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The authors report the captures of 3 specimens of common angel shark Squatina oculata Bonaparte, 1840 from the northern coast of Tunisia in the central Mediterranean Sea. They were 3 adult males which measured 905, 1350 and 1400 mm, respectively, and their eviscerated weight was 4.3, 8.5 and 10.8 kg respectively. Combined with other captures made in the Tunisian waters and throughout the central Mediterranean Sea. The establishment of a viable population of the species in the capture area remains a suitable hypothesis which cannot be totally ruled out. However, further reords are needed. Together with other squatinid species present in the same region, a management plan should be integrated in Tunisian fisheries. This management should be conducted with the contribution of local fishermen to preserve the species of a possible and definitive exctinction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to assess the awareness about the rights of people with mental illness in the main psychiatric hospital in Tunisia among the service users, the family members and the staff. Design/methodology/approach: The Convention of Rights of People with Disabilities mandates that State Parties initiate and maintain campaigns and human rights training to promote understanding of the rights of people with mental illnesses, considered as a main factor for their fulfillment. Service users, family members and staff evaluated, through a survey, the importance of ten rights for persons with mental illness, stated in the convention. Findings: Disparities were found in the perception of the different rights by and between the three groups. The highest levels of awareness were associated with the freedom from torture or degrading treatment and the right to live with dignity and respect, whereas the lower importance were assigned to the right to participation in recovery plans, to give consent and to exercise legal capacity. Originality/value: The lack of awareness and the poor perception of rights of people with mental illness is one of the barriers to their achievement. More training and awareness raising is necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors report in the present paper the capture of two specimens of a rare shark, angular rough shark Oxynotus centrina (Linnaeus, 1758), from the northern coast of Tunisia. A first specimen was a juvenile female caught off Ras Jebel, the second specimen was a juvenile male caught off Kelibia. These captures occurred after two decades in the area where it appears that the species is not totally exctincted. The Mediterranean distribution of O. centrina appears to be different according to the region, absent from the coast of France, specimens were still sporadically caught in the Adriatic Sea, and mainly in the Aegean Sea and the eastern Basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first record of the little sleeper shark, Somniosus rostratus (Risso, 1827), from the Tunisian coast, is presented in this note. It was an adult female measuring 990 mm total length and weighing 4500 g. The capture occurred off Ras Jebel located in north-eastern Tunisia at a depth of 120 m. The specimen is herein described including morphological measurements, color, and dental formula. Due to a lack of records, the real status of the species in the Mediterranean Sea remains questionable. Somniosus rostratus is rarely caught in this sea because it lives in deep bottoms poorly exploited by commercial vessels. However, recent captures of specimens and occurrence of nursery grounds suggest that a viable population of S. rostratus is probably established in this sea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors present in this paper the captures of new specimens Mediterranean flyingfish Cheilopogon heterurus (Rafinesque, 1810) off the Tunisian coast. These captures are the northernmost extension range of the species in the area and confirm its local occurrence. The existence of a sustainable population in the Tunisian waters cannot be ruled out, showing that C. heterurus is the most common exocetid species known to date in the Mediterranean Sea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Interleukin 8 (IL-8), is a proinflammatory chemokine, has been reported to have angiogenic activity and to be responsible for tumor-associated angiogenesis in several cancers. In this study, we aimed to study the (IL-8) gene polymorphism in relation with risk development of non small cell lung cancer in Tunisian patient. Two single nucleotide polymorphisms (−251T/A [rs4073], +781C/T [rs2227306]) of the IL-8 gene were screened in 170 patients with NSCLC and 225 healthy controls by PCR–RFLP. Significant association for the IL-8 −251T/T genotypes (P =0.004) and an increased significant frequency of IL-8 −251T allele were noted in the patient’s group (P =0.0007). Clinical analysis indicated a borderline positive association of IL-8 −251T allele among adenocarcinoma patients (P =0.003). Our study indicated that IL-8 −251T allele was highly associated with large tumor size and high grade stage of NSCLC. Moreover, a significantly increased risk of NSCLC was associated with IL-8 +781C allele in patients with large tumor size (T3 and T4) (P =0.004). IL-8 mRNA expression was found highly expressed in NSCLC patients compared to healthy controls. The same higher level was even found in patients carrying IL-8 −251T/T genotype. Our results indicated that the IL-8 promoter polymorphism is associated with NSCLC risk. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Introduction Tunisia is knowing a significant increase of the elderly population, this phenomenon comes along with an increase of the incidence of degenerative pathologies “dependent on the age” as the Alzheimer's disease. The physical and psychic consequences of the disease and also the behavior of family members are an important determinant of quality of life and economic activities of both patients and informal caregivers. Objectives and methods Our aims are to establish characteristicsof60 informal cargivers of Alzheimer's patients followed in the department of neurology in Razi's Hospital and to estimate their socioeconomic burden through a descriptive study. Results Our sample of caregivers was predominantly female with a moderate socio-economic conditions in 36,66%. The support was provided in 2/3 of cases exclusively by the informal caregivers. 22,66% ( n = 13) of them lost their profession since the beginning of assistance's relationship. Among caregivers, 8% were forced to leave their homes to be closer to their ailing sibling. Conclusion Our results reflect the distress of informal caregivers of Alzheimer's patients, the importance of their involvement and the adverse consequences on their quality of life and professional activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) in genes coding for chemokines may be associated with some cancer. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of CCR2-64I and CXCL12-3'A SNPs on the susceptibility and the clinicopathological characteristics of NSCLC (Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer) in the Tunisian population. 170 NSCLC patients and 225 healthy controls screened by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis were enrolled. A significant association for the homozygous genotype CCR2 64I/64I with lung cancer risk was observed (P=0.004). An increased significant frequency of the -64I allele (P=0.0006) was noted in the patient's group. Clinical analysis indicated a positive association of the -64I allele among squamous cell lung carcinoma patients (P=0.003). The CCR2 mRNA extracted from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) was found highly expressed in NSCLC patients compared to controls. The same higher levels were found in patients carrying the CCR2 64I/64I genotype. No significant association was retrieved with CXCL12-3'A polymorphism. In conclusion, our results revealed that the subjects with -64I allele of CCR2-64I gene polymorphism, expressed a significantly higher risk for NSCLC risk without influence on its pathological progression., (Copyright © 2015 American Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Many studies reported that Vitamin D Receptor (VDR) gene polymorphisms might influence the cancer risk due to their antiproliferative, antiangiogenic, and apoptotic effects. The aim of this study was to explore the genetic association of VDR polymorphisms with lung cancer risk in Tunisian population. The genotype and haplotype frequencies of four VDR polymorphisms, FokI (rs2228570), BsmI (rs1544410), ApaI (rs7975232) and TaqI (rs731236) were studied using polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis in 240 patients with lung cancer and 280 healthy controls. The distribution of genotype frequencies differed significantly between lung cancer subjects and controls (FokI P adj = 0.002; ApaI P adj = 0.013). Haplotype analyses revealed a significant association between G-A-C and A-C-T haplotypes and lung cancer risk (P corr = 0.0128, P corr = 0.008). When patients were stratified according to gender, age, and smoking, significant associations were detected with FokI and TaqI polymorphisms. We found a lack of association between BsmI, TaqI polymorphisms and lung cancer risk (P > 0.05). Only, the attributable proportion due to interaction and the synergic index for interaction between ApaI polymorphism and smoking were statistically significant (P adj = 0.74, 95 % CI = 0.38-1.20) and (P adj = 0.63, 95 % CI = 0.05-1.21), respectively. Both the additive interaction measures suggested the existence of a biological interaction between SNP ApaI, but not FokI, and smoking. The multiplicative interaction measure was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). This is the first study in Tunisia, which suggested that VDR FokI and ApaI polymorphisms might be risk factors for lung cancer development.

Background: Lung cancer (LC) is one of the most lethal malignant disorders; it is generally divided into two groups: small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In our present study we have been interested to NSCLC. Several approaches were adopted to study the etiology or pathophysiology of this disease. As recent reports have focused on the genetic susceptibility to this disease, with many candidate genes studied, we chose TNF in view of the major role it plays in the immune pro inflammatory system and its association with increased risk of a variety of human cancers. We have investigated three polymorphisms in the promoter region of the TNFalpha gene (-308 G/A and -238 G/A) and TNFbeta + 252A > G for their susceptibility to non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in Tunisian population., Methods: We compared the distribution of these polymorphisms between 133 NSCLC patients and 174 healthy controls using a polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length-polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis. The frequencies of the two TNFalpha (-238 and -308) "A" alleles were significantly higher in NSCLC patients than in healthy controls respectively (p = 0.01; OR = 1.92; 95% CI 1.14 - 3.23 and p = 0.0000008; OR = 3.65; 95% CI 2.12 - 6.30), whereas the frequency of the TNFbeta + 252 G allele was approximately similar in the two compared groups., Results: This study supports a relationship between TNFalpha -238G/A and TNFalpha -308G/A polymorphisms and the susceptibility to lung cancer. Contrary to other studies, the -308 A and -238A alleles have an inductive action on lung cancer development and progression in our Tunisian population., Conclusions: This study indicates that the TNFalpha -308G > A and TNFalpha -238G > A would be associated with increased susceptibility to lung cancer but no significant association was found in TNFbeta + 252A > G polymorphism.