An immunohistochemical, clinical and electroneuromyographic correlative study of the neural markers in the neuritic form of leprosy

The nerve biopsies of 11 patients with pure neuritic leprosy were submitted to routine diagnostic procedures and immunoperoxidase staining with antibodies against axonal (neurofilament, nerve growth factor receptor (NGFr), and protein gene product (PGP) 9.5) and Schwann cell (myelin basic protein, S-100 protein, and NGFr) markers. Two pairs of non-adjacent histological cross-sections of the peripheral nerve were removed for quantification. All the fascicles of the nerve were examined with a 10X-ocular and 40X-objective lens. The immunohistochemistry results were compared to the results of semithin section analysis and clinical and electroneuromyographic data. Neurofilament staining was reduced in 100% of the neuritic biopsies. NGFr positivity was also reduced in 81.8%, PGP staining in 100% of the affected nerves, S100 positivity in 90.9%, and myelin basic protein immunoreactivity in 90.9%. Hypoesthesia was associated with decreased NGFr (81.8%) and PGP staining (90.9%). Reduced potential amplitudes (electroneuromyographic data) were found to be associated with reduced PGP 9.5 (63.6%) and nerve fiber neurofilament staining (45.4%) by immunohistochemistry and with loss of myelinated fibers (100%) by semithin section analysis. On the other hand, the small fibers (immunoreactive dots) seen amid inflammatory cells continued to be present even after 40% of the larger myelinated fibers had disappeared. The present study shows an in-depth view of the destructive effects of leprosy upon the expression of neural markers and the integrity of nerve fiber. The association of these structural changes with the clinical and electroneuromyographic manifestations of leprosy peripheral neuropathy was also discussed

Mucinose Folicular: revisão da literatura e relato de um caso Follicular mucinosis: literature review and case report

A mucinose follicular (MuF), também chamada de alopecia mucinosa, é mucinose cutânea caracterizada pelo acúmulo de mucina no folículo pilossebáceo. As mucinoses têm duas formas de apresentação: uma idiopática ou primária, e outra sintomática ou associada a diversos processos benignos e malignos. Os autores apresentam um caso de mucinose folicular primária e fazem breve revisão do assunto. Trata-se de uma paciente de 26 anos de idade, com placa eritematosa recoberta por fina descamação, alopécica e localizada no supercílio direito. Após seis meses, sem qualquer tratamento, houve resolução espontânea da lesão. A paciente permaneceu durante 12 meses em controle ambulatorial sem que se evidenciasse qualquer sinal de recidiva.<br>Follicular mucinosis, also known as alopecia mucinosa, is a cutaneous mucinosis characterized by mucin accumulation predominantly in the pilosebaceous follicle. Two forms are distinguished: an idiopathic, or primary form, which is benign and without associated disease, and a symptomatic form associated with lymphoproliferative disorder, most commonly the cutaneous T-cell lymphoma mycosis fungoides. The authors present a new case of the disease and a brief review of the literature. The patient was a 26-year-old female with an asymptomatic plaque of erythema and scaling with alopecia on her right eyebrow. The lesion resolved spontaneously six months later. We have followed the patient over twelve months without relapse