[The cytofluorometric analysis of nuclear DNA in nodular goiter]. / Analisi citofluorimetrica del DNA nucleare nello struma nodulare.

The purpose of this study was to measure the nuclear DNA content of cells in three different areas of multinodular goiter from 15 patients. Diploid DNA was found in the cell samples from 12 patients; the biopsies from one patient contained a clear ipodiploid peak (61%, D.I. 0.75) and those from the remaining 2 had dubious ploidy. The calculation of the mitotic index, including cells in S + G2M phases, evidentiated a large variability between different samples from the same goiter, thus correlating with the cellular heterogeneous composition of the thyroid.

[Recent findings on the etiopathogenesis of multinodular goiter. I. Immunoglobulin stimulation of thyroid growth]. / Recenti acquisizioni sull'etio-patogenesi dello struma multinodulare. I. Le immunoglobuline stimolanti la crescita della tiroide.

This present review of the literature deals with the possible autoimmune genesis of the multinodular goiter. Some investigators have identified an immunoglobulin stimulating specifically the growth of the thyroid gland (TGI) in the sera of patients affected with sporadic goiter, quite different from TSI, involved in Graves' disease. Other authors report divergent results; however there are many methological differences in these studies that give rise to controversies about the evaluation of the data. At present, these studies have failed to demonstrate consistently an autoimmune genesis of multinodular goiter.