BACKGROUND: Syndecan-1 (sCD138) has recently been suggested to predict the clinical course of early-stage chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), but few studies have been reported. This study assessed the role of syndecan-1 in the prognosis of patients with CLL and its correlation with other prognostic markers. METHODS: This prospective study was performed in the hematology department of an Indian tertiary care center, over nineteen months (Jun. 2009–Jan. 2011). Forty-nine new patients with CLL presented during this period and were included. Twenty age- and gender-matched healthy patients served as controls, and six patients with multiple myeloma were included as positive controls. Baseline serum syndecan-1 concentrations were measured for all patients at presentation using ELISA (Diaclone, Besancon, France). At baseline, patients were divided into low (N=10), intermediate (N=18) and high (N=21) risk cohorts. Serum syndecan-1 levels in these patient subgroups were compared with clinical and laboratory parameters. RESULTS: The median syndecan-1 level in patients with CLL (73.32 ng/mL, range, 28.71–268.0 ng/mL) was marginally higher than that in healthy patients (63.10 ng/mL, range, 55.0–75.11 ng/mL). At presentation, syndecan-1 levels in patients with CLL correlated strongly with symptomatic disease (cytopenias, P=0.004) and higher clinical stage (Rai stage III and IV, P=0.001) markers and poorly with β2-microglobulin level (P=0.270), diffuse BM infiltration (P=0.882), and surrogate mutation status markers (CD 38, P=0.174 and ZAP-70, P=0.459). Syndecan-1 levels dichotomized by the median value were higher with progressive disease markers, e.g. shorter lymphocyte doubling time (LDT, P=0.015) and increased treatment (P=0.099). CONCLUSION: In CLL, serum syndecan-1 (sCD138) levels at presentation correlate with disease burden, and higher baseline levels may predict early treatment.
Cohort Studies ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Hematology ; Humans ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell* ; Lymphocytes ; Multiple Myeloma ; Prognosis ; Prospective Studies ; Syndecan-1* ; Tertiary Care Centers

Plagiarism is one of the most frequent forms of research misconduct in South and East Asian countries. This narrative review examines the factors contributing to research misconduct, emphasizing plagiarism, particularly in South, East and Southeast Asian countries. We conducted a PubMed and Scopus search using the terms plagiarism, Asia, South Asia, East Asia, Southeast Asia, research misconduct and retractions in January of 2022. Articles with missing abstracts, incomplete information about plagiarism, publication dates before 2010, and those unrelated to South, East, and Southeast Asian countries were excluded. The retraction watch database was searched for articles retracted between 9th January 2020 to 9th January 2022. A total of 159 articles were identified, of which 21 were included in the study using the database search criteria mentioned above. The review of articles identified a lack of training in scientific writing and research ethics, publication pressure, permissive attitudes, and inadequate regulatory measures as the primary reasons behind research misconduct in scientific publications. Plagiarism remains a common cause of unethical publications and retractions in regions of Asia (namely South, East and Southeast). Researchers lack training in scientific writing, and substantial gaps exist in understanding various forms of plagiarism, which heavily contribute to the problem. There is an urgent need to foster high research ethics standards and adhere to journal policies. Providing appropriate training in scientific writing among researchers may help improve the knowledge of different types of plagiarism and promote the use of antiplagiarism software, leading to a substantial reduction in the problem.