Bullous hemorrhagic dermatosis: A rare cutaneous reaction of heparin.

Bullous hemorrhagic dermatosis is a rare cutaneous reaction of heparin, a commonly used anticoagulant. Exact etiopathogenesis remains elusive but immune related mechanisms as well as dose dependent relationship have been proposed. Clinically, it is characterized by asymptomatic, tense hemorrhagic bullae on extremities or abdomen occurring 5-21 days after initiation of therapy. We report bilateral symmetrically grouped lesions, in a previously unreported distribution of this entity in both the forearms in a 50-year-old male admitted with acute coronary syndrome on oral ecosprin, oral clopidogrel and subcutaneous enoxaparin. The condition is self-resolving and discontinuation of drug is not required.

Conjunctiva-associated lymphoid tissue in avian mucosal immunity.

Conjunctiva-associated lymphoid tissue's (CALT) role in generating avian mucosal adaptive immunity was measured by analyzing cellular composition, expression of the polymeric immunoglobulin receptor (pIgR), and production of cytokines and antibodies in chickens ocular exposed to a replication-deficient adenovirus of serotype 5 (Ad5). These studies demonstrate that CALT contains B cells, γδ T cells, T helper, and cytotoxic T cells, and a T lymphocyte composition, which more resembles Harderian glands than spleen. CALT-derived lymphocytes contain antigen-specific, IgA-secreting plasma cells and cytokine-producing lymphocytes after ocular Ad5 vaccination. The expression of the pIgR in the CALT's lymphoepithelium emphasizes the importance of mucosal immune protection by paraocular lymphoid tissues. The CALT immune response after ocular Ad5 boosting was influenced by prior high dose in ovo Ad5 priming. Thus, both mucosal and systemic immunization influenced Ad5-induced IFN-γ responses in CALT.

Molecular epidemiology of HIV type 2 infections in South India.

A small but significant number of HIV-2 cases have been reported from India. Although all HIV-2 viruses identified belong to subtype A, there are no studies on the diversity of the HIV-2 envelope and other genomic regions from India. Furthermore, HIV-2 envelope quasispecies in infected individuals has not been studied in detail. This study was designed to address these gaps existing in the epidemiology of HIV-2 in the country. Amongst the 4685 HIV-positive samples, 27 (0.57%) were positive for antibodies to HIV-2 by Western blot. Amplification of HIV-2 genomic regions was possible in 10 of these 27 samples. Sequences of the envelope C2V3C3 region (n = 8), partial stretches of LTR (n = 9), and gag-pol (n = 2) were analyzed. Sequences belonged to HIV-2 subtype A clustered together in the phylogenetic tree and were closely related to sequences reported from the neighboring states of Karnataka. The mean quasispecies diversity in a sample was found to be 3.5%.

Imaging human epithelial properties with polarized light-scattering spectroscopy.

Biomedical imaging with light-scattering spectroscopy (LSS) is a novel optical technology developed to probe the structure of living epithelial cells in situ without need for tissue removal. LSS makes it possible to distinguish between single backscattering from epithelial-cell nuclei and multiply scattered light. The spectrum of the single backscattering component is further analyzed to provide quantitative information about the epithelial-cell nuclei such as nuclear size, degree of pleomorphism, degree of hyperchromasia and amount of chromatin. LSS imaging allows mapping these histological properties over wide areas of epithelial lining. Because nuclear enlargement, pleomorphism and hyperchromasia are principal features of nuclear atypia associated with precancerous and cancerous changes in virtually all epithelia, LSS imaging can be used to detect precancerous lesions in optically accessible organs.