Beitrage zur Pathologie最新文献

Introduction and methods: To obtain a statistic comparable picturg oncogenesis, tissue of a middle-fast growing Morris-hepatoma 66 was transplanted into the femoral musculature. 35 days later the animals were killed by decapitation and hepatoma tissue was taken. The morphometric analysis based on the technique described by Weibel (1969).

Results and discussion: In the Morris-hepatoma 66 hepatocyte and nucleus show a much smaller single volume in comparison to normal liver cell. Smaller is also the number of nucleoli per nucleus. The decreased numerical density of mitochondria in liver tissue and their smaller content of mitochondrial grana suggest a reduction of the oxidative metabolism. The enlargement of membrane surface of the rough endoplasmatic reticulum in liver tissue is accompanied by a cisternal collapse. The smooth endoplastmatic reticulum is rudimentary in the hepatoma cells. The number of peroxisomes is equal in hepatoma and normal liver. Only half as large is, however, their volume density in liver tissue and so also their single volume.

The diagnostic significance of sectioning of entire lungs (Gough-sections) was investigated by application of different staining methods. The stained sections were mounted on transparent cellophan-foils. Macroscopic and microscopic results are satisfactory after staining for iron and neutral fat and after application of particular enzymatic reactions. This method is especially recommended in topographic problems.

Material and methods: The growth and the regression of the experimental tumor S 180 was investiaged by volume measurements and by cytophotometric studies on 50 mice in each of a pilot and in the present main experiment. In addition, histological, cytological and cytokinetic examinations were performed.

Results and discussion: Beginning on day 18, a spontaneous regression of the tumor was found in 20% and 38% of the animals, respectively. DNA-measurements were performed with a scanning-microspectrophotometer on tumor tissue imprints and tumor cell suspensions and were also carried out with a flow-through cytophotometer ICP on suspensions. DNA-histograms were plotted on days 4, 7, 12, 18, 20, 22, 26 and 29 after the transplantation. These revealed a constant position of the maxima at 2C for normal cells and at 4C and 8C for the tumor cells. In particular, by measuring a large total number of 4,968,000 nuclei with the ICP, distinct changes were found in the proportion of the single nuclei classes during growth and spontaneous regression. This technique also enables a quantitative measurement to be made of the DNA of cell debris from necrosis. With growing tumos, the proportion of the tumor cells increased to a maximum of 65% on day 18 and decreased to 37% on day 29. The DNA of cell debris grew from 8% to 47%. The proportion of normal cells was only 10% to 15% in the final phases. In tumors with a spontaneous regression the proportion of the tumor cell nuclei was 20% on day 18 and 11% on day 29. The proportion of the DNA of cell debris was again about 45%. The proportion of normal nuclei was greatly increased to 45%. Histological and cytological evidence together with measurements of the areas of nuclei and incorporation of 3H-TdR confirmed that the normal cells, the number of which increased during spontaneous regression were cells of a fibrovascular granulation tissue. While the rate of the DNA-synthesis of growing tumors continously decreased with age there was also a rapid decrease of the labelling index of spontaneously regressing tumors between days 12 and 18. In the final phase only the nuclei of the granulation tissue were labelled.

On curettage, done in a 39 year old patient because of metorrhagia, a peanut-sized nodule was scraped away from the endometrium. Histologically it consisted of a jumble of irregularly shaped portions of normal appearing embryonal cartilage, of tortuous thick-walled vessels, of twisted bundles of nerves of ducts of respiratory and intestinal epithelium, and of sheets of hornifying skin. The haphazard disarray of tissues supported the notion that the lesion was not a remnant of a malformed embryo. Step-sections through the lesion revealed no traces of placental villi or decidua in the surrounding endometrium. The following were considered as possible origins of the teratoma: 1. displaced germinal cells, 2. retention of pluripotent müllerian epithelium, 3. overaged or blighted ovum. The latter seems most compatible with the histological findings.

Cystinosis (syn. crystine storage disease) is inherited as an autosomal recessive trait. The severety of clinical symptoms may vary considerably. The most severe form of nephropathic cystinosis causes death of the affected patients at the age of 2 to 4 years (subacute course) or before puberty (primary chronical course). Three autopsy cases are demonstrated. Each of these children died from complications of chronic renal failure, caused by kidney contraction as a sequela of chronic interstitial nephritis. Cristalline cystine deposits were found in the renal interstium as well as in the RES cells of spleen and liver. Because of water solubility of L-cystine aqueous fixation and staining solutions must be avoided. Diagnostic doubly refractive brick- or needle-shaped cystine cristals can be demonstrated in frozen sections or tissue smears from spleen, liver, lymphnode and bone marrow.

There is increasing evidence to support the existence of tissue-specific growth-inhibitory chemical substances which can be found in extract homogenized cells. In the epidermis, two such tissue-specific factors (which also have cell-cycle specificity) have been found. These factors act specifically on different phases of the cell cycle (epidermal G1 and G2 chalones, respectively). This paper concerns a study of the effect of 20-methylcholanthrene on the epidermal G1 chalone. The variations in epidermal G2 inhibitor after such treatment were described in a previous paper. Hairless mice received a single topical application of 0.2 ml 0.5% solution of the carcinogen. The short time effect of the carcinogen application on epidermal DNA synthesis was first studied. Other groups of carcinogen-treated mice were then killed at similar time intervals, and the treated area of skin was homogenized and extracted with water. The inhibitory effect of these extracts on normal epidermal G1 cells was assayed in normal hairless mice. The obtained inhibition was registered as an expression of G1 inhibitor concentration in the skin extracts. The first experiment confirmed that a single carcinogen application provokes a short block in epidermal DNA synthesis, followed by a high, biomodal peak of increased activity with the first and maximum peak on day 2, and a smaller peak on day 8 after treatment. The second experiment showed that the content of G1 chalone in the skins of treated animals varied inversely to the alterations in epidermal DNA synthesis, revealing almost no chalone activity on day 2, and reduced chalone activity on day 8.

The material consisted of 12 gallbladder carcinomas, all in their early phases. Ten of the patients were female, two were male. The mean age of the patients was 65 years, and the mean lifetime after operation was as short as five months. The purpose of this study was to obtain further information on the significance of metaplastic mucosal islands in the histogenesis of gallbladder carcinomas by investigating incipient carcinomas and the conditions of the adjacent mucosa. The investigation revealed goblet cells and enterochromaffin cells outside the tumour in four specimens, antral-type glands in ten specimens, gastric-type superficial epithelial islands in all twelve specimens. In eight cases there was an antral-type mucosal island outside the tumour. In six specimens the tumour was found to border on antral-type mucosa. The structure of the tumour was papillary in ten cases, and mucinous in two. The tumorous epithelium showed in all specimens focal intestinal-type areas. Six tumours displayed goblet cells, and enterochromaffin cells were present in four tumours. The two mucinous tumours seemed to have originated in the glands of the antral-type mucosa extending toward the serosal surface of the gallbladder wall. This study supports the theory suggesting a significance of metaplasia in the histogenesis of gallbladder tumours.

In order to clarify the question of an age-dependent polyploidisation of the myocardium during normal cardiac growth, the DNA-content of 39 hearts of infants and children was investigated. After autopsy the total cardiac weights were estimated and thereafter, following the preparation of the hearts, the pure weight of the myocardium (preparation weight) was determined. Using the diphenylamine reaction according to Dische and Burton, the DNA-concentrations and total amounts of DNA in the heart muscle were estimated. The DNA-content of the heart muscle cell nuclei (ploidy classes) was measured cytophotometrically on Feulgen-stained smears of heart muscle cells. DNA measurements were performed on tissue samples from 6-8 different sites of both heart chambers. Growing human hearts of all ages were investigated including 3 fetal hearts and 3 hearts with malformations.

Introduction: Autolysis is very often a reason for cell damage and is also super-imposed on many other cell damages. Already one hour of autolysis causes serious changes in cell metabolism, which can be demonstrated morphometrically.

Material and methods: Experiments were made with 10 male adult Wistar rats. 5 animals were for control purposes and 5 animals had to undergo a 1-hour's autolysis. The morphometric analysis of the liver parenchymal cells was based on the information of Weibel et al. (1968) with the help of a computer program.

Results and discussion: The consequence of the drop in energy caused by autolysis is an enlargement of the liver cell which is possibly due to a breakdown of the energy-dependent ionic pumps. One of the earliest observable cell changes is a so-called "Kernwandhyperchromatosis" and chromatin condensation within the nuclei, whereby the Kernwandhyperchromatosis is seen to be a direct consequence of the increase in lactate and decrease of pH. ATP-sufficiency causes a disturbed function of mitochondrial membranes. The microchondria are swollen, the number of mitochondrial grana is clearly reduced. An enlargement of the mitochondrial outer membrane takes place by folding while the surface of mitochondrial cristae remains unchanged. As a consequence of the altered membrane activities also the peroxisomes swell at reduced numerial density. At unchanged total volume of RER the surface of the granulated membranes of the RER decrease by 50%. This decrease caused by ribosome detachment of the granulated membranes corresponds to the enlargement of the degranulated membrane parts of the nedoplasmic reticulum. The vesiculation is caused by an unspecific damage of cytoplasm. While the density of its volume and the membrane surface remain unaltered, the SER also shows a tendency to small vesiculation caused by an unspecific damage of cytoplasm. The increase in number and volume of the lysosomes and vacuoles of unknown origin speaks for a lysosomal activity. The cell compartment responsible for protein synthesis shows the most impressive morphometric and morphologic changes, which eventually can be explained by a decrease of protein synthesis which is needed to obtain enough energy for a well operating physiological equilibrium.