ASXL1 and JAK2V617F gene mutation screening in Iranian patients with chronic myeloid leukemia.

Aim: In recent years, a few cases of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) have been reported with both BCR-ABL and JAK2V617F mutations. Moreover, mutations in the additional sex comb-like 1 (ASXL1) gene were recently shown in various myeloid malignancies.There were no previous studies investigating the incidence of the ASXL1 and JAK2V617F mutations in Iranian patients with CML.

Health in times of uncertainty in the eastern Mediterranean region, 1990-2013: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013.

Background: The eastern Mediterranean region is comprised of 22 countries: Afghanistan, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Since our Global Burden of Disease Study 2010 (GBD 2010), the region has faced unrest as a result of revolutions, wars, and the so-called Arab uprisings. The objective of this study was to present the burden of diseases, injuries, and risk factors in the eastern Mediterranean region as of 2013.

Clavicular Chondrosarcoma: A Case Report and Brief Review of the Literature.

Clavicular bone tumors occur in less than 0.5 percent of bone tumors. Primary chondrosarcoma is very rare even among clavicle tumors.

Human Platelet Lysate as a Xeno Free Alternative of Fetal Bovine Serum for the In Vitro Expansion of Human Mesenchymal Stromal Cells.

Background: Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) are employed in various different clinical settings in order to modulate immune response. Human autologous and allogeneic supplements including platelet derivatives such as platelet lysate (PL), platelet-released factors (PRF) and serum are assessed in clinical studies to replace fetal bovine serum (FBS). The immunosuppressive activity and multi-potential characteristic of MSCs appear to be maintained when the cells are expanded in platelet derivatives.

Evaluation of Minimal Residual Disease in Acute Myeloid Leukemia with NPM1 Marker.

Background: Minimal residual disease (MRD) tests provide early identification of hematologic relapse and timely management of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients. Approximately, 50% of AML patients do not have clonal chromosomal aberrations and categorize as a cytogenetically normal acute myeloid leukemia (CN-AML). About 60% of adult CN-AML has a mutation in exon 12 of NPM1 gene.

Curcumin Veto the Effects of Osteopontin (OPN) Specific Inhibitor on Leukemic Stem Cell Colony Forming Potential via Promotion of OPN Overexpression.

Background: Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is an immunophenotypically heterogeneous malignant disease, in which CD34 positivity is associated with poor prognosis. Osteopontin (OPN) plays different roles in physiologic and pathologic conditions like: survival, metastasis and cell protection from cytotoxic and apoptotic stimuli. Due to anti-apoptotic effect of OPN in normal and malignant cells, silencing of OPN leads to elevation of sensitivity towards chemotherapeutic agents and attenuates cancer cells migration and invasion.

Relationship between endocrine changes and bone markers in pediatric thalassemic patients after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Background: Beta thalassemia major and its treatment by hematopoietic stem cell transplantation can have deleterious effects on bone integrity and a main part of such effects is due to their deleterious effects on endocrine systems. So, we assessed the effects of endocrine changes during HSCT (Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation) on growing bones of pediatric thalassemic patients.

Methods: Bone-specific alkaline phosphatase and osteocalcin (bone formation markers), N-terminal telopeptide (NTX, bone resorption marker), calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), alkaline phosphatase (Alk ph), parathyroid hormone (PTH), vitamin D (vit D), prolactin, luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), thyroxine (T4), triiodothyronine (T3), thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), testosterone (in males) or estradiol (in females), measured in 20 major thalassemic patients with mean age of 10.

Burden of Ischemic Heart Disease Attributable to Low Omega-3 Fatty Acids Intake in Iran: Findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010.

Background: Dietary risk factors constitute some of the leading risk factors for cardiovascular disease in Iran. The current study reports the burden of ischemic heart disease (IHD) attributable to a low omega-3 fatty acids intake in Iran using the data of the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study 2010.

Methods: We used data on Iran for the years 1990, 2005, and 2010 derived from the GBD Study conducted by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) in 2010.

DOCK8 deficiency in six Iranian patients.

DOCK8 deficiency is a rare autosomal recessive combined immunodeficiency with high IgE level, eosinophilia, severe eczema, extensive cutaneous viral, and respiratory bacterial infections, mostly in populations with higher prevalence of consanguinity. Molecular diagnosis of this gene is a useful approach for early diagnosis and timely HSCT due to deleterious consequences.

Seroprevalence and Risk Factors of Varicella Zoster Infection in Iranian Adolescents: A Multilevel Analysis; The CASPIAN-III Study.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the varicella zoster virus (VZV) immunity in Iranian adolescents. It was conducted as a primary study for vaccine implementation, and to investigate the association of climatic and socioeconomic factors with the epidemiology of this infection. In this cross- sectional study, anti VZV antibodies were measured in serum samples obtained in a national school-based health survey (CASPIAN- III).

Bilateral Maxillary, Sphenoid Sinuses and Lumbosacral Spinal Cord Extramedullary Relapse of CML Following Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplant.

Isolated extramedullary relapse of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) after allogeneic stem cell transplant is rare. There is a case report of a child who developed a granulocytic sarcoma of the maxillary and sphenoid sinuses and lumbosacral spinal cord mass 18 months after allogeneic bone marrow transplant for CML. He was presented with per orbital edema and neurological deficit of lower extremities and a mass lesion was found on spinal cord imaging.

JAK2V617F Allele Burden Measurement in Peripheral Blood of Iranian Patients with Myeloproliferative Neoplasms and Effect of Hydroxyurea on JAK2V617F Allele Burden.

Background: Myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) are clonal malignant diseases that represent a group of conditions including polycythemia vera (PV), essential thrombocythemia (ET) and primary myelofibrosis (PMF). The aim of this study was to evaluate possible correlations between JAK2V617F allele burden and clinicohematologic characteristics in Iranian patients with MPNs. We also aimed at determining the correlation between JAK2V617F allele burden and use of cyto reductive treatment (hydroxyurea).

Impairment of DNA Methylation Maintenance Is the Main Cause of Global Demethylation in Naive Embryonic Stem Cells.

Global demethylation is part of a conserved program of epigenetic reprogramming to naive pluripotency. The transition from primed hypermethylated embryonic stem cells (ESCs) to naive hypomethylated ones (serum-to-2i) is a valuable model system for epigenetic reprogramming. We present a mathematical model, which accurately predicts global DNA demethylation kinetics.

The Effects of Imatinib Mesylate on Cellular Viability, Platelet Derived Growth Factor and Stem Cell Factor in Mouse Testicular Normal Leydig Cells.

Background: Growth factors play an essential role in the development of tumor and normal cells like testicular leydig cells. Treatment of cancer with anti-cancer agents like imatinib mesylate may interfere with normal leydig cell activity, growth and fertility through failure in growth factors' production or their signaling pathways. The purpose of the study was to determine cellular viability and the levels of, platelet derived growth factor (PDGF) and stem cell factor (SCF) in normal mouse leydig cells exposed to imatinib, and addressing the effect of imatinib on fertility potential.

Tropisetron suppresses colitis-associated cancer in a mouse model in the remission stage.

Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have a high risk for development of colitis-associated cancer (CAC). Serotonin is a neurotransmitter produced by enterochromaffin cells of the intestine. Serotonin and its receptors, mainly 5-HT3 receptor, are overexpressed in IBD and promote development of CAC through production of inflammatory cytokines.

Autologous transplant remains the preferred therapy for relapsed APL in CR2.

Despite their favorable prognosis, 10-20% of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) patients relapse. Reinduction therapy is often followed by autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation (auto-HCT). Arsenic trioxide (ATO) has become part of standard reinduction and is often followed by auto-HCT.

Comprehensive mutational analysis of primary and relapse acute promyelocytic leukemia.

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is a subtype of myeloid leukemia characterized by differentiation block at the promyelocyte stage. Besides the presence of chromosomal rearrangement t(15;17), leading to the formation of PML-RARA (promyelocytic leukemia-retinoic acid receptor alpha) fusion, other genetic alterations have also been implicated in APL. Here, we performed comprehensive mutational analysis of primary and relapse APL to identify somatic alterations, which cooperate with PML-RARA in the pathogenesis of APL.

Late Complications in acute Leukemia patients following HSCT: A single center experience.

Background: Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is currently the only curative treatment for acute leukemia. As HSCT improves the long-term survival, it is necessary to assess the late-onset complications affecting the quality of life following HSCT.

Subjects And Methods: The study included 122 patients (65 male, 57 female) with leukemia (72 AML and 50 ALL) who received transplants from fully- matched siblings, unrelated donors and unrelated cord blood donors between February 2013 and August 2014 in Shariati Hospital.

NMDA receptor antagonists attenuate the proconvulsant effect of juvenile social isolation in male mice.

Experiencing psychosocial stress in early life, such as social isolation stress (SIS), is known to have negative enduring effects on the development of the brain and behavior. In addition to anxiety and depressive-like behaviors, we previously showed that juvenile SIS increases susceptibility to pentylenetetrazole (PTZ)-induced seizures in mice through enhancing the nitrergic system activity in the hippocampus. In this study, we investigated the possible involvement of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors in proconvulsant effects of juvenile SIS.

Long-term follow-up of ninety eight Iranian patients with primary immune deficiency in a single tertiary centre.

Purpose: The aim was to describe the clinical manifestations, complications and long-term outcome of a cohort of Iranian patients with primary immune deficiency (PID).

Method: We retrospectively studied the demographic, clinical and immunological characteristics of the PID patients in a single tertiary centre, from January 1989 to July 2014. The patients were classified according to the International Union of Immunological Societies Expert Committee on PID.

Effect of curcumin on serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels in women with premenstrual syndrome: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is a variety of physical, mental, and behavioral symptoms that start during the late luteal phase of the menstrual cycle, and the symptoms disappear after the onset of menses. Serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels during luteal phase in women associated with PMS have more alterations than women not suffering from PMS. In this regard, altered luteal BDNF levels in women with PMS might play a role in a set of psychological and somatic symptoms of the PMS.

Deregulation of miR-1, miR486, and let-7a in cytogenetically normal acute myeloid leukemia: association with NPM1 and FLT3 mutation and clinical characteristics.

Cytogenetically normal acute myeloid leukemia (CN-AML) constitutes the largest subgroup of AML patients that is associated with molecular alteration. MiRNAs have been shown to be aberrantly expressed in CN-AML. In addition, specific miRNA (miR) expression patterns were found to be associated with certain genetic alterations in these patients.

Investigation of ITGB2 gene in 12 new cases of leukocyte adhesion deficiency-type I revealed four novel mutations from Iran.

Background: Leukocyte adhesion deficiency type I (LAD-I) is a rare, autosomal recessive inherited immunodeficiency disease. LAD-I is caused by mutations in the ITGB2 gene and characterized by recurrent severe bacterial infections, as well as impaired wound healing with lack of pus formation.

Methods: In this study, we investigated ITGB2 gene mutations in 12 patients and their parents.

Effects of silibinin on growth and invasive properties of human ovarian carcinoma cells through suppression of heregulin/HER3 pathway.

Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is the most fatal gynecological malignancy due to its high proliferative and invasive capacities. A heregulin (HRG)/HER3 autocrine loop increases proliferative and metastatic properties of EOC cells, suggesting that modulators of this signaling pathway may prove effective to trammel growth and motility of these cells. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of multi-tyrosine kinase inhibitor silibinin on proliferative and invasive characteristics of EOC cell lines OVCAR8 and SKOV3 through suppression of the HRG/HER3 pathway.