Barsukov V S
Arkh Patol. 1987;49(2):44-51.
Thymus glands from 43 early infants who died of asphyxia, birth injury and inflammatory diseases were studied morphologically. Unscheduled fatty metamorphosis (UFM) of the thymus was found in 32% of cases of inflammatory diseases. Lipid containing cells of the thymus are thymic macrophages in the state of irreversible lipoid dystrophy and death. Macrophagal enzymopathy with the disturbance of intracellular lipid digestion may account for it. Lipid dystrophy is also noted in some epithelial cells. It is shown that the accumulation of the lipids in thymic macrophages occurs not only in unscheduled fatty metamorphosis, but also during the accidental transformation of the thymus, thus the latter may be considered as a physiologic analogue of UFM. In case of UFM, however, this process acquires a pathologic character and results in macrophage death. Therefore, UFM may be considered as a variant of the accidental transformation abnormality of the thymus.
对43例死于窒息、产伤和炎症性疾病的早期婴儿的胸腺进行了形态学研究。在32%的炎症性疾病病例中发现了胸腺的非计划性脂肪变性（UFM）。胸腺中含脂质的细胞是处于不可逆类脂营养不良和死亡状态的胸腺巨噬细胞。细胞内脂质消化紊乱的巨噬细胞酶病可能是其原因。在一些上皮细胞中也发现了类脂营养不良。结果表明，胸腺巨噬细胞中脂质的积累不仅发生在非计划性脂肪变性中，也发生在胸腺的意外转化过程中，因此后者可被视为UFM的生理类似物。然而，在UFM的情况下，这个过程具有病理特征并导致巨噬细胞死亡。因此，UFM可被视为胸腺意外转化异常的一种变体。
