The association between fat mass and obesity‐associated ( FTO ) genotype and serum vitamin D level in breast cancer patients

Abstract: The preventive effect of vitamin D against breast cancer can be influenced by gene polymorphisms. This study aimed to investigate the association between serum level of 25(OH) vitamin D and FTO genotype in breast cancer patients. A cross‐sectional study was carried out on 180 newly diagnosed patients with breast cancer in Tehran, Iran. The blood samples were collected from the participants in order to assess the FTO gene rs9939609 polymorphism by the tetra‐primer amplification refractory mutation system (Tetra‐ARMS) PCR method. The serum level of 25(OH) vitamin D was measured using the direct competitive enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. The association between vitamin D and the FTO genotype in patients with breast cancer was assessed after adjustment for cofounders. The frequency of TT, AT and AA genotypes in the breast cancer patients were 43% (n = 77), 49% (n = 89) and 8% (n = 14), respectively. All patients with higher than 40 ng/dl of serum 25(OH) vitamin D had one or two copies of FTO rs9939609 risk allele (p = 0.019). No linear association was found between the number of FTO risk allele and the level of serum vitamin D. All patients with high serum level of 25(OH) vitamin D had one or two copies of FTO rs9939609 risk allele. FTO gene polymorphisms may counteract the beneficial effects of vitamin D in breast cancer prevention. Further studies can help to better understand the genetic factors predisposing to breast cancer and their effect on the association between vitamin D and breast cancer

The Association of Fat-Mass-and Obesity-Associated Gene Polymorphism (rs9939609) With Colorectal Cancer: A Case-Control Study

Background and Aim: The association between the rs9939609 polymorphism of fat mass and obesity-associated gene (FTO) and risk of colorectal cancer is controversial. This study aims to evaluate the relationship between FTO rs9939609 polymorphism and colorectal cancer (CRC) in Iranian people. Methods: A case-control study was conducted on 125 patients with CRC and 250 healthy subjects in Tehran, Iran. Demographic data and blood samples were collected from all participants. Genotyping of rs9939609 polymorphism was performed by the tetra-primer amplification refractory mutation system-polymerase chain reaction (T-ARMS-PCR) method. Results: The occurrence of AA genotype of FTO rs9939609 polymorphism in the colorectal cancer patients was significantly higher compared to that of healthy subjects (16.4 vs. 2.9%, respectively, P=0.02). The association between the frequency of risk allele of the FTO polymorphism and CRC (B=1.67, P=0.042) remained significant after adjustment for age. Further adjustment for gender (model 2) and marital status (model 3) did not change this result (B=1.67, P= 0.042 and B=1.67, P=0.043, respectively). The results remained significant after additional adjustment for ethnicity (B=1.57, P= 0.047). Conclusion: We found a positive association between the A allele of the rs9939609 polymorphism and CRC. Future studies are required to identify the underlying mechanisms

An Uniformly Minimum Variance Unbiased Point Estimator Using Fuzzy Observations

Abstract: This paper proposes a new method for uniformly minimum variance unbiased fuzzy point estimation. For this purpose we make use of a uniformly minimum variance unbiased estimator and we develop this new method for a fuzzy random sample ˜ X1,..., ˜ Xn is induced by X1,..., Xn on the same probability space. Zusammenfassung: In diesem Aufsatz schlagen wir eine neue Methode vor, um einen unverzerrten Fuzzy-Punktschätzer mit gleichmäßig minimaler Varianz zu bekommen. Dazu verwenden wir einen unverzerrten Punkt Schätzer mit gleichmäßig minimaler Varianz und entwickeln diese neue Methode für eine Fuzzy-Zufallsstichprobe ˜ X1,..., ˜ Xn, welche aus X1,..., Xn auf de

The Study of Histomorphometry and Histochemistry of Liver in Adult Male and Female Rats Following Short-term and Long-term Administration of Methylphenidate

Background & Objective: Methylphenidate is one of the most common medications used for treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The administration of methylphenidate, through blocking of dopamine receptors and increment of extracellular dopamine levels, leads to escalation in central nervous system activity. Numerous studies investigated the effect of methylphenidate on body organs however; there is no comparative and time dependent study about the effects of this agent on the liver tissue in male and female rats. Material & Methods: Adult male and female rats were treated with methylphenidate (10 mg/kg) for two and eight weeks. The blood level of hepatic enzymes (AST, ALT, ALP) was assessed and the liver tissue samples were prepared for morphometric studies. Microscopic studies were made by digital camera. Histochemical studies were done with Oil Red O staining method. Results: Blood levels of hepatic enzymes were increased (especially in females) in MPH treated groups compared to control rats. Histomorphometric results revealed that the evaluated indices were reduced by following the administration of methylphenidate in male and female rats compared to control group. These reductions were noticeable in long term administration and in female rats. In histochemical investigations, there were no significant differences observed between experimental groups. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that, long term administration of methylphenidate could induce some alterations in hepatic enzymes and microscopic structure of the liver of rats and in this way it seems that female rats were more susceptible in comparison to male rats which can be a reflection of the greater impact of females from the side effects of methylphenidate

Hypotheses testing with the two-parameter Pareto distribution on the basis of records in fuzzy environment

In problems of testing statistical hypotheses, we may be confronted with fuzzy concepts. There are also situations in which the available data are record statistics such as weather and sports. In this paper, we consider the problem of testing fuzzy hypotheses on the basis of records. Pareto distribution is investigated in more details since it is used in applications including economic and life testing analysis. For illustrative proposes, a real data set on annual wage is analyzed using the results obtained