Molecular study on Y chromosome microdeletions in Egyptian males with idiopathic infertility / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>AIM</b>To determine the frequency of genetic deletions within the azoospermia factors in Egyptian infertile males.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The Yq microdeletions in 33 infertile males with undetectable chromosomal anomalies were examined by mutiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Deletions were confirmed using single PCR amplifications.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Four out of the total 33 (12 %) men had Yq(11) microdeletions, thus supporting the average reported figures in other populations. Three of those 4 cases had single short tandem sequence deletions with discrete histological findings of their testes. Single sY272 deletion within AZFc was associated with Sertoli cell only syndrome, whereas a patient with isolated sY84 deletion within AZFa had immature testicular structure. The remaining case had a large deletion in AZFa-c and short stature.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The present study supports the hypothesis that the Yq(11) encompasses genetic determinants of stature besides genes controlling spermatogenesis.</p>

Evaluation of seminal plasma nitric oxide concertration in infertile males with varicocele

The aim of the present study was to measure and compare NO concentrations in the seminal plasma of infertile patients with/without varicocele. The study enrolled 35 patients with oligo- and/or asthenoteratozoospermia [OAT], and were divided into two groups: Group 1 [OAT with varicocele, n=19] and group 2 [OAT without varicocele, n=16]. Ten healthy subjects without varicocele and with normal semen parameters were taken as normal control. Semen analysis, estimation of NO in seminal plasma [SP] and hormonal assay [FSH, LH and testosterone] for all individuals were done. Nitric oxide concentration was significantly higher in SP of group 1 [varicocele] compared to both group 2 and normal control. Plasma FSH and LH concentrations were evaluated in group 1 versus control. In conclusion, the increased seminal plasma NO concentration is specifically related to the varicocele, not to infertility, since NO production in oligo- and/or asthenoteratozoospermic patients without varicocele did not increase. On the other hand, increased NO concentration may be one of the causes of damage to sperm in patients with varicocele. These data support the need for varicocele repair to interrupt NO overproduction

Relationship between cutaneous lesion of necrolytic acral erythema and hepatitis C virus

Hepatitis C [HCV] is a plus strand RNA virus. The plus-strand RNA enters hepatocytes and produces minus-strand RNA that serves as a templates in virus proliferation. HCV infection can be associated with disorders of various organs other than the liver, including the skin. Necrolytic acral erythema [NAE] have been reported to occur in setting of chronic HCV infection which belongs to the family of necrolytic erythemas which characterized clinically by erythematous lesions that frequently develop blisters and microscopically by epidermal necrolytic changes involving mostly the upper part of the epidennis. The aim of this study was to examine HCV-infected patients for the presence of viral genome within the lesional cutaneous biopsy sample of NAE and to find the relationship between it and HCV infection. The study included 8 [5 males and 3 females] anti-HCV-positive patients with NAE. Reverse-transcriptase polymerase-chain reaction [RT-PCR] was performed to detect; HCVRNA plus strand in all sera samples and in peripheral blood mononuclear cells [PBMC] for certain cases and HCV-RNA plus and minus strands in cutaneous lesional biopsy samples of NAE. Although all patients were sero-positive for HCV antibodies, RT-PCR could only detect HCV genome in the sera of 5/8 patients [62.5%]. The HCV diagnosis in the 3 subjects who tested negative was established on the basis of detectable MCV genome in J'BMC. RT-PCR could not detect, the HCV-RNA plus strand in 6/8 [75%] of skin tissue biopsies and the HCV-RNA minus strand in all skin biopsies. Conclusion; the absence of MCV-RNA minus strand in tissue samples indicates that the skin lesion of NAE is not a site of HCV proliferation and that, HCV is not the primary cause of NAE per se. Further studies of lesional and non-lesional cutaneous biopsy specimen from HCV-infected patients with NAE are needed to evaluate the inter-relationship between HCV and NAE

Recalcitrant alopecia areata, what are the possible underlying factors?

Twenty-four patients with long standing alopecia areata [AA] [13 females and 11 males, whose ages ranged from 8 to 43 years] were studied. The duration of the disease varied from 3 to 16 years. All patients were subjected to detailed clinical and family history, laboratory and immunological studies. Skin biopsies were taken and stained with H/E and immunohistochemically for CD3, CD4 and CD8. Nineteen patients developed AA before puberty and 15 cases had a wide spread alopecia [7 subtotalis, 4 totalis and 4 universalis]. Five patients gave a family history, two of them were nonidentical female twins. The associated clinical features were Down's syndrome [two cases], atopic eczema [three cases, nail pitting [four cases] and only one case with thyroid disease. Five patients had low serum iron, one patient showed positive antithyroid antibodies and two patients with weak positive antinuclear antibodies. Only a female patient with alopecia subtotalis of 10-year duration had low serum immunoglobulin levels, low B-lymphocytes count and high suppressor T-cell number. Histopathologically, there were a reduced number of hair follicles and an increased number of catagen and telogen follicles. Fourteen biopsies showed moderate to dense infiltrate. The infiltrate affected predominantly the anagen follicles, which were reduced in the size. The infiltrate consists mainly of T-cells [CD3]. T-helper [CD4] cells were predominant in nine biopsies