Background Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a heterogeneous disorder characterized by clonal expansion of myeloid progenitors in the bone marrow and peripheral blood. Aspartate β-hydroxylase (ASPH) is a membrane protein that promotes cellular motion. Recent studies have revealed that ASPH is an indicator of carcinoma in humans and is highly expressed in AML. Patients and methods The study included 30 AML patients diagnosed and classified by complete blood count with differential, bone marrow study, flow cytometric, cytogenetic, and molecular studies, and 10 normal participants of the same age group. The serum level of ASPH was measured in both cases and controls by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results The level of ASPH was significantly higher in patients than in controls (P < 0.001). Patients with mutant FLT3 had higher serum ASPH compared with those with wild FLT3 with a trend toward statistical significance (P = 0.074). Other clinical and laboratory variables had no relationship with ASPH levels in the blood. Conclusion This study detected a significant increase in ASPH levels in the blood of AML patients more than the controls, shedding the light on the role of ASPH in AML genesis and paving the way for the development of new medications that block ASPH's leukemogenesis effect in the future.

Background Osteopontin (OPN) is a widely expressed acidic glycoprotein, and is considered as an interesting biomarker because of its role in the pathophysiology of several inflammatory, degenerative, autoimmune, and oncologic diseases. This study aimed to evaluate serum OPN as a blood biomarker in relapsing–remitting multiple-sclerosis (RRMS) Egyptian patients and correlate it with disease activity. Patients and methods This case–control study recruited consecutively 90 patients divided into two groups: group I includes 30 age-matched and sex-matched healthy individuals as control group, and group II includes 60 RRMS patients, which in turn was subdivided into two subgroups: group IIa including 30 patients in remission and group IIb including 30 patients in relapse before receiving methyl prednisolone. All patients were subjected to full history taking, neurological examination using Expanded Disability Status Scale assessment, and laboratory investigations, including complete blood count, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, and OPN-level measurement. Results A highly significant difference between group I and group II as regards OPN level (P < 0.001). Receiver operating characteristic curve for OPN level between group I and group II showed that the cutoff level of more than 8 can discriminate between both groups with 88.33% sensitivity and 100% specificity. There was a significant correlation between OPN level and AST (P < 0.05). Conclusion OPN can be used as an inflammatory biomarker to differentiate between RRMS patients and healthy individuals but cannot discriminate between remission and relapse in MS patients.

Objectives Patients with type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) have an increased incidence of adverse cardiovascular events secondary to endothelial dysfunction, hypercoagulability, and decreased fibrinolysis. This study aimed to evaluate protein-C and protein-S activities and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) in patients with T2DM who were treated with statins and/or angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI)/angiotensin-II receptor blockade (ARB). Basic methods One hundred and twenty patients with T2DM participating in the study were classified into groups based on their use of statins and ACEI/ARBs. Protein-C and protein-S activity and CIMT were compared. Main results Patients treated with both statins and ACEI/ARBs showed the highest levels of protein-C and protein-S activity (P < 0.001). This was followed by patients on statins alone and patients on ACEI/ARBs alone. Patients who were not on statin or ACEI/ARB therapy had the lowest levels of protein-C and protein-S activity. Moreover, we identified significant correlations between protein-C and protein-S activities and CIMT with hemoglobin A1c, cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein. Conclusion ACEI/ARBs and statins have a critical impact on the hypercoagulable state characteristic of T2DM, potentially via increased levels of protein-C and protein-S activity. ACEI/ARBs also limited CIMT, an important surrogate marker for atherosclerosis.