Outcome of pregnancy in sickle cell anemia patients with COVID-19 infection.

Sickle cell anemia (SCA) is a multisystem disease, associated with increased risk for infection and thromboembolic disease, and pregnancy is a stressor for patients with SCA. In general, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection in SCA is associated with a favorable outcome. Literature of pregnancy in SCA with COVID is scarce.

Successful Treatment of a Case of Crescentic Glomerulonephritis in a Patient with Primary Peritoneal Carcinoma: A case report.

Crescentic glomerulonephritis has been associated with several solid tumour malignancies. Only a few cases of nephropathy have been reported in association with tubo-ovarian/peritoneal malignancies. We report a 55-year-old female patient who presented to a tertiary care centre, Muscat, Oman, in 2022.

Disseminated Basidiobolomycosis Caused by Basidiobolus omanensis in a Child with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). Case Report and Literature Review.

Basidiobolomycosis is an uncommon fungal infection caused by the genus Basidiobolus. In immunocompetent children, it usually causes cutaneous infection and rarely affects the gastrointestinal tract, and it is extremely rare for the disease to spread. The present study reports the first case of disseminated basidiobolomycosis caused by Basidiobolus omanensis in a child with acute lymphoblastic leukemia who died as a result of uncontrolled infection and multi-organ failure despite surgical and antifungal therapy with L-AMB and voriconazole.

Differential Production of Midkine and Pleiotrophin by Innate APCs upon Stimulation through Nucleic Acid-Sensing TLRs.

Midkine (MK) and pleiotrophin (PTN) belong to the same family of cytokines. They have similar sequences and functions. Both have important roles in cellular proliferation, tumors, and diseases.

Pediatric Kidney Biopsies in Oman: A Retrospective Study.

Objectives: To determine the spectrum of kidney diseases in Omani children < 13 years of age and to evaluate the complications following kidney biopsy.

Methods: This study retrospectively investigated the hospital data of children who underwent kidney biopsies from January 2014 to June 2019 at Royal Hospital, Muscat, Oman.

Results: The subjects comprised of 78 children with a median age of 8.

Malignant Gastrointestinal Neuroectodermal Tumor of Small Intestine Showing DOG1 Expression: A Case Report and Review of Literature.

Malignant gastrointestinal neuroectodermal tumor (GNET), also referred to as clear cell sarcoma-like tumor of the GI tract is a rare mesenchymal tumor of the gastrointestinal tract. It has to be distinguished from various mimickers including gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) due to its aggressive course and different natural history and therapeutic approach. Here we report a case of GNET arising in the small intestine with aberrant DOG1 expression posing a diagnostic challenge.

Cilia Ultrastructure Associated with Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia in Omani Patients.

Objectives: Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is a disorder affecting the structure and function of the motile cilia of the respiratory system. Transmission electron microscopy is one method that can be used to examine ciliary ultrastructure in airway biopsies. Although the role of ultrastructural findings in PCD has been described in the literature, this role has not been well-studied in the Middle East or, specifically, Oman.

Programmed Death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) Expression in Bladder Cancer and its Correlation with Tumor Grade, Stage, and Outcome.

Objectives: To evaluate the expression of programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) in bladder cancer cases in Oman using immunohistochemistry, and to determine whether the level of PD-L1 expression is associated with tumor grade, stage, or outcome. An additional objective was to identify the clinicopathological features of bladder cancer among Omanis.

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of patients where we subjected archived tissue samples to prospective analysis.

Human macrophages and monocyte-derived dendritic cells stimulate the proliferation of endothelial cells through midkine production.

The cytokine midkine (MK) is a growth factor that is involved in different physiological processes including tissue repair, inflammation, the development of different types of cancer and the proliferation of endothelial cells. The production of MK by primary human macrophages and monocyte-derived dendritic cells (MDDCs) was never described. We investigated whether MK is produced by primary human monocytes, macrophages and MDDCs and the capacity of macrophages and MDDCs to modulate the proliferation of endothelial cells through MK production.

Case Report: A Novel In-Frame Deletion of Leading to Nephronophthisis and Early Onset Kidney Failure.

Variants in the () are a rare cause of nephronophthisis-related ciliopathies (NPHP-RC). A reduction in urinary concentration and a progressive chronic tubulointerstitial nephropathy with corticomedullary cysts are the major characteristic features of NPHP. NPHP demonstrates phenotypic and genetic heterogeneity with at least 25 different recessive genes associated with the disease.

Acute kidney injury due to sucrose-containing intravenous immunoglobulins.

Intravenous immunoglobulins (IVIGs) are pooled polyvalent immunoglobulin G antibodies extracted from the human plasma. Stabilizers in IVIG may include sugars, such as sucrose, glucose, or maltose. Sucrose in IVIG preparations may cause acute kidney injury (AKI).

Gestational Trophoblastic Disease at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital: Prevalence, Risk Factors, Histological Features, Sonographic Findings, and Outcomes.

Objectives: We sought to assess the prevalence of gestational trophoblastic diseases (GTD) among pregnant women at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital (SQUH) and compare our results with the international studies. We also sought to determine the risk factors, histological features, sonographic findings, and outcomes in women with GTD.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of all women diagnosed with GTD and followed at SQUH between November 2007 and October 2015.

Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Alters Neuropilin-1, PlGF, and Expression Levels and Predicts Breast Cancer Patients Response.

Circulating proteins hold a potential benefit as biomarkers for precision medicine. Previously, we showed that systemic levels of neuropilin-1 (NRP-1) and its associated molecules correlated with poor-prognosis breast cancer. To further identify the role of NRP-1 and its interacting molecules in correspondence with patients' response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC), we conducted a comparative study on blood and tissue samples collected from a cohort of locally advanced breast cancer patients, before and after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC).

Biallelic mutations in AP3D1 cause Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome type 10 associated with immunodeficiency and seizure disorder.

Several types of Hermansky-Pudlak syndromes (HPS) represent a group of immunodeficiency syndromes that feature both leukocyte defects with partial albinism of hair, skin, and eyes. These conditions share defects in genes that encode proteins involved in the biogenesis, function, and trafficking of secretory lysosomes. Mutations in AP3D1 which encode the main subunit AP-3(δ) were recently reported on one individual and led to Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome type 10 (HPS10; OMIM 617050).

overexpression is correlated with clinical features and survival outcome of luminal breast cancer subtypes.

In Oman, breast cancer is most common, representing approximately more than 25% of all cancers in women. Relatively younger populations of patients (25-40 years) present surprisingly with an aggressive phenotype and advanced tumor stages. In this study, we investigated differential gene expressions in Luminal A, Luminal B, triple-negative and Her2+ breast cancer subtypes and compared data to benign tumor samples.

Neuropilin-1 Associated Molecules in the Blood Distinguish Poor Prognosis Breast Cancer: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Circulating plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear (PBMCs) cells provide an informative snapshot of the systemic physiological state. Moreover, they provide a non-invasively accessible compartment to identify biomarkers for personalized medicine in advanced breast cancer. The role of Neuropilin-1 (NRP-1) and its interacting molecules in breast tumor tissue was correlated with cancer progression; however, the clinical impact of their systemic levels was not extensively evaluated.

Gleason’s Grading of Prostatic Adenocarcinoma: Inter-Observer Variation Among Seven Pathologists at a Tertiary Care Center in Oman.

Prostatic adenocarcinoma is the commonest solid malignancy seen in Omani elderly males 60-80 years of age. The Gleason grade is the most widely used grading system for prostatic carcinoma and is recommended by the World Health Organization. A peer review was carried out at the Pathology Department of Sultan Qaboos University Hospital (SQUH), Oman, to assess the quality of reporting at the center.

Successful Salvage Treatment of Resistant Acute Antibody-Mediated Kidney Transplant Rejection with Eculizumab.

Antibody-mediated rejection (ABMR) jeopardises short- and long-term transplant survival and remains a challenge in the field of organ transplantation. We report the first use of the anticomplement agent eculizumab in Oman in the treatment of a 61-year-old female patient with ABMR following a living unrelated kidney transplant. The patient was admitted to the Sultan Qaboos University Hospital in Muscat, Oman, in 2013 on the eighth day post-transplantation with serum creatinine (Cr) levels of 400 µmol/L which continued to rise, necessitating haemodialysis.

Increased CD86 but Not CD80 and PD-L1 Expression on Liver CD68+ Cells during Chronic HBV Infection.

Background: The failure to establish potent anti-HBV T cell responses suggests the absence of an effective innate immune activation. Kupffer cells and liver-infiltrating monocytes/macrophages have an essential role in establishing anti-HBV responses. These cells express the costimulatory molecules CD80 and CD86.

A Potential Inhibitory Profile of Liver CD68+ Cells during HCV Infection as Observed by an Increased CD80 and PD-L1 but Not CD86 Expression.

Aim: The lack of potent innate immune responses during HCV infection might lead to a delay in initiating adaptive immune responses. Kupffer cells (KCs) and liver-infiltrating monocytes/macrophages (CD68+ cells) are essential to establish effective anti-HCV responses. They express co-stimulatory molecules, CD80 and CD86.

Tissue and Serum miRNA Profile in Locally Advanced Breast Cancer (LABC) in Response to Neo-Adjuvant Chemotherapy (NAC) Treatment.

Introduction: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNA that plays a vital role in cancer progression. Neo-adjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) has become the standard of care for locally advanced breast cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate miRNA alterations during NAC using multiple samples of tissue and serum to correlate miRNA expression with clinico-pathological features and patient outcomes.

Inter-observer agreement in reporting HER 2 Neu protein over expression by immunohistochemistry.

Introduction: HER 2 Neu protein overexpression and its detection by immunohistochemistry (IHC) has become quiet critical because of its relevance in regards to Herceptin treatment. This peer review was done at a tertiary care center, which aimed at determining the inter-observer variation among five pathologists and evaluating the degree of agreement between them.

Aims: The aim of our study was to determine the reproducibility of HER 2 Neu system of reporting in breast cancer cases and determine inter-observer variability among five pathologists at a tertiary care center.