BACKGROUND/AIM To define the frequency of familial Mediterranean fever gene (MEFV) mutations in ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and describe different clinical aspects of MEFV mutation carrier and noncarrier AS patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS In 112 AS patients, Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI) and Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI) scores were calcula...

Pulmonary function tests were performed on 234 healthy non-smoking young subjects (189 males and 45 females free from respiratory and allergic symptoms). Maximal expiratory flow-volume (MEFV) curves were visually classified into five MEFV types: Type A, convex or straight flow changes; types B, C, and D, concave-convex-concave flow changes; and type E, sudden flow-fall and accompanying decrease...

BACKGROUND The MEFV gene is responsible for familial Mediterranean fever (FMF). Several disease associated mutations have been identified. The range of genetic variation in MEFV in Greek patients has not been determined. OBJECTIVE To describe a method that facilitates the routine screening of the entire coding sequence of MEFV (excluding exon 1). METHODS The non-isotopic RNase cleavage assa...

OBJECTIVES Behçet's disease (BD) is a systemic vasculitis with recurrent oral and genital ulcers and uveitis. MEFV gene, which is the main factor in familial Mediterranean fever (FMF), is also reported to be a susceptibility gene for BD. The pyrin domain of MEFV gene is a member of death-domain superfamily and has been proposed to regulate inflammatory signaling in myeloid cells. This study was...

Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is an inherited disease whose manifestations are acute but reversible attacks of sterile inflammation affecting synovial and serosal spaces. The FMF gene (MEFV) was recently cloned, and it codes for a protein (pyrin/marenostrin) homologous to known nuclear factors. We previously reported the deficient activity of a C5a/interleukin (IL)-8 inhibitor, a physiolog...

Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is a recessively inherited disorder characterized by recurrent, self-limited attacks of fever and serositis and by infiltration of affected tissues by large numbers of neutrophils. A candidate gene for FMF was identified by positional cloning and named "MEFV." The corresponding protein was named "pyrin." To elucidate the currently unknown function of pyrin, we...

Background. In patients with bronchial asthma, spirometry could identify the airflow limitation of small airways by evaluating the concave shape of the maximal expiratory flow-volume (MEFV) curve. As the concave shape of the MEFV curve is not well documented, we reevaluated the importance of this curve in adult asthmatic patients. Methods. We evaluated spirometric parameters, the MEFV curve, an...

Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is an autosomal recessive inflammatory disorder caused by mutations in the MEFV gene that encodes the pyrin protein. The disease is relatively common among people originating from the Mediterranean areas. The aim of this study was to determine the common MEFV gene mutations in 270 Palestinian patients diagnosed with FMF. The patients were screened for four com...