Thymoma associated with malignancies may herald a hereditary cancer syndrome

Two probands with thymoma and other primary malignancies with multiple cancer patients in the family are described. Types of malignancies, pattern of pedigree and age of the patients do not match the known familial cancer syndromes. One proband was a very rare case with five discrete primary malignancies; TP53 sequencing and karyotyping did not reveal any mutations. These cases suggest thymoma associated malignancies may herald a hereditary cancer syndrome.     

Chitosan-Alginate Scaffold Culture System for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Increases Malignancy and Drug Resistance

Purpose  

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a prevalent solid malignancy. Critically needed discovery of new therapeutics has been hindered by lack of an in vitro cell culture system that can effectively represent the in vivo tumor microenvironment. To address this need, a 3D in vitro HCC model was developed using a biocompatible, chitosan-alginate (CA) scaffold cultured with human HCC cell lines.     

Potential effect of opium addiction on lipid profile and blood glucose concentration in type 2 diabetic patients in Iran

Background: Diabetes is one of the most common chronic diseases in the world. People believe that opium improves blood glucose and lipid profiles in these patients and controversial studies show the effect of consumption of opium in controlling these indices. Accordingly, this study aimed to compare the serum levels of blood indices such as fasting blood glucose (FBS), Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) and lipid profile in opium users and non-users in type ΙΙ diabetic patients.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, among type II diabetic patients referred to the Diabetes Clinic of Birjand 45 opium users and 135 non-users were selected and entered the study by the convenience sampling method.

Results: The results of this study showed that the mean serum levels of FBS, HbA1c, and serum lipid profiles were not significantly different between the two groups of opium users and non-users, but the levels of triglyceride (TG) were significantly 0.18 unit higher in the opium users, compared to non-opium users.

Conclusion: According to the results, the use of opium does not affect the indices of blood glucose, HbA1c and serum lipid profiles except triglyceride in diabetic patients. The general belief that opioid use reduces biochemical indices does not seem to be correct.

Abbreviations: FBS: fasting blood sugar; HbA1c: Hemoglobin A1c; LDL: low-density lipoprotein; HDL: High-density lipoproteins; HDL-C: High-density lipoproteins-cholesterol; BMI: Body mass index; IQR: Inter quartile range; TG: triglyceride; TC: total cholesterol; NS: non-significant; S: significant; ATN: Acute tubular necrosis     

Effects of a Healthy Lifestyle Education on the Incidence of Metabolic Syndrome in Children during a 13-Year Follow-up

Purpose

This study aimed to determine effects of community-based healthy lifestyle education on the incidence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in Tehranian children considering parental factors during a 13-year follow-up.

Methods

This study was conducted within the framework of the Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study (TLGS) on 1603 healthy children, aged 8–18 years, who had complete parental data. Parental factors including MetS, education, age, occupation, and smoking were considered to distinguish parental clusters which could potentially predispose children to MetS. Lifestyle interventions were aimed at achieving healthy dietary patterns and increasing physical activity. Cluster analysis and survival Cox model were used to determine potential low and high risk parental clusters and the effect of intervention on the hazard of MetS in children respectively.

Results

In a model adjusted for children’s age and sex, the hazard of the MetS incidence was 36% higher in children from high-risk parental cluster than those from low-risk parental cluster (HR = 1.36, 95% CI = 1.07–1.73). Moreover, the intervention group showed a 39% lower risk for MetS incidence (HR = 0.61, 95% CI = 0.44–0.85) compared to controls, during the first 6 years after baseline assessment (short term), although the risk lowering effect of the intervention was not maintained long term.

Conclusion

A healthy lifestyle education was successful in reducing the short-term risk of MetS in children. To identify ways of maintaining long-term results, further research is definitely warranted.

Trial Registration

This study was funded by National Research Council and Planning and Management Organization and has been reviewed and approved by the Iranian registry of clinical trials (ISRCTN52588395).

     

Evaluating the efficacy of extracted squalene from seed oil in the form of microemulsion for the treatment of COVID-19: A clinical study

This study investigates the effect of the nanostructure of squalene in the form of microemulsion on COVID-19 patients. In this blinded clinical trial, a comparison was made between the efficacy of squalene treatment and controls. A total of 30 COVID-19 patients admitted to the emergency department, and the infection ward was equally allocated to case (n = 15) and control (n = 15) groups according to their age and underlying diseases. The baseline characteristics of subjects, including age, gender, time of treatment onset, underlying condition, white blood cells count, and lymphocyte count were similar (p < 0.05). Baseline laboratory tests and computed tomography (CT) scans were performed for the study groups. The treatment group received 5 mg of intravenous squalene twice a day and standard treatment for 6 days, while controls received only standard treatment. After 6 days of treatment, clinical and CT scan changes were evaluated and compared in intervention and control groups. The need for oxygen therapy (p = 0.020), 2 days of no fever (p = 0.025), cough alleviation (p = 0.010), and lung high-resolution computed tomography improvement (p = 0.033) were significantly different between cases and controls within 7 days of admission. No adverse effects were observed in the treatment group. Our data suggest that squalene could be considered as a potential treatment for COVID-19, and further studies are required to confirm the results.     

An Evaluation of the Effect of Hypnosis on Postoperative Analgesia following Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy

Little attention has been paid to the effectiveness of hypnosis in improving the results of surgery in Iran. One hundred and twenty patients scheduled for laparoscopic cholecystectomy were randomly divided into either control (standard care) or experimental (hypnosis) groups. Prior to surgery and again after surgery, abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting were assessed. The results suggest that hypnosis could effectively reduce pain after laparoscopic cholecystectomy and significantly reduce hospitalization time.