Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences and Health Services

About: Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences and Health Services is a education organization based out in Tehran, Iran. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Cancer. The organization has 19456 authors who have published 33659 publications receiving 365676 citations.

Circulating microRNAs as diagnostic and therapeutic biomarkers in gastric and esophageal cancers

Abstract: Gastric and esophageal cancers are as main cancers of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, which are associated with poor diagnosis and survival. Several efforts were made in the past few decades to finding effective therapeutic approaches, but these approaches had several problems. Finding new biomarkers is a critical step in finding new approaches for the treatment of these cancers. Finding new biomarkers that cover various aspects of the diseases could provide a choice of suitable therapies and better monitoring of patients with these cancers. Among several biomarkers tissue specific and circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) have emerged as powerful candidates in the diagnosis of gastric and esophageal cancers. MiRNAs are small noncoding single-stranded RNA molecules that are found in the blood and regulate gene expression. These have numerous characteristics that make them suitable for being used as ideal biomarkers in cancer diagnosis. Research has indicated that the level and profile of miRNA in serum and plasma are very high. They are potentially noninvasive and sensitive enough to detect tumors in their primary stages of infection. Multiple lines of evidence indicate that the presence, absence, or deregulation of several circulating miRNAs (i.e., let-7a, miR-21, miR-93, miR-192a, miR-18a, and miR-10b for gastric cancer, and miR-21, miR-375, miR-25-3p, miR-151a-3p, and miR-100-3p for esophageal cancer) are associated with initiation and progression of gastric and esophageal cancers. The aim of this review is to highlight the recent advances in the roles of miRNAs in diagnosis and treatment of gastric and esophageal cancers.

The effect of prostaglandin E2 and calcium gluconate on orthodontic tooth movement and root resorption in rats

Abstract: Possible modifications in orthodontic tooth movement (OTM) and root resorption as a result of local injections of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) alone and with calcium gluconate (Ca) formed the aim of the present study. Twenty-four 8-week-old male Wistar rats were selected and randomly divided into three groups of eight. Both quadrants of the upper jaws of the first group of animals were used; therefore this group comprised two groups: control and normal. The upper left first molars of these eight animals were not placed under orthodontic force and received no injection, to serve as the normal group, considered for root resorption comparison only. The control group had localized submucosal injections of normal saline on the buccal side of the upper right first molar. In the third group, 0.1 ml of 1 mg/ml PGE2 was injected at the same site and the fourth group received an intraperitoneal injection of 200 mg/kg Ca (10%) in addition to the PGE2. All the injections were performed on days 0 and 7. The orthodontic appliance consisted of a closed coil spring ligated to the upper right first molar and incisor, exerting a force of 60 g during the 21-day experimental period, after which the animals were sacrificed. Palatal halves were removed for histological examination and for calculation of the amount of root resorption. Statistical analysis of data showed a significant (P < 0.05) acceleration in OTM after PGE2 injection compared with the control group. The addition of Ca reduced OTM but a significant increase (P< 0.05) was still recorded. A significant difference (P < 0.05) in root resorption was only observed between the PGE2 and normal groups. The findings show the importance of calcium ions working in association with PGE2 in stabilizing root resorption while significantly increasing OTM.

Appropriate cutoff values of anthropometric variables to predict cardiovascular outcomes: 7.6 years follow-up in an Iranian population.

Abstract: To determine cutoff points of anthropometric variables for predicting incident cardiovascular disease (CVD) in Iranian adults. It is a population-based longitudinal study. A total of 1614 men and 2006 women, aged ⩾40 years, free of CVD at baseline were included in the study. Body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) and cardiovascular risks were assessed. Incident CVD was ascertained over a median of 7.6 years follow-up. The adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) for CVD were calculated for 1 s.d. change in all obesity variables using Cox proportional hazards regression analysis. Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used as the method of defining the points of the maximum sum of sensitivity and specificity (MAXss) of each variable as a predictor of CVD. We found 333 CVD events during follow-up. The risk-factor-adjusted HRs were significant for all anthropometric variables in males and WHR in females and were 1.19, 1.24, 1.21 and 1.24 for BMI, WC, WHR and WHtR in males and 1.27 for WHR in females, respectively (all P 60 years old, all the anthropometric variables showed same CVD predicting power. The cutoff values (MAXss) for CVD prediction in males and females were BMIs 26.95 and 29.19 kg m−2,WCs 94.5 and 94.5 cm, WHRs 0.95 and 0.90, and WHtR 0.55 and 0.62, respectively. There was no difference between central obesity variables in predicting CVD in males, whereas in females WHR and WHtR were more appropriate. The cutoff values of anthropometric variables were higher in the Iranian than in other Asian populations.