Subarachnoid Space Transplantation of Schwann and/or Olfactory Ensheathing Cells Following Severe Spinal Cord Injury Fails to Improve Locomotor Recovery in Rats.

Treatment of spinal cord injury by exogenous cells has brought both successful and unsuccessful results. Olfactory ensheathing cells and Schwann cells have been widely used for transplantation purposes. In this study, we investigated the effects of these cells on contused spinal cord by introducing cells into subarachnoid space. Fifty thousand Schwann cells or olfactory ensheathing cells or a mixture of both cell types were transplanted one week after a 3-second clip compression injury at T-9 spinal cord level in rats. Starting from the day one of spinal cord injury, animals were assessed for six months by BBB test and then were sacrificed for immunohistochemistry labeling of the spinal cord injury site. There was no locomotor recovery in any of the treatment groups including controls. Immunohistochemistry assessment indicated positive labeling of P75 and S100 markers in the cell-transplanted groups compared with control. Our data suggest that transplantation of Schwann cells and/or olfactory ensheathing cells into the subarachnoid space does not improve motor recovery in severely injured spinal cord, at least with the number of cells transplanted here. This, however, should not be regarded as an essentially negative outcome, and further studies which consider higher densities of cells are required.

Prevalence of celiac disease among blood donors in Sistan and Balouchestan Province, Southeastern Iran.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of celiac disease is common in Iran. The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of celiac disease in apparently healthy blood donors of Sistan and Balouchestan Province, southeastern Iran. METHODS: Serum samples of 1600 consecutive apparently healthy blood donors at Zahedan Blood Donation Center were assayed for anti-tissue transglutaminase (tTG) antibody. The levels of IgG antibodies against tTG were screened for all subjects with IgA deficiency. All subjects with positive anti-tTG IgA or IgG were offered upper gastrointestinal endoscopy and duodenal mucosal biopsies. RESULTS: IgA deficiency was found in 28:1600 (1.8%) of the subjects, among whom 4 cases were positive for IgG-class tTG antibody. Meanwhile, 10 blood donors were positive for anti-tTG IgA antibody. With the exception of 2 subjects who had normal small bowel biopsies, the remainder of the subjects' biopsy findings were compatible with celiac disease. The prevalence of celiac disease was found to be 0.88% (1/114) based on tTGA positivity. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of celiac disease among the southeastern Iranian population is high and comparable with other parts of Iran as well as many other countries.

Lectin histochemical study of cell surface glycoconjugate in gastric carcinoma using helix pomatia agglutinin.

Altered glycosylation of proteins in cancer cells is one of the main processes responsible for anaplasia, invasion and metastatic potential of neoplastic cells. Lectins are nonimmunogenetic compounds which specifically detect certain terminal sugars of glycoconjugates. The aim of the present study was to identify the N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNac) containing glycoconjugates in cancer cells in all grades of gastric carcinoma. Paraffin blocks belong to 30 patients of gastric carcinoma (10 cases from each grade) was collected from pathology file of Ali-Ebn-Abitaleb Hospital in Zahedan during 2005-2007. Prepared sections (5-7 µm in thickness) were stained by Alcian Blue, hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and helix pomatia agglutinin (HPA) conjugated lectin. Lectin diluted up to 10 µg/ml in PBS (0.1M, pH=6.8). Lectin reactivity was visualized by 0.03% diaminobenzidine (DAB) solution. Sections were graded according to staining intensity to lectin (0-4+). Although there was some difference for lectin staining intensity between cancer cells in different grades of gastric carcinoma, statistical analysis showed that there was only a significant difference for cancer cells reactivity between histopathological grades of II and III. The pattern of reactivity to HPA lectin were also different from all histopathological grades. It seems that in cancer cells, the amount and distribution of GalNac containing glycoconjugate differ from neoplastic cells of different histopathological grades in gastric carcinoma.

Effect of decompression on complete spinal cord injury in rats.

To examine whether spinal cord decompression improves functional recovery and decreases lesion volumes in paraplegic (not paraparetic) rats and, if so, at what postoperative time it is most efficacious. The spinal cords of 63 female rats were compressed at T9 with Yasargil clips. Rats were assigned randomly to five different treatment groups of 3 s, 1 hr, 6 hr, 3 weeks, and 10 weeks. Locomotor behavior scoring was based on the Basso, Beattie, Bresnahan (BBB) Locomotor Rating Scale (Ohio State University, Columbus, OH) motor scores. Comparing five groups, the mean BBB was statistically higher in the 3-s group (P < 0.05). Comparison of progressive changes in BBB in each group revealed statistically meaningful improvement in the 3-s group, too. Spared surface area of spinal cord was 81.5 +/- 4.9% in 3-s group and 10.8 +/- 1.4% in the delayed groups of decompression (P = 0.039). Rats undergoing immediate decompression showed significantly better functional recovery and smaller lesion volumes.

Unusual lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma in Eastern Iran.

Lymphoblastic lymphoma-leukemia (LBLL) most commonly presents with mediastinal masses (50-75%), while pleural and pericardial effusion may also be present. Lymphadenopathy usually in the neck, axilla or supraclavicular regions, is considered as another typical presentation of the disease. This is a case report of a six-year-old boy with unusual huge enlargement of maxilla, mandible and soft palate as well as gingival hypertrophy which led to secondary respiratory and feeding difficulties. Morphologic and flowcytometric evaluation of bone marrow aspiration showed that it was a T cell type acute leukemia which may be due to dissemination of a lymphoblastic lymphoma and considered as a case of lymphoma-leukemia. After appropriate treatment, the symptoms of the patient relieved significantly and he is in complete remission for about one year.

Meningeal melanocytoma of the brain and oculodermal melanocytosis (nevus of Ota): case report and literature review.

BACKGROUND: Meningeal melanocytomas are rare benign pigmented tumors of meningeal melanocytes. Nevus of Ota is a melanocytic pigmentation of the sclera and the skin adjacent to the eye. We report a rare case of parietal convexity meningeal melanocytoma associated with ipsilateral mucocutaneous melanosis and review the literature. METHODS: A 17-year-old man presented with headache and blindness. There was left scalp and facial mucocutaneous melanosis. During surgery, speckled hyperpigmentation was seen in all layers of the scalp, bone, dura, and even ependyma. Pathologic examination of the tumor and scalp consisted of light microscopy and immunohistochemistry. In a literature review, the demographics (age, sex), clinical characteristics (site of lesion, duration of symptoms), therapeutic options (surgical excision, radiotherapy), and prognosis (recurrence, death, death related to the disease, and follow-up) were analyzed. For statistical analysis we used the independent sample t-test and chi(2) tests. RESULTS: Ninety-five cases (45 intracranial and 50 spinal) of meningeal melanocytoma have been reported. The median age of patients with intracranial lesions (40 years) was significantly lower than that of patients with spinal lesions (49 years) (p = 0.016). Of the 95 patients, 57.9% were female. In the nervous system, melanocytes are more common in the infratentorial and cervical areas, but more than half of the tumors have been located in the supratentorial region and the thoracic spine. In 46 months median follow-up, tumor recurrence rate and tumor related death rate were 26.3% and 10.5%, respectively. These were not statistically significant for different therapeutic modalities. There was a trend toward shorter survival for patients who underwent subtotal tumor resection without radiotherapy compared with other groups. CONCLUSION: The prognostic criteria, differential diagnosis, and the embryological aspects of meningeal melanocytoma are discussed with a review of the related literature.