Association of High Serum Leptin Level with Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma: A Case-Control Study

Background: Recently, the prevalence of thyroid cancer has increased. Although there are known risk factors for thyroid cancer, none of them can justify this recent increase. In addition to the known risk factors, other risk factors have been proposed. Leptin can be considered as one of these risk factors due to the recent increase in the prevalence of obesity in the population. Leptin is a common factor in obesity and thyroid cancer. Leptin exerts anti-apoptotic and mitogenic effects on cancer cells and also acts as an angiogenic factor. This study aimed to evaluate the serum leptin level in individuals who suffer from papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), cases with benign thyroid nodules (BTN), and a healthy group. Materials and Methods: In this study, newly diagnosed patients with PTC, BTNs, as well as euthyroid healthy control subjects without nodules were included. In all these participants, various clinical and laboratory parameters including thyroid function tests and serum leptin levels were measured and compared between the three study groups. For patients with PTC, leptin was assessed 12 weeks after total thyroidectomy. Results: Ninety-one cases with PTC, 90 cases with BTNs, and 88 controls were recruited. Serum leptin levels in the PTC group, benign group, and the control group were 22.34, 17.60, and 13.83 ng/ml, respectively, which was considerably higher in PTC cases compared to those with benign nodules and control group (P<0.001). There was a significant association between leptin with BMI, tumor size, and tumor stage in PTC patients. Also, in patients with BTNs, a correlation between BMI, tumor size, and leptin was observed. Conclusion: Serum leptin levels were considerably higher in cases with PTC than those with BTNs and controls and can be considered as a potential tumor marker for papillary thyroid cancer.

Seroprevalence and risk factors of hepatitis delta virus in chronic hepatitis B virus infection in Zahedan

Hepatitis delta virus (HDV) infection results in more severe and even fulminant form of hepatitis B in co-infected cases. This study was designed to estimate the prevalence of anti-HDV positivity and the associated risk factors in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus infection in Zahedan (Iran). In this cross-sectional study a total of 440 consecutive patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection attending the Zahedan Gastroenterology and Hepatology clinics from 2008 to 2011 were included. We performed test for HDV serum marker, using commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. Patients were split into two groups according to their HDV antibody status as HDV positive or negative. The collected data were coded, and the statistical analyses were conducted. Four hundred and forty patients with various forms of chronic HBV-related liver diseases enrolled in the study. 200 (45.5%) patients were carrier for HBV. 196 (44.5%) patients had chronic active hepatitis and 44 (10%) patients suffered from cirrhosis. Anti-HDV was demonstrated in 75 patients (17%). The prevalence of HDV was 7%, 16.3% and 65.9% in carriers, patients with chronic active hepatitis and cirrhosis, respectively. HDV infection is still an important public health problem in Zahedan and appears a major cause of progression of liver disease induced by HBV.

Association between polymorphisms of glutathione S-transferase genes (GSTM1, GSTP1 and GSTT1) and breast cancer risk in a sample Iranian population

Aim: Genetic and environmental factors are risk factors for breast cancer. Our aim was to investigate the associations between genetic polymorphism of GST genes (GSTM1, GSTT1 and GSTP1) and susceptibility to breast cancer in an Iranian population. Materials & methods: This case–control study was carried out on 134 patients with breast cancer and 152 healthy, cancer-free women. GSTP1 polymorphism was determined using tetra-primer amplification refractory mutation system PCR assay and GSTM1 and GSTT1 were genotyped by a multiplex PCR. Results: We found that the GSTM1 null genotype is a risk factor for predisposition to breast cancer (odds ratio [OR] = 2.01; 95% CI = 1.78–3.45; p = 0.010). No significant difference was found between the groups regarding GSTT1 null genotype (p > 0.05). The GSTP1 Ile/Val and Val/Val genotypes were associated with breast cancer risk (OR = 3.29; 95% CI = 1.84–5.91; p < 0.0001 and OR = 20.68; 95% CI = 5.66–75.60; p < 0.0001, respectively). Conclusion: In summary, GSTM1 and GSTP1, but not GSTT1 genetic polymorphisms are associated with increased risk of breast cancer in our population.

Comparison of adenosine deaminase levels in serum and synovial fluid between patients with rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis

OBJECTIVES

Adenosine deaminase (ADA) is an enzyme being involved in purine metabolism and plays a significant role in the immune system. The aim of this study was to investigate the use of adenosine deaminase levels in differentiating between rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Thirty patients with rheumatoid arthritis and 30 osteoarthritis patients enrolled the study. They were matched in sex and age. Using the ROC curve, we determined the optimal serum and synovial cutoff for rheumatoid effusion.

RESULTS

The results showed a statistically significant difference between ADA levels in joint effusion and serum of patients with rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis (p<0.001). Synovial fluid cutoff value for diagnosing rheumatoid arthritis was 20 with a sensitivity of 90% and specificity of 80% and the serum cutoff value was 15 with a sensitivity of 93% and specificity of 53.3%. Area under ROC curve for synovial ADA, ESR and CRP co-linearity was 99%.

CONCLUSION

We concluded that synovial total ADA assay can be a sensitive and specific test, being suitable for rapid diagnosis of rheumatoid effusions.