Iraqi Journal of Cancer and Medical Genetics

Background: Reduced or absent production of Beta globin chain causing a hemolytic anemia known as beta thalassemia which is an inherited anemia of variable severity results from imbalances of globin chains, ineffective erythropoiesis and hemolysis. Red Blood cells are protected from lysis caused by complement via the complement regulatory proteins CD35 and CD55.
Aim of the study: To evaluate CD35 and CD5 in beta thalassemia cases and correlate the serum level of CD35 and CD55 with clinical and hematological parameters.
Patients and methods: A case control study, included 60 patients who were a known case of β-thalassemia aged between 2_30 years and control group of 20 participants who were healthy and age and sex matched with case group. All hematological parameters were done by automated hematological analyzer.Serum level of CD35 and CD55 were estimated in both patients and control subjects by ELISA technique.
Results: In this study, Mean RBC, Hb, PCV, MCH, and MCV were significantly lower in thalassemia cases. Serum level of CD35 was significantly lower ,while CD55was significantly higher in patients with thalassemia .There were significant weak positive correlations between CD35and both of RBC and PCV level.
Conclusion: A low level of CD35 in β thalassemia patients can accelerate the RBC lysis by permitting complement deposition on them. CD35 level showed positive correlation with RBC and PCV and negative correlation with RDW. CD55 is high in thalassemia but with no significant correlation with any of thalassemic patients’ characteristics.

There has been a rapid increase in the number of computed tomography (CT) scans which utilized for the purpose of disease diagnosis. The radiation exposure can increase the probability of developing different type of cancers. This prospective study was carried out in the Computed Tomography Unit of Al-Imamain Al-Kadhimain Medical City and Al yarmok teaching hospital in Baghdad Iraq in the period from 1 January to 31 October2018. About 3,758 adult patients (1743 male and 2015 female) with their age ranging from (10-79) who received a CT scan for different site of the body participate in this study. The main results obtained showing that the CT radiation correlated with the age and sex of the patient, with higher risks be expected of thyroid cancer among patients who were younger and female.

Background: Cyperus rotundus L. is a herbal plant used worldwide to treat different diseases in traditional medicine, including malignancy.
Methods: Purified phenolic compounds of C. rotundus rhizomes had been extracted, and GC-MS analysis of phenolic extract was performed and conducted according to the National Institute of Standard and Technology. The cytotoxic activity of C. rotundus phenolic extract investigated on various cell lines of human breast cancer (MCF-7, AMJ13, CAL-51) and normal cell line HBL- 100 using MTT assay to evaluate IC50. Acridine orange-propidium iodide (AO-PI) stains have been used to investigated the apoptosis effects.
Results: results of GC-MS analysis revealed that the extraction of C. rotundus rhizomes contained six phenolic compounds. C. rotundus phenolic extract displayed a significant cytotoxic efficacy against cancer cells MCF-7, CAL -51, and AMJ-13 with (IC50) of (135.3± 2.887, 218.6± 6.009, and 148.4± 4.619) μg /ml, respectively, but it has a negligible effect on HBL-100 at these concentrations with IC50 of 329.6± 5.196 μg/ml.
Conclusion: The presence of anticancer activity in Cyperus rotundus phenolic extract suggested a further research in screening these phytochemicals and investigating their cytotoxic activity against various types of cancer cell lines.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is comprised of a series of complex and heterogeneous subtypes with difference in clinical behavior and outcomes. The immunohistochemistory defined subtypes have a predictive significance and prognostic value in breast cancer. There are limited data regarding immunohistochemistory defined subtypes among Iraqi breast cancer patients. The objective of this study was to study the prevalence of immunohistochemistory defined subtypes and to identify their associations with the risk of recurrence.
PATIENTS AND METHODS: A study included 150 patients with breast cancer attending Baghdad oncology teaching hospital between June 2019 and December 2019 (50 cases with negative recurrence history and 100 recurrence cases) for whom data including age, stage, grade, histopathological type, date of recurrence for recurrence cases and date of last follow-up for cases with negative recurrence history were collected. The breast cancer subtypes defined using immunohistochemical measures of hormone receptors and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 and classified into four major subtypes: luminal A, luminal B, HER2- positive, and triple negative. the association between these subtypes and the recurrent history was evaluated by Chi-squared test.
RESULTS: The mean (±SD) age was 48.4 (±10.8) years. The immunohistochemistory defined subtypes of cancer was shown: luminal A in 79(52.7%)patients, 24(16%)patients had luminal B, 15(10%)patients had HER2 positive and 32(21.3%)patients had triple negative breast cancer. there were a significant association between immunohistochemistry defined subtypes and recurrent history (p=0.012).
CONCLUSION: Tumor profiling using molecular subtypes is a promising agent to identify a cases at high risk of recurrence.

Background: Ineffective erythropoiesis has a well-known role in the pathophysiology of β-thalassemia syndromes. CD177 expression was studied in diverse hematological, clinical, and immunological disorders (like myeloproliferative neoplasms MPN, transfusion-related acute lung injury TRALI; neonatal alloimmune neutropenia).
Aims of the Study:
1. To assess significance of CD 177 as a marker of increased erythropoietic activity in patients with β thalassemia major and minor.
2. to correlate CD177 expression with serum transferrin receptors (sTfR -1) and absolute neutrophils count.
Patients and Methods: this cross sectional study performed on 25 patients with β thalassemia major, 25 patients with β thalassemia minor, along with 25 healthy control, all were selected from Babylon Maternity and Children Teaching Hospital, Investigations included complete blood counts, hemoglobin analysis (by high performance liquid chromatography HPLC ,CRP, ESR, serum ferritin, flowcytometric immunophenotyping for CD177 expression and percentage, mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) expression on gated neutrophil and serum sTfR-1 levels were measured by enzyme immunoassay.
Results: The mean expression of CD177% was higher in β thalassemia major than minor and control, but it did not reach level of significance (p=0.22). CD177 Mean fluorescence intensity (MFI )had no significant difference (p=0.74) among β thalassemia major, minor and control. Mean levels of sTfR-1 in thalassemia major, minor and control group were significantly differing (p<0.0001). Within β thalassemia major, there was a negative significant correlation between Hb level and serum transferrin receptor-1 concentration (p=0.007), ` a significant positive correlation between serum ferritin and sTfR-1(p=0.03).
Conclusions: CD177 expression (percentage and MFI) as a marker of erythropoietic activity was insignificantly elevated in β thalassemia patients ,while sTfR-1 levels showed statistically significant difference in relation with erythropoietic activityin thalassemia patients.

Peganum harmala L. represents the major rich plant of alkaloids harmine and harmanline. In this study, one of these alkaloids was detected qualitatively and quantitatively using different extraction methods: aqueous, methanol, and alkaloid. In comparison between standard harmine and the three extracted using TLC technique, different spots were appeared from the three extraction methods and the color looked like the standard. While when run the extracts on HPLC in comparison to standard harmine, three peaks were observed and retention time of each extract was recorded to calculate the concentration of alkaloid. The best extraction method was the alkaloid extraction that give two peaks quite similar to that in the standard and almost the same retention time. This study shows that there are many important compounds in the alkaloid extraction of P. harmala of Iraqi species.