ABSTRACT
Rituximab (anti-CD20 antibody) has been approved as a treatment for B-cell associated hematological disorders. CD20 expression and its complement regulatory proteins and membrane binding structures play a crucial role in rituximab efficacy. Complement-dependent cytotoxicity and antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity are the major mechanisms by which rituximab eliminates B cells. The efficacy of anti-CD20 varies in different diseases. Rituximab was approved as a successful treatment in diseases such as non-Hodgkin lymphomas, particularly diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and follicular lymphoma. In addition, rituximab has recently shown promising results with several autoimmune diseases; it was approved for rheumatoid arthritis as well as being used for other diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus. Likewise, rituximab was successfully used for incompatible ABO organ transplantation instead of the invasive splenectomy procedure. This review will discuss the use of rituximab for different hematological diseases.
ABSTRACT
Background: Urinary tract infections (UTIs) represent one of the most common diseases that are encountered in clinical practice and are caused mainly by Escherichia coli (E. coli). Aims: The objectives of this study were to identify and compare the blaTEM, blaSHV and blaCTX-M as marker of beta-lactamase genes in E. coli strains isolated from patients with UTIs collecting from King Abdul-Aziz hospital in Taif region, Saudi Arabia. Study Design: In vitro experimental and molecular study. Place and Duration of Study: Genetic engineering and biotechnology unit, Taif University, from September, 2016 to November, 2017. Methodology: Beta-lactame antibiotics are prescribed in most infectious disease including UTIs. Twenty one isolates identified as E. coli using microbial identification and confirmed by 16S rDNA. Results: These isolates were susceptible to Imipenem (100%), Ampicillin (90%) and Cefoxitin, but resistant to Cefepime (38%). Existance of selected bla-genes (blaTEM, blaSHV and blaCTX-M) were detected in the 21 isolates by PCR. Moreover, phylogeny tree was drawn based on 16S rDNA sequence. The results of this study show significant differences in susceptibility to different beta-lactam antibiotics among the bla-genes in E. coli isolates. Conclusion: Therefore, our findings instead of our data provide some new epidemiological information about the clonal nature of E. coli isolated from patients with UTIs in Taif region, KSA.