Anti-<Emphasis Type="Italic">Saccharomyces cerevisiae</Emphasis> Antibodies are Frequent in Type 1 Diabetes

Anti-Saccharomyces cerevisiae antibodies (ASCA) have been described in many autoimmune diseases in which there is an increased intestinal permeability. Also in type 1 diabetes (T1D), there is an increased intestinal permeability. Since no data are available about ASCA in T1D, we evaluated, retrospectively, the frequency of ASCA in this disease. ASCA, IgG, and IgA, were determined by ELISA in sera of 224 T1D patients in which coeliac disease has been excluded and 157 healthy control group. The frequency of ASCA (IgG or IgA) was significantly higher in T1D patients than in the control group (24.5% vs. 2.5%, p < 10⁻⁷). The same observation was found in children and in adult patients when we compare them to healthy children and blood donors group respectively. Compared to children, adult patients with T1D showed significantly higher frequencies of ASCA of any isotype (38% vs. 13.7%, p < 10⁻⁴), both ASCA IgG and IgA (12% vs. 1.6%, p = 0.002), ASCA IgG (35% vs. 9.8%, p < 10⁻⁵) and ASCA IgA (15% vs. 5.6%, p = 0.001). The frequency of ASCA was statistically higher in females of all T1D than in males (30.8% vs.17.7%, p = 0.03), in girls than in boys (22% vs.6.2%, p = 0.017), and significantly higher in men than in boys (35.7% vs. 6.2%, p < 10⁻⁴). The frequency of ASCA IgG was significantly higher than that of ASCA IgA in all T1D patients (21% vs. 9.8%, p < 0.002), in all females (26.5% vs. 10.2%, p < 0.002), in women (37.9% vs. 12%, p < 0.001). The frequency of ASCA was significantly higher in all long-term T1D than in an inaugural T1D (29% vs. 14.5%, p = 0.019). The same observation was found in adults (45.8% vs. 17.8%, p = 0.01). In long-term T1D patients, ASCA were significantly more frequent in adults than children (45.8% vs. 14.5%, p < 10⁻⁴). The frequency of ASCA IgG was significantly higher in long-term T1D than in an inaugural T1D (25.2% vs. 11.6%, p = 0.03). Patients with T1D had a high frequency of ASCA.     

Assessment of the role of histopathology and DNA image analysis in the diagnosis of molar and non-molar abortion: A study of 89 cases in the center of Tunisia

This study retrospectively evaluated the histopathological criteria commonly used in the literature on the diagnosis of hydatidiform mole, in correlation with the diagnosis rendered previously. The molar and non-molar cases seen in the first-trimester of pregnancy were separately reviewed by two pathologists. The correlation between the consensual histological diagnosis and the ploidy status was then evaluated.We retrospectively studied 89 specimens of abortus conception, including 35 complete hydatidiform moles (CHM), 12 partial hydatidiform moles (PHM), and 42 hydropic abortions (HA).The final histopathological diagnosis was compared with the results of DNA content detected by imaging analyzer (Samba 200), studying all cases of molar pregnancy and 4 cases of HA (initially diagnosed as molar pregnancies).In the consensus histological diagnosis, the cases were reclassified as follows: 30 CHM (initial diagnosis (ID): 27 CHM and 3 PHM), 12 PHM (ID: 6 PHM and 6 CHM), and one case with a persistent problem in differentiating PHM from HA and 46 HA (ID: 42 HA, 2 CHM, and 2 PHM).An agreement between the two pathologists was reached in 77 cases (K=0.72, 0.52, and 0.9, respectively, for CHM, PHM, and HA).The ploidy study demonstrated diploidy in 56.6% (17/30) of CHM and triploidy in 58.3% (7/12) of PHM. In the 4 cases of HA studied, 3 were diploid and 1 case was aneuploid.Our study demonstrated that several histopathological criteria could be used for the distinction between PHM, CHM, and HA. However, the study of DNA cannot be the technique of choice to distinguish between these entities. Some cases remain problematic since the morphological criteria are not easily reproducible. New sensitive techniques might resolve these dilemmas.     

How to overcome male infertility after 40: Influence of paternal age on fertility

The recent trend toward delayed parenthood raises major safety concerns because of the adverse effects of aging on couple fertility. Studies have demonstrated that aging clearly affects female fertility, but can also affect male fertility. Although several theories have been proposed, the exact mechanisms responsible for the observed age-related decline in male fertility remain to be elucidated. It has been shown that advanced paternal age (PA) is associated with reduced semen volume as well as, reduced sperm count, motility and morphology. Recent studies have also reported that paternal aging is associated with a significant increase in the prevalence of both genomic and epigenomic sperm defects. In the context of natural and intrauterine insemination (IUI) conception, advanced paternal age has been associated with lower pregnancy rates and increased rates of spontaneous abortion (independent of maternal age). In IVF and oocyte donation programs, a significant decrease in late blastocyst development has been seen in those cycles using spermatozoa of men older than 55. However, no significant relationship between paternal age and IVF or ICSI pregnancy rates has been observed.     

Distribution of molecular breast cancer subtypes among Tunisian women and correlation with histopathological parameters: A study of 194 patients

According to the immunohistochemical test of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (Her-2), breast cancer can be divided into 4 molecular subtypes: luminal A, luminal B, Her-2, and basal-like. The purpose of this study is to correlate these subtypes with clinicopathological features.