Biomaterial Database

Dark epithelial cells in preneoplastic lesions of the human respiratory tract. 1982

A J Klein-Szanto, and P Nettesheim, and G Saccomanno

Dark epithelial cells, previously identified in preneoplastic lesions of rat tracheae induced with chemical carcinogens, were observed in similar lesions in human airways and investigated using plastic-embedded material from the lungs of 21 autopsy cases. The lesion types and the percentage of dark cells in their basal layers were as follows: squamous metaplasia without atypia = 13 +/- 3%, squamous metaplasia with slight atypia = 13 +/- 3%, squamous metaplasia with moderate atypia = 26 +/- 5%, squamous metaplasia with severe atypia = 27 +/- 4%, and carcinoma in situ = 34 +/- 11%. Notwithstanding a technical complication caused by differences in fixation and embedding procedures, it was possible to detect an increase in the number of dark cells in human preneoplastic lesions that was directly proportional to the degree of atypia. This increase points to the importance of these cells in neoplastic development and indicates that, regardless of their nature, the number of dark cells can be used as an indicator of the degree of atypia.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008168	Lung	Either of the pair of organs occupying the cavity of the thorax that effect the aeration of the blood.	Lungs
D008175	Lung Neoplasms	Tumors or cancer of the LUNG.	Cancer of Lung,Lung Cancer,Pulmonary Cancer,Pulmonary Neoplasms,Cancer of the Lung,Neoplasms, Lung,Neoplasms, Pulmonary,Cancer, Lung,Cancer, Pulmonary,Cancers, Lung,Cancers, Pulmonary,Lung Cancers,Lung Neoplasm,Neoplasm, Lung,Neoplasm, Pulmonary,Pulmonary Cancers,Pulmonary Neoplasm
D008679	Metaplasia	A condition in which there is a change of one adult cell type to another similar adult cell type.
D009374	Neoplasms, Experimental	Experimentally induced new abnormal growth of TISSUES in animals to provide models for studying human neoplasms.	Experimental Neoplasms,Experimental Neoplasm,Neoplasm, Experimental
D011230	Precancerous Conditions	Pathological conditions that tend eventually to become malignant.	Preneoplastic Conditions,Condition, Preneoplastic,Conditions, Preneoplastic,Preneoplastic Condition,Condition, Precancerous,Conditions, Precancerous,Precancerous Condition
D004848	Epithelium	The layers of EPITHELIAL CELLS which cover the inner and outer surfaces of the cutaneous, mucus, and serous tissues and glands of the body.	Mesothelium,Epithelial Tissue,Mesothelial Tissue,Epithelial Tissues,Mesothelial Tissues,Tissue, Epithelial,Tissue, Mesothelial,Tissues, Epithelial,Tissues, Mesothelial
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000818	Animals	Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA.	Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D014132	Trachea	The cartilaginous and membranous tube descending from the larynx and branching into the right and left main bronchi.	Tracheas
D014134	Tracheal Neoplasms	New abnormal growth of tissue in the TRACHEA.	Neoplasm, Tracheal,Neoplasms, Tracheal,Tracheal Neoplasm