[Evaluation the relationship between alleles of+1188 in region of IL-12 with serum level of cytokine in patients with occult HBV infection]

Occult hepatitis B infection [OBI] is a form of hepatitis, which in despite of absence of detectable HBsAg, HBV-DNA is present in peripheral blood of patients. Evaluation the relationship between alleles of+1188 in region of IL-12 with serum level of cytokine in patients with occult HBV infection. In this study, the plasma samples of 3700 blood donors were tested for HBsAg and anti-HBc by ELISA. The HBsAg negative ve and anti-HBc positive samples were selected and screened for HBV-DNA by PCR. HBV-DNA positive samples assigned as OBI cases and PCR-SSP and ELISA were performed to examine the polymorphisms in region of [+1188 and serum level of IL-12] respectively. The results showed that there is a significant difference in CC allele of+1188 region of IL-12 in two groups and no difference in the other evaluated genes. There is not any significant difference in serum level of IL-12 between OBI patients and controls. Our results also showed that there isn't any significant statistically relation between alleles of+ 1188 region of IL-12 with serum level of cytokine. According to the results of this study it could be concluded that OBI patients unable to produce enough quantity of IL-12 and it may be related to different IL-12 gene. CC allele was associated with OBI, hence, it seems that +1188 region of IL-12 gene has an important role in expression of IL-12 gene. Evaluation of relation between polymorphisms in +1188 region of IL-12 gene and its expression. In vitro and under mitogene affect can useful because no association was seen between serum level of IL-12 and alleles of this region

[Evaluation of relation between polymorphisms in -590 region of IL-4 and occult HBV infection]

Occult Hepatitis B Infection [OBI] is a form of hepatitis in which despite of absence of detectable HBsAg, HBV-DNA is presented in patients peripheral blood. Responsible mechanisms of progression of OBI are unknown yet, but some investigators believed that the genetic and immunological parameters may be different. Cytokine network system could be leading alteration in viral immune response. IL-4 as an anti-inflammatory cytokines causes decreased immune function. Thus, regulatory factors which influences expression and function of IL-4 can be effective on immune system functions. As polymorphic variation in cytokine genes has regulatory effects on their expression and functions, this study investigates the association of-590 region polymorphisms of IL-4 with OBI. Determination of association between IL-4 polymorphisms with OBI. In this study, the plasma samples [FFP] of 3700 blood donors were tested for HBsAg and anti-HBs by ELISA. The HBsAg negative and anti-HBc positive samples were selected and screened for HBV-DNA by PCR. HBV-DNA positive samples assigned as OBI cases while HBV-DNA negative samples were used as control and PCR-RFLP was performed to examine the presence of polymorphisms in -590 regions of IL-4 genes of patients with OBI. 352 [9.51%] Out of 3700 blood samples were negative for HBsAg and positive for anti-HBc antibody. HBV-DNA was detected in 57[16.1%] of HBsAg negative and anti-HBc positive samples. Our results showed that none of the alleles had significant difference between patients and control group. Our results demonstrated that there is no significant difference between patients with OBI and control cases. Therefore, it seems that there is not any relation between these alleles and OBI and more study should be done on polymorphisms in other to cytokine genes in patients with OBI

[Prevalence of HCV infection in thalassemic and hemodialysis patients in Kerman Province-Iran]

People with thalessemia and chronic renal failure on maintenance hemodialysis are prone to blood-born infections, especially hepatitis C due to the long-term transfusion. Recently, hepatitis C has been one of the main health concerns in these patients. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of hepatitis C and its risk factors in these groups of patients in Kerman province of Iran. HCV RNA in blood sample of 384 patients [203 hemodialysis cases and 181 thalassemia cases] was evaluated. One hundred thirty [130] out of 384 were infected by HCV. Infected male was predominant [83%].It seems that the frequency of hepatitis C infection in Kerman is higher than the other provinces of Iran. Therefore more attention should be paid to screen of blood before transfusing for these group of patients

comparison of the level of serum concentration of Gro-A chemokine in diabetic type-2 patients and healthy people: a short communication

Type-2 diabetes mellitus is the most common type of diabetes, but the main cause of which is yet to be identified. One of the symptoms of diabetes is delay in healing of the wounds. Chemokines play key roles in both the regulation of immune system functions and regeneration of the damaged tissues. Growth-regulatory oncogen [Gro] is an angiogenesis chemokine. Therefore, we dicided to compare the serum level of Gro-alpha chemokine in diabetic patients and healthy people. In this descriptive study respondents were 45 diabetic and 45 healthy people referred to Ali Ibn Abitaleb hospital in Rafsanjan. The level of Gro-alpha was detected by ELISA. Data were analysed using SPSS version 12. T-test was used to compare continuous data. Although there were differences between diabetic and healthy people based on the serum level of Gro-alpha chemokine, this difference was not significant. Based on our results, it can be concluded that diabetic patients are unable to produce enough Gro-alpha and this can be the reason for the delay in healing of the wounds. Furthermore, to assess the role of this chemokine more number of samples are needed for examination

Occult hepatitis B virus infection among blood donors with antibodies to hepatitis B core antigen

Diagnosis of hepatitis B is routinely based on of serological assay of hepatitis B surface antigen [HBsAg]. Occult hepatitis B virus [HBV] infection is generally defined as the detection of HBV -DNA in the serum or tissues of subjects who have negative test for HBsAg. Transmission of HBV infection has been documented from HBsAg negative, anti-HBc positive blood and organ donors. The aim of this study was to determine the rate of occult HBV infection among HBsAg negative and anti-HBc positive blood donors of Rafsanjan blood transfusion center. Sera from 270 healthy blood donors who were negative for both HBsAg and anti-HCV, were tested for anti-HBc antibodies by use of ELISA technique. The samples that were negative for HBsAg but positive for anti-HBc markers also examined for the presence of HBV-DNA by polymerase chain reaction [PCR]. Out of 270 HBsAg negative blood samples, 14 samples [5.18%] were positive for anti-HBc antibodies. HBV-DNA was detected in 4/14 [28.57%] of HBsAg negative and anti-HBc positive samples. Moreover, anti-HBs antibody was detected in 2/4 [50%] of HBV-DNA positive samples. These results indicated that HBV-DNA found in the majority of HBsAg negative and anti-HBc-positive donors. In addition, the present study recommend the incorporation of routine anti-HBc screening of blood as a surrogate marker of occult HBV infection to prevent some transfusion-transmitted HBV infections

comparison of salivary IgA and IgE levels in children with breast- and formula- feeding during infancy period

Oral local immune factors may play a protective role against oral diseases and defend against microbial agents. Salivary immunoglobulin A [IgA] is a major factor for the local host defence against caries and periodontal disease. The aims of this study were to determine the concentrations of salivary IgA and IgE levels in breast-fed and formula-fed children in infancy period. Totally, 80 healthy 5 years old children were included in the study. According to type of feeding in infancy period, the children divided into two groups: 50 breast-fed and 30 formula-fed. One milliliter of saliva was collected from each participant, centrifuged, and stored at -70 °C. The salivary IgA and IgE concentrations were measured, using ELISA technique. In breast-fed children, the salivary IgA level [39.6 mg/1 +/- 17.3] was significantly higher than that in formula-fed children [26.9 mg/1 +/- 14] [P=0.0001]. However, the salivary IgE level was significantly lower in breast-fed children, comparing with formula-fed ones [5.01 lU/ml +/- 19.70 vs. 11.74 lU/ml +/- 39.40] [P=0.047]. These results suggest that breast feeding enhances salivary IgA level in the early period of life which may contribute in oral cavity immunity. Higher salivary IgE level observed in formula-fed subjects may have a potential role in development of allergic or inflammatory reactions