Objective: Thalassemias major are the most common autosomal recessive disorders; they are characterized by anomalies in the synthesis of the beta chains of hemoglobin and are often associated with varying degrees of craniofacial anomalies. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the craniofacial dimensions of b-thalassemia patients and to identify differences by comparing them to those of a control group. Materials and Methods:The study comprised 43 thalassemia major patients and 26 age-and sexmatched healthy control subjects. Anthropometric measurements were performed in six different craniofacial regions (head, face, nose, mouth, eyes, and ears); a total of 23 craniofacial variables were measured.Results: Craniofacial measurements in the regions of the face, nose, lips and mouth, and ears in the thalassemia major patient group yielded statistically significant differences compared to those in the control group (p<0.05). However, no statistically significant differences were observed in the measurements of the head and eye regions. Conclusion:The study increased our understanding of the craniofacial anatomy of thalassemia major patients and enabled us to obtain quantitative results.Keywords: Thalassemia major, craniofacial measurements, Turkey ÖZ Amaç: Talasemi major; otozomal resesif kalıtım paterni gösteren, hemoglobin beta zincirinin sentezinde bozukluklar ile karakterize ve genellikle değişen derecelerde kraniyofasiyal anomalilerin eşlik ettiği bir hastalıktır. Bu çalışmanın amacı, talasemi major' hastalarının kraniofasial boyutlarını değerlendirmek ve kontrol grubuna göre farklılıkları tespit etmektir.Gereç ve Yöntem: Çalışmamız; 43 Talasemi Major'lü hasta ve aynı yaş ve cinsiyet gruplarından eşleşme ile seçilen 26 sağlıklı kontrol üzerinde yapıldı. Antropometrik ölçümler altı farklı kraniofasiyal bölgeden (baş, yüz, burun, ağız, göz ve kulak bölgeleri) alındı ve toplam 23 ölçüm yapıldı.Bulgular: Yüz, burun, ağız ve kulak bölgelerinde yapılan ölçümler açısından olgu ve kontrol grupları arasında istatistiksel olarak anlamlı farklılıklar bulundu (p<0.05). Baş ve göz bölgesi ölçümleri bakımından istatistiksel olarak anlamlı fark saptanmadı(p>0,05).

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Giardia intestinalis which is a flagellate, intestinal protozoon of humans and a variety of mammalian species, shows worldwide distribution. To date, eight genotypes of the parasite have been identified. Among these genotypes, assemblage A and B have zoonotic characteristics with low host specificity, thus they are responsible for the human infections. The aim of this study was to identify G.intestinalis genotypes in Aydin, located in Aegean region of Turkey. A total of 40 stool samples that were found positive for G.intestinalis by direct microscopic examination, from Adnan Menderes University, Research and Training Hospital, Parasitology Laboratory from January 2011 to December 2014 were included in the study. DNA isolation from stool samples performed with commercial kit (QIAamp DNA Stool Mini Kit, Qiagen, Germany) followed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for G.intestinalis 16S rRNA and beta-giardin genes and then the amplicons were sequenced. Out of 40 isolates 11 (27.5%) were positive with 16S rRNA PCR and 10 (25%) were positive with beta-giardin PCR. Of 21 sequenced amplicons, 10 (47.6%) of them showed 98%-100% similarity with reference sequences and their genotypes could be identified. The distribution of genotypes were as follows: cluster A1 (n: 3), cluster A2 (n: 3), cluster A3 (n: 2) and assemblage B (n: 2). In the light of our results the isolates detected in humans might be zoonotic origin. In accordance with the previous reports in Turkey, assemblage A (8/10) was more common than assemblage B (2/10). In the present study, 10 (25%) out of 40 isolates could be genotyped and sequencing of beta-giardin gene yielded more effective results than sequencing of 16S rRNA for the determination of assemblages. The present study indicated that, there is a need for prospective studies with extended number of cases allowing the comparison of the two genes used for G.intestinalis genotyping.

Objective: Echinococcus granulosus is the causative helminth of cystic echinococcosis (CE). The parasite is known to form fluidfilled cysts that grow slowly in the internal organs, particularly the liver and/or lungs. This disease is still important in terms of public health and economically in Turkey and other countries where animal husbandry is widespread. The aim of our study was to retrospectively evaluate the cases that were admitted to the

Objective: Trichomonas vaginalis is the most common non-viral, sexually transmitted pathogen with a worldwide distribution. The aim of the present study was to design a new genotyping tool for T. vaginalis isolates using internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences. Methods: First, a total of 20 cryopreserved T. vaginalis isolates were thawed and genomic DNA was isolated from fresh cultures. A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was performed to amplify the ITS regions and the amplicons were sequenced. These sequences were aligned with others from Genbank and polymorphisms were detected. At last, each ITS sequence was given a different sequence type. Results: More than 99% homology was observed among sequences. Of 20 isolates, five had identical ITS sequence to reference (L29561) defined as ITST1. Moreover, 13 had A58 deletion (ITST10), one had C203T mutation (ITST2), and one had both A58 deletion and C203T mutation (ITST11). ITS typing of T. vaginalis sequences on Genbank revealed a total of 11 ITS types with the predominance of ITST1 (44.4%) globally. Conclusions: ITS typing seems to be an applicable and useful tool for a better understanding of molecular epidemiology as well as for the dissemination of T. vaginalis clones.