ABSTRACT
The cytologic characteristics of hairy leukoplakia (HL) are described based on the findings observed in four lesions. All cases were confirmed by histologic study, and Epstein-Barr virus DNA was detected by means of in situ hybridization of tissue sections. All smears from the lesions exhibited a distinctive appearance and three types of epithelial changes were observed: (1) intranuclear inclusions of Cowdry type A, (2) intranuclear inclusions with a ground-glass appearance, and (3) clumping and margination of chromatin around the nuclear membrane. Other findings were the presence of bacterial colonies in all lesions and Candida organisms in three of them. The results of this study suggest that conventional exfoliative cytologic examination may prove to be a useful, simple, cost-effective, and reliable method to diagnose hairy leukoplakia.
Subject(s)
Cytological Techniques , Leukoplakia, Oral/pathology , Adult , Candida/isolation & purification , Cell Nucleus/ultrastructure , Female , Humans , Inclusion Bodies/ultrastructure , Leukoplakia, Oral/microbiology , Male , Middle Aged , Staining and LabelingABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Hairy leukoplakia (HL) is one of the commonest oral lesions associated with infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). This entity is regarded to be related to replicative Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection, in the epithelial cells of the oral mucosa. The present study was aimed at demonstrating the presence of EBV in 19 biopsy specimens, with clinical and histologic diagnosis of HL. METHODS: In situ hybridization technique was performed with a biotinylated probe employing formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded sections. RESULTS: All cases exhibited a hybridization signal restricted to nuclei of keratinocytes that displayed a cytopathic effect in the routine microscopic study. The hybridization signal was confined to the nuclei of a large number of intermediate and superficial cell layers, and occasionally of the parakeratin surface. CONCLUSIONS: It appears to exist a close relation between the presence of EBV and the development of HL. In situ hybridization technique with a biotinylated EBV DNA probes is a useful diagnostic tool, that allows a highly accurate diagnosis of HL, specially in those lesions with doubtful clinical and histopathological appearances. The HL represents the first known non-tumoral epithelial lesion associated to EBV infection.
Subject(s)
Herpesvirus 4, Human/isolation & purification , Leukoplakia, Oral/microbiology , Tumor Virus Infections/diagnosis , Adult , DNA, Viral/analysis , Humans , Male , Nucleic Acid HybridizationABSTRACT
Report of the microscopic, ultrastructural and immunohistochemical findings of two malignant rhabdoid tumors of the kidney in two males aged 2 1/2 and 19 months. The incidence of this tumor in our files is 1.9% of all the renal tumors of infancy. Both cases were formally considered to be rhabdomyosarcomatous variants of nephroblastomas. Microscopically a slightly cohesive polygonal cell proliferation is shown. The cells have intracytoplasmatic hyaline inclusions ultrastructurally identifiable as intermediate filament bundles, showing positivity to vimentin in the immunohistochemical technique. Malignant rhabdoid tumors are referred to as very aggressive tumors with a poor response to treatment and a high mortality rate. Association with central nervous tumors and hypercalcemia has been reported. The clinical and pathologic features make it possible to differentiate them from nephroblastomas, although the histogenesis is not definitely established.
