The admixed brushtail possum genome reveals invasion history in New Zealand and novel imprinted genes.

Combining genome assembly with population and functional genomics can provide valuable insights to development and evolution, as well as tools for species management. Here, we present a chromosome-level genome assembly of the common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula), a model marsupial threatened in parts of their native range in Australia, but also a major introduced pest in New Zealand. Functional genomics reveals post-natal activation of chemosensory and metabolic genes, reflecting unique adaptations to altricial birth and delayed weaning, a hallmark of marsupial development.

Enhanced down-regulation of ALCAM/CD166 in African-American Breast Cancer.

Background: Variation in tumor biology in African-American (AA) and Caucasian (CAU) women with breast cancer is poorly defined. Activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM) is a bad prognostic factor of breast cancer yet it has never being studied in the AA population. We tested the hypothesis that ALCAM expression would be markedly lower in cases of AA breast cancer when compared to CAU.

The predictive ability of a CK5/p63/CK8/18 antibody cocktail in stratifying breast papillary lesions on needle biopsy: an algorithmic approach works best.

Objectives: Immunohistochemical markers have been shown to assist in the stratification of breast papillary lesions. We evaluated the ability of different cytokeratin (CK) and p63 expression profiles on needle biopsy specimens to predict excision diagnoses.

Methods: A CK5/p63/CK8/18 antibody cocktail was applied to 58 needle biopsy specimens (32 papillomas, 7 atypical papillomas, 19 papillary carcinomas on excision).

Breast arterial calcification in chronic kidney disease: absence of smooth muscle apoptosis and osteogenic transdifferentiation.

The pathophysiology of medial arterial calcification in chronic kidney disease (CKD) is unclear but has been ascribed to phenotypic changes in vascular smooth muscle, possibly in conjunction with intimal proliferation and atherosclerosis. As the prevalence of calcification in breast arteries is increased in women with CKD and end-stage renal disease (ESRD), this was examined histologically in mastectomy specimens from 19 women with CKD or ESRD. Arterial calcification was present in 18, was exclusively medial, and occurred in vessels as small as arterioles.

An evaluation of the accuracy and performance of lightweight GPS collars in a suburban environment.

The recent development of lightweight GPS collars has enabled medium-to-small sized animals to be tracked via GPS telemetry. Evaluation of the performance and accuracy of GPS collars is largely confined to devices designed for large animals for deployment in natural environments. This study aimed to assess the performance of lightweight GPS collars within a suburban environment, which may be different from natural environments in a way that is relevant to satellite signal acquisition.

Predicting summer site occupancy for an invasive species, the common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula), in an urban environment.

Invasive species are often favoured in fragmented, highly-modified, human-dominated landscapes such as urban areas. Because successful invasive urban adapters can occupy habitat that is quite different from that in their original range, effective management programmes for invasive species in urban areas require an understanding of distribution, habitat and resource requirements at a local scale that is tailored to the fine-scale heterogeneity typical of urban landscapes. The common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) is one of New Zealand's most destructive invasive pest species.

Triple-negative breast carcinoma in African American and Caucasian women: clinicopathology, immunomarkers, and outcome.

Purpose: Breast cancers are often classified on the presence/absence of hormone receptors, and growth factor oncogenes (estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, HER2). Triple-negative breast cancers, negative for these markers, do not benefit from targeted therapy. We compared clinicopathologic parameters and immunohistochemical markers of prognostic and/or predictive significance, and outcome between African American and Caucasian triple-negative breast cancer patients.

GATA-3 expression in male and female breast cancers: comparison of clinicopathologic parameters and prognostic relevance.

Expression of GATA-3 in female breast cancers has been linked to estrogen receptor (ER) expression and, in turn, to improved outcomes. However, GATA-3 has not been studied in male breast cancers. Nineteen male breast carcinomas (average age: 63 years) and 164 female breast carcinomas (average age: 57 years) were immunostained for GATA-3.

Commonly encountered dilemmas in breast cancer reporting and staging.

Treatment modalities for common malignancies such as breast carcinoma have become increasingly complex, necessitating more rigorous documentation by pathologists of the histopathologic features required for staging and therapy. In 2009 the American Joint Committee on Cancer published the most recent update to its Cancer Staging Manual, the most salient points of which are readily available on the College of American Pathologists' Web site. Based on these guidelines, herein we summarize some of the more commonly encountered dilemmas in breast cancer reporting, with emphasis on tumor size, lymph node status, determination of mitotic count for tumor grade, and skin/chest wall involvement (pathologic stage T4).

Nottingham-defined mitotic score: comparison with visual and image cytometric phosphohistone H3 labeling indices and correlation with Oncotype DX recurrence score.

Prognosis of breast cancer patients has been determined traditionally by lymph node status, tumor size, and histologic grade. In recent years the Oncotype DX recurrence score (RS) assay has emerged as an expensive adjunct prognostic tool. Markers of proliferation play a large role in determination of RS, and we have shown previously that immunohistochemical expression of proliferation markers Ki-67 and phosphohistone H3 (PPH3) correlates with RS.

Acidophilic nuclear inclusions are specific for florid ductal hyperplasia among proliferative breast lesions.

Context: Recently we have observed distinctive acidophilic intranuclear inclusions in cases of usual intraductal hyperplasia of the breast. Similar inclusions were described almost 20 years ago in cases of mammary hyperplasia. These correlated ultrastructurally with so-called helioid inclusions.

Proliferation (Ki-67 and phosphohistone H3) and oncotype DX recurrence score in estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer.

The Oncotype DX Recurrence Score (RS) is often used in lymph node-negative, estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer to refine prognosis and direct therapy. Its utility is limited by its cost, proprietary nature, and turnaround time. Markers of proliferation factor heavily into determination of RS.

Breast arterial calcification: a marker of medial vascular calcification in chronic kidney disease.

Background And Objectives: Because previous studies have not distinguished between intimal (atherosclerotic) and medial vascular calcification, the prevalence and clinical significance of either condition in chronic or end-stage kidney disease (CKD or ESKD) are unknown. We hypothesized that breast arterial calcification (BAC) is exclusively medial and that mammography can serve as a useful marker of generalized medial calcification in CKD and ESKD.

Design, Setting, Participants, & Measurements: Arterial calcification was identified histologically in breast tissue or visually in mammograms and radiographs of extremities from patients with CKD or ESKD.

Luminal cytokeratin expression profiles of breast papillomas and papillary carcinomas and the utility of a cytokeratin 5/p63/cytokeratin 8/18 antibody cocktail in their distinction.

Luminal cytokeratin (CK) expression in breast papillary lesions, and its potential diagnostic utility among other markers in distinguishing between papillomas and papillary carcinomas, has not been previously evaluated. Such expression was determined in 42 papillary lesions (18 papillary carcinomas and 24 papillomas) by immunostaining with a CK5/p63/CK8/18 antibody cocktail. The mean CK8/18 intensity score and percentage of positive cells were significantly higher in papillary carcinomas (227 and 95%, respectively, vs 86 and 42% in papillomas; both P-values <0.

Histologic grading of invasive lobular carcinoma: does use of a 2-tiered nuclear grading system improve interobserver variability?

The Nottingham histologic grade (NHG) is a prognostic marker for infiltrating ductal carcinoma. Its usefulness for invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) has been less clear, given that 2 of the 3 parameters, tubule formation and mitotic activity, show little variation in ILC, placing much of the emphasis on nuclear grade. We have previously reported a trend for improved overall and relapse-free survival in patients with ILC of low nuclear grade, as classified by a 2-tiered nuclear grading system.

Attenuated podoplanin staining in breast myoepithelial cells: a potential caveat in the diagnosis of lymphatic invasion.

Although podoplanin expression in breast myoepithelial (ME) cells has been reported to be readily distinguishable from that of lymphatic endothelium (LE), we recently encountered a case in which attenuated expression led to an incorrect interpretation of lymphatic invasion. This prompted us to further analyze the pattern and intensity of podoplanin expression in LE and in ME cells surrounding both non-neoplastic and neoplastic breast epithelium in 42 cases of breast carcinoma. In addition, cases with presumed lymphatic invasion (tumor cells within podoplanin-positive lymphatic-like structures) were further characterized on the basis of histologic review and results of additional endothelial (CD31 and/or CD34) and ME (p63+/-calponin) immunostains.

Effect of storage on p63 immunohistochemistry: a time-course study.

One of the problems with immunohistochemistry is that storage of unstained slides can have a detectable negative effect on the intensity of staining for various antigens. This has not been well studied for the p63 antigen. A time-course study was performed to evaluate the effect of storage on the intensity of p63 immunohistochemical staining.

Using a higher cutoff for the percentage of HER2+ cells decreases interobserver variability in the interpretation of HER2 immunohistochemical analysis.

The effect of using a 30% cutoff for the proportion of HER2+ cells on the interobserver variability in the interpretation of HER2 immunohistochemical results was evaluated. Immunostained sections from 96 cases of breast carcinoma were reviewed by 10 pathologists and scored as positive (3+) when uniform strong membranous staining was identified in at least 10% of tumor cells; the actual percentage of cells with such staining was also estimated. The agreement rates and the kappa values using a 30% cutoff were compared with those using a 10% cutoff.

The effect of neoadjuvant chemotherapy on histologic grade, hormone receptor status, and HER2/neu status in breast carcinoma.

The use of neoadjuvant chemotherapy prior to surgical resection for breast cancer is no longer restricted to patients with locally advanced disease. As preoperative treatment becomes more common, the question arises whether or not such therapy changes important tumor characteristics. The objective of our study is to compare histological grade, hormone receptor status, and HER2/neu expression pre- and post-therapy patients receiving preoperative neo-adjuvant chemotherapy.

Solid pseudopapillary tumor of the pancreas: a review of salient clinical and pathologic features.

Solid pseudopapillary tumor (SPT) of the pancreas is a rare tumor of uncertain histogenesis characterized, as the name suggests, by a cystic and solid pattern of growth with formation of pseudopapillae. Accounting for only a small percentage of pancreatic neoplasms, SPT occurs primarily in young women, although cases in older patients and men have been reported. The tumor is thought to have low-grade malignant potential, as the majority of the cases are cured by simple but complete surgical resection.

Does using a higher cutoff for the percentage of positive cells improve the specificity of HER-2 immunohistochemical analysis in breast carcinoma?

This study was performed to determine whether using a 30% cutoff for the proportion of HER-2+ cells would increase the specificity of HER-2 immunohistochemical analysis. Blinded to the HER-2 amplification status, 3 pathologists retrospectively reviewed HER-2-stained sections of breast carcinoma and considered cases to be positive for protein overexpression (3+) using 3 cutoff levels, 10%, 30%, and 50%, for the proportion of cells with intense uniform staining. Of 98 cases, 27 (28%) were positive by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), and 32 (33%), 28 (29%), and 26 (27%) were considered positive for overexpression using cutoffs of 10%, 30%, and 50%, respectively.