A favorable reshaping of the nose after PNAM was achieved, resulting in an improvement in form before lip surgery. These changes lead to improved nasal symmetry before primary lip and nasal reconstruction in UCLP patients.

No abstract

Background: The goal of this investigation was to correlate particular age-related structural changes (compaction) to the amount of scatter in rabbit lenses and to determine if significant fiber compaction occurred in the nuclear and inner cortical regions.

This study describes a novel cytoskeletal array in fiber cells of the ocular lens of the rat and shows its relationship to the classical terminal web of other epithelial tissues. Naive adult Sprague-Dawley rats (n ¼ 28) were utilized. Factin, fodrin, myosin IIA, and CP49 distribution was assessed in anterior and posterior polar sections. For functional analysis, lenses were cultured with or without cytochalasin-D for 3 hr, then processed for confocal microscopy or assessed by laser scan analysis along sutures. Phalloidin labeling demonstrated a dense mesh of F-actin adjacent to posterior sutural domains to a subcapsular depth of 400 lm. Anterior polar sections revealed a comparable actin structure adjacent to anterior suture branches however, it was not developed in superficial fibers. Fodrin and myosin were localized within the web-like actin apparatus. The data was used to construct a model showing that the cytoskeletal array is located within the blunt, variable-width fiber ends that abut at sutures such that the ''terminal web'' flanks the suture on either side. Treatment with cytochalasin-D resulted in partial disassembly of the ''terminal web'' and perturbed cellular organization. Laser scan analysis revealed that cytochalasin-D treated lenses had significantly greater focal variability than control lenses (P ¼ 0.020). We conclude that cortical fibers of rat lenses contain a bipolar structure that is structurally and compositionally analogous to classical terminal webs. The results indicate that the lens ''terminal web'' functions to stabilize lens fiber ends at sutures thus minimizing structural disorder, which in turn, promotes the establishment and maintenance of lens transparency. Anat Rec, 293:1805Rec, 293: -1815Rec, 293: , 2010. V V C 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Confocal image of posterior segments of cortical lens fibers which abut to form the typical inverted‐Y suture pattern. The sutural domains are flanked on either side by a prominent ‘terminal web’ containing actin, myosin and fodrin.

This study characterized early structural changes at posterior fiber ends in the crystalline lens after diabetic induction. Wistar rats (n=49), randomized into one naïve control group and four experimental groups, were rendered diabetic via streptozotocin injection. Animals were euthanized at 1 week intervals, blood glucose levels recorded and lenses were evaluated grossly, by SEM and by confocal microscopy. Indices were developed to assess structural alterations and for statistical correlations between the scores and the duration of hyperglycemic exposure as well as blood glucose levels. Average blood glucose levels increased progressively from 98.5 mg/dL (controls) to 331.4 mg/dL (4 weeks). Diabetic lenses displayed abnormal suture sub-branches and opacity formation beginning late in the first week post-injection and rapidly progressing in severity through four weeks. SEM analyses showed gradual elongation of fiber ends and filopodia which comprised a disorganized configuration and a loss of recognizable migration patterns. Structural alterations culminated in foci of fiber degeneration by the third to fourth weeks. The F-actin distribution at basal fiber ends was significantly altered as compared to naïve controls. Cadherin distribution was altered as compared to controls, but largely at later time points. The grading system clearly shows increased structural compromise with elevated blood glucose levels in streptozotocin-induced diabetes. Further, although the initial rise in blood glucose levels was associated with pathological changes, their progression depended to a larger extent on continued hyperglycemic exposure. The data suggests that hyperglycemia initially disrupts fiber end migration, resulting in structural alterations and eventual fiber degeneration.