Prevlast CD4 pozitivnih stromalnih stanica koštane srži u bolesnika s ranim stupnjem Hodgkinove bolesti miješane celularnosti

The aim of the study was to determine the possible bone marrow involvement in patients with early stages of classic Hodgkin\u27s disease mixed cellularity variant diagnosed by lymph node biopsy at initial presentation not responding to radiotherapy alone. The study cohort consisted of 20 patients (18 displaying B-cell genotype and two T-cell genotype) with stages I-II Hodgkin\u27s disease according to Ann Arbor classification treated with radiotherapy alone, seven of them not responding to therapy. Southern blot hybridization using a specific EBV Bam H1W fragment probe showed the presence of EBV genomes in two patients. All 20 patients underwent iliac crest trephine biopsy and a panel of antibodies including CD45, CD20, CD4, CD8, CD45RO, CD56, CD30, ALK-1, CD-15, EMA, CD61, and CD68 were performed. A statistically significant predominance of CD45, CD45RO and CD4 positive stromal cells was found in seven patients that failed to respond to therapy (c2-test: p=0.021, p=0.019 and p=0.015, respectively). The predominance of CD4 positive cells in the bone marrow stroma might be suggestive of involvement by Hodgkin\u27s disease in the early stage (I-II) patients (indicating upstaging) who fail to show remission on radiotherapy alone, and could explain the abnormal cytokine production, which may contribute to diminished T-cell immunity and inefficient antitumor responses despite a vast majority of infiltrating reactive immune cells.Cilj rada bio je utvrditi moguću zahvaćenost koštane srži u bolesnika s ranim stadijima klasične Hodgkinove bolesti, varijanta miješane celularnosti, dijagnosticirane biopsijom limfnog čvora, koji pri prvom dolasku nisu odgovorili na samu radioterapiju. Bolesnička skupina sastojala se je od 20 bolesnika (18 s B-staničnim genotipom i dvoje s T-staničnim genotipom) u I.-II. stadiju prema klasifikaciji iz Ann Arbora, koji su bili liječeni samo radioterapijom. Sedmoro bolesnika nije odgovaralo na ovu vrst liječenja. Southern blot hibridizacija uz primjenu specifične fragmentne sonde EBV Bam H1W pokazala je prisutnost EBV genoma u dvoje bolesnika. Svih 20 bolesnika podvrgnuto je trepanacijskoj biopsiji ilijačnog grebena i provedeno je ispitivanje panelom protutijela uključujući CD45, CD20, CD4, CD8, CD45RO, CD56, CD30, ALK-1, CD-15, EMA, CD61 i CD68. U sedmoro bolesnika koji nisu odgovarali na liječenje utvrđena je statistički značajna prevlast stromalnih stanica pozitivnih na CD45, CD45RO i CD4 (c2-test: p=0,021, p=0,019 odnosno p=0,015). Prevlast stanica pozitivnih na CD4 u stromi koštane srži moglo bi ukazivati na zahvaćenost koštane srži Hodgkinovom bolešću u bolesnika s ranim stadijem (I.-II.) (tj. porast stadija) u kojih ne dolazi do remisije bolesti nakon same radioterapije, te bi moglo objasniti nenormalnu proizvodnju citokina, što možda doprinosi smanjenoj T-imunosti i nedostatnom protutumorskom odgovoru usprkos goleme većine infiltriranih reaktivnih imunih stanica

Prevlast CD4 pozitivnih stromalnih stanica koštane srži u bolesnika s ranim stupnjem Hodgkinove bolesti miješane celularnosti

The aim of the study was to determine the possible bone marrow involvement in patients with early stages of classic Hodgkin\u27s disease mixed cellularity variant diagnosed by lymph node biopsy at initial presentation not responding to radiotherapy alone. The study cohort consisted of 20 patients (18 displaying B-cell genotype and two T-cell genotype) with stages I-II Hodgkin\u27s disease according to Ann Arbor classification treated with radiotherapy alone, seven of them not responding to therapy. Southern blot hybridization using a specific EBV Bam H1W fragment probe showed the presence of EBV genomes in two patients. All 20 patients underwent iliac crest trephine biopsy and a panel of antibodies including CD45, CD20, CD4, CD8, CD45RO, CD56, CD30, ALK-1, CD-15, EMA, CD61, and CD68 were performed. A statistically significant predominance of CD45, CD45RO and CD4 positive stromal cells was found in seven patients that failed to respond to therapy (c2-test: p=0.021, p=0.019 and p=0.015, respectively). The predominance of CD4 positive cells in the bone marrow stroma might be suggestive of involvement by Hodgkin\u27s disease in the early stage (I-II) patients (indicating upstaging) who fail to show remission on radiotherapy alone, and could explain the abnormal cytokine production, which may contribute to diminished T-cell immunity and inefficient antitumor responses despite a vast majority of infiltrating reactive immune cells.Cilj rada bio je utvrditi moguću zahvaćenost koštane srži u bolesnika s ranim stadijima klasične Hodgkinove bolesti, varijanta miješane celularnosti, dijagnosticirane biopsijom limfnog čvora, koji pri prvom dolasku nisu odgovorili na samu radioterapiju. Bolesnička skupina sastojala se je od 20 bolesnika (18 s B-staničnim genotipom i dvoje s T-staničnim genotipom) u I.-II. stadiju prema klasifikaciji iz Ann Arbora, koji su bili liječeni samo radioterapijom. Sedmoro bolesnika nije odgovaralo na ovu vrst liječenja. Southern blot hibridizacija uz primjenu specifične fragmentne sonde EBV Bam H1W pokazala je prisutnost EBV genoma u dvoje bolesnika. Svih 20 bolesnika podvrgnuto je trepanacijskoj biopsiji ilijačnog grebena i provedeno je ispitivanje panelom protutijela uključujući CD45, CD20, CD4, CD8, CD45RO, CD56, CD30, ALK-1, CD-15, EMA, CD61 i CD68. U sedmoro bolesnika koji nisu odgovarali na liječenje utvrđena je statistički značajna prevlast stromalnih stanica pozitivnih na CD45, CD45RO i CD4 (c2-test: p=0,021, p=0,019 odnosno p=0,015). Prevlast stanica pozitivnih na CD4 u stromi koštane srži moglo bi ukazivati na zahvaćenost koštane srži Hodgkinovom bolešću u bolesnika s ranim stadijem (I.-II.) (tj. porast stadija) u kojih ne dolazi do remisije bolesti nakon same radioterapije, te bi moglo objasniti nenormalnu proizvodnju citokina, što možda doprinosi smanjenoj T-imunosti i nedostatnom protutumorskom odgovoru usprkos goleme većine infiltriranih reaktivnih imunih stanica

Leishmaniasis, Autoimmune Rheumatic Disease, and Anti–Tumor Necrosis Factor Therapy, Europe

We report 2 cases of leishmaniasis in patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases in Greece. To assess trends in leishmaniasis reporting in this patient population, we searched the literature for similar reports from Europe. Reports increased during 2004–2008, especially for patients treated with anti–tumor necrosis factor agents

Overview of current and future energy storage technologies for electric power applications

In today's world, there is a continuous global need for more energy which, at the same time, has to be cleaner than the energy produced from the traditional generation technologies. This need has facilitated the increasing penetration of distributed generation (DG) technologies and primarily of renewable energy sources (RES). The extensive use of such energy sources in today's electricity networks can indisputably minimize the threat of global warming and climate change. However, the power output of these energy sources is not as reliable and as easy to adjust to changing demand cycles as the output from the traditional power sources. This disadvantage can only be effectively overcome by the storing of the excess power produced by DG-RES. Therefore, in order for these new sources to become completely reliable as primary sources of energy, energy storage is a crucial factor. In this work, an overview of the current and future energy storage technologies used for electric power applications is carried out. Most of the technologies are in use today while others are still under intensive research and development. A comparison between the various technologies is presented in terms of the most important technological characteristics of each technology. The comparison shows that each storage technology is different in terms of its ideal network application environment and energy storage scale. This means that in order to achieve optimum results, the unique network environment and the specifications of the storage device have to be studied thoroughly, before a decision for the ideal storage technology to be selected is taken.Power generation Distributed generation Energy storage Electricity storage

Pancreatic-Polypeptide in the Human Pancreas: Expression and Quantitative Variation During Development and in Ductal Adenocarcinoma

Aim: To determine the immunoreactivity of pancreatic-polypeptide (PP) during the development of the human fetal pancreas and ductal pancreatic adenocarcinoma, given that, PP positive cells were demonstrated either into its embryonic anlage or into pancreatic cancer. Methods: Tissue sections from 15 pancreatic fetal specimens, and equal number of ductal adenocarcinoma specimens, were assessed. Results: The density of positive cells in the primitive exocrine ductal epithelium and endocrine epithelium was significantly higher than the relevant density in the neoplastic pancreatic tissue of mixed (ductal – endocrine) and pure ductal type (p1=0.001, p2<0.0005, p3 =0.046 and p4<0.0005 respectively). The above values were estimated during the 10th to 12th week. There was no significant difference in the density of positive cells in the mantle zone of the islets from the 13th to the 24th week, and the neoplastic tissue of mixed (p5=0.11) and pure ductal type (p6=0.23). Conclusion: The immunostaining for PP identifies a subgroup of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas with a neuroendocrine component, initially considered as pure ductal tumors, and mixed ductal and neuroendocrine tumors. This pattern of expression in neoplasms recapitulates the normal pattern during the embryonal development of the organ, raising the question of therapeutic efficacy of PP and analogues as potential adjuvant treatment of pancreatic cancer

Expression of the activation markers Blimp1, Foxp1 and pStat3 in extranodal diffuse large B-cell lymphomas

Different studies have suggested that the expression of biomarkers related to lymphoid cell activation may provide information on the behavior of DLBCL. Most studies have concentrated on nodal or a mixture of nodal and extranodal lymphomas. The differential expression and potential clinical impact of these markers in a homogeneous group of extranodal DLBCLs are not well defined. In this study, we investigated the expression of three activation markers, Blimp1, Foxp1 and pStat3, in a cohort of 35 extranodal DLBCLs homogeneously treated with R-CHOP. Immunohistochemical stains were evaluated using an immunoreactivity score on representative paraffin sections. Blimp1 was positive in 55% (19/35), Foxp1 in 60% (21/35), and pStat3 in 69% (24/35) of our cases. We did not observe any statistical differences in the expression of these markers in GCB and non-GCB tumors or in gastrointestinal and non-gastrointestinal tumors. Blimp1 expression was negatively correlated with overall survival (OS) (p=0.001) in the whole series and in the non-GCB group (Muris algorithm) (p=0.002). Foxp1 positivity and pStat3 positivity had no impact on the outcome of the patients in the global cohort, but they were associated with a better survival in the non-GCB subgroup (p=0.033, p=0.044 respectively). Multivariate analysis showed that Blimp1 expression but not COO was an independent negative prognostic factor for OS (HR=17.5, 95%, CI=2.2-141.1, p=0.007). Our results suggest that these markers are differentially expressed and have different impacts on outcome in extranodal DLBCLs compared to nodal tumors, emphasizing the need to evaluate separately these and probably other markers in these subsets of tumors

Human Decidual Cells Activity in Women with Spontaneous Abortions of Probable CMV Aetiology During the First Trimester of Gestation. An Immunohistochemical Study with CMV-Associated Antigen

Aim: To determine the expression of CMV-associated antigen in the human decidual endometrial stromal cells in spontaneous abortions with no evidence of maternal relapse during the first trimester of gestation. Experimental design: We examined 15 placentas resulting from intrauterine fetal death after spontaneous abortion during the 8th, 10th, and 12th week of gestation respectively, and in which CMV reactivation was ruled out from serological evaluation of the pregnant women at admission, versus equal controls after voluntary abortion following well-documented maternal viral recurrence. In addition, a panel of monoclonal antibodies for the identification of leukocytes (CD45/LCA), B-lymphocytes (CD20/L-26), and T-lymphocytes (CD45RO/UCHL1), was performed. All women received hormonal medication to support gestation, in the cases of spontaneous abortions. Results: Immunohistochemical examination using a specific antibody against cytomegalovirus showed large multinucleated infected cells with intranuclear inclusions, located primarily in the decidual stroma within a lymphoplasmacytic infiltrate in the cases of spontaneous abortions. No evidence of infection was observed in the chorionic villi. In the cases of voluntary abortions same findings were observed in the relevant areas, and a strong evidence of infection was observed in the chorionic villi. Conclusion: This study demonstrates 1) that the decidual endometrial stromal cells can express the CMV-associated antigen prior to serological manifestation of the viral replication, 2) the expression of the antigen is higher in cases of hormonal administration to support gestation. In these cases a mild mononuclear infiltrate of UCHL1 (T marker) positive cells, accompanies the CMV-associated antigen positive cells