مجله دانشکده پزشکی اصفهان
پیاپی 603 (هفته سوم بهمن 1399)

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common leukemia in children. Changes in the expression of microRNAs occur in ALL. The purpose of this study was to investigate the importance of miR-128, miR-144-3p, miR-181b, and miR-451 in diagnosis and response to treatment in children with B-ALL.

In this study, serum samples were collected from 12 children with B-ALL at diagnosis, as well as 12 healthy individuals as a control group. All patients received chemotherapy and after treatment entered in this study, and the expression of miR-128, miR-144-3p, miR-181b, and miR-451 was evaluated after and before treatment of patients.

miR-144 was significantly downregulated in newly diagnosed patients with ALL compared to control groups (0.26 fold, P = 0.020), and also the expression of miR-144-3P significantly increased after treatment in comparison to before it (4 fold, P < 0.001). In addition, miR-128 (0.11, P = 0.006), and mir-181b (0.34 fold, P = 0.040) expression significantly decreased after treatment compared to newly diagnosed patients.

The reduced expression of miR-144-3p can be served as diagnostic biomarker, and upregulation of miR-144-3p can predict treatment response in patients with ALL. Moreover, the abnormally reduced expression of miR-128 and miR-181b after the treatment of patients, indicate that these microRNAs can be candidate as therapeutic biomarker in pediatric ALL.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are of the most important detrimental factors on sperm quality during freezing process, which increases the lipid peroxidation (LPO) of cell membranes. In this study, the concentration of malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in semen of men with oligospermia before and after cryopreservation process was measured to evaluate the effect of folic acid and nicotinic acid on the MDA concentration after freezing.

In this experimental study, semen fluid sample was collected from 25 men with oligospermia in age range of 25-45 years. Each sample was divided into 5 groups: Fresh group, Freeze group without antioxidants (control), Freeze group with nicotinic acid (10 mM), Freeze group with folic acid (50 nM), and Freeze group with a combination of nicotinic acid (10 mm) + folic acid (50 nM). The concentration of MDA in nmol/ml was measured in each group with spectrophotometer at 535 nm.

The mean concentration of MDA in semen increased after freezing (1.73 ± 0.12) compared to before freezing (0.45 ± 0.02) (P < 0.001). Mean concentration of MDA in the group of folic acid + nicotinic acid (0.68 ± 0.06) was lower compared to other groups after freezing (P ± 0.001).

The combination of folic acid and nicotinic acid antioxidants with sperm freezing medium reduces the level of MDA and LPO of sperm membrane during freezing process, and thereby maintains the fertility potential in men with oligospermia.

One of the causes of nosocomial infections is the dispersion of Aspergillus spores in the environment. The secretion of hydrolytic enzymes is considered as a virulence factor in Aspergillus species. The aim of this study was to identify environmental Aspergillus isolates via sequencing the beta-tubulin gene and evaluating the ability to produce phospholipase and proteinase in vitro.

93 Aspergillus colonies were collected from the emergency, surgical wards, intensive care unit, and operation theatres of two teaching hospitals in Qazvin Province, Iran. The β-tubulin gene region was amplified using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method, and 40 isolates were sequenced. Evaluation of proteinase and phospholipase production was performed using yeast carbon base (YCB) with bovine serum albumin and egg yolk agar medium, respectively.

Based on β-tubulin sequence, Aspergillus (A.) flavus (30%), A. tuberculosis (25%), A. fumigatus (20%), A. niger (10%), A. sydowii (7.5%), A. terreus (5%), and A. nidulans (2.5%) were identified. Evaluation of extracellular enzymes showed that 82.5% of the isolates had proteinase ability with a mean proteinase of 0.73 ± 0.13, and 52.5% of the studied Aspergillus isolates had phospholipase activity with a mean of 0.81 ± 0.17.

Our study showed that environmental strains have high proteinase production. Therefore, it seems necessary to better understand the association of virulence factors with aspergillosis infection in future studies.