Distribution of prostatic markers in glands of the female urethra and anterior vaginal wall-a rapid autopsy study.

BACKGROUND: There are varying reports of immunohistochemically detected prostatic marker protein distribution in glands associated with the female urethra that may be related to tissue integrity at the time of fixation. AIM: In this study we used tissue derived from rapid autopsies of female patients to determine the distribution of glandular structures expressing prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and prostate-specific acid phosphatase (PSAP) along the female urethra and in surrounding tissues, including the anterior vaginal wall (AVW). METHODS: Tissue blocks from 7 donors that contained the entire urethra and adjacent AVW were analyzed. These tissue samples were fixed within 4-12 hours of death and divided into 5-mm transverse slices that were paraffin embedded. Sections cut from each slice were immunolabeled for PSA or PSAP and a neighboring section was stained with hematoxylin and eosin. The sections were reviewed by light microscopy and analyzed using QuPath software. OBSERVATIONS: In tissue from all donors, glandular structures expressing PSA and/or PSAP were located within the wall of the urethra and were present along its whole length. RESULTS: In the proximal half of the urethra from all donors, small glands expressing PSAP, but not PSA, were observed adjacent to the and emptying into the lumen. In the distal half of the urethra from 5 of the 7 donors, tubuloacinar structures lined by a glandular epithelium expressed both PSA and PSAP. In addition, columnar cells at the surface of structures with a multilayered transitional epithelium in the distal half of the urethra from all donors expressed PSAP. No glands expressing PSA or PSAP were found in tissues surrounding the urethra, including the AVW. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Greater understanding of the distribution of urethral glands expressing prostatic proteins in female patients is important because these glands are reported to contribute to the female sexual response and to urethral pathology, including urethral cysts, diverticula, and adenocarcinoma. STRENGTHS AND LIMITATIONS: Strengths of the present study include the use of rapid autopsy to minimize protein degradation and autolysis, and the preparation of large tissue sections to demonstrate precise anatomical relations within all the tissues surrounding the urethral lumen. Limitations include the sample size and that all donors had advanced malignancy and had undergone previous therapy which may have had unknown tissue effects. CONCLUSION: Proximal and distal glands expressing prostate-specific proteins were observed in tissue from all donors, and these glands were located only within the wall of the urethra.

Tejido prostático en teratoma quístico maduro del ovario: Caso clínico / Prostatic tissue in a mature cystic teratoma of the ovary: Report of one case

Male accessory sexual glands arising in ovarian cystic teratoma are exceedingly rare. We report a 56-year-old female subjected to an ovariohysterectomy due to a left ovarian mass. The pathological study of the surgical piece revealed a tumor composed of different mature tissue elements and well defined nodules of benign prostatic tissue.

Efeito da temperatura de desproteinizaçäo no preparo de osso cortical bovino microgranular: avaliaçäo microscópica e bioquímica da resposta celular em subcutâneo de ratos / Effect of deproteinization temperature on the preparation of microgranular bovine cortical bone: microscopic and biochemical analysis in rat subcutaneous tissue

Nosso propósito foi avaliar a biocompatibilidade de dois materiais preparados com osso cortical bovino, um desproteinizado a 100ºC (Gen-Ox(R), Baumer S.A.) e outro a 1000ºC (preparado no laboratório de Bioquímica, FOB-USP). Esses materiais foram implantados em subcutâneo de ratos e, após 10, 20, 30 e 60 dias, os animais foram sacrificados e as peças histológicas removidas. As análises microscópicas mostraram uma reaçäo granulomatosa tipo corpo estranho de baixa renovaçäo contendo macrófagos e células gigantes multinucleadas em contato com o material, semelhante à implantaçäo subcutânea de osso autógeno ou alógeno mineralizado. Ao final do período experimental näo houve diferença significativa nos níveis das fosfatases ácidas nos grupos que receberam o osso cortical desproteinizado a 100 ou 1000ºC, mostrando que näo há diferença significativa entre os materiais testados. Podemos concluir que o osso cortical bovino, quer desproteinizado a 100ºC (Gen-Ox(R), Baumer S.A.) ou a 1000ºC (preparado em nosso laboratório) podem ser usados como material de preenchimento osteo-substituto e como potenciais carreadores das proteínas morfogenéticas do osso