No abstract

Lysozyme is an enzymatic marker of acinar and intercalated duct cells of normal salivary glands. The aim of this study was to verify whether lysozyme expression could be useful to distinguish acinic cell carcinoma (ACC) from its main mimic, mammary analog secretory carcinoma (MASC). For comparison, DOG1 expression was analyzed as well. Seventeen cases of ACC, 15 MASC, and 125 other salivary tumors were studied. Lysozyme expression was found in tumor cells as well as in secreted material of MASC (86.6 % of cases) and in ductal cells of epithelial-myoepithelial carcinoma (EMC-53.8 %), pleomorphic adenoma (PA-29.1 %) and polymorphous lowgrade adenocarcinoma (PLGA-23.8 %). However, in ACC, lysozyme was not expressed. Three patterns of DOG1 staining were seen: apical-luminal, cytoplasmic, and mixed cytoplasmic/membranous. The apical-luminal pattern was detected in ductal cells of ACC (58.8 % of cases), EMC (38.4 %), adenoid-cystic carcinoma (AdCC-35.3 %), PA (8.3 %), and PLGA (4.8 %). These tumors also showed mixed membranous/cytoplasmic staining for DOG1. MASC, mucoepidermoid, and salivary duct carcinomas exhibited only DOG1 cytoplasmic staining. In conclusion, lysozyme cannot be used as a marker of acinar differentiation in salivary tumors. However, lysozyme expression can be helpful to distinguish MASC from ACC due to its high frequency in the former and absence in ACC. It is likely that in MASC, lysozyme expression may reflect a lactational-like secretory differentiation since lysozyme belongs to breast milk proteins. Regarding DOG1 expression, the apical-luminal pattern is related to acinar and intercalated duct differentiation whereas the cytoplasmic staining does not seem to be associated with a specific cellular phenotype.

COX-2 is highly positive in oral melanomas and negative in oral nevi and might represent a useful marker to distinguish melanocytic lesions of the oral cavity.

The hepatorenal syndrome (HRS) is defined as a potentially reversible kidney failure in patients with cirrhosis and ascites. An association of HRS and cirrhotic cardiomyopathy has been reported recently, but there are no result studies about the use of positive inotropes as part of the acute phase treatment. We report the case of a patient diagnosed with HRS, with high levels of NT pro-BNP, but with normal ejection fraction of the left ventricle, which showed abnormalities in systolic function through speckle tracking in echocardiography, reversible after the infusion of dobutamine. The patient showed clinical and laboratory improvement of his renal function after the infusion of dobutamine. Clinical studies are needed on HRS therapeutic approach taking into account the myocardial dysfunction as a major contributing factor to renal dysfunction.