Identification of pathogenic fungi in surgical and autopsy specimens by immunofluorescence

Summary A method is presented for the preparation of immune sera and detection by immunofluorescence ofC. immitis, S. schenckii, B. dermatitidis, C. neoformans, andC. albicans in surgical and autopsy material. Formalin fixation does not affect the antigens of the mycotic agents. There are no cross reactions except withC. immitis andC. neoformans, which can be differentiated by the site of the specific fluorescence in each organism.     

EDC3 phosphorylation regulates growth and invasion through controlling P‐body formation and dynamics

Regulation of mRNA stability and translation plays a critical role in determining protein abundance within cells. Processing bodies (P‐bodies) are critical regulators of these processes. Here, we report that the Pim1 and 3 protein kinases bind to the P‐body protein enhancer of mRNA decapping 3 (EDC3) and phosphorylate EDC3 on serine (S)161, thereby modifying P‐body assembly. EDC3 phosphorylation is highly elevated in many tumor types, is reduced upon treatment of cells with kinase inhibitors, and blocks the localization of EDC3 to P‐bodies. Prostate cancer cells harboring an EDC3 S161A mutation show markedly decreased growth, migration, and invasion in tissue culture and in xenograft models. Consistent with these phenotypic changes, the expression of integrin β1 and α6 mRNA and protein is reduced in these mutated cells. These results demonstrate that EDC3 phosphorylation regulates multiple cancer‐relevant functions and suggest that modulation of P‐body activity may represent a new paradigm for cancer treatment.     

Value of quantitative cytologic studies in the grading of papillary tumors of human urinary bladder

Mitotic indices and nuclear volumes were determined in 10 papillomas, 20 grade I, 20 grade II and 20 grade III papillary carcinomas of the urinary bladder. The mean mitotic indices were 1.22% in papillomas, 2.77% in grade I carcinomas, 8.2% in grade II carcinomas and 15.25% in grade III carcinomas. The nuclear volumes showed a gradual shift to larger values paralleling the histological degree. It is suggested that these objective parameters might be especially useful for the cytological assessment of exfoliated tumor cells.