Serum Myeloperoxidase as a Biomarker of Asthma Severity Among Adults: A Case Control Study

Background:The contribution of neutrophils is still indistinct in the inflammatory response of bronchial asthma (BAs). Myeloperoxidase (MPO) is an enzyme released from the primary azurophilic granules of the neutrophils. The study aimed to evaluate the levels of serum MPO as a biomarker for the assessment of the level of asthma control. Methods:The study participants included 94 asthmatic patients and 86 healthy controls. The identification of asthma severity had assessed using the ''''Global Initiative for Asthma guidelines''''. Asthmatic adults had divided into three groups: Good (n= 22), partial (n= 30), and poor control (n= 44). Also, patients have been divided again into two groups (treated and untreated) for BAs.Results:The predicted FEV1% and the peak expiratory flow (PEF/L) of all participants had verified by spirometry. The mean patients’ age was 31.9±15.1 year, with a predominance of females. The mean asthma duration was 10.5±8.6 years. Mean spirometric parameters (FEV1 and PEF) were significantly lower among the patients (0.00). Significant higher MPO levels had observed among BAs patients (p-0.00). The MPO levels have not differed significantly with asthma levels and had significant differences with the history of treatment. There was a nonsignificant negative correlation between the mean MPO levels and the spirometry variables among the patients. ROC curves revealed a sensitivity, specificity, accuracy for MPO (80.9%, 72.1%, and 84.3%), respectively to predict asthmatic severity.Conclusion:There were significantly higher MPO levels compared to healthy controls. Levels of serum MPO had a non-significant positive correlation with levels of asthma control, but a negative non-significant correlation with spirometric results. Key Words: Asthma, And Neutrophils, FEV1, MPO, PEF     

A Plant Germline-Specific Integrator of Sperm Specification and Cell Cycle Progression

The unique double fertilisation mechanism in flowering plants depends upon a pair of functional sperm cells. During male gametogenesis, each haploid microspore undergoes an asymmetric division to produce a large, non-germline vegetative cell and a single germ cell that divides once to produce the sperm cell pair. Despite the importance of sperm cells in plant reproduction, relatively little is known about the molecular mechanisms controlling germ cell proliferation and specification. Here, we investigate the role of the Arabidopsis male germline-specific Myb protein DUO POLLEN1, DUO1, as a positive regulator of male germline development. We show that DUO1 is required for correct male germ cell differentiation including the expression of key genes required for fertilisation. DUO1 is also necessary for male germ cell division, and we show that DUO1 is required for the germline expression of the G2/M regulator AtCycB1;1 and that AtCycB1:1 can partially rescue defective germ cell division in duo1. We further show that the male germline-restricted expression of DUO1 depends upon positive promoter elements and not upon a proposed repressor binding site. Thus, DUO1 is a key regulator in the production of functional sperm cells in flowering plants that has a novel integrative role linking gametic cell specification and cell cycle progression.