No abstract

The ultrastructural characteristics of nematocysts from the cubozoan Carybdea alata Reynaud, 1830 (Hawaiian box jellyfish) were examined using light, scanning and transmission electron microscopy. We reclassified the predominant nematocyst in C. alata tentacles as a heterotrichous microbasic eurytele, based on spine, tubule and capsule measurements. These nematocysts exhibited a prominent and singular stylet, herein referred to as the lancet. Discharged nematocysts from fixed tentacle preparations displayed the following structures: a smooth shaft base, lamellae, a hemicircumferential fissure demarking the proximal end of a stratified lancet, and a gradually tapering tubule densely covered with large triangularly shaped spines. The lancet remained partially adjoined to the shaft base in a hinge-like fashion in rapidly fixed, whole-tentacle preparations. In contrast, this structure was not observed in discharged nematocyst preparations which involved multiple transfer steps prior to fixation. Various approaches were designed to detect this structure in the absence of fixative. Detached lancets were located in proximity to discharged tubules in undisturbed coverslip preparations of fresh tentacles. In addition, examination of embedded nematocysts from fresh tentacles laid on polyacrylamide gels revealed still-attached lancets. To examine the function of this structure in prey capture, Artemia sp. laden tentacles were prepared for scanning electron microscopy. While carapace exteriors exhibited structures proximal to the lancet, i.e., the nematocyst capsule and shaft base, neither tubule nor lancet structures were visible. Taken together, the morphological data suggested a series of events involved in the discharge of a novel eurytele from C. alata.

A 45-year-old Japanese woman was diagnosed in 1996 with squamous cell cancer of the cervix following an abnormal Papanicolaou smear and subsequent diagnostic conization. She underwent total abdominal hysterectomy with pelvic lymphadenectomy and was found to have poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma, International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage IB1. She remained asymptomatic until 2003 when she presented with obstructive uropathy with acute renal failure and hydronephrosis, suspected to be from the recurrence of cervical cancer. This was confirmed when computerized tomography (CT)-guided lymph node biopsy showed squamous cell carcinoma of the para-aortic lymph nodes histologically consistent with the cervical primary. In addition, there was evidence of lumbar spine metastasis by positron emission tomography (PET) and bone scans. She received several courses of chemotherapy with cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil (5FU), as well as radiation therapy. In July 2004, she was hospitalized for acute renal failure, nausea, vomiting, and anorexia. CT of the abdomen identified widespread metastases in the liver, pancreatic head, and lumbar spine. During this hospitalization, she complained of severe scalp tenderness and patchy hair loss first noticed 3 days prior to presentation. On examination of her scalp, two patches of alopecia were observed (Fig. 1). In the largest patch, there was a 5 x 2.5-cm, tender, erythematous plaque with atrophy. In the smaller patch, there was a 2 x 1.5-cm, erythematous, scaly plaque. A punch biopsy of the larger patch revealed atypical epithelial cells in nests with intravascular involvement and diminished numbers of focally miniaturized hair follicles (Fig. 2a). The scalp specimen was histologically identical with biopsy specimens of the cervical primary (Fig. 2b). There was also seborrheic dermatitis, with thick greasy scale, noted on the scalp, which resolved with fluocinolone solution. The patient decided against further treatment for her advanced cervical cancer but did accept hydromorphone for pain. She died 3 months after admission.