[Benign Metastasizing Leiomyoma of the Lung;Report of a Case].

A 71-year-old woman, in whom computed tomography revealed a solitary mass shadow at the base of the left lung, underwent resection of the mass. Histopathological examination showed estrogen receptor-positive leiomyoma cells growing in cords and mixed with glandular structures composed of alveolar cells. These findings led to a diagnosis of benign metastatic leiomyoma.

Progress in cell culture systems for pathological research.

Cell culture is a well-established standard technique and a fundamental tool in biology and medicine. Establishment of a novel culture method by meeting various challenges can sometimes open up new fields of cell biology and medicine. An artificial microenvironment for cultured cells is made up of complicated factors, including cytokines, scaffold material type, cell-cell interactions, and physical stress.

Adipose tissue behavior is distinctly regulated by neighboring cells and fluid flow stress: a possible role of adipose tissue in peritoneal fibrosis.

Adipose tissue, together with the mesothelial layer and microvessels, is a major component of the mesenteric peritoneum, and the mesenterium is a target site for peritoneal fibrosis. Adipose tissue has been speculated to play a role in peritoneal dialysis (PD)-related fibrosis, but the precise cellular kinetics of adipose tissue during this process remain to be determined. To clarify this critical issue, we analyzed the kinetics of adipose tissue using a novel peritoneal reconstruction model in which the effects of mesothelial cells or endothelial cells could be identified.

Culture models for studying thyroid biology and disorders.

The thyroid is composed of thyroid follicles supported by extracellular matrix, capillary network, and stromal cell types such as fibroblasts. The follicles consist of thyrocytes and C cells. In this microenvironment, thyrocytes are highly integrated in their specific structural and functional polarization, but monolayer and floating cultures cannot allow thyrocytes to organize the follicles with such polarity.

Prolonged effect of fluid flow stress on the proliferative activity of mesothelial cells after abrupt discontinuation of fluid streaming.

Encapsulating peritoneal sclerosis (EPS) often develops after transfer to hemodialysis and transplantation. Both termination of peritoneal dialysis (PD) and transplantation-related factors are risks implicated in post-PD development of EPS, but the precise mechanism of this late-onset peritoneal fibrosis remains to be elucidated. We previously demonstrated that fluid flow stress induced mesothelial proliferation and epithelial-mesenchymal transition via mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling.

Fluid flow stress affects peritoneal cell kinetics: possible pathogenesis of peritoneal fibrosis.

Background: Peritoneal fibrosis is an essential precursor condition to the development of encapsulating peritoneal sclerosis (EPS). This serious complication leads to a high mortality rate in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. Although several factors, including highly concentrated glucose in the dialysis solution, are believed to be potent agents for peritoneal fibrosis, the underlying mechanism remains unclear.

Organotypic culture of human bone marrow adipose tissue.

The precise role of bone marrow adipose tissue (BMAT) in the marrow remains unknown. The purpose of the present study was therefore to describe a novel method for studying BMAT using 3-D collagen gel culture of BMAT fragments, immunohistochemistry, ELISA and real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Mature adipocytes and CD45+ leukocytes were retained for >3 weeks.

The air liquid-interface, a skin microenvironment, promotes growth of melanoma cells, but not their apoptosis and invasion, through activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase.

The air-liquid interface (ALI) is a common microenvironment of the skin, but it is unknown whether the ALI affects melanoma cell behaviors. Using a collagen gel invasion assay, immunohistochemistry, and Western blots, here we show that melanoma cell proliferation in cultures with an ALI is higher than melanoma cell proliferation in submerged cultures. Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) uptake, an indicator of cell proliferation, of melanoma cells at the ALI was about 3 times that of submerged cells, while ALI and submerged melanoma cells had similar levels of single-stranded DNA (a marker of apoptosis).

Adipose tissue-organotypic culture system as a promising model for studying adipose tissue biology and regeneration.

Adipose tissue consists of mature adipocytes, preadipocytes and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), but a culture system for analyzing their cell types within the tissue has not been established. We have recently developed "adipose tissue-organotypic culture system" that maintains unilocular structure, proliferative ability and functions of mature adipocytes for a long term, using three-dimensional collagen gel culture of the tissue fragments. In this system, both preadipocytes and MSCs regenerate actively at the peripheral zone of the fragments.

Non-skin mesenchymal cell types support epidermal regeneration in a mesenchymal stem cell or myofibroblast phenotype-independent manner.

Skin-derived fibroblasts, preadipocytes and adipocytes, and non-skin-derived bone marrow stromal cells support epidermal regeneration. It remains unclear, however, whether various organ-derived mesenchymal cell (MC) types other than the aforementioned counterparts affect epidermal regeneration. Using a skin reconstruction model, it is shown here that heart-, spleen-, lung-, liver- and kidney-derived MC support epidermal regeneration by keratinocytes.

Sustained in vitro intestinal epithelial culture within a Wnt-dependent stem cell niche.

The in vitro analysis of intestinal epithelium has been hampered by a lack of suitable culture systems. Here we describe robust long-term methodology for small and large intestinal culture, incorporating an air-liquid interface and underlying stromal elements. These cultures showed prolonged intestinal epithelial expansion as sphere-like organoids with proliferation and multilineage differentiation.

Giant microcystic adnexal carcinoma of the scalp.

Microcystic adnexal carcinoma (MAC) is an uncommon, locally aggressive tumor. It typically involves the upper lip of middle-aged adults, and in rare instances the scalp. We report a Japanese woman with a giant MAC on the scalp.

Irradiated fibroblast-induced bystander effects on invasive growth of squamous cell carcinoma under cancer-stromal cell interaction.

The irradiated fibroblast-induced response of non-irradiated neighboring cells is called 'radiation-induced bystander effect', but it is unclear in non-irradiated human squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) cells. The present study shows that irradiated fibroblasts promoted the invasive growth of T3M-1 SCC cells, but not their apoptosis, more greatly than non-irradiated fibroblasts, using collagen gel invasion assay, immunohistochemistry and Western blot. The number of irradiated fibroblasts decreased to about 30% of that of non-irradiated fibroblasts, but irradiated fibroblasts increased the growth marker ki-67 display of SCC cells more greatly than non-irradiated fibroblasts.

A new organotypic culture of adipose tissue fragments maintains viable mature adipocytes for a long term, together with development of immature adipocytes and mesenchymal stem cell-like cells.

Adipose tissue that consists of mature and immature adipocytes is suggested to contain mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), but a culture system for analyzing their cell types within the tissue has not been established. Here we show that three-dimensional collagen gel culture of rat sc adipose tissue fragments maintained viable mature adipocytes for a long term, producing immature adipocytes and MSC-like cells from the fragments, using immunohistochemistry, ELISA, and real time RT-PCR. Bromodeoxyuridine uptake of mature adipocytes was detected.

An autopsy case of granulocyte-colony-stimulating-factor-producing extrahepatic bile duct carcinoma.

A 79-year-old man was referred to this department due to the presence of extrahepatic bile duct carcinoma with a tumor at the left chest wall. The lesion was suspected to be a metastasis of bile duct carcinoma to the left wall, however, computed tomography (CT) revealed no regional lymph node or liver metastases. In addition, cytological and pathological examinations did not show malignancy.

Effects of glucocorticoid on adipocyte size in human bone marrow.

The pathogenesis of corticosteroid-induced femoral head necrosis is assumed to be related to lipid metabolism. Mature fat cells are believed to play a central role in lipid metabolism. The purpose of this study was to investigate the size of mature fat cells in the human femoral head after steroid treatment.

Hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma bordering ectopic gastric mucosa "inlet patch" of the cervical esophagus.

Objective: Ectopic gastric mucosa of the cervical esophagus, referred to as inlet patch (IP), is considered to be a common development abnormality of the esophagus. We report here a case of hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma bordering on IP of the cervical esophagus.

Methods: A 44-year-old female underwent partial pharyngectomy, total laryngectomy, cervical esophagectomy, and bilateral neck dissection under the diagnosis of hypopharyngeal carcinoma.

Spindle epithelial tumor with thymus-like differentiation (SETTLE): youngest reported patient.

Spindle epithelial tumor with thymus-like differentiation (SETTLE) is a very rare thyroid tumor. It is one of a family of tumors arising either from ectopic thymus or remnants of branchial pouches that retain the potential to differentiate along the thymic line. Herein is reported a case of SETTLE in a 2-year-old girl.

Merkel cell-nerve cell interaction undergoes formation of a synapse-like structure in a primary culture.

Merkel cells have been assumed to guide nerve fibers to the skin. However, there has been little in vitro evidence that supports this hypothesis, because there is no suitable established culture system of Merkel cells. Here we show that Merkel cells isolated from rat footpad skin were successfully cultured in a monolayer with keratinocytes.

Expression of new human inorganic pyrophosphatase in thyroid diseases: its intimate association with hyperthyroidism.

Inorganic pyrophosphatase (PPase) controls the level of inorganic pyrophosphate produced by biosynthesis of protein, RNA, and DNA. Thus, PPase is essential for life. PPase expression is unclear in the thyroid.

Insulin-induced lipohypertrophy: report of a case with histopathology.

An 82-year-old woman with type 2 diabetes had been treated with recombinant human insulin for 16 years. She developed large swellings in both sides of her lower abdomen. The masses were soft, painless, and located around her insulin injection sites.

A new in vitro model for analyzing the biological behavior of well-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma.

A suitable model analyzing the behavior of well-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma has not yet been established. We tried to establish such a system using a reconstructed oral mucosa, in which T3M-1 squamous cell carcinoma cells were cultured on 3T3 fibroblast-containing collagen gel. Fibroblasts promoted the stratification and keratinization of T3M-1 cells.

Air-liquid interface promotes invasive growth of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma with or without hypoxia.

Air-liquid interface (ALI) is a microenvironment of aerodigestive tract. In our previous study, ALI promoted invasive growth of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC); but its mechanism was unclear. Hypoxia is also related to cancer spread.