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Introduction: Obesity increases production of adipose tissue-derived proteins, such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6). Also there are elevated levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) and IL-6, CD8, and CD4, indicating chronic subclinical inflammation. Since obesity represents a serious risk factor in several metabolic diseases, identifying the status of carbohydrate antigen-125 (CA-125) would further link obesity and tumors. Aim: To examine the effect of weight loss by laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) on plasma CRP lipid profiles and CA-125 level in morbidly obese patients. Material and methods: This prospective study was conducted in the Surgery Department, Fayoum University Hospital, between August 2013 and September 2015. To assess the effect of excess weight loss following this operation CRP, lipid profile and CA-125 were measured before and 12 months after the LSG operation for weight loss. The study included 30 cases of morbidly obese patients: 30 (100%) females aged 23-55 years who were considered clinically obese with a mean body mass index of 42.71 ±4.3 (38-46) kg/m² and mean age of 40.3 ±8.5 (23-55) years. The National Institute of Health (NIH) inclusion criteria for bariatric surgery were used. Results: A mean weight loss of29.30% decreased plasma CRP triglycerides, total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL cholesterol), CA-125 level and increased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL cholesterol) The percentage weight loss was significantly associated with changes in plasma CRP triglycerides, total cholesterol, total HDL cholesterol and CA-125. Conclusions: Weight loss by LSG improves inflammation, dyslipidemia and CA-125 level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The aim of the study was to detect the effect of laparoscopic greater curvature plication (LGCP) on peripheral blood lymphocyte subsets (helper and cytotoxic T lymphocytes - CD4+ and CD8+ T cells respectively), leptin level and weight loss in morbidly obese patients. Material and methods: Morbidly obese patients (n = 20, age range: 25-50 years, body mass index (BMI) range: 37-45 kg/m2) who underwent LGCP were enrolled in a prospective study to determine the percentages of their peripheral blood T cells (CD4+ and CD8+) before and 4 months postoperatively using flow cytometry. Also, the level of their leptin before and 4 months postoperatively was established using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The data are expressed as the percentage of total lymphocytes ± the standard error of the mean. Results: A decrease in the BMI and loss of weight (31.20 ±1.2%) were confirmed 4 months postoperatively since BMI was 44.71 ±4.3 (range: 37-45) kg/m2 preoperatively, and decreased to 31.80 ±1.1 (range: 24-33) kg/m2 after surgery. The mean percentage of CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes significantly decreased postoperatively (38.2 ±1.5 before and 29.3 ±2.6 after operation for CD4+, 17.3 ±1.8 preoperatively and 9.5 ±1.7 postoperatively for CD8+, p < 0.05). The mean leptin level was 43.01 ±22.01 preoperatively while postoperatively it was 24.8 ±11.1 (p < 0.05), so the leptin level substantially decreased compared to its preoperative values. Conclusions: This study found that weight loss after LGCP in morbidly obese patients led to decreases in levels of leptin and circulating immune cells compared to their preoperative values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs) play a crucial role in the context of viral infections and their associated diseases. The link between HSCs and HPCs and disease status in COVID -19 patients is largely unknown. This study aimed to monitor the kinetics and contributions of HSCs and HPCs in severe and non-severe COVID -19 patients and to evaluate their diagnostic performance in differentiating between healthy and COVID-19 patients as well as severe and non-severe cases. Peripheral blood (PB) samples were collected from 48 COVID-19 patients, 16 recovered, and 27 healthy controls and subjected to deep flow cytometric analysis to determine HSCs and progenitor cells. Their diagnostic value and correlation with C-reactive protein (CRP), D-dimer, and ferritin levels were determined. The percentages of HSCs and common myeloid progenitors (CMPs) declined significantly, while the percentage of multipotent progenitors (MPPs) increased significantly in COVID-19 patients. There were no significant differences in the percentages of megakaryocyte-erythroid progenitors (MEPs) and granulocyte-macrophage progenitors (GMPs) between all groups. Severe COVID-19 patients had a significantly low percentage of HSCs, CMPs, and GMPs compared to non-severe cases. Contrarily, the levels of CRP, D-dimer, and ferritin increased significantly in severe COVID-19 patients. MPPs and CMPs showed excellent diagnostic performance in distinguishing COVID-19 patients from healthy controls and severe from non-severe COVID-19 patients, respectively. Collectively, our study indicated that hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells are significantly altered by COVID-19 and could be used as therapeutic targets and diagnostic biomarkers for severe COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]