Primary gastrointestinal lymphoma.

BACKGROUND: Extranodal lymphoma may arise anywhere outside lymph nodes mostly in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract as non-Hodgkin's disease. We reviewed the clinicopathological features and treatment results of patients with primary GI lymphoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total number of 30 cases with primary GI lymphoma were included in this study. Patients referred to the Radiation Oncology Department of Omid Hospital (Mashhad, Iran) during a 5-year period (2006-11). Clinical, paraclinical, and radiological data was collected from medical records of the patients. RESULTS: Out of the 30 patients with primary GI lymphoma in the study, 12 were female (40%) and 18 were male (60%) (male to female ratio: 3/2). B symptoms were present in 27 patients (90%). Antidiuretic hormone (LDH) levels were elevated in 9 patients (32.1%). The most common primary site was stomach in 14 cases (46.7%). Other common sites included small intestine and colon each in 8 patients (26.7%). All patients had histopathologically proven non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The most common histologic subtype was diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBL) in 16 patients (53.3%). In addition, 28 patients (93.3%) received chemotherapy with cyclophosphamide, vincristine, doxorubicin, prednisolone (CHOP regimen). The median course of chemotherapy was 6 cources. Moreover, 8 patients (26.7%) received radiotherapy with cobalt 60. The median follow-up time was 26 months. The overall 5-year survival rate was 53% and the median survival time was 60 months. CONCLUSION: Primary GI lymphoma is commonly seen in stomach and small intestine and mostly is DLBCL or mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma.

Evaluating the expression of cyclooxygenase-2 enzyme by immunohistochemistry in normal and tumoral tissue before and after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in patients with esophageal cancer in Khorasan Province.

BACKGROUND: Esophageal cancer is the third most common cancer in Iran. Neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (NCRT) is the appropriate treatment for esophageal cancer. AIM: This study investigated the expression of cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 enzyme in normal and tumoral tissues before any treatment in patients with esophageal cancer, this study also assessed the effect of NCRT on the expression of COX-2 enzyme in normal and tumoral tissue in samples derived by surgery furthermore, and this study investigated the relationship between expression of COX-2 enzyme and the pathologic tumor regression grade (PTRG) patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, a total of 120 patients admitted to Omid Hospital, Imam Reza Hospitals, and Reza-Mashhad Medical Center, who were treated with NCRT, were recruited and the expression of the COX-2 enzyme in normal and tumoral tissues was assessed by immunohistochemistry before and after treatment by an expert pathologist between zero and 300. PTRG was determined by a pathologist after treatment. RESULTS: The mean levels of COX-2 expression, obtained from tumoral and normal tissue baseline biopsy in patients, were 177.69 and 64.29, respectively, while in surgical specimen were 177.25 and 49.84, respectively. A significant association was found between PTRG of surgical specimen and COX-2 expression in normal tissue (baseline biopsy) at diagnosis (P = 0.034). CONCLUSIONS: The results indicated that expression of COX-2 in tumoral tissues exceeds the expression of COX-2 in normal tissue of the baseline biopsy. Patients with a high expression of COX-2 in baseline tumor biopsies had less response to treatment of pathology compared to patients with lower expression of COX-2 in baseline tumor biopsies.

Expression of p53 in colorectal carcinoma: correlation with clinicopathologic features.

BACKGROUND: The p53 gene mutation is closely related to carcinogenesis in most malignant diseases. The main function of wild p53 protein is to maintain the integrity of genes by detecting mutations and preventing the division of cells with damaged DNA. The mutated form of p53 protein is overexpressed due to an extended half-life and can be easily detected by immunohistochemistry. OBJECTIVE: To estimate the frequency of p53 protein overexpression in colorectal carcinoma and its correlation with some clinicopathologic variables. METHODS: One hundred paraffin-preserved colorectal carcinoma samples were collected randomly from patients undergoing tumor resection from April 1995 through April 2001 in Omid Hospital, affiliated to Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran. The overexpression of p53 protein was studied using a monoclonal antibody (clone DO-7; Dako). The number of cells stained were classified semiquantitatively as (-): <5% positive cells, (+): 5 - 25% positive cells, (++): 25 - 75% positive cells, and (+++): >75% positive cells. Clinicopathologic data including gender, age, tumor location, histologic type, and stage (Astler-Coller) were collected from the files maintained at the Department of Pathology. The correlation between p53 protein overexpression and each variable was evaluated using Chi-square analysis. RESULTS: p53 staining was positive in 59 of 100 specimens. Out of these 100 specimens, 16 were weekly (+), 16 moderately (++), and 27 intensely (+++) positive for p53 protein over-expression. There was no significant correlation between p53 staining and gender (P = 0.34), age (< 40 vs. > or = 40 yr; P = 0.74), site of tumor (right vs. left colon and rectum; P = 0.26), pathologic type (mucinous vs. nonmucinous; P = 0.63), and stage of the disease (P = 0.12). CONCLUSION: Considering the p53 protein overexpression in a relatively high percentage of patients, it seems that p53 mutation plays an important role in development of colorectal carcinoma. There was no significant association between p53 protein expression and some common clinicopathologic variables such as age, gender, site of tumor, pathologic type, and stage of the disease.

Morphologic and molecular (28S rDNA) characterization of Dactylogyrus spp. in Cyprinus carpio and Ctenopharyngodon idella in Mashhad, Iran.

Dactylogyrids are a group of monogenean parasites that have a high species intensity on the gills of cyprinid fish. In this study, 89 common carp (Cyprinus carpio) and 25 grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) were collected from Mashhad, in northeastern Iran. A total of 31 Dactylogyrus specimens, 20 and 11 specimens from the gills of common carp and grass carp, respectively, were collected and studied by morphologic analysis and molecular analysis based on 28S rDNA. Four lineages were revealed: D. anchoratus, D. extensus, D. lamellatus, and a new species. Phylogenetic analysis showed that 2 species, namely D. extensus and D. lamellatus, were identical to those previously reported. In addition, nucleotide sequencing showed the greatest homology (93.01%) of D. anchoratus to be with a species registered as D. inexpectatus in the Basic Local Alignment Search Tool database. The new Dactylogyrus species formed a distinct clade of its own in the phylogram. From the morphologic, molecular, and phylogenetic evidence, we propose that this isolate is a single new species within the genus Dactylogyrus. Further phylogenetic analysis, however, including the incorporation of additional molecular targets, is required to infer relationships among species in the Dactylogyrus genus.

Les dactylogyrides sont un groupe de parasites monogéniques qui ont une intensité d'espèces élevée sur les ouïes des poissions cyprinidés. Dans la présente étude, 89 carpes communes (Cyprinus carpio) et 25 carpes de roseau (Ctenopharyngodon idella) ont été prélevées à Mashhad, dans le nord-est de l'Iran. Au total, 31 spécimens de Dactylogyrus, 20 et 11 spécimens provenant des ouïes de carpes communes et de carpe du roseau, respectivement, ont été obtenus et étudiés par analyse morphologique et analyse moléculaire basée sur l'ADNr 28S. Quatre lignées ont été révélées : D. anchoratus, D. extensus, D. lamellatus, et une nouvelle espèce. L'analyse phylogénétique a montré que deux espèces, nommément D. extensus et D. lamellatus, étaient identiques à celles déjà rapportées. De plus, le séquençage nucléotidique a montré que la plus grande homologie (93,01 %) de D. anchoratus était avec une espèce enregistrée comme D. inexpectatus dans la base de données BLAST. La nouvelle espèce de Dactylogyrus a formé un clade distinct unique dans le phylogramme. À partir des évidences morphologique, moléculaire, et phylogénétique, nous proposons que cet isolat représente une nouvelle espèce dans le genre Dactylogyrus. Toutefois, des analyses phylogénétiques supplémentaires, incluant l'incorporation de cibles moléculaires additionnelles, sont requises pour inférer des relations entre les espèces dans le genre Dactylogyrus.(Traduit par Docteur Serge Messier).

Evaluation of SCD and FASN Gene Expression in Baluchi, Iran-Black, and Arman Sheep.

BACKGROUND: With the increasing concern for health and nutrition, dietary fat has attracted considerable attention. The composition of fatty acids in the diet is important because they are associated with major diseases including cancers, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. The fatty acid synthase (FASN) and stearoyl-CoA desaturase (delta-9-desaturase) (SCD) genes affect fatty acid composition (1). The expression of SCD and FASN genes is related to an increase in conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) in dairy products, which benefits human health.The aim of current study was to investigate expression changes of SCD and FASN genes that resulted from crossbreeding the local Baluchi sheep with alien breeds. METHODS: We collected tissue samples from the mammary glands of 24 single-born ewes from local Baluchi and synthetic Iran-Black and Arman sheep breeds in the Abbas Abad breeding center. After RNA extraction and cDNA synthesis, real-time PCR was performed with all samples in triplicate. RESULTS: The maximum and minimum expression of SCD and FASN genes was in the local Baluchi sheep and the crossbred Arman sheep, respectively. CONCLUSION: With the highest SCD and FASN gene expression in local Baluchi sheep and relatively less expression of these genes in synthetic Iran-Black and Arman Sheep breeds, it may be necessary to consider the consequences of crossbreeding local sheep and the fatty acid composition of their dairy products.

The NRAMP1, VDR, TNF-α, ICAM1, TLR2 and TLR4 gene polymorphisms in Iranian patients with pulmonary tuberculosis: A case-control study.

The innate immune response drives early events in Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. Since human genetic variation is an important determinant in the outcome of infection with M. tuberculosis, we typed polymorphisms in the innate immune molecules, such as natural-resistance-associated macrophage protein 1 (NRAMP1), Vitamin D receptor (VDR), Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), intercellular adhesion molecule1 (ICAM-1), Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) and Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in a case-control study of pulmonary tuberculosis in Iranian population. We conducted an association study and included 96 patients and 122 matched healthy individuals. We used single ARMS-PCR technique to simultaneously genotype fourteen polymorphisms in this survey. Among all fourteen polymorphisms that were examined, three polymorphisms were significantly different between case and control groups. The TNF -308A polymorphism showed significant increase in allele and genotype frequencies among patients compared to control individuals [-308A allele: 19.3 vs. 9.4%, GA genotype: 28.1 vs. 17.2%, AA genotype: 5.2 vs. 0.8%; Corrected P (Pc)<0.05], and the TLR4 variant allele and genotypes prevalence (D299G and T399I) were significantly higher among patients compared to controls [DG genotype: 14.6 vs. 5.7%, Pc<0.05 and I399 allele: 4.2 vs. 0.8%, TI genotype: 8.3 vs. 1.6%; Pc<0.05], respectively. In conclusion, our data suggest that TLR4 (D299G and T399I) and TNF (-308G/A) genetic polymorphisms may influence the risk of developing tuberculosis after exposure to Mycobacterium.

Stage-Specific Profiling of Transforming Growth Factor-ß, Fibroblast Growth Factor and Wingless-int Signaling Pathways during Early Embryo Development in The Goat.

OBJECTIVE: This research intends to unravel the temporal expression profiles of genes in- volved in three developmentally important signaling pathways [transforming growth factor-ß (TGF-ß), fibroblast growth factor (FGF) and wingless/int (WNT)] during preand peri-implan- tation goat embryo development. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this experimental study, we examined the transcripts that encoded the ligand, receptor, intracellular signal transducer and modifier, and the down- stream effector, for each signaling pathway. In vitro mature MII oocytes and embryos at three distinctive stages [8-16 cell stage, day-7 (D7) blastocysts and day-14 (D14) blas- tocysts] were separately prepared in triplicate for comparative real-time reverse tran- scriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using the selected gene sets. RESULTS: Most components of the three signaling pathways were present at more or less stable levels throughout the assessed oocyte and embryo developmental stages. The transcripts for TGF-ß, FGF and WNT signaling pathways were all induced in unfertilized MII-oocytes. However, developing embryos showed gradual patterns of decrease in the activities of TGF-ß, FGF and WNT components with renewal thereafter. CONCLUSION: The results suggested that TGF-ß, FGF and WNT are maternally active signaling pathways required during earlier, rather than later, stages of preand peri- implantation goat embryo development.

Expression Profile of Developmentally Important Genes in preand peri-Implantation Goat Embryos Produced In Vitro.

BACKGROUND: Little is understood about the regulation of gene expression during early goat embryo development. This study investigated the expression profile of 19 genes, known to be critical for early embryo development in mouse and human, at five different stages of goat in vitro embryo development (oocyte, 8-16 cell, morula, day-7 blastocyst, and day 14 blastocyst). MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this experimental study, stage-specific profiling using real time-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) revealed robust and dynamic patterns of stage-specific gene activity that fall into four major clusters depending on their respective mRNA profiles. RESULTS: The gradual pattern of reduction in the maternally stored transcripts without renewal thereafter (cluster-1: Lifr1, Bmpr1, Alk4, Id3, Ctnnb, Akt, Oct4, Rex1, Erk1, Smad1 and 5) implies that their protein products are essential during early cleavages when the goat embryo is silent and reliant to the maternal legacy of mRNA. The potential importance of transcription augment at day-3 (cluster-2: Fzd, c-Myc, Cdc25a, Sox2) or day- 14 (cluster-3: Fgfr4, Nanog) suggests that they are nascent embryonic mRNAs which intimately involved in the overriding of MET or regulation of blastocyst formation, respectively. The observation of two expression peaks at both day-3 and day-14 (cluster-4: Gata4, Cdx2) would imply their potential importance during these two critical stages of preand periimplantation development. CONCLUSION: Evolutionary comparison revealed that the selected subset of genes has been rewired in goat and human/goat similarity is greater than the mouse/goat or bovine/goat similarities. The developed profiles provide a resource for comprehensive understanding of goat preimplantation development and pluripotent stem cell engineering as well.

Nevasic audio program for the prevention of chemotherapy induced nausea and vomiting: A feasibility study using a randomized controlled trial design.

PURPOSE: Pharmacological therapy is only partially effective in preventing or treating chemotherapy induced nausea and vomiting (CINV). Therefore, exploring the complementary role of non-pharmacological approaches used in addition to pharmacological agents is important. Nevasic uses specially constructed audio signals hypothesized to generate an antiemetic reaction. The aim of this study was to examine the feasibility of conducting a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to evaluate the effectiveness of Nevasic to control CINV. METHODS: A mixed methods design incorporating an RCT and focus group interviews. For the RCT, female breast cancer patients were randomized to receive either Nevasic plus usual care, music plus usual care, or usual care only. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and linear mixed-effects models. Five focus group interviews were conducted to obtain participants' views regarding the acceptability of the interventions in the trial. RESULTS: 99 participants were recruited to the RCT and 15 participated in focus group interviews. Recruitment targets were achieved. Issues of Nevasic acceptability were highlighted as weaknesses of the program. This study did not detect any evidence for the effectiveness of Nevasic; however, the results showed statistically significant less use of anti-emetics (p = 0.003) and borderline non-significant improvement in quality of life (p = 0.06). CONCLUSIONS: Conducting a non-pharmacological intervention using such an audio program is feasible, although difficulties and limitations exist with its use. Further studies are required to investigate the effectiveness of Nevasic from perspectives such as anti-emetic use, as well as its overall effect on the levels of nausea and vomiting.

Evaluation of estrogen receptor expression and its relationship with clinicopathologic findings in gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND: The presence of estrogen receptor alpha has been reported in the cell and tissue levels in gastric cancer; however, its impact on patients' survival remains unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of estrogen receptor in gastric carcinoma as well as its relationship with the clinicopathologic findings of the patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was performed on 100 endoscopic biopsies of gastric adenocarcinoma for estrogen receptor expression using an immunohistochemical method, and their relationship with the clinicopathologic findings of the patients, such as age, gender, tumor site, size, grade, depth of tumor invasion (T), and lymphatic status (N), were analyzed using independent sample t-test and Pearson Chi-square test. A P < 0.05 was considered significant in all analyses. RESULTS: Using an immunohistochemical method on endoscopic biopsies of 74 males and 26 females with the mean age of 63 years, estrogen receptor was found to be positive in 41% of patients. No significant difference was found between estrogen receptor expression and other clinicopathologic findings (P = 0.75). There was a significant difference between estrogen receptor (+) and estrogen receptor (-) groups in nodal involvement (P = 0.001). The estrogen receptor (+) patients had more number of lymph nodes involved. CONCLUSION: This study showed that lymph node involvement has a significant relationship with estrogen receptor expression. However, no significant relationship was found between estrogen receptor expression and other clinicopathologic findings such as age, gender, tumor site in stomach, tumor size, tumor grade, and T-stage.

Lentiviral vector-mediated transduction of goat undifferentiated spermatogonia.

Recent studies show that spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) are able to colonize and form mature spermatozoa following transplantation into germ cell depleted testes of recipient males. Therefore, efficient ways for enrichment and gene transfer into SSCs provides a powerful tool for production of transgenic animals. In order to adapt the technique to goats, three issues were addressed: (i) enrichment of the undifferentiated spermatogonia including SSCs using magnetic activated cell sorting (MACS), (ii) lentiviral vector-mediated transduction of an enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) transgene into enriched cells, and (iii) transplantation of transduced undifferentiated spermatogonia into the germ cell depleted testes of immune-suppressed mice to assess for migration and colony formation ability. Enriched cells were transduced by lentiviral vectors and subsequently analyzed for expression of THY1, PLZF, VASA, UCHL1 and BCL6B genes. Cells were also analyzed for GFP and PLZF by flow cytometry. Enriched transduced cells were transplanted into germ cell depleted mice testis. Quantitative analysis of transcripts revealed that MACS-enrichment significantly increased the expression of SSC-characteristic genes THY1, PLZF, VASA, UCHL1 and BCL6B compared to non-enriched population (P≤0.05). EGFP transduction did not affect the expression levels of SSC-characteristic genes. Flow cytometry revealed that 72% of transduced-enriched cells were positive for EGFP. Finally, transduced-enriched goat SSCs could colonize within the cells into the seminiferous tubules of germ cell depleted recipient mice at higher frequency than non-enriched cells. The results indicated that enrichment of goat undifferentiated spermatogonia by magnetic-activated cell sorting for THY1 antibody combined with lentiviral vector-mediated transduction has the potential to be used for production of transgenic goats.

An evolutionary relationship between Stearoyl-CoA Desaturase (SCD) protein sequences involved in fatty acid metabolism.

BACKGROUND: Stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD) is a key enzyme that converts saturated fatty acids (SFAs) to monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) in fat biosynthesis. Despite being crucial for interpreting SCDs' roles across species, the evolutionary relationship of SCD proteins across species has yet to be elucidated. This study aims to present this evolutionary relationship based on amino acid sequences. METHODS: Using Multiple Sequence Alignment (MSA) and phylogenetic construction methods, a hypothetical evolutionary relationship was generated between the stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD) protein sequences between 18 different species. RESULTS: SCD protein sequences from Homo sapiens, Pan troglodytes (chimpanzee), and Pongo abelii (orangutan) have the lowest genetic distances of 0.006 of the 18 species studied. Capra hircus (goat) and Ovis aries (Sheep) had the next lowest genetic distance of 0.023. These farm animals are 99.987% identical at the amino acid level. CONCLUSIONS: The SCD proteins are conserved in these 18 species, and their evolutionary relationships are similar.

Hepatitis-C Infection Incidence Among the non-Hodgkin's B-cell Lymphoma Patients in the Northeast of Iran.

BACKGROUND: Various infectious agents like Ebstein Barr Virus (EBV), HTLV-1 and Helicobacter pylori have known as etiologic factors in different sub-types of lymphoma. Although Hepatitis C virus (HCV) has not only been important for its hepatotropism and hepatitis development, but also in recent years its association with some forms of non- Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL), especially B cell NHL, has reported.In some countries, the rate of B cell NHL development in HCV infected patients was four times more than general population, and then association between HCV infection and B-NHL has proposed in many studies. METHODS: To assess this relationship in our geographic region, in a descriptive study; we have evaluated patients with B-NHL in an oncology center in northeast of Iran for HCV infection. RESULTS: Out of 128 B-NHL patients, HCV Antibody test (with third generation ELISA method) was positive in only one patient, which confirmed with Nested PCR technique. Then the frequency of HCV infection in our patients was 0.7%. CONCLUSION: Respecting to the incidence of HCV infection in general population in Iran, which is between 0.5-1%, we couldn't show higher prevalence of HCV infection in NHL patients than general population, and hence couldn't confirm relation between HCV infection and B-NHL in our region.

THY1 as a reliable marker for enrichment of undifferentiated spermatogonia in the goat.

Spermatogonial stem cells are unique cells of testes that can restore fertility upon transplantation into recipient testes. However, use of suitable markers for enrichment of these cells have important potential application. THY1, is an established conserved marker of spermatogonial stem cells in bovine, rodents, and primates, but there is no information available in goats. After three rounds of enzymatic digestion of prepubertal goat testicular tissues, undifferentiated spermatogonia positive for THY1 were isolated by magnetic-activated cell sorting and were used for immunocytochemistry, real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis for gene expression, protein expression, and transplantation into recipient mice. Immunocytochemical analyses showed that significantly higher percentage of THY1(+) cells were positive for PLZF and VASA when compared with unselected population. This result for PLZF was further confirmed at the protein level. Real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis revealed that expression of THY1, PLZF, VASA, BCL6B, and UCHL1 as SCCs characteristic genes in THY1(+) cells was significantly higher than in the initial population. Finally, transplantation of PKH26-labeled cells revealed that THY1(+) cells had higher capacity for colony formation when compared with unselected cells. In conclusion, the results provide indications that THY1 surface marker can be reliably used for enrichment of undifferentiated spermatogonial in the goats.

Identification of Dactylogyrus spp. and other parasites of common carp in northeast of Iran.

This research was carried out in order to get overview of current status of infestation with Dactylogyrus spp. and other parasites in common carp (Cyprinus carpio) collected from the ponds around Mashhad in northeast of Iran. A total of 100 common carps from March to December 2011, 61 (61 %) specimens were hosts to parasites. Monogenea dominated the parasite load most of all fishes, whereas Argulus foliaceus (Arthropoda) was the less parasite. Parasites were found as followed: Dactylogyrus extensus (29 %), Dactylogyrus anchoratus (2 %), Ichthyophthirius multifiliis (10 %), Trichodina nigra (7 %), Capillaria spp. (5 %), Procaecum spp. (2 %), Argulus foliaceus (2 %), and Lernaea cyprinacea (4 %). Seasonal changes in the abundance of parasites were evident for most taxa in which the prevalence of parasitic infection and diversity were more in summer than other seasons. The result of this study provide a better aquaculture conditions and help to solve some of the problems of fish farmers.

Comparison of hormone receptor status in primary and recurrent breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: Systematic treatments such as hormone and chemotherapy are selected according to tumor characteristic after major therapeutic approaches such as surgery. This study attempted to analyze and compare the status of Estrogen Receptor (ER) and Progesterone Receptor (PR) in primary and recurrent sites of breast cancer in patients. METHODS: We reviewed all medical records of breast cancer women who were treated between January 1995 and December 2008. One hundred eighty two out of 2241 patients (8.12%) had a metastatic breast cancer. Amongst them 48 patients had tumor and biopsy-driven samples, however 13 samples were destroyed and only 35 samples were investigated in this study, therefore 35 malignant biopsy specimens of breast cancer patients were examined by immunohistochemistry essay for ER and PR. Binominal proportional test and Chi square test were conducted to determine the significant correlation between positive cases of hormone receptors among primary and metastases sites. RESULTS: Hormone Receptor in the primary tumor (HR1) of 9 patients (25.7%) was positive (ER1 and/or PR1) and in the recurrent areas (HR2) of 8 patients (22.9%) was positive (either ER2 or PR2 positive). Kappa coefficients of diagnostic agreement in primary and recurrent cases were 0.077 and 0.125 for estrogen and progesterone, respectively which indicated that the amount of coefficient of agreement is not considerable between primary and recurrent sites. CONCLUSION: The current study indicated that receptor status in recurrent tumors did not pose predictable value based on the analysis of hormone receptors in primary stage, so it is not an appropriate basis to set up therapeutic protocol in the metastatic patients. Therefore, tissue sampling and hormone receptor re-analyzing of metastatic sites should be considered in these cases.

Improved bovine ICSI outcomes by sperm selected after combined heparin-glutathione treatment.

Despite widespread application of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) in human-assisted reproductive techniques (ART), the efficiency of this method is still far from satisfactory in livestock, particularly in the bovine species with its unique sperm condensation. On the basis of the natural chemical structure of chromatin in condensed sperm, we developed a novel combined heparin-reduced glutathione (GSH) sperm pretreatment that improves the efficiency of bovine ICSI via selection of the most appropriate sperm at the time of ICSI. Assessment of sperm DNA integrity revealed that this pretreatment can be considered as a safe and efficient approach for in vitro sperm decondensation when compared to conventional sperm pretreatments with dithiothreitol (DTT). Injection of completely decondensed bull sperm derived from this pretreatment significantly improved fertilization and blastocyst formation rates compared to untreated or intact sperm injection (34.8 ± 2.7 and 29.1 ± 1.5 vs. 12.0 ± 3.2 and 15.9 ± 1.2%, respectively; p<0.05). Real-time PCR analysis revealed that expression of pluripotent and anti-apoptosis markers in blastocysts derived by injection of completely decondensed sperm from heparin-GSH pretreatment were comparable to IVF when compared to the DTT pretreatment and control ICSI groups (p<0.05). The results of this study suggested that the degree of sperm decondensation derived from heparin-GSH pretreatment may affect ICSI efficiency in bovine.

Primary bone lymphoma: a clinicopathological retrospective study of 28 patients in a single institution.

BACKGROUND: Primary bone lymphoma (PBL) is a rare disease and distinct clinicopathological entity. The optimal treatment strategy is still unclear. Because of rarity of PBL, we report our institute experience in PBL clinicopathological feature and treatment results. METHODS: 28 patients diagnosed with PBL were referred to Omid Hospital, cancer research center (CRC), between March 2001 and February 2009. Immunophenotype studies on 16 out of 28 pathological blocks were performed. We analyzed disease free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) rates. RESULTS: 14 patients with PBL were analyzed retrospectively. 17 patients (60.7%) were male and 11 (39.3%) were female with a median age of 41 years (range: 11-79). Long bones were the most primarily site of involvement (71%). 26 (93%) patients had diffuse large B cell lymphoma and 2 (7%) had small lymphoblastic lymphoma. One (3%) patient received radiation alone, 18 (66%) cases received combined modality (chemotherapy + radiotherapy) and 8 (30%) received only chemotherapy during their treatment period. The median follow up was 18 months (range: 1-82). Mean DFS was 51 months (range: 37-66). Overall survival (OS) was 54 months (range: 40-68). OS was significantly better in the chemoradiotherapy group compared with other two groups (64 versus 27 months, respectively, p=0.014). DFS was also significantly better in combined modality arm compared with other two groups (64 versus 21 months, respectively, p=0.003). CONCLUSIONS: In spite of small number of patients reported in this study, combined modality treatment (chemotherapy and radiotherapy) was shown to be useful as an effective treatment strategy in PBL.