Abstract Background: Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) results from sequential genetic alterations in a normal hematopoietic stem cell or its progenitors giving rise to an autonomous clone that dominates the bone marrow leading to marrow failure. MicroRNAs are short non-coding nucleic acid sequences that regulate post-transcriptional gene expression by base-pairing with their target mRNAs. MiRNAs can be secreted into extracellular fluids and carried to target cells by vesicles or bound to proteins. Intracellular and circulating miRNAs are believed to be useful markers in the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of various cancers. Practically, circulating miRNAs are more stable at room temperatures and extreme conditions. Purpose: This study aimed to compare the expression of miR-126-3p and miR-423-5p in patients and normal subjects and correlate their expression with response to induction therapy and with their 2-year overall survival rate. Patients and methods: Circulating miR-126-3p and miR-423-5p was measured in the plasma of 43 adult AML patients and 35 age- and sex-matched controls by quantitative reverse transcriptase PCR. The fold change in differential expression for each gene was calculated using the comparative cycle threshold method. Results: There was an increase in the expression of the studied miRNAs in patients compared to the control group. The average expression fold change of miR-126-3p was 3.02 (p= 0.010). The average expression fold change of miR-423-5p was 4.09 (p= 0.003). No significant correlation was found between the expression of miR-126-3p and miR-423-5p in the studied AML patients (r = 0.094, p = 0.22). Furthermore, no relationship was found between the expression of the studied miRNAs and response to induction therapy or the 2-year survival rate. Conclusion: Although further studies are needed, our findings highlight the studied circulating miRNAs as possible diagnostic markers for AML.
Identification of pathogens and locating their inocul¬um source (S) are the first strategies toward successful disease management program the pretransplating seedl¬ing damping - off problem on vegetable crops was found to be caused by Pythium aphanidermatum and Rhizocto¬nia solani. Both fungi were isolated from peat (moss) for the first time in Iraq. In addition, considerable num¬ber of pathogenic fungi was found as contaminants in soil samples from Alrashidiah vegetable covered farming station. Among the isolated fungi were: Pythium apha¬nidermatum, Rhizoctonia solani, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, Fusarium oxysporum, Fusarium solani phialophora spp., Cephalisporium spp Rizopus stolonfier and Botrytis cine¬rea, in addition to several
... Show MoreBackground: Smoking is considering a major risk factor for development and progression of periodontal disease. Investigations regarding the association between smoking and periodontal disease have consistently demonstrated negative periodontal effects and greater probabilities of established periodontal disease among smokers in comparison with non smokers. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of smoking on periodontal health status and on the salivary levels of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and creatine kinase (CK), and to correlate the clinical parameters of periodontal health with the biochemical findings in smokers and non-smokers. Materials and methods: Unstimulated saliva sample was collected
... Show MoreThe pharmacist's role in the community is currently directed towards providing drug information and patient care rather than drug compounding and dispensing. Patient counseling is an essential skill for pharmacists. So as to improve the pharmacist role in the community and enhance the patient's education and counseling skills, many continuing education programs are established. The aim of this study is to assess the perceptions and tendency of community pharmacists in Iraq regarding patients counseling and continuing pharmacists’ educational programs.
This research involved the preparation of a new Schiff base derivative (1) and azo derivatives (2–7) based on sulfamethoxazole through the coupling reaction of diazonium salt with various phenols. The yields were very high, ranging from 81% to 91%. The synthesis of these compounds was characterized using various techniques such as FT-IR, 1H-NMR and 13C-NMR. The antioxidant activity of these com-pounds was investigated utilizing the DPPH radical scavenging assay. The findings indicated that all compounds possessed antioxidant activity that increased proportionally with increasing concentration, particularly compounds 6 and 7, possibly due to the presence of hydroxyl groups in their structures. The biological activity
... Show MoreBackground: Oral carcinogenesis is a molecular and histological multistage process featuring genetic and phenotypic markers for each stage, which involves enhanced function of several oncogenes and/or the deactivation of tumor suppressor genes, resulting in the loss of cell cycle checkpoints. The progression towards malignancy includes sequential histopathological alterations ranging from hyperplasia through dysplasia to carcinoma in situ and invasive carcinoma. The p16 gene produces p16 protein, which in turn inhibits phosphorylation of retinoblastoma, p16 play a significant role in early carcinogenesis. Human papillomavirus is a well established heterogeneous virus and plays an important role in oral cancers. The aims of the study were to
... Show MoreThe present study investigates the relation between the biliteral and triliteral roots which is the introduction to comprehend the nature of the Semitic roots during its early stage of development being unconfirmed to a single pattern. The present research is not meant to decide on the question of the biliteral roots in the Semitic languages, rather it is meant to confirm the predominance of the triliteral roots on these languages which refers, partially, to analogy adopted by the majority of linguists. This tendency is frequently seen in the languages which incline to over generalize the triliteral phenomenon, i. e., to transfer the biliteral roots to the triliteral room, that is, to subject it to the predominant pattern regarding the r
... Show MoreStrengthening of composite beams is highly needed to upgrade the capacities of existing beams. The strengthening methods can be classified as active or passive techniques. Therefore, the main purpose of this study is to provide detailed FE simulations for strengthened and unstrengthened steel–concrete composite beams at the sagging and hogging moment regions with and without profiled steel sheeting. The developed models were verified against experimental results from the literature. The verified models were used to present comparisons between the effect of using external post-tensioning and CFRP laminates as strengthening techniques. Applying external post-tensioning at the sagging moment regions is more effective because of the e
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