MoD Session 1 Flashcards
What does all disease start with?
Cell injury
What can disease be considered as?
Consequence of failed homeostasis w/consequent morphological and functional disturbance
What are the increasing levels of response mounted by a cell as a stimulus moves from being physiological to harmful?
Homeostasis
Cellular adaptation
Cellular injury
Cell death
At what point does cell injury become cell death?
When the injury becomes irreversible
What can cause cell injury?
Hypoxia Toxins Physical agents Radiation Micro-organisms Immune mechanisms Dietary insufficiency Genetic abnormalities
What is hypoxaemic hypoxia?
Decrease in arterial oxygen content due to altitude or lung disease
What is anaemic hypoxia?
Decreased oxygen carriage by haemoglobin caused by anaemia or carbon monoxide poisoning
What is ischaemic hypoxia?
Interrupted blood supply caused by BV blockage or heart failure
What is histiocytic hypoxia?
Inability of a cell to use oxygen due to disabled oxidative phosphorylation enzymes caused by cyanide poisoning
How does the tolerance of hypoxia vary between neurones and fibroblasts before irreversible injury is caused?
Neurones can tolerate a few minutes
Fibroblasts can tolerate a few hours
Give examples of toxins that could cause cellular injury.
Glucose/salt in hypertonic solutions
Oxygen at high concentration
Therapeutic drugs
Give examples of physical agents that may cause cellular injury.
Direct trauma
Extreme temperature
Changes in pressure
Electric currents
How is urticaria (hives) caused?
Hypersensitivity reaction causes host tissue to be injured secondary to an overly vigorous immune response
How does Grave’s disease cause cellular injury?
Autoimmune reaction which fails to distinguish b/w self and non-self
What shows cellular injury when caused by immune mechanisms?
Redness
Give an example of a genetic abnormality which can cause cellular injury.
Inborn errors of metabolism
By what mechanisms can cellular injury be caused?
Target: Cell membranes, especially lysosomes Nucleus Proteins (structural cytoskeleton and enzymes) Mitachondria
How can hypoxia cause reversible cell injury?
Ischaemia decreases oxidative phosphorylation –> decreases ATP to 5-10% of normal concentration –> cell reacts
Why does lipid deposition occur in reversible cell injury caused by hypoxia?
Ribosomes detach from the ER –> protein synthesis is decreased –> lipid is deposited
Why does chromatin clump during reversible cell injury caused by hypoxia?
Increased glycolysis lowers pH which in turn causes chromatin to clump
How are blebs formed in reversible cell injury caused by hypoxia?
The sodium/potassium pump is disrupted so cell swells as osmotic ions move in w/water allowing blebs to form
Why does cytosolic calcium levels increase in irreversible cell injury caused by hypoxia?
Leaky CSM allows calcium entry
ER and mitochondria also increase calcium levels
Which enzymes are affected by the increase in cytosolic calcium in irreversible cell injury caused by hypoxia?
ATPase
Phospholipase
Protease
Endonuclease
What effects does the high cytosolic calcium levels acting on enzymes within the cell have in irreversible cell injury caused by hypoxia?
Decreases ATP levels
Decreases phospholipid levels
Disrupts membrane and cytoskeleton proteins
Causes nuclear chromatin damage
Is the pathogenesis of cell injury due to all insults the same?
No, it may vary and attack different key structures
Which three free radicals are of biological significance?
Hydroxyl
Superoxide
Hydrogen peroxide
How does the Fenton reaction form free hydroxyl radicals?
Iron(II) is oxidised to iron(III) whilst hydrogen peroxide becomes an hydroxide ion and hydroxyl free radical
How does the Haber-Weiss reaction form hydroxyl free radicals?
An oxide ion, hydrogen ion and hydrogen peroxide react to form oxygen, water and a hydroxyl free radical
Which free radical is the most dangerous biologically?
Hydroxyl
Why must hydrogen peroxide and oxide ions be rapidly removed by the body?
To prevent formation of more dangerous hydroxyl free radicals
Why is the Fenton reaction important in bleeding?
Iron is available so there is an increased risk of hydroxyl free radical formation
What insults particularly cause free radical production?
Chemical (paracetamol) Radiation Ischaemia-reperfusion Cellular aging High oxygen concentration
What damage do free radicals cause to cellular structures?
Lipid peroxidation
Bent/broken/cross-linked proteins, carbohydrates and nucleic acids
Why are free radicals required by leucocytes?
Killing bacteria
Cellular signalling
How are free radicals removed?
Antioxidant system
Which enzymes are involved in the antioxidant system?
Superoxide dismutase
Catalases
Peroxidases
What are free radical scavengers?
Vitamins A, C, E which can sequester metal ions and prevent Fenton reaction
What type of proteins are used in the antioxidant system?
Storage
What is ischaemia reperfusion injury?
When bloodflow is returned to damaged but not yet necrotic tissue causing damage worse than if the bloodflow was not restored
What mechanisms can cause reperfusion injury?
Increased ROS w/reoxygenation
Increased neutrophils causing more inflammation and tissue injury
Delivery of complement proteins activating the complement pathway
What cells are heat shock proteins present in?
All at low concentrations
What is the function of heat shock proteins?
Mend mis-folded proteins
Maintain cell vitality
What type of proteins are heat shock proteins?
Unfoldases/chaperonins e.g. Ubiquitin
How does the cell use heat-shock proteins to maintain cell vitality?
Turns off production of other proteins and increases heat-shock protein synthesis
What happens to a mis-folded protein if it cannot be re-folded?
It is destroyed
What are the stages of cell injury as seen by light microscopy?
Alive –> injured –> dead-pyknosis –> karyorrhexis –> karyolysis
What is pyknosis?
Irreversible cell shrinkage
Why does an injured cell become more darker staining as its injury becomes less reversible?
Denatured proteins accumulate
When does chromatin clumping remain reversible until?
Pyknosis
In reversible cell injury, what cellular changes are seen by electron microscopy?
Cell swelling and blebs Autophagy by lysosomes Chromatin clumping Mitochondrial and ER swelling Dispersion of ribosomes Aggregation of intramembranous particles
In irreversible cell injury, what cellular changes are seen by electron microscopy?
Rupture of lysosomes and autolysis Pyknosis of nucleus Mitochondrial swelling w/large densities formed inside Lysis of ER Myelin figures Defects in CSM
What is oncosis?
Cell death w/swelling
Spectrum of changes that occur in injured cells prior to death
What is the relationship between ATP and oncosis?
There is none - it is an ATP independent process
What cellular changes are seen in oncosis?
Cell and mitochondrial swelling
Plasma membrane rupture
What is necrosis?
Morphological changes that occur in a living organism after a cell has been dead for some time
Typically what period of time after cell death is necrosis seen?
4-24 hours
What is apoptosis?
Cell death w/shrinkage induced by a regulated intracellular programme where the cell activates enzymes that degrade its own nuclear DNA and proteins
Is apoptosis and active process?
Yes, it’s ATP dependent
What cellular changes are seen in apoptosis?
Cell shrinkage Chromatin condenses Nuclear fragments Membrane integrity preserved Apoptotic bodies
What does this describe?
Seen w/damage to cell membranes –> cell contents leak out –> inflammation
Necrosis
What is fat necrosis?
Destruction of adipose