Early pregnancy decidual lymphocytes beside perforin use Fas ligand (FasL) mediated cytotoxicity.

Decidual natural killer (NK) cells are the predominant lymphocytes at the maternal-fetal interface. They are involved in defense against virally infected, parasitized and transformed cells and may contribute to the control of trophoblast invasion. The presence of perforin and other possible cytolytic mediators suggests these functions.

[Pseudoxanthoma elasticum].

Pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE) is an inherited disorder that is associated with accumulation of mineralized and fragmented elastic fibers in the skin, vessel walls, and Bruch's membrane. Clinically, patients exhibit characteristic lesions of the skin (soft, ivory-colored papules in a reticular pattern that predominantly affect the neck), the posterior segment of the eye (peau d'orange, angioid streaks, choroidal neovascularizations), and the cardiovascular system (peripheral arterial occlusive disease, coronary occlusion, gastrointestinal bleeding). There is no causal therapy.

Short-term cytolytic mediators' expression in decidual lymphocytes is enhanced by interleukin-15.

Problem: We investigated whether decidual adherent cells (DAC) and interleukin (IL)-15, in comparison to interleukin (IL)-2 affect cytolytic potential of first trimester decidual lymphocytes (DL).

Method Of Study: Decidual mononuclear cells were obtained by enzymatic digestion and density gradient centrifugation. Non-adherent DL were collected after 2-hr adherence and cultured for 18 or 72 hr with: IL-15 (0.

Complications of pneumatic retinopexy.

Twenty-eight patients with rhegmatogenous retinal detachment were treated by pneumatic retinopexy using intravitreal perfluorpropane (C3F8) gas. Reattachment was successfully achieved in 22 eyes (78.6%) after one treatment.

Human decidualized endometrial T lymphocytes do not substantially down-regulate CD3zeta.

Problem: The T-cell antigen receptor (TCR) has been reported to be down-regulated on T-cells in the decidualized endometrium in early pregnancy.

Method Of Study: The expression of CD3zeta, a component of the TCR complex, has been investigated in human first-trimester decidual T-cells using flow cytometric analysis of permeabilized cells.

Results: Levels of CD3zeta expression were significantly lower in decidual than in peripheral T-cells from non-pregnant women, as assessed by mean fluorescence intensity (4.