INTRODUCTIONGestational hypertension (GH) is a common disorder during pregnancy that can progress to preeclampsia and cause various subsequent fatal complications. A cluster of enzymes, called matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), and its specific inhibitors, tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMPs), have been reported to be involved in the pathophysiology of GH. The purpose of this study was to examine circulating levels of MMP-9, TIMP-1 and TIMP-2 in pregnant women who had GH and those who were normotensive.

METHODSIn a case-control study, the total levels of MMP-9, TIMP-1 and TIMP-2 in the sera of 108 pregnant patients were evaluated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. 54 patients with GH (test group) and 64 normotensive pregnant women (control group) were included in the study.

RESULTSWhile MMP-9 levels showed a high level of expression in the GH group (p = 0.085), TIMP-1 and TIMP-2 levels showed low levels of expression for the same. Weak positive correlations were found on correlation analysis between maternal age and TIMP-1 in the GH group (r = 0.278, p < 0.05), and between gestational age and TIMP-2 in the control group (r = 0.318, p < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONOur findings suggest that MMP-9 may be involved in the pathophysiology of GH. It may be of value to further evaluate MMP-9 as a potential biomarker for predicting preeclampsia in pregnant women.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Biomarkers ; blood ; Case-Control Studies ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Female ; Gestational Age ; Humans ; Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced ; blood ; diagnosis ; Matrix Metalloproteinase 9 ; blood ; Pregnancy ; Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinase-1 ; blood ; Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinase-2 ; blood ; Young Adult

Methods: In total, 185 lesions were identified on bone and SPECT-CT scans from 32 patients. Lesions were classified as metastatic (109 sclerotic lesions) and benign (76 lesions) morphologically on low-dose CT. Semiquantitative analysis using SUVmax and mean HU was performed on the lesions and compared. To discriminate benign and metastatic lesions, the correlation between SUVmax and mean HU was determined using the intraclass correlation coefficients. Results: The SUVmax was higher in metastatic lesions (20.66±14.36) but lower in benign lesions (10.18±12.79) (p<0.001). The mean HU was lower in metastatic lesions (166.62±202.02) but higher in benign lesions (517.65±192.8) (p<0.001). A weak negative correlation was found between the SUVmax and the mean HU for benign lesions, and a weak positive correlation was noted between the SUVmax and the mean HU on malignant lesions with no statistical significance (p=0.394 and 0.312, respectively). The cutoff values obtained were 10.8 for SUVmax (82.6% sensitivity and 84.2% specificity) and 240.86 for the mean HU (98.7% sensitivity and 88.1% specificity) in differentiating benign from malignant bone lesions. Conclusions Semiquantitative assessment using SUVmax and HU can complement qualitative analysis. Metastatic lesions had higher SUVmax but lower mean HU than benign lesions, whereas benign lesions demonstrated higher mean HU but lower SUVmax. A weak correlation was found between the SUVmax and the mean HU on malignant and benign lesions. Cutoff values of 10.8 for the SUVmax and 240.86 for the mean HU may differentiate bone metastases from benign lesions.

Introduction: Aquilaria malaccensis, also known as “Pokok Karas” in Malaysia, is widely used in Southeast Asian countries for the treatment of joint pain, diarrhoea and inflammatory diseases, and has shown beneficial effects as an anticancer agent. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of ethanol leaf extracts of A. malaccensis on MCF-7 cells. Methods: MTT-based cytotoxic and antiproliferative assay was used to determine the outcome of ethanolic extract toward MCF-7 cells. The mode of cell death was determined by the AO/PI double staining assay and the depolarisation of the mitochondria membrane potential. Results: IC50 value of the extract against MCF-7 cells treated for 72 hours was 4.1 ± 2.08 µg/mL, while the IC50 value for doxorubicin was 2.92 ± 0.12 µg/mL. The extract showed a lower cytotoxic effect against the NIH/3T3 cells and inhibited the growth of MCF-7 cells in a dose dependent manner. AO/PI double stain showed that the ethanolic extract of A. malaccensis leaves induced MCF-7 cells into apoptotic cell death. The present study showed that the ethanolic extract of A. malaccensis induced apoptosis through mitochondrial pathway as indicated by its ability to take up JC-1. Conclusion: The study found that ethanolic extract obtained from A. malaccensis leaves is cytotoxic on MCF-7 cells, resulting to apoptotic cell death of the cells.