A4 Case Study: Inflammation

Question 1

What are the possible outcomes of inflammation [good and bad]?

Answer 1

• Complete healing (resolution)
• Healing by scarring (fibrosis)
• Abscess formation: Pus deep in tissue
• Chronic inflammation

Question 2

Difference between acute inflammation and chronic inflammation?

Answer 2

• Acute inflammation: Sudden inflammation and short duration
• Chronic inflammation: Longer duration inflammation

Question 3

What are granulomas [describe the structure and role of these]?

Answer 3

• A protective response to destroy or sequester foreign substance/particles (chronic inflammation)

Granuloma: An aggregation of macrophages (phago) that forms in response to chronic inflammation
(protective response, occurs when immune system attempt to isolate foreign substance that they unable to eliminate or want to eliminate substance)

Structure and role: capsulated structure
- Central core: consists of induce inflammation (e.g. bacteria, fungal, parasitic etc)
- Epithelioid cells and giant cells: Surrounded by aggregation of these cells, engulfing the offending agent
- Leukocytes: Rim of leukocyte and sometimes plasma cells, it regulates and coordinate with immune reactions.
- Old granulomas develop fibroblasts and connective tissue

Question 4

What are labile, stable, and permanent cells? How do these differ and what impact might this have on wound repair?

Answer 4

• Labile cell: Continuously dividing mitosis cells (stem cells)
• Stable cell: Stable cells and have low rate of replication (divide quick when there is stimulus)
• Permanent cell: Non-dividing post-mitotic cells
  (cells that cant go through mitosis: muscle fibres, neural cells, skeletal muscle, adipocytes)
• Labile and stable cell types can support with repairing the wound by going through mitosis (the cell cycles) to regenerate or replace cells or tissue due to injury.
• Permanent cell type can not regenerate functional cells but may heal with scarring, also may lose its function.

Question 5

Difference between regeneration and replacement of repair?

Answer 5

• Regeneration: Regenerate cells to replace damaged or lost tissues with new functional tissues.
• Replacement: Replaced by connective tissue (scar formation, fibrosis)

Question 6

How is chronic inflammation different to acute inflammation?

Answer 6

• Absence of the cardinal signs;
• There is no active hyperaemia fluid exudation;
• There is no neutrophil migration.

Question 7

What cell or tissue belongs to predominant cell types?

The cell/tissues: melanocyte, kidney, epidermis, bicep muscle, heart, epithelium of mouth, dermis and adult hypodermis

Answer 7

• Labile: Epidermis and epithelium of mouth
• Stable: Kidney, dermis and melanocyte
• Permanent: Heart, adult hypodermis and bicep muscle