Expression of αB-crystallin and vascular endothelial growth factor in conjunctival squamous cell carcinoma.

AIM: To examine the expression of αB-crystallin and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in conjunctival squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seven CSCCs and three normal conjunctivas that were surgically excised were studied. Paraformaldehyde-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections were processed for immunohistochemistry with antibodies against αB-crystallin, its phosphorylated forms, and VEGF. In vitro experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of mitomycin C (MMC) treatment on the expression of αB-crystallin and VEGF secretion. RESULTS: αB-Crystallin and VEGF were strongly expressed in CSCCs compared to normal conjunctivas. αB-Crystallin immunoreactivity was co-localized with that for VEGF in CSCCs, whereas these signals were reduced in CSCC tissues treated with MMC before excision. MMC treatment suppressed the αB-crystallin expression and VEGF secretion in cultured conjunctival cells in a dose-dependent manner. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated αB-crystallin and VEGF expressions in human CSCCs, which may play a role in the pathogenesis. αB-Crystallin expression, and VEGF secretion were reduced by MMC, indicating a novel therapeutic mechanism in MMC treatment for human CSCC.

Membrane tissue on the optic disc may cause macular schisis associated with a glaucomatous optic disc without optic disc pits.

This article reports a case of possible involvement of membrane tissue on the optic disc with macular schisis formation associated with glaucomatous optic disc without optic disc pits. A 78-year-old man presented with loss of central visual acuity of the left eye. He had a medical history of primary open-angle glaucoma. Visual acuity was 0.6 in his left eye, and funduscopy revealed macular schisis and a glaucomatous optic disc without optic disc pits. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) revealed membrane tissue on the optic disc and a tunnel-like hyporeflective lesion connecting the schisis cavity and a site near the tissue, but no obvious optic disc pit. He underwent pars plana vitrectomy during which the membrane tissue on the disc and internal limiting membrane were removed. Posterior vitreous detachment was observed intraoperatively. Thereafter, the tunnel-like lesion observed on OCT was rapidly obscured and the macular schisis gradually reduced. Eighteen months after surgery, his visual acuity had improved to 0.9 with almost complete regression of the macular schisis. No optic disc pit was visualized after surgery. The changes in OCT findings described here suggest an etiology for macular schisis without optic disc pits in an eye with a glaucomatous optic disc with posterior vitreous detachment. A connection between the schisis cavity and the vitreous cavity may have appeared via the tunnel-like structure due to the membrane tissue exerting traction on the optic disc.