Mucocutaneous manifestations and nail changes in patients with end-stage renal disease on hemodialysis.

Mucocutaneous manifestations are common among patients on hemodialysis (HD). This study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of mucocutaneous manifestations in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) who are on HD. In this cross-sectional, descriptive and analytic study conducted in 2009, 100 patients on HD at the Five Azar Hospital in Gorgan city were randomly selected. All the patients underwent detailed examination by a dermatologist to look for lesions in the skin, hair, nail and mucous membranes; if felt necessary, biopsy was obtained from the lesions. The findings were statistically analyzed using SPSS-13 software. For evaluation of normality of distribution, Kolmogorov-Smirnov was used, for quantitative variables Mann-Whitney and T-test (abnormal distribution) were used and for qualitative variables, Chi-2 and Fisher were used. In this study, P-value less than 0.05 was considered significant. Fifty-one males and 49 females were enrolled. The mean age was 49 ± 12 years. Diabetes was the most common cause of ESRD. In 95% of the patients, at least one mucocutaneous manifestation was present. Xerosis (78.3%) was the most common lesion, followed by pruritus (39.1%), lentigo (34.8%), skin discoloration (32.6%), leukonychia (32%) and thinning of the nail bed (24%). Xerosis, scaling, lentigo, folliculitis, idiopathic guttate hypopigmentation, leukonychia and half and half nail were associated with age. A significant relationship was seen between duration on dialysis and skin discoloration and leukonychia. Clubbing had a significant association with calcium-phosphorus product (Ca � P). There was a significant association between serum ferritin level and pruritus and tinea versicolor lesions. Our study shows that mucocutaneous manifestations are common among patients with ESRD. Identification of these manifestations and their association with causative factors are useful for preventing the lesions

The feasibility study for culture of Salmo trutta caspius by brackish water

Caspian trout is valuable, Commercial, anadromous and endemic fish species in the Caspian Sea so that, researchers attention have been focused on this species. At the moment, only pay attention to stocks rehabilitation that fisheries organization releases more than 300,000 fingerlings to the rivers ends to the Caspian Sea. Importance of this study consist (1) introducing a new species to the aquaculture system and (2) provide breeders in this research. we used from 2 treatments that consist with density of 10 kg/m^3 and 20 kg/m3 with 3 replication. Results showed, culture of Caspian trout is suitable with density 10 kg/m^3, so that weight gain, SGR and Daily growth mean are better than treatment 2(15-20 kg/m^3

A 4-year follow-up of living unrelated donors of kidney allograft in Iran

Introduction. Shortage of deceased donor kidneys has resulted in an increased rate of kidney transplantation from living unrelated donors (LURDs). However, there are concerns about short-term and long-term morbidity of the donors. This study reports the clinical and biochemical factors in a follow-up program of Iranian LURDs, one of the largest reported series of kidney donors. Materials and Methods. Of 7500 individuals who underwent living donor nephrectomies between 2005 and 2008, a total of 1549 participated in this study. They were followed for 18 to 48 months after the kidney donation. The average time for the first study visit was 316.72 days after donation. Results. The mean age of donors was 30.43 ± 6.16 years old. Men consisted 82.5 of the group. Systolic hypertension was detected in 0.2 and diastolic hypertension in 1 of the LURDs; however, anemia prevalence was as high as 47.2. Hyperuricemia was found in 21.2 of the LURDs, while proteinuria was seen in 13.7. Glomerular filtration rate was greater than 90 mL/min in 38.2 of the donors, 60 mL/min to 90 mL/min in 54.5, and less than 60 mL/min in 7.3. A GFR less than 45 mL/min was seen in 0.1 of the donors. Conclusions. Data suggested that the LURDs in Iran have an appropriate health condition comparable to other donors in other parts of the world. Considering the high prevalence of hyperuricemia in our population and its importance as a risk factor for kidney failure, monitoring serum uric acid in follow-up programs is suggested. © 2015, Iranian Society of Nephrology. All rights reserved

Gene Therapy Targets in Heart Failure: The Path to Translation

Heart failure (HF) is the common end point of cardiac diseases. Despite the optimization of therapeutic strategies and the consequent overall reduction in HF-related mortality, the key underlying intracellular signal transduction abnormalities have not been addressed directly. In this regard, the gaps in modern HF therapy include derangement of β-adrenergic receptor (β-AR) signaling, Ca(2+) disbalances, cardiac myocyte death, diastolic dysfunction, and monogenetic cardiomyopathies. In this review we discuss the potential of gene therapy to fill these gaps and rectify abnormalities in intracellular signaling. We also examine current vector technology and currently available vector-delivery strategies, and related to the transfer of successful preclinical gene therapy approaches to HF treatment in the clinic, as well as impending strategies aimed at overcoming these limitations