Prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. infection in renal transplant and hemodialysis patients

Transplanted and hemodialysis patients are frequently affected by parasitic diseases such as cryptosporidiosis. Cryptosporidium is a parasite causing self-limited diarrhea and enteritis in healthy individuals. The presence of Cryptosporidium infection was studied in three groups including 87 renal transplant patients, 103 hemodialysis patients, and 60 healthy individuals as the control group. Two stool specimens were obtained from each case. The specimens were concentrated by the formalin-ether method and two smears were prepared from each. The smears were stained by modified acid-fast method and were observed under a light microscope. Ten (11.5) renal transplant and 4 (3.88) hemodialysis patients were positive for Cryptosporidium infection. No positive results were obtained in the control group. The results showed a statistically significant difference between renal transplant and control groups (P=0.02), but the difference between hemodialysis and control groups was not significant (P=0.2). The results also showed that the rate of Cryptosporidium infection in renal transplant patients was much higher than hemodialysis patients. The susceptibility of renal transplant patients to Cryptosporidium infection is much more than other studied groups and this could be due to immunosuppressive therapy in these patients

Role of iron supplementation in promoting maternal and fetal outcome

Zahra Yekta1, Reza Pourali2, Nikol Mladkova3, Mohammad Ghasemi-rad4, Farzane Boromand5, Khosrow Hazrati Tappeh6 1Department of Community Medicine; 2Medical Demonstration Facility, Faculty of Medicine, Urmia University of Medical Sciences, Urmia, Islamic Republic of Iran; 3Institute of Cell and Molecular Science, London, United Kingdom; 4Student Research Committee; 5Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology; 6Department of Mycology and Parasitology, Urmia University of Medical Sciences, Urmia, Islamic Republic of Iran Background: The data comparing daily versus intermittent iron supplementation during pregnancy remain controversial. This study was undertaken to compare the efficacy of daily versus two different intermittent iron supplementation regimes on hematologic markers and birth outcomes in nonanemic pregnant women. Methods: Two hundred and ten women with singleton pregnancies, no known disease, and hemoglobin levels >11.0 g/dL were randomly assigned to one of three groups, ie, Group A consuming two iron supplementation tablets once weekly (100 mg iron per week, n = 70), Group B consuming one tablet twice weekly (100 mg iron per week, n = 70) and Group C, consuming one tablet daily (50 mg iron per day, n = 70). No additional micronutrients were supplied. Hemoglobin and serum ferritin levels were measured at 20, 28, and 38 weeks. Pregnancy and birth outcomes (pregnancy termination, method of delivery, birth weight, stillbirth) were analyzed. Results: In total, 201 women completed the protocol. There was a significant difference in mean hemoglobin and ferritin levels in Group B at 38 weeks (P = 0.018 and P = 0.035, respectively) but this difference was not clinically significant (hemoglobin >12 g/dL, ferritin >19 µg/L). There was a significant increase in ferritin in Group C (P = 0.03) at 28 weeks. No significant difference was observed with respect to pregnancy or birth outcome across the groups. All regimens prevented the occurrence of hemoglobin <10.5 g/dL, but weekly supplementation was associated with development of a hemoglobin level <11.0 g/dL (risk ratio 0.044). Conclusion: Twice-weekly supplementation is as effective as daily supplementation, and may represent an acceptable compromise in iron supplementation regimens for nonanemic pregnant women. Keywords: iron supplementation, pregnancy, anemia, outcom

Prevalence of Intestinal Parasitic Infections among Mentally Disabled Children and Adults of Urmia, Iran

Background: The prevalence of intestinal parasites infection in institutions for mental retarda­tion of Ur­mia City, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran was investigated.Methods: This descriptive - cross sectional study was carried out in of Urmia city in 2007-2008. Fecal samples of 225 less than 29 year old mentally disabled individu­als were examined using direct smear, formalin - ether concen­tration. Beside their scotch tape samples were observed for Enterobius eggs. Statisti­cal evaluation was per­formed by SPSS 10.Results: Of 225 mentally retarded persons, 118(52.4%) and 107(47.6%) were female and male. The over­all prevalence of infection was 20.4% and that of male, and female were 20.5% and 20.3%, respectively. 17.3% of examined individuals had protozoa infection and 3.1% showed Entero­bius vermicularis eggs. The infection rates of detected intestinal protozoa were Enta­moeba coli 9.7%, Giardia lamblia 6.2%, Io­doamoeba butschlii 5.7%, Blastocystis hominis 4%, and Entamoeba histolytica/dispar 0.4%. Forty per­cent of 1-5 year, 22.8% of 6-14 year, 22.2% of 15-18 year, and 16.8% of more than 18-year age groups, had positive results in their tests. Accord­ing to IQ test results, 23.8% of less than 25 score group, 19.6% of 25-50, 17.2% of 50-75, and 40% of 75-90 groups were infected.Conclusion: More efforts for increasing sanitation level and prompt diagnosis and treat­ment of infected persons in these institutions are necessary

Toxoplasmosis in Patients with Cardiac Disorders: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Toxoplasmosis is a common and serious infection caused by an obligatory intracellular protozoan, Toxoplasma gondii. This study investigated the possible association between heart failure and toxoplasmosis. We searched for toxoplasmosis and heart failure patients in English databases including PubMed, Scopus, ISI Web of Sciences, Science Direct, EMBASE, and Google Scholar up to June 2018. A total of 6 studies and 1,795 participants, comprising 934 cases and 861 controls, had acceptable criteria for entering the study. Im­munoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies against T. gondii were found in 53% (22 to 83) of patients with heart diseases and 26% (11 to 42) of healthy controls. In comparison, immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies were found in 0.5% (0.1 to 1) in patients with heart diseases and 0.3% (0 to 0.7) of healthy controls. The patients suffering from cardiac disorders were more significantly correlated to anti-T. gondii IgG (OR: 3.53; 95% CI, 2.27 to 5.47; P = 0.014) and IgM (OR: 1.80; 95% CI, 0.31 to 10.4; P = 0.028) seropositivity than healthy controls. Despite limitations such as the low number of studies, our research showed a high association between toxoplasmosis and cardiac disorders. Therefore, toxoplasmosis may be a risk factor in cardiac patients, and more studies are being done

Pediculosis capitis among Primary School Children and Related Risk Factors in Urmia, the Main City of West Azarbaijan, Iran

Abstract Background: Pediculosis capitis is cosmopolitan health problem. In addition to its physical problems, its psychological effects especially on pupils are more important. This study was conducted to determine the Pediculosis capitis among primary school pupils and also find out the role of probable related risk factors in Urmia city, Iran 2010. Methods: 35 primary schools of Urmia City according to the defined clusters randomly have been selected during 2010. 2040 pupils (866 boys and 1174 girls) were included and examined individually and privately by experts. Presence of adult or immature lice or having nits less than 1 cm from the hair basis were defined as positive. Data about demographic features and factors which their effect should be determined were recorded in standard questionnaire. Data were analyzed by SPSS software with proper statistical test. Results: Infestation was determined around 4%. Girls show significantly greater infestation. The availability of suitable warm water for bathing and hair length (separately in girls and boys) are significantly related to infestation load as well as infestation among different age groups. There was no significant relation between parent's education and job and infestation as well as bathing repetition per week and the kind of energy source which they have. Also there is no significant correlation between educational grades and head lice infestation. Conclusion: The head louse pediculosis is a health problem and remains a health threatening for school children.Effective risk factors should be determined carefully and regionally. Proper training plays a great role in order to prevent and control the problem

Schistasoma mansoninin laboratuvarda sürdürülmesi ve evrim şekillerinden antijen hazırlanması

Bu tezin, veri tabanı üzerinden yayınlanma izni bulunmamaktadır. Yayınlanma izni olmayan tezlerin basılı kopyalarına Üniversite kütüphaneniz aracılığıyla (TÜBESS üzerinden) erişebilirsiniz.Çalışmalarımızda Amerika ve İran'dan temin edilen S. manşon i suşunun laboratuvar şartlarında hayat döngüsünün tamamlanması ve bunun kesintisiz olarak sürdürülmesi sağlanmıştır. Laboratuvarda sürdürülen bu susun evrim dönemlerinden ELISA için erişkin, miracidum ve cercaria eriyik antijenleri IFA Testi için ise erişkin, yumurta, miracidium ve cercaria antijenleri hazırlanmış ve duyarlılıkları araştırılmıştır. ELISA testinde en yüksek duyarlılık erişkin ve miracidium antijenleriyle IFA Testinde ise erişkin ve yumurta antijenleriyle elde edilmiştir. Cercaria antijenleri ise her iki yöntemde de en düşük duyarlılıkta bulunmuştur. 55SUMMARY In this study, complete life cycle of a S. manşon i strain provided from USA and IRAN was performed in laboratory conditions. Adult, miracidium and cercaria soluble antigens for ELISA, adult, miracidium, egg and cercariae particul antigens for IFA was prepared and their sensitivity was investigated. Highest sensitivity was obtained in adult and miracidium antigen in ELISA, adult and egg antigen in IFA. Cercariae antigens was found to be low sensitive in both tests. 5

Genetic Characterization of Fasciola Isolates from West Azerbaijan Province Iran Based on ITS1 and ITS2 Sequence of Ribosomal DNA

Background: Fascioliasis, caused by Fasciola hepatica and F. gigantica, has medical and economic importance in the world. Molecular approaches comparing tradi­tional methods using for identification and characterization of Fasciola spp. are precise and reliable. The aims of current study were molecular characterization of Fasciola spp. in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran and then comparative analysis of them using GenBank sequences. Methods: A total number of 580 isolates were collected from different hosts in five cities of West Azerbaijan Province, in 2014 from 90 slaughtered cattle (n=50) and sheep (n=40). After morphological identification and DNA extraction, de­signing specific primer were used to amplification of ITS1, 5.8s and ITS2 regions, 50 samples were conducted to sequence, randomly. Result: Using morphometric characters 99.14% and 0.86% of isolates identified as F. hepatica and F. gigantica, respectively. PCR amplification of 1081 bp fragment and sequencing result showed 100% similarity with F. hepatica in ITS1 (428 bp), 5.8s (158 bp), and ITS2 (366 bp) regions. Sequence comparison among current study sequences and GenBank data showed 98% identity with 11 nucleotide mismatches. However, in phylogenetic tree F. hepatica sequences of West Azerbai­jan Province, Iran, were in a close relationship with Iranian, Asian, and African isolates. Conclusions: Only F. hepatica species is distributed among sheep and cattle in West Azerbaijan Province Iran. However, 5 and 6 bp variation in ITS1 and ITS2 regions, respectively, is not enough to separate of Fasciola spp. Therefore, more studies are essential for designing new molecular markers to correct species iden­tification

Incidence of Giardia lamblia Subspecies by PCR-RFLP in Stool Specimens of Hospitalized Children at Urmia Mutahhari Hospital, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran

Background: Giardia lamblia is one of the most prevalent intestinal flagellate protozoa that infects a wide range of vertebrate hosts causing severe intestinal disorder in children.This study was performed to determine subspecies of G.lamblia by the PCRRFLP method, targeting the glutamate dehydrogenase(gdh)locus, in hospitalized children at Urmia Mutahhari Hospital, West Azerbaijan Province,Iran and determining the infection transformational storages in this area. Methods: Overall,720 stool specimens were collected from the hospitalized children,34 samples were positive and Giardia cysts were detected under the microscope. Cysts were partially purified by the sucrose density gradient method and then washed with sterile distilled water to remove effectively the PCR inhibitors. Genomic DNA of G.lamblia isolates was extracted by freeze-thaw cycles followed by phenol/ chloroform/isoamyl alcohol method. The single step PCR-RFLP assay was used to differentiate the assemblages between A and B, which were found in humans. In this method,432 bp expected size was amplified, and then for detection of subspecies, specificrestriction RsaI and BspLI enzymes were used. Results: Totally 34 samples were positive in terms of Giardia cyst out of 720 examined samples microscopically, so the parasite spread rate is reported 4.72%. Analysis PCR-RFLP on these samples revealed that 28 samples (93.3%) have the genotype BIII and 2 samples (6.7%) belong to the subgroup BIV. Conclusion: PCR-RFLP is a proper analytical method for determining the genotypeamong parasite types, using the glutamate dehydrogenizes zone's genes. Based on the results, an animal origin of infection cycle is suggested

The Anti-leishmanial Efficacy of Artemisia dracunculus Ethanolic Extract in Vitro and Its Effects on IFN- γ and IL-4 Response

Background: Leishmaniasis is a parasitic disease that appears with a range of symptoms including cutaneous, mucocutaneous, and visceral leishmaniasis. The present study sought to determine the antileishmanial effect of the extract of Artemisia dracunculus (Tarragon) compared to control treatment with pentavalent antimony (meglumine). Methods: This experimental study was performed in 2014-2015. A. dracunculus were collected from West Azerbaijan Province, Iran and dried; then the ethanolic extract of the plant was prepared. The effect of different concentrations of Artemisia's extract was compared with Glucantime ® in the stationary phase by MTT colorimetric assay and Trypan blue staining. Human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (HPBMCs) treated with L. major and production of IFN- γ and IL-4 cytokines measured at concentrations of 25, 20, 10 and 5µg/ml A. dracunculus. Results: Treatment with the extract did not affect the survival of the parasites during the first 48 h; however, on the third day (72 h), all concentrations significantly reduced the number of parasites with an efficacy of more than 50% at 10 µg/ml (P<0.01), 20µg/ml (P<0.001), and 25 µg/ml (P<0.0001). Moreover, IFN-γ and IL-4 secretion from the HPBMCs was significantly affected in a dose-dependent manner, compared to the control (no extract). The IFN-γ/IL-4 ratio further confirmed this notion. Conclusion: A. dracunculus extract cannot only exert potent antileishmanial activity but may also enhance cellular immunity to this parasite. Further studies are required to determine the main compound(s) responsible for these effects of the plant