Thymic Hyperplasia (thymic + hyperplasia)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Benign thymic hyperplasia: an unexpected cause of respiratory distress during inhalatory induction of anesthesia

PEDIATRIC ANESTHESIA, Issue 12 2008
Pascale Piednoir
No abstract is available for this article. [source]


A combination of total intravenous anesthesia and thoracic epidural for thymectomy in juvenile myasthenia gravis

PEDIATRIC ANESTHESIA, Issue 4 2007
OLIVER BAGSHAW MBChB FRCAArticle first published online: 12 DEC 200
Summary Juvenile myasthenia gravis is the acquired form of the disease in children and presents with ocular signs, fatigability, weakness and bulbar problems. The majority of patients demonstrate thymic hyperplasia and have been shown to benefit from thymectomy. The main considerations for the anesthesiologist are the degree of muscle weakness, the muscle groups involved and sensitivity to neuromuscular blocking drugs and volatile agents. Total intravenous anesthesia (TIVA) with epidural analgesia is probably the anesthetic technique of choice, although the latter is often avoided, because of the risk of a very high block. Two cases of thymectomy are presented where anesthesia was provided using a combination of TIVA and thoracic epidural analgesia. Both patients tolerated the technique well and had an uncomplicated perioperative course. [source]


CCL21 overexpressed on lymphatic vessels drives thymic hyperplasia in myasthenia,

ANNALS OF NEUROLOGY, Issue 4 2009
Sonia Berrih-Aknin PhD
Objective Myasthenia gravis (MG), a neuromuscular disease mediated by anti-acetylcholine receptor (AChR) autoantibodies, is associated with thymic hyperplasia characterized by ectopic germinal centers that contain pathogenic antibody-producing B cells. Our thymic transcriptome study demonstrated increased expression of CCL21, a recruiter of immune cells. Accordingly, we are investigating its implication in MG pathogenesis. Methods The expression of CCL21 and its CCR7 receptor was analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and fluorescence-activated cell sorting, respectively. Chemotaxis of T and B cells to CCL21 was measured by transwell assay. The nature of the thymic cells overexpressing CCL21 was investigated by immunochemistry and laser-capture microdissection combined with real-time PCR. Results We demonstrate that CCL21 is overexpressed specifically in hyperplastic MG thymuses, whereas there is no variation in CCR7 levels on blood cells. We show that although CCL21 attracts both human T and B cells, it acts more strongly on naive B cells. CCL21 overexpression is normalized in corticoid-treated MG patients, suggesting that targeting this chemokine could represent a new selective treatment, decreasing the abnormal peripheral lymphocyte recruitment. Moreover, we locate protein and messenger RNA overexpression of CCL21 to specific endothelial vessels. Investigation of the nature of these vessels demonstrated different angiogenic processes in MG thymuses: high endothelial venule angiogenesis and lymphangiogenesis. Unexpectedly, CCL21 overexpression originates from afferent lymphatic endothelial vessels. Interpretation We postulate that thymic overexpression of CCL21 on specialized lymphatic vessels results in abnormal peripheral lymphocyte recruitment, bringing naive B cells in contact with the inflammatory environment characteristic of MG thymuses, where they can be sensitized against AChR. Ann Neurol 2009;66:521,531 [source]


Cervical thymic hyperplasia after chemotherapy in an adult patient with Hodgkin lymphoma: a potential cause of false-positivity on [18F]FDG PET/CT scanning

BRITISH JOURNAL OF HAEMATOLOGY, Issue 5 2008
Federico Fallanca
No abstract is available for this article. [source]


Modulation of ABH histo-blood group antigen expression in normal and myasthenic human thymus,

APMIS, Issue 10 2006
VICTORIA S. SARAFIAN
The role of ABH histo-blood group antigens (HBGA) in intercellular communication during normal and pathological processes is still uncertain. The present work investigates the expression of ABH HBGA in epithelial cells and lymphocytes in normal thymus, and characterizes the modulation of their immunoreactivity during myasthenic transformation. Immunohistochemistry and immunoelectron microscopy were applied on normal young thymus and on myasthenia gravis-associated thymomas and thymic hyperplasias. The Hassall's corpuscules in the thymus of young individuals were homogeneously stained for HBGA, while in hyperplastic glands only their central part was positive. Stromal epithelial cells permanently expressed HBGA in all tissue samples. In thymomas, mainly the lymphocytes in close proximity to antigen expressing epithelial cells were positive, while in the hyperplastic gland the most intensely stained lymphocytes were those within Hassall's corpuscules. Novel evidence for modulation of ABH antigen reactivity in normal and myasthenic human thymus is presented. It suggests that HBGA might participate in the regulation of the cross-talk in the thymocyte microenvironment throughout the ontogeny, as well as during the myasthenic transformation. [source]