1/302. Acute leukemia with the phenotype of a natural killer/T cell bipotential precursor.An acute leukemia with an unusual immunophenotype developed in a 17-year-old girl. At the initial presentation, extramedullary involvement was not evident, but with advancing disease, massive splenomegaly and an osteolytic rib tumor developed. The disease was aggressive and refractory to intensive chemotherapeutic regimens for myeloid and lymphoid malignancies, and the patient died 3 months after the initial presentation. The leukemic cells were of irregular shape and variable size; they had deeply indented or bi-lobed nuclei and relatively fine, azurophilic granules in their cytoplasm. They were positive for acid phosphatase and beta-glucuronidase in granular staining, but they were negative for myeloperoxidase. The leukemic cells had a unique immunophenotype: it was positive for T-cell antigens (CD1a, CD2, cytoplasmic CD3, CD4), myeloid antigens (CD13 and CD33), NK-cell antigen (CD56), CD19 and CD30. dna analysis revealed no gene rearrangement in the T-cell receptor beta, gamma and delta, or immunoglobulin heavy chain genes. The leukemic cells of our patient are thought to have arisen from the transformation of a putative precursor cell common to both the T- and NK-cell lineage in the bone marrow. The current literature on precursor NK-cell malignancy is reviewed, and its clinicopathological feature is discussed.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = antigen (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/302. Distinguishing immunosilent AIDS from the acute retroviral syndrome in a frequent blood donor.BACKGROUND: There are seven reports of "immunosilent AIDS" in which there was a lack of development of anti-hiv for more than 6 months. Thus, when a frequent blood donor presented with clinical findings highly suggestive of overt AIDS, there was concern that he may have had a prolonged immunosilent infection. CASE REPORT: A 24-year-old man who had donated blood six times in the previous year was diagnosed as having AIDS; he presented with fever, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, weight loss, and oral candidiasis. The anti-hiv enzyme immunoassay was positive, the Western blot was indeterminate (gp160 only), the CD4 count was 174 per mL, the hiv polymerase chain reaction was positive (2.8 x 10(6) copies/mL), and the hiv p24 antigen assay was positive. Twelve components from previous donations had been transfused, and 2 units of fresh-frozen plasma were still in inventory. Repeat donor testing 57 days after donation indicated seroconversion with a positive anti-hiv enzyme immunoassay, a positive Western blot, a negative hiv p24 antigen assay, and a positive test for hiv by polymerase chain reaction (89,000 copies/mL). Both units of fresh-frozen plasma tested negative for hiv by polymerase chain reaction. Four transfusion recipients had died, and the remaining eight are anti-hiv negative with >6 months' follow-up. CONCLUSION: The donor had an unusually severe acute retroviral syndrome and presented with findings that were difficult to distinguish from overt AIDS.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.66666666666667keywords = antigen (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/302. Peripheral clear cell cholangiocarcinoma: a rare histologic variant.We present the case of a 50-year-old diabetic male who underwent open cholecystectomy for acute gangrenous cholecystitis. At the time of exploration, a 1.5-cm mass was found peripherally in the right lobe of his liver, and an incisional biopsy was performed. Microscopic examination revealed a distinct overgrowth of clear cells in an acinar pattern, with tumor cells emerging directly from bile ducts. The tumor cells were periodic acid-Schiff reactive and diastase resistant, indicating the presence of mucin. No bile canaliculi were demonstrated by immunostaining with carcinoembryonic antigen. CT scans of the chest and abdomen were otherwise normal. Based on these microscopic, immunohistochemical, and clinical data, a diagnosis of clear cell cholangiocarcinoma was established. The patient later underwent reexploration and generous hepatic wedge resection. He did well postoperatively and is free of disease after 12 months.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.33333333333333keywords = antigen (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/302. Clearance of HCV rna in a chronic hepatitis c virus-infected patient during acute hepatitis b virus superinfection.The routes of hepatitis b virus and hepatitis c virus transmission are quite similar and coexistence of both viruses in one patient is not a rare phenomenon. Until now, the natural course of liver diseases induced by coinfections has not been well documented and the mechanisms of interaction between the two viruses and the human host have not been fully clarified. We report the case of a patient suffering from chronic hepatitis due to hepatitis c virus who developed an acute hepatitis b virus superinfection. serum hepatitis c virus ribonucleic acid became undetectable by reverse transcriptase/polymerase chain reaction at diagnosis of acute hepatitis b virus infection. At the same time, there was a striking increase in the serum concentrations of the antibodies against C22 and C33c hepatitis c virus antigens. Four months after clinical resolution of the acute hepatitis, hepatitis B surface antigen was undetectable in serum and three months later antibodies against hepatitis B surface antigen appeared. Two years after acute hepatitis b virus infection, the patient has had no relapse of markers for viral replication of hepatitis b virus. transaminases are within the reference range and hepatitis c virus ribonucleic acid is undetectable in both serum and liver tissue. We hypothesize that acute hepatitis b virus infection stimulated a specific humoral response against hepatitis c virus as well as triggering non-specific defense mechanisms which finally eliminated both viruses.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = antigen (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/302. Autoimmune hepatitis in a genetically susceptible patient: is it triggered by acute viral hepatitis A?The pathogenic mechanisms for autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) are not completely known. Susceptibility to AIH is associated with the human leukocyte antigens (HLA) class II: DR3 and DR4. Nevertheless, AIH does not have a strong genetic predisposition, suggesting that other factors are involved. Perhaps the strongest evidence of a viral cause for AIH exists for hepatitis c virus. AIH has been reported to develop rarely after acute infection with hepatitis a virus. We report on a 55-year-old woman in whom AIH developed during the convalescence period of serologically proven acute viral hepatitis type A. HLA class II DRB1*0401, which was reported to be associated with AIH with a moderate coarse and late appearance in life, was found in this patient. Steroid therapy was followed by a complete clinical remission. Our case supports the possibility that acute hepatitis A may trigger the development of AIH in a genetically susceptible subject.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.33333333333333keywords = antigen (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/302. intestinal pseudo-obstruction and acute pandysautonomia associated with Epstein-Barr virus infection.We report the association of neurological and intestinal disorders with the reactivation of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in a child. This previously healthy 13-yr-old boy presented with pharyngitis and acute abdominal ileus. laparotomy excluded a mechanical obstruction. Postoperatively, he suffered from prolonged intestinal obstruction, pandysautonomia, and encephalomyelitis. Histological examination of the appendix and a rectal biopsy taken 3 months after the onset showed an absence of ganglion cells (appendix) and hypoganglionosis (rectum), with a mononucleate inflammatory infiltrate in close contact with the myenteric neural plexuses. EBV-PCR was positive in the blood and cerebrospinal fluid, and in situ hybridization with the Epstein-Barr virus encoded rna probe showed positive cells throughout the appendix wall including the myenteric area, in a mesenteric lymph node, and in the gastric biopsies. EBV spontaneous lymphocytic proliferation was noted in the blood. The serology for EBV showed previous infection but anti-early antigen antibodies were present. No immunodeficiency was found. Neurological and GI recovery occurred after 6 months of parenteral nutrition and bethanechol. The omnipresence of EBV associated with the neurointestinal symptoms suggest that the virus was the causal agent. This is the first documented case of acquired hypoganglionnosis due to EBV reactivation.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.33333333333333keywords = antigen (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/302. Severe acute graft-versus-host disease occurring after syngeneic BMT for AML in a patient not given prior cyclosporin A therapy.A syndrome akin to graft-versus-host disease in the recipient of syngeneic stem cells is hitherto described as being milder, self-limiting and confined to the skin. It is enhanced by prior cyclosporin A therapy. We describe here a recipient of a syngeneic marrow transplant who did not receive priming with cyclosporin A and yet developed severe and progressive graft-versus-host disease which necessitated and responded to high-dose immunosuppressive therapy. We believe that this is because the conditioning regimen in stem cell transplant acts to reset the immune system enabling it to recognise 'self' antigens. bone marrow transplantation (2000) 25, 205-207.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.33333333333333keywords = antigen (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/302. Acute blast crisis with EBV-infected blasts, in a patient with chronic myeloid leukemia, and vasculitis.Unless they undergo transplantation, all patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) will eventually develop a late phase of acute blast crisis (ABC). Although additional chromosomal abnormalities to the philadelphia (Ph) chromosome may herald ABC in many CML cases, the mechanisms leading to this fatal event are obscure. Viral etiology, including the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) has never been implicated in the pathogenesis of ABC in CML. iloprost is an analogue of epoprostenol (prostacyclin; PGI2) commonly used for the treatment of peripheral vascular diseases and acts via inhibition of platelet activation, and by vasodilation. A case of ABC with blasts of undetermined lineage showing EBV infection in a male patient with Ph positive CML is described here. This unusual event developed during a course of treatment with the prostacyclin analogue, iloprost administered for vasculopathic leg ulcers. The proliferating blasts stained positively by immunohistochemistry only for the leukocyte common antigen (LCA/CD-45), and the EBV-latent membrane protein 1 (LMP-1). The only chromosomal abnormality detected by cytogenetic analysis was the conventional Ph-chromosome. It is suggested that ABC in this case of CML, was associated with EBV-activated blasts of undetermined lineage.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.33333333333333keywords = antigen (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/302. pancreatitis following hepatitis A vaccination.We describe a 23-year-old male patient who presented with epigastric abdominal pain, 8 days following vaccination with inactivated hepatitis a virus (Haverix(R)). Clinical and laboratory data confirmed the diagnosis of pancreatitis. Repeat polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for hepatitis A replication was negative. A comprehensive evaluation ruled out other etiologies for pancreatitis. IgM hepatitis a antibodies did not develop even after 3 months. pancreatitis following Hepatitis A is a well-known complication of the viremia, but the exact mechanism is controversial. We suggest that the pancreatitis may have been a cellular immunlogical reaction to one of the antigens of hepatitis A virus vaccine, or it might have been caused by the release of mediators of anaphylaxis such as histamine and leucotriens, induced by HAV antigens, resulting in pancreatitis without development of humoral immunization.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.66666666666667keywords = antigen (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/302. Activation of lymphocytes and increased interleukin-5 levels in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid in acute eosinophilic pneumonia.Acute eosinophilic pneumonia (AEP) is a recently described illness and the number of case reports has increased during the last few years. However, the role of interleukin (IL)-5 and activated lymphocytes in the pathogenesis or activity of AEP is still not clear. The clinical features, lymphocyte surface analysis and IL-5 concentrations in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and peripheral blood (PB) of a young female patient with AEP are described before and at 2 weeks, 4 weeks and 6 months after a 3-day course of i.v. methylprednisolone. serum and BALF concentrations of IL-5 before treatment were 5,200 and 8,400 pg x mL(-1), respectively. Activated CD4 lymphocytes bearing CD25 and human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DR in BALF were higher than in PB. Treatment caused a rapid fall in these cells and levels of IL-5 in BALF returned to normal levels in parallel with clinical improvement. There was no evidence of recurrence after cessation of steroid therapy. In contrast, eosinophilia in BALF persisted for 4 weeks after steroid therapy in spite of normalization of the chest radiograph and arterial blood gases. The number of CD8 CD11b- (suppressor/cytotoxic) T-cells subsequently increased while the number of CD8 CD11b cells decreased. These results suggest that activated CD4 cells and interleukin-5 elevation contribute to the development of acute eosinophilic pneumonia rather than persistent eosinophilia in the lung and that a short course of steroid therapy may effectively control acute eosinophilic pneumonia.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.33333333333333keywords = antigen (Clic here for more details about this article) |
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