relevance of Ki-67 and COX-2 immunoexpression in right-sided versus left-sided sporadic cancer colon in Egyptian patients

Cancer colon is one of the most common malignancies in Egypt. There are growing amount of data suggesting that carcinomas of the right and left colon should be considered as different tumor entities. Difference in tumor proliferation rates has been used as a prognostic tool. Ki-67 is a proliferation-associated nuclear and nucleolar protein antigen, which is expressed in all cycling cells, and it is an important marker to determine the degree of tumor malignance and invasion ability. Cyclooxygenase-2 [COX-2] is an important key enzyme required for the synthesis of prostaglandins, with high level seen in many cancers including colon cancer. A total of 167 colectomy specimens were reviewed during the period of 1 year. Fifty cases from the originally viewed 167 cases were chosen; 25 cases from the right-side colon and 25 from the left-side colon of comparable stages and grades. Each case was stained immunohistochemically for Ki-67 and COX-2 antibodies. The results of Ki-67 immunostaining showed that the difference between the right and left cases was significant [P < 0.05] in addition to the results of COX-2 immunostaining. We suggest that right and left cancer colon may be two different entities with possible different risk factors and different pathogenesis, and hence each may require different treatment polices as well. COX-2 expression in right-side tumors more than in left-side tumors may provide a chance for right-side cancers to benefit from COX-2 inhibitor therapy

Effect of smoking on skin elastic fibers: a morphometric and immunohistochemical analysis

Tobacco smoking is one of the major health problems in the world. This study was conducted to investigate the morphological changes of the dermal elastic tissue of sun-protected skin induced by smoking. Punch biopsies were obtained from the nonexposed skin of 15 smokers and 15 nonsmokers to evaluate the dermal elastic fibers using morphometric analysis and immunohistochemical techniques. Elastic fibers of the reticular dermis were more numerous, thickened and fragmented in smokers than in nonsmokers. Correlations between the cumulative tobacco dose and the morphology of the elastic fibers were highly significant. Immunohistochemical analysis for alpha-1-antitrypsin showed negative cytoplasmic staining for all samples of both smokers and nonsmokers. This study indicates that smoking is one of the risk factors that lead to an increase in elastic fibers of the reticular dermis. This increase is due to elastic tissue degradation rather than by new synthesis, as in solar elastosis. Furthermore, smoking has multiplicative effects on facial ageing and could share, at least in part, a pathophysiological pathway

relevance of image analysis in differentiating computed tomography guided fine needle aspiration biopsy of lung adenocarcinoma versus pleural mesothelioma in Egypt

Mesothelioma is a very serious illness that can have dangerous, long-term health effects. Catching the disease early on is often the best way to combat it, knowing the signs and process for diagnosis of the disease can help make it easier. Mesothelioma can be difficult to diagnose. This is because there are many different types of cells that can make up a mesothelioma tumor. Sometimes it can be very difficult for a pathologist to diagnose pleural mesothelioma as it can look like other types of lung cancer. The differentiation of mesothelioma and lung adenocarcinoma can be challenging, as proper classification is essential for determination of treatment regimen for these diseases. The present work aim to clarify if the use of image analysis can replace the more expensive immunohistochemical technique in differentiating lung adenocarcinoma from malignant mesothelioma [epithelial type] of the pleura. In our study we investigated computed tomography guided fine needle biopsy [CT-guided FNA] from 20 cases of pleural mesothelioma and 20 cases of lung adenocarcinoma. The pleural mesothelioma cases were confirmed by specific immunohistochemical panel then were investigated by image analysis. These data showed insignificant variation [p value <0.05] in the nuclear area and cell area in pleural mesotheliomas and lung adenocarcinomas. From the cytological morphology, the malignant pleural mesothelioma in fine needle aspiration has somehow a special pattern for arrangement with nuclear crowding then those of the peripheral lung adenocarcinoma. The results were not significant enough for the substitution of immunohistochemistry technique by image analysis on cytological specimens yet it may give different results when applied on tissue specimen which need further investigation

Genetic identification of the foot-and-mouth disease virus caused 2006 outbreak in Egypt

In early February 2006, a foot-and-mouth disease [FMD] outbreak has struck cattle and buffaloes in different localities of Egypt exerting severe economic losses to livestock industry. Representative specimens [tongue epithelium and foot vesicular fluid] were collected from severely infected foreign [imported from Ethiopia] and local cattle in different governorates [Ismailia, Sharqia and Behairah]. Several assays of reverse transcription [RT] using random decamer primers, followed by FMDV VP1- based polymerase chain reaction [PCR], were used for rapid identification of the causative agent in clinical specimens, basically to circumscribe the countrywide spread of infection. The first PCR assay, utilizing a FMDV universal primer set, could identify the outbreak causative agent as a FMDV in all clinical specimens. FMDV specific primers were then utilized to determine the outbreak FMDV serotype. The specific PCR amplification products [amplicons] were purified and subjected to direct nucleotide sequencing. Blast searches, multiple alignments and phylogenetic analyses of the nucleotide sequence data revealed that outbreak FMDV is a serotype "A" which is a new serotype incursion to Egypt. Direct sequencing of the PCR amplicons was proved a relevant discriminative tool for genetic characterization of FMDV strains / isolates. Results of this endeavor initiated the potential to produce a bivalent FMDV vaccine, containing both of serotypes A and O[1], for the first time in Egypt