title: Nucleolar organizer regions in exocrine pancreas in chronic pancreatitis and ductal adenocarcinoma. Diagnostic value and cytophysiologic correlate.
abstract: The epithelium of small excretory ducts of the pancreas was investigated in sections obtained from 33 total-pancreatectomy-specimens by means of AgNOR-silver-staining as described by Ploton [26], in some modification. AgNOR-staining was evaluated by automatic image analysis. Specimens were split into four groups: mucoid transformation in chronic pancreatitis (11 cases), papillary hyperplasia in chronic pancreatitis (eight cases), ductal adenocarcinoma (14 cases) and control-group of pancreas-transplants (five cases). Parameters estimated for each cell are as follows: number of intranucleolar dots, number of extranucleolar dots, total number of dots, ratio of extra- and intranucleolar dots, total dot area, mean single dot area, nuclear area, ratio of total dot- and nuclear area, dot-density. Ratio of extra- and intranucleolar dots, ratio of total dot- and nuclear area as well as dot-density allowed differentiation between papillary hyperplasia in chronic pancreatitis, grade III, and ductal adenocarcinoma, grade I. A correlation was found between the number of extranucleolar dots and proliferative activity as well as between the number of intranucleolar dots and protein-synthesis activity of epithelial cells of small excretory ducts of the pancreas.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pathology, Friedrich-Alexander-University, Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pollok
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D004848:Epithelium / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D019044:Image Cytometry; D009697:Nucleolus Organizer Region / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology*; D010183:Pancreatic Ducts / Q000473:pathology*; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology*; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology*; D016622:Silver Staining / Q000379:methods*