Acanthosis nigricans and insulin resistance

Oral manifestations of internal malignancy and paraneoplastic syndromes

Malignant tumors of visceral organs are a fundamental feature of familial cancer and paraneoplastic syndromes. In many instances, the presence of an internal and often occult malignancy may be forewarned by various external manifestations. Several of these findings are preferentially localized to the head and neck region, including the oral cavity proper. This places the dental practitioner in a unique position to detect these "markers" of occult neoplastic involvement. Because these markers may present before an established syndrome or cancer diagnosis, even representing the first expression of disease in some cases, early recognition by a dentist may lead to timely diagnosis and management of these cancer-associated syndromes.

Acanthosis Nigricans in Kabuki Syndrome

BACKGROUND

Acanthosis nigricans has been classified in different ways. All classifications depend on the clinical picture and the association with other conditions.

OBJECTIVE

We report a case of acanthosis nigricans in a patient with Kabuki syndrome. This syndrome is characterized by five main manifestations: typical facial features, post natal growth deficiency, skeletal abnormalities, dermatoglyphic abnormalities, and mild to moderate mental retardation.

CONCLUSION

Our case may suggest that acanthosis nigricans could be associated with Kabuki syndrome.

Gene for human insulin receptor: localization to site on chromosome 19 involved in pre-B-cell leukemia

Consistent chromosomal translocations in neoplastic cells may alter the expression of proto-oncogenes that are located near the breakpoints. The complementary DNA sequence of the human insulin receptor is similar to those of the EGF receptor (erbB oncogene) and products of the src family of oncogenes. With in situ hybridization and Southern blot analysis of somatic cell hybrid DNA, the human insulin receptor gene was mapped to the distal short arm of chromosome 19 (bands p13.2----p13.3), a site involved in a nonrandom translocation in pre-B-cell acute leukemia.