2022 Impact Factor: 1.5
2023 CiteScore: 2.6
pISSN: 1735-1502
eISSN: 1735-5249
Chairman:
Mostafa Moin, M.D.
Editors-in-Chief:
Masoud Movahedi, M.D.
Vol 4, No 2 (2005)
Articles
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The last two decades have seen a massive growth in the application of DNA technology in Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics. This review summarises the history and application of DNA methods in this area.
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In spite of their key role in various immunological processes occurring in the endometrium, T cells- especially + subtype- residing in this mucosal tissue, have not been extensively explored. We present here the profile of expressed genes for variable region of chain of T cell receptor (TCR) in normal endometrium as compared to peripheral blood. Samples from endometrium were taken from normal fertile women during routine check-up by Pipelle pipette or after hysterectomy operation. Total RNA from both blood and endometrial samples was extracted and RT-PCR using BV gene specific primers was performed. After southern blotting, hybridization with radiolabelled specific probe and autoradiography, relative expression of each BV family was determined. Clonal expansions of the over-expressed genes were studied by determining their CDR3 length polymorphism. A total of 12 blood and 14 endometrial samples were collected. Only one TCRBV gene (TCRBV7) was expressed significantly more and 3 genes less frequently in the endometrium compared to blood. Also, two other genes (TCRBV10 and 12) were found marginally more frequent in the endometrium. As for their clonality, all 3 TCRBV genes examined here showed a rather restricted (oligoclonal) and in some cases, very restricted (probably monoclonal) pattern in the endometrium in contrast to polyclonal patterns in the blood. Our results indicate the similarities between T cells residing in different mucosal tissues and support their common recruitment and functional potentials. Moreover, our findings provide a basis for future investigations about endometrial T cell involvement and their antigen specificities in different gynecological problems.
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Apoptosis, a physiologic mechanism to eliminate unwanted cells, is also induced by ionizing irradiation, through production of free radicals. It has been demonstrated that antioxidants such as vitamin E are able to protect cells from damage caused by free radicals. Taken together we found it reasonable to make an attempt to evaluate the protective effect of vitamin E against apoptosis. The irradiated mice received 1 Gy/day gamma radiation for one day (low dose) or for three successive days (high dose, 3Gy). The splenocytes were then isolated at 6, 14 and 24 h after exposure. DNA gel electrophoresis and DNA fragmentation assay were done in addition to the evaluation of splenocytes cytology. Our results showed that Vitamin E can reduce apoptosis against low dose irradiation. However it is not able to completely block programmed cell death in high dose irradition.
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Bronchiolitis has been known as one of the pathological features of lung injuries in mustard gas exposed patients The purpose of this research was to evaluate the efficacy of interferon gamma-1b on the lung function in mustard gas exposed patients with bronchiolitis. In multicenter research interferon gamma-1b was effective in pulmonary fibrosis with unknown reason, but assessment of effect of interferon gamma-1b in the chemical injured patients has not so far been reported. Thirty six patients with bronchiolitis whose lung lesion had been diagnosed through the chest high resolution computerized tomography (HRCT) and pathological study were divided into two eighteen member case and control groups. The case group was treated for 6 months with a combination of 200 μg of interferon gamma-1b (given three times per week subcutaneously) and 7.5mg of prednisolone (given once a day), while the control group received their previous medications (prednisolone 7.5mg/day + salbutamol and beclomethasone spray PRN). In the two groups, FEV1 did not have statistical differences at base line (49.3±2.9 and 48.7±4.1, respectively, p = 0.6), whereas after treatment the data for FEV1 showed a significant increase in the case group (66.3±5.4) when compared with those in the control group (57.3±8.6, p=0.001). The findings of this study indicate that a 6-month treatment with interferon gamma -1b plus a low-dose of prednisolone is associated with the improvement of the lung function in mustard gas exposed patients with bronchiolitis
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Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection has been associated with a plethora of immune and autoimmune perturbations. A variety of conditions ranging from endocrinopathies to different skin diseases has been described in HCV infection. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and clinical significance of HCV infection in patients with graves’ disease (GD). A total of 55 patients with GD (30 women, 25 men, mean age: 35.24 ± 12.27 years) and 50 control subjects (28 women, 22 men, mean age: 33.34 ± 11.99 years) were examined. Third generation ELISA test was used for detection of antibodies to HCV in human sera, and anti-HCV seropositivity was confirmed by recombinant immunoblot assay (RIBA). All normal controls were anti-HCV negative whereas anti-HCV antibody was present in 1 patient with GD and confirmed by Western blotting. These results indicate that there was no significant difference of anti-HCV antibodies between patients and controls. In this study no relationship was found between GD and HCV infection, which imply that hepatitis C virus has not a direct causal role in the pathogenesis of GD, however, this does not rule out a “hit and run” virus induced disease.
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Varicella zoster virus (VZV), the causative agent of chicken pox and shingles, can cause severe systemic infections of the CNS and the respiratory tract in immunocompetent individuals as well as in immunocompromized patients. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to assess the prevalence of antibody Varicella zoster virus in different age groups. The enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method was used to assess the presence of anti -VZV antibody. A total of 635 serum samples were collected. Age specific prevalence of IgG antibody to VZV showed a progressive increase with age in both males and females. The overall seroprevalence rate was 83.6%. Prevalence of antibodies was 59.7% in the age group of less than 10 years, 60.4 % in 10-14 years, 87.5 % in 15-19 years, 88 % in 20-24 years, 89.4 % in 25-29 years and 87.9 % in 30-39 years. The data show that children should be considered as a target group for prevention programs against VZV infection.
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The prevalence of allergic diseases such as asthma and allergic rhinitis is high in general population and aeroallergens are the most common allergens that cause air way inflammation. The aim of this study was an evaluation of clinical and laboratory findings in allergic patients and identification of the most common aeroallergen in these patients. A cross–sectional retrospective study was conducted on 226 allergic patients who were referred to allergic clinic of Karaj city, and skin prick test response to aeroallergens were studied. The most common risk factors in these patients were total IgE more than 100 IU/ml and a positive family history of atopy. Skin prick testing results showed that the most common aeroallergens were: herbacee II (62%), sycamore (57%), chenopodium (53%), tree mix (50%), herbacee III (47%), grass (43%), ash (40%), herbacee I (37%), cedar (27%), cockroach (25%), and mite D.P (19%), D.F (18%). High prevalence of skin reactivity to weeds (chenopodium and herbacee) and sycamore indicates variation in the prevalence of aeroallergen reactivity in different regions with different climates.
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In this study, we report a mutation in CYBB gene in a patient with X-CGD (diagnosed on the base of family history, NDT test, DHR 123 assay). Mutation in CYBB gene was detected using SSCP analysis (single-strand conformation polymorphism) followed by sequencing. During screening for mutations in the CYBB gene we observed 880 C T in exon 8. This mutation resulted in 290 Arg Stop. We also observed a change (-270 C A) in the promoter region which needs further investigation. We would like to pursue this study by analyzing more X-CGD patients to find out the CYBB mutation spectrum in Iranian patients.
