MATERIALS AND METHODS: X-ray fluorescence based technique(namely Synchrotron Induced X-ray Emission (SRIXE)) is described in terms of methodology, sample preparation and the evaluation of the recorded results (spectral data sets). Materials for the samples were collected from the patients underwent radical prostatectomy due to Adenocarcinoma prostatae. Specimens were freeze-dried, cut by microtome (to the thickness of 15 µm), one slice was placed on Mylar foil (for SRIXE measurements) and adjacent one on microscopic glass (for histopathological assessment). RESULTS: Results presented here show the usability of SRIXE method for the evaluation of concentration of trace and essential elements in prostate tissue sections with the spatial resolution better than 15 microns. DISCUSSION: Histopathological analysis of samples, which is only focused on morphological features, is unable to reveal information about changes in biochemical signature of tissues affected by the illness. SRIXE is a powerful and promising technique to analyse even very low concentrations oat the cellular level without any labelling or separating procedures. Obtained results may be correlated with classic histopathological assessment allowing for drawing conclusions on the changes in certain elements concentrations with the progression of disease. Moreover, mentioned in this work analysis, can be performed for any type of biological tissues.

Neonatal pinealectomy in rats - a simple micro-suction technique.

To determine the role of the pineal gland and its secretory product melatonin on various aspects of the functioning of the organism, the gland can be easily surgically removed in rats within 18 hours after birth. We performed pinealectomy in rats in a state of deep hypothermia under an operating microscope, using a micro-suction device of our own construction. The rats were induced into a state of suspended animation by placing them in the freezing compartment at minus 20 Celsius degrees. The cessation of respiration and heart beat lasted for about 15 minutes. During that time the pinealectomy was performed. In some cases there was minor hemorrhage that was easily controlled. There were no major side effects or mortality following surgery. All rats recovered within 15 minutes after the end of the procedure. The pinealectomy procedure described in this study is simple, rapid, effective and safe, and can be easily performed with instruments commonly available in most laboratories.

Pre-processing of Fourier transform infrared spectra by means of multivariate analysis implemented in the R environment.

Pre-processing of Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra is typically the first and crucial step in data analysis. Very often hyperspectral datasets include the regions characterized by the spectra of very low intensity, for example two-dimensional (2D) maps where the areas with only support materials (like mylar foil) are present. In that case segmentation of the complete dataset is required before subsequent evaluation. The method proposed in this contribution is based on a multivariate approach (hierarchical cluster analysis), and shows its superiority when compared to the standard method of cutting-off by using only the mean spectral intensity. Both techniques were implemented and their performance was tested in the R statistical environment - open-source platform - that is a favourable solution if the repeatability and transparency are the key aspects.

Performance assessment and beamline diagnostics based on evaluation of temporal information from infrared spectral datasets by means of R Environment for statistical analysis.

Assessment of the performance and up-to-date diagnostics of scientific equipment is one of the key components in contemporary laboratories. Most reliable checks are performed by real test experiments while varying the experimental conditions (typically, in the case of infrared spectroscopic measurements, the size of the beam aperture, the duration of the experiment, the spectral range, the scanner velocity, etc.). On the other hand, the stability of the instrument response in time is another key element of the great value. Source stability (or easy predictable temporal changes, similar to those observed in the case of synchrotron radiation-based sources working in non top-up mode), detector stability (especially in the case of liquid nitrogen- or liquid helium-cooled detectors) should be monitored. In these cases, recorded datasets (spectra) include additional variables such as time stamp when a particular spectrum was recorded (in the case of time trial experiments). A favorable approach in evaluating these data is building hyperspectral object that consist of all spectra and all additional parameters at which these spectra were recorded. Taking into account that these datasets could be considerably large in size, there is a need for the tools for semiautomatic data evaluation and information extraction. A comprehensive R archive network--the open-source R Environment--with its flexibility and growing potential, fits these requirements nicely. In this paper, examples of practical implementation of methods available in R for real-life Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopic data problems are presented. However, this approach could easily be adopted to many various laboratory scenarios with other spectroscopic techniques.

[Splenic injury during left nephrectomy for renal cell cancer]. / Obrazenia sledziony podczas nefrektomii lewostronnej z powodu raka.

UNLABELLED: Left radical nephrectomy is the second most common cause of splenic injury during transabdominal oncological surgery in the upper left quadrant of the abdomen. The incidence of iatrogenic splenectomy during left nephrectomy is estimated to be between 4.3% and 13.2%. The spleen may be injured in three ways: traction, application of retractors or directly by the surgeon's instruments. Capsular tears, lacerations, avulsions and subcapsular haematomas are the injuries most frequently encountered. THE AIM OF THE STUDY: The aim of this study was to assess frequency of splenic injury and evaluate methods and results of management of splenic injury during left nephrectomy for renal cell carcinoma. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Left radical nephrectomy was performed in 768 consecutive patients for renal cell carcinoma. The mean patient age was 52 years (range 34 to 88 years). The mean tumor size was 58 mm (range 28 to 230 mm). Depending on tumor size or surgeon's preferences transabdominal or retroperitoneal approach was performed. RESULTS: Of the 768 left nephrectomies 34 (4.4%) resulted in splenic injury. Splenectomy was required in 18 cases (2.3%). Splenic injuries were more common during transperitoneal approach. The incidence of iatrogenic spleen trauma was 7.5% during transperitoneal approach and 0.8% during retroperitoneal approach. Surgical treatment of splenic injury was performed in 41% of all splenic injuries. In 3 cases splenorrhaphy was performed, in 2 cases we used tissue glue, in 11 cases TachoComb was used. In 2 patients autotransplantation of splenic parts was performed. CONCLUSIONS: Splenic injury during left nephrectomy for renal cell carcinoma is an uncommon complication. The use of haemostatic agent seems to be an effective method of treatment of superficial splenic injuries. Proper management of splenic injury enables preservation of this important organ.

[Congenital renal arteriovenous fistulas--report of two cases treated by embolisation and nephrectomy]. / Wrodzone, nerkowe przetoki tetniczo-zyline leczone metoda embolizacji i nefrektomii--opis dwóch przypadków.

Congenital arteriovenous fistulas of the kidney are very rare. Options for therapy range from embolisation to nephrectomy. It depends on symptoms and extensiveness of the malformations. We report two cases of congenital arteriovenous malformations successfully managed in the first case by embolisation and in the second case by nephrectomy. Renal arteriovenous malformations remain an uncommon clinical problem which causes often diagnostic difficulties. The proper diagnosis can be made on the basis of standard diagnostic procedures such as physical examination, Doppler sonography and spiral computerized tomography.

[Role of apoptosis and chronic prostatitis in the pathogenesis of benign prostatic hyperplasia]. / Znaczenie apoptozy i przewleklego zapalenia gruczolu krokowego w patogenezie lagodnego rozrostu.

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is the most common hyperplastic disease in aging male. The prostatic hyperplasia results from imbalance of immunoneuroendocrine homeostasis in which a paracrine activity of growth factors plays a substantial role. The mechanisms of BPH are multifactorial and are not yet recognized in the all details. Cell growth in the normal prostate is regulated by a delicate balance between cell death and cell proliferation. Disruption of the molecular mechanisms that regulate these processes may underline the abnormal growth of the prostate. On the basis of literature we have reviewed the role of endocrine environment, growth factors, intracellular proteins, pharmacological agents, microelements and particular role of the chronic prostatitis in the development of benign prostatic hyperplasia.

Application of linear discriminant analysis in prostate cancer research by synchrotron radiation-induced X-ray emission.

The ability to visualize an object of interest is one of the cornerstones of advancement in science. For this reason, synchrotron radiation-induced X-ray emission (micro-SRIXE) holds special promise as a imaging technique in structural biology, biochemistry, and medicine. It gives the possibility to image concentration of most of the elements in a sample at high space resolution. Statistical analysis of data obtained for samples of prostate tissues in an experiment at L-beam line HASYLAB (Hamburg, Germany) is presented in this paper. The regions for the measurements were selected according to the histological view of the sample. By histological examination, samples were divided into five groups (from healthy to Gleason4, most advanced stage of cancerogenesis). Data obtained in micro-SRIXE experiments on prostate cancer samples provide information about concentrations of certain elements in these groups. The rising problem is to find out concentrations of which elements allow the researcher to discriminate between different (early mentioned) groups. Linear discriminant analysis, a basic technique for feature extraction, was used in statistical analysis of the data. Our results indicate that the use of synchrotron radiation and discriminant analysis in the study of prostate cancer tissues provide information that can be key to better understanding of biomolecular functions.