Raluca Niculina Ciurea

Tumor angiogenesis, macrophages and mast cell microdensities in endometrioid endometrial carcinoma

The present study aimed to observe and compare the values of microvessel density (MVD), mast cell microdensity (McMD) and macrophage microdensity (MphMD) in intratumoral areas compared with the advancing edges, and to assess any correlations between these values and the degree and stage of the neoplasia. The cases of 52 patients who were diagnosed with endometrial carcinoma between 2003 and 2011 were analyzed, the majority of which were in the first stage of the disease (44 cases). Double sequential immunohistochemistry and the hot-spot counting method were used to assess the MVD (CD105+ MVD), McMD [tryptase+ (Try+) McMD] and MphMD (CD68+ MphMD) densities. The χ2 test, paired Student’s t-test and the Pearson correlation index were used to assess the significance of the results. A weak correlation was observed at the advancing edge only, between CD105+ MVD and Try+ McMD (P=0.039). No significant differences were identified in the analysis of CD105+ MVD, Try+ McMD and CD68+ MphMD, but wide variations in their distribution were observed. Depending on the tumor stage, CD105+ MVD exhibited an intratumoral, indirect correlation with Try+ McMD for stage IA (P=0.026) and II (P=0.013) tumors. CD105+ MVD presented an indirect correlation with CD68+ MphMD in stage IB tumors (P=0.016) and at the advancing edge for well-differentiated tumors (P=0.027). An analysis of the correlation between CD68+ MphMD and Try+ McMD indicated that the intratumoral levels of CD68+ MphMD were directly proportional with the Try+ McMD values in well-differentiated (P=0.005) and stage II (P=0.012) tumors, while at the front of the invasion, this correlation was indirect (P=0.010) in stage II tumors. In endometrioid endometrial carcinoma (EEC), angiogenesis is at its most active at the advancing edge of the tumor, where mast cells play a pro-angiogenic role.

B2 adrenergic receptors and morphological changes of the enteric nervous system in colorectal adenocarcinoma

AIM To study the morphology of the enteric nervous system and the expression of beta-2 adrenergic (B2A) receptors in primary colorectal cancer. METHODS In this study, we included forty-eight patients with primary colorectal cancer and nine patients for control tissue from the excision of a colonic segment for benign conditions. We determined the clinicopathological features and evaluated the immunohistochemical expression pattern of B2A receptors as well as the morphological changes of the enteric nervous system (ENS). In order to assess statistical differences, we used the student t-test for comparing the means of two groups and one-way analysis of variance with Bonferroni’s post hoc analysis for comparing the means of more than two groups. Correlations were assessed using the Pearson’s correlation coefficient. RESULTS B2A receptors were significantly associated with tumor grading, tumor size, tumor invasion, lymph node metastasis (P < 0.05), while there were no statistically significant associations with gender, CRC location and gross appearance (P > 0.05). We observed, on one hand, a decrease of the relative area for both Auerbach and Meissner plexuses with the increase of the tumor grading, and on the other hand, an increase of the relative area of other nervous elements not in the Meissner plexus or in the Auerbach plexus with the tumor grading. For G1 tumors we found that epithelial B2A area showed an inverse correlation with the Auerbach plexus areas [r(14) = -0.531, P < 0.05], while for G2 tumors, epithelial B2A areas showed an indirect variation with both the Auerbach plexus areas [r(14) = -0.453, P < 0.05] and the Meissner areas [r(14) = -0.825, P < 0.01]. For G3 tumors, the inverse dependence increased for both Auerbach [r(14) = -0.587, P < 0.05] and Meissner [r(14) = -0.934, P < 0.05] plexuses. CONCLUSION B2A receptors play an important role in colorectal carcinogenesis and can be utilized as prognostic factors. Furthermore, study of the ENS in colorectal cancer may lead to targeted molecular therapies.