Renal cell carcinoma - summarizing overview, biomarkers, metastases and new perspectives.

Kidney carcinoma is currently the tenth most diagnosed tumour in women and the sixth in men. It makes up about 4 % of all malignant tumours. In urology, it is the third most common malignant disease. It is most often diagnosed between the ages of 40 and 60, and its incidence is still rising. Risk factors include: positive family history, high blood pressure, obesity, and smoking. In examining the samples of cancer tissues, histopathological examination methods were used, including biomarkers such as: LRRC3B, TCF21, or cadherins and other markers. The use of imaging methods such as computer tomography and sonography improved the detection ability of an asymptomatic kidney tumour. Due to the expansion of diagnostic methods and the introduction of new techniques in surgical treatment, the paradigm in the surgical treatment of this disease has changed in recent years. In the case of a detailed study of the intracellular structures in the carcinogenic processes, the more profound knowledge about them can lead to the elimination of the need for surgical resection in future (Tab. 7, Fig. 4, Ref. 51). Text in PDF www.elis.sk Keywords: kidney carcinoma, RCC, biomarkers, diagnostics, surgical treatment.

Uncertain histological origin of "glia-like" cells in adult human brain tissue cultures.

OBJECTIVES: Most brain cells studies come from cultured rodent brain tissue, so basic questions about the behaviour of cultured adult human glial cells may remain unanswered. BAGROUND: Cells cultured from adult human brain have been poorly defined until now and are often termed "glia-like" based on some morphological similarities with astrocytes. However, the cells in question fail to express glial markers and may be well be of non-glial origin. METHODS: We examined adult human brain and cultures from 10 patients with non-malignant diagnoses. Immunofluorescence methods were used for glial and non-glial cell type identifications. RESULTS: Confluent cultures contained the following: 0.1 % astrocytes, ≤ 0.01 % oligodendrocytes, 2-5 % microglial and 95-98 % "glia-like" cells. Astrocytes tested as followed: GFAP+/Vim+, microglia: Ferr+Vim+, "glia-like" cells: Vim+/Fn+/CK- or CK+. In the brain tissue, astrocytes were GFAP+/Vim+, microglia Ferr+/Vim-, fibronectin expression was restricted to brain vessels. CONCLUSION: This report demonstrates considerable morphological and cytoskelatal dedifferentiation of cultured brain cells. Cytokeratins, specific markers for epithelial cell differentiation, were absent in the brain tissue. However, they were expressed in "glia-like" cells. This finding could be considered glial dedifferentiation given the ectodermal origin of the brain tissue. We suggest that "glia-like" cells come from currently unknown glial progenitor cells scattered through the brain tissue (Tab. 1, Fig. 4, Ref. 19).

Effect of metabolic syndrome on neural plasticity and morphology of the hippocampus: correlations of neurological deficits with physiological status of the rat.

Fat-rich diet (FRD) triggers health complications like hypertension, dyslipidemia, hyperglycemia, insulin resistance and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, known as the risk factors of metabolic syndrome (MetS), which may result in neurological deficits. The impact of MetS on neuronal functions and brain morphology are poorly understood. We induced MetS-like conditions by exposing hypertriacylglycerolemic (HTG) rats to FRD for eight weeks with the aim to study possible neurological dysfunctions. HTG-FRD rats were compared to HTG rats and Wistar rats on standard diet. The physiological status of the animals was monitored by body, liver and kidney weight. Morphology of the liver, vessel wall and hippocampus were investigated. Basal neurotransmission and synaptic plasticity were measured in the hippocampus ex-vivo. A marked increase of liver weight with marks of steatosis was found in the HTG-FRD group. FRD induced an increase of aortic intima-media thickness. Extracellular recording revealed FRD-induced impairment of long-term potentiation (LTP) at Cornu Ammonis (CA)3-CA1 synapse, contrary to increased presynaptic fiber volley (pV). Reduced thickness of pyramidal cell layer at the CA1 area was found morphometrically. LTP was directly associated with kidney weight and inversely associated with liver weight, pV directly correlated with liver weight, liver/body wt ratio and aortic intima-media thickness. Our results suggest correlations between altered physiological status due to MetS-like conditions and neurological deficits, which may be related with consecutive development of so-called metabolic cognitive syndrome.

The variable origin of the recurrent artery of Heubner: an anatomical and morphometric study.

The recurrent artery of Heubner (RAH) is the largest vessel of the medial lenticulostriate arteries. It supplies many deep structures, mainly the corpus striatum, the globus pallidus, and the anterior crus of the internal capsule. The aim of the present paper was studying the morphological variations of the RAH and its diameter in relation to different areas of origin. The series contained the records from 183 formalin-fixed adult human brains. The calibrated digital images of the studied brains were evaluated and measured by Image J, which can calculate the number of pixels and convert them to metric measures. The RAH arose most often from the postcommunicating part of the anterior cerebral artery (47.81%). It originated from the precommunicating part of the anterior cerebral artery in 3.55% and at the level of the anterior communicating artery in 43.4% of cases. The RAH was missing in 5.19% and doubled in 6.28% of cases. The mean outer diameter of the RAH was 0.6 mm. The maximal measured diameter was 1.34 mm, and the minimal diameter was 0.19 mm. The awareness of the various anatomical and morphometric variations of the RAH is essential in planning the neurosurgical procedures to avoid unexpected neurological complications.

Variation of the median nerve course and its clinical importance.

AIMS AND METHODS: In our work we present and describe the variation of the course of the median nerve found in both upper limbs of one of the cadavers in our Institute of Anatomy (Medical Faculty, Comenius University, Bratislava, Slovakia) during the students' dissection of the peripheral nerves and vessels. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: This non-standard course of the median nerve was compared with a standard course described in the anatomical literature and atlases, and confronted with the variations of the median nerve found and its course described in the available literature. We also provide some clinical implications of such peripheral nerve variability because understanding such anomalies is important in the diagnosis of unexplained clinical signs and symptoms as well as during nerve blocks and certain surgical procedures around the neck and proximal arm.