The widespread availability and reliability of immunohistochemical techniques in the last three decades have allowed researchers to identify cells with common neuroendocrine markers in virtually every organ. As a whole, these neuroendocrine cells form the so-called diffuse neuroendocrine system. Tumours arising from the cells of the diffuse neuroendocrine system are ...

BACKGROUND: Alkyl ethers (D2 and D7) synthesized from diospyrin (D1), a naphthoquinonoid isolated from Diospyros montana Roxb., were evaluated for cytotoxicity and capacity to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) in tumour cells. METHODS: The tumour inhibitory activity of the quinonoids was assessed in vivo against Ehrlich ascites carcinoma (EAC), while ...

Endometrial polypoid adenomyomatosis in an 8-year-old German shepherd bitch is described. The lesion was associated with ovarian granulosa cell tumour and pyometra; grossly, it consisted of sessile or pedunculated processes with both epithelial and non-epithelial components, in which smooth muscle cells were predominant. The endometrium was diffusely atrophic and showed ...

Neuroendocrine tumours of lungs represent a subgroup of pulmonary tumours with typical morphofunctional traits. In light microscopy, the four principal types of the tumours (typical and atypical carcinoids, small cell lung cancer, large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma) demonstrate typical arrangement of cells (organoid nesting, palisading, a trabecular pattern, and rosette-like structures), ...

A spontaneous trichoepithelioma occurred in a Swiss OF1 outbred, four-month-old, intact, nulliparous female mouse from a breeding colony. At necropsy, the tumour was a single, well-delineated mass measuring 4.2 cm in major diameter, located in the thoracic region and had an intact haired surface. The regional lymph nodes were not ...

Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1) is a hereditary syndrome caused by the inactivation of the responsible gene, MEN1. To date, the lack of MEN1-deficient cell lines derived directly from MEN1 tumours has hampered the detailed study of the MEN1 gene. We have established several stable Men1-deficient Leydig cell tumour ...

Oligodendrogliomas may be divided into those with deletion of chromosomes 1p and 19q (Del+), and those without (Del-). Del+ tumours show better survival and chemoresponsiveness but the reason for this difference is unknown. We have investigated whether these subgroups differ in (a) apoptotic index, (b) the proportion of cells licensed ...

We report the case of a 67-year-old man with a left pharyngeal tumour, whose peripheral blood showed granulocytosis (white blood cell count, 58,300/microl) and a high serum granulocyte colony stimulating factor titre (184 pg/ml). The tumour showed pleomorphic proliferation of atypical spindle cells in a myxomatous stroma, revealing a sarcomatous ...

Astrocytic tumours are associated with dismal prognoses due to their pronounced ability to diffusely invade the brain parenchyma. Various neuropeptides, including gastrin, are able to modulate tumour astrocyte migration. While neurotensin has been shown to influence the proliferation of glioma cells and the migratory ability of a large set of ...

Germ cell tumours of the brain and those that occur in the gonads are believed to share a common origin from germ cell progenitors. This 'germ cell theory' rests upon similar histopathology between these tumours in different locations and the belief that endogenous somatic cells of the brain could not ...

BACKGROUND: Patients with a multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1)-associated Zollinger-Ellison syndrome (ZES) show multifocal duodenal gastrinomas and precursor lesions. AIMS: To test these lesions for loss of heterozygosity (LOH) of the MEN1 gene locus on chromosome 11q13, and to investigate whether the MEN1-related endocrine cell changes also involved somatostatin ...

The invasion of tumour cells into brain tissue is a pathologic hallmark of WHO grades II-IV gliomas and contributes significantly to the failure of current therapeutic treatments. Activated microglial cells are abundant in brain tumours and may support tumour invasiveness. We have previously demonstrated that cyclosporin A (CsA) can affect ...

Differentiation therapy with retinoic acid has been considered a potential approach for treating rhabdomyosarcoma. Analysis of retinoids as differentiating agents for rhabdomyosarcoma is, however, rendered incomplete by the fact that some rhabdomyosarcoma cell lines are retinoic acid resistant. Therefore, the aim of the present work was to study the effect ...

A majority of gefitinib (IRESSA)-responsive tumours in non-small cell lung cancer have been found to carry mutations in ErbB1. Previously, it has been observed that internalisation-deficient ErbB1 receptors are strong drivers of oncogenesis. Using a computational model of ErbB1 trafficking and signalling, it is found that a deficiency in ErbB1 ...

Haemangioblastomas are the key central nervous system manifestation of von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease, which is caused by germline mutation of the VHL gene. We have recently shown that 'tumour-free' spinal cord from patients with VHL disease contains microscopic, poorly differentiated cellular aggregates in nerve root tissue, which we descriptively designated ...

An extremely rare case of a granular cell tumour arising from the right Kiesselbach's area (Little's area) of the nasal septum is reported. A 69-year-old Japanese woman consulted our clinic and her chief complaints were of continuous serous discharge, stuffiness and occasional slight bleeding from the right nasal cavity. Fibrescopy ...

This report describes the incidence, location and histopathological and immunohistochemical features of 30 canine meningiomas, of which 22 were intracranial, three were retrobulbar and five were located in the spinal canal. Nine types of meningioma were diagnosed: transitional (9), meningothelial (5), psammomatous (3), anaplastic (3), fibroblastic (2), angioblastic (2), papillary ...

Tenascin, an extracellular matrix glycoprotein, is widely expressed in the stroma of almost all types of solid tumours including malignant melanomas. On the basis of its antiadhesive character, it has been supposed that tenascin accumulation facilitates tumour cell invasion and consequent metastasis formation. We aimed to investigate the mechanism by ...

After a single dose of an anticancer agent, changes due to cell death are expected to occur in the distribution of cells between proliferating and quiescent compartment as well as in the oxygenation and nutritional state of surviving cells. These changes are transient because tumour regrowth tends to restore the ...

Two polymers chitosan and poly(lactide-co-glycolide) copolymer (PLGA) were investigated to develop nanoparticles (NPs) for delivery of protein drug substance into tumour cells. Cystatin was selected as a model protein drug due to its high potential to inhibit cysteine proteases, known to trigger the invasive process. Ionotropic gelation of chitosan with ...

The FHIT gene encompassing the most active common human fragile region, FRA3B, has been proposed as a tumour suppressor gene for important common human carcinomas. The mechanism in which Fhit protein exerts its tumour suppressor activity is still obscure. To further understand the Fhit function associated with its intracellular localization ...

Nestin is an intermediate filament protein expressed in undifferentiated cells during the development of brain and is considered as a marker for neuroepithelial stem cells. Expression of this protein in various CNS tumour cells suggests the possibility of existence of tumour stem cell modulating the evolution. We carried out an ...

Sulfated polysaccharides can act not only as anticoagulants but also as tumour inhibitors. Recent studies suggest that sulfated polysaccharides could affect tumour cells directly. Sulfated polysaccharides could inhibit the metastasis and proliferation of tumour cells by binding to growth factors and cell adhesion molecules. Moreover, sulfated polysaccharides could inhibit heparanase, ...

The aim of this study was to define the chemosensitivity profile of a series of human ovarian cancer cell lines representing the human primary ovarian tumours under altered culture conditions and to compare the results with those from tumour-derived cells. In this study, we used a standardized ATP-based tumour chemosensitivity ...

The primary source of oestrogen in premenopausal women is the ovary but, after menopause, oestrogen biosynthesis in peripheral tissue is the exclusive site of formation. An enzyme group that affects the availability of active oestrogens is the 17beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (17HSD) family. In breast cancer, 17HSD type 1 and type 2 ...

BACKGROUND: Medulloblastoma constitute more than 20% of all paediatric brain tumours and are the most common malignant brain tumours in children. Adjuvant chemotherapy has seen a strong increase in the use of complementary medicine for cancer treatment. Evidence for cytotoxic and apoptotic effects of Viscum album (Mistletoe) in vitro is ...

We clarified the usefulness of the continuous administration of tirapazamine (TPZ) in combination with reduced dose-rate irradiation (RDRI) using gamma-rays or reactor thermal neutrons. Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) VII tumour-bearing mice received a continuous administration of 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine (BrdU) to label all proliferating (P) cells. Then, they received a single intraperitoneal ...

The tumour suppressor protein merlin (encoded by the neurofibromatosis type 2 gene NF2) is an important regulator of proliferation in many cell and tissue types. Merlin is activated by dephosphorylation at serine 518 (S518), which occurs on serum withdrawal or on cell-cell or cell-matrix contact. However, the relevant phosphatase that ...

BACKGROUND: Chordoid meningioma is a rare meningioma variant characterised by epithelioid cord-like tumour cells in a myxoid stroma. It is classified as grade II (World Health Organization) tumours, as they have a tendency to behave more aggressively than traditional meningiomas and have a greater likelihood of recurrence. AIMS: To report ...

Marine organisms are being considered increasingly as sources of anti-tumour agents. The extract from Arca granosa L. has been shown to decrease the growth of tumours and this study was undertaken to determine its ability and mechanism of inhibition. The extract inhibited the proliferation of six human tumour cell lines ...

Tumour cells exist in a complex milieu of cellular and non-cellular components comprising fibroblasts, endothelial cells, immune cells and metabolites of cellular respiration. An elaborate interplay between these components and tumour cells exists with implications for immunological recognition of tumour cells. Tumours have been shown to alter their antigen and ...

BACKGROUND: Optimal management of patients with lung cancer requires accurate cell typing of tumours and staging at the time of diagnosis. Endobronchial ultrasound-guided lymph node aspiration as a method of diagnosing and staging lung cancer is a relatively new technique. AIM: To report the use of liquid-based-thin-layer cytology for the ...

SMAD4 (MAD homologue 4 (Drosophila)), also known as DPC4 (deleted in pancreatic cancer), is a tumour suppressor gene that encodes a central mediator of transforming growth factor-beta signalling. Germline mutations in SMAD4 are found in over 50% of patients with familial juvenile polyposis, an autosomal dominant disorder characterized by predisposition ...

There is growing evidence that Rho proteins are deregulated by overexpression in tumours; and according to some reports, this correlates with disease progression. Our previous clinical study had demonstrated a correlation between RhoA expression and tumour progression in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). These findings prompted us to study, using ...

PURPOSE: To evaluate the usefulness of a new 10B-compound (TX-2100) as a 10B-carrier in boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT), compared with the simultaneous use of its component drugs, sodium borocapate-10B (BSH) and 3-amino-2-quinoxalinecarbonitrile 1,4-dioxide (TX-402). Further, the usefulness of mild temperature hyperthermia (MTH, 40 degrees Celsius, 30 min) combined with ...

Radio-labelling of blood cells is an established technique for evaluating in vivo migration of normal cells to sites of pathology such as infection and haemorrhage. A limitation of cellular immunotherapies to induce anti-tumour responses is in part due to the uncertain ability of cellular effectors to reach their intended target. ...

Tumour cells emerge as a result of genetic alteration of signal circuitries promoting cell growth and survival, whereas their expansion relies on nutrient supply. Oxygen limitation is central in controlling neovascularization, glucose metabolism, survival and tumour spread. This pleiotropic action is orchestrated by hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF), which is a master ...

PURPOSE: For the assessment of folate-based radiopharmaceuticals, human nasopharyngeal KB carcinoma cells are traditionally used although nasopharyngeal cancer is rare. On the other hand, the folate receptor (FR) is frequently overexpressed on diverse cancer types, the highest frequency (>90%) being on ovarian carcinomas. The goal of our study was the ...

The inhibition of kinesin Eg5 by small molecules such as monastrol is currently evaluated as an approach to develop a novel class of antiproliferative drugs for the treatment of malignant tumours. Therefore, we studied the effects of the new monastrol analogues enastron, dimethylenastron and vasastrol VS-83 on the proliferation of ...

Surgical resected tumours are often stored for hours in the clinic upon transfer to the bench leading to apoptosis of tumour cells making them no longer suitable for molecular analysis and diagnostic procedures. The way out of this problem may be a new oxygen-enriched solution (OES). We tested this agent ...

Anaplastic large-cell lymphomas (ALCL) are high grade lymphomas of T or null phenotype often associated with the t(2;5) translocation leading to the expression of a chimeric protein consisting of the N-terminal portion of nucleophosmin (NPM) and the intracellular domain of the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK). Although ALCL are recognized as ...

PURPOSE: The application of in vivo bioluminescence imaging to non-invasive, quantitative monitoring of tumour models relies on a positive correlation between the intensity of bioluminescence and the tumour burden. We conducted cell culture studies to investigate the relationship between bioluminescent signal intensity and viable cell numbers in murine leukaemia model ...

Metastasis is one of the most harmful aspects of malignant neoplasm. Interaction of tumour cells with normal cells such as tissue macrophages may generate reactive oxygen species, which would affect various aspects of tumour metastasis. Reactive oxygen species cause damage to both tumour and normal cells and some of them, ...

Dilated neoplastic glands, some with a layer of flat tumour cells and others lacking a group of consecutive lining tumour cells (i.e., glandular gaps called pores), were previously found at the leading invading tumour edge of colorectal carcinomas. Through the glandular pores, the retained intraglandular material was siphoned off directly ...

Alpha-particle emitters are currently being considered for the treatment of micrometastatic disease. Based on in vitro studies, it has been speculated that only a few alpha-particle hits to the cell nucleus are considered lethal. However, such estimates do not consider the stochastic variations in the number of alpha-particle hits, energy ...

AMPK is a serine/threonine protein kinase, which serves as an energy sensor in all eukaryotic cell types. Published studies indicate that AMPK activation strongly suppresses cell proliferation in non-malignant cells as well as in tumour cells. These actions of AMPK appear to be mediated through multiple mechanisms including regulation of ...

PURPOSE: Positron emission tomography (PET) has gained widespread use in cancer diagnosis and treatment, but how many malignant cells are required for a tumour to be detected by PET? METHODS: Three human cancer cell lines [glioblastoma and two subtypes of small cell lung cancer (SCLC)] in concentrations from 10(4) to ...

PURPOSE: Previous studies suggest that radiolabelled amino acids could be superior to FDG in differentiating tumour and inflammation. Therefore the aim of this study was to investigate the uptake of FET and MET in human tumour and inflammatory cells and to investigate their uptake kinetics. METHODS: For uptake studies, cells ...

Endotoxin/lipopolysacccharide (LPS) is a potent inflammatory stimulus, which acts on tumour infiltrating leukocytes by eliciting a wide range of factors promoting invasion and metastasis. Less known is the effect of LPS directly on tumour cells. In this study, we analysed whether tumour cell lines from different origin (melanoma, ovarian carcinoma, ...

Pseudolaric acid-B (PLAB), a diterpene acid, was isolated from the root and trunk barks of Pseudolarix kaempferi. It showed antifungal and anti-fertility effects as well as cytotoxic activities in previous studies. The present study investigates cytotoxic activity on cultured human cancer cells, inhibition on the growth of transplantable tumours in ...