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Purpose Mannose-binding lectin (MBL) is a serine protease belonging to the collectins and an important factor in the inherited immune system. We aimed to reveal the distribution of different MBL2 genotypes in patients diagnosed with acute bronchiolitis and pneumonia. Material and methods A total of 147 patients who applied to Pediatric Emergency between 01.12.2019-31.12.2020 included in the study. Patients were divided into two subgroups: Bronchiolitis and pneumonia. Results AA genotype was found to be significantly higher in healthy controls (p = 0.039). In pneumonia group, both AB/BB genotype was significantly higher compared to healthy controls (p = 0.001). While AA genotype was more common in patients with acute bronchiolitis, AB/BB genotypes were more common in the pneumonia group (p = 0.001). The presence of fever, crepitation, tachypnea, pathological x-ray finding and high leukocyte count are significantly more common in patients with AA genotype, while more than 3 days of follow-up duration and severe clinical picture were more common in patients with AB/BB genotypes (p Conclusions Genotypes with low MBL expression were significantly more common in patients with pneumonia and severe infection. All these results reveal the importance of MBL polymorphisms and expression in infections.

For COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease-2019) cases, detecting host-based factors that predispose to infection is a very important research area. In this study, the aim is to investigate the MBL2 and NOS3 gene polymorphisms in COVID-19 patients with lung involvement, whose first nasopharyngeal PCR results were negative. Seventy-nine patients diagnosed with COVID-19 between April-June 2020 who were admitted to a university hospital, and 100 healthy controls were included. In the first statistical analysis performed between PCR-positive, CT-negative and PCR-negative, CT-positive patients; the AB of MBL2 genotype was significantly higher in the first group (p = 0.049). The B allele was also significantly higher in the same subgroup (p = 0.001). The absence of the AB genotype was found to increase the risk of CT positivity by 6.9 times. The AB genotype of MBL2 was higher in healthy controls (p = 0.006). The absence of the AB genotype was found to increase the risk of CT positivity; also, it can be used for early detection and isolation of patients with typical lung involvement who had enough viral loads, but whose initial PCR results were negative.

Objectives Nilotinib is a BCR-ABL1 tyrosine kinase inhibitor approved for the treatment of patients with chronic myeloid leukemia in chronic phase (CML-CP). This study was the first prospective evaluation of the efficacy and safety of nilotinib in Turkish patients with newly diagnosed CML-CP. The primary endpoint of the study was the rate of major molecular response (MMR; BCR-ABL1 ≤ 0.1% on the International Scale [BCR-ABL1IS]) by 12 months. Methods Patients with newly diagnosed CML-CP were treated with nilotinib 300 mg twice daily. This analysis was based on the first 12 months of follow-up in a 24-month study. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT01274351). Results Of 112 patients enrolled, 66.1% (80% CI, 59.7-72.0%) achieved MMR and 22.3% achieved a deep molecular response of MR4.5 (BCR-ABL1IS ≤0.0032%) by 12 months. During the first year of treatment, one patient progressed to blast crisis and two patients died. Safety results were consistent with previous studies. Most adverse events (AEs) were grade 1/2. Most frequently reported nonhematologic AEs of any grade were elevations in bilirubin, alanine aminotransferase, and triglycerides. Conclusion These results support the use of nilotinib 300 mg twice daily as a standard-of-care treatment option for patients with newly diagnosed CML-CP with low and intermediate risk.

Immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is an autoimmune disease characterized by the presence of autoantibodies developing against thrombocyte membrane glycoproteins (GPs), such as GPIIa/IIIa and GPIb/IX. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of inflammatory cytokine genes were investigated in 71 patients with chronic ITP and 71 healthy controls, and they were compared with the clinical parameters. The polymorphisms in the SNPs were investigated with the polymerase chain reaction, polymerase chain reaction with sequence specific primer, and polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism methods. It was found that the high expression of TNF-alpha (-308) AG phenotype significantly increased in cases with ITP (odds ratio, OR: 0.318, 95% confidence intervals, CI: 0.103-0.987, p 0.05). TT genotype in TGF-beta 1 (codon 10) significantly decreased in ITP in comparison with the controls (OR: 0.342, 95% CI: 0.149-0.787, p = 0.016). IFN-gamma (+874) TT genotype was detected to be high in cases with ITP (OR: 3.301, 95% CI: 1.400-7.784, p 0.05), whereas AA genotype was found to be significantly lower (OR: 4.993, 95% CI: 1.586-15.721, p 0.05). MBL (codon 54) BB genotype (OR: 1.164, 95% CI: 1.059-1.279, p 0.05) and IL1A A1/A2 genotype (OR: 0.249, 95% CI: 0.076-0.815, p 0.05) were found to be significantly higher in cases with ITP than in healthy controls. TNF-alpha (-308) AG phenotype was detected to be significantly higher in steroid-refractory and splenectomized cases at the end of the first year than in the steroid-responsive (complete response (CR) and remission (R)) cases (OR: 4.137, 95% CI: 1.156-14.807, p 0.05). When we compared the cases, from whom we obtained a CR at their first steroid response, with 12 cases, who entered R but from whom we could not obtain any CR, the frequencies of IFN-gamma (+874) AA genotype were found as 12 (20.3%) and 6 (50%) (OR: 0.082, 95% CI: 0.009-0.793, p 0.05). MBL (codon 54) AB genotype was detected to be significantly higher in CR patients than in R cases (OR: 1.273, 95% CI: 1.110-1.459, p 0.05). With these findings, it was found that TNF-alpha/AG, TGF-beta 1/TT, IFN-gamma/TT, MBL/BB, and IL-1RA A1/A2 genotypes were detected as the genes of susceptibility to ITP, while TNF-alpha/AG, IFN-gamma/AA, and MBL/AB genotypes might be important in response to steroid treatment.

The use of radiotherapy (RT) with chemotherapy has improved disease free survival and control in primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL). We have encountered three patients with histologically documented central nervous system lymphoma. In all patients pathological diagnosis was B-cell lymphoma. We modified IDARAM regimen to R-IDARAM to enhance and optimize chemotherapeutic components for the treatment of PCNSL. We made three changes: (i) we added rituximab 375 mg/m(2) day 1; (ii) increased dose of MTX from 2 to 3 g/m(2); and (iii) administered two additional courses of R-IDARAM after cranial RT. Following complete staging after course 2, radiotherapy was applied at a dosage of 3600-4140 cGy in conventional schedule (180 or 200 cGy per day) to whole brain (with 3600 cGy to eyes in one case because of eye involvement) and then 2 additional courses of R-IDARAM (totally four courses) chemotherapy regimen were applied. Complete remission (CR) was achieved after first two cycles of R-IDARAM in patient 1 and 3 and after four cycles in patient 2. Currently, three patients have been alive for 29, 10, 15 months respectively. Currently there is no standard treatment modality for PCNSL. Increased dosage of MTX, adding rituximab and consolidation of the IDARAM to R-IDARAM regimen may improve disease control and outcome in PCNSL patients.

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a malignant disease resulting from an uncontrolled proliferation of a neoplastic plasma cell clone in the bone marrow, which might also be induced by the loss of control on apoptosis. Fas ligand (Fas-L), a member of the tumor necrosis factor family, induces apoptosis mediated via its transmembrane death receptor Fas (Apo-1/CD95) antigen. In the present study, immunostaining was performed on the initial diagnostic bone marrow biopsies of 36 MM patients (1 stage I, 5 stage II, 30 stage III), to evaluate the distribution of Fas receptor and Fas-L on malignant plasma cells. Both Fas and Fas-L were positive in 13 cases and negative in 3, whereas 10 cases were Fas-negative, Fas-L-positive and 10 were Fas-positive, Fas-L-negative. Although no association was found between the expression of Fas receptor or Fas-L and overall survival, Fas-L positivity was significantly associated with a shorter event-free survival (p = 0.0335). In this study, it has been shown that the expression of Fas-L, in malignant plasma cells of myeloma patients significantly shortens the event-free survival, indicating that the defect in apoptosis might be associated with disease progression in MM.

Leptin is a regulator of fat metabolism that is synthesized in adipocytes and released into circulation. The serum levels of leptin are, therefore, correlated with body fat mass and show a wide variation in healthy individuals. Leptin may have an additional indirect effect on leukemic hematopoesis. We investigated serum leptin levels with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays in 14 acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML) patients before and after chemotherapy and compared the results with that of the levels determined 14 healthy controls. We found no significant difference between leptin levels before and after chemotherapy and control group. Therefore, serum leptin level should not be used as a diagnostic marker in acute leukemia patients. However, the possibility of regional leptin production by leukemia blasts in bone marrow stroma creates a high local concentration of leptin within bone marrow microenvironment and systemic leptin level in combination with local leptin production may affect leukemic he...

Immune thrombocytopenia is commonly seen in patients with lymphoproliferative disorders, but is rare in patients with multiple myeloma. POEMS syndrome (polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, monoclonal protein, skin changes) is defined by the presence of a peripheral neuropathy, a monoclonal plasma cell disorder, and at least one of the following: endocrinopathy, skin changes, osteosclerotic myeloma, Castleman's disease, organomegaly, edema, or papilledema. In this paper, we present a patient with immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) who developed POEMS syndrome during the clinical course of his ITP, and report on the early appearance of an isolated paraneoplastic symptom before the other diagnostic components of POEMS syndrome had developed. To our knowledge, this is the first description of coexistent ITP and POEMS syndrome in the literature.

Imatinib mesylate, a the thyrosine kinase inhibitor (trade name Glivec or Gleevec) is an important therapy in the management of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). A complete cytogenetic response was a...

In this study, a series of PCDDs emitted to the surrounding soil as the result of incineration of waste cables have been identified. PCDD contaminants were concentrated from soil samples and isolated from other materials by chromatographic methods. PCDD isomers were identified separately by column chromatography utilizing column packed with materials such as Kieselgel /44 vol. % H2SO4, Macro Alumina B Super 1, Mix Column, Bio Beads S-X3, Alumina B Super 1 + Kieselgel/AgNO3 and their quantitative determinations were performed by GC/MS (gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy).

In this article, we present the procedures employed in the quantitative analysis of polychlordibenzodioxins (PCDD) and polychlordibenzofurans (PCDF) isolated from the roadside soils of autobahns, and describe the technics employed to extract and concentrate these compounds. The soil samples were extracted and the above isomers were isolated by column chromatography, utilizing columns packed with materials such as Kiesel-gel/H2SO4, Alumina Woelm B Super 1, Kieselgel + Kieselgei/NaOH + Kieselgel/H2SO4 Bio Beads S-X3, Alumina B Super 1 + Kieselgel/AgNO3 respectively. The isomers were then quantitatively determined by GC/MS (gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy) analysis.