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Purpose: The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between Pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with Streptococcal infections (PANDAS) and Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) alleles. Materials and Methods: HLA alleles of 41 children patients, whom are diagnosed with rapid onset of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), and 88 healthy children are analyzed by using PCR. Results are evaluated by using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis.Results: DRB8, DRB5.2 and DQ5 alleles increase risk of disease while A1, B18 and B35 alleles decrease risk of disease. Conclusion: Findings of this study will help researchers to examine related genes in PANDAS and the effects of gene products on development of the disease. Presentation of exogenic antigens to T-helper cells by HLA class II loci is determined in different autoimmune diseases. Similarity of these findings with PANDAS etiology and risk increasing alleles found in this study being HLA class II is remarkable., Amaç: Bu çalışmada Streptokok enfeksiyonları ile ilişkili pediyatrik otoimmün nöropsikiyatrik bozukluklar (PANDAS) ve İnsan Lökosit Antijen (HLA) allelleri arasındaki ilişkinin incelenmesi amaçlanmıştır.Gereç ve Yöntem: Ani başlangıçlı obsesif kompulsif bozukluğu (OKB) olan 41 çocuk hastanın ve 88 sağlıklı çocuğun HLA alelleri PCR kullanılarak analiz edildi. Sonuçlar univariate ve multivariate lojistik regresyon analizi kullanılarak değerlendirildi.Bulgular: A1, B18 ve B35 allellerinin hastalık riskini azaltırken, DRB8, DRB5.2 ve DQ5 allellerinin hastalık riskini artırdığı saptanmıştır.Sonuç: Bu çalışmanın bulguları, araştırmacıların PANDAS'taki ilgili genleri ve gen ürünlerinin hastalığın gelişimine olan etkilerini incelemelerine yardımcı olacaktır. HLA sınıf II lokusları tarafından T-yardımcı hücrelere ekzojenik antijenlerin tanıtımı farklı otoimmün hastalıklarda belirlenmiştir. Bu bulguların PANDAS etiyolojisi ile benzerliği ve bu çalışmada bulunan hastalık riskini artıran allellerin, HLA sınıf II’de bulunması dikkat çekicidir.

PubMedID: 29946872 Aim: The aim of the present study is to investigate the frequency of celiac disease in children with peptic ulcers and to compare it with that of non-celiac peptic ulcers in terms of clinical and laboratory values. Methods: Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy was performed in 1769 patients at the Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology, The Faculty of Medicine, Cukurova University, Turkey, between January 2012 and January 2017. These cases consisted of subjects presenting with various GIS symptoms and indicated for endoscopy (with chronic diarrhea, delayed growth and development, abdominal pains, GIS bleeding, etc.). The levels of immunoglobulin A (IgA) serum anti-tissue transglutaminase antibodies, IgA anti-endomysial antibodies (EMA), and IgA serum were estimated in the patients with peptic ulcers. Results: Celiac disease was diagnosed with serology, endoscopy, and histopathology in 250 (14%) of all cases undergoing endoscopy. Peptic ulcers were diagnosed in 74 patients (4.2%) of all cases undergoing endoscopy. tTGA and EMA (+) levels were determined in 22 (29%) of the 74 patients with peptic ulcers, and then the presence of peptic ulcers was investigated in the upper gastrointestinal system using gastrointestinal endoscopy, followed by histopathological confirmation of celiac disease. HP infection was present in 14 (63%) of the patients with celiac disease and in 23 (44%) of non-celiac peptic ulcers; the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.12). In the total ulcer group, 10.8% (8/74) of patients with celiac peptic ulcers were negative for HP infection, whereas 21% (8/37) of HP-negative patients with ulcers had celiac disease. Conclusion: There exists a high risk of celiac disease in children with peptic ulcers. We thus recommend celiac disease to be investigated, particularly in HP-negative patients with peptic ulcers but with no history of NSAID use. © 2018, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.

Objective: Cystic fibrosis is the most common autosomal recessive inherited disorder seen in the white populations. It develops in result of mutations of cystic fibrosis transmembrane regulator (CFTR) gene. Rate of these mutations vary in different geographical regions. In this study, we aimed to determine the frequency of CFTR gene mutations in Adana. Methods: DNA samples of 63 subjects (21 women, 42 men) who were diagnosed as cystic fibrosis at Balcalı Hospital of Çukurova University, were studied for 19 different CFTR mutations by the strip assay method which is based on reverse hybridization. Results: In cystic fibrosis diagnosed patients, 19 mutations were observed of which 9 were homozygous and 10 were heterozygous. ∆F508 frequency was found as 11.9%, and rate of homozygous was found as 66.7%. Mutation frequencies of W1282X and N1303K were found as 2.40% and 4.80% respectively and rate of homozygous mutations were 50% for both. I148T mutation frequency was found as 3.20% and all were heterozygous. For the whole 19 mutations, frequency of mutation in 63 subjects was 22.3%. Conclusion: Detection of CFTR gene mutations by the strip assay method by reverse hybridization is an easy, fast and informative method. However, due to improvability of the common mutations in probable cystic fibrosis patients because of heterogenity in this region, it is still a major problem and does not exclude cystic fibrosis diagnosis. But this problematic issue can be overcome by evaluating the whole exons of CFTR mutations by advanced molecular tecniques. Key words: CFTR, cystic fibrosis, molecular diagnosis, reverse hibridisationKey words, ÖZET Amaç: Kistik fibrozis (KF) beyaz ırkta en sık gözlenen otozomal resesif özellik gösteren kalıtımsal bir hastalıktır. Bu hastalık kistik fibrozis transmembran regulator (CFTR) genindeki mutasyonlara bağlı olarak gelişir. Mutasyonlardaki dağılım oranları değişik ülke ve bölgelere göre farklılık göstermektedir. Bu çalışmada Adana İlinde CFTR geni mutasyonlarının değerlendirilmesi amaçlanmıştır. Yöntem: Çalışmada KF tanısı alan (21 kadın, 42 erkek) toplam 63 hastanın DNA örnekleri 19 farklı CFTR mutasyonu açısından ters hibridizasyona dayalı "strip assay" yöntemi ile incelenmiştir. Bulgular: KF tanılı hastaların 19"unda (9"unda homozigot, 10"unda heterozigot mutasyon) saptanmıştır. ∆F508 sıklığı %11.90, homozigotluk oranı ise %66.7 olarak bulunmuştur. W1282X mutasyon sıklığı %2.40 ve N1303K mutasyon sıklığı %4.80 bulunmuş olup homozigotluk oranları %50" dir. I148T mutasyonu %3.20 olarak saptanmıştır ve hepsi heterozigottur. Taradağımız 19 mutasyon için hastaların toplam mutasyon oranı ise % 22.3 olarak bulunmuştur. Sonuç: CFTR geni mutasyonlarının rutin laboratuarlarda saptanabilmesi için ters hibridizasyona dayalı "strip assay" tekniği hızlı, kolay ve bilgi verici bir yöntemdir. Bununla birlikte sonuçlarımızdaki heterojenite, şüpheli bir KF vakasında, yaygın bulunan mutasyonların kanıtlanamaması durumu, halen potansiyel bir sorun olarak kalmaya devam etmektedir ve bu durum tanıyı dışlamamaktadır. Bu sorun CFTR mutasyonunun bulunduğu ekzonların tamamının daha ileri moleküler teknikler ile incelenmesiyle ortadan kaldırılabilir.

PubMedID: 28342642 The study has evaluated the performance of HCV core antigen (Cag) test by comparing HCV RNA PCR assay which is considered the gold standard for management of HCV infection. Totally, 132 samples sent for HCV RNA (real-time PCR) test were included in the study. Anti-HCV antibody test and HCV Cag test were performed by chemiluminescent enzyme immunoassay (CMEI). Anti-HCV test was positive in all samples. HCV RNA was detected in 112/132 (84.8%) samples, and HCV Cag in 105/132 (79.5%). The most common HCV genotype was genotype 1 (86%). Considering the HCV RNA test as gold standard; the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy of Cag test were found to be 93.75%, 100%, 100%, 74.07% and 94.69%, respectively, and paired test results were detected as highly concordant. A high level of correlation was seen between HCV RNA and Cag tests, however, the concordance between the two tests appeared to be disrupted at viral loads lower than 103 IU/mL. On the contrary, the correlation reached significance for the values higher than 103 IU/mL. Viral loads were in the 17–2500 IU/mL range for the negative results for Cag test. Pearson's correlation coefficient revealed a considerably high correlation. The concordance between HCV RNA and Cag tests was disrupted under a viral load lower than 103 IU/mL. Therefore, it would be appropriate to consider cost effectiveness, advantages and limitations of the HCV RNA and Cag tests during the decision on which method to use for patient management. © 2017 Elsevier Ltd

PubMedID: 20824388 We investigated the effect of extremely low-frequency electromagnetic field (ELF-EMF) with pulse trains exposure on lipid peroxidation, and, hence, oxidative stress in the rat liver tissue. The parameters that we measured were the levels of plasma alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and alkaline phosphatase as well as plasma albumin, bilirubin, and total protein levels in 30 adult male Wistar rats exposed to ELF. We also determined the percentage of apoptotic and necrotic cells of the kidney extracts from the animals by flow cytometry method. Apoptotic cell death was further characterized by monitoring DNA degradation using gel electrophoresis. The results showed an increase in the levels of oxidative stress indicators, and the flow cytometric data suggested a possible relationship between the exposure to magnetic field and the cell death. We showed significantly lower necrotic cell percentages in experimental animals compared to either unexposed or sham control groups. However, DNA ladder analyses did not differentiate between the groups. Our results were discussed in relation to the response of biological systems to EMF. © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC. Acknowledgment The authors acknowledge with thanks the support provided by the Biochemistry department of Cukurova Medical School by way of valuable contributions in the determination of oxidative stress parameters.