A 70-year-old female presented with a 4-week history of dry cough and wheezing. Chest radiograph showed a 10.5 cm mass-like density in the anterior mediastinum which had not been previously visualized. Computed tomography scan (CT) of the chest showed a right hilar mass encasing and narrowing right upper lobe bronchus and right mainstem bronchus and secondary atelectatic changes. Biopsy was consistent with a diagnosis of lymphomatoid granulomatosis Grade 3. She responded well clinically and radiologically to therapy. Lymphomatoid granulomatosis is a rare EBV-associated disorder which is considered a lymphoproliferative disease. The most common radiographic feature is multiple lung nodules. An isolated hilar mass is an exceptionally rare presentation of this rare disease.
Background:
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) can be characterised by degeneration of retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells and the accumulation, in retinal drusen deposits, of amyloid beta-peptides proteolytically derived, by secretases, from the amyloid precursor protein (APP). Ultraviolet (UV) light exposure is a risk factor for the development of AMD.
Objectives:
In the current study, we investigated whether APP and/or its proteolysis are linked to the UVA resistance or proliferation of ARPE-19 human RPE cells.
Methods:
Cell viability was determined, following UVA exposure, with prior small interfering RNA-mediated APP depletion or secretase inhibitor treatments. APP levels/proteolysis were analysed by immunoblotting. Cells were also grown in the presence/absence of secretase inhibitors to assess their effects on longer-term culture growth. Finally, the effects of APP proteolytic fragments on ARPE-19 cell proliferation were monitored following co-culture with human embryonic kidney cells stably over-expressing these fragments.
Results:
Endogenous APP was depleted following UVA irradiation and β-secretase, but not -secretase, processing of the protein was reduced. Experimental APP depletion or -secretase (but not - or β-secretase) inhibition ablated the detrimental effect of UVA on cell viability. In contrast, -secretase, and possibly -secretase but not β-secretase activity, appeared to promote the longer-term proliferation of ARPE-19 cells in the absence of UVA irradiation
Conclusions:
There are clear but differential links between APP expression/proteolysis and the proliferation and UVA resistance of ARPE-19 cells indicating that the protein should be investigated further in relation to the identification of possible drug targets for the treatment of AMD.
The present work is a study of some properties of PbI2 deposited on porous silicon (n-PSi) by using the thermal evaporation technique. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, UV-Vis spectrophotometer, and FTIR analysis were used to characterize the structural, optical, and morphological properties of n-Psi. X-ray diffraction showed that the PbI2 film has a hexagonal polycrystalline structure, while FE-SEM images showed porous silicone in Photoelectrochemical etching, the pore distribution is irregular and the pore refers to the increased surface area of the silicon. SEM images of pbI2 film showed that particles were scattered and resembled gravel in size. The estimated optical energy value of thin films of PbI2 was 2.6 eV. PbI2 film has lower transmittance values at short wavelengths, but as the wavelength increases, the transmittance values gradually increased. The greatest transmittance value was 0.88. From FTIR analysis, chemical bonds were determined between porous silicon and PbI2.
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