Dysregulated miRNA-375, IL-17, TGF-ß, and Microminerals Are Associated with Calpain-10 SNP 19 in Diabetic Patients: Correlation with Diabetic Nephropathy Stages.

Zinc (Zn) and copper (Cu) have been shown to have the potential to improve glucose metabolism through interactions with cytokines and signaling events with multiple genes. miRNA-375 and the Calpin-10 gene are potential genetic biomarkers for the early prediction of diabetic nephropathy (DN). 128 healthy controls and 129 type 2 diabetic (T2DM) participants were matched for age and sex. Three subgroups were identified from the T2DM group: 39 patients had microalbuminuria, 41 had macroalbuminuria, and 49 patients had renal problems. Circulating miR-375 expression levels were measured via qPCR. Calpain-10 SNP 19 (rs3842570) genotyping was assessed with allele-specific PCR in all the included participants. Spectrophotometry was used to measure the concentrations of serum copper, zinc, and magnesium, while ELISA was used to measure the levels of TGF-ß and IL-17. There was significant up-regulation in the expression of miR-375 and serum levels of TGF-ß, IL-17, Cu, and the Cu/Zn ratio, whereas, in contrast to the control group, the Zn and Mg levels were lower in the T2DM group. The DN groups had significantly lower miR-375, TGF-ß, IL-17, Mg, and Zn levels compared with the T2DM without nephropathy group. Furthermore, between TGF-ß, IL-17, and miRNA-375, there were notable correlations. Calpain-10 SNP 19 genotype 22 and allele 2 were linked to a higher incidence of T2DM and DN. Significant TGF-ß, Cu, Cu/Zn ratio, HbAc1, and creatinine levels, but insignificant miRNA-375 levels, were associated with genotype 22 of Calpain-10 SNP 19. interactions between the Calpain-10 SNP 19 genotype 22 and IL-17, TGF-ß, mineral levels, and miRNA-375 might contribute to the aetiology of DN and T2DM and may have clinical implications for diagnosis and management.

Perineural Platelet-Rich Plasma for Diabetic Neuropathic Pain, Could It Make a Difference?

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical effect of perineural platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection for pain and numbness alleviation in diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN). STUDY DESIGN: A randomized prospective clinical trial. SETTING: Pain clinic and Rheumatology and Rehabilitation Departments, Assiut University Hospital. METHODS: Sixty adult patients with type II DM accompanied by DPN of at least six months' duration were assessed by modified Toronto Clinical Neuropathy Score (mTCNS) and randomly allocated into two groups. Group I underwent ultrasound-guided perineural PRP injection and medical treatment, and Group II received medical treatment only. Patients were followed up at months 1, 3, and 6 with regard to pain and numbness visual analog scale (VAS) and mTCNS scores. RESULTS: Significant improvement was recorded in pain and numbness VAS scale scores in group I vs group II (P ≤ 0.001 during the whole study period for both parameters); at the same time, mTCNS improved in group I in comparison with group II with P = 0.01, 0.001, and <0.001 at months 1, 3, and 6, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Perineural PRP injection is an effective therapy for alleviation of diabetic neuropathy pain and numbness and enhancement of peripheral nerve function.

CXCL10 as a biomarker of interstitial lung disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

INTRODUCTION: Pulmonary involvement is a frequent and serious rheumatoid arthritis (RA) manifestation that affects 60%-80% of patients. CXCL10 is an inflammatory chemokine that regulates different biological responses, such as chemotaxis, angiogenesis, and inflammation. AIM: This study aimed to identify the role of CXCL10 as a peripheral blood marker of RA-ILD and its correlation with disease activity. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 73 patients with RA (33 with ILD and 40 without ILD). Pulmonary function tests and high-resolution computed tomography were performed. Blood samples were taken for complete blood count and blood chemistry analysis, and human interferon-inducible protein 10 (IP-10/CXCL10) level. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (version 22) was used for all statistical calculations. RESULTS: The serum CXCL10 level and patient age (r=.393, p=.024), disease duration (r=.756, p<0.001), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (r=.516, p=.002), C-reactive protein (r=.539, p=.001), and rheumatoid factor (r=.663, p<.001) revealed a significant positive correlation. Furthermore, the Modified Health Assessment Questionnaire (r=-.418, p=.015) revealed a significant negative correlation. Patients with RA-ILD show significantly higher CXCL10 than those without ILD (p<.001). CONCLUSION: CXCL10 is a useful RA disease activity biomarker and is an RA-ILD-sensitive biomarker, also CXCL10 is a significant predictor for development of RA-ILD.

Evaluation of diagnostic performance of a rapid antigen test in diagnosing COVID-19.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is our time's major global health crisis and the greatest health challenge. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) is the gold standard technique for diagnosis of symptomatic cases and asymptomatic carriers. By 2020, antigen rapid tests have been approved for use in Covid-19 testing by regulatory bodies all over the world owing to their benefits as they are rapid and cost effective. This work aimed to determine the diagnostic sensitivity and accuracy of the SARS-CoV-2 rapid antigen test in the detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection compared to RT-PCR data. The study included 111 symptomatic COVID-19 patients and 20 control subjects. Of the 111 study patients, 91 patients (81.98%) were positive by RT-PCR and 20 patients negative. The BIOZEK antigen COVID-19 Ag rapid test device was evaluated using sera from the 111 symptomatic COVID-19 patients. Of the 91 RT-PCR positive patients, 81 (90.1%) were positive by the antigen rapid diagnostic test (Ag-RDT). The control subjects were negative by both tests. The overall sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV, and accuracy of the Ag-RDT were 91.11%, 100%, 100%, 68.9%, and 91.8%, respectively and these increased as the level of viremia increased. In conclusion, the used Ag-RDT showed high sensitivity and accuracy for detecting of a SARS-CoV-2 infection, especially when the viral load was high. However, the test lacks sensitivity particularly in those with low viral load.

Maternal urinary vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) versus N.T. pro brain natriuretic peptide (NT-pro BNP) as novel biomarkers for placental accreta spectrum (PAS): A case-control study.

This study planned to compare the predictive ability of maternal urinary vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) versus N-terminal pro B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-pro BNP) for prediction of placenta accreta spectrum (PAS). This was a prospective case-control study carried out in a tertiary university hospital. It included pregnant women between 37-39 weeks. The study included 50 pregnant women classified in two groups. Group (Ι, n=25) were pregnant women with PAS, and group (II, n=25) women with uncomplicated pregnancies, as controls. Urine samples were collected, and quantitative analyses of VEGF and NT-pro BNP were performed by ELISA. VEGF was assessed with a cut point of 215.6 pg/ml and NT-pro BNP with a cut point of 182.2 pg/ml to predict the condition of PAS. Both biomarkers were good predictors of PAS with the area under the ROC curve (AUC) equal to (0.871 and 0.904), respectively. However, maternal urinary VEGF levels could predict PAS better than NT-pro BNP (OR=9.967, 95%CI 2.032-48.879, p=0.005) versus (OR=8.066, 95% CI 1.520 - 42.811, p=0.014) in NT-pro BNP. In conclusion, third trimester urinary levels of both VEGF and NT-pro BNP appear to be s crucially good predictors for PAS. However, VEGF is superior to NT-pro BNP in predicting women with PAS. These biomarkers present promising candidates as they can help to detect patients at high probability of PAS. They can be assessed by non-invasive, simple, and low-cost procedures.

CXCL10 as a biomarker of interstitial lung disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis / CXCL10 como biomarcador de enfermedad pulmonar intersticial en pacientes con artritis reumatoide

Introduction: Pulmonary involvement is a frequent and serious rheumatoid arthritis (RA) manifestation that affects 60%–80% of patients. CXCL10 is an inflammatory chemokine that regulates different biological responses, such as chemotaxis, angiogenesis, and inflammation. Aim: This study aimed to identify the role of CXCL10 as a peripheral blood marker of RA-ILD and its correlation with disease activity. Patients and methods: This cross-sectional study included 73 patients with RA (33 with ILD and 40 without ILD). Pulmonary function tests and high-resolution computed tomography were performed. Blood samples were taken for complete blood count and blood chemistry analysis, and human interferon-inducible protein 10 (IP-10/CXCL10) level. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (version 22) was used for all statistical calculations. Results: The serum CXCL10 level and patient age (r=.393, p=.024), disease duration (r=.756, p<0.001), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (r=.516, p=.002), C-reactive protein (r=.539, p=.001), and rheumatoid factor (r=.663, p<.001) revealed a significant positive correlation. Furthermore, the Modified Health Assessment Questionnaire (r=−.418, p=.015) revealed a significant negative correlation. Patients with RA-ILD show significantly higher CXCL10 than those without ILD (p<.001). Conclusion: CXCL10 is a useful RA disease activity biomarker and is an RA-ILD-sensitive biomarker, also CXCL10 is a significant predictor for development of RA-ILD.(AU)

Introducción: La afección pulmonar es una manifestación frecuente y grave de la artritis reumatoide (AR) que afecta al 60-80% de los pacientes. CXCL10 es una quimiocina inflamatoria que regula diferentes respuestas biológicas, como la quimiotaxis, la angiogénesis y la inflamación. Propósito: Este estudio tuvo como objetivo identificar el papel de CXCL10 como marcador en sangre periférica de RA-ILD y su correlación con la actividad de la enfermedad. Pacientes y métodos: Estudio transversal que incluyó a 73 pacientes con AR (33 con EPI y 40 sin EPI). Se realizaron pruebas de función pulmonar y tomografía computarizada de alta resolución. Se tomaron muestras de sangre para hemograma completo y análisis de química sanguínea y el nivel de proteína 10 inducible por interferón humano (IP-10/CXCL10). Se utilizó el paquete estadístico para las ciencias sociales (versión 22) para todos los cálculos estadísticos. Resultados: El nivel sérico de CXCL10 y la edad del paciente (r=0,393, p=0,024), la duración de la enfermedad (r=0,756, p<0,001), la velocidad de sedimentación globular (r=0,516, p=0,002), la proteína C reactiva (r=0,539, p=0,001) y el factor reumatoide (r=0,663, p<0,001) revelaron una correlación positiva significativa. Además, el Cuestionario de Evaluación de la Salud Modificado (r=−0,418, p=0,015) reveló una correlación negativa significativa. Los pacientes con RA-ILD muestran un CXCL10 significativamente mayor que aquellos sin ILD (p<0,001). Conclusión: CXCL10 es un biomarcador útil de la actividad de la enfermedad de AR y es un biomarcador sensible a AR-ILD, también CXCL10 es un predictor significativo para el desarrollo de AR-ILD.(AU)