RESUMEN
Objective: To assess the effects of occupational dust exposure on the antioxidant defense system of Portland cement workers in Egypt
Patients and Methods: Eighty six workers individually males [mean age 41.5 years], were chosen from different three areas of Beni-Sweif cement factory i.e. oven, packing and administration office divisions. All of subjects were nonsmokers and had occupational exposure to cement dust ranged 7-18 years. Control subjects, 23 males [mean age 42.5 years] were chosen among population who lived in the countryside areas of Beni-Sweif governorate, working in the agricultural activities and nonsmokers. Plasma levels of GSH Px, GSH-Rd. SOD, catalase enzymes, plasma selenium as well as plasma vitamins A. C and E were determined in all cases
Results: A significant drecreases [p<0.05] in antioxidant enzymes activities, GSH-Px, GSH-Rd, SOD and CAT were observed in human erythrocytes after long occupational cement exposure. As compared with the control group, the rate of reducing of these enzymes activities were ranged from 6.12- 28.88, 2.01-14.32, 9.86-26.63, 7.84-18.88 %, respectively and directly proportional with the cement dust exposure level. Plasma GSH/GSSG ratio, which provide a sensitive index of whole body oxidative stress, was significantly decreased in cement factory workers in oven, packing, administration departments [9.63+/-2.01. 9.7+/-1.07, 11.57+/-1.18] respectively compared with that of control subjects [13.17+/-7.35]. The reduction in antioxidant enzymes defense potential of erythrocytes was concomitant with significant decrease [p<0.05] of antioxidant vitamin plasma levels A, C and E. plasma vitamin A showed the highest decrease, [22.12%] followed by plasma vitamins C and E [14.86 and 8.45%], respectively
Conclusion: Both enzymatic antioxidant defense system of erythrocytes and plasma levels of antioxidant vitamins were decreased due to occupational exposure to cement dust indicating oxidative stress
RESUMEN
Objective: Achondroplasia, the most common form of short-limbed dwarfism in humans, occurs between 1 in 15,000 and 40,000 live births. More then 97% of persons with achondroplasia have a Gly380Arg mutation in the transmembrane domain of the fibroblast growth factor receptor [FGFR]- 3 gene. This stydy aims to determine if this mutation is common among Egyptian patients or not
Patients and Methods: 14 sporadic unrelated Egyptian patients diagnosed clinically to have achondroplasia, were evaluated for G to A and G to C transition at position 1138 of the fibroblast growth factor receptor -3 gene
Results: All 14 patients evaluated for G to A and G to C transversion showed G to A transition and non of the patients showed G to C transition
Conclusion: Results demonstrated that Gly380Arg is the predominant mutation in all achondroplasia patients studied, confirming the remarkable genetic homogeneity of achondroplasia in the previous reports about incidence of such mutation in other populations and suggest that nucleotide 1138 of the FGFR3 gene is the most mutable nucleotide described so far in the human genome