EMT: from embryogenesis, through cancer progression, to the development of carcinosarcoma.

Epithelial cells are tightly connected to one another by intercellular junctions which prevent much of their motility, and have distinct apical-basal cell polarity, with their basal pole facing the basement membrane; they form mono- or multilayered sheet-like structures, and establish the borders of tissues and organs. In contrast, mesenchymal cells fill the spaces delimitated by other tissues, do not form stable contacts with other cells, are embedded within the extracellular matrix with which their entire surface interacts, and have definite locomotory capabilities. Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) occurs when an epithelium loses its distinguishing characteristics, and acquires mesenchymal traits.

The developmental bases of cleft lip and cleft palate: cellular and molecular mechanisms.

Craniofacial development relies on proper growth and fusion during embryogenesis of initially distinct collections of mesenchyme derived from the cranial neural crest, covered by an epithelial lining of ectodermal origin. Fusion between these facial primordia implicates formation of an epithelial seam resulting from adherence and fusion between lining epithelia, and its subsequent removal to generate mesenchymal continuity. These embryonic processes involve a complex array of morphogenetic events requiring coordinated cell migration, survival, proliferation, death, patterning, adhesion, and differentiation, involving both the mesenchymal core and the primitive epithelial covering.

Esteem body convexity algorithm to prevent leakages in patient with an ostomy: results of an Italian expert opinion.

Stoma surgery is frequently used to treat conditions such as colorectal cancer and inflammatory diseases. While it can extend patients' lives, it often introduces challenges that negatively affect quality of life. Convex skin barriers are commonly recommended for managing flat or retracted stomas and addressing irregular peristomal surfaces, such as creases or folds.

Development, assessment and educational impact of a blended e-learning training program on pharmacovigilance implemented in four African countries.

Introduction: Efforts to improve medication access in low-and middle-income countries, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, have made progress, especially in the fight against infectious diseases such as tuberculosis. However, challenges exist in establishing effective pharmacovigilance systems. The PhArmacoVIgilance Africa (PAVIA) project was committed to enhancing pharmacovigilance in Tanzania, Eswatini, Nigeria, and Ethiopia, with an emphasis on anti-tuberculosis drugs, utilizing various methods, including training.

Prone versus supine percutaneous nephrolithotomy: a systematic review and meta-analysis of current literature.

Introduction: Percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PNL) can be performed either in prone or supine position. This study aimed at gathering together randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing efficacy and safety between prone and supine PNL.

Evidence Acquisition: Systematic review of literature was conducted using the Scopus, Medline and Web of Science databases.

Src signaling in cancer invasion.

Src is a non-receptor cytoplasmic tyrosine kinase which becomes activated following the stimulation of plasma membrane receptors including receptor tyrosine kinases and integrins, and is an indispensable player of multiple physiological homeostatic pathways. Once activated, Src is the starting point for several biochemical cascades that thereby propagate signals generated extracellularly along intracellular interconnected transduction pathways. Src transmits signals promoting cell survival and mitogenesis and, in addition, exerts a profound effect on the reorganization of the cytoskeleton and the adhesion systems that underpin cell migration and invasion.

Direct contribution of epithelium to organ fibrosis: epithelial-mesenchymal transition.

Fibrosis of epithelial parenchymal organs and end-stage organ failure represent the final common pathway of many chronic diseases and are a major determinant of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Fibrosis is a complex response initiated to protect the host from an injurious event; nevertheless, it leads to serious organ damage when it becomes independent from the initiating stimulus. It involves massive deposition of matrix by an expanded pool of fibrogenic cells, disruption of the normal tissue architecture, and parenchymal destruction.

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition and tumour invasion.

Carcinoma invasion implies potentiality to metastasize distantly but, despite its clinical importance, it is still a poorly understood process. There is increasing evidence pointing to a role of epithelial-mesenchymal transition by which tumour cells would weaken E-cadherin-dependent intercellular adhesion and enhance motility, thus becoming able to penetrate into surrounding tissues. The activated tissue microenvironment at the advancing tumour front seems to provide the appropriate stimuli for triggering this change.

The role of epithelial-mesenchymal transition in cancer pathology.

Invasion, the hallmark of malignancy, consists in the translocation of tumour cells from the initial neoplastic focus into neighbouring host tissues, and also allows tumour cells to penetrate vessel endothelium and enter the circulation to form distant metastasis. A histological pattern found at the periphery of carcinomas is the presence of individual malignant cells detached from the tumour mass and staying independently within the interstitial matrix of the stroma. While they are readily identified by the pathologist as invading malignant cells, their relationship with the compact-appearing portions of the tumour as well as the mechanism underlying the development of this pattern are not immediately evident at histological level.

Treatment with stem cell differentiation stage factors of intermediate-advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: an open randomized clinical trial.

There is no standard treatment for patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We developed a product containing stem cells differentiation stage factors (SCDSF) that inhibits tumor growth in vivo and in vitro. The aim of this open randomized study was to assess its efficacy in patients with HCC not suitable for resection, transplantation, ablation therapy, or arterial chemoembolization.

Soft tissue sacrococcygeal chordoma with intracytoplasmic filamentous inclusions.

Extraskeletal chordoma arising within soft tissue is a rare occurrence. We report a case of chordoma that is unusual both for its location within the subcutaneous soft tissue of the sacrococcygeal region without involvement of adjacent bones and for the presence of eosinophilic roundish inclusion bodies within the cytoplasm of tumor cells. These bodies revealed immunoreactivity for cytokeratin and a fibrillar, partly whorled structure on the electron microscopic examination, consistent with an intermediate filament-based composition.

Multifocal bilateral renal cell carcinoma and retinal angiomas in a patient with de novo von Hippel-Lindau disease: identification of a new germline mutation.

Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease is a rare autosomal dominant disorder characterized by multifocal and bilateral renal cell carcinoma and cysts, retinal angiomas, hemangioblastoma of the central nervous system, pheochromocytoma, epididymis cystoadenoma, pancreatic cysts and/or islet cell tumors. However, phenotypic manifestations and clinical outcome are wide ranging including inter and intra-familial patterns. The VHL gene has been localized on chromosome 3 p 25-26 and more than 250 germline mutations have been described.

Malignant mixed müllerian tumor of the uterus. Features favoring its origin from a common cell clone and an epithelial-to-mesenchymal transformation mechanism of histogenesis.

Aims And Background: Various histogenetic mechanisms have been postulated to explain the biphasic carcinomatous-sarcomatous appearance of malignant mixed mullerian tumors (MMMTs), but the nature of these uncommon neoplasms is still unclear. Some evidence would suggest that MMMT displays similarities with sarcomatoid carcinoma, a tumor arising in extragenital sites that also features a mixed appearance. To gain further insight into the histogenesis of this tumor, we have studied by immunohistochemistry a case of uterine MMMT showing an extensive rhabdomyosarcomatous component.

Sarcomatoid carcinomas: pathological and histopathogenetic considerations.

Malignant tumors with a mixed phenotype are a controversial field of pathology. In this article the morphological aspects and the immunohistological characterization of sarcomatoid carcinomas are presented. These uncommon neoplasms show both carcinomatous and sarcomatous features, and have been described in the past under a variety of different names causing great uncertainty about their classification and histogenesis.

Experimental induction of epithelial-mesenchymal interconversions.

Under some in vitro conditions, such as exposure to collagen, growth factors and related molecules, and agents affecting DNA methylation, a cell phenotype shift can be observed from an epithelial to a mesenchymal state of differentiation. The reverse process, a mesenchymal-to-epithelial conversion can likewise be obtained by certain experimental manipulations. In some instances the change is fully reversible by removing the inducer substances, but in others the conversion appears to be stable and irreversible.

No treatment, resection and ethanol injection in hepatocellular carcinoma: a retrospective analysis of survival in 391 patients with cirrhosis. Italian Cooperative HCC Study Group.

Background/aims: This retrospective study was undertaken to obtain information relevant to the therapeutic strategy in single hepatocellular carcinoma associated with Child's A and B cirrhosis.

Methods: From a total of 1108 consecutive patients with hepatocellular carcinoma, 391 patients with single, small (< or = 5 cm) hepatocellular carcinoma (260 in Child A class and 131 in Child B class) were observed: 120 were treated by surgical resection, 155 by percutaneous ethanol injection and 116 were untreated. The end point of the study was 3-year survival.