Collapsing glomerulopathy occurring in HIV-negative patients with systemic lupus erythematosus: report of three cases and brief review of the literature

Collapsing glomerulopathy (CG), once recognized as a distinct renal disease in HIV-positive patients, has since been described in association with a number of other conditions, including autoimmune diseases. Among the latter, CG has been reported in Still's disease. Extensive search of the literature revealed only three patients with renal biopsy diagnosis of CG in the presence of clinical and serological evidence of SLE (HIV-negative). This case report presents three adult female HIV-negative patients with SLE who were detected as having significant proteinuria and underwent renal biopsy. In all three cases, renal biopsy showed features of diffuse lupus nephritis. In addition, variable numbers of glomeruli showed segmental collapse of glomerular tuft with hyperplasia of overlying visceral epithelial cells and were diagnosed as CG. The patients were managed with aggressive immunosuppressive therapy, including intravenous steroids in two patients and tacrolimus and cyclophosphamide in one patient. All three patients achieved partial remission of proteinuria with maintained renal function at the last follow-up. Collapsing glomerulopathy is a rare occurrence in patients with SLE, which should be considered in patients with lupus nephritis and significant proteinuria. A timely performed renal biopsy allows accurate diagnosis and appropriate therapeutic modifications.     

Detection and molecular typing of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus from northeastern part of India

BackgroundIn Staphylococcus aureus, methicillin resistance is exhibited by modifications in penicillin-binding protein that minimises the binding affinity to beta-lactam antibiotics. The present study investigated the occurrence of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) in community-acquired infections, that is, community-acquired MRSA (CA-MRSA) and in-hospital–acquired infections, that is, hospital-acquired MRSA (HA-MRSA) from Northeast India.MethodsA total of 197 consecutive non-duplicate isolates were collected from Silchar Medical College and Hospital and other private diagnostic laboratories. The isolates were confirmed to be S. aureus at our centre. All isolates were subjected to antibiotic susceptibility testing and were screened for methicillin resistance using cefoxitin disc test. All MRSA were subjected to Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) assay for detection of mecA and mecC genes. DNA fingerprinting was performed for determining clonal diversity.ResultsSeventy-one isolates of 127 confirmed S. aureus were found to be methicillin resistant by screening test. mecA gene was detected in 43 isolates, and none of the isolates were positive for mecC gene. Linezolid and teicoplanin showed better activity with susceptibility pattern being 83.6% and 72.44%, respectively, whereas 66.14% were sensitive to vancomycin. Other antibiotic showed low level of activity. Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE) showed 14 different banding patterns that suggest isolates were of different clonal types.ConclusionmecA was responsible for methicillin resistance in majority of strains. Polyclonal spread of MRSA infection in the study area indicates its diverse origin and possible lateral transfer. Thus, this study is of clinical interest in terms of selection of proper antimicrobial chemotherapy and infection control management.     

Genome-wide mitochondrial DNA sequence variations and lower expression of OXPHOS genes predict mitochondrial dysfunction in oral cancer tissue

Tumor Biology - Several studies reported that mtDNA mutations may play important roles in carcinogenesis although the mechanism is not clear yet. Most of the studies compared mtDNA sequences in a...     

BRCA1 and MDM2 as independent blood-based biomarkers of head and neck cancer

Tumor Biology - We investigated the role of BRCA1, MDM2, and p53 in the pathogenesis of head and neck cancer (HNC) and evaluated their potential utility as blood-based predictive biomarkers of HNC....     

Immunomodulatory potential of rhizome and seed extracts of Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn.

Ethnopharmacological relevance

Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. (Nymphaeaceae) is a well-known aquatic plant which has been used for the treatment of several disorders including skin disease, cough, inflammation, fever and many other disorders.

Aim of the study

To explore the immunomodulatory activity of extract of rhizome (NNRE) and seed (NNSE) of the plant.

Materials and methods

The immunomodulatory activity of NNRE and NNSE was evaluated using various in vivo models including the total and differential leukocyte count (TLC and DLC), nitroblue-tetrazolium reduction (NBT) test, neutrophil adhesion test, phagocytic response and delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) reaction. Sheep red blood cells (SRBC, 5 × 10⁹ cells/ml) were used to immunize the animals. NNRE and NNSE at the doses of 100 and 300 mg/kg were administrated.

Result

The TLC and lymphocyte count increased significantly but the neutrophil count was decreased for NNRE and NNSE treated groups compared to the control. A dose-dependent potentiation of DTH reaction induced by SRBC was observed from the extracts. The percentage of neutrophil adhesion to the nylon fiber was increased in NNRE treated groups (63.22 and 62.91%) compared to the NNSE treated group (54.86 and 54.23%). A potential phagocytic response was seen on treatment of the extracts, and significant changes were observed in the formation of formazone crystals.

Conclusion

This finding suggests that the extract of rhizome and seed Nelumbo nucifera stimulate defense system by modulating several immunological parameters.