Frequent activation of AKT2 and induction of apoptosis by inhibition of phosphoinositide-3-OH kinase/Akt pathway in human ovarian cancer. (1/18)

We previously demonstrated that AKT2, a member of protein kinase B family, is activated by a number of growth factors via Ras and PI 3-kinase signaling pathways. Here, we report the frequent activation of AKT2 in human primary ovarian cancer and induction of apoptosis by inhibition of phosphoinositide-3-OH kinase (PI 3-kinase)/Akt pathway. In vitro AKT2 kinase assay analyses in 91 ovarian cancer specimens revealed elevated levels of AKT2 activity (>3-fold) in 33 cases (36.3%). The majority of tumors displaying activated AKT2 were high grade and stages III and IV. Immunostaining and Western blot analyses using a phospho-ser-473 Akt antibody that detects the activated form of AKT2 (AKT2 phosphorylated at serine-474) confirmed the frequent activation of AKT2 in ovarian cancer specimens. Phosphorylated AKT2 in tumor specimens localized to the cell membrane and cytoplasm but not the nucleus. To address the mechanism of AKT2 activation, we measured in vitro PI 3-kinase activity in 43 ovarian cancer specimens, including the 33 cases displaying elevated AKT2 activation. High levels of PI 3-kinase activity were observed in 20 cases, 15 of which also exhibited AKT2 activation. The remaining five cases displayed elevated AKT1 activation. Among the cases with elevated AKT2, but not PI 3-kinase activity (18 cases), three showed down-regulation of PTEN protein expression. Inhibition of PI 3-kinase/AKT2 by wortmannin or LY294002 induces apoptosis in ovarian cancer cells exhibiting activation of the PI 3-kinase/AKT2 pathway. These findings demonstrate for the first time that activation of AKT2 is a common occurrence in human ovarian cancer and that PI 3-kinase/Akt pathway may be an important target for ovarian cancer intervention.  (+info)

Mullerian adenosarcoma of the uterus with sarcomatous overgrowth following tamoxifen treatment for breast cancer. (2/18)

Mullerian adenosarcoma with sarcomatous overgrowth presented by a 52-year-old female patient after adjuvant tamoxifen treatment for breast carcinoma is described. The diagnosis was made on histological basis after curettage and complementary total hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. The immunohistochemical study showed high expression of estrogen receptors in the epithelial component of the lesion and irregularly positive findings in the stroma. The proliferative activity evaluated by Ki-67 immunoexpression was higher in the stroma than the epithelium. Some of the stromal cells showed rhabdomyoblastic differentiation. The association of tamoxifen use and development of mesenchymal neoplasms is discussed.  (+info)

Post-initiation effects of chlorophyllin and indole-3-carbinol in rats given 1,2-dimethylhydrazine or 2-amino-3-methyl- imidazo. (3/18)

Chlorophyllin (CHL) is a water-soluble derivative of chlorophyll, the ubiquitous pigment in green and leafy vegetables, whereas indole-3-carbinol (I3C) is present in cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower. In rats initiated with 1,2-dimethylhydrazine (DMH), CHL and I3C reportedly promoted or enhanced the incidence of colon tumors when they were administered after, or during and after the carcinogen exposure, respectively. The same compounds given post-initiation inhibited the formation of colonic aberrant crypts induced by heterocyclic amines, such as 2-amino-3-methylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline (IQ), but tumor suppression was not examined in the latter studies. In the present investigation, male F344 rats were treated with IQ or DMH during the first 5 weeks of a 1 year study; IQ was given in the diet (0.03%), whereas DMH was administered once a week by s.c. injection (20 mg/kg body wt). Beginning 1 week after the last dose of IQ or DMH until sacrifice, rats received 0.001, 0.01 or 0.1% (w/v) CHL in the drinking water or 0.001, 0.01 or 0.1% I3C in the diet. Compared with controls given carcinogen alone, 0.1% I3C treatment suppressed the multiplicity of IQ-induced colon tumors, and CHL inhibited in a dose-related manner the incidence of IQ-induced liver tumors. However, 0.001% CHL increased significantly the multiplicity of DMH-induced colon tumors while having no effect on the colon tumors induced by IQ. These results indicate that both the choice of carcinogen as well as the dose of the tumor modulator can be important determinants of the events that occur during post-initiation exposure to CHL or I3C. Based on the present findings and data in the literature, it is possible for CHL and I3C to act as tumor promoters or anticarcinogens, depending upon the test species, initiating agent and exposure protocol.  (+info)

Mullerian adenosarcoma of the uterine cervix. (4/18)

Sarcomas in the uterine cervix are rare, the incidence being 0.5% to 1% of all cervical malignancies. This is a report of cervical mullerian adenosarcoma, which was encountered in a hysterectomy performed for prolapse. The tumor was composed of benign glandular elements and malignant stromal component, thus justifying its nomenclature. We wish to emphasize the distinctive morphological features of this rare cervical tumor.  (+info)

Expression of CD10 in malignant mullerian mixed tumors and adenosarcomas: an immunohistochemical study. (5/18)

CD10 has been demonstrated to be positive in endometrial stromal sarcoma (ESS) and thus is useful in establishing the diagnosis, but its expression in malignant mullerian mixed tumor (MMMT) and mullerian adenosarcoma remains to be clarified. In this study, 12 cases of MMMT (9 uterine, 2 tubal, and 1 metastatic), 6 cases of mullerian adenosarcoma (three corporeal, two cervical, and one tubal), and 7 cases of primary uterine sarcomas had their tissues examined immunohistochemically for expression of CD10, desmin, myoglobin, alpha-smooth muscle actin (SMA), and cytokeratin. Of the primary uterine sarcomas, two were primary rhabdomyosarcomas (one cervical and one corporeal), two were ESSs, two were high-grade leiomyosarcomas, and one was a high-grade endometrial sarcoma. Sarcomatous components in all cases of MMMT and mullerian adenosarcoma, as well as all uterine sarcomas, were positive for CD10, showing moderate to marked staining intensity with varying distribution except in one MMMT, which showed weak and very focal staining. In four MMMTs, three adenosarcomas, and one rhabdomyosarcoma, myoglobin- and/or desmin-positive rhabdomyoblastic cells were positive for CD10. The immunoreactivity for CD10 showed the same distribution for alpha-SMA and myoglobin in three and two MMMTs, respectively. In five cases of MMMT, carcinomatous components were focally positive for CD10, and in two cases small populations of round or short spindle cells in sarcomatous components were positive for CD10, alpha-SMA, and cytokeratin (CAM5.2). These results indicate that CD10 expression is not restricted to ESS but can be positive in MMMT and mullerian adenosarcoma as well as in a variety of uterine tumors including high-grade leiomyosarcoma and rhabdomyosarcoma. CD10 expression might be one of the characteristics of mullerian system-derived neoplastic mesenchymal cells.  (+info)

Therapeutic and specific antitumor immunity induced by co-administration of immature dendritic cells and adenoviral vector expressing biologically active IL-18. (6/18)

Interleukin-18 is a potent cytokine expressed early in the immune response following cleavage in activated composes. We have investigated the in vivo antitumor effects of intratumoral (i.t.) administration of an adenoviral vector expressing biologically active murine interleukin (IL)-18 (Ad.PTH.IL-18). Substantial antitumor effects were observed when established MCA205 fibrosarcoma was treated in syngeneic immunocompetent mice with intratumoral injection of Ad.PTH.IL-18 (P = 0.0025 versus control vector treatment), generating potent cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) in culture. In contrast, the antitumor effect was absent, and cytotoxic activity was significantly less (P = 0.021) in gld mice (Fas ligand deficient). To enhance the in vivo antitumor activity of the treatment using Ad.PTH.IL-18, we co-injected immature DC and Ad.PTH.IL-18 i.t. into established, day 7 MCA205 fibrosarcoma and MC38 adenocarcinoma. Co-injection of both Ad.PTH.IL-18 and DC was associated with complete abrogation of injected tumors. Furthermore, the antitumor effects were also observed on distant tumors inoculated i.d. in the contralateral flank of the animal. The induced cytolytic activity was tumor-specific and MHC class I-restricted. As we have previously demonstrated in vitro (Tanaka F et al, Cancer Res 2000; 60: 4838-4844) and consistent with these findings in vivo, NK, T and dendritic cells coactivately mediate the IL-18 enhanced antitumor effect. This study suggests that the coactivate strategy could be used in the clinical setting to treat patients with cancer. do  (+info)

Uterine neoplasia in 13 cats. (7/18)

Thirteen uterine tumors were diagnosed in 13 cats and accounted for 0.29% of all feline neoplasms received during a 9.6-year period. Age at diagnosis ranged from 3 to 16 years; median 9 years. Six were Domestic Shorthair cats, and 7 were purebred cats of 5 different breeds. Eight adenocarcinomas and 1 mixed Mullerian tumor (adenosarcoma) comprised the endometrial tumors. Myometrial tumors included 3 leiomyomas and 1 leiomyosarcoma. One of the adenocarcinomas developed in the uterine stump of an ovariohysterectomized cat; the other cats were sexually intact. Concurrent mammary adenocarcinoma was diagnosed in 1 cat with uterine adenocarcinoma and in another with uterine leiomyoma. Tumors were discovered during elective ovariohysterectomy in 2 cats, but at least 3 others had experienced reproductive problems (infertility or pyometra). Five cats presented for abdominal or pelvic masses. Endometrial adenocarcinomas were positive immunohistochemically for cytokeratins and negative for smooth muscle actin (SMA): 1 of 6 cats was positive for vimentin and 4 of 8 were positive for estrogen receptor-alpha (ER alpha). Adenosarcoma stromal cells were positive for vimentin and ER alpha but negative for cytokeratins and SMA. Smooth muscle tumors were positive for vimentin and SMA and negative for cytokeratins. Leiomyomas, but not the leiomyosarcomas, were positive for ER alpha. Adenocarcinomas in 4 cats had metastasized by the time of ovariohysterectomy. Two other cats were euthanized 5 months after ovariohysterectomy; at least one of these cats had developed an abdominal mass that was not examined histologically. Only 2 cats with endometrial adenocarcinoma had disease-free intervals longer than 5 months after surgery. Metastasis was not detected in any mesenchymal tumor; however, these cats were either euthanized on discovery of the tumor or the tumor was first detected at necropsy.  (+info)

Adenosarcoma of the uterus: a case report. (8/18)

Adenosarcomas of the uterus are very rarely observed and diagnosed. In this report, we present a case of a uterine adenosarcoma that was diagnosed in February 2002.  (+info)

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