Risk factors of esophageal cancer in Turkmen Sahra of Iran

Present study was carried out in three years' duration (2002-2004) to investigate the risk factors of esophageal cancer in Iranian Turkmens (Northeast of Iran; where the esophageal cancer is the most common world wide). Concerning registered cases of esophageal cancer in the region, 139 cases were selected. Controls matching in terms of age and sex were 500 healthy individuals. Furthermore, a questionnaire was designated with several questions including: personal characteristics, family history of cancer, possible disease background, and addiction to cigarettes or drugs, and presence of any particular dietary habits. The questionnaires filled with free will (voluntarily) by cases and controls. The collected data was analyzed by SPSS 10.0 software. The mean age of people under study was 60 years. The studied cases were significantly correlated with their first line relatives in term of cancer contraction (P=0.001 and OR=7.6). It was also significant in second and third line relatives (P=0.042 and OR=3.38). There was a significant correlation considering the consumption of stale food and butter with esophageal cancer. As a conclusion, in addition to mentioned risk factors, some other factors as mode of nourishment, employment status, special hygienic habits and inheritance were important factors in esophageal cancer etiology among the studied subjects

Relationship between malondialdehyde level and glutathione peroxidase activity in diabetic rats

Background: This investigation describes the relationship between glutathione peroxidase activities, an antioxidant enzyme, and the oxidative status in diabetic rat blood. Methods: Malondialdehyde level and glutathione peroxidase activity were measured by spectrophotometric techniques. Results and conclusions: Malondialdehyde content in the diabetic rats group was increased compared to that in the controls [3.08±0.32 (mean±S.E.) vs. 1.15±0.29 mmol/g hemoglobin, P>0.01]. Glutathione peroxidase activity in the diabetic rats group was increased compared to that in the control [10.27±1.39 (mean±S.E.) vs. 3.14±0.38 μmol NADPH/min/g hemoglobin, P>0.01]. Our results show a positive correlation between serum glutathione peroxidase and malondialdehyde concentration in diabetic rats. © 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Attenuation of serum laminin concentrations upon treatment of chronic hepatitis

Objectives: The aim of this work was to determine the serum laminin level cutoff point for predicting liver fibrosis highlighting its diagnostic value and determining the effect of treatment on serum laminin concentrations. Methods: Serum laminin concentrations in chronic hepatitis patients (n=62) and controls (n=20) were compared by ELISA and stages of fibrosis were assessed according to the modified Knodell score system. Results: Mean serum laminin concentration in patients (91.9 ± 20.9 ng/ml) was greater than controls (46.2 ± 10.2 ng/ml; p <0.001). Serum concentrations of laminin in all stages of hepatic fibrosis were significantly higher than those of healthy controls (p <0.05). A cutoff point of 52ng laminin/ml of serum was obtained for the discrimination of various stages of liver fibrosis showing a good sensitivity (96.8%) and specificity (80%). After 6 months of treatment, a gradual decrease in serum laminin concentrations were observed, however the level was still higher than that of the healthy group (p<0.05). Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the serum laminin concentration is a useful noninvasive marker of liver fibrosis and shows a strong positive correlation with different stages of the disease

Serum hyaluronic acid and laminin as potential tumor markers for upper gastrointestinal cancers

Background: Early diagnosis of patients with upper gastrointestinal cancer is important because many cases are diagnosed in advanced stages and have poor prognosis. Several studies have reported increased serum levels of hyaluronic acid and laminin in various cancers and the correlation of the levels with poor prognosis. However, little data on the use of serum hyaluronic acid and laminin levels for early detection of esophageal and gastric cancers are available. Methods: We assessed serum hyaluronic acid and laminin levels using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 20 gastric cardia cancer, 23 gastric noncardia cancer and 20 esophageal squamous cell carcinoma incident cases and 25 controls in the Golestan Province, northern Iran, a high risk area for upper gastrointestinal cancers. Results: Mean serum hyaluronic acid and laminin concentrations in cancer cases were higher than in controls in crude analyses. Significant correlations were observed between hyaluronic acid levels and gastric noncardia cancer (Beta-coefficient = 0.390; P = 0.01) and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (Beta-coefficient = 0.332; P = 0.05) and between laminin levels and gastric cardia cancer (Beta-coefficient = 0.454; P = 0.003) in multivariate models. For esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, gastric cardia cancer, and gastric noncardia cancer, area under ROC curve (AUC) of hyaluronic acid was 0.708, 0.694, and 0.770, and of laminin was 0.706, 0.828, and 0.671. Conclusions: Our study suggests that hyaluronic acid and laminin may be used to identify potentially high-risk groups of upper gastrointestinal cancers for further diagnostic work-ups, particularly in high incidence areas. Nevertheless, further studies with larger sample size and tumor staging information are warranted to clarify the clinical significance of hyaluronic acid and laminin in those cancers. © 2011 European Federation of Internal Medicine

DETERMINATION OF GAMMA - AMINOBUTYRIC ACID BY HIGH-PERFORMANCE LIQUID CHROMATOGRAPHY

Gamma-aminobutyric acid is the main inhibitory amino acid neurotransmitter in several areas of the brain. Measurement of gamma-aminobutyric acid in the brain will help elucidate its metabolic rote and diagnostic value. The liquid chromatography (LC) system consisted of a delivery pump. Male rats (150-250g) were used in this study. The brain was rapidly removed from decapitated animals. Trie chromatograms showed satisfactory resolution and symmetrical peak shapes, both with the standard and tissue extracts. the retention lime was 4.60 min. it was constant in repeated analyses and exactly the same for the standard and tissue samples

Evaluation of erythrocyte Protoporphyrin for Lead poisoning detection

History and Objectives: Lead poisoning is a major public hazard. Determination of lead in blood is expensive and time-consuming in recent leads poisoning exposures. Materials and Methods: We studied the relation between the concentration of lead in blood and erythrocyte protoporphyrin in blood in the 857 subjects. Blood lead concentration was measured by atomic absorption spectrometry. Cut off points was 0.68 micromol/L. Erythrocyte protoporphyrin was determined by spectrofluorometric procedure, cut off points was 0.53 micromol/L. We calculated the sensitivity, specificity, the positive predictive value and the negative predictive value and correlation for erythrocyte protoporphyrin and atomic absorption method. Results: Sensitivity, specificity, the positive predictive value and the negative predictive value for erythrocyte protoporphyrin method and atomic absorption method were 98, 97, 97, 98 and 74, 68, 69 and 72 respectively. Conclusion: The present study describes application of a simple, sensitive and economical detection method of lead poisoning. The data indicate that the erythrocyte protoporphyrin value obtained by this method could be used as a screening test for lead poisoning

Probiotics in drinking water alleviate stress of induced molting in feed-deprived laying hens

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the physiological changes of laying hens subjected to feed removal during induced molting while received probiotics in the drinking water. Post-molt performance and egg quality criteria were also studied. Ninety 78-week-old Hy-line W36 laying hens were divided into two treatment groups according to equal body weight and subjected to induced molting by continuous feed removal until around 30% BW reduction. The experiment lasted 12 wks consisting of 4-wk molting and 8-wk post-molt periods. Treatment I received no probiotics and was considered as the control. Treatment 2 was similar to the control except that hens received probiotics in the drinking water at 400 mg/L during feed deprivation. The results indicated that hens in both groups went out of production by Day 5. However, hens received probiotics reached 5 and 50% egg production sooner than the control (30 and 52 days vs. 31 and 54 days). Starvation during molting increased heterophil to lymphocyte (H/L) ratio, hematocrit and plasma T4 and Na+ levels while plasma T3 and Cl- levels were decreased. Probiotics had no significant impact on BW reduction during molt. Post-molt egg production and egg mass were higher in hens which previously received probiotics, but these responses were not significant. However, feed conversion ratio was significantly better in hens which received probiotics. Hematocrit, plasma thyroid supplementation of probiotics. However, H/L ratio showed a significant (p < 0.05) reduction in birds which received probiotics suggesting beneficial effects of this product for feed-deprived laying hens. No significant difference was observed in post-molt egg quality criteria

Oxidized LDL-regulated microRNAs for evaluating vascular endothelial function: molecular mechanisms and potential biomarker roles in atherosclerosis

As a simple monolayer, vascular endothelial cells can respond to physicochemical stimuli. In addition to promoting the formation of foam cells, oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) contributes to the atherosclerotic process through different mechanisms, including endothelial cell dysfunction. As conserved noncoding RNAs, microRNAs (miRNAs) naturally lie in different genomic positions and post-transcriptionally regulate the expression of many genes. They participate in integrated networks formed under stress to maintain cellular homeostasis, vascular inflammation, and metabolism. These small RNAs constitute therapeutic targets in different diseases, including atherosclerosis, and their role as biomarkers is crucial given their detectability even years before the emergence of diseases. This review was performed to investigate the role of ox-LDL-regulated miRNAs in atherosclerosis, their molecular mechanisms, and their application as biomarkers of vascular endothelial cell dysfunction. © 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group