oxidative stress and platelet activation in patients infected with T. gondii

Toxoplasma gondiiis a highly frequent obligate intracellular protozoan parasite; it can cause serious problems to the public health especially pregnant females, however, the pathogenesis of this condition is not clear. Was to evaluate the status and the inter-relationship of the oxidative stress and platelet activation in patients infected with T.gondii. Thirty patients infected with T.gondii [10 acute and 20 chronic cases] and 10 healthy subjects [control group] were included in this study. Serum levels of malondialdehyde [MDA], total glutathione [t GSH], reduced glutathione [GSH], oxidized glutathione [GSSG], redox potential [RP] and soluble P-selectin [sP-selectin] were measured. EDITA blood samples were used for complete blood picture with special emphasis on platelet count and mean platelet volume [MPV]. The mean platelet volume [MPV] in patients was significantly higher than the control group, however, platelet count showed no significant difference. The serum mean values of MDA, GSSG, RP and sP-selectin in patients were significantly higher than the control subjects. On the other hand, the levels of IGSH and GSHin patients were significantly lower than in controls. MPV and platelet count showed significant positive correlations with sP-selectin concentration. Although toxoplasmosis is mostly asymptomatic, the findings of the present study strongly indicate that the occurrence of oxidative stress could be a potential mechanism of subclinical inflammatory pathology and tissue damage in these cases

Levels of soluble CD[44] and IFN-gamma in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia

The aim of the present study was to estimate the levels of sCD[44] and IFN-gamma in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia in order to evaluate any possible correlation between them and their clinical significance. The present study was carried out on 22 patients recently diagnosed as CLL and 10 healthy subjects as a control group. They were subjected to history taking, clinical examination, complete blood picture and bone marrow aspiration and immunophenotyping to confirm diagnosis. Estimation of the levels of sCD44 and IFN-gamma in serum and in cultured PBMCs supernatants was done by ELISA. The serum levels of sCD[44] and IFN-gamma were significantly increased in patients as compared to the controls [p < 0.001, p< 0.0001 respectively]. High levels of serum CD[44] and IFN-gamma were associated with advanced stages of disease. While in culture, whether with or without mitogen sCD[44] was lower and IFN-gamma higher than their serum levels. We concluded that the serum levels of sCD[44] and IFN-gamma are valuable and delicate tumor markers in patients with CLL. The study should be pursued after treatment of these patients in order to elucidate the potential role of these markers in monitoring disease status and response to therapy

Serum prolactin level in patients with hepatitis C-associated thrombocytopenia

Aim: Hepatitis C virus [HCV] has been recognized as the cause of thrombocytopenia occurring in patients with chronic hepatitis C, possibly through autoimmune mechanisms. Prolactin [PRL] is a potent immunomodulator that may play a role in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus [SLE]. The objective of this study was to estimate serum PRL level in patients with HCV-associated thrombocytopenia and those with chronic idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura [ITP], in an attempt to find any possible role of this hormone in these autoimmune disorders. Subjects and The study was carried out on 70 patients divided into 3 groups: group I, included 30 patients with chronic HCV infection and thrombocytopenia [mean age: 47.25 +/- 8.6 years]; group II included 20 patients with chronic HCV and normal platelet counts [mean age: 42.2 +/- 8.5 years]; and group III, comprised 20 patients with chronic ITP [off-steroid therapy] who were HCV-negative. Their mean age was 42 +/- 12.5 years. Basal level of PRL was determined by chemiluminescence, and autoantibody profile [antinuclear antibodies [ANA], anti-double stranded DNA [anti-ds DNA], anti-smooth muscle antibodies [ASMA], anti-mitochondrial antibodies [AMA], and cryoglobulins] was performed in all patients. In group I, the mean platelet count was significantly lower compared to group II [P=0.00], but was significantly higher than group III [P=0.0002]. The mean serum PRL was higher in group I compared to group II and group III, however, the difference showed marginal statistical significance [P=0.058, P=0.057, respectively]. The autoantibody profile did not differ significantly between the three studied groups. The mean serum PRL was significantly higher in females than males in all studied groups [P<0.05]. Correlation studies in group I showed that the platelet count correlated negatively with the female sex. However, we found no significant correlation between serum PRL level and platelet count and no association between PRL level and the different autoantibodies studied. Conclusions: Our preliminary results suggest that the role of hyperprolactinemia in the triggering or promoting the autoimmune process responsible for HCV-associated thrombocytopenia is quite questionable. Prolactin seems to be poorly involved in the etiopathogenesis of both HDV-associated thrombocytopenia and chronic ITP. However, additional studies are warranted to elucidate the possible role of bromocriptine in the management of hyperprolactinemic thrombocytopenia in patients with chronic HCV infection

Diagnostic and clinical significance of Argyrophilic proteins in patients with acute leukemia

The number [amount] of Argyrophilic proteins [AgNORs] were estimated in bone marrow smears of thirty-six patients with acute leukemia at initial diagnosis: 24 children [10 males 14 females] and 12 adults [6 males and 6 females] as well as 12 matched controls. The purpose of the present work was to study the possible relation of AgNORS to immunophenotypic markers and clinical outcome. Silver staining of AgNORS was applied to bone marrow smears, and immunophenotyping was done by FACS flow cytometry. Statistically significant difference in mean AgNORS count/nucleus was observed in patients versus control [p<0.05], and a different staining pattern was observed in acute lymphoblastic leukemia [ALL] [fine dots] versus acute myeloid leukemia [AML] patients [coarse dots]. Positive correlation was found between AgNORS and bone marrow blast percent, while negative correlation was found with age, hemoglobin concentration and platelet count. Strong AgNORS staining was associated with immaturity markers and poor response to treatment. Eighty percent [80%] of AML and 70% of ALL patients with mean AgNORS<2.5 achieved complete remission. Determination of AgNORS has a major predictive value and adds an additional tool to differentiate ALL from AML smear Hence, it should be included in the diagnostic and prognostic workup of patients with acute leukemia