[Thrombocytopenia associated with iron deficiency: a rare differential diagnosis of auto-immune thrombocytopenic purpura]. / Thrombopénie ferriprive : un diagnostic différentiel rare du purpura thrombopénique auto-immun.

INTRODUCTION: Iron deficiency is typically associated with microcytic anemia and thrombocytosis. It is a very uncommon cause of thrombocytopenia. CASE REPORT: A 17-year-old female presented with marked fatigue and dyspnea on exertion. Review of systems was only remarkable for abundant menstruations during the past two years. The hemogram revealed a profound microcytic anemia (4.4 g/dL, mean corpuscular volume [MCV] 49 fL) and a thrombocytopenia (33 G/L). Marked iron deficiency was also present: ferritinemia <3 µg/L. Investigations did not find any cause of iron deficiency anemia other than excessive menstrual loss. Bone marrow examination showed an increase number of megakaryocytes, compatible with an immune thrombocytopenia purpura. Iron supplementation completely normalized the platelet count within 48 hours. CONCLUSION: Iron affects thrombopoiesis. Because the number of megakaryocytes may then increase in the bone marrow, "iron deficiency thrombocytopenia" may be falsely diagnosed as immune thrombocytopenic purpura, leading to inappropriate corticosteroid therapy. Iron supplementation is the appropriate treatment of iron deficiency thrombocytopenia and allowed a rapid correction of the platelet count in all the 24 cases that have been previously reported with sufficient detail to be analyzed in the literature.

[Microbial polysaccharides of marine origin and their potential in human therapeutics]. / Les polysaccharides microbiens d'origine marine et leur potentiel en thérapeutique humaine.

Bacterial polysaccharides offer fascinating potential applications for the pharmaceutical industry. Although many known marine bacteria produce exopolysaccharides (EPS), continuation in looking for new polysaccharide-producing micro-organisms is promising. Marine bacteria, isolated from deep-sea hydrothermal vents, have demonstrated their ability to produce in aerobic conditions, unusual EPS. With the aim of discovering biological activities, EPS presenting different structural features were studied. An EPS secreted by Vibrio diabolicus was evaluated on the restoration of bone integrity in experimental model and was demonstrated to be a strong bone-healing material. Another EPS produced by Alteromonas infernus was modified in order to obtain new heparin-like compounds. Unlike the native EPS, the resulting EPS presented anticoagulant properties as heparin. These EPS could provide biochemical entities with suitable functions for obtaining new drugs. They present original structural feature that can be modified to design compounds and improve their specificity.

[Prevention of thrombosis by Hemoclar. Preliminary results of a test in a patient with antithrombin III deficiency]. / Prévention des thromboses par l'Hémoclar. Résultats préliminaires d'un essai chez une malade atteinte de déficit en antithrombine III.

We report here preliminary results of a study comparing the effect of Hemoclar and antithrombin III (AT III) in a patient with an AT III congenital deficiency. Both drugs inhibit thrombin generation in the patient's plasma. Unlike AT III, Hemoclar also inhibits factor Xa generation. This led us to propose the use of Hemoclar, which acts via an AT III independent pathway, to prevent thrombosis in A III deficient patients.