Our study confirms that oxidative stress is involved in the pathophysiology of vitiligo, as indicated by the high levels of erythrocyte superoxide dismutase activity and plasma nitrite/nitrate.

Clinical manifestations of benign (reactive) plasma cell proliferations of the skin and mucosa consist of a relatively rare and distinct group in dermatologic disorders. They have generally been named according to their localization. We report a typical case of mucocutaneous plasmacytosis located on intertriginous areas of the skin as well as mucosa with a perianal tumoral mass diagnosed as plasmoacanthoma. To our knowledge, this is the first detailed case report, at least in English literature.

Background: Behçet’s disease (BD) is a chronic systemic inflammatory disorder affecting multiple organs with a generalized vasculitis of arteries and veins. Endothelial dysfunction is one of the prominent features of BD. Adrenomedullin (AM) is a peptide produced not only in normal adrenal medulla but also in the vascular smooth muscle cells and endothelial cells, and its role in the course of BD has not been previously described. Objective: To detect changes of plasma AM concentrations in patients with BD compared with age- and sex-matched healthy subjects by using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPCL). We also investigated if disease activity or the duration of BD correlates with AM levels. Methods: Forty-two consecutive patients with BD (38.5 ± 11.1 years, 19 male and 23 female) and 20 healthy age- and sex-matched control subjects (39.5 ± 10.9 years, 8 male and 12 female) were included in this study. We measured plasma AM levels by HPCL, and acute-phase reactants including α₁-antitrypsin and α₂-macroglobulin, neutrophil count and the erythrocyte sedimentation rate. Results: Mean ± SD plasma AM levels in patients with BD (73.22 ± 25.55 pmol/l) were significantly higher (p < 0.001) than in healthy control volunteers (21.35 ± 12.37 pmol/l). Patients with active BD had similar plasma AM concentrations (79.32 ± 21.89 pmol/l) with patients with inactive disease (67.44 ± 29.92 pmol/l). On the other hand, patients with longer duration of the disease (mean duration, 13.9 ± 3.8 years) had significantly higher plasma AM levels (83.99 ± 19.71 pmol/l; p = 0.005) than patients (62.45 ± 26.57 pmol/l) with shorter duration of the disease (mean duration, 5.5 ± 2.3 years). All acute-phase reaction parameters were found to be significantly increased in the active disease. Conclusion: Considering its endothelial cell implications, AM may be involved in reparatory vessel endothelium mechanisms, especially in the chronic disease.

Our aim was to investigate whether neurological impairment in Behçet's disease (BD) can be assessed by means of proton MRS and whether it can assist in prognosis. We used single-voxel MRS to measure metabolites in regions of normal-appearing pons, basal ganglia and periventricular white matter (PWM) in 32 patients with chronic BD patients with and without neurological deficits and 29 control subjects. Patients had significantly higher N-acetylaspartate (NAA)/creatine (Cr) and choline (Cho)/Cr ratios in the basal ganglia than the controls. The Cho/Cr ratio in the PWM was also significantly higher in the patients. MRS enabled clear discrimination of patients and controls and also revealed spectral differences between non-neuro-Behçet's disease and neuro-Behçet's disease in the basal ganglia. MRS can be used to assess brain involvement in BD even if structural changes are absent.

Verrucous carcinoma of the skin and mucosa is an uncommon clinicopathological variant of low grade squamous cell carcinoma. Here, we present three different clinical types of verrucous carcinoma. The first patient presented with an anogenital verrucous carcinoma, also known as Buschke-Loewenstein tumour. The second patient had verrucous carcinoma of the heel with endophytic growth (i.e. epithelioma cuniculatum) and the third patient had gluteal verrucous carcinoma with a cauliflower-like appearance. Clinically, the lesion of the first patient best resembled giant condyloma accuminatum without any prominent verrucous component, whereas the second patient showed a big deep ulcer on the heel. None of the patients had metastasis. The diagnosis was confirmed with biopsy and total excision was performed in all cases. Although the cases have different clinical presentations in different locations, we think that they should be considered as a single entity; that is, verrucous carcinoma.

Background:The etiology and pathophysiologic mechanism of vitiligo are still unclear. The relationship between increased oxidative stress due to the accumulation of radicals and reactive oxygen species and the associated changes in blood and epidermal component of vitiliginous skin have been reported many times. We investigated the possible changes of plasma malondialdehyde, glutathione, selenium, hydroxyproline and glutathione peroxidase activity levels in patients with vitiligo in order to evaluate the relationship between oxidative stress and etiopathogenesis of vitiligo.Materials and Methods:Plasma malondialdehyde, glutathione, hydroxyproline and glutathione peroxidase activity levels were measured by spectrophotometric methods, and HPLC was used for measurement of selenium concentrations.Results:Our results showed increased malondialdehyde, hydroxyproline and glutathione peroxidase activity levels in plasma of vitiligo group (P < 0.05).Conclusion:Support of antioxidant system via nonenzymatic antioxidant compounds and antioxidant enzymes may be useful to prevent of melanocyte degeneration which occur due to oxidative damage in vitiligo.

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