Analysis of CTLA-4+49A/G gene polymorphism in cases with leprosy of Azerbaijan, Northwest Iran.

Leprosy, which is developed by the obligate intracellular Mycobacterium leprae (ML); has different manifestations, associated with the host immune responses. The protective immune response against ML includes T-cell-mediated immunity. The CTLA-4 has a great impact as a negative regulator of the immune response and maintenance of peripheral tolerance. This study analyzed the relationship between CTLA-4+49A/G gene polymorphism and clinical manifestation of leprosy disease and susceptibility among the Azeri population living Northwest Iran. One hundred and ninety-two leprosy patients and 185 healthy controls participated in the study. CTLA-4+49A/G genotyping was conducted via tetra-primer amplification refractory mutation system-polymerase chain reaction (T-ARMS-PCR) analysis. The allelic and genotypic frequencies of +49A/G gene polymorphism were similar in controls and patients. However, older ages, older age of onset and over-representation in male were observed in lepromatous leprosy patient carriers of GG genotype. The current study demonstrates that although CTLA-4+49A/G polymorphism was not correlated with a higher genetic risk for leprosy, the presence of a GG genotype was associated with older ages, older age of onset and over-representation in male in Iranian Azeri population.

Restoration of miR-143 expression could inhibit migration and growth of MDA-MB-468 cells through down-regulating the expression of invasion-related factors.

INTRODUCTION: Breast adenocarcinoma is the second common cancer in women the incidence of which is increasing in many countries, especially in developing companies. In this study, miRNA143 has been replaced by vector based microRNA-143 in breast adenocarcinoma cells (MDA-MB-468) and its anti-cancer effects on breast adenocarcinoma cells have been evaluated. METHODS: The pCMV-MIR-143 vector was transfected into MDA-MB-468 cells via JetPEI transfection reagent. The transfected cells were selected by IC50 concentration of Geneticin antibiotic (G418) after a 2-week treatment. To evaluate the effect of miR-143 on the inhibition of migration, scratch wound healing assay was performed. Then, the expression level of miR-143, Kras, Vimentin, CXCR4, MMP9 and E-Cadherin were measured by the qRT-PCR method. RESULTS: Results of MTT and wound healing assays showed that miR-143 inhibited cell growth and cell migration in miR-143 induced cell line compared with control group. The result of gene expression showed that miR-143 reduced Kras, Vimentin, CXCR4 and MMP9 expression, and increased E-Cadherin expression in miR-143 replaced cells compared to control cells. CONCLUSION: The results showed that miRNA-143 plays an important role in cell growth and migration during breast cancer development and metastasis and it can be a candidate as a therapeutic molecule in microRNA replacement therapy of breast adenocarcinoma.