The Association of pri-miR34 b/c Gene Polymorphism and Clinicopathologic Data in Breast Cancer Patients.

BACKGROUND: MiR-34b/c takes an important role in various aspects of carcinogenesis. Notably, pri miR34b/c (rs4938723) T>C polymorphism has been identified as a significant biomarker in various kinds of cancer. The objective of this study was to explore whether pri-miR34b/c rs4938723) T>C was associated with breast cancer susceptibility. Moreover, the association of pri-miR34b/c (rs4938723) T>C and clinicopathologic data, including survival outcomes, were studied in Thai breast cancer patients. METHODS: DNA extracted from the blood of 100 Thai female breast cancer patients and 100 Thai healthy women were investigated for pri-miR34b/c (rs4938723) T>C polymorphism using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment-length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference between the frequency of pri miR34b/c (rs4938723) T>C genotype between Thai breast cancer patients and normal subjects. This study showed that there is no association between pri-miR34b/c (rs4938723) genotypes and breast cancer susceptibility, clinicopathologic parameters, and survival time. However, age greater than 50 and histologic grade III were the prognostic factors affecting survival in breast cancer patients (p=0.017, p=0.010, respectively). CONCLUSION: The pri-miR34b/c (rs4938723) genotypes had no association with cancer susceptibility and clinicopathologic parameters in Thai breast cancer patients. Patients with older age and patients with higher histologic grade, but not the pri miR34b/c (rs4938723) genotype, affected survival time among breast cancer patients.

Probiotic Properties of Exopolysaccharide-Producing Bacteria from Natto.

Natto is a traditional Japanese food made from soybeans fermented with Bacillus subtilis var. natto. It is also a famous food in Thailand. Potential probiotics were screened from natto. Bacillus subtilis strain VN5 produced the most quantity of exopolysaccharide (EPS), so it was selected to study the properties of microbial EPS and probiotics. The Fourier transform infrared spectrometer or FT-IR spectroscopy confirmed the presence of carboxyl and hydroxyl groups. The patterns of FT-IR and levans are similar. The basic properties of probiotics were revealed. The 90% of VN5 strain resisted lysozyme within 30 min. VN5 survived under acidic conditions (pH 1-6), and the survival rate in 0.3%, 0.5%, and 1% bile solutions for 24 h was 100%. Unfortunately, VN5 did not inhibit the growth of Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Salmonella typhi. Gamma hemolysis was determined in VN5 strain. The finding on Bacillus subtilis strain (VN5) from natto paves the way to a high potential, useful new strain of probiotics.

Increased Risk of Thai Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia with the MiR196a2 T>C Polymorphism

Objectives: This study assessed associations of the miR196a2 (rs11614913) T>C polymorphism withsusceptibility to childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and clinical outcomes. Materials and Methods: Blood DNA samples from 104 childhood ALL patients and 180 healthy children were studied for the miR-196a2 (rs11614913) polymorphism using a polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment-length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) approach. Results: The frequency of the miR-196a2 (rs11614913) T allele in controls was 0.51 compared with 0.33 in ALL cases. In this study, CC, TC heterozygote and CC/TC genotypes were significantly associated with increase childhood ALL susceptibility compared with the TT wild type (OR =4.321, 95% CI = 2.091-8.930 p=0.000, OR = 2.248, 95% CI =1.103-4.579, p=0.024, OR = 2.921, 95% CI = 1.504-5.673 p=0.001, respectively). However, the miR-196a2 (rs11614913) T>C polymorphism was not associated with demographic data or clinico-pathological data in ALL cases. Conclusion: CC, TC and CC+TC genotypes of miR-196a2 (rs11614913) was significantly associated with increased susceptibility in Thai childhood ALL but not with clinical variables.

Lack of Association between the MiR146a Polymorphism and Susceptibility to Thai Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

BACKGROUND: MiRNAs, small non coding RNAs, play a role in the regulation of hematopoiesis, with effects on cell growth, differentiation, and apoptosis. In addition, MiRNAs are thought to play an important role in tumorigenesis. The miR146a G>C polymorphism can lead to alteration of miR146 expression, which appears to be associated with development and progression of several cancers. This study aimed to investigate the association of the miRNA146a (rs2910164) G>C polymorphism and susceptibility to childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and clinical outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Totals of 100 childhood ALL patients and 200 healthy children were studied for miR146a polymorphisms using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment-length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). RESULTS: The frequency of the miR146a G allele in controls was 0.40 compared with 0.38 in ALL patients. There was no association between miRNA146a (rs2910164) G>C polymorphism and susceptibility to childhood ALL (OR=1.484, 95%CI=0.712-3.093, p=0.290). Moreover, the frequencies of miR146a (rs2910164) G>C polymorphism were not associated with demographic data and clinical outcomes in ALL cases. CONCLUSIONS: The miRNA146a polymorphism was not significantly associated with susceptibility to Thai childhood ALL or any clinico-pathological variables.

Potential of recombinant flagellin fragment from Burkholderia thailandensis as an antigen for melioidosis antibody detection by indirect ELISA.

Non-pathogenic Burkholderia thailandensis may be used as a model for Burkholderia pseudomallei due to the genetic similarity of these species. Moreover, the experimental manipulation of B. thailandensis is safer. In this study, we constructed recombinant flagellin protein fragments of B. thailandensis E264 (FLAG300, FLAG600, FLAG900, and FLAGFL fragments) and used fragments as the antigen to detect melioidosis antibodies by an indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (indirect ELISA). The serum samples consisted of serodiagnostic melioidosis sera (N = 52), septicemic sera caused by other bacteria (disease control) (N = 16) and healthy donor sera (N = 40). The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve at optimal value (mean plus standard deviation) of all constructed fragments to melioidosis antibodies detection ranged from 0.654 to 0.953. The highest area under the ROC curve (AUROCC, 0.953) for FLAG300 fragment at 1600 serum titer revealed the best performance of melioidosis diagnosis. The indirect ELISA using this fragment as the antigen possessed 82.7% sensitivity and 94.6% specificity.