مجله دانشکده پزشکی اصفهان
پیاپی 663 (هفته سوم اردیبهشت 1401)

Sialic acid is a 9-carbon monosaccharide that is predominantly expressed by the central nervous system and is involved in many physiological and pathological events like cancer and autoimmune diseases. miR155-5p is one of the microRNAs playing an active role in hematopoietic, inflammatory, and immune related responses and in inflammatory responses its expression increases in glial cells. Therefore, the present study was performed to investigate the effect of sialic acid on altering the expression of miR-155-5p in glial cells to identify the signaling pathways involved in inflammation. Glial cells were treated with different concentrations of sialic acid and IC-50 cells were examined by MTT assay. Then cell RNA was extracted and cDNA synthesis was performed for real-time PCR. The results from data analysis show that miR-155-5p had higher rate of expression at different concentrations compared to the control state. Considering that sialic acid increases the expression of miR-155-5p gene and results in a weaker defense against inflammation, the significance of miR-155-5p in inflammation and the role of sialic acid in stimulating inflammation is brought to attention, and extensive study into the knowledge of these pathways could pave the way for further research on the therapeutic goals of neuro-inflammatory diseases.

Given the increasing emphasis to the role of renal stone in increasing blood pressure and the limited number of studies of this nature, the current study aimed to assess the correlation between blood pressure and renal calculi in children.

This cross-sectional study was performed on 330 children aged 5 to 18 years (110 with renal stones and 220 healthy children). After confirming the status of renal stones by ultrasound, children's blood pressure was measured and divided into four classes according to the last update of AAP 2017: normal blood pressure, elevated hypertension, grade 1 and grade 2 hypertension. The odds ratio by logistic regression was used to investigate the relationship between renal stone and blood pressure statuses of children.

There was no significant differences between two groups in terms of systolic blood pressure. The children with renal stone had significantly more abnormal diastolic blood pressure than healthy children. About 37.3% of children with renal stone had a parental history of hypertension that was significantly different from healthy children. The odds ratio was 2.69 (95% CI: 1.34, 3.88) for association between diastolic blood pressure status and renal stone.

Abnormal blood pressure, especially of the diastolic type, is higher in children with renal stones than in healthy children. Based on this finding, measuring blood pressure is necessary in children with renal stones to prevent further complications is highly recommended.

One of the most important determinant, affecting the quality of a proper evaluation is the availability of an effective instrument that can precisely assess the target goals. A systematic review showed that instruments available so far, do not comprehensively cover all domains of clinical teaching. This study aimed to determine the validity and reliability of the Iranian version of EFFECT questionnaire in the society of medical residents of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. This instrument was designed and validated at the Radboud University Medical Centre in the Netherland. Data was virtually collected between the years 2018-2019. A team of three relevant experts was present to determine the formal validity. Content validation was also performed by 10 experts in 3 domain of simplicity, relevance and clarity. To determine the validity of the instrument, 100 questionnaires were completed by residents from 10 different disciplines and confirmatory factor analysis was performed. The reliability of the items was assessed by Cronbach's alpha. Content validity was confirmed in two stages by teams of 3 and 10 experts from the respective specialist fields. The confirmatory factor analysis model shows that the relevant indicators and questions are at an acceptable level of competence. Structural equation modeling also shows that none of the questions are removed from the model. Cronbach's alpha of variables was calculated to be greater than 0.8 for the instrument and its domains. This study shows that the Iranian version of the EFFECT questionnaire is valid and reliable and can be used to assess the quality of clinical teaching in residency training in Iran.