No abstract available

[en] Ehlers-Danlos syndrome type IV is a life-threatening genetic connective tissue disorder. We report a 24-year-old woman with EDS-IV who presented with metachronous bilateral aneurysms/pseudoaneurysms of the posterior tibial arteries 15 months apart. Both were treated successfully with transarterial coil embolization from a distal posterior tibial approach.

[en] Bone defects are common and persistent problems in clinical orthopedics and dentistry. The development of synthetic reconstruction materials is essential owing to the restricted access to natural bone grafts, disease transmission risks, surgical costs, donor-site morbidity, infections, and immune response-related complications. The present study was done to evaluate the histopathological, histomorphometrical, and radiological characteristics of composite foams containing hydroxyapatite/bioactive glass (HA/BG) and fluorapatite/bioactive glass (FA/BG) as cell scaffolds in rat tibia reconstruction. A total of 60 rats were divided into four equal groups, of which three groups were implanted with HA/BG, FA/BG, and CenoBone^® biomaterials, and the fourth group served as the implant-free controls. Five rats from each group were sacrificed at 15, 30, or 60 days after implantation, and radiological, histopathological, and histomorphometrical assessments were carried out. Based on the findings, no foreign body reaction was present in the rats. Additionally, bone–biomaterial contact occurred directly without the involvement of connective tissues. The number of osteoblasts was reduced in the implant groups, whereas the trabecular thickness and rate of new bone formation were increased in all groups, where the increase in the FA/BG group was the most prominent. The mean percentage difference in bone density between the implant site and the host bone was greater in the FA/BG group at all three time points of the study. Based on the results of the present study and the positive characteristics of these nanocomposite foams, they can be suitable options for implantation in damaged tissues in tissue engineering. (paper)

[en] From 1974 to 1983 in the Netherlands Cancer Institute, 21 patients with desmoid tumours were treated with radiation therapy. Nineteen patients were irradiated postoperatively (11 patients had micro- or macroscopic residual disease, 8 patients treated for recurrent disease had narrow surgical margins), 2 patients with inoperable tumours were treated with radiation alone. The entire involved muscle received a dose of 40 Gy, while a boost of 20 Gy was delivered to the tumour bed. Local control was achieved in 19 out of 21 patients, with an actuarial 5 year disease-free survival of 90%. No relation could be found between the amount of tumour present and local control. With careful set-up of treatment fields and long-term physical therapy, complications like fibrosis, ankylosis and oedema could be minimised. These excellent results with radiotherapy for minimal residual tumour, or even for macroscopic tumour, makes mutilating surgery unnecessary. (Auth.)

[en] Juvenile hyalin fibromatosis is a rare condition with only 30 cases described previously, showing multiple subcutaneous tumours, hypertrophic gingiva and flexural contractures of the extremities. The authors report an additional case with characteristic radiographic appearances, such as calcifications of soft-tissue tumours, scoliosis, well-defined osteolytic lesions and cortical defects in tubular bones, severe acro-osteolysis and destruction of epiphysis of the long bones. 12 refs.; 6 figs

[en] Postmenopausal osteoporosis (PMOP) is a metabolic bone disease caused by unbalance between osteoblast bone formation and osteoclast bone resorption. In this study, the moderating effect of DGCR5 on osteogenic differentiation and its role in PMOP was assessed.

[en] Splenogonadal fusion is a very rare congenital anomaly which often manifests as a scrotal mass and rarely as cryptorchidism. It can be of continuous and discontinuous type based on the presence of a band of connecting splenic tissue. We report a rare case of discontinuous type of splenogonadal fusion in an adolescent male presenting as cryptorchidism. We emphasize the computed tomographic findings, which helped us in preoperative diagnosis and aided in appropriate management.

No abstract available

[en] Nephronectin (Npnt), an extracellular matrix protein, is considered to play critical roles as an adhesion molecule in the development and functions of various organs and tissues, such as the kidneys and bone. In the present study, we found that Wnt3a strongly enhanced Npnt mRNA expression in osteoblast-like MC3T3-E1 cells, while it also induced an increase in Npnt gene expression in both time- and dose-dependent manners via the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. These results suggest novel mechanisms for Wnt3a-induced osteoblast proliferation and cell survival via Npnt gene expression. - Highlights: • Wnt3a enhances nephronectin gene expression. • Nephronectin gene induction by Wnt3a is occurred by time- and dose-dependent manner. • Expression of nephronectin is regulated via β-catenin activation.

[en] Highlights: • Gö6983 rescued Ti particle-induced osteolysis in a murine calvarial model. • Gö6983 inhibits osteoclast formation. • Gö 6983 suppresses osteoclast hydroxyapatite resorption and osteoclastic gene expression. • Gö 6983 blocks NF-κB/JNK/P38 signaling pathways of osteoclast. • Gö6983 does not affect osteoblast differentiation and osteoblast-associated gene expression in vitro. Osteoclast activation by wear particles has caused major difficulties for surgeons. Wear particles are the main causes of aseptic prosthetic loosening. Gö6983, a protein kinase C inhibitor, inhibits five subtypes of protein kinase C family members. Here, we found that Gö6983 had an obviously inhibitory effect on wear-particles-induced osteolysis in vivo. In vitro, Gö6983 inhibited RANKL-stimulated osteoclast formation and function by inhibiting the RANKL-stimulated nuclear factor-κB/JNK/p38 signaling pathway. We also observed that Go6983 had no effect on the differentiation of osteoblasts and osteoblast-associated genes expression. According to our data, Gö6983 has potential therapeutic effects for aseptic prosthetic loosening caused by osteoclast activation.