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Collection and Processing of Lymph Nodes from Large Animals for RNA Analysis: Preparing for Lymph Node Transcriptomic Studies of Large Animal Species
Published on: May 19, 2018
Epithelioid cells in mediastinal lymph nodes of cattle without cancer
M Komine1, K Kawasako, M Okamoto
1Department of Veterinary Pathology, School of Veterinary Medicine, Rakuno Gakuen University, 582-1 Bunkyodai-Midorimachi, Ebetsu, Hokkaido 069-8501, Japan.
Insights
Benign epithelioid cells, likely mesothelial in origin, were incidentally found in bovine lymph nodes. These cells did not indicate cancer and appeared to enter via lymphatic vessels.
Area of Science:
- Veterinary Pathology
- Bovine Lymph Node Histology
Background:
- Epithelioid cells in lymph nodes often suggest metastatic carcinoma.
- Benign epithelioid cells have been incidentally observed in lymph nodes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the prevalence and characteristics of epithelioid cells found in bovine mediastinal lymph nodes.
- To determine the origin and significance of these epithelioid cells in cattle without cancer.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of 110 bovine mediastinal lymph nodes.
- Histopathologic, immunohistochemical, and ultrastructural examinations were performed.
Main Results:
- Epithelioid cells were identified in 66 out of 110 lymph nodes.
- Immunohistochemistry and ultrastructural analysis suggested a mesothelial origin for most epithelioid cells.
- Cells were found individually, aggregated in sinuses, and occasionally in tubular structures, often within afferent lymphatic vessels.
Conclusions:
- The epithelioid cells observed in bovine lymph nodes were likely benign mesothelial cells, not indicative of metastatic carcinoma.
- These cells appear to migrate into lymph nodes via lymphatic vessels.
- Their presence does not disrupt lymph node architecture or suggest malignancy.
Abstract:
Epithelioid cells are found in lymph nodes in cases of metastatic carcinoma; however, epithelioid cells with benign features have also been discovered incidentally in lymph nodes. Epithelioid cells were observed in mediastinal lymph nodes of cattle without cancer during routine diagnostic necropsy. To explain this finding, the authors evaluated the prevalence and histopathologic, immunohistochemical, and ultrastructural features retrospectively using mediastinal lymph nodes from 110 cattle and found that 66 of the lymph nodes contained epithelioid cells. In all 66 nodes, most of the epithelioid cells were individual or aggregated in nodal sinuses; in 21 nodes, some epithelioid cells formed tubular structures. The individual and aggregated epithelioid cells were mostly considered to be mesothelial in origin by immunohistochemical and ultrastructural examination; presumably, they entered the lymph nodes via lymphatic vessels, because they were found in afferent lymphatic vessels and nodal sinuses. Although the presence of epithelioid cells in lymph nodes prompts suspicion of metastatic carcinoma, the epithelioid cells in these bovine lymph nodes did not disrupt nodal architecture, lacked atypia or mitotic figures, and did not invade nodal parenchyma.
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