Frequent expression of CD45RO memory T cell marker as well as low to high expression of PD-1 and PD-L1 inhibitory molecules in seminoma and dysgerminoma.

BACKGROUND: Seminoma and dysgerminoma are rare testicular and ovarian germ cell tumors characterized by a significant infiltration of immune cells in the tumor microenvironment. According to the failure of conventional treatments in some patients, it is crucial to identify novel prognostic and therapeutic biomarkers for these patients. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the expression of CD45RO and PD-1/PD-L1 and investigate their association with the clinicopathological characteristics of the patients. METHODS: Immunohistochemistry was performed to assess the expression of CD45RO, PD-1, and PD-L1 in tumor-infiltrated lymphocytes (TILs), and tumor cells in 33 seminoma and 31 dysgerminoma patients. The expression levels were evaluated using a semiquantitative approach, weighted histoscore, which considers both the intensity and extent of staining. RESULTS: All seminoma and dysgerminoma patients exhibited CD45RO expression in TILs, with 66.7 % and 90.3 % displaying high levels of expression, respectively. PD-1 expression in TILs was observed at low levels in 81.8 % and 77.4 % and at high levels in 18.2 % and 19.4 % of seminoma and dysgerminoma patients, respectively. Likewise, low expression of PD-L1 in tumor cells was detected in 63.6 % of seminoma and 61.3 % of dysgerminoma patients, while none of the patients exhibited high expression of PD-L1. In seminoma patients, a positive correlation was observed between PD-1 expression in TILs and CD45RO expression and between PD-L1 expression in tumor cells and TILs score. CONCLUSION: The frequent infiltration of CD45RO, along with variable expression of PD-1 and PD-L1 on TILs and tumor cells, could impact the effectiveness of anti-tumor responses and immunotherapy.

Cervical lymph node metastasis of ovarian dysgerminoma: A case report with fine needle aspiration cytology.

Dysgerminoma is a rare germ cell tumor, accounting for 1% to 2% of all malignant ovarian tumors. Here, we report a case of dysgerminoma diagnosed by aspiration cytology of a cervical lymph node. A 20-year-old woman presented with an abdominal mass and left cervical swelling. CT revealed a large pelvic tumor, along with a nodular lesion on the left side of neck. Fine needle aspiration (FNA) cytology of a cervical lymph node showed large atypical cells and small lymphocytes. Immunocytochemical staining on cell block material revealed that these large tumor cells were positive for placental alkaline phosphatase, D2-40, and c-kit. Dysgerminoma was suggested by FNA cytology. Furthermore, bilateral oophorectomy was performed, and histology confirmed the diagnosis of ovarian dysgerminoma. FNA cytology of metastatic lymph nodes along with immunocytochemistry is a useful tool for diagnosis of dysgerminoma.

Atypical presentations of intracranial dysgerminoma mimicking central nervous system inflammatory or demyelinating disease.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to report a case series of atypical presentations of intracranial dysgerminoma in which the diagnosis was delayed due to clinical and radiographic findings initially suggestive of CNS inflammatory or demyelinating diseases, such as MS. METHODS: This study is a case series detailing the history, clinical presentations, radiographic and laboratory results, and management of three patients with biopsy-proven intracranial dysgerminoma. RESULTS: All three patients demonstrated hyperintense lesions on MRI that were more suggestive of demyelinating or inflammatory diseases, including lesions involving the midbrain and corpus callosum. All three patients were serum positive for oligoclonal bands and negative for both AFP and beta-hCG (these two markers are commonly seen in dysgerminoma cases). One case involved a steroid-responsive tumor whereas the other two cases either did not respond to steroids or steroids were withheld due to uncertainty of etiology. Following biopsy, all three results were consistent with dysgerminoma. CONCLUSION: Clinicians should be aware that dysgerminoma may mimic the clinical and radiographic presentations of demyelinating diseases such as MS. These lesions can cause acute visual loss or diplopia, have MRI and CSF findings that might mimic MS, and have been shown to respond to steroids. Atypical clinical (e.g., headache, dorsal midbrain syndrome, bilateral optic neuropathy) or atypical radiographic features (e.g., mass effect, hydrocephalus) should prompt consideration for repeat imaging and possible biopsy even if serum or CSF tumor markers (beta-hCG and AFP) are negative for dysgerminoma.

Usefulness of imprint cytology of gonadoblastoma with dysgerminoma in a patient with Turner syndrome and a Y chromosome: A case report and literature review.

Ovarian gonadoblastoma coexisting with a dysgerminoma is extremely rare in patients with Turner syndrome (TS) and a Y chromosome. The cytological findings, including imprint cytology, of these unusual ovarian tumors have rarely been reported. We report a rare patient with a gonadoblastoma with dysgerminoma, 3.0 × 2.0 cm in size; she was a 19-year-old woman with TS and a Y chromosome. She underwent laparoscopic bilateral gonadectomy, and the tumor was classified as stage IA (pT1aNxM0) according to the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics classification system. Intraoperative imprint cytology revealed two types of neoplastic cells: small tumor cells surrounding light green-stained or eosinophilic hyaline globules with marked calcification, suspicious for gonadoblastoma; and large, round, atypical cells with abundant cytoplasm, macronucleoli, and marked lymphocytic infiltration (two-cell pattern), suspicious for dysgerminoma. The cytology results in our patient may represent the second reported results of imprint cytology describing a gonadoblastoma with dysgerminoma. They are the first reported results in a patient with TS and a Y chromosome.

Cancer testis antigen OY-TES-1: analysis of protein expression in ovarian cancer with tissue microarrays.

UNLABELLED: Revised manuscript accepted for publication March 5, Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine the potential of cancer testis antigen OY-TES-1 as a vaccine for ovarian cancer (OC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A tissue microarray (TMA) containing 107 samples from OC tissues and 48 samples from OC adjacent tissues was analyzed by immunohistochemistry with the OY-TES-1 polyclonal antibody. The correlation between OY-TES-1 and clinic pathological traits of OC was statistically analyzed. RESULTS: The expression of OY-TES-1 protein was found in 81% (87/107) of OC tissues and 56% (27/48) of OC adjacent tissues. The immunostaining intensity of OY-TES-1 in OC tissues was significantly higher than that in OC adjacent tissues tested (p = 0.040). OC adjacent tissues only demonstrated lower immunostaining intensity, whereas some of OC tissues presented higher immunostaining intensity and majority showed the heterogeneity of protein distribution. There was no statistically significant correlation found between OY-TES-1 expression and any other clinicopathological traits such as age, FIGO stage, pathological grade, and histological type. CONCLUSIONS: OY-TES-1 was expressed in OC tissues with a high proportion, and some of OC tissues presented OY-TES-1 expression in high level vs OC adjacent tissues. OY-TES-1 could be an attractive target for immunotherapy for OC in the future.

Aberrant expression of pim-3 promotes proliferation and migration of ovarian cancer cells.

Pim kinase-3(Pim-3), a member of serine/threonine protein kinases, has been implicated in multiple human cancers and involved in Myc-induced tumorigenesis. However, little is known regarding its expression and biological function in human ovarian cancer. In this study we showed that the clinical significance and biological functions of Pim-3 in ovarian cancer and found that higher Pim-3 mRNA level are detected in ovarian cancer tissues than those in normal ovarian tissues. There are significant correlations between higher Pim-3 expression levels with the FIGO stage, histopathological subtypes, and distant metastasis in ovarian cancer patients. Lentivirus-mediated gene overexpression of Pim-3 significantly promotes the proliferation and migration of SKOV3 cell lines. Furthermore, MACC1 and Pim-3 expression were significantly correlated in human ovarian cancer cells, and overexpression of Pim-3 in ovary cancer cells increased MACC1 mRNA and protein expression. The data indicate that Pim-3 acts as a putative oncogene in ovary cancer and could be a viable diagnostic and therapeutic target for ovarian cancer.

Expression of protein gene product 9.5 and Sal-like protein 4 in canine seminomas.

The aim of the present study was to characterize canine classical seminoma (SE) and spermatocytic seminoma (SS) by immunohistochemical expression of gonocytic and spermatogonial cellular markers (c-Kit, placental alkaline phosphatase [PLAP], protein gene product 9.5 [PGP9.5] and Sal-like protein 4 [Sall4]) and histochemically by the periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) reaction. Twenty-five cases of SE and 23 cases of SS were investigated. Two cases of dysgerminoma were also examined. c-Kit was expressed on the cell membrane of 13 of 25 cases of SE (52%) and four of 23 cases of SS (16%). This marker was not expressed in dysgerminoma. PLAP immunoreactivity was observed in the cytoplasm of neoplastic cells of six of 25 cases of SE (24%). PLAP was not expressed in cases of SS and dysgerminoma. All samples of SE, SS and dysgerminoma showed cytoplasmic expression of PGP9.5 and nuclear immunoreactivity for Sall4. There was fine granular cytoplasmic PAS staining in neoplastic cells in five of 25 cases of SE (20%), while all samples of SS and dysgerminoma cases were PAS negative. These findings suggest that it is not possible to differentiate canine SE and SS using these markers. This may be because canine SS may be derived from spermatogonia that can differentiate to spermatocytes and also because cases of canine SE might consist of neoplastic cells that have lost their gonocytic nature. This study was the first to show positive immunoreactivity for Sall4 in canine seminomas and dysgerminomas and expression of PGP9.5 in canine dysgerminomas.

Expression of SALL4 and SF-1 in gonadoblastoma: useful markers in the identification of the invasive germ cell component.

Gonadoblastoma is a rare gonadal neoplasm composed of primordial germ cells and sex cord-stromal cells and usually occurs in patients with dysgenetic gonads. When patients with gonadoblastoma develop an invasive germ cell tumor, the invasive germ cell component can take the form of dysgerminoma/seminoma, embryonal carcinoma, or yolk sac tumor. In this study, we performed immunohistochemical analysis for SALL4 and steroidogenic factor-1 (SF-1) on 4 cases of gonadoblastoma to examine the expression patterns of these proteins. All of the patients were phenotypically female. One patient had Swyer syndrome, the rest had Turner syndrome. The primordial germ cell component was histologically similar to cells in dysgerminoma/seminoma in these 4 cases. Two patients showed the invasive component-dysgerminoma. As expected, SALL4 stained the germ cells and SF-1 stained the sex cord-stromal cells. There was a clear distinction between the staining patterns of these 2 cell populations. This study demonstrates the utility of SALL4 and SF-1 in determining whether or not there is an invasion in the primordial germ cell component.

Bone morphogenetic protein signalling activity distinguishes histological subsets of paediatric germ cell tumours.

Germ cell tumours (GCTs) are cancers of the testis, ovary or extragonadal sites that occur in infants, children and adults. Testicular GCT is the most common cancer in young men aged 15-40 years. Abnormalities in developmental signalling pathways such as wnt/ß-catenin, TGF-ß/BMP and Hedgehog have been described in many childhood tumours. To date, however, the status of BMP signalling in GCTs has not been described. Herein, we examine BMP-SMAD signalling in a set of clinically-annotated paediatric GCTs. We find that BMP signalling activity is absent in undifferentiated tumours such as seminomas and dysgerminomas, but robustly present in most yolk sac tumours, a differentiated tumour type. Gene expression profiling of TGF-ß/BMP pathway genes in germinomas and yolk sac tumours reveals a set of genes that distinguish the two tumour types. There is significant intertumoural heterogeneity between tumours of the same histological subclass, implying that the BMP pathway can be differentially regulated in individual tumours. Finally, through miRNA expression profiling, we identify differential regulation of a set of miRNAs predicted to target the TGF-ß/BMP pathway at multiple sites. Taken together, these results suggest that the BMP signalling pathway may represent a new therapeutical target for childhood GCTs.

FOXL2 and SOX9 distinguish the lineage of the sex cord-stromal cells in gonadoblastomas.

Gonadoblastomas are mixed germ cell sex cord-stromal tumors that arise in dysgenetic gonads and are composed of immature germ cells and sex cord-stromal cells of indeterminate differentiation. FOXL2 is one of the first genes expressed in female gonad development, and it is required for proper granulosa cell differentiation during folliculogenesis. SOX9 , a downstream target of SRY , the gene in the Y chromosomal sex-determining region, is required for testicular development and for the formation and maintenance of (pre-)Sertoli cells. This study characterized the sex cord-stromal cells of gonadoblastoma by evaluating the expression of these counteracting transcription factors. Archival paraffin-embedded material of 7 gonadoblastomas, 5 of which were overgrown by dysgerminoma, was examined by immunohistochemistry for expression and localization of FOXL2 and SOX9. The sex cord-stromal cells revealed strong nuclear staining for FOXL2 and were negative for SOX9 expression. Germ cells in the gonadoblastoma and dysgerminoma components showed no FOXL2 and SOX9 expression. Areas of transition between gonadoblastoma and dysgerminoma revealed nests with a gradual reduction of FOXL2 expression. Our results support the hypothesis that the sex cord-stromal cell component of gonadoblastomas is of granulosa cell origin. In addition, FOXL2 appears to be a useful marker for the evaluation of overgrowth by dysgerminomas and for the identification of the transition zone of "dysgerminoma in situ." As FOXL2 and SOX9 are differentially expressed, they also should be useful for distinguishing gonadoblastomas from intratubular germ cell neoplasias and can help to differentiate those with a Sertoli cell component from gonadoblastoma with a granulosa cell component.

Primary retroperitoneal dysgerminoma presenting as an adrenal tumor: a case report and literature review.

Primary extragonadal germ cell tumors are rare and mostly occur in young men with predominance of nonseminomatous histology. We report an undescribed case of primary retroperitoneal dysgerminoma presenting as an adrenal tumor in a 17-year-old girl. Surgery was performed on a 10 × 9.5 cm sized adrenal gland tumor and the resected tumor showed unequivocal histological features of dysgerminoma. The diagnosis was confirmed by the tumor's germ cell immunophenotype. Postoperative ultrasonography, CT and PET over a 6-month period revealed no evidence of ovarian lesion. The patient is stable, but with a suspicious residual tumor after adjuvant chemotherapy.

COX-2 expression in nonepithelial ovarian malignancies.

The aim of the study was to assess the expression of cyclooxygenases (COX)-2 in nonepithelial ovarian malignancies.COX-2 immunohistochemical staining was performed on newly prepared deparaffinized slides from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded archival tissue blocks of unselected nonepithelial ovarian malignancies diagnosed between January 1993 and October 2009 after reconfirmation of the diagnosis. Staining was assessed according to intensity of staining and the proportion of stained cells. Staining of more than 10% of the cells was considered positive.During the study period, 26 histologically proven nonepithelial ovarian malignancies were diagnosed. Of them, 16 were granulosa cell tumors and 10 were germ cell tumors (4 dysgerminomas and 6 immature teratomas). Five (31.2%) granulosa cell tumors had positive immunohistochemical COX-2 staining. Positive staining was observed only in 1 immature teratoma and in none of the dysgerminomas.Our data seem to indicate that COX-2 expression by immunohistochemical methods is not frequent in nonepithelial ovarian malignancies.

[High-level HCG in non-gravidic situations: About two cases]. / Élévation de l'HCG en dehors d'un contexte gravidique : à propos de deux cas.

Ovarian dysgerminoma is the most common germinal tumor in women; however, a lot of different symptoms can lead to its diagnosis. In the two cases reported here, misdiagnosis of ectopic pregnancy was first done because of inappropriate secretion of HCG by the tumor. These two cases point out the particularity of dysgerminoma with its various secretion capacity. Conversely, facing a raised level of HCG in non-gravidic situation, physicians have to consider different gynaecological and extragynaecological hypothesis.

The tumor suppressor gene TRC8/RNF139 is disrupted by a constitutional balanced translocation t(8;22)(q24.13;q11.21) in a young girl with dysgerminoma.

BACKGROUND: RNF139/TRC8 is a potential tumor suppressor gene with similarity to PTCH, a tumor suppressor implicated in basal cell carcinomas and glioblastomas. TRC8 has the potential to act in a novel regulatory relationship linking the cholesterol/lipid biosynthetic pathway with cellular growth control and has been identified in families with hereditary renal (RCC) and thyroid cancers. Haploinsufficiency of TRC8 may facilitate development of clear cell-RCC in association with VHL mutations, and may increase risk for other tumor types. We report a paternally inherited balanced translocation t(8;22) in a proposita with dysgerminoma. METHODS: The translocation was characterized by FISH and the breakpoints cloned, sequenced, and compared. DNA isolated from normal and tumor cells was checked for abnormalities by array-CGH. Expression of genes TRC8 and TSN was tested both on dysgerminoma and in the proposita and her father. RESULTS: The breakpoints of the translocation are located within the LCR-B low copy repeat on chromosome 22q11.21, containing the palindromic AT-rich repeat (PATRR) involved in recurrent and non-recurrent translocations, and in an AT-rich sequence inside intron 1 of the TRC8 tumor-suppressor gene at 8q24.13. TRC8 was strongly underexpressed in the dysgerminoma. Translin is underexpressed in the dysgerminoma compared to normal ovary.TRC8 is a target of Translin (TSN), a posttranscriptional regulator of genes transcribed by the transcription factor CREM-tau in postmeiotic male germ cells. CONCLUSION: A role for TRC8 in dysgerminoma may relate to its interaction with Translin. We propose a model in which one copy of TRC8 is disrupted by a palindrome-mediated translocation followed by complete loss of expression through suppression, possibly mediated by miRNA.

The microenvironment of germ cell tumors harbors a prominent antigen-driven humoral response.

Germ cell tumors are a heterogeneous group of neoplasms derived from residual primordial tissue. These tumors are commonly found in the brain, testes, or ovaries, where they are termed germinomas, seminomas, or dysgerminomas, respectively. Like several other tumor types, germ cell tumors often harbor an immune cell infiltrate that can include substantial numbers of B cells. Yet little is known about whether the humoral immune response affects germ cell tumor biology. To gain a deeper understanding of the role B cells play in this tumor family, we characterized the immune cell infiltrate of all three germ cell tumor subtypes and defined the molecular characteristics of the B cell Ag receptor expressed by tumor-associated B cells. Immunohistochemistry revealed a prominent B cell infiltrate in the microenvironment of all tumors examined and clear evidence of extranodal lymphoid follicles with germinal center-like architecture in a subset of specimens. Molecular characterization of the Ig variable region from 320 sequences expressed by germ cell tumor-infiltrating B cells revealed clear evidence of Ag experience, in that the cardinal features of an Ag-driven B cell response were present: significant somatic mutation, isotype switching, and codon insertion/deletion. This characterization also revealed the presence of both B cell clonal expansion and variation, suggesting that local B cell maturation most likely occurs within the tumor microenvironment. In contrast, sequences from control tissues and peripheral blood displayed none of these characteristics. Collectively, these data strongly suggest that an adaptive and specific humoral immune response is occurring within the tumor microenvironment.

The role of leptin, soluble leptin receptor, resistin, and insulin secretory dynamics in the pathogenesis of hypothalamic obesity in children.

INTRODUCTION: In this study, we have investigated the role of leptin, soluble leptin receptor(sOb-R), resistin, and insulin secretory dynamics in the development of hypothalamic obesity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Children who had hypothalamo-pituitary tumor were divided into two groups. First group included obese-overweight (hypothalamic obese = HOB group, n = 23) and second group included non-obese children (hypothalamic non-obese = HNOB group, n = 16). Exogenously obese-overweight children (OB group, n = 22) were included as controls. Basal and second-hour serum glucose and insulin in oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), basal serum leptin, sOb-R, resistin levels, and homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) indexes were compared between the groups. RESULTS: Age, sex, and pubertal status were similar in study groups. Median and interquartile ranges of body mass index (BMI) z scores were similar in HOB and OB groups (2.0 (1.5-2.1) and 2.1 (1.8-2.3), respectively). Serum leptin levels corrected for BMI were highest and total leptin/sOb-R ratios (free leptin index (FLI)) tended to be higher in HOB than HNOB and OB groups, indicating leptin resistance (leptin/BMI, 4.0 (1.6-5.2), 1.5 (0.8-3.1), and 2.5 (1.8-3.5); FLI, 2.0 (0.8-3.5), 0.6 (0.3-1.2), and 1.5 (1-2.3) in HOB, HNOB, and OB groups; respectively). Serum resistin levels were similar in groups (2.6 (1.9-3.1), 2.8 (1.7-3.4), and 3.0 (2.2-3.5) ng/ml in HOB, HNOB, and OB groups, respectively). Basal serum glucose, basal and second-hour insulin levels in OGTT, and HOMA index were higher in OB group than the HOB and HNOB groups, indicating insulin resistance in simple obesity; however, increment of insulin to same glycemic load in OGTT was highest in the HOB group indicating insulin dysregulation (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Hypothalamic obesity seems to be related to both dysregulated afferent (leptin) and efferent (insulin) neural outputs through the autonomic nervous system resulting in energy storage as fat.

A PCR/restriction digestion assay for the detection of the transcript variants 1 and 2 of POU5F1.

POU5F1 has two alternatively spliced transcripts: a long (variant 1, NM_002701) and a short (variant 2, NM_203289) transcript. Only variant 1 is a key regulator of pluripotency. Hence, it is important to be able to distinguish this transcript from variant 2 and from the many pseudogenes present in the genome. Previous studies on the expression of POU5F1 were, however, usually carried out without considering the existence of the two transcripts and the pseudogenes which could be the source of false positive RT-PCR amplification. Here, we establish an RT-PCR/restriction digestion analysis to distinguish variant 1 of POU5F1 from variant 2 and all its currently known pseudogenes. Variant 1 has ApaI and Tsp45I restriction sites, which are not present in the pseudogenes or in variant 2. Thus, ApaI- and Tsp45I- digestions of POU5F1 PCR fragment, amplified with primers flanking these sites, are sufficient to identify the true variant 1 of POU5F1. To study the expression of variant 2 of POU5F1, two forward primers in the 5'-region that are not present in variant 1 were combined with reverse primers located in exon 3 of POU5F1 common to both transcripts. The assay was applied on 10 samples from peripheral blood leukocytes and commercially available ready-cDNAs from leukocytes and testis. We found that only variant 2 was expressed in leukocytes and testis and that the extracted RNA was not completely DNA free, despite DNAse treatment. This trace amount of DNA is a source of false positive RT-PCR amplifications. This article contains Supplementary Material available at http://www.interscience.wiley.com/jpages/1045-2257/suppmat.

1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D-mediated hypercalcemia in ovarian dysgerminoma.

Humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy (HHM) is a rare complication of malignant pediatric tumors, specifically those that secrete humoral factor(s), such as parathyroid hormone-related peptide (PTHrP). The authors report a case of severe hypercalcemia associated with ovarian dysgerminoma in a 10-year-old girl. In this case, the humoral factor was considered to be 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D. HHM is extremely resistant to medical therapy. Therefore, tumor resection or volume reduction is necessary to control serum calcium levels.

A review of the close surveillance policy for stage I female germ cell tumors of the ovary and other sites.

Ovarian germ cell tumors are rare but very curable at all stages of disease. There is good evidence that surveillance for stage I dysgerminomas is a safe option although many centers worldwide still advocate adjuvant chemotherapy for stage IA nondysgerminomatous tumors, despite the significant risk of developing long-term treatment side effects. Here, we review the safety of our ongoing surveillance program of all stage IA female germ cell tumors. Thirty-seven patients (median age 26, range 14-48 years) with stage I disease were referred to Mount Vernon and Charing Cross Hospitals between 1981 and 2003. Patients underwent surgery and staging followed by intense surveillance, which included regular tumor markers and imaging. The median period of follow-up was 6 years. Relapse rates for stage IA nondysgerminomatous tumors and dysgerminomas were 8 of 22 (36%) and 2 of 9 (22%), respectively, plus one patient with mature teratoma and glial implants also relapsed; 10 of these 11 patients (91%) were successfully cured with platinum-based chemotherapy. Only one patient died from chemoresistant disease. All relapses occurred within 13 months of initial surgery. The overall disease-specific survival of malignant ovarian germ cell tumors was 94%. Over 50% of patients who underwent fertility-sparing surgery went on to have successful pregnancies. We have confirmed again that surveillance of all stage IA ovarian germ cell tumors is very safe and that the outcome is comparable with testicular tumors. We question the need for potentially toxic adjuvant chemotherapy in nondysgerminoma patients who have greater than 90% chance of being salvaged with chemotherapy if they relapse later.