Modern Medical Laboratory Journal

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The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in December 2019 and rapidly spread worldwide. Since then, scientists have searched to find an effective treatment for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In this regard, several antiviral drugs are currently undergoing clinical trial studies to evaluate their safety and efficacy in the treatment of COVID-19. Some of these drugs have been designed based on this fact that SARS-CoV-2 is a positive-sense single-stranded RNA virus and previous studies showed the efficacy of anti-RNA virus, single strand RNA inhibiting antisense RNAs (asRNAs), for silencing virus replication, in vitro. Exosomes can be suggested as a promising candidate to transfer the anti-SARS-CoV-2 asRNAs to human respiratory epithelium. Exosomes are secreted by mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and can be loaded by asRNAs of an anti-RNA virus. MSCs-secreted exosomes as a nano-cargo of asRNAs of anti-SARS-CoV-2 have other therapeutic potentials such as immunomodulatory effects of their cytokine contents, affinity to respiratory epithelial attachment, anti-fibrotic activity in lung, non-toxicity for normal cells, and not triggering an immune response. Moreover, inhalation of anti-SARS-CoV-2 asRNAs may stop SARS-CoV-2 replication. Producing specific anti-SARS-CoV-2 asRNAs by targeting the genome of virus and their delivery by MSCs exosomes are suggested and discussed. This approach will potentially shed light on gene therapy of the other human lung diseases via inhalational delivery using exosomes in future.

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Up to now, enormous smart materials have been engineered with physical stimulators such as temperature, electric field, magnetic field, light, ultrasound, mechanical stimuli, chemical stimulators such as pH and reduction, or biological stimulators such as antigen glucose and enzyme in regenerative medicine. Smart materials have numerous properties, such as responding to controlled drug release, “ON-OFF” switch activities, prolonged blood circulation, ability to specific triggers, enhanced diagnostic accuracy, increased tumor accumulation, and therapeutic efficacy. In this review, notable research achievements of smart materials responsive to various stimuli involving responsive mechanisms and applications are summarized and discussed separately.

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Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) represents the most common oral cavity cancer worldwide, being among the 10 most frequent cancers of all types. Only around 50% of patients survive longer than 5 years in view of currently applied medical procedures of diagnosis and treatment. The delay in diagnosis accounts for the shortening of survival despite advances in treatment protocols. The poor prognosis as well as high occurrence rate exerts a burden on both patients and clinicians. Cancer biomarkers may possibly present cancer profiles of different patients and foreseeing each upcoming therapy response and the subsequent outcomes. Identification of the most fundamental biomarkers in OSCC may lead us to precise detection, which can give rise to earlier diagnosis, more effective treatment options, and more patient oriented prognostic decisions, alleviating the current situation regarding the failure in effectual OSCC management.  In this review, we have outlined the molecular biomarkers for early diagnosis of OSCC and suggested inhibitors through which metastasis and its molecular pathways could potentially be inhibited.
 

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Melorheostosis is a rare sclerosing hyperostosis that affects the appendicular skeleton more than the axial skeleton. This disorder also affects the cutaneous and soft tissues and leads to the formation of fibrosis and contracture. Due to the unique features of melorheostosis (dripping candle wax appearance), plain radiographs are often sufficient for diagnosis. Herein we report a case of melorheostosis in proximal phalanx and metacarpal bone. The case is a 21-year-old girl with intense pain in her left hand. She underwent conservative treatment and followed for five years. Outcome measures indicate pain reduction despite no significant changes in radiographs.

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Background and Objectives: Calprotectin is a cytosolic protein in granulocytes. Its amount in the stool is proportional to the amount of neutrophil migration from the inflamed intestinal wall to the mucous and indicates the amount of active inflammation in the mucous. It is used to help diagnose the phase of disease and the extent of colon involvement.
Methods: For 60 patients with ulcerative colitis (UC), who underwent colonoscopy and biopsy, 5-10 grams of stool samples were sent to Zanjan Buali's laboratory to measure calprotectin level by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The extent of colon involvement was measured by a colonoscopy exam including rectal involvement (proctitis), rectum and sigmoid (recto sigmoiditis), descending colon involvement (left side colitis), and proximal to the colon's splenic flexure (pan colitis).
Results: All of the 60 patients who participated had UC. The average of calprotectin was 555.18±179.41 with no significant relationship between calprotectin levels and the gender, no significant relationship between calprotectin levels and gender, as well as between colorectal involvement and calprotectin levels.
Conclusion: The level of fecal calprotectin may indicate the severity of colorectal involvement, but cannot show the extent of it. This inability is also present in different ages and genders. Therefore, the results say this marker cannot be used as a diagnosis of the extent of colorectal involvement in patients with UC.
 

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Background and Objectives: Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) occurs when liver fat content exceeds 5-10%. The initial stage is simple fatty liver, which can progress to alcoholic steatohepatitis and ultimately lead to cirrhosis of the liver. The first step in treatment is a weight loss diet.
Methods: In this study, patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease who had undergone all necessary tests to rule out other causes of liver involvement, such as viral and autoimmune hepatitis and Wilson's disease, were evaluated. These patients were approved by a gastroenterologist and underwent a FibroScan over a six-month period to assess their condition. The initial checklist included demographic information (height and weight), blood pressure, history of alcohol consumption, and liver enzyme levels.
Results: Among 86 participants, 25 (29.1%) had Grade 0 fatty liver, 39 (54.7%) had Grade 1, 14 (11.6%) had Grade 2, and 8 (4.7%) had Grade 3 fatty liver. Additionally, 8 patients had anemia, 3 (2.5%) had elevated bilirubin levels, 3 (2.5%) had iron deficiency, and only 1 patient had liver issues related to an autoimmune problem or specific disease. There was no significant relationship between the FibroScan score and enzyme levels in any gender.
Conclusion: The prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is higher in women than in men, and liver enzymes do not accurately reflect the degree of liver fibrosis. It is recommended that imaging methods, especially FibroScan, be used instead of routine enzyme level measurements to assess liver tissue conditions.