Masahiro Kawanishi

Clinical significance of immunohistochemically detectable p53 protein in renal cell carcinoma

OBJECTIVEnTo elucidate the clinical significance of p53 protein in renal cell carcinoma (RCC).nnnMATERIALS AND METHODSnThe p53 protein in the paraffin-embedded materials taken from 72 patients with RCCs was evaluated immunohistochemically and was compared with the histological findings, expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), genetic instability as assessed by 2c deviation index (2cDI) and 5c exceeding rate (5cER) as well as clinical outcome.nnnRESULTSnThe p53 positivity was demonstrated only in a localized and/or focal area of the cancerous tissue. The positive rate of p53 protein was 40.3% in this study. The p53 protein significantly correlated with nuclear grade as well as PCNA expression (p < 0.001 and p < 0.01, respectively). Although there was a wide scatter of 2cDI and 5cER values between p53 positive and negative RCCs, the RCC with positive p53 exhibited significantly higher values in 2cDI as well as 5cER, as compared to that with negative p53 (p < 0.02 and p < 0.005, respectively). However, some of the RCCs with negative p53 showed relatively higher values in 2cDI and 5cER. Using univariate analysis, the prognostic relevance was noted in T, N, M categories, age and p53 positivity, while it was not in 2cDI, 5cER and PCNA expression. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that N category and p53 positivity were independently significant indicators in predicting survival.nnnCONCLUSIONSnThe presence of p53 protein might reflect the genetic instability already occurred. The p53 positivity reflecting a high cellular proliferation could afford an additional but useful information when predicting survival in patients with RCC.

Significance of rapid urease test for identification ofHelicobacter pylori in comparison with histological and culture studies

Helicobacter pylori in the stomach is an etiological factor of gastritis and peptic ulcer. It is now considered that gastric cancer can be, at least in some cases, a late complication ofH. pylori infection. In 123 consecutive endoscopic antral biopsies obtained from patients with the OkamotsoHospital, the specimens were subjected to the rapid urease test (RUT), histology (H&E stain), and culture, for the identification ofH. pylori. The results of these methods were compared semi-quantitatively in order to evaluate these detection methods for identifyingH. pylori. The results of these methods were found to agree well, with the Spearmans rank correlation coefficient between RUT and culture being 0.90 (P<0.01) and that between histology and culture being 0.80 (P<0.01). RUT is considered to be a very simple, sensitive, and highly specific test which enables the endoscopist to diagnoseH. pylori infection.

Application of the box plot to evaluate serum lipid levels and apolipoprotein levels in patients with cerebral infarction and diabetes mellitus

Serum levels of lipids and apolipoproteins were determined in patients with cerebral infarction during the chronic stage three months after onset, and these patients were classified into the group with diabetes mellitus and that without diabetes mellitus. These levels were compared with the levels observed in the control group and the diabetes mellitus-only group using the box plot which is a procedure employed in exploratory data analysis. a. Compared to the control group, the levels of T.G., apo B, Apo C-II and Apo C-III were higher, that of HDL-C, was lower, that of LDL-C, tended to be higher and that of Apo A-I tended to be lower in the diabetes mellitus-only group without treatment or under diet treatment alone. b. Compared to the control group, the levels of LDL-C, and Apo B were higher, while those of HDL-C., Apo A-I, and APO A-II were lower in the cerebral infarction-only group. c. Compared to the control group, the level of Apo B was higher, those of T.G. tended to be higher, and that of HDL-C, tended to be lower in the cerebral infarction group with diabetes mellitus, but when compared to the cerebral infarction-only group, the levels of T.G., HDL-C, Apo A-II, Apo C-II and Apo C-III tended to be higher. d. Compared to the control group, the ratio of LDL-C. to Apo B was lower (p less than 0.05) in the cerebral infarction group with diabetes mellitus and tended to be lower even in the diabetes mellitus-only group.