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Juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia(JMML) is a pediatric myeloproliferative disorder. Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) is the only curative treatment for JMML. Pre-transplant therapy is a matter of controversy, and there are no firm recommendations. Whether chemotherapy is effective in achieving durable remission is questionable. Patients diagnosed as JMML at our center from January-2014 to December-2019 were retrospectively analyzed. All patients treated with at least one cycle of sequential therapy with subcutaneous cytarabine and oral 6-mercaptopurine were further assessed. The total number of patients diagnosed during the study period was 33. Patients were divided into two groups: patients who did not get any chemotherapy (n = 13) and ones who received at least one cycle of chemotherapy(n = 20). Age, total leukocyte count (TLC), monocyte percent, platelet count and spleen size were comparable between the two groups. There was no difference in the overall survival between the two groups, but 6 out of 20 patients showed a response to chemotherapy (2 complete remission, 4 partial remission). Two patients out of 20 underwent hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). The patients who achieved complete remission received 12 cycles of chemotherapy and have been in follow up for 28 months and 50 months respectively. Our results showed that sequential therapy with 6-mercaptopurine and cytarabine may be offered to patients in whom HSCT is not feasible or as a bridge therapy in those awaiting HSCT. The advantages of this approach include low cost, out-patient management and decreased requirement of blood components. In a subset of patients it may achieve remission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chitin is the second-most natural polysaccharide in the world, next to cellulose. The main sources of chitin are two marine crustaceans, shrimp and crab. Our objective is to appraise the state of art concerning this polysaccharide, as well as one of its most important derivatives known as chitosan. Chitosan is soluble in acidic aquous media and has vast applications in various fields. Here we briefly describe the characterization, chemical modification, de-polymerization and applications of chitin and chitosan. This review emphasizes recent papers on high value adding applications of these materials in gene therapy, drug delivery, wastewater treatment, packaging, etc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]