Increased expression of connexins 26 and 43 in lymph node metastases of breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: Gap junctions are intercellular channels composed of connexins, which mediate the direct passage of small molecules between neighbouring cells. They are involved in regulation of cell cycle, cell signalling, and differentiation, and probably invasion and metastasis. The role of connexins in the metastatic process is controversial, because some studies indicate that connexin expression is inversely correlated with metastatic capacity. In contrast, others demonstrate that connexins may be involved in metastasis. In addition, connexin status in breast cancer metastasis has not been widely studied. METHODS: We evaluated by immunohistochemistry the expression of connexin 26 (Cx26) and connexin 43 (Cx43) in primary breast tumours (PTs) and matched paired metastases to lymph nodes (MLNs). RESULTS: In PTs, we observed predominantly cytoplasmic localisation of evaluated connexins, indicating alterations in connexin expression in breast cancer cells. We demonstrated that expression of Cx26 and Cx43 was increased in MLNs compared with PTs (p<0.00001 and p<0.001, for CX26 and Cx43, respectively). In addition, Cx26 and Cx43 negative PTs developed Cx26 and Cx43 positive MLNs. Furthermore, besides increased cytoplasmic staining, enhanced membranous localisation of Cx43, typical of normal cells, was found in MLNs. Additionally, membranous Cx26 expression appeared only in metastatic breast cancer cells. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that connexins may contribute to the efficient metastasising of breast cancer to the lymph nodes.

Prognostic significance of CD34 expression in early cervical squamous cell carcinoma.

The aim of the study was to evaluate angiogenesis as an independent prognostic factor and to determine the correlation of the microvessel density (MD) with lymph node metastases and survival rate in 73 women operated because of invasive squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the uterine cervix at clinical stages lb and IIa (FIGO). The patients were divided into two groups: I--25 (34.4%) with survival rate <5 years and II--48 (65.6%) with survival rate >5 years. Angiogenesis was quantified in light microscope using an assay for CD34. The CD34 antibody intensely immunostained single endothelial cells as well as larger microvessels. In the study. differences were revealed by comparing the MD between both groups. The 5-year overall survival rate for patients with high MD was significantly worse than for those with low MD (p<0.003). A correlation was found between angiogenesis intensity and vascular involvement as well as the incidence of lymph node metastases. Thus, tissue expression of CD34 in SCC appears to be a significant prognostic indicator.

Expression of nucleolar organizer regions (NORs) in ovarian epithelial tumors.

AgNOR staining technique was tested in ovarian epithelial tumors to evaluate its diagnostic potential in distinguishing between borderline tumors and well-differentiated carcinomas. In our opinion, the AgNOR count appears useful for assessing differences only between borderline and well-differentiated serous ovarian tumors at stage I of FIGO clinical advancement.

Proliferative activity in endometrial hyperplasia and adenocarcinoma.

Studies on the proliferative activity of cells in endometrial hyperplasia and adenocarcinoma were performed using techniques detecting Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen (PCNA) and Nucleolar Organizer Regions (NORs). PCNA expression was defined as the percentage of nuclei showing reactivity in 200 cells per sample. The mean AgNOR count per cell was calculated following the analysis of at least 100 nuclei per sample at a magnification of x 400. Student-t test was used for the statistical analysis. The results obtained indicate that the evaluation of cell proliferative activity expressed by AgNOR count and PCNA index can help in the distinction between atypical hyperplasia and well-differentiated adenocarcinoma, and thus can serve as a useful pathological criterion.

Angiogenesis as a prognostic factor in invasive carcinoma of the uterine cervix.

The aim of the study was to evaluate angiogenesis as an independent prognostic factor and to determine the correlation between the angiogenic index (AI) and histologic grade of the neoplastic process in patients operated on for invasive carcinoma of the uterine cervix. Angiogenesis was assessed with immunohistochemical technique using a monoclonal antibody against human factor VIII--(F8/86 M0616, DAKO, Denmark). A positive correlation was revealed between the intensification of angiogenesis and the incidence of lymph node involvement and survival rate.

Small cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix--an uncommon variant of cervical cancer with neuroendocrine features.

Small cell carcinoma (SCC) of the uterine cervix represents an uncommon variant of cervical cancer with an extremely aggressive biologic behavior, minimum survival chances and rapid and fatal clinical course. This retrospective study included 73 cases of patients treated for invasive squamous carcinoma of the uterine cervix at stages Ib and IIa at the Department of Gynecology in the years 1996-2000. Six patients (8%) with SCC were identified among all cases, sharing the clinical features of young age and early failure of appropriate radical treatment in the presence of apparently low stage disease. Neuroendocrine cellular characteristics were assessed by the biotin-streptavidin-peroxidase (LSAB) method using antibodies against neuron-specific enolase (NSE; DAKO), chromogranin A (CGA; DAKO) and synaptophysin (SYN; DAKO). All tumors examined were positive for NSE and/or CGA and/or SYN. Although the presence of neuroendocrine features appears to correlate with decreased survival, the number of patients is not large enough to determine statistical significance. However, the results confirm that SCC of the uterine cervix is one of the most aggressive tumors of the female genital tract.

Tissue expression of VEGF as a prognostic factor in early cervical squamous cell carcinoma.

The purpose of this retrospective study was to determine whether the intensity of tumor angiogenesis, expressed as microvessel density (MD), is indeed an important parameter predicting lymph node metastasis and survival rate in 73 women operated on for early invasive squamous cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix in stages Ib and IIa (FIGO). Angiogenesis was quantified by light microscope (LM) using an assay for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). In the study, differences were revealed by comparing the MD between both groups. The patient survival with high MD was significantly worse than for those with low MD (p<0.01). A correlation was found between MD and the incidence of lymph node metastases. Hence, quantitative analysis of MD used as the expression of VEGF in the each cervical squamous cell carcinomas could be useful as a significant prognostic indicator.

Patterns of immunohistochemical staining for p53 expression in hyperplastic endometrium and adenocarcinoma.

The p53, a tumour suppressor gene, is the most commonly mutated gene human cancer. In this study, we performed immunohistochemical investigations of the expression of p53 protein in hyperplastic endometrium and adenocarcinoma. Positive immunostaining was detected in 7 (30%) cases of invasive adenocarcinoma, 2 (12%) cases of simple hyperplasia with atypia and 2 (14%) cases of complex hyperplasia with atypia. In simple and complex hyperplasia without atypia staining was seen in occasional cells. The results suggested that endometrial hyperplasia is not always accompanied by p53 protein accumulation, hence its expression is not an early exponent of the neoplastic process.

[Serum lipid levels in hypercholesterolemic post-menopausal women treated with transdermal sequential combined hormone replacement therapy only or in combination with simvastatin]. / Osoczowe stezenie lipidów u kobiet z hipercholesterolemia w trakcie przezskórnej sekwencyjnej zlozonej hormonalnej terapii zastepczej skojarzonej z podawaniem statyn.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the effects of transdermal sequential combined hormone replacement therapy alone or combined with simvastatin on the serum lipid profile in hypercholesterolaemic post-menopausal women.

[Expression of PCNA antigen in cellular proliferative activity of cervical carcinoma]. / Ekspresja antygenu PCNA w ocenie aktywnosci proliferacyjnej komorek raka szyjki macicy.

The proliferative activity of cervical carcinoma was examined using proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) staining. Labelling index (LI) have been counted in sections of routinely processed paraffin embedded tissue blocks. Significant variation in PCNA LI were observed between study groups (p < 0.0235). The results obtained indicate that the evaluation of proliferative activity of cells expressed by high PCNA LI is assessed with worse prognosis.

[Heterogeneity of ovarian epithelial tumors in analysis of nucleolar organizer regions (NORs) expression]. / Heterogennosc nowotworów nablonkowych jajnika w analizie ekspresji bialek regionów organizatorów jaderkowych (NORS).

Nonhistone proteins associated with the nucleolar organizer regions (NORs) can be visualized by a silver-staining technique on paraffin-embedded tissues. The number of black dots (AgNORs) appearing on the nuclei are thought to reflect cell differentiation and can be used as a measurement of cellular proliferative activity. In this study we tested AgNOR staining in ovarian epithelial tumors to evaluate its diagnostic potential in distinguishing between borderline tumors and carcinomas.

[Epidemiological analysis of congenital infections in newborns]. / Analiza epidemiologiczna wrodzonych bakteryjnych infekcji u noworodków.

The aim of this study was to review 2567 deliveries in the District Hospital in Bialystok in 1997. In 2388 term labours and 179 preterm ones we noticed the congenital infections; in 90 (3.8%) and in 58 (32.4%) newborns respectively. The main etiologic factors of infections were Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus epidermidis in term newborns and Staphylococcus epidermidis and Escherichia coli in preterm babies. Clinical signs of the urinary tract infection were most frequent in mature infants, whereas the sepsis was quite common in premature newborns.

Nucleolar organizer regions in differentiated preneoplastic and neoplastic endometrial lesions.

The aim of the study was the quantitative assessment of nucleolar organizer regions (NORs) in the cells of preneoplastic and neoplastic endometrial lesions. Retrospective analysis included tissue material obtained from 87 patients with simple and complex hyperplasia with or without atypia and well-differentiated stage-I endometrial adenocarcinoma. Sections were made from routine paraffin blocks and stained with AgNO3. The mean number of AgNORs per cell was determined. The results obtained indicate that the evaluation of proliferative activity of cells expressed by AgNOR count can help in the distinction between atypical hyperplasia and well-differentiated adenocarcinoma, and thus can serve as a useful pathological criterion.

[Analysis of the frequency of prevalence of endometrial hyperplasia and endometrial adenocarcinoma based on own material in the year 1975, 1985 and 1995]. / Analiza czestosci wystepowania rozrostów blony sluzowej trzonu macicy i raka gruczolowego w materiale Kliniki w latach 1975, 1985 i 1995.

We analysed the frequency of prevalence of endometrial hyperplasia and endometrial adenocarcinoma in the years 1975, 1985 and 1995. Significant differences between endometrial simple hyperplasia and complex hyperplasia with atypia was found. There were no statistic differences in the frequency of the prevalence of endometrial adenocarcinoma between analysed years.

[Immunohistochemically expression of the protein p53 evaluated in invasive squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix]. / Immunohistochemiczna ocena ekspresji bialka p53 w inwazyjnym plaskonablonkowym raku szyjki macicy.

The p53 protein expression in the invasive squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix was evaluated immunohistochemically. Its predictive role in the correlation with histological grading and staging was analyzed. 13.7% of examined cases (10/73) presented positive protein expression. There was no correlation between the intensified protein p53 expression and particular prognostic histological factors.

Study of borderline and invasive mucinous ovarian tumors using Ki-67 (MIB 1) antibodies and nucleolar organizer region (NOR) staining.

Extensive application of new methods in histopathology has resulted in large quantities of data on molecular markers in different types of human tumors. The main purpose has been to obtain additional parameters for the characterization of various types of malignancy to give more precise information on their biological behavior. In this study we tested AgNOR and Ki-67 (MIB 1) staining in 39 ovarian mucinous tumors to evaluate its diagnostic potential in distinguishing between borderline tumors and well-differentiated carcinomas at stage I of FIGO classification. In general, there was an increase in AgNOR median values from benign (1.83 +/- 0.8) to well-differentiated carcinomas (2.91 +/- 1.3) with an intermediate value in borderline (2.3 +/- 1.6). The lowest Ki-67 labeling index (LI) was found in benign cystadenomas (5.7% +/- 3.4%) and papillary mucinous cystadenomas (7.9 +/- 5.8%). In borderline tumors mean LI was 12.2 +/- 10.9% whereas well-differentiated carcinomas had higher LI (16.8 +/- 10.2%). There were no statistically significant differences between the evaluated tumors and techniques applied. In our opinion the AgNOR count and Ki-67 LI do not appear useful for assessing differences between borderline and well-differentiated mucinous ovarian tumors at stage I of clinical advancement.

[Amniotic fluid disease: a case report]. / Zespól pasm owodniowych--opis przypadku.

A rare case of amniotic disease with extensive malformations of fetus was described. A data obtained from literature was done with special consideration of etiopathology.

[Diagnostic value of nucleolus organizer regions (NORs) in premalignant and malignant lesions of the cervix]. / Wartosc diagnostyczna ekspresji regionów organizatorów jaderkowych (NORS) w stanach przedrakowych i raku szyjki macicy.

The proliferative activity of CIN and SCC lesion was examined using silver-binding argyrophilic nucleolar organizer region (AgNOR) staining. AgNORs have been counted in sections of routinely processed paraffin embedded tissue blocks. The specimens consisted punch biopsies, cones or surgery. The number of black dots (AgNORs) appearing on the nuclei were counted. Significant variation in AgNOR counts were observed between CIN III and SCC compared with the other study groups (p < 0.001). These results suggest that AgNOR counts may be of significance in the evaluation of cervical lesions and could elaborate histopathological diagnosis.

[The evaluation of the use of transvaginal ultrasonography in the diagnosis of endometrial carcinoma]. / Ocena przydatnosci ultrasonografii przezpochwowej w diagnostyce raka endometrium.

In our study we estimated the uses of transvaginal ultrasonography in the diagnostic of endometrial carcinoma. There was noted that the most characteristic symptoms of this neoplasma in USG is the thickening of the endometrium and the absence or distortion of "central echo" (imaging of the endometrial cavity). We confirmed the co-existence of common epidemiologic factors of carcinoma endometrium too.

[Clinical analysis of women with cervical carcinoma treated in the years 1989-1994]. / Analiza kliniczna kobiet z rakiem szyjki macicy leczonych w latach 1989-1994

Investigation covered 112 women treated for invasive cervical carcinoma. Standard clinical data were analysed: age, residence, number of pregnancies and deliveries. According to FIGO classification clinical development level and histological type of the carcinoma were assessed. Surgical treatment was applied in 53 cases with carcinoma I degree (47.3% of all women with invasive cervical carcinoma). The other patients with higher degrees of disease development underwent curie-therapy. No considerable differences between our own results and nationwide data were observed.