Exceptional Renal Metastasis from Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma of the Nasal Cavity and Literature Review

Adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) is a rare malignant cancer that arises from secretory glands. Slow growth, perineural invasion, and late recurrences are the main characteristics of ACC. Only few cases of kidney metastases from ACC have been reported in the literature. We report here the case of a 66-year-old female patient who presented with bilateral renal metastases from ACC of the nasal cavity, detected 14 years after treatment of primary tumor and 6 years after metastasectomy of lung metastases. Histological examination confirmed diagnosis and the patient was treated with systemic chemotherapy. Radiological evaluation showed stability of the disease. However, a progression with occurrence of metastases in other sites (lung and bones) has been observed after 7 months. She is still receiving second-line chemotherapy. To the best of our knowledge, this is the second case of kidney metastases from ACC of the nasal cavity

Protective effect of Ruta Chalepensis L. extract on oxidative stress and liver-kidney function induced by polymicrobial sepsis in rats

Sepsis, a systemic inflammatory disease developed after an infectious insult and remains the major cause of death in intensive care units. The aim of this study was to examine the protective effect of the ethanolic extract of Ruta chalepensis L. (ERC) against oxidative stress and liver-kidney functions in cecal and ligation puncture (CLP) rats. In vitro, the results showed that ERC rich in phenolic compounds possessed important antioxidant activity. In vivo, CLP-induced oxidative stress evidenced by the increase of the TBARS and decrease in the enzymatic antioxidants (SOD, CAT, GPX) in liver and kidney. Moreover, CLP induced liver-kidney toxicities showed by an increase in the ALT, AST, PAL, LDH, BUN and creatinine in the plasma. However, the administration of ERC to CLP-rats prevents all these disorders. Positive action of ERC was confirmed by histo-pathological examination. Therefore this study suggests that ERC could be a potential therapeutic agent for sepsis treatment

Characteristics of epstein barr virus variants associated with gastric carcinoma in Southern Tunisia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Backgroud</p> <p>EBV-associated Gastric Carcinoma (EBVaGC) has a distinct clinical features and its prevalence is variable worldwide.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>To determine the prevalence of EBVaGC in Tunisia, EBV-encoded small RNA (EBER) expression was assessed in 81 gastric carcinoma (GC) specimens. The nuclear EBER expression was detected in 12 out of 81 GC cases (14.81%) and concordance between the score range of EBER staining and the number of EBV DNA copies as estimate by QPCR is observed. On the other hand, we found that EBVaGC strongly correlated with age at diagnosis, and weakly with tumor differentiation and venous invasion.</p> <p>Furthermore, the EBVaGC specimens were subjected to determine the EBV DNA polymorphisms. Our results show a unique genetic profile of the EBV strains regarding the A and D types, the F prototype, the retention of <it>Xho</it>I restriction site and the 30 bp del-LMP1 variant. <b><it>According to our previous studies on nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), we suggested that EBV strains associated to GC and NPC shared some similarities in Tunisian patients</it>.</b></p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The prevalence of EBVaGC is of 14.81% in the southern Tunisia and that common EBV strain are associated with both NPC and GC which are likely to differ from Asian strains. Our findings support therefore a certain geographical distribution of EBV strains which is not restricted to EBV-associated malignancies.</p

Hepatoid adenocarcinoma of the gallbladder

Hepatoid adenocarcinoma is a rare variant of extrahepatic adenocarcinoma which behaves like hepatocellular carcinoma in morphology and functionality

EBV latent membrane protein 1 abundance correlates with patient age but not with metastatic behavior in north African nasopharyngeal carcinomas

BACKGROUND: Undifferentiated nasopharyngeal carcinomas are rare in a majority of countries but they occur at a high incidence in South China and to a lesser extent in North Africa. They are constantly associated with the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) regardless of patient geographic origin. In North Africa, the distribution of NPC cases according to patient age is bi-modal with a large group of patients being around 50 years old (80%) and a smaller group below 25 years old. We and others have previously shown that the juvenile form of NPC has distinct biological characteristics including a low amount of p53 and Bcl2 in the tumor tissue and a low level of anti-EBV IgG and IgA in the peripheral blood. RESULTS: To get more insight on potential oncogenic mechanisms specific of these two forms, LMP1 abundance was assessed in 82 NPC patients of both groups, using immuno-histochemistry and semi-quantitative evaluation of tissue staining. Serum levels of anti-EBV antibodies were simultaneously assessed. For LMP1 staining, we used the S12 antibody which has proven to be more sensitive than the common anti-LMP1 CS1-4 for analysis of tissue sections. In all NPC biopsies, at least a small fraction of cells was positively stained by S12. LMP1 abundance was strongly correlated to patient age, with higher amounts of the viral protein detected in specimens of the juvenile form. In contrast, LMP1 abundance was not correlated to the presence of lymph node or visceral metastases, nor to the risk of metastatic recurrence. It was also independent of the level of circulating anti-EBV antibodies. CONCLUSION: The high amount of LMP1 recorded in tumors from young patients confirms that the juvenile form of NPC has specific features regarding not only cellular but also viral gene expression

Clinical Significance of Epigenetic Inactivation of hMLH1 and BRCA1 in Tunisian Patients with Invasive Breast Carcinoma

Aberrant hypermethylation of gene promoter regions is one of the mechanisms for inactivation of tumour suppressor genes in many human cancers including breast carcinoma. In the current study, we aimed to assess by MSP, the methylation pattern of two cancer-related genes involved in DNA repair: hMLH1 (mutL homolog 1, colon cancer, nonpolyposis type 2 (E. coli) and BRCA1 (breast cancer 1, early onset) in 78 primary breast cancers from Tunisian patients. The methylation frequencies were 24.36% for hMLH1 and 46% for BRCA1. BRCA1 methylation correlated with age at diagnosis (P = .015) and 5-years disease free survival (P = .016) while hMLH1 methylation was more frequent in larger tumors (P = .002) and in presence of distant metastasis (P = .004). Furthermore, methylation of hMLH1 significantly correlated with high level of P53 expression (P = .006) and with overall survival (P = .015) suggesting that silencing of hMLH1 through aberrant promoter methylation could be used as a poor prognosis indicator in breast cancer

Ostéome ostéoïde intra-articulaire de la hanche: deux observations et revue de la littérature

L’ostéome ostéoïde est une tumeur osseuse bénigne qui affecte les adultes jeunes et se localise préférentiellement au niveau des os longs. La localisation intra-articulaire est rare et atteint le plus souvent la hanche. La symptomatologie clinique est alors atypique et peut faire errer le diagnostic constituant un défi diagnostique pour les cliniciens. Nous rapportons deux observations d’ostéome ostéoïde intra-articulaires de la hanche chez deux hommes âgés 24 et 45 ans, révélés par des douleurs de la hanche gauche de type inflammatoire évoluant depuis un an et un an et demi respectivement. Chez les deux patients, le tableau atypique de l’ostéome ostéoïde a été à l’origine d’un retard diagnostic. La tomodensitométrie est dans cette indication l’examen le plus spécifique qui a permis d’évoquer le diagnostic d’ostéome ostéoïde. Une fois le diagnostic est posé, l’exérèse chirurgicale à ciel ouvert a permis la guérison avec disparition totale des douleurs. L’examen histologique a confirmé le diagnostic final d’ostéome ostéoïde intra-articulaire dans les deux cas

Leydig Cell Tumor Associated with Testicular Adrenal Rest Tumors in a Patient with Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia due to 11β-Hydroxylase Deficiency

Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) describes a group of inherited autosomal recessive disorders characterized by enzyme defects in the steroidogenic pathways that lead to the biosynthesis of cortisol, aldosterone, and androgens. Chronic excessive adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) stimulation may result in hyperplasia of ACTH-sensitive tissues in adrenal glands and other sites such as the testes, causing testicular masses known as testicular adrenal rest tumors (TARTs). Leydig cell tumors (LCTs) are make up a very small number of all testicular tumors and can be difficult to distinguish from TARTs. This distinction is interesting because LCTs and TARTs require different therapeutic approaches. Hereby, we present an unusual case of a 19-year-old patient with CAH due to 11β-hydroxylase deficiency, who presented with TARTs and an epididymal Leydig cell tumor

Citrus aurantium L. peel extract mitigates hexavalent chromium-induced oxidative stress and cardiotoxicity in adult rats

In the present study, we aimed to examine the potential protective effect of C. aurantinum L. peel extract against oxidative damage induced by hexavalent chromium in the heart of adult rats. Rats were divided into six groups. Group I served as controls and received standard diet. Group II received via drinking water potassium dichromate (K2Cr2O7) alone (700 ppm) during 3 weeks. Groups III and IV were pre-treated for 10 days by gavage with the ethanolic extract of C. aurantium peels at doses of 100 and 300 mg/kg body weight/day, respectively, and then K2Cr2O7 was administrated during 3 weeks. Groups V and VI received by gavage only C. aurantium peel ethanolic extract at doses of 100 and 300 mg/kg body weight/day, respectively, during 10 days. K2Cr2O7 treatment increased the cardiac levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), protein carbonyls (PCO), advanced oxidation protein products (AOPP), non-protein thiols, glutathione and vitamin C, as well as the activities of catalase, superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase. Cardiac histological alterations, manifested by hemorrhage and cytoplasmic vacuolization, were also observed. Pre-treatment with C. aurantium peel extract (300 mg/kg) attenuated significantly the biochemical and histopathological changes observed following K2Cr2O7 exposure in rat&rsquo;s heart. Our findings indicated that C. aurantium peel extract was able to hamper K2Cr2O7-induced myocardial injury, which could be attributed to its antioxidant activity