LAT, EGFR -pY197, PCNL2, CDX2, HLA-DPDQDR, bromodeoxyuridine, JAM-A, and ezrin immunoreactants in a rubbed spongiotic dermatitis

Background: Acute and subacute spongiotic dermatitides are among the most commonly diagnosed types of dermatitis. Many patients rub their lesions, with the lesions becoming clinically thickened. The precise immunologic mechanisms within the thickening process are not well defined. Case report: An 85 year old male presented with the sudden clinical appearance of erythematous patches and small blisters on the back of his legs, with pruritis. Methods: Skin biopsies, one from a rubbed lesion and one from a non-rubbed lesion were submitted for hematoxylin and eosin (H&E), immunohistochemistry (IHC), and for direct immunofluorescence (DIF) analysis. Results: The H&E staining demonstrated classic features of a spongiotic dermatitis, but in the rubbed areas psoriasiform hyperplasia was also seen. The psoriasiform areas demonstrated positive, focal IHC staining with bromodeoxyuridine, LAT, EGFR-pY197, PCNL2, CDX2, and HLA-DPDQDR antibodies. DIF staining revealed positive staining of JAM-A and ezrin in the non-rubbed specimens in both the spongiotic epidermis and in the adjacent vessels; normal expression of these markers was appreciated in the rubbed biopsy. Conclusions: The immune response seems to be complex when a spongiotic dermatitis is converted from a non-rubbed to a rubbed lesion with histologic features of psoriasiform hyperplasia

Immunologic findings in central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia

Introduction: Premature desquamation of the inner root sheath is described as a defining histologic feature of follicular degeneration syndrome/central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia; moreover, the immunological features of this disease are not well established.Case report: A 46-year-old African American female was evaluated for an asymptomatic scarring alopecia after using several chemicals on her hair. The clinical examination revealed visible, well defined patches of hair loss.Methods: Biopsies for hematoxylin and eosin examination, as well as for direct immunofluorescence and immunohistochemistry analysis were performed. We evaluated molecules involved in signaling of growth factor pathways (e.g. the Akts), specifically VEGF and Oct-4 to investigate involvement of these molecules in this disease. Hematoxylin and eosin staining demonstrated histopathologic findings of premature desquamation of the inner root sheath and eccentric thinning of the follicular epithelium, supporting the diagnosis of central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia. Direct immunofluorescence revealed strong depositions of IgG, Complement/C3 and fibrinogen around the multiple hair follicles and their supply vessels. Immunohistochemistry staining of the base of the hair follicle was seen with fibrinogen and Oct-4 antibodies. Immunohistochemistry also demonstrated increased expressions of VEGF around supply vessels of the hair follicle, as well as some overexpression of anti-human Akt-pS473 phosphorylation site specific antibody.Conclusions: Our immunologic findings suggest that the etiology of centrifugal cicatricial alopecia includes not only hair traction, but also a possible reactive immune response

Disenchanting secularism (or the cultivation of soul) as pedagogy in resistance to populist racism and colonial structures in the academy

This paper explores pedagogic strategies for resisting the racism of contemporary populism and age-old coloniality through challenging secularism in the academy, especially in social theory. Secularism sustains racism and imperialism in the contemporary academy and is inscribed, in part, through the norms of social theory. Post-secular social theory has been positioned by some as the decolonial answer, but often replicates the most problematic aspects of secularism. Whereas post-secularism affirms the previously denigrated side of the secular vs religious dualism, I am more interested in unworking those classificatory schemas, setting the critical thought of religious teachers in relation with ‘secular’ social and political theorists such that boundaries erode. The ambition in this is to resist the hierarchical orderings of knowledge that pit Islamic, indigenous, and feminised subjectivity as backwards, dangerous or intrinsically inferior to secular, Christian, rational knowledge. It is also to disenchant the secular Gods (progress, money, growth, health) and hold open space for critical play in relation to the transcendental - to create a permissive, legitimising, space for students’ spiritual dimension, conocimiento, or the cultivation of soul. The paper draws theoretical inspiration from Gloria Anzaldúa, Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, and Sylvia Wynter. It also draws on a practical experiment in disenchanting secularism through teaching an undergraduate module in social theory called Capitalism and Religion

The construction of viewpoint aspect: the imperfective revisited

This paper argues for a constructionist approach to viewpoint Aspect by exploring the idea that it does not exert any altering force on the situation-aspect properties of predicates. The proposal is developed by analyzing the syntax and semantics of the imperfective, which has been attributed a coercer role in the literature as a de-telicizer and de-stativizer in the progressive, and as a de-eventivizer in the so-called ability (or attitudinal) and habitual readings. This paper proposes a unified semantics for the imperfective, preserving the properties of eventualities throughout the derivation. The paper argues that the semantics of viewpoint aspect is encoded in a series of functional heads containing interval-ordering predicates and quantifiers. This richer structure allows us to account for a greater amount of phenomena, such as the perfective nature of the individual instantiations of the event within a habitual construction or the nonculminating reading of perfective accomplishments in Spanish. This paper hypothesizes that nonculminating accomplishments have an underlying structure corresponding to the perfective progressive. As a consequence, the progressive becomes disentangled from imperfectivity and is given a novel analysis. The proposed syntax is argued to have a corresponding explicit morphology in languages such as Spanish and a nondifferentiating one in languages such as English; however, the syntax-semantics underlying both of these languages is argued to be the same

Admixture Mapping Scans Identify a Locus Affecting Retinal Vascular Caliber in Hypertensive African Americans: the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study

Retinal vascular caliber provides information about the structure and health of the microvascular system and is associated with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Compared to European Americans, African Americans tend to have wider retinal arteriolar and venular caliber, even after controlling for cardiovascular risk factors. This has suggested the hypothesis that differences in genetic background may contribute to racial/ethnic differences in retinal vascular caliber. Using 1,365 ancestry-informative SNPs, we estimated the percentage of African ancestry (PAA) and conducted genome-wide admixture mapping scans in 1,737 African Americans from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study. Central retinal artery equivalent (CRAE) and central retinal vein equivalent (CRVE) representing summary measures of retinal arteriolar and venular caliber, respectively, were measured from retinal photographs. PAA was significantly correlated with CRVE (ρ = 0.071, P = 0.003), but not CRAE (ρ = 0.032, P = 0.182). Using admixture mapping, we did not detect significant admixture association with either CRAE (genome-wide score = −0.73) or CRVE (genome-wide score = −0.69). An a priori subgroup analysis among hypertensive individuals detected a genome-wide significant association of CRVE with greater African ancestry at chromosome 6p21.1 (genome-wide score = 2.31, locus-specific LOD = 5.47). Each additional copy of an African ancestral allele at the 6p21.1 peak was associated with an average increase in CRVE of 6.14 µm in the hypertensives, but had no significant effects in the non-hypertensives (P for heterogeneity <0.001). Further mapping in the 6p21.1 region may uncover novel genetic variants affecting retinal vascular caliber and further insights into the interaction between genetic effects of the microvascular system and hypertension

Leptin and Adiponectin: new players in the field of tumor cell and leukocyte migration

Adipose tissue is no longer considered to be solely an energy storage, but exerts important endocrine functions, which are primarily mediated by a network of various soluble factors derived from fat cells, called adipocytokines. In addition to their responsibility to influence energy homeostasis, new studies have identified important pathways linking metabolism with the immune system, and demonstrating a modulatory role of adipocytokines in immune function. Additionally, epidemiological studies underline that obesity represents a significant risk factor for the development of cancer, although the exact mechanism of this relationship remains to be determined. Whereas a possible influence of adipocytokines on the proliferation of tumor cells is already known, new evidence has come to light elucidating a modulatory role of this signaling substances in the regulation of migration of leukocytes and tumor cells. The migration of leukocytes is a key feature to fight cancer cells, whereas the locomotion of tumor cells is a prerequisite for tumor formation and metastasis. We herein review the latest tumor biological findings on the role of the most prominent adipocytokines leptin and adiponectin, which are secreted by fat cells, and which are involved in leukocyte migration, tumor growth, invasion and metastasis. This review thus accentuates the complex, interactive involvement of adipocytokines in the regulation of migration of both leukocytes and tumor cells, and gives an insight in the underlying molecular mechanisms

Specific cutaneous histologic and immunologic features in a case of early lupus erythematosus scarring alopecia

Introduction:Immunoreactants detected by direct immunofluorescence (DIF) in the skin of patients with lupus erythematosus represent an important tool in the diagnosis of this disorder. Case report: A 46 year old African American female presented complaining of hair loss and scarring in her scalp.Methods: Biopsies for hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) examination, as well as for direct immunofluorescence (DIF) were performed.Results: The histologic features were representative of early lupus erythematosus. DIF demonstrated immune deposits of several immunoglobulins and complement, primarily around skin appendageal structures(hair follicles and sweat glands). Deposits of immunoglobulin D were seen in several areas of the epidermis.Conclusion: In lupus erythematosus, evaluation of immune reactions against cutaneous appendageal structures may be crucial in differentiating this disorder from other autoimmune and non-autoimmune diseases