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BACKGROUND Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) is a mediator of transforming growth factor-beta signaling and plays a key role in connective tissue remodeling, inflammatory processes and fibrosis in various illnesses including cancer. AIM To investigate the role of CTGF in colorectal cancer (CRC) progression and to compare the CTGF expression with different clinicopathological parameters. METHODS Real-time polymerase chain reaction, immunohistochemistry and Western blotting was performed to evaluate the CTGF expression and the results were statistically analyzed against the clinicopathological variables of patient data using STATA software version 16. RESULTS CTGF expression levels in tumor specimens were significantly higher than their paired normal specimens. The higher protein expression levels showed a significant association with smoking, staging, tumor grade, invasion depth, necrosis of tumor tissue, and both lymphovascular and perineural invasion. As per the cox regression model and classification tree analysis, tumor-node-metastasis stage and perineural invasion were important predictors for CTGF expression and prognosis of CRC patients. Survival analysis indicated that CTGF overexpression was associated with poorer overall and disease-free survival. CONCLUSION Expression of CTGF was increased in CRC and was linked with poor overall and disease-free survival of CRC patients. These findings support prior observations and thus CTGF may be a possible prognostic marker in CRC.

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H1N1 often is cause of annual epidemics in world particularly during winters and is a seasonal pandemic that has been a cause of many deaths. The display of various strains of H1N1 always creates confrontation to public health and the scientific communities. The key behind the repeated epidemics is the transformation of the viruses to escape the immunity that is induced by former infection or vaccination. The pandemic was declared, by the WHO, as officially over in August 2010. The H1N1 virus has become a regular flu virus which occurs seasonally, and causes outbreaks in many areas of the world. This mini review discusses risk of this disease with pandemic potential globally, transmission, diagnostics and preventive measures to be taken by people and health institutes. A present it calls for alertness of the health systems worldwide and a need for active correlation between public and health institutes.

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