Growth-regulating factors-interacting factor (GIF) proteins play crucial roles in the regulation of plant growth and development. However, the molecular mechanism of GIF proteins in tomato is poorly understood. Here, four SlGIF genes (named SlGRF1a, SlGIF, SlGIF, and SlGIF) were identified from the tomato genome and clustered into two major clades by phylogenetic analysis. The gene structure and motif pattern analyses showed similar exon/intron patterns and motif organizations in all the SlGIFs. We identified 33 cis-acting regulatory elements (CAREs) in the promoter regions of the SlGIFs. The expression profiling revealed the four GIFs are expressed in various tissues and stages of fruit development and induced by phytohormones (IAA and GA). The subcellular localization assays showed all four GIFs were located in nucleus. The yeast two-hybrid assay indicated various growth-regulating factors (SlGRFs) proteins interacted with the four SlGIF proteins. However, SlGRF4 was a common interactor with the SlGIF proteins. Moreover, a higher co-expression relationship was shown between three SlGIF genes and five SlGRF genes. The protein association network analysis found a chromodomain helicase DNA-binding protein (CHD) and an actin-like protein to be associated with the four SlGIF proteins. Overall, these results will improve our understanding of the potential functions of GIF genes and act as a base for further functional studies on GIFs in tomato growth and development.

Keywords: GIF; GRF; Solanum lycopersicum; organ size; transcriptional co-activator.

This study tests a hydrogen-based membrane biofilm reactor (MBfR) to investigate simultaneous bioreduction of selected oxidized contaminants, including nitrate (>-N), sulfate (>), bromate (>), chromate (Cr(VI)) and para-chloronitrobenzene (p-CNB). The experiments demonstrate that MBfR can achieve high performance for contaminants bioreduction to harmless or immobile forms in 240 days, with a maximum reduction fluxes of 0.901 g>-N/m2·d, 1.573 g>/m2·d, 0.009 g>/m2·d, 0.022 g Cr(VI)/m2·d, and 0.043 g p-CNB/m2·d. Increasing H2 pressure and decreasing influent surface loading enhanced removal efficiency of the reactor. Flux analysis indicates that nitrate and sulfate reductions competed more strongly than>, Cr(VI) and p-CNB reduction. The average H2 utilization rate, H2 flux, and H2 utilization efficiency of the reactor were 0.026 to 0.052 mg H2/cm3·d, 0.024 to 0.046 mg H2/cm2·d, and 97.5% to 99.3% (nearly 100%). Results show the hydrogen-based MBfR may be suitable for removing multiple oxidized contaminants in drinking water or groundwater.

Experiments were designed to compare perioperative blood loss, early thrombogenicity and morphologic and functional characteristics of the neointima of three types of prosthetic materials used for carotid artery patch angioplasty. Bilateral carotid patch angioplasties were performed in 20 dogs, using 20 gelatin-impregnated fluoropassivated Dacron (GIF), 10 untreated knitted Dacron and 10 expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) patches (5 cm2). Intraoperative blood loss, platelet deposition at 24 h and neointimal morphology at 6 weeks after the operation were assessed. Bioassay of the neointima was performed at 6 weeks in 16 patches. Mean (s.e.m.) blood loss was significantly less in GIF patches (14.7 (2.7) ml) compared with either PTFE (75.6 (24) ml) or untreated Dacron (64.3 (9.5)) (P < 0.005). Mean (s.e.m.) platelet deposition in GIF patches (1380 (328) platelets/cm2) was approximately 50% less at 24 h than in untreated Dacron (2562 (1035) platelets/cm2) or PTFE (2140 (998( platelets/cm2) patches (P < 0.05). Neointimal coverage was greater in PTFE (94 (1.3%)) compared with GIF (79 (2.7%)) or untreated Dacron (86 (2.4%)) patches (P < 0.05). The thickness of the neointimal layer of PTFE (0.5 (0.01) mm) patches was greater than other patch types; GIF (0.2 (0.01) mm) or untreated Dacron (0.3 (0.01) mm) (P < 0.50). Under bioassay conditions, acetylcholine caused release of vasoactive relaxing factor(s) from all patches. However, relaxations from baseline were less with GIF patches (-37.9 (11.7)% versus -54.5(9.6( for untreated Dacron; -50.2 (15.2)% for PTFE) (P = n.s.). Endothelin-1 release occurred from all patches and was increased with the extent of neointimal coverage. These data demonstrate that GIF patches caused the least perioperative bleeding, were the least thrombogenic at 24 h and developed the thinnest neointima at 6 weeks. All patch materials developed a functioning neointima.

UNASSIGNED

Many studies have shown the utility of rigid three-dimensional (3 D) endoscopes in surgery, but few have reported the utility of flexible 3 D endoscopes. This ex vivo study was intended to investigate whether a newly developed 3 D endoscope (GIF-Y0083; Olympus) improves diagnostic accuracy for superficial gastric tumor.

UNASSIGNED

Twelve observers comprising experts, trainees, and novices (4 each) evaluated 2 D and 3 D images of 20 specimens resected by gastric ESD. Evaluation items were diagnostic accuracy of tumor extent and degree of confidence in assessing (a) tumor extent, (b) morphology, and (c) comprehensive recognition. The 2 D and 3 D endoscopy data were compared in a crossover analysis.

UNASSIGNED

Overall, diagnostic accuracy was significantly higher with 3 D images (88.1 %) than with 2 D images (84.2 %) ( P < 0.01). Comparison by skill level showed that 3 D images significantly improved diagnostic accuracy among novices but not among experts or trainees. Comparison by morphology showed that diagnostic accuracy did not differ significantly for type IIa/IIb lesions but improved significantly for type IIc lesions among trainees and novices. Overall, 3 D images significantly increased the degree of confidence in the assessment of all three items (a - c). Comparison by skill level showed similar results, and comparison by morphology showed that regardless of skill level, the degree of confidence in assessing all items (a - c) increased significantly only when examining type IIc lesions.

UNASSIGNED

Compared with 2 D images, 3 D images significantly improved both diagnostic accuracy of tumor extent and degree of confidence for diagnosing superficial gastric tumor. The utility of the 3 D endoscope was apparent among trainees and novices and for the diagnosis of type IIc lesions.

This paper describes in some detail methods which may be useful for the preparation of chalone-like granulopoietic inhibitor(s). Details are given for a) preparation of crude starting material from various sources, b) primary extraction and crude fractionation techniques, c) gel chromatography, d) anion exchange chromatography, and e) thiol-binding chromatography. Possibilities for the chromatographic use of marker substances are discussed and methods for obtaining the factor in radioactively labeled form are given. Some of the stability problems encountered during working and storage of granulopoiesis-inhibiting factor (GIF) are discussed. The purpose of this paper is to provide simple chemical techniques for the purification of GIF for investigators with mainly biological interests.

Although the reactive sticking probability of oxygen at Ag(111) is of the order of 10(-6) at 295 K, ammonia oxidation is a facile process at low temperatures. A combination of quantitative analysis of photoelectron spectra together with high resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy provides kinetic and spectroscopic evidence for an ammonia-dioxygen complex, stable at 100 K, as the key intermediate. The reactive oxygen O(2)(s) is a transient dioxygen precursor of the unreactive peroxo state O(2)(δ-)(a). It is present as a complex when ammonia and dioxygen are coadsorbed at low temperature (100 K) with evidence from both O(1s) and energy loss spectra. Hydroxyl and amide/imide species are formed, followed by dehydroxylation and "oxide" formation at 260 K. This is a further example (zinc was the first) of how an sp-metal, where dioxygen bond cleavage is slow, provides an alternative pathway via a transient dioxygen state to catalytic oxidation through precursor assisted dioxygen bond cleavage. Whether it is a general characteristic of sp-metals remains to be established. Comparisons are made with the homogeneously catalyzed Gif reaction, the selective oxidation of hydrocarbons by dioxygen.

The mouse T cell hybridoma 12H5 cells constitutively form glycosylation-enhancing factor (GEF) and produce both IgE-potentiating factor and ovalbumin (OVA)-binding GEF upon antigenic stimulation with OVA-pulsed macrophages. Culture of the 12H5 cells either with nonspecific glycosylation inhibiting factor (GIF) or with a phospholipase A2 (PLA2) inhibitor, ONO-RS-082, stopped the formation of GEF and induced the same cells to form GIF. Induction of the GIF formation by a PLA2 inhibitor was observed even when the 12H5 cells had been treated with mitomycin C, indicating that the switching from the GEF formation to the GIF formation was not due to selective proliferation of a GIF-producing subclone. The OVA-binding GIF produced by the PLA2-inhibitor-treated, antigen-stimulated 12H5 cells binds to homologous antigen (ovalbumin), and shares both antigenic determinant recognized by the monoclonal antibody 14-30 and the lipomodulin-determinant with antigen-specific suppressor inducer factor (TsiF). The present experiments also showed that a typical helper T cell clone, D10, G4.1 cells, constitutively formed GEF and that preculture of the T cell clone with IL-2 and the PLA2 inhibitor switched the cells from the formation of GEF to the formation of GIF. Upon stimulation with antigen-pulsed macrophages, the inhibitor-treated D10.G4.1 cells formed GIF having affinity for conalbumin. The results indicated that the same T cells have the capacity to form either GIF or GEF under different conditions, and suggested that the GIF-producing suppressor T cells may be a phenotype of a subset of helper T cells. Switching of the same cells from the GEF formation to the GIF formation by the PLA2 inhibitor and the ability of the inhibitor to enhance GIF formation suggested that PLA2-inhibitory activity or GIF activity of TsiF is involved in the suppressor T cell cascade.

High-quality nanoporous anodic alumina gradient-index filters (NAA-GIFs) are realized by sinusoidal pulse anodisation (SPA) of aluminum. A three-level factorial design of experiments is used to determine the effect of three critical anodization parameters -electrolyte temperature, concentration of the electrolyte and anodization time- on the quality of light control in these photonic crystal (PC) structures. Quantitative analysis of the effect of these anodization parameters on the quality of the characteristic photonic stopband (PSB) of NAA-GIFs reveals that all three anodization parameters and their respective combinations have statistically significant effects. However, anodization time is found to have the highest impact on the quality of light control in NAA-GIFs, followed by the electrolyte concentration and its temperature. Our findings demonstrate that NAA-GIFs fabricated under optimal conditions achieve an outstanding quality factor of ∼86 (i.e. ∼18% superior to that of other NAA-based PCs reported in the literature). This study provides new insight into optimal anodization conditions to fabricate high-quality NAA-based PC structures, opening new exciting opportunities to integrate these nanoporous PCs as platform materials for light-based technologies requiring a precise control over photons such as ultra-sensitive optical sensors and biosensors, photocatalysts for green energy generation and environmental remediation, optical encoding and lasing.

The presence of postganglionic adrenergic nerve fibres in the myocardium of human fetuses ranging in gestational age from 9 weeks to 8 months was studied by the method of glyoxilic acid induced fluorescence (GIF). Heart samples were obtained after legal induced interruption of pregnancy, indicated in part of the cases for genetic defects. Identification of adrenergic nerve fibers in the human heart proved possible only in the second half of gestation. This finding supports the assumption of humoral rather than nervous regulation of heart activity in the first half of intrauterine development of the fetus.

GIF-DB and FlyNets are two WWW databases describing molecular (protein-DNA, protein-RNA and protein-protein) interactions occuring in the fly Drosophila melanogaster (http://gifts.univ-mrs.fr/GIFTS_home_page.html ). GIF-DB is a specialised database which focuses on molecular interactions involved in the process of embryonic pattern formation, whereas FlyNets is a new and more general database, the long-term goal of which is to report on any published molecular interaction occuring in the fly. The information content of both databases is distributed in specific lines arranged into an EMBL- (or GenBank-) like format. These databases achieve a high level of integration with other databases such as FlyBase, EMBL, GenBank and SWISS-PROT through numerous hyperlinks. In addition, we also describe SOS-DGDB, a new collection of annotated Drosophila gene sequences, in which binding sites for regulatory proteins are directly visible on the DNA primary sequence and hyperlinked both to GIF-DB and TRANSFAC database entries.

The subject of this study was the optical performance of video-endoscopic systems (VE) in terms of maximal resolving power and resolvable picture elements. Olympus, Toshiba/Machida, Fujinon, and Welch Allyn video gastroscopes were tested. A GIF Q 10 fiberscope from Olympus was also included for comparison. The resolution measurements were made at various distances using two independent methods--electronic analysis of the TV signal, and visual evaluation of the resolution, of a standardized test target. The results obtained with the two methods were in perfect agreement. The resolution of fine details clearly depends on the distance between the distal end and the target because of decreasing image scale. Depending on the individual optical design, the various VE's show maxima at different distances. At shorter distances, the image is degraded by defocusing. An optimal distance which is as small as possible is desired for clinical routine. Apart from the fiberscope this requirement is best met by the Fuji system. The greatest resolution is obtained with the Toshiba system but at the cost of the viewing angle which is the smallest of all the systems. Fuji combines relatively high resolution with a large viewing angle. Because of the widely varying viewing angle a comparison based solely on resolution cannot represent the true imaging capability of the system. We therefore eliminated purely optical parameters and calculated the number of resolvable picture elements per line. We regard this number to be a fair characterization of both TV and fiber systems.

A novel method is presented for fabricating lensed optical fibers for enhancing the coupling efficiency between high-power IR laser diodes and gradient-index fibers (GIF). SU-8 photoresist is attached to the fiber tip by means of surface tension forces and a cone-shaped micro-lens structure is then formed using an electrostatic pulling method. It is shown that micro-lenses with various radii of curvature can be easily formed by tuning the intensity of the electric field used in the pulling process. Experimental results show that for a laser diode chip with a central wavelength of 1310 nm, a coupling efficiency of 78% can be obtained using a lensed optical fiber with a radius of curvature of 48 μm. By contrast, the coupling efficiency of a traditional flat-end fiber is just 40%. Overall, the fabrication method proposed in this study provides a rapid and low-cost solution for the mass production of high-quality lensed optical fibers.

We have performed a total of 107 cultures from three critical areas of an Olympus Panendoscope Model GIF-D2 in order to evaluate bacteriologically cur system of desinfection of this endoscope. Samples were taken from the distal end, external surface and biopsy canal before and after an endoscopic examination was performed. The procedure of desinfection employed was as follows: washing of the distal end, external surface and biopsy canal with Hexaclorophel (Phisohex) diluted 50% with water and a second washing with tap water. In the middle of the study, we added a second washing of the biopsy canal with ten ml. of ether alcohol to allow for better drying. As a result of the present study we observed that in the distal end in 50% of the samples we encountered bacteria. Cultures of the external surface were positive in 20% of samples. The biopsy canal should be washed with ether alcohol to allow for complete drying, because when we did not use this method, Pseudomonas Aeruginosa was isolated. After this modification we did not isolate bacteria. The most frequent types of isolated bacteria were from the normal oropharyngeal flora. From the present study we can conclude that desinfection of the Panendespe with Hexaclorophen gives satisfactory results on the external surface of the endoscope. Biopsy canal requires additional washing with ether alcohol. However, both procedures do not assure a satisfactory desinfection of the distal end.

Peripheral blood mononuclear cells of patients allergic to honey bee venom were stimulated with denatured bee venom phospholipase A2, and the antigen-activated T cells were propagated for 4 days by human IL-2 in the presence or absence of recombinant human lipocortin I. Upon antigenic stimulation with the denatured phospholipase A2 and autologous monocytes or by cross-linking of CD3 by anti-CD3 antibody, the activated T cells, which had propagated by IL-2 alone, formed N-glycosylated IgE-binding factors and glycosylation enhancing factor (GEF), while those propagated in the presence of lipocortin formed unglycosylated IgE-binding factors and glycosylation inhibiting factor (GIF). The GEF and GIF formed by the antigen- or anti-CD3-stimulated T cells had affinity for bee venom phospholipase A2 and could be purified by using anti-lipomodulin Sepharose. In the mouse lymphocyte system, the major cell source of GIF is antigen-specific suppressor T cells, and the antigen-binding GIF from the cells suppressed the in vivo antibody response in an antigen (carrier)-specific manner. In view of the findings in the mouse system, the present results may provide an immunological maneuver to generate allergen-specific suppressor T cells, and to obtain allergen-specific suppressor factor from T cell populations in the peripheral blood of allergic patients.

BACKGROUND

Anal stricture is a disabling condition which is often unresponsive to conservative medical management. The complications of surgical procedures such as dilatations and anoplasty make it a formidable treatment challenge. Through this case, we report and explore a new medical treatment for ano-rectal strictures with an analogy to Plummer Vinson syndrome. A 69-year-old male presented with chronic constipation, rectal pain, and easy fatigability. The physical exam was negative for anal fissure and a digital rectal examination could not be completed because an index finger could not be advanced through the narrowed anus. Laboratory reports revealed microcytic hypochromic anemia with iron deficiency. A colonoscopy performed with a GIF XQ180 OLYMPUS scope, confirmed anal stricture with non-specific colitis. Conservative management with laxatives, high fiber diet, local anesthetics with a trial of mesalamine was initiated but the patient continued to have symptoms. He was referred to a hematologist for an evaluation of anemia and was started on intravenous (IV) iron infusion.

RESULTS

The patient's symptoms of constipation, anal stricture and iron deficiency anemia resolved with iron infusion over 3 months. A repeat rectal exam was painless and confirmed resolution of anal stricture.

CONCLUSIONS

IV iron supplementation combined with conventional anal dilatation presents as a promising approach toward the treatment of anal strictures.

A 64-year-old man was found to have an irregular region in the stomach by medical examinations. Upper gastrointestinal fiberscopy(GIF)revealed a reddish lesion in the lesser curvature of the upper stomach. Biopsy showed moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma. CT revealed swollen lymph nodes from the lesser curvature of the stomach to the para-aortic region. EUS-FNA was performed twice; however, histology revealed few atypical cells. A definitive diagnosis could not be obtained. Endoscopic findings revealed that the gastric cancer had invaded as far as the mucosa. Moreover, the swollen lymph nodes were considered to have originated from a different disease, such as lymphoma. The lesion of the stomach was an indication for ESD. On April 2016, ESD was performed, and histology revealed the following: Ⅱc, 31×23 mm, tub2, T1a(M), UL-, ly-, v-, VM0, and HM0. Incisional biopsy of the lymph nodes of the para-aorta was performed the followingmonth, and histology revealed poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma, which metastasized from gastric cancer. SOX therapy was performed in 10 courses. The para-aortic lymph nodes disappeared, and the number of lesser curvature lymph nodes decreased. On August 2018, follow-up GIF endoscopy was performed. A depressed mucosa was found in the lesser curvature of the gastric body, which was away from the ESD scar. Biopsy showed moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma. Total gastrectomy with lymph node dissection was performed on November 2018. Metastasis of the lesser curvature lymph nodes was positive; however, curative resection was performed histologically.

Some conventional measurements (e.g., accelerometer) are usually used to measure the aero-elastic responses of membrane structures in the field of civil engineering, which are usually measured by using contact sensors, and just one-dimensional data of a single point can be obtained. To deal with this disadvantage, a stereovision measurement is equipped after putting forward a series of algorithms. This newly formed measurement is adopted to measure the aero-elastic responses of a saddle-shaped membrane structure. Before measuring, a series of observations are carried out and discussed by considering the characteristic of the test model, wind tunnel, and interference from the inflow, which is merely mentioned in the previous research. Finally, the full field distribution of average displacement of membrane, under different wind directions and wind speeds, is given. The time history of full field displacement distribution is also presented as a gif file. This successful application implies that when adopting such a stereovision measurement system, it is necessary to optimize the installation of cameras. After an appropriate installation design, the proposed stereovision measurement will make up the disadvantages of conventional measurements and can obtain the full field aero-elastic responses of membrane structures.

In two experiments, Friedenberg and Liby (2016) studied how a diversity of complexity estimates such as density, number of blocks, GIF compression rate and edge length impact the perception of beauty of semi-random two-dimensional patterns. They concluded that aesthetics ratings are positively linked with GIF compression metrics and edge length, but not with the number of blocks. They also found an inverse U-shaped link between aesthetic judgments and density. These mixed results originate in the variety of metrics used to estimate what is loosely called "complexity" in psychology and indeed refers to conflicting notions. Here, we reanalyze their data adding two more conventional and normative mathematical measures of complexity: entropy and algorithmic complexity. We show that their results can be interpreted as an aesthetic preference for low redundancy, balanced patterns and "crooked" figures, but not for high algorithmic complexity. We conclude that participants tend to have a preference for some types of complexity, but not for all. These findings may help understand divergent results in the study of perceived beauty and complexity, and illustrate the need to specify the notion of complexity used in psychology. The field would certainly benefit from a precise taxonomy of complexity measures.

OBJECTIVE

This paper describes our experience in developing a DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) server based on widely available personal computers enabling to use X-ray digital images for teaching and scientific purposes.

METHODS

The system is based on a DICOM server running on a widely used personal computer. The selected DICOM images are collected directly from the radiological equipment or from a dedicated 3D image processing workstation through a LAN connection and converted into one of the standard formats (JPEG or GIF) to allow their direct importing into multimedia presentations for teaching or scientific purposes.

RESULTS

This system allows fast and easy collection of radiological images in DICOM format directly from the diagnostic equipment or from the graphical workstation. These images may be used for scientific and teaching presentations without loss of image quality and colour characteristics in 3D images as there is no off-line acquisition process.

CONCLUSIONS

The extensive possibilities of implement the system described on widely used PCs makes the system extremely versatile and facilitates the preparation of teaching material and scientific publications.

Objectives: Colonoscopy is the gold standard diagnostic method for colorectal cancer (CRC) screening. Despite the progress in the endoscopy technology field, a small percentage of colonoscopies is still incomplete. The reasons for that are mostly associated with anatomic features, such as fixed, angulated, long and loopy colon, intra-abdominal adherences and female gender. To overcome such difficulties, the usefulness of scopes different from conventional adult colonoscope (CF), such as paediatric colonoscope (PCF), gastroscope (GIF), single and double balloon enteroscope (SBE and DBE, respectively), has been shown in literature. Our retrospective study aims to evaluate the caecal intubation rate using a SBE without the overtube in patients who previously underwent an incomplete procedure with a different scope.Methods: Patients with a previous incomplete colonoscopy with CF, PCF or GIF were retrospectively enrolled through the analysis of a dedicated database. The enteroscope used was the Olympus Enteropro Single Balloon SiF-Q180 with no overtube. Complete colonoscopy was defined as successful caecal intubation.Results: SBE was used to scope 47 adult patients, mostly female, and it led to a complete procedure in 91% of them. The most frequent reason for an incomplete procedure even with the use of SBE was a fixed and angulated colon.Conclusions: Colonoscopy performed with SBE was safe and no adverse events during and/or after the procedure occurred. Our results suggest that SBE with no overtube is a useful and valid alternative to other type of scopes in difficult cases, especially those related to fixed/angulated colon and in female gender.

Retinal Prosthesis (RP) is an approach to restore vision, using an implanted device to electrically stimulate the retina. A fundamental problem in RP is to translate the visual scene to retina neural spike patterns, mimicking the computations normally done by retina neural circuits. Towards the perspective of improved RP interventions, we propose a Computer Vision (CV) image preprocessing method based on Retinal Ganglion Cells functions and then use the method to reproduce retina output with a standard Generalized Integrate & Fire (GIF) neuron model. "Virtual Retina" simulation software is used to provide the stimulus-retina response data to train and test our model. We use a sequence of natural images as model input and show that models using the proposed CV image preprocessing outperform models using raw image intensity (interspike-interval distance 0.17 vs 0.27). This result is aligned with our hypothesis that raw image intensity is an improper image representation for Retinal Ganglion Cells response prediction.

The study was designed to evaluate the scope of applications of the new digital videoendoscopic NBI-technology for the diagnosis of chronic duodenitis (CD), the prevalence and clinical manifestations of this pathology. Of 287 patients with CD, 102 were examined using a GIF-H180 EVIS Exerall apparatus (Olympus, Japan) equipped with the NBI system. Control patients were examined with conventional fiber-optic and videoendoscopes GIF-Q49 and GIF-Q160 EVIS Exeral (Olympus, Japan). Evaluation encompassed endosopic signs of inflammation, its spread, and severity. It was shown that manifestations of inflammation of duodenic mucosa correlated with the endoscopic picture in the NBI regime and results of histological studies. The use of the NBI-technique in routine oesophagogastroduodenoscopy of patients with CD enhances efficiency of detection of even mild inflammatory reactions in duodenal mucosa from 20 to 72.5% (P < 0.05).

BACKGROUND

Preoperative localization of pancreatic neuroendocrine tumours (NET) is usually very difficult. Noninvasive, imaging tests, such as abdominal ultrasound, CT or MRI are not sensitive enough as well as selective angiography. The aim of the study was to clarify the usefulness of the EUS in preoperative localization of the pancreatic NET.

METHODS

From September 1998 March 2005, EUS was performed in 1600 patients. Among them, in 10 (0.7%), this examination was carried out due to previous biochemical tests, which diagnosed the pancreatic NET. We studied the location, the size and echo-pattern of the neoplasm. The results were compared with operation and histology or EUS- FNA guided pancreatic biopsy in 9/10 patients. All EUS examinations were performed using Olympus GIF-130 videoecho-endoscope with 7,5 /12MHz switchable radial probe.

RESULTS

EUS correctly localized the pancreatic NET in 7/8 cases, (sensitivity:87.5%). In 2 patients, EUS accurately exclouded pancreatic NET. There were no false positive findings (specificity 100%). Six tumours were benign (75%), and two were malign (25%). We localized 6 insulinomas and single pancreatic carcinoid tumour. The median tumour size detected by EUS was 21mm.

CONCLUSIONS

EUS is highly accurate in preoperative localization of the pancreatic NET-s and We confirmed it in our study. EUS presents the method of choice for preoperative localization of the pancreatic NET.