MiT family translocation renal cell carcinoma

Introduction: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is a heterogeneous group of cancers more and more distinguished due to the advance of diagnostic methods. Among these cancers, MiT (microphtalmia-associated transcriptional factor) translocation RCCs are rare tumors usually found in young persons, as exemplified by this case report. Case report: 15-year-old male patient underwent investigation of a complex cyst in his left kidney incidentally found by ultrasound and exhibiting features suggestive of malignancy at computerized tomography. Radical ipsilateral nephrectomy and retroperitoneal lymphadenectomy were then performed. Both results from histopathological analysis and immunohistochemistry confirmed that such lesion was a rare case of MiT family/transcription factor E3 (TFE3) translocation RCCs. Conclusion: Proper differentiation of RCCs related to translocation of MiT family requires immunostaining for TFE3, especially in the case of younger patients, among which the prevalence of this genetic mutation is frequent. Keywords: Renal cell carcinoma, TFE3 gene, Translocation of MiT family genes, WHO classification of renal cance

Pathogenicity of Vibrio splendidus strains associated with turbot larvae, Scophthalmus maximus

International audienceTurbot larvae were challenged with eight strains of Vibrio splendidus isolated from diseased larvae, plus a ninth strain pathogenic to scallop larvae (A515; Nicolas et al. 1996). Six strains caused heavy mortality but the scallop pathogen and the other two strains did not. All the strains shared a large number of phenotypic traits, and an attempt was made to relate virulence to genotype and phenotype. Five of the six pathogenic strains were very similar, as shown by RAPD fingerprinting and phenotypic characteristics. The relatedness of the other strains was intermediate between the main pathogenic group and V. splendidus ATCC 33125, but the DNA-DNA homology between the pathogenic group and the reference strain was still high (78% of reassociation rate). The non-pathogenic isolates may be a useful tool for determining the possible virulence factors, as all the isolates differed by few characteristics