Jurgen Stahl

Rhabdoid glioblastoma: a case report

The authors report a 16 year old girl with a supratentorial rhabdoid glioblastoma. The radiological features, histopathology and management of this rare variant of glioblastoma multiforme are discussed.

Associates of change in liver fat content in the morbidly obese after laparoscopic gastric banding surgery

Aim:  Hepatic steatosis affects up to 30% of the population. After weight loss, monitoring of the change in hepatic steatosis is not routinely performed. This study aimed to define the closest associates of change in liver fat content in a population of obese females following laparoscopic gastric banding surgery.

Renal prothrombin mRNA is significantly decreased in a hyperoxaluric rat model of nephrolithiasis

Although urinary prothrombin fragment 1 (UPTF1) possesses several hallmarks expected of a regulatory protein in urolithiasis, its precise role remains unknown. To determine the relationship between renal prothrombin (PT), the parent molecule of UPTF1, and lithogenesis, this study quantified and compared levels of renal PT mRNA in healthy rats (n = 10) and rats rendered lithogenic (n = 10) by ingestion of 0.75% ethylene glycol for 8 weeks. Studies included morphological and histological examination of the kidneys with scanning electron microscopy of the urinary filtrates of control and experimental animals. Haematuria and calcium oxalate (CaOx) crystals occurred in the urine of all experimental rats, but not in those of controls. Histological examination showed birefringent nephroliths and associated damage in kidneys of lithogenic rats, which were not seen in the control group. The amounts of total RNA extracted from both groups of rats were similar, but the median ratio of PT to β‐actin transcript of 11.14 × 10−4(10.65 × 10−4 ± 2.24 × 10−4) in the control rats was significantly (p ≤ 0.001) reduced to 6.47 × 10−4(6.57 × 10−4 ± 2.72 × 10−4) in the lithogenic group. These results demonstrate that renal PT mRNA is reduced by ∼42% in lithogenic rats and confirm the existence of a direct association between renal PT synthesis and calculogenesis. Attempts to compare renal PT and urinary levels of PTF1 were unsuccessful because of interference from hepatic PT circulating in the blood, haematuria, and the presence of urinary CaOx crystals. This is the first report of a significant reduction in the renal expression of a urinary protein well documented to inhibit CaOx crystal growth and aggregation in undiluted human urine in vitro. Copyright

Prognostic factors in prostate cancer. Key elements in structured histopathology reporting of radical prostatectomy specimens

Summary Prostate cancer is the most common visceral cancer and the second most common cause of cancer death in males. The number of radical prostatectomies performed each year is increasing and accurate data from the histopathological examination of these specimens aid clinicians in stratifying patients for surveillance and adjuvant therapies. This review focuses on the histopathological prognostic factors which should be routinely recorded in pathology reports and complements the Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia Structured Reporting Protocol for Prostate Cancer (Radical Prostatectomy). Such structured pathology reports have been shown to significantly enhance the completeness and quality of data provided to clinicians. The review also discusses the International Society for Urological Pathology Consensus Conference recommendations which were published recently.

Prostatic Chondroitin Sulfate Is Increased in Patients With Metastatic Disease But Does Not Predict Survival Outcome

Previous studies from our laboratory demonstrated a strong association between an elevated level of chondroitin sulfate (CS) in peritumoral stroma and PSA‐relapse in patients with early stage disease. In this study we determined whether CS levels could predict overall survival in men diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer subsequently treated by orchiectomy alone.

Serologic predictors of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis in a population undergoing bariatric surgery

BACKGROUND Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is common in the morbidly obese. It is a condition that can lead to progressive fibrosis and cirrhosis. We determined the prevalence in a population undergoing bariatric surgery and evaluated the possible serologic predictors before the development of fibrosis. METHODS Liver biopsies were taken from 370 consecutive patients who were undergoing laparoscopic bariatric surgery. The clinical and biochemical parameters were then assessed for correlation with the histologic features of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. RESULTS Of the 370 patients, 68 (18%) were found to have NASH. Increased insulin resistance, alanine transaminase, and total bilirubin were independently associated with the presence of NASH. The presence of ≥ 2 of the 3 provided the best combination of sensitivity (.71) and specificity (.71) for predicting NASH. CONCLUSION Increased insulin resistance, alanine transaminase, and total bilirubin are serologic predictors for the presence of NASH before the development of fibrosis.