Tehran University Medical Journal

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Background: Cytotoxic lymphocyte antigen-4 (CTLA-4) plays an important role in regulating T cell activation. CTLA-4 gene polymorphisms are related with genetic susceptibility to various autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We analyzed the role of CTLA-4 polymorphisms at positions -318CT in patients who suffer from SLE. Methods: This study was performed on 180 SLE patients referred to 5th Azar University Hospital in Gorgan, Iran. Three hundred and four ethnically-and age-matched healthy controls with no history of autoimmune diseases entered the study between 5th May 2008 and 23rd October 2009. DNA was extracted from blood samples according to the standard procedure. Polymerase chain reaction- restriction fragments length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) was used to analyze the genotype and allele frequencies of this polymorphism. PCR was carried out using the following primers: forward 5′-AAATGAATTGGACTGGATGGT-3′ and reverse 5′-TTACGAGAAAGGAAGCCGT G-3′. The frequency of alleles and genotypes were assessed using direct counting. Chi-square test and Fisher’s exact test were used to compare the association between the alleles and genotype frequencies and SLE. P<0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: The CC genotype was observed in 94.5% of the SLE patients and 82.4% of the controls the difference was statistically significant (P=0.0001, OR=3.51, CI95%=1.77-7.53). The CT genotype, on the other hand, was more frequently observed in the control group (17.1% vs. 5.5%, P=0.0001, OR=0.28). T allele was significantly more common in the controls compared to SLE patients (P=0.0001, OR=0.26, CI95%=0.13-0.53). Conclusion: Our results suggest that the -318C/T polymorphism of CTLA-4 gene might play a significant role in the genetic susceptibility to SLE. Therefore, further studies on populations, especially from other Middle East countries, are needed to confirm our results.

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Background: Vitamin D deficiency is a widespread problem especially in the developing countries like Iran. The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency differs from moderate to severe among Iranian women, particularly among pregnant women, and it can cause some problems such as preeclampsia, gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), premature labor and primary cesarean section. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether the mode of delivery is related to serum vitamin D levels or not and if there is any difference in the percentage of cesarean section between vitamin D-deficient and vitamin D-insufficient women. Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out between the April 2012 and April 2014 in a woman university hospital, Tehran, Iran. One hundred and eighty-six women aged between 17 and 52 years old (Mean age 28.46 and SD5.97) were surveyed in this study. The study group comprised of (N=186) consecutive cases attending Tehran Women General Hospital Clinic for normal vaginal delivery or cesarean section. Women who underwent cesarean section due to previous cesarean delivery were not recruited for the study. The participants were divided into two groups: women with vaginal delivery and women with cesarean section. Serum vitamin D concentration (25(OH) Vitamin D) was measured for each patient. Concentration of serum vitamin D was compared between these 2 groups. Results: One hundred and twenty-eight (68.8%) women had cesarean section and 58 (32.2%) had vaginal delivery. Median and inter-quartile range (IQR) of serum 25(OH) D were 13.64 and 12.47 ng/ml respectively, among women with cesarean section, compared to 11.68 and 12.59 ng/ml in those with vaginal delivery. No statistically significant difference was detected in serum vitamin D between these 2 groups (P=0.72). In addition, no statistically significant difference was detected between women with vitamin D deficiency and women who were vitamin D insufficient (P=0.8). Conclusion: In this study, there was no association between serum vitamin D levels and delivery mode.

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Background: Nurses are prone to continuous stress due to their job situation that lead to many physical and psychological disorders. this job stress also affects their personal life and career. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between major dietary patterns and anthropometry in nurses.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study from February to October 2014. In this cross-sectional study, 320 female nurses were selected randomly from eight hospitals affiliated to Tehran University of Medical Sciences in 2014. This research project carried out with the code 24371 Tehran University of Medical Sciences in Research Ethics Committee approved. Anthropometry and blood pressure measurement was done. Data on physical activity were obtained using the short version of international physical activity questionnaire.

Results: Three dietary patterns were identified using factor analysis and labeled: healthy, unhealthy and traditional. The healthy dietary pattern score was significantly related to weight and body mass index (BMI) of participants after adjusting for confounders (P=0.05, P=0.01, respectively). There was not significant association between the unhealthy dietary pattern and anthropometry measures. The unhealthy dietary pattern score was inversely related to systolic and diastolic blood pressure after adjusting for confounders (P=0.001, P=0.03, respectively). There was not any significant association between the traditional dietary pattern and anthropometry and blood pressure measures (P>0.05). Conclusion: According to the result of this study, three dietary patterns including, healthy, unhealthy and traditional were identified in nurses. The healthy dietary pattern was associated with weight and BMI and the unhealthy dietary pattern was inversely associated with blood pressure. The traditional dietary pattern had no effect on anthropometry and blood pressure measures.