Occupational hypersensitivity pneumonitis caused by fossil-containing rocks.

Aims: We present a hypersensitivity immune response to inhalation of antigens from fossil soils frequently used in tile manufacture. We found that the soil polished by a worker affected by pneumonitis was a paleosol containing bivalves from the cretaceous period called Hippurites.

Methods: We made a diagnostic study for pneumonitis (analysis, microbiology, radiology, high-resolution CT, bronchoalveolar lavage, pulmonary biopsy.

Three-sectioning method: A procedure for studying hard tissues and large pieces under light and electron microscopy.

The histological study of hard pieces such as tendons and calcified lesions and tissues is a field that has been gaining increased attention owing to the rapid development of implantable prostheses, among other factors. In these studies, serial sectioning is utilized to detect areas of interest throughout the entire piece, as it enables the application of the appropriate light and electron microscopy techniques in these areas. We propose the "three-sectioning method" that subjects the pieces to three consecutive cycles of embedding and sectioning to localize and study the areas of interest, as an efficient technique for these histological studies.

Germination of pollen grains in the oesophagus of individuals with eosinophilic oesophagitis.

Background: Eosinophilic oesophagitis (EoE) is characterized by oesophageal dysfunction and, histologically, by eosinophilic inflammation. There is no a clear aetiologic treatment. EoE exacerbations are often seasonal.

In vivo toxicity of the ribosome-inactivating lectin ebulin f in elderly mice.

Ebulin f is a ribosome-inactivating protein (RIP) present in green fruits of the dwarf elder (Sambucus ebulus L). Since dwarf elder fruits are used for food and as a medicine, we assessed the study of toxicological effects and safety of ebulin f in elderly mice, comparing these results with those reported in young animals and with other RIPs. Female Swiss mice aged 6 and 12 months of age were intraperitoneally injected with a single dose from 1.

Localized amyloidosis of the epididymis: a previously unreported phenomenon.

Background: Localized amyloidosis has not been documented in the epididymis; we report this phenomenon for the first time.

Case Presentation: The first aim of this work is to report three cases of localized epididymal amyloidosis. Two cases were clinically detected as epididymal nodules, and a third after reviewing 120 epididymides obtained with neighbouring pathological processes.

ACUTE RETINAL DAMAGE AFTER USING A TOXIC PERFLUORO-OCTANE FOR VITREO-RETINAL SURGERY.

Purpose: To describe a series of retinal acute toxicity cases with severe visual loss after intraocular use of a toxic perfluoro-octane (PFO). The clinical presentation is described, and the likely causes are analyzed. New biological methods for testing safety of intraocular medical devices are proposed.

A novel coculture model of porcine central neuroretina explants and retinal pigment epithelium cells.

Purpose: To develop and standardize a novel organ culture model using porcine central neuroretina explants and RPE cells separated by a cell culture membrane.

Methods: RPE cells were isolated from porcine eyes, expanded, and seeded on the bottom of cell culture inserts. Neuroretina explants were obtained from the area centralis and cultured alone (controls) on cell culture membranes or supplemented with RPE cells in the same wells but physically separated by the culture membrane.

Toxicity of the anti-ribosomal Lectin Ebulin f in lungs and intestines in elderly mice.

All parts of dwarf elder (Sambucus ebulus L.) studied so far contain a ribosome-inactivating protein with lectin activity (ribosome-inactivating lectin; RIL), known as ebulin. Green fruits contain ebulin f, the toxicity of which has been studied in six-week-old mice, where it was found that the intestines were primary targets for it when administered intraperitoneally (i.

Elderberries: a source of ribosome-inactivating proteins with lectin activity.

Sambucus (Adoxaceae) species have been used for both food and medicine purposes. Among these, Sambucus nigra L. (black elder), Sambucus ebulus L.

Paneth cells are also target of the ribotoxic lectin nigrin b.

Ribosome-inactivating lectins (RILs) are A-B type toxins like ricin whose molecular target is the large rRNA of eukaryotic ribosome. Administration of lethal doses of the RIL nigrin b isolated from elderberry (Sambucus nigra L.) bark triggers specific intestinal derangement.

In vitro and in vivo effects of an anti-mouse endoglin (CD105)-immunotoxin on the early stages of mouse B16MEL4A5 melanoma tumours.

TGF-beta superfamily co-receptors are emerging as targets for cancer therapy, acting both directly on cells and indirectly on the tumour neovasculature. Endoglin (CD105), an accessory component of the TGF-beta receptor complex, is expressed in certain melanoma cell lines and the endothelial cells of tumour neovessels. Targeting endoglin with immunotoxins is an attractive approach for actively suppressing the blood supply to tumours.

Time course modifications in organotypic culture of human neuroretina.

The purpose of this study was to characterize organ culture of human neuroretina and to establish survival and early degeneration patterns of neural and glial cells. Sixteen neuroretina explants were prepared from 2 postmortem eyes of 2 individuals. Four explants were used as fresh retina controls, and 12 were evaluated at 3, 6, and 9 days of culture.

MRT letter: a fast and easy method for general fluorescent staining of cultured cells on transparent or opaque supports.

Development of cell-based therapy entails the use of different types of materials as support for cultured cells. Some of these materials are opaque. For a general microscope study of cell cultures prepared on transparent supports, Giemsa stain with bright field microscopy is useful.

Histopathological changes in gerbil liver and kidney after aluminum subchronic intoxication.

Young gerbil livers and kidneys were analyzed by means of light and electron microscope to assess the histopathological changes caused by prolonged systemic aluminum (Al) administration. The experimental group was injected with AlCl3 i.p.

Elastin-like recombinamers as substrates for retinal pigment epithelial cell growth.

The aim of this study is to investigate the use of elastin-like recombinamers (ELRs) as a substrate that can maintain the growth, phenotype, and functional characteristics of retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells efficiently and as a suitable carrier for the transplantation of autologous RPE cells for treatment of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). ELR films containing a bioactive sequence, RGD (ELR-RGD), and one with no specific sequence (ELR-IK) as control, were obtained by solvent-casting onto glass and subsequent cross-linking. ARPE19 cells were seeded on sterilized ELR films as well as on the control surfaces.

Müller and macrophage-like cell interactions in an organotypic culture of porcine neuroretina.

Purpose: To analyze the in vitro Müller cell modifications in an organotypic culture of porcine neuroretina in response to the addition of a blood-derived mononuclear fraction (MNF; monocytes and lymphocytes) as a source of macrophages.

Methods: Control and MNF-stimulated neuroretinal explants were examined at 3, 6, and 9 days of culture. Specimens were processed for epoxy-resin embedding and cryosectioning.

[Interleukin-8 expression in lung tissue during ischemia-reperfusion].

Objective: Local cytokine production is a pathogenic factor in ischemia-reperfusion injury in early graft dysfunction. This study analyzed interleukin 8 (IL-8) messenger RNA (mRNA) expression in lung tissue and the association between IL-8 mRNA levels and interstitial lung changes in an experimental model of warm lung ischemia-reperfusion.

Material And Methods: We studied 16 New Zealand rabbits divided into 3 groups: control, ischemia (tissue taken from right lower lobe after 1, 2, or 3 hours of ischemia), and reperfusion (tissue taken from right upper and middle lobes after 1 hour of ischemia and 1, 2, or 3 hours of reperfusion).

Histological changes in rat nasal epithelia after unilateral neonatal naris occlusion.

The authors studied the extent of the different epithelia lining the nasal fossae of the albino rat after neonatal closure of one naris. Newborn pups were anesthetized by hypothermia and the external opening of their right naris cauterized, while littermates served as controls. Animals were sacrificed at 3 months, and the occluded (OCF) and nonoccluded (NOF) fossae of experimental animals as well as both fossae of control animals (CTF) were histologically studied.

Intraretinal immunohistochemistry findings in proliferative vitreoretinopathy with retinal shortening.

Unlabelled: To report the major intraretinal pathological changes in retinas with proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) and retinal shortening, 13 human retinal samples from postoperative PVR after primary surgery for retinal detachment were immunostained for vimentin, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), cytokeratins, and CD68. One more sample was studied with electron microscopy. Retinal disorganization, neuronal loss, and gliosis were observed in 12 out of 13 samples, but all 13 were positive for GFAP.