Comparison of insulin expression levels in white blood cells of infants with and without family history of type II diabetes

Background: Type II diabetes is known as one of the most important, prevalent, and expensive diseases of mankind. Late diagnosis and subsequent delayed initiation of treatment or surveillance of patients create a variety of problems for affected individuals. This has raised increasing concerns for public health authorities throughout the world. In the current study, we aimed to find a new approach for early identification of high-risk individuals at initial months of their life. This allows us to take preventive measures as early as possible

Materials and Methods: In our study, 102 infants - from one to six months - were selected and placed in two case and control groups. The case group contained 52 babies with at least one of their parents identified as a type II diabetic patient. The control group comprised 50 babies with no family history of type II diabetes in paternal and maternal first-degree relatives. Afterwards, the expression level of insulin gene was analyzed in white blood cells of both groups. Information related to infants - referred to outpatient and inpatient wards of three main pediatric hospitals placed in Tehran - and their parents were collected through questionnaires within a two-year period. The study inclusion criteria for infants were confirmed type II diabetes in at least one of their parents, the absence of any metabolic disorder, and the absence of any disturbing vital signs. After drawing 2 ml of babies' peripheral blood, total RNA of white blood cells [WBC] was extracted, and used for cDNA synthesis. Real-Time PCR was then applied to quantitatively evaluate the expression levels of insulin gene. The results of Real-Time PCR were statistically analyzed by non-parametric tests of Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis

Results: The expression of insulin gene was observed in white blood cells of all samples. However, there was a significant difference in expression levels between case and control groups [p<0.05]. There was a statistically significant difference in mean levels of gene expression among babies with diabetic mother, and healthy groups [RQ=0.5, P-value=0.002], but this value wasn't significant for babies with diabetic father [RQ=0.78, P>0.05]

Conclusion: Numerous genes contribute to the development of diabetes and novel disease-causing genes are increasingly being discovered. Identification of disease-prone individuals through examining merely one underlying gene is complicated and challenging. Interestingly, all of these abnormally functioning genes finally manifest themselves in the altered expression levels of insulin gene. The expression status of insulin gene in WBCs could be suggested as a useful approach for identification of individuals at high risk for developing diabetes. This paves the way for taking appropriate measures at infancy period in order to prevent the disease as well as inhibit its various side effects in the following years of patient's life

Diabetic Foot

Nowadays prevalence of diabetes mellitus [DM] is growing considerably, especially among young and obese people. It was estimated that nearly 7% of the people all over the world suffer from DM. Frequency of diabetes related complication such as diabetic foot may be enhanced by increasing longevity of diabetic patients. Foot ulcer is one of the most considerable complications of DM which may involve 15% of these patients during their life. Peripheral neuropathy, poor blood circulation and low resistant against infections are three main predisposing factors in development of diabetic foot. In the presence of these factors, deformity of the foot or any minor trauma may lead to ulceration and infection. Ulcer, infection, Charcot neuropathy and peripheral arterial disease in lower extremity may result in gangrene and amputation of limb. Foot ulcer and its complications associated with admission to hospital, increasing cost of treatment and finally disability of patients. Appropriate treatments for diabetic foot are infection control, reconstruction of blood supply if possible, decrease in pressure on the affected limb and enhancement of ulcer repair with surgical interventions. Although it is impossible to prevent all diabetic foot complications, but with establishment of appropriate therapeutic approaches, most of these complication are curable and also may decrease number of limb amputation

Prevalence of menopause symptoms among Iranian women

The aim of this study was to determine the symptoms associated with menopause among women referred to menopause clinic of Tehran Women General Hospital. In this cross sectional study which has been done between January 2011 and January 2012, in menopause clinic of Tehran Women's General Hospital 134 women were studied. For each woman a questionnaire was completed. The data gained from each questionnaire were analyzed using SPSS version 13. The mean age of natural menopause onset was 47.35 [SE=0.11] year. The symptoms associated with menopause were hot flushes [59.5%], mood swing [42.6%], vaginal dryness [41.1%] sleep problems [40.4%], night sweats [38.2%], memory loss [32.3%], urinary symptoms [18.3%], palpitation [6.6%], anxiety [5.8%], Joint and muscle pain [59.9%], depression [4.4%], Irritability [3.6%].This study showed that hot flushes, mood swing and vaginal dryness were the most common symptoms associated with menopause