Cintilografia dinâmica do esôfago em dor toráxica näo coronariana / Esophageal dynamic scintigraphy in noncoronarian chest pain

Vinte e sete pacientes com dor torácica näo coronariana (DTNC) foram submetidos a cintilografia dinâmica do esôfago como parte de protocolo de pesquisa de alteraçöes esofagianas e seus resultados foram comparados com os obtidos pelos estudos radiológicos - radiologia convencional - (RC) e radioscopia com päo baritado (RPB). A cintilografia dinâmica mostrou-se alterada em 63% dos pacientes, havendo predominância do "padräo incoordenado", enquanto que a RC revelou alteraçöes motoras em 18,5% dos pacientes e a RPB foi anormal em 33%. Concluímos que a cintilografia dinâmica do esôfago mostrou boa sensibilidade na investigaçäo de distúrbios da motilidade esofágica em pacientes com DTNC e, devido à sua ótima aceitaçäo e simplicidade de realizaçäo, recomendamo-la como screening test na investigaçäo do esôfago em DTNC

Ressonância magnética do esôfago; aspecto normal / Magnetic resonance imaging of the esophagus; normal appearance

Utilizamos um aparelho de ressonância magnética a alto campo magnético (1,5T) para realizarmos o estudo dos parâmetros normais do esôfago torácico em 40 pacientes sem evidência clínica de doença esofagiana. Os parâmetros analisados foram os diâmetros ântero-posterior e transversal do órgäo, a incidência de ar no seu interior, a espessura de sua parede e o ângulo de contacto com a orta, a presença ou ausência de plano de clivagem periesofagiano e o aspecto da parede posterior da traquéia. A representaçäo anatômica foi também avaliada notando-se que os terços superior e médio do esôfago torácico säo bem visualizados em 92,5% dos casos. Entre os resultados encontrados, a ausência de plano de clivagem adiposo periesofagiano näo permite utilizar esse parâmetro como sinal de invasäo de estruturas vizinhas pela neoplasia do esôfago, sugerido por diversos autores através da tomografia computadorizada e mesmo da ressonância magnética

Ultrasound diagnosis of gastroesophageal reflux and hiatal hernia in infants and young children.

In 30 young children suspected of gastroesophageal reflux (GER), the G-E junction was examined with ultrasonography directly after a feeding while these children were on overnight extended esophageal pH monitoring (EEpHM) (32 simultaneous ultrasound/EEpHM studies). The two tests showed 81% to 84% agreement in the detection of the presence or absence of GER, depending on whether the whole period of EEpHM or only the part of it covering the ultrasound observation period were used as the standard. The discrepancies between the two tests were explained by the much longer monitoring period of EEpHM compared to ultrasonography and the inability of EEpHM to show reflux of neutralized gastric contents directly after milk feedings. The two studies probably measure different aspects of clinically significant reflux and must be correlated with the clinical symptoms. Morphological findings associated with significant reflux were (1) a short intra-abdominal part of the esophagus, (2) a rounded gastroesophageal angle, and (3) a "beak" at the gastroesophageal junction. Barium meal findings confirmed these sonographic signs, indicating a sliding hiatal hernia of the distal esophagus, either fixed or intermittent. Ultrasonography can be recommended as a useful and physiological screening test to demonstrate clinically significant GER and a predisposing hiatal hernia of the esophagus in symptomatic children.

Activation of c-Ki-ras in human gastrointestinal dysplasias determined by direct sequencing of polymerase chain reaction products.

Activation of c-Ki-ras by point mutation within exon 1 was studied in 33 specimens of dysplastic gastrointestinal lesions or of cancers presumed to arise from dysplasia. Samples were obtained from patients with underlying ulcerative colitis or Barrett's esophagus, two diseases associated with dysplasia and increased rates of colonic or esophageal adenocarcinoma, respectively. Genomic DNA was amplified using primers bounding this exon in the polymerase chain reaction. Polymerase chain reaction products were analyzed by direct dideoxy sequencing. Three point mutations in codon 13 of c-Ki-ras were found, all in colonic specimens (two high-grade dysplasias and one adenocarcinoma arising in ulcerative colitis). No point mutations were observed in the second exon of c-Ki-ras or in and around codons 12, 13, and 61 of c-N-ras and C-Ha-ras in a partial sampling of the specimens. These data indicate that ras family protooncogene activation is an uncommon event at this level of malignant progression in these disease states. Carcinogenesis in ulcerative colitis and Barrett's esophagus may proceed via different pathways than in sporadic colon cancer, perhaps involving loss or inactivation of suppressor genes.

Esophageal carcinoma-associated proteins detected by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis.

Patterns of proteins of five surgically resected esophageal carcinomas were studied by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis with silver staining. The samples of normal esophageal mucosa and esophageal carcinoma from the same patient were compared. Each gel had ca. 300 protein spots and had a similar pattern of proteins. Four spots were observed in all of the esophageal carcinomas that were not present in any of the normal mucosae. The molecular weights and isoelectric points were 46,000 and 5.3, 46,000 and 5.2, 36,000 and 4.7 and 33,000 and 5.1, respectively. One spot was observed in all of the normal mucosae but not in any of the esophageal carcinomas. Its molecular weight and isoelectric point were 27,000 and 5.3, respectively.

Cellular distribution of alpha B-crystallin in non-lenticular tissues.

alpha B-Crystallin is a subunit of alpha-crystallin, a major protein component of the vertebrate lens. Recently, its expression in various extra-lenticular tissues has been demonstrated by both Western and Northern blotting. In this study, the cellular distribution of alpha B-crystallin in rat organs was examined in detail using immunohistochemistry. Positive reactions were observed in lens, iris, heart, skeletal muscle (type 1 and type 2A fibers), striated muscle in skin and esophagus, Henle's loop and medullary collecting duct of the kidney, Schwann cells of peripheral nerves, glia of the central nervous system, and decidual cells of the placenta. A close correlation with markers of oxidative activity suggests that alpha B-crystallin is expressed in cells that have high levels of oxidative function.

Improved methods for separation of human cytokeratins.

The cytokeratins from human bladder and esophageal epithelia were separated using chromatographic techniques. The cytokeratins were first extracted from fresh autopsy tissue using high and low salt buffers. Urea, 8.0-9.5 M, was used to solubilize the resulting cytokeratin pellet. Imidazole was found to increase the solubility of the pellet but reducing agents such as 2-mercaptoethanol were not beneficial. DEAE ion exchange chromatography produced three fractions which were analyzed by using one and two-dimensional electrophoresis. The third fraction was shown to contain the acidic cytokeratins and was further fractionated on a moderately polar reverse phase HPLC column using an acetonitrile elution gradient. Tetramethylammonium tetrafluoroborate was added to the mobile phase to react with any unreacted silanol groups on the stationary phase, and trifluoroacetic acid was added to ion pair with the protein. HPLC fractions of the acidic proteins from human esophagus revealed seven reproducible peaks. All seven peaks were shown by Western blotting to contain an epitope found on cytokeratin 13. The results suggest that the isolation and separation procedures have produced a series of peptide products which all retain a similar epitope but which vary significantly in their hydrophobic characteristics.

Electrophoretic separation of the soluble proteins of different fractions of the sarcocyst of Sarcocystis fusiformis of buffalo (Bubalus bubalis).

The electrophoretic fractionation of the various compounds of the soluble proteins in the cyst wall (CW), cyst fluid (CF) and zoites (ZT) of the sarcocyst of Sarcocystis fusiformis from buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) was studied by polyacrylamide disc gel electrophoresis. The CW fraction was found to contain at least six components, and ZT and CF contained at least four components with varied Rf values. Each gel was subjected to the gel scanner, and the corresponding areas of the peaks along with the percentage of the proteins in the bands were calculated.

Achatin-I, an endogenous neuroexcitatory tetrapeptide from Achatina fulica Férussac containing a D-amino acid residue.

A tetrapeptide named achatin-I was purified from the suboesophageal and cerebral ganglia of the African giant snail Achatina fulica Férussac, and evoked a potent neuroexcitatory effect. The amino acid sequence of achatin-I is Gly-D-Phe-Ala-Asp. Achatin-I induced a voltage-dependent inward current, due to Na+, on the identifiable giant neuron, periodically oscillating neuron (PON), of the same snail. All possible isomers of achatin-I were synthesized using the solid-phase method. The sensitivity of the neuron to achatin-I and its isomers was strictly stereospecific; among the various isomers, only achatin-I showed marked effects (ED50 = 2.29 x 10(-6)M), while Gly-D-Phe-D-Ala-Asp, the synthetic D-Ala-isomer, was less than 10(-3) active.

Neuromedin B receptor in esophagus: evidence for subtypes of bombesin receptors.

To identify receptors for bombesin-related peptides in the rat esophagus, we measured binding of 125I-Bolton-Hunter neuromedin B (125I-BH-neuromedin B) and 125I-[Tyr4]bombesin to tissue sections from the rat esophagus and compared the results with those for rat pancreas. Esophagus bound both tracers, whereas pancreas bound only 125I-[Tyr4]bombesin. In each tissue binding was saturable, dependent on pH, on time, and on temperature, reversible, and specific. Autoradiography demonstrated binding of both tracers only to the muscularis mucosae of the esophagus and binding of 125I-[Tyr4]bombesin diffusely over pancreatic acini. In the esophagus, the relative potencies for inhibition of binding of both tracers were as follows: neuromedin B greater than bombesin greater than GRP = neuromedin C; similar relative potencies were found for causing contraction of muscle strips from whole esophagus and from the isolated muscularis mucosae. In pancreas tissue sections and dispersed acini, the relative potencies for inhibition of binding of 125I-[Tyr4]bombesin were as follows: bombesin greater than GRP = neuromedin C much greater than neuromedin B. Similar relative potencies were found for stimulation of enzyme secretion from dispersed pancreatic acini. Computer analysis in both tissues demonstrated only a single binding site. The present study demonstrates that rat esophagus muscle possesses specific receptors for bombesin-related peptides. Furthermore, this study shows that the esophageal bombesin receptors represent a previously unidentified class of bombesin receptors in that they have a higher affinity for neuromedin B than for bombesin. In contrast, the pancreatic bombesin receptors have, like all other bombesin receptors described to date, a high affinity for bombesin, but low affinity for neuromedin B.

Expression of hair-related keratins in a soft epithelium: subpopulations of human and mouse dorsal tongue keratinocytes express keratin markers for hair-, skin- and esophageal-types of differentiation.

The dorsal surfaces of mammalian tongues are covered with numerous projections known as filiform papillae whose morphology varies in different species. Using a panel of monoclonal antibodies to keratins as probes, we have established that, in both human and mouse, the interpapillary epithelia express mainly the "esophageal-type" keratins, while the papillary epithelia express "skin-type" keratins as well as some keratins reacting with a monoclonal antibody (AE13) to hair keratins. The AE13-reactive proteins of the mouse were found to be very similar to those of authentic mouse hair keratins. However, the corresponding protein of human tongue appears to be different from all known human keratins. This protein has a MW of 51K; it is relatively acidic; it is sulfhydryl-rich, as revealed by iodoacetic acid-induced charge and apparent size shift; it shares an epitope with all the known acidic human hair keratins; and it is associated with keratin fibrils in vivo. This protein may therefore be regarded as a novel type I "hard" keratin. These data establish that mammalian dorsal tongue epithelia can be divided into at least three compartments that undergo mainly "esophageal-", "skin-" and "hair"-types of differentiation. Different keratin filaments, e.g., those of the esophageal- and hair-types, exhibit strikingly different degrees of lateral aggregation, which can potentially account for the different physical strength and rigidity of various cellular compartments. Our data also suggest the possibility that variations in papillary structure in human and mouse may arise from different spatial arrangements of specific keratinocytes, and/or from the expression of specialized hair-related keratins.

Covalent DNA damage in tissues of cigarette smokers as determined by 32P-postlabeling assay.

Covalent DNA addition products (adducts) formed by the reaction of chemical carcinogens or their metabolites with DNA are critically involved in the initiation of chemical carcinogenesis and may serve as molecular markers and dosimeters for environmental carcinogen exposures. Using a highly sensitive 32P-postlabeling assay for DNA adduct analysis, we studied DNA damage elicited by cigarette smoke in tissues of smokers. A multitude of characteristic smoking-induced, presumably aromatic DNA adducts were found to occur in a dose- and time-dependent manner in the lung, bronchus, and larynx of smokers with cancer of these organs and to decline only slowly after cessation of smoking. Low levels of adducts appeared to persist for up to 14 years in the lungs of exsmokers with high previous exposures. These results corroborate data of epidemiological studies showing that the lung cancer risk and mortality of smokers increase with the intensity and duration of smoking and decline only slowly after cessation of smoking. Tissue distribution studies in autopsy samples revealed the presence of smoking-associated DNA lesions also in the kidney, bladder, esophagus, heart, ascending aorta, and liver. The most extensive DNA damage was found in lung and heart, i.e., 1 aromatic adduct in about 10(7) DNA nucleotides. Our results suggest that cigarette smoking-induced DNA adduct formation is causally related to cancer in the target organs.

Severe destruction of esophageal nerves in a patient with achalasia secondary to gastric cancer. A possible role of eosinophil neurotoxic proteins.

We present a case of secondary achalasia due to an adenocarcinoma of the stomach with no tumor infiltration of the esophagus. Immunohistochemical staining revealed a massive infiltration of activated eosinophils in the muscularis of the esophagus with secretion of the highly cytotoxic and neurotoxic eosinophil cationic protein (ECP). Immunohistochemical staining for the neuropeptides VIP and substance P, as well as the histochemical demonstration of AChE, revealed a nearly total absence of all three neurotransmitters/modulators compared to control. The hypothesis is advanced that eosinophil neurotoxicity is the cause of secondary achalasia.

Observations on the morphology and histology of the foregut of Portunus sanguinolentus (Crustacea: Brachyura).

The morphological and histological characteristics of the foregut of the crab Portunus sanguinolentus (Herbst) are described, with special reference to the lining and glands of the oesophagus. The oesophagus is lined throughout with an outer keratin and an inner collagen layer. Glands secreting mucopolysaccharides are to be found embedded in the connective tissue of the oesophagus. Details of the armature of the pyloric stomach are given.

Expression pattern of two related cystic fibrosis-associated calcium-binding proteins in normal and abnormal tissues.

This paper reports further study of the identity and function of a protein shown to be elevated in serum from cystic fibrosis (CF) patients and clinically normal heterozygotes. Monoclonal antibodies, specifically recognizing the tentatively named cystic fibrosis antigen (CFAg), were produced. Immunoaffinity purification of CFAg from several sources revealed two components: 11 x 10(3) and 14 x 10(3) Mr protein. cDNA clones corresponding to each protein have been isolated. Data-base comparisons of the deduced amino acid sequences suggest that both genes encode related but distinct calcium-binding proteins. We propose the name calgranulin A and B, for the 11 x 10(3) and 14 x 10(3) Mr components, respectively. It is clear from the assignment of the calgranulin genes to chromosome 1 that neither is the product of the mutant CF gene, which maps to chromosome 7. We have used the monoclonal antibodies to study the tissue distribution of the two proteins in a wide-ranging immunohistological survey. Where possible the pattern of expression was confirmed by RNA blot analysis. Strong calgranulin expression in granulocytes was confirmed. In addition to myeloid cells, a restricted subset of normal stratified squamous epithelia were found to be calgranulin-positive. These included tongue, oesophagus and buccal cells, the last of which has been shown to have altered calmodulin activity in CF patients. Using indirect alkaline phosphatase staining, tissue sections of lung, pancreas and skin (normally considered sites where the CF defect is expressed) were not calgranulin-positive. However, by indirect immunofluorescence, nasal polyp sections showed weak patchy calgranulin expression in some epithelial cells, and stronger, higher frequency expression when such cells were briefly cultured.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric quantitative analysis of eicosanoids in human oesophageal mucosa.

In order to investigate the contribution of eicosanoids to human oesophageal functions and disorders (gastrooesophageal reflux, GOR and reflux oesophagitis, RO), we have used a selected ion monitoring gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric methodology to quantify the cyclooxygenase and lipoxygenase products biosynthesized in vitro by endoscopic mucosal biopsy specimens. Prostaglandins (PGs) were quantified as MEMOTMS derivatives and HETEs, as hydrogenated methyl ester of tert-butyldimethylsilyl) ether derivatives. PGE2, PGF2 alpha appeared as the major prostanoids, whereas 12HETE seemed to be the major lipoxygenase product. In the case of GOR or RO, biosynthesis of PGE2 was dramatically increased, while no change could be detected for 12HETE. PGE2 increase seems to be related to inflammatory reaction, in which its exact role remains unclear. Moreover, it cannot be excluded that PGE2 is a side product which might be protective to the oesophageal mucosa.

Intracytoplasmic plasma proteins in distended esophageal squamous cells (balloon cells).

Esophageal mucosal biopsy specimens frequently show numerous distended squamous cells with pale cytoplasm, which we term "balloon cells." These cells often occur in clusters, have a patchy distribution, and predominate in the prickle-cell layer in biopsies from patients with gastroesophageal reflux. We studied the immunohistochemical characteristics of balloon cells and their associated clinical findings. We demonstrated by immunoperoxidase technique that balloon cells contain intracytoplasmic albumin and immunoglobulin light chains and show reduced staining for keratin, suggesting cellular injury with resultant uptake of plasma proteins and fluid. Balloon cells were absent or sparse in esophageal mucosal biopsy specimens from 12 normal control persons, but were observed in 7 of 10 patients (70%) with gastroesophageal reflux confirmed by pH-probe test (P = 0.001 versus normal controls), in 16 of 25 patients (64%) with clinically suspected reflux (P less than 0.001), and in 4 of 5 patients with infectious or chemotherapy-associated esophagitis. However, no consistent association was found between balloon cells and the presence of the usual histopathologic criteria for epithelial injury, such as increased height of vascular tufts or width of basal zone. We conclude that balloon cells are most commonly observed in biopsy specimens from patients with various causes of esophageal injury. We propose that balloon cells may be a marker for epithelial injury, possibly even when other histopathologic criteria for injury are absent.

Distribution of pancreatic polypeptide-like immunoreactivity in rat tissues.

The distribution of pancreatic polypeptide (PP)-like immunoreactivity (LI) in rat tissue was determined by a specific radioimmunoassay (RIA) after extraction with boiling 1 N acetic acid. The concentration of PP-LI in the ventral area of the pancreas (0.917 +/- 0.106 micrograms/g tissue) was about 10 times greater than that in the dorsal area of the pancreas (0.085 +/- 0.006 micrograms/g tissue). Extrapancreatic PP-LI was present in the colon (0.034 +/- 0.010 micrograms/g tissue) and rectum (0.019 +/- 0.001 micrograms/g tissue). The remainder of the gastrointestinal tract, the lung, kidney, liver, spleen, heart, adrenal gland, and central nervous system contained no measurable PP-LI. Reverse-phase high performance liquid chromatography analysis of the PP-LI materials from the pancreas, colon, and rectum revealed one peak which corresponds to the rat PP standard, under conditions of elution which clearly separated PP, NPY, PYY. These results show that distribution of PP-LI in the rat is different from other known distributions in the PP family of peptides.

Expression of simple epithelial type cytokeratins in stratified epithelia as detected by immunolocalization and hybridization in situ.

Multi-layered ("stratified") epithelia differ from one-layered ("simple") polar epithelia by various architectural and functional properties as well as by their cytoskeletal complements, notably a set of cytokeratins characteristic of stratified tissue. The simple epithelial cytokeratins 8 and 18 have so far not been detected in any stratified epithelium. Using specific monoclonal antibodies we have noted, in several but not all samples of stratified epithelia, including esophagus, tongue, exocervix, and vagina, positive immunocytochemical reactions for cytokeratins 8, 18, and 19 which in some regions were selective for the basal cell layer(s) but extended into suprabasal layers in others. In situ hybridization with different probes (riboprobes, synthetic oligonucleotides) for mRNAs of cytokeratin 8 on esophageal epithelium has shown, in extended regions, relatively strong reactivity for cytokeratin 8 mRNA in the basal cell layer. In contrast, probes to cytokeratin 18 have shown much weaker hybridization which, however, was rather evenly spread over basal and suprabasal strata. These results, which emphasize the importance of in situ hybridization in studies of gene expression in complex tissues, show that the genes encoding simple epithelial cytokeratins can be expressed in stratified epithelia. This suggests that continual expression of genes coding for simple epithelial cytokeratins is compatible with the formation of squamous stratified tissues and can occur, at least in basal cell layers, simultaneously with the synthesis of certain stratification-related cytokeratins. We also emphasize differences of expression and immunoreactivity of these cytokeratins between different samples and in different regions of the same stratified epithelium and discuss the results in relation to changes of cytokeratin expression during fetal development of stratified epithelia, in response to environmental factors and during the formation of squamous cell carcinomas.