Marcadores de hiperproliferação na epiderme do meato acústico externo / Hyperproliferation markers in ear canal epidermis

Vários estudos envolvendo métodos imunoistoquímicos para avaliação da epiderme do meato acústico externo já foram realizados com os mais diversos objetivos. Por estes métodos é possível avaliar a expressão de antígenos como as citoqueratinas, citocinas, marcadores de hiperproliferação, entre outros. OBJETIVO: Revisar, descrever e analisar a expressão dos marcadores imunoistoquímicos de hiperproliferação na epiderme do meato acústico externo normal. MATERIAIS E MÉTODOS: Revisão sistemática de artigos publicados até o ano de 2009 em periódicos internacionais indexados. RESULTADOS: Vários antígenos relacionados à hiperproliferação foram pesquisados por meio de métodos imunoistoquímicos dentre os artigos analisados. Os mais estudados foram a citoqueratina 16, o Ki-67 e o PCNA. CONCLUSÕES: A maioria dos trabalhos utilizou fragmentos de epiderme do meato acústico externo como amostra controle para estudo imunoistoquímico do colesteatoma da orelha média ou externa. Há uma concentração de marcadores de hiperproliferação como a CK16, o Ki-67 e o PCNA no anel fibrocartilagíneo e nas regiões adjacentes do meato acústico externo e da membrana timpânica.

Several studies involving immunohistochemical methods to assess external auditory canal epidermis have been performed with different objectives. With this method it is possible to assess the expression of various antigens such as cytokeratins, cytokines, and hyperproliferation markers among others. AIM: to revise, describe and analyze the knowledge generated by identifiable papers published on the worldwide literature about immunohistochemical hyperproliferation markers in normal external auditory canal epidermis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: systematic review of the papers published until 2009, in indexed international journals. RESULTS: Various antigens related to hyperproliferation were investigated by immunohistochemical methods among the included papers. The most studied ones were cytokeratin 16, Ki-67 and PCNA. CONCLUSIONS: most of the studies utilized external auditory canal epidermis as control sample to study external ear or middle ear cholesteatoma with immunohistochemical methods. There is a hyperproliferative antigen concentration, such as CK16, Ki-67 and PCNA, in the annulus tympanicus, adjacent meatus and tympanic regions, mainly in the lower areas.

Mitochondrial apoptotic pathways

Apoptosis or programmed cell death (PCD) is a physiological process characteristic of pluricellular organisms leading to self-destruction of the cell. It is therefore involved in development, homeostasis and host defense. However, a significant difference has been shown between mammalian cell apoptosis and non-mammalian cell apoptosis: mitochondria are implicated only in the former. Execution of PCD includes the release of several proapoptotic proteins from the intermembrane space of mitochondria. They could exert their actions through a caspase dependent as well as a caspase independent way. On the other hand, regulation of PCD is mainly given by the Bcl-2 family members, which are in turn essentially regulated by activation of death receptors and/or DNA damage. Nowadays, execution of apoptosis is better known than its regulation. Nevertheless, we are still far of a complete understanding of the apoptotic process

El enigma del cerumen / The enigma of cerumen

Se analiza prospectivamente un población de 3.261 personas atendidas durante un período de 12 meses, encontrándose un elevado porcentaje de consultas por cerumen (8%). Al investigarse las características principales de las personas portadoras de acumulaciones ceruminosas, no se encontró predominio significativo de sexo ni edad. No se detectó la presencia de antecedentes familiares, debido fundamentalmente a desconocimiento de éstos por parte de los sujetos estudiados. Se descarta el empleo de tórulas de algodón o alguna conformación anatómica especial de los CAEs como relevantes en la génesis de las acumulaciones ceruminosas. A base de resultados obtenidos del estudio histológico comparativo de muestras de piel de CAEs de acumuladores de cerumen y controles se plantea que la génesis de estos acúmulos se debería a un proceso inflamatorio crónico del dermis, el que conduciría a una hipersecreción glandular correspondiente, asociado a un aumento de la adhesividad del cerumen, lo que le permitiría acumularse

Lipid Composition of Ear Wax in Hircismus

To investigate the difference of dry ear wax and wet ear wax, the lipid composition of wet ear wax was analyzed and compared with that of dry ear wax. In dry ear wax, squalene, steryl esters, wax esters, triglycerides free fatty acids and cholesterol were found. Squalene, triglycerides, free fatty acids and cholesterol formed the main demonstrable fractions in wet ear wax. In addition, three unidentified spots were always present in wet ear wax. Our results indicate that wet ear wax is due to the difference of quantity and composition of ear wax lipids.