Risk factors associated with recurrent stroke: A retrospective hospital-based study

Objective:To determine the prevalence of the recurrent stroke and its risk factors in the city of Ahvaz,Iran.Methods:The present study investigated the medical records of 389 ischemic stroke patients admitted to the Department of Neurology,Ahvaz Hospitals from March 2015 to January 2016.Patients'information was collected.Patients who suffered recurrent stroke but survived were followed up for at least 12 months after the first attack,and their medical records were collected.Results:The incidence rate of recurrent stroke was 14.91%(n=58).There was a significant relationship between the incidence rate of recurrent ischemic stroke with atrial fibrillation(OR=2.012,P<0.05)and ischemic heart disease(OR=1.695,P<0.05).However,there was no significant relationship between recurrent stroke and age,sex,dyslipidemia,diabetes,hypertension,and cigarette smoking(P>0.05).Conclusions:Patients with a history of atrial fibrillation and ischemic heart disease were at a higher risk of recurrent ischemic stroke.The incidence can be reduced by better treatment of atrial fibrillation and active follow-up.

SNHG8 and its role in Epstein-Barr virus-associated gastric cancer:Is NF-κB involved?

Managing Editor:Peng Lyu.Epstein-Barr virus(EBV),a member of the Herpesviridae family,is known for its involvement in gastric cancers.Because of its relatively high prevalence,The Cancer Genome Atlas classifies EBV-associated gastric cancers(EBVaGCs)as one of the four major molecular subtypes of gastric cancers.Because some studies have shown that EBV is present in all the cancerous cells and not in other surrounding mucosal cells,EBV infection is considered to have a causal role in EBVaGCs.1 In recent years,the pathogenic mechanism of EBVaGC has been the subject of intense investigation.It is believed that EBV contributes to gastric cancer through four major mechanisms.

Incidence of T3151 mutation in BCR/ABL-positive CML and ALL patients

OBJECTIVES： Targeted therapy of Philadelphia-positive ALL and CML patients using imatinib （IM） has caused significant changes in treatment course and has increased the survival of patients. A small group of patients show resistance to IM. Acquired mutations in tyrosine kinase domain of BCR-ABL protein are a mechanism for development of resistance. T315I is one of the most common acquired mutations in this domain, which occurs in ATP binding site and inhibits the formation of hydrogen bond with IM. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of this mutation in BCR/ABL-positive CML and ALL patients. METHODS： To conduct this study, 60 BCR-ABL-positive patients （including 50 CML and 10 ALL patients） who were subject to treatment with IM were selected. After taking the samples, presence of T315I mutation was assessed using ARMS- PCR on cDNA and its polymorphism was evaluated by sequencing. RESULTS： The results showed that among 60 patients, only three patients had T315I mutation, which was detected using ARMS technique. The three patients bearing mutation were afflicted with CML and no significant association was found between blood parameters with duration of treatment in presence of mutation. CONCLUSIONS： The mutation was found in three CML patients, which indicated lower likelihood and diagnostic value of this mutation in ALL patients. Given the negative direct sequencing results in T3151 patients, it can be concluded that ARMS- PCR is a more sensitive technique when the number of cancer cells is low in patients during treatment.

Cytogenetic and molecular basis of BCR-ABL myelodysplastic syndrome: diagnosis and prognostic approach

Myelodysplastic syndromes(MDS)include a heterogeneous group of blood disorders generally afflicting older people.Several genetic factors have been reported from these patients that have an important role in the diagnosis,prognosis,and treatment of this disease.BCR-ABL1 is a genetic factor that has occasionally been reported in some studies.This review attempts to characterize MDS patients reported to harbor this fusion and to assess the diagnostic,therapeutic,and prognostic potential of BCR-ABL1 fusionin MDS patients.This review showed that BCR-ABL fusion has been reported in 22 MDS patients whose condition generally transformed to acute myeloblastic leukemia and was not responsive to conventional therapies.However,these patients showed a good response to treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitors.Therefore,even though incidence of BCR-ABL fusion appears to be low in MDS patients,its detection is essential in assessing disease prognosis and choosing appropriate treatment.