Archives of Medical Laboratory Sciences

Background: Nowadays the use of herbs as an alternative to the chemical drug is considered by researchers. Aloe vera belongs to the Asphodelaceae family, a medicinal plant that has been used since ancient times for different pharmaceutical products. This study aimed to evaluate the antibacterial properties of Aloe vera grown in Khouzestan, southwest of Iran.

Materials and Methods:For this purpose, ethanol extract was prepared from aerial parts of Aloe vera and its activity was tested against some gram-positive (Enterococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus) and gram-negative (Pseudomonass aeruginosa, Salmonella Typhi, Proteus mirabilis) bacterial species through standard Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method. Minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration were also investigated.

Results: The Aloe vera extract showed antibacterial activity against the majority of bacteria. The highest activity (about 25mm inhibition zone) happened against P. aeruginosa but it did not show any inhibitory activity against S.aureus and P. mirabilis. The MIC was found as 10 mg/ml while MBC ≥ 80.

Conclusion: Based on the results of this study it can be suggested that Aloe vera contains active antibacterial substances that can be used efficiently for bacterial pathogen control and it should be considered as a potent antimicrobial source for finding new antibiotics, especially against resistant species.

Background: For exploring the relationship between metabolic changes and thyroid function in polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) patients, metabolic, endocrine, and thyroid parameters were assessed.

Materials and Methods: alterations in endocrine, metabolic, and clinical characteristics in PCOS patients compared with healthy women were studied within a prospective investigation. Also thyroid parameters were considered.

Results: 300 women with normal ovulatory as controls and PCOS patients were included and matched by age. There were significant increases in triglyceride (TG), cholesterol (CHL), and total dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in PCOS patients. Also, overall levels of Fast Blood Sugar (FBS), Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), Testosterone (T), Prolactin, and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) were higher in compared with the normal women, but these higher amounts were not significant. There was an insignificant decrease in Luteinizing hormone(LH), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and Free T4 in PCOS patients compared with the controls.

Conclusions: Our manuscript suggests the negative metabolic alterations in PCOS patients.The small increases of TG, CHL, and DHT levels may depend on these alterations in metabolic parameters in PCOS patients. Further investigations may clear a vague understanding of the relationship between metabolic parameters alteration and thyroid function.

Background: The incidence of metabolic syndrome has been rising in the Iran population. In parallel, vitamin D deficiency has also been increasing in Iran. This study aims to explore the association of vitamin D serum concentrations with metabolic syndrome and its components in the Iranian population.  Materials and Methods: A case-control study was managed. We enrolled 110 metabolic syndrome patients, according to the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III (ATP III) criteria as a case group and 130 healthy individuals as a control group. The serum level of 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25 (OH)D), lipid profile, and fasting blood glucose(FBS) status were determined using a commercially available ELISA method. Enzymatic methods determined total cholesterol (Chol), high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and triglyceride (TG) levels.  Results: In case group, the prevalence rate of 25 (OH)D deficiency (<10 ng/mL) was 10%, 25 (OH)D insufficiency (10–29 ng/mL) was 71.0%, and 25 (OH)D sufficiency (>30 ng/mL) was 19.0%. A non-significant association between Chol level and age was noted (p=0.46, p=0.124). The levels of FBS and TG were significantly higher, and the levels of 25 (OH)D, LDL, and HDL were significantly lower in the case of the group compared to the control group. Conclusion: We found that the serum level of 25 (OH)D in patients with metabolic syndrome is lower than in the healthy group, and a low level of 25 (OH)D is related to increased risk of metabolic syndrome and its components.

Background: Vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency generally observed in chronic kidney disease (CKD) and dialysis patients. The goal of this work was to compare the serum levels of vitamin D and its-related metabolic parameters in CKD patients and hemodialysis patients.

Materials and Methods: A total of 109 dialysis patients and 99 CKD patients who had not consumed vitamin D for ≥ 1 year were enrolled in this study. 25-Hydroxy vitamin D (25-(OH) D) levels, calcium, alkaline phosphatase (ALP), hemoglobin (Hb), hematocrit (HCT), total iron-binding capacity (TIBC), parathyroid hormone (PTH) and phosphorous were evaluated in the serum of the patients.

Results: 25-(OH) D levels in patients with CKD and dialysis patients were 31.73±13.34 ng/mL and 15.52±5.36 ng/mL, respectively. The levels of calcium (P=0.000), ALP (P=0.006), 25(OH) D (P=0.000), FBS (P=0.000), Hb (P=0.002), HCT (P=0.002) and TIBC (P=0.000) were significantly higher, and the levels of PTH (p=0.000) and phosphorous (P=0.000) were significantly lower in the CKD group compared to dialysis group.

Conclusion: 25-(OH) D levels and its metabolic parameters except PTH and phosphorus are lower in patients on dialysis compared with the patients with CKD.

Background and Aim: Gestational trophoblastic disease (GTD) is defined as a group of disorders; they are characterized by uncontrolled trophoblastic cell proliferation and overproduction of β-HCG. It seems that an inappropriate diet is one of the major risk factors of GTD. Regardless of the size of the uterus; mole depletion by curettage suction is usually the preferred treatment. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of vitamin A and curettage suction on the faster reduction of β-hCG level, and faster recovery of disease, consequently. Materials and Methods: In this study case (n=26) and control (n=26) groups received 50,000 IU of vitamin A intramuscularly, before and after curettage. β-hCG was measured weekly and after reaching zero every month for six months. RIA was used for measurement. Results: Vitamin A reduced the level of β-hCG to zero in the patient compared to the control, one week earlier; this effect was statistically significant (P-Value <0.05). One of the members of the control group during follow-up progressed to gestational trophoblastic disease (GTN). There was no significant relationship between ABO blood groups among the two groups (P-Value: 0.9). There was no significant relationship between gravity, parity and hematology parameters between the two groups (P-Value >0.05). Conclusion: Finally, it can be said that vitamin A intake in patients with GTD, along with other therapies, can improve the speed of recovery; it can prevent the disease progression. However, it does not prevent progression to GTN, completely. Therefore, further studies are needed in future studies.

Background and Aim: Helicobacter pylori is not only identified as a leading cause of chronic active gastritis and peptic ulcer disease in humans, but also it is considered as a risk factor for the development of gastric adenocarcinoma and MALT lymphoma. This study aims to predict specific epitopes for the utility of designing peptide vaccine against H. pylori infection by targeting invasive, virulent and membrane associated proteins CagA. Materials and Methods: In the present study, various immunoinformatics approaches have been applied to design a potential epitope-based vaccine against H. pylori infection. For prediction of linear epitopes, the sequence of CagA was submitted to ABCpred, BCPREDS, Bcepred, Bepipred and Ellipro servers. DiscoTope 2.0 and B-pred servers were also used for the prediction of conformational epitopes. In addition, prediction of T-cell epitopes was carried out by CTLPred. Results: The obtained results demonstrated 277 conformational B-Cell epitopes in addition to predicted high score linear B and T cell epitopes in CagA protein. Conclusion: These predicted epitopes might be used to design a vaccine against H. pylori and thus, could be validated in model hosts to verify their efficacy as vaccine.

Autoimmune neutropenia (AIN) is the frequent cause of neutropenia in infants and children. AIN is associated with a reduced neutrophil count, which is due to aberrant cell-mediated or humoral immune response. In this review, we will discuss the available diagnostic approaches and management of the diseases. We collected data from PubMed, Google Scholar, Medline, Web of Science databases, using a group of key words, such as neutropenia, autoimmune, diagnosis and management from 2000 until 2019. The most important aspects of primary assessment in the affected children were family history and physical examinations. Diagnostic methods in this disease are granulocyte indirect agglutination test (GAT) and granulocyte immunofluorescence test (GIFT). However, the sensitivity and specificity of these tests are low. In these patients, injection of granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF), is the first line of treatment. Despite low prevalence, autoimmune neutropenia is a clinically significant disease and it is critical to identify it and pursue effective treatment in these patients.