Yoshinobu Yoshida

Alveolar soft part sarcoma in the vagina: Clinical features and morphology

Abstract Alveolar soft part sarcoma was first described by Christopherson, Foote, and Stewart ( Cancer , 5 , 100, 1952) as an entity in 1952, though still there remains uncertainty of histogenesis of the tumor as described in the International Histological Classification of Tumors (WHO). Up to the present, more than 20 cases of alveolar soft part sarcoma have been reported. According to these cases, the tumor occurs most frequently in the four extremities though it may occur in bone. The present paper describes a case of alveolar soft part sarcoma found primarily in the vagina of a Japanese woman 34 years of age. Histological and histochemical studies reveal that the tumor consists of an alveolar arrangement of cells, which are large, oval to polyhedral with distinct cell boundaries. No reticulin fiber is found between the individual cells. The cytoplasm takes a light eosinophilic hue in HE stain. PAS-Positive and diastase-resistant amorphous material is seen by electron microscopy as crystallization occasionally, which suggests structural aggregation of secretion granules of a protein nature. Differential diagnosis of the tumor is well established morphologically with those of uncertain histogenesis classified in the same category. Clinical features of the patient are also described.

AFP in yolk Sac tumor and solid teratoma of the ovary: Significance of postoperative serum AFP

Serial serum alpha‐fetoprotein (AFP) was examined postoperatively in five patients with yolk sac tumor and in three with solid teratoma of the ovary. Serial estimation of AFP was also done in sera from postpartum patients to compare the decreasing ratio between the two groups. Serum AFP in these postpartum women decreased according to the exponential function curve as AFP = be−mx(

Different characteristics of amniotic and cervical collagenous tissue during pregnancy and delivery: a morphologic study.

The occurrence of dissociation in cervical collagenous tissue during pregnancy and delivery is widely recognized. We performed a morphologic study of the collagenous tissue of the amnion at various stages of pregnancy and during delivery. After 15 weeks of pregnancy, including the period after delivery, the collagenous fibers of the amnion were closely distributed with no ground substances, forming a thick collagenous layer. Cervical collagenous tissue at the corresponding stages showed a marked dissociation among abundant ground substances. The dissociation-resistant properties of the collagenous tissue of the amnion seem to protect the amniotic sac from premature rupture, up until the time when it is torn by hyperdistention during delivery.

Distribution of NADPH diaphorase-reactive nerves in the human female genital organ.

Objective. This study was designed to histochemically clarify the presence of nerves containing NADPH diaphorase, representing the catalytic activity of nitric oxide synthase, in the human female genital organ.

DNA ploidy and proliferative characteristics of human trophoblasts

By using DNA cytofluorometry, DNA ploidy and the distribution pattern of human trophoblasts at different sites were studied throughout pregnancy, and the proliferative activity during cell differentiation of trophoblasts was discussed. In the first and second trimesters, cytofluorometric nuclear DNA analysis demonstrated that cytotrophoblasts in the tip of the anchoring villi (proximal portion of the cell column) consisted of proliferating diploid and tetraploid populations. Cytotrophoblasts in the distal portion of the cell columns consisted of non‐proliferating diploid and tetraploid trophoblasts, as also did intermediate trophoblasts invading the maternal tissue. Villous trophoblasts consisted of proliferating diploid populations. In term placenta, villous trophoblasts were proliferating, diploid, whereas X‐cells in the decidual tissue consisted of non‐proliferating diploid and tetraploid populations. It was concluded that (1) trophoblasts in the generative zone consist of proliferating diploid and tetraploid populations, (2) intermediate trophoblasts having 4c DNA content were not proliferative, and (3) cytrotrophoblasts in the chorionic villi still had proliferative activity even in the term placenta.

Oncocytoma of the ovary: Light and electron microscopic study

An oncocytoma of the right ovary in a 22-year-old Japanese woman was examined by light and electron microscopy. The tumor was composed of oxyphilic cells with a granular cytoplasm. Electron microscopic studies revealed mitochondrial hyperplasia, a characteristic feature of the oncocyte . This may be the first report of an oncocytoma in the ovary.

An enzyme (β‐D‐N‐acetylglucosaminidase) released from the decidua to maternal plasma prior to the onset of labor

Changes in the activity of β‐N‐acetylglucosaminidase (E.C. 3.2.1.30; NAG), a lysosomal marker enzyme, in the maternal plasma and utero‐placental tissues during late pregnancy and parturition were examined in order to determine if lysosomal enzymes participate in the cervical ripening. NAG activity in the plasma gradually increased as gestation advanced, to reach a miximum 3‐4 days before the spontaneous onset of labor, and remaining at this level until the second stage. The activity measured in decidua and amnion obtained from the women who had undergone routine repeat cesarean section after labor onset was lower than in those before the onset. Since the decidua was much heavier than the amnion, it was concluded that NAG was released to the maternal circulation mainly from the decidua and only partly from the amnion. Our data revealed that lysosomal enzyme release occurs prior to the onset of labor, and that NAG may play a role primarily in the ripening of the cervix rather than in the onset of labor, by hydrolysing GAGs in the uterine cervix.

Uterine Activity and Placental Histology in Abortion at Mid‐Trimester by Rivanol and Catheter

Abstract. Artificial abortions were performed on 7 patients during mid‐pregnancy by intra‐uterine instillation of 0.1% rivanol and catheters. The changes in uterine contractility during the treatment were monitored continuously by intra‐amniotic pressure recording. Uterine activity developed a gradual but steady increase and abortion was completed within 22 to 47 hours. A significant increase in uterine contractility started after a lag of several hours. Neither hyper‐tonus nor hyperactivity was noted during the treatment. The fetus was delivered unaffected in all cases. The placentas delivered showed normal histological integrity, and an autora‐diographic study established the viability of trophoblasts. These results suggest that the abortive effect of rivanol and catheter on the uterus and placenta is different from that induced by other chemicals.

Production and Localization of Human Prolactin in the Tissues Associated with Pregnancy (Report I)

In the present paper, the authors studied the production and localization of human prolactin from normal human chorionic tissue and decidua in early pregnancy (from the 7th to the 9th week after last menstruation) obtained either by curettage or hysterectomy. Immunohistological investigation by the fluorescent antibody technique using human prolactin specific antiserum prepared by the immunization of rabbits revealed that syncytial trophoblast was a production site of prolactin. Though prolactin was recognized in compact layers of parietal decidua, it was concerned not with production but solely with deposition in intercellular space which was widened edematously with the existence of a collagen-like substance. By double staining method of the fluorescent antibody technique, prolactin could be differentiated with both hCG and hPL in syncytial trophoblast.