Viability of Chondrocytes in the Crushed Septal Cartilage Depending on Degree of Crushing and Their Mechanism of Cell Death / 대한이비인후과학회지

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: To analyze the viability of chondrocytes according to different degrees of crushing and to investigate the mechanism of cell death in the crushed cartilage. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: Septal cartilages were obtained from 22 patients and cartilage pieces were allocated to four groups; normal, mildly crushed, moderately crushed and severely crushed. The cartilage specimens were stained with hematoxylin-eosin and examined under light microscope. The viability of the chondrocytes and the mechanism of cell death were assessed using confocal laser scanning microscopy. RESULTS: As crushing intensity increased, chondrocyte viability significantly decreased. The mechanism of cell death was mainly due to necrosis rather than apoptosis. CONCLUSION: The viability of chondrocytes in the crushed cartilage depends on the degree of crushing. The mechanism of cell death after crushing is mainly necrosis. Therefore, for the clinical use of the crushed cartilage, slight overcorrection and standardization of the degree of crushing are recommended.

Ciliary Activity in Basal and Activated Status and Its Correlation with Clinical Findings in Chronic Rhinosinusitis / 대한이비인후과학회지

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: There are conflicting results about ciliary activity in chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). And dynamic movements reacting to various stimuli in sinusitis mucosa have been studied rarely. This study was designed to investigate the ciliary activity according to the severity of sinusitis and clinical symptoms. We aimed to identify the dynamic ciliary activity in response to purinergic stimulation in sinusitis. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: Nasal mucosal samples were obtained from 44 CRS and 20 normal subjects. We measured ciliary beat frequency (CBF) in the basal and activated status. For evaluating the correlation of CBF with clinical findings, nasal symptoms, endoscopic findings, CT findings, allergy tests, and olfactory tests were reviewed. RESULTS: No significant differences were found in basal CBF between normal and CRS mucosa. However, the CBF stimulated by ATP in normal and CRS mucosa showed marked differences: both the maximal increase and duration of increased CBF by ATP were significantly reduced in CRS mucosa. The olfactory test showed significant correlation with basal CBF, but the presence of allergy or nasal symptoms did not show significant correlation with the basal CBF. The CT score and presence of nasal polyposis showed negative correlation with the basal CBF (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The basal CBF of normal and CRS mucosa showed no difference. However, dynamic ciliary activity responding to purinergic stimulation was markedly attenuated in sinusitis mucosa. The severity of sinusitis and presence of polyposis negatively affected CBF.

Change of Nitric Oxide Synthase Expression and Dynamic Ciliary Activity Responding to Nitric Oxide in Sinusitis Mucosa / 대한이비인후과학회지

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: There are conflicting results about ciliary activity in chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). Dynamic movements reacting to various stimuli in CRS mucosa have been rarely studied. This study was designed to investigate the dynamic ciliary activity in response to nitric oxide stimulation in sinusitis. We aimed to identify the difference in the expression of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in normal and CRS mucosa. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: Nasal mucosal samples were obtained from 25 sinusitis and 15 normal subjects. We measured ciliary beat frequency (CBF) in the basal and activated status. Immunohistochemial staining was used to evaluate the expression of NOS in the sinusitis. RESULTS: The CRS mucosa showed marked differences in the CBF changes stimulated by NO compared to the normal mucosa; both the maximal increase and duration of increase of CBF by NO were significantly reduced in CRS mucosa. The results of immunohistochemical stain showed that eNOS expression was evident in the normal nasal mucosa and iNOS expression was markedly increased in CRS mucosa. CONCLUSION: Dynamic ciliary activity responding to NO was markedly attenuated in the CRS mucosa. The L-NAME markedly attenuated the duration of increase and maximal increase of CBF by ATP both in the normal and CRS mucosa. eNOS expression was relatively evident in the normal mucosa, whereas iNOS expression was relatively increased in the CRS mucosa, implicating different actions of NO on CBF.