Incidence and Risk Factors of Brucellosis in Kermanshah Province, Iran During 2010-2014.

INTRODUCTION: Incidence of brucellosis was growing up in Iran during the past years. Kermanshah province-west of Iran is one of the endemic regions of the disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence and risk factors of brucellosis in Kermanshah province during a recent five-year period. METHODS: This study was an observational cross-sectional study performed on registries of the patients with brucellosis at the center for the zoonotic disease of Kermanshah University of medical sciences during 2010-2014. The data was collected using a questionnaire containing demographic data and the risk factor of brucellosis. Collected data were analyzed by SPSS-22 software using descriptive statistic, Chi-square, and student t-test. RESULTS: The five-years mean incidence of brucellosis in our study was 46.5 in one hundred thousand, and male to female ratio was 1.37/1. The most common risk factors of brucellosis in our patients were unpasteurized dairy products' consumption (47%) and occupational contact with livestock (14.4%). 84% of the patients were rural. The most common diagnostic method was the standard agglutination test within 1/160 and 1/320 titers. CONCLUSION: Risk factors of brucellosis in our study were like other studies, but in more than onethird of the patients, no risk factor was identified. Lack of livestock vaccination history and incomplete registered data about other possible transmission routes of transmission were the limitations of the study.

Immunity to Diphtheria and Tetanus in Army Personnel and Adult Civilians in Mashhad, Iran.

This study aimed to investigate serologic immunity to diphtheria and tetanus in army personnel and a sample population of adult civilians in Mashhad, Iran. Army personnel (n = 180) and civilians (n = 83) who presented at Mashhad army hospital participated in this study. Diphtheria and tetanus antitoxin levels were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Approximately 77% and 94% of army personnel aged 18-34 years had at least basic protection against diphtheria (antitoxin level ≥0.1 IU/mL) and tetanus (antitoxin level >0.1 IU/mL), respectively. For civilians in this age group, the proportions were 76% for both diseases. Antitoxin levels waned with age. Thus, participants older than 50 years had lower immunity; this decrease in immunity was more pronounced for tetanus than for diphtheria in both army personnel and civilians. For both diseases, geometric mean antitoxin titers and the proportion of participants with at least basic protection were higher in subjects with a history of vaccination in the last 10 years (P < 0.001), higher in men than women, and in army personnel than civilians in each age group. Young army personnel and civilians (18-34 years old) had adequate immunity to diphtheria and tetanus. However, the large number of susceptible older adults (>50 years old) calls for improved booster vaccination protocols.

Ellagic acid confers protection against gentamicin-induced oxidative damage, mitochondrial dysfunction and apoptosis-related nephrotoxicity.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the possible protective effect of ellagic acid (EA) against gentamicin (GEN)-induced nephrotoxicity using biochemical, molecular and histopathological approaches. METHODS: Rats (n = 24) were divided into four groups: control, GEN (100 mg/kg, i.p.), EA (10 mg/kg, p.o.) and GEN plus EA. The regimes were administered for 10 successive days. 24 h after last treatment, kidney and blood samples were collected. KEY FINDINGS: Ellagic acid treatment significantly reduced plasma creatinine and urea levels, which were initially increased due to GEN administration. Also, EA significantly ameliorated oxidative stress markers including lipid peroxidation, catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) enzyme activity as well as glutathione (GSH) content in kidney tissue. Activation of caspase-3 and increase in the ratio of Bcl-2/Bax expression observed in GEN-treated group were significantly ameliorated by EA treatment. EA also protected GEN-induced mitochondrial damages as indicated by decreasing the mitochondrial ROS content, preventing of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) loss, reducing mitochondrial swelling and decreasing cytochrome c release. In addition, histopathological findings revealed that EA ameliorates GEN-induced kidney injury. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that EA treatment attenuates GEN-induced nephrotoxicity, which may be ascribed to its antioxidant and anti-apoptotic properties.

Tuberculous ventriculitis: A rare complication of central nervous system tuberculosis.

Tuberculous ventriculitis is an inflammatory infection of the ventricular system of the brain, and is caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. We herein present the case of an immunocompromised patient with brain tuberculomas who developed ventriculitis during treatment. The patient was successfully treated with a high dose of steroid, long-term antituberculosis drugs, and aggressive supportive care.

Association between Hepatitis G and Unknown Chronic Hepatitis.

BACKGROUND: Hepatitis G virus (HGV) is a hepatotrope virus with unknown importance. The genome of the virus has been detected in patients with acute or chronic non-A-E hepatitis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. The aim of this study was to determine the association between hepatitis G and unknown chronic hepatitis. METHODS: This case-control study was performed in Ebne-Sina military hospital in Hamadan, Iran. The cases were 35 military staff with unknown chronic hepatitis. The control group consisted of 59 healthy subjects who had normal levels of serum alanine aminoteransferase (ALT). The data were analyzed by SPSS, version18, using Fisher's exact test, the Student's t-test, and multivariate logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: Only one patient in the case group (2.9%) tested positive for HGV antibodies, and no one was infected in the control group. There was no association between HGV infection and unknown chronic hepatitis in our study (P=0.37). A significant association was found between the male gender and unknown chronic hepatitis (OR=14.9, P=0.01). CONCLUSION: No association between HGV infection and unknown chronic hepatitis was found in our study, so it was not necessary to evaluate these patients for HGV infection.