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The conjunctiva maintains the health of the ocular surface by protecting the eye from pathogen invasion, injury, and dryness. In this study, we investigated the regulation of hyaluronan (HA) synthesis by cytokines in conjunctiva-derived cells. Cultured primary cells derived from human conjunctivas that had been removed as surgical specimens were transfected with an immortalizing gene (human papilloma virus 16 E6/E7). To compare the biological features of the primary and immortalized cells, we assessed their morphological features and gene expression patterns. We also examined the effects of inflammatory cytokines on hyaluronan synthase (HAS) expression and HA production. Three conjunctiva-derived cell strains were established and could be passaged up to 15 times. All strains expressed β2MG and KRT13 transcripts, highly expressed in conjunctival epithelial cells. HA production and expression of the three HAS isoforms were detected in the cell strains; however, cytokine treatment had no significant effect on HA production or HAS isoform expression. We succeeded in deriving three human cell strains from conjunctival tissue. In the conjunctiva-derived cell strains, HA production and HAS mRNA expression were stable and were not changed by either TGF-β or PDGF-BB.

The epithelioid variant of malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor (MPNST) is a rare tumor with poor prognosis that sometimes involves the head and neck. The diagnosis is based principally on the histological examination, and it is generally very difficult to reach the correct diagnosis. An 84-year-old Japanese woman presented with a tumor mass of 2 week’s duration in the right medial canthal region. Although the tumor was excised surgically, metastases occurred three times on her face and head, and the patient died of distant systemic multiple metastases. In the histopathological analysis, the tumor showed a composite pattern comprising spindle or polygonal cells arranged in irregular bands, and a population of larger epithelioid cells in solid sheets and nests. In the immunohistochemical analysis, the tumor cells were positive for S-100 protein, vimentin, and nerve growth factor receptor (NGFR), and negative for cytokeratin and HMB 45 (melanoma-associated antigen). These findings confirmed the diagnosis of MPNST. Epithelioid MPNST has complex histopathological findings and histopathological features similar to other epithelioid tumors, especially malignant melanoma. Immunohistochemical examination using NGFR and HMB-45 is important in the differential diagnosis. Jpn J Ophthalmol 2004;48:565–569 ©Japanese Ophthalmological Society 2004