Hepatocyte-Specific Triggering of Hepatic Stellate Cell Profibrotic Activation by Apoptotic Bodies: The Role of Hepatoma-Derived Growth Factor, HIV, and Ethanol.

Liver disease is one of the leading comorbidities in HIV infection. The risk of liver fibrosis development is potentiated by alcohol abuse. In our previous studies, we reported that hepatocytes exposed to HIV and acetaldehyde undergo significant apoptosis, and the engulfment of apoptotic bodies (ABs) by hepatic stellate cells (HSC) potentiates their pro-fibrotic activation. However, in addition to hepatocytes, under the same conditions, ABs can be generated from liver-infiltrating immune cells. The goal of this study is to explore whether lymphocyte-derived ABs trigger HSC profibrotic activation as strongly as hepatocyte-derived ABs. ABs were generated from Huh7.5-CYP2E1 (RLW) cells and Jurkat cells treated with HIV+acetaldehyde and co-culture with HSC to induce their pro-fibrotic activation. ABs cargo was analyzed by proteomics. ABs generated from RLW, but not from Jurkat cells activated fibrogenic genes in HSC. This was driven by the expression of hepatocyte-specific proteins in ABs cargo. One of these proteins is Hepatocyte-Derived Growth Factor, for which suppression attenuates pro-fibrotic activation of HSC. In mice humanized with only immune cells but not human hepatocytes, infected with HIV and fed ethanol, liver fibrosis was not observed. We conclude that HIV+ABs of hepatocyte origin promote HSC activation, which potentially may lead to liver fibrosis progression.

Synchronous thoracic and head-and-neck malignancies-double trouble-challenges, pitfalls, and lessons learnt.

Synchronous malignancies arising from head and neck and thorax are rare presentation, and only few cases are reported in the scientific literature. We report three cases of double primary malignancies treated at our hospital.

Synchronous thoracic and head-and-neck malignancies-double trouble-challenges, pitfalls, and lessons learnt

Synchronous malignancies arising from head and neck and thorax are rare presentation, and only few cases are reported in the scientific literature. We report three cases of double primary malignancies treated at our hospital.

Prognostic factors, failure patterns and survival analysis in patients with resectable oral squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue

PURPOSE: There is sparse literature on treatment outcomes research on resectable oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma (OTSCC). The aim of this study was to measure the treatment outcomes, explore the failure patterns, and identify the potential clinicopathological prognostic factors affecting treatment outcomes for resectable OTSCC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: It is a retrospective analysis of 202 patients with resectable OTSCC who underwent upfront primary surgical resection followed by adjuvant radiotherapy with or without concurrent chemotherapy if indicated. RESULTS: The median follow-up was 35.2 months (range, 1.2 to 99.9 months). The median duration of locoregional control (LRC) was 84.9 months (95% confidence interval, 67.3–102.4). The 3- and 5-year LRC rate was 68.5% and 58.3%, respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that increasing pT stage, increasing pN stage, and the presence of extracapsular extension (ECE) were significantly associated with poorer LRC. The median duration of overall survival (OS) was not reached at the time of analysis. The 3- and 5-year OS rate was 70.5% and 66.6%, respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that increasing pT stage and the presence of ECE were significantly associated with a poorer OS. CONCLUSION: Locoregional failure remains the main cause of treatment failure in resectable OTSCC. There is scope to further improve prognosis considering modest LRC and OS. Pathological T-stage, N-stage, and ECE are strong prognostic factors. Further research is required to confirm whether adjuvant therapy adds to treatment outcomes in cases with lymphovascular invasion, perineural invasion, and depth of invasion, and help clinicians tailoring adjuvant therapy.

Sinonasal teratocarcinosarcoma treated with surgery followed by volumetric modulated radiotherapy: a case report with review of literature

Surgical excision along with use of postoperative radiotherapy forms an integral management of sinonasal teratocarcinosarcoma (SNTCS). However, given the rarity of the tumor, no standardised guidelines, dose, technique and target delineation exist especially in the era of modern radiation delivery techniques. This is a case of 55-year-old male diagnosed as SNTCS treated with radical ethmoidectomy followed by volumetric modulated radiotherapy, showing good local control and acceptable toxicity profile.