UTOPSY sections of human kidney stained
A with histochemical methods for carbohydrates show the presence of cytoplasmic inclusions in the epithelium covering the renal pyramids. These inclusions, or bodies, are confined to the pyramidal epithelium and stop abruptly at the epithelial reflection from the pyramid to the calyx. They are characterized by positive reactions with the periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) and alcian-blue stains.* No description of similar structures has been found in the literature.
Similar inclusions have been found in the malignant cells of a papillary carcinoma of a hydronephrotic kidney. T h e presence of these inclusions in metastatic tumor cells in this case are of interest. T h e origin of the tumor appears identified, or "tagged," by the presence of the inclusions in the metastases.
Inclusion bodies in cancer cells have been described by other observers. These descriptions are found in the older literature. Gaylord and Aschoff 1 in their pathological text published in 1902 provided illustrations and comments about these bodies. They mentioned that Virchowe first described bodies in cancer cells in the first volume of his Archiv. Similar bodies were later seen and reported by Sjobring.6 and Plimmer.4 These investigators believed that the bodies represented intracellular parasites because of their close morphological resemblance to certain stages of animal and vegetable parasites.
There is a considerable amount of difficulty in adequately comparing the inclusions described in this paper with those seen by the earlier observers. Comparison of staining reaction is impossible for obvious reasons, and morphological comparison is difficult, because only a few printed plates of the bodies are ,