Hyalinizing Granuloma: An Unusual Case of a Pulmonary Mass

We describe the case of pulmonary hyalinizing granuloma in a 34-year-old asymptomatic man who presented with a pulmonary nodule apparent by chest radiography and computed tomography (CT). He had a history of previous treatment for tuberculosis. His laboratory data were normal. Bronchoscopy and CT-guided percutaneous transthoracic fine needle aspiration cytology were inconclusive. The diagnosis was revealed after the histopathological examination of an open lung biopsy

Sclerosing Variant of the Bronchioloalveolar Carcinoma: Imaging Findings in an Atypical Case

Bronchioloalveolar carcinoma remains one of the most enigmatic lung cancers, demonstrating varied growth patterns, mixed histological features, and confusing clinical manifestations. This paper reports a case of an unusual form of presentation: a sclerosing type associated with desmoplastic reaction and cicatrization. A 75-year-old woman was admitted with persistent dry cough and progressive dyspnea. Physical examination showed bilateral inspiratory crackles. A chest radiograph and high-resolution computed tomography demonstrated confluent airspace nodules, forming areas of consolidation in both lungs, with signs of architectural distortion. The lung biopsy revealed a nonmucinous sclerosing bronchioloalveolar carcinoma

Pulmonary Alveolar Microlithiasis: A Case Report with Emphasis on Imaging Findings

Pulmonary alveolar microlithiasis (PAM) is a rare disease characterized by the presence of small calculi in the alveolar space. The authors report a case of a 21-year-old man with a 2-year history of shortness of breath on exertion and dry cough. Physical examination was altered only for crackles at auscultation. Pulmonary function revealed a mild restrictive ventilatory defect and the chest radiograph demonstrated paracardiac confluence of dense micronodular infiltrate. High-resolution CT scan revealed diffuse ground glass attenuation and septal thickening, more pronounced in lower pulmonary regions, with calcifications along the interlobar septa and subpleural regions. A transbronchial lung biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of PAM

Spontaneous Pneumothorax as an Atypical Presentation of Pulmonary Paracoccidioidomycosis: A Case Report with Emphasis on the Imaging Findings

We describe the case of a 45-year-old male with pulmonary paracoccidioidomycosis and spontaneous pneumothorax. The patient presented to the hospital with sudden and intense chest pain accompanied by dyspnea and had a six-month history of dry cough, weight loss, and progressive dyspnea on exertion. Chest X-ray showed a small right pneumothorax, bilateral nonhomogeneous opacities, and emphysematous areas in the lung base. Chest computed tomography showed consolidation in both lungs, with architectural distortion, nodules, interlobular septal thickening, and emphysema, in addition to the right pneumothorax. A lung biopsy revealed yeast consistent with Paracoccidioides brasiliensis. No drainage was needed, and the lung was re-expanded. The patient was treated with antifungal drugs, showed mild improvement, and was referred to outpatient care

Cavitated Conglomerate Mass in Silicosis Indicating Associated Tuberculosis

Silicosis is the most common occupational lung disease worldwide. It leads to respiratory impairment and may have associated infections that decrease pulmonary function. We describe the case of a 55-year-old man with chronic silicosis who presented with hemoptysis and a cavitated conglomerate mass. The final diagnosis was silicotuberculosis

Colon Mucinous Adenocarcinoma in Childhood: A Case Report with Emphasis on Image Findings

Colorectal cancer is extremely rare in children. We report a case of a 12-year-old boy who presented with a five-month history of weight loss and anorexia, associated with vomiting episodes, dizziness, fatigue, and dyspnea. On physical examination, a palpable abdominal mass was noticed on the right hypochondrium and flank. An imaging study was performed, which showed a solid mass on the right colon. The patient underwent incisional surgical biopsy, and subsequent histopathologic analysis revealed a colon mucinous adenocarcinoma

Determining the Orientation of Protegrin-1 in DLPC Bilayers Using an Implicit Solvent-Membrane Model

Continuum models that describe the effects of solvent and biological membrane molecules on the structure and behavior of antimicrobial peptides, holds a promise to improve our understanding of the mechanisms of antimicrobial action of these peptides. In such methods, a lipid bilayer model membrane is implicitly represented by multiple layers of relatively low dielectric constant embedded in a high dielectric aqueous solvent, while an antimicrobial peptide is accounted for by a dielectric cavity with fixed partial charge at the center of each one of its atoms. In the present work, we investigate the ability of continuum approaches to predict the most probable orientation of the β-hairpin antimicrobial peptide Protegrin-1 (PG-1) in DLPC lipid bilayers by calculating the difference in the transfer free energy from an aqueous environment to a membrane-water environment for multiple orientations. The transfer free energy is computed as a sum of two terms; polar/electrostatic and non-polar. They both include energetic and entropic contributions to the free energy. We numerically solve the Poisson-Boltzmann equation to calculate the electrostatic contribution to the transfer free energy, while the non-polar contribution to the free energy is approximated using a linear solvent accessible surface area relationships. The most probable orientation of PG-1 is that with the lowest relative transfer free energy. Our simulation results indicate that PG-1 assumes an oblique orientation in DLPC lipid bilayers. The predicted most favorable orientation was with a tilt angle of 19°, which is in qualitative agreement with the experimentally observed orientations derived from solid-state NMR data

Farmland biodiversity and agricultural management on 237 farms in 13 European and two African regions

Farmland is a major land cover type in Europe and Africa and provides habitat for numerous species. The severe decline in farmland biodiversity of the last decades has been attributed to changes in farming practices, and organic and low-input farming are assumed to mitigate detrimental effects of agricultural intensification on biodiversity. Since the farm enterprise is the primary unit of agricultural decision making, management-related effects at the field scale need to be assessed at the farm level. Therefore, in this study, data were collected on habitat characteristics, vascular plant, earthworm, spider, and bee communities and on the corresponding agricultural management in 237 farms in 13 European and two African regions. In 15 environmental and agricultural homogeneous regions, 6–20 farms with the same farm type (e.g., arable crops, grassland, or specific permanent crops) were selected. If available, an equal number of organic and non-organic farms were randomly selected. Alternatively, farms were sampled along a gradient of management intensity. For all selected farms, the entire farmed area was mapped, which resulted in total in the mapping of 11 338 units attributed to 194 standardized habitat types, provided together with additional descriptors. On each farm, one site per available habitat type was randomly selected for species diversity investigations. Species were sampled on 2115 sites and identified to the species level by expert taxonomists. Species lists and abundance estimates are provided for each site and sampling date (one date for plants and earthworms, three dates for spiders and bees). In addition, farmers provided information about their management practices in face-to-face interviews following a standardized questionnaire. Farm management indicators for each farm are available (e.g., nitrogen input, pesticide applications, or energy input). Analyses revealed a positive effect of unproductive areas and a negative effect of intensive management on biodiversity. Communities of the four taxonomic groups strongly differed in their response to habitat characteristics, agricultural management, and regional circumstances. The data has potential for further insights into interactions of farmland biodiversity and agricultural management at site, farm, and regional scale