Characterization of membranous and cytoplasmic EGFR expression in human normal renal cortex and renal cell carcinoma

Metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is highly resistant to conventional systemic treatments, including chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormonal therapies. Previous studies have shown over-expression of EGFR is associated with high grade tumors and a worse prognosis. Recent studies suggest anticancer therapies targeting the EGFR pathway have shown promising results in clinical trials of RCC patients. Therefore, characterization of the level and localization of EGFR expression in RCC is important for target-dependent therapy. In this study, we investigated the clinical significance of cellular localization of EGFR in human normal renal cortex and RCC. RCC and adjacent normal kidney tissues of 63 patients were obtained for characterization of EGFR expression. EGFR protein expression was assessed by immunohistochemistry on a scale from 0 to 300 (percentage of positive cells × staining intensity) and Western blotting. EGFR membranous staining was significantly stronger in RCC tumors than in normal tissues (P < 0.001). In contrast, EGFR cytoplasmic staining was significantly higher in normal than in tumor tissues (P < 0.001). The levels of membranous or cytoplasmic EGFR expression in RCC tissues were not correlated with sex, tumor grade, TNM stage or overall survival (P > 0.05). These results showed abundant expression of membranous EGFR in RCC, and abundant expression of cytoplasmic EGFR in normal tissues. EGFR expression in RCC was mostly located in the cell membrane, whereas the EGFR expression in normal renal tissues was chiefly seen in cytoplasm. Our results suggest different locations of EGFR expression may be associated with human renal tumorigenesis

Women with endometriosis have higher comorbidities: Analysis of domestic data in Taiwan

AbstractEndometriosis, defined by the presence of viable extrauterine endometrial glands and stroma, can grow or bleed cyclically, and possesses characteristics including a destructive, invasive, and metastatic nature. Since endometriosis may result in pelvic inflammation, adhesion, chronic pain, and infertility, and can progress to biologically malignant tumors, it is a long-term major health issue in women of reproductive age. In this review, we analyze the Taiwan domestic research addressing associations between endometriosis and other diseases. Concerning malignant tumors, we identified four studies on the links between endometriosis and ovarian cancer, one on breast cancer, two on endometrial cancer, one on colorectal cancer, and one on other malignancies, as well as one on associations between endometriosis and irritable bowel syndrome, one on links with migraine headache, three on links with pelvic inflammatory diseases, four on links with infertility, four on links with obesity, four on links with chronic liver disease, four on links with rheumatoid arthritis, four on links with chronic renal disease, five on links with diabetes mellitus, and five on links with cardiovascular diseases (hypertension, hyperlipidemia, etc.). The data available to date support that women with endometriosis might be at risk of some chronic illnesses and certain malignancies, although we consider the evidence for some comorbidities to be of low quality, for example, the association between colon cancer and adenomyosis/endometriosis. We still believe that the risk of comorbidity might be higher in women with endometriosis than that we supposed before. More research is needed to determine whether women with endometriosis are really at risk of these comorbidities

Cerebrotendinous xanthomatosis-a case report with novel compound heterozygous mutation of CYP27A1 gene

Cerebrotendinous xanthomatosis (CTX), a rare autosomal recessive lipid storage disorder which is caused by mutations in gene CYP27A1 leads to deficiency of enzyme sterol 27-hydroxylase. Clinically, CTX is characterized by tendon xanthomas, premature atherosclerosis, juvenile cataracts and progressive neurological deficits. In this study, we report one 34 year-old Taiwanese man who developed bilateral xanthomas on Achilles tendon and progressive neuropsychiatric disorder. DNA sequencing revealed novel compound heterozygous mutation of CYP27A1 gene, 1072C > T (Gln358X) in exon 6 and c.496–497, 503–514 deletion in exon 1. Early diagnosis of CTX is crucial because treatment with chenodeoxycholic acid in time may prevent or improve neurological dysfunction. Keywords: Cerebrotendinous xanthomatosis, Tendon xanthomas, CYP27A

Analysis of Socioeconomic Status in the Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic inflammatory disease with different etiologies in different areas. Our study focused on the prevalence of RA in Taiwan from 2001 to 2011. This study contained longitudinal enrollment files, claims data, catastrophic illness files, and treatment registries from Taiwan Longitudinal Health Insurance Research Database. We identified RA patients by ICD-9-CM code 714.0. The demographical variables including age, sex, income and area of registration were evaluated. The multivariate Poisson regression was applied to calculate relative risk for developing RA. In Taiwan, the ratio of female to male was about 5:1. From 2001 to 2011, significant increasing prevalence of RA, from 0.07% to 0.14%, was found in women. The prevalence of RA was increasing 6% per year in both sex groups. The annual incidence rate (per 10,000 person years) ranged from 1.62 to 2.02 (female: 2.30&ndash;3.14; male: 0.71&ndash;1.17) from 2003 to 2011. City area had lowest incidence rate of RA compared with suburban or rural area. Higher incidence of RA was observed among lower socioeconomic status. The prevalence of RA was rising from 0.07% in 2001 to 0.14% in 2011. Incidence was about 2/10,000 person-years and female to male ratio was 5:1. Lower socioeconomic status and living rural region might be a risk factor for developing RA