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BackgroundAn outbreak of COVID-19 in Iran has spread throughout the country. Identifying the epidemiological characteristics of this disease will help to make appropriate decisions and thus control the epidemic. The aim of this study was characterization of the epidemiological features of COVID-19 in Iran.MethodsIn this retrospective study, data related to the epidemiological characteristics of COVID-19 patients admitted to Baqiyatallah Hospital in Tehran, Iran, from 19 February 2020 to 15 April 2020 have been analyzed and reported. Patient characteristics including age, gender and underlying diseases were investigated. Data were collected through patient records. Sex ratio, Case Fatality Rate (CFR) and daily trend of cases were also determined. A multiple logistic regression analysis was also performed to assess affecting factors on mortality.ResultsFrom February 19, 2020 to April 15, 2020, 12870 patients referred to the hospital emergency department, of which 2968 were hospitalized with COVID-19 diagnosis. The majority of cases were in the age group of 50 to 60 years of old. The male-to-female ratio was 1.93:1. A total of 239 deaths occurred among all cases for an overall CFR of 1.85% based on the total number of patients (both outpatient and inpatient) and 8.06% among hospitalized patients. Out of all patients 10.89% had comorbidity. Diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, chronic Kidney diseases and cancer were the most common comorbidities with 3.81, 2.02 , 1.99 , 1.25, 0.60 and 0.57 %, respectively. Male gender (OR=1.45, 95% CI: 1.08-1.96), older age (OR=1.05, 95% CI: 1.04-1.06) and having underlying diseases (OR=1.53, 95% CI: 1.04-2.24) were significantly associated with mortality.ConclusionsThe results of this study showed that Male gender, older age and having comorbidities were significantly associated with the risk of death among COVID-19 patients. It is important to pay special attention to male elderly patients with underlying diseases.

An imbalance between regulatory T (Treg) and T-helper (Th)-17 cells has been implicated in the pathogenesis of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) exert immunomodulatory properties through secreting exosomes. This study aimed to assess the effect of MSC-derived exosomes (MSC-Exo) on the differentiation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) into Tregs from patients with COVID-19. Exosomes were isolated from adipose derived -- tissue MSCs. PBMCs were separated from the whole blood of COVID-19 patients (n=20). Treg frequency was assessed before and 48 hours after treatment of PBMCs with MSC-Exo using flow cytometry. Expression of FOXP3 and cytokine genes, and the concentration of cytokines associated with Tregs, were assessed before and after treatment with MSC-Exo. The frequency of CD4+CD25+CD127- Tregs was significantly higher after treating PBMCs with MSC-Exo (6.695±2.528) compared to before treatment (4.981±2.068). The expressions of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1, interleukin (IL)-10, and FOXP3 were significantly upregulated in MSC-Exo--treated PBMCs. The concentration of IL-10 increased significantly after treatment (994.7±543.9 pg/mL) of PBMCs with MSC-Exo compared with before treatment (563.5±408.6 pg/mL). The concentration of TGF-β was significantly higher in the supernatant of PBMCs after treatment with MSC-Exo (477.0±391.1 pg/mL) than PBMCs before treatment (257.7±226.3 pg/mL). MSC-Exo has the potential to raise anti-inflammatory responses by induction of Tregs, potentiating its therapeutic effects in COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Cancer is one of the most prevalent causes of death worldwide. In terms of global mortality, colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second most prevalent cancer form. Typically, the initial step in treating colon cancer is surgery to remove tumors. A referral for further treatments like chemotherapy and radiation therapy could also be made. However, because of medication resistance and a lack of focused treatments, it is constantly necessary to create new cancer therapy methods. This investigation examined the impact of the oncolytic coxsackievirus A21 (CVA21) on a mouse model of colorectal cancer. Methods: Thirty BALB/c mice were divided into three equal groups randomly. 5×106 CT-26 cells, a colonic carcinoma cell line, were injected into the left flank of each animal to simulate colorectal cancer. Group A was treated with PBS once the palpable tumor was discovered (18 days later), group B was treated with the oncolytic CVA21 (106 TCID50/mL, twice at one-week intervals), and group C was treated with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), 50 mg/kg, twice at one-week interval. The mice were euthanized ten days after the final injection, and the spleens were removed and examined under sterile circumstances to determine the lymphocyte proliferation index, LDH, NO, IL-4, IL-10, IFN-γ, and TGFß production levels. A significant P=0.05 level was considered in all evaluations. Results: The current study's findings showed that when compared to the control group, treatment with CVA21 increased NO (30.5±4.10 µM), LDH (58.18±4.61 %), and IFN-γ (44.82±3.72 pg/mL) levels and significantly decreased the secretion of IL-4 (30.07±3.34 pg/mL), IL-10 (62.11±5.69 pg/mL), and TGF-ß (56.66±6.88 pg/mL). Conclusion: The CVA21 treatment for colorectal cancer appears to have some potential benefits. In other words, the study's findings demonstrated that using oncolytic viruses also activates the innate immune system by raising levels of nitric oxide and the acquired immune system. The favorable benefits of the combination may also be attributable to immunological divergence in the current study from antiinflammatory cytokines (such as IL-4, IL-10, and TGF-ß) to pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as IFN-γ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: The level of Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF-α) changes by Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep deprivation. TNF-α is a known biomarker of REM Sleep Deprivation (RSD). Prior studies have shown that any alteration in REM sleep can increase the amount of TNF-α. Accordingly, the Pain Tolerance Threshold (PTT) is believed to be increased in patients with insomnia after using anti-TNF-α or Infliximab (IFX). The present study aims to demonstrate the effect of IFX and its importance in the pain management of hospital inpatients. Methods and Materials/Patients: Seventy-two male Wistar rats in 9 groups were studied after obtaining the approval of the ethics committee of Tehran University of Medical Sciences (CNS. Protocol-ICSS-940816). Remicade was used for inducing the anti-TNF-α. Multiple platform water-tank was used for REM sleep deprivation induction. Pain tolerance was measured on a hot plate apparatus. Results: There was a significant increase in the duration of the rats' tolerance on the hot plate between the saline group and the group that received IFX (0.2 mg/kg) (F2=8.363) (P<0.001). Conclusion: Chronic SD can cause neuronal damage due to neuroinflammatory insults. REM sleep deprivation, in the long run, sensitizes the brain to neurodegenerative insults via the inflammatory mechanism, to some extent through the TNFα-associated pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]