miR-130A as a diagnostic marker to differentiate malignant mesothelioma from lung adenocarcinoma in pleural effusion cytology.

Background: Malignant pleural mesothelioma is a rare tumor with a dismal prognosis, usually presenting with recurrent effusions. However, the majority of malignant pleural effusions are due to lung adenocarcinoma (AdC). The distinction between these tumors has considerable therapeutic and medicolegal implications and can be very challenging both histologically and cytologically.

Oncofetal gene SALL4 and prognosis in cancer: A systematic review with meta-analysis.

The Spalt-Like Transcription Factor 4 (SALL4) oncogene plays a central function in embryo-fetal development and is absent in differentiated tissues. Evidence suggests that it can be reactivated in several cancers worsening the prognosis. We aimed at investigating the risk associated with SALL4 reactivation for all-cause mortality and recurrence in cancer using the current literature.

Residual platelet factor V ensures thrombin generation in patients with severe congenital factor V deficiency and mild bleeding symptoms.

Coagulation factor V (FV), present in plasma and platelets, is indispensable to thrombin formation, yet patients with undetectable plasma FV seldom experience major bleeding. We used thrombin generation assays to explore the role of platelet FV in 4 patients with severe congenital FV deficiency (3 with plasma FV clotting activity [FV:C] < 1%). When triggered with tissue factor (TF) concentrations up to 50pM, platelet-poor plasma (PPP) from the patients with undetectable plasma FV showed no thrombin generation, whereas platelet-rich plasma (PRP) formed thrombin already at 1 to 5pM of TF.

A novel circulating hormone of testis origin in humans.

Insulin-like factor 3 (INSL3) is a member of the relaxin-insulin family, and it is expressed in pre- and postnatal Leydig cells of the testis. This peptide affects testicular descent during embryonic development, and mutations in INSL3 gene or its receptor LGR8 (leucine-rich repeat-containing G protein-coupled receptor 8)/GREAT (G protein-coupled receptor affecting testicular descent) cause cryptorchidism in humans. The expression of LGR8/GREAT in different tissues and the production of INSL3 also by adult-type Leydig cells suggest additional roles of this hormonal system in adulthood.