Iranian Journal Of Pathology
Volume:2 Issue: 2, spring 2007

Deprenyl is a drug for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease, where the dopaminergic neurons are the target of this drug. Several reports also documented that deprenyl has an effect on the sensory and motor neurons. There are some reports about the mode of action of deprenyl on motoneurons as a neuroprotective agent, while others believe that deprenyl acts as a neurorescuer. In this experimental study, the axotomized spinal motoneurons in rat neonates were used to investigate the mode of action of deprenyl on motoneurons. Six groups of newborn rats (5 each) were used in this study. The first group was treated with 2.5 mg/kg of drug (for 21 days) one hour before surgical transection of the left sciatic side, the second treated at the time of surgery, and the third one treated one hour after surgery. The fourth, fifth, and sixth groups were given normal saline 1 hour before the surgery, at the time of surgery, and 1 hr after the surgery respectively. The animals were perfused and spinal cords were removed. The tissues were processed in paraffin and then sectioned. Tissues were stained with Cresyl violet. Total motoneuron count was done and the percentage of motoneuron reduction as well as motoneuron survival index was calculated. The obtained data revealed that deprenyl in pre-treated group was more effective than in the other two modes of treatment. Taken together, deprenyl is more neuroprotective than neurorescuer of spinal motoneurons in rats.

Hypothyroidism is a known consequence of the external beam radiotherapy to the neck encompassing the thyroid gland for over 40 years. The aim of this study was to find out the incidence of hypothyroidism in patients with head and neck cancer treated with radiotherapy, when radiation portals included whole of the thyroid gland. This prospective non-randomized study was conducted from December 2004 to February 2006. In this regard, 39 patients with head and neck malignancies referred to radiation oncology center of Hamedan whom treated with the external beam radiotherapy, whose radiation portals included the whole of the thyroid gland. Thyroid function tests were done at the beginning of treatment, one month, three months, six months, and one year after the completion of radiotherapy. Out of 39 patients, two were excluded from the study as they had history of hypothyroid before the initiation of treatment. The next two were excluded from data analysis because they did not undergo regular follow-up. Of the patients attending the follow-up clinic, 31% were found to have sub-clinical hypothyroidism (TSH>4.5 mU/l) during a year. Since a significant number of patients developed hypothyroidism following radiotherapy on the neck, thyroid function tests should be included in the routine follow-up protocol of such patients. Certain questions have emerged from this study, which need a large randomized study to find out the answers.

Introduction and Zinc as the second trace element of the human body plays an important role in numerous functions. A large number of research studies have showed serum zinc deficiency and excess urinary excretion in patients with major beta thalassemia, but few studies revealed excess urinary zinc excretion in minor beta thalassemia and no study investigated serum zinc levels in this group. This studyaimed to measure serum and urine zinc level in patients with minor beta thalassemia. The study was observational and cross-sectional. Blood and 24-hour urine samples were collected from carriers of beta thalassemia who attended Ali Asghar Hospital for blood transfusions for their children. They had documented hemoglobin electrophoresis for their status. The serum and urine zinc levels were measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Student’s t test was used for comparison of groups. The average level of zinc in the serum and urine of the male cases was 69 ± 10 μg/dl and 714 ± 162 μg/dl and in the female cases was 58 ± 11 μg/dl and 751 ± 162 μg/dl respectively and was 64 ± 12 μg/dl and 730 ± 120 μg/dl totally. The obtained serum zinc was lower and the urine zinc was higher in minor beta thalassemic persons than the amounts mentioned by references for the subjects of the same sex and age. The serum zinc level of anemic patients with minor beta thalassemia was lower (63 ± 11 vs 72 ± 13 μg/dl) and the urine zinc level was higher (792 ± 183 vs 673 ± 202 μg/dl) than non-anemic patients. Minor beta thalassemics have lower serum zinc level and due to abundant roles of zinc can make benefit from zinc supplementation. This decrement may be attributed to tubulopathy in these patients.

Host genetic factors such as cytokine gene polymorphisms as well as Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection have been found to be associated with gastric cancer risk. Interleukin 1 is a pro-inflammatory cytokine involved in H. pylori-induced gastric inflammation. Therefore, we analyzed the association between IL-1β and IL-1-RN polymorphisms and gastric cancer in Persian residents in north-eastern Iran. In a case-control study, the genotyping was carried out by PCR-RFLP in 109 gastric cancer patients and 101 randomly-selected healthy controls. The polymorphic sites include promoter region of IL-1β at 511 (C-T transition) position and IL-RN VNTR H. pylori infection was determined by ELISA assay in patients. No significant differences were observed in the allele and genotype frequency of IL-1β-511 and IL-1RN VNTR between patients and control. Genotype frequencies in healthy controls were not significantly different from gastric cancer cases in separate histological types (intestinal or diffuse). IL- 1β-511 CT genotype frequency was significantly higher among healthy subjects than H. pylori positive gastric cancer patients (41.6% vs. 20%, p = 0.01, OR 0.30, 95% CI: 0.11-0.76). Meanwhile, relatively higher frequency of IL-1β-511 T genotype was observed among H. pylori positive cases as compared to healthy controls (42.9% vs. 26.7%, p = 0.06, OR 2.16, 95% CI: 0.96-4.8) Our results suggest the association between IL-1β-511 polymorphism and H. pylori infection and their contribution to the risk of gastric cancer. While IL-1β-511 CT genotype has a protective effect against H. pylori associated gastric carcinoma, IL-1β-511 TT may increase the risk.

Patients with thalassemia major have an abnormality in hemoglobin synthesis and ineffective hematopoiesis and for this reason with respect to disease severity should receive one or more fresh blood unit every 15-30 days. Since transfusion of blood products has been known as one of the routes of HIV infection, therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the prevalence of HIV infection in thalassemic patients under transfusion in Hajar hospital in 2006. Descriptive strategy of this study was conducted on 73 serum samples from patients with thalassemia major as referrals of Hajar hospital. In this respect, HIV-Ab of the samples was assessed using ELISA method. For each patient, information including age, gender, and date of 1st blood transfusion were collected. The presence or absence of HIV1 and/or HIV2 antibodies was determined with regard to absorption cut-off value. HIV-Positive samples with absorption greater than 0.8 were further studied using PCR. Out of 73 studied patients, 36 and 37 cases were male and female respectively. The mean age of patients was 10.3 ± 4.9 years. All of the patients had blood transfusion from 1991.The prevalence of HIV-positive in these patients was 0%. This result can be attributed to probably low incidence of HIV in blood donors and precise screening of blood products by Blood Transfusion Organization.

Introduction and Alport’s syndrome (hereditary nephritis with deafness) is a familial uncommon disease that ultra-structural studies are gold standard method of its diagnosis.We studied 26 Iranian patients suspicious of Alport’s syndrome by electron microscopy. We examined 19 men and 7 women (male to female ratio was 2.7) and the average age was 1.5 years (with a range of 2.5-75 years).The most common findings were irregularity of the glomerular basement membrane with splitting, lamination, and foot process effacement. Thinning in basement membrane was also reported and one casehad disruption of capillary walls in study by only light microscopy. All of the patients had a diagnosis of megansial hypercellularity. Immunoflourscence studies did not show any deposits of immunoglobulin andcomplement component. definite diagnosis must be confirmed by ultra-structural findings.

Biliary liver flukes are common parasites in some regions of the world where consumption of raw fresh-water fish is a cultural practice. Clonorchis sinensis and Opisthorchis species are the major biliary liver flukes associated with human disease. Some of these parasites are highly associated with cholangiocarcinoma. This report describes a clinically and epidemiologically unsuspected liver fluke infection associated with cholangiocarcinoma in a middle aged woman from the south shores of Iran, and emphasizes the importance of efforts to discourage raw freshwater fish intake as the route of infection in high risk populations.

A 54 year old man with history of cardiomyopathy and chronic fibrillation first presented with bloody diarrhea. Then during the assessment of his abnormal lab. data revealed cast nephropathy in renal biopsy, gamma peak in protein electrophoresis and fine lytic lesions in skull graphy. His bone marrow aspiration showed multiple myeloma and blood smear revealed plasma cell leukemia. Our patient was diagnosed to have multiple myeloma and plasma cell leukemia Plasma cell leukemia is a rare form of plasma cell dyscrasia.The second type evolves as a terminal event in some of the patients with multiple myeloma. PCL and multiple myeloma simultaneously recognizes in this case(very rare event).