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Cloning, expression, and purification of HpaA-CagA fusion recombinant protein of Helicobacter pylori in E. coli BL 21 strain
No full textHelicobacter pylori colonizes in the stomach of nearly half of the world's population. It is one of the most common causes of chronic bacterial infection and a well-known risk factor for gastric cancer in humans. This study aimed to evaluate the cloning, expression, and purification of the HpaA-CagA fusion recombinant protein of H. pylori in E. coli BL21 (DE3) strain. The HpaA-CagA construct was designed using bioinformatics tools. The construct was then sub-cloned to the pET21b prokaryotic expression vector. Then, E. coli BL21 (DE3) was transfected with the pET21b-HpaA-CagA. Then, E. coli BL21 (DE3) was transformed with pET21b-HpaA-CagA. The gene expression was induced by IPTG. The protein expression was verified using SDS page and western blot analysis. The recombinant protein was finally purified using nickel nitrilotriacetic acid (Ni-NTA) resin. The waste materials were removed by dialysis. The concentration of recombinant protein was determined by the Bicinchoninic Acid Protein Assay Kit (Parstoos). In this study, HpaA-CagA was sub-cloned into the pET21b vector. The expression of the recombinant protein was confirmed in the host. The recombinant protein with the weight of 69 kDa was successfully purified. We here presented an efficient method to construct, clone, express, and purify the HpaA-CagA recombinant protein. The recombinant HpaA-CagA protein showed immunogenicity feature with human antiserum. © 2019 Elsevier Inc
Analysis of mortality rate of road traffic accidents and its trend in 11 years in Iran
Get PDFBackground and Objectives: Road traffic accidents (RTAs) are the second cause of death, the first leading cause of years of life lost due to premature mortality, and the most common source of injury in Iran. According to the World Health Organization estimates, Iran located in the countries that have the highest rates from RTAs. The present study aimed to measure road traffic mortality rates and also to depict a view of the trend for a period of 11 years which started from 2006 to 2016. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we collect data on all road traffic deaths in Iran between 2006 and 2016 using records from the Legal Medicine Organization. For doing this research, demographic and epidemiological data of the deceased were extracted using a checklist designed by the forensic experts. Content validity of this form was determined by obtaining comments of professors and scholars in the field. Directly standardized mortality rates were calculated. Finally, the information was analyzed by descriptive statistics. Results: During the 11-year period of this study, 226,514 people in Iran died from RTAs. The age-adjusted mortality rate that caused by road traffic decreased from 41.5/100,000 people in 2006 to 20.4 in 2016 during the study period. There were significant differences in mortality rates between males and females and between outside city and inside city roads. The age-adjusted mortality rate was significantly higher among men than in women. The majority of death has occurred in illiterate young men aged 15-34 years and also in self-employed people. Conclusions: During the 2006-2016, mortality from RTAs decreased from 41.5 to 20.4/100,000 populations. This decreasing trend was observed in both sexes and in outside city and inside city roads. However, this reduction trend in the last years of the study is not suitable. These findings highlighted that training programs and harm reduction approaches for reducing the mortality from traffic accident are still needed
Development and psychometric evaluation of data collection tools for Iranian integrated road traffic injury registry: Registrar-station data collection tool
Get PDFBackground: Comprehensive and accurate data are fundamentally needed for effective management of road traffic injuries (RTIs). Existing sources of RTI reports have a huge underestimation and inaccuracy at some levels. The aim of this study was to develop and validate the registrar-station data collection tool as a part of the Iranian Integrated Road Traffic Injury Registry (IRTIR). Materials and Methods: This study was conducted in Tabriz University of Medical Sciences in 2018. A data collection tool was developed to be used by the registrar for inpatient section of IRTIR by information retrieved from the literature review and road traffic experts' need assessment. The content validity of the preliminary tool was assessed. The feasibility of the tool was tested in two regional referral injury hospitals. Intra- and inter-rater reliability of the tool was evaluated using the individual/absolute intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) and Kappa. Validity was revisited after 1 year of the pilot study. Results: The registrar-station data collection tool of IRTIR included 53 items, in five categories. Content validity was approved (modified content validity index was 0.8-1 and content validity ratio was one for all items). ICC was >0.6 for all items, and kappa index ranged between 0.69 and 0.92. The nurse data collection tool of IRTIR was applicable in the pilot phase. Conclusions: The Registrar-Station data collection tool of IRTIR was confirmed as a valid and reliable tool for inpatient traffic injuries as a part of the Iranian IRTIR
Disruption of the redox balance with either oxidative or anti-oxidative overloading as a promising target for cancer therapy
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Oxidative stress acts as a double edged sword by being both a promoter and a suppressor of cancer. Moderate oxidative stress is beneficial for cancer cell proliferative and invasiveness features, while overexposure of the cells to
oxidative insults could induce cancer cell apoptosis and reduce hypoxia along with modulating the immune system for regression of tumor. Cancer cells and cancer stem cells have highly efficient redox systems that make them resistant
to oxidative insults. The redox disruptive approach is an area of current research and key for oxidative targeted cancer therapies. This disruption is applicable by using either oxidative or anti oxidative overloading strategies, specifically on cancer cells without influencing normal cells or tissues around tumor. The activity of tumor suppressor cells within tumor microenvironment is needed to
be maintained in patients receiving such approaches.
KEYWORDS:
cancer, oxidative stress, reactive oxygen species (ROS), redo
Orexin 1 receptors in the anterior cingulate and orbitofrontal cortex regulate cost and benefit decision-making
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Orexin neurons are discretely localized within the lateral hypothalamus and have widespread projections into all areas of the brain. In addition, several lines of evidence specify that orexins may also participate in the regulation of a variety of affective and cognitive processes. The Orexin-1 receptor (OX1r) is distributed extensively throughout the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Delay-based decision- making is mediated largely by the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) while effort- based decision-making is controlled by the anterior cingulated cortex (ACC). Hence, in the present study, a series of experiments were conducted to clarify the role of OX1r in the mPFC (ACC and/or OFC) in cost and benefit decision-making. The rats were trained in a delay and/or effort-based form of cost-benefit T-maze decision-making task. Two goal arms were different in the amount of accessible reward and cost. Before surgery, all animals were selecting the high reward arm and pay the cost on almost every trial. During the test days, the rats received local injections of either DMSO 20% /0.5 μl, as a vehicle, or SB334867 (3, 30 and 300 nM/0.5 μl), as a selective OX1r antagonist, within the ACC and/or OFC. The results of this study showed that the bilateral microinjection of SB334867 into ACC and/or OFC changed the preference to a low reward arm with no cost, indicating the role of OX1 receptors in cost and benefit decision- making. From these results, it can be implied that OX1 receptors in the mPFC play a crucial role for allowing the animal to evaluate and pay the cost to acquire greater rewards.
Keywords
Delay-based decision-making Effort-based decision-making
Orexin Orbitofrontal cortex Anterior cingulate cortex Ra
Curcumin: A new candidate for retinal disease therapy?
No full textThe retina is the neural portion and light-sensitive layer of the eye, which has been observed in most of the vertebrates. The retina is composed of light-sensitive cells that absorb light and convert it into neural signals. These signals are sent to the brain for visual recognition. It has been shown that many pathogenesis conditions, including in�ammation, angiogenesis, oxidative stress, and imbalanced histone modi�cations in the retina are associated with initiation and progression of retinal diseases (ie, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and age-related macular degeneration). Currently available treatments include laser surgery, freezing, stem-cell therapy, shrinking abnormal blood vessels. It has some limitations, such as invasive methods, high costs, and many side effects. Hence, finding a new therapeutic platform for stopping or slowing of the disease progression is required. Curcumin is a natural product, which is associated with a wide range of properties, such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiangiogenic, and antitumor activates. It exerts therapeutic effects via activation/inhibition cellular and molecular targets involved in various diseases, such as retinal diseases. Increasing evidence revealed that curcumin can be used as a therapeutic option in the treatment of different retinal diseases. Here, we summarized various clinical and preclinical studies that used curcumin as a therapeutic agent in the treatment of retinal disorders. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc
Natural plant precursor for the facile and eco-friendly synthesis of carbon nanodots with multifunctional aspects
Get PDFIn this research, green, low toxicity and good biocompatibility fluorescent carbon dots (CDs) were prepared under one-step hydrothermal conditions from the essential oil of Thymus vulgaris L. as a carbon source. The morphology and composites of the CDs were characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Optical and fluorescence properties of the CDs, such as photostability and the quantum yield as high as 5.2 were measured by UV�Visible and fluorescence spectroscopy. The varying effects of reaction time and temperature were clearly investigated on the yield of products. The fluorescence of CDs could be quenched specifically by Fe 3+ , hence; the prepared CDs were applied to detect Fe 3+ from aqueous solution with a limit of detection of 0.23 mg/L. The effect of cytotoxicity on the cell viability was investigated and low toxicity of these carbon dots was demonstrated. Thus natural-based fluorescent carbon dots as fluorescent biomarkers were applied through in vitro fluorescence imaging without any further purifications. In addition, the antioxidant activity of CDs was carried out with IC 50 value of 23.43 mg/L. © 2019 Elsevier B.V
Melatonin and pancreatic cancer: Current knowledge and future perspectives
No full textPancreatic cancer has a high mortality rate due to the absence of early symptoms and subsequent late diagnosis; additionally, pancreatic cancer has a high resistance to radio- and chemotherapy. Multiple inflammatory pathways are involved in the pathophysiology of pancreatic cancer. Melatonin an indoleamine produced in the pineal gland mediated and receptor-independent action is the pancreas and other where has both receptors. Melatonin is a potent antioxidant and tissue protector against inflammation and oxidative stress. In vivo and in vitro studies have shown that melatonin supplementation is an appropriate therapeutic approach for pancreatic cancer. Melatonin may be an effective apoptosis inducer in cancer cells through regulation of a large number of molecular pathways including oxidative stress, heat shock proteins, and vascular endothelial growth factor. Limited clinical studies, however, have evaluated the role of melatonin in pancreatic cancer. This review summarizes what is known regarding the effects of melatonin on pancreatic cancer and the mechanisms involved. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc
Protective effect of oestrogen receptor α-PvuII transition against idiopathic male infertility: a case-control study and meta-analysis
Get PDFResearch Question: Is there any genetic association between oestrogen receptor alpha ERα-PvuII polymorphism and idiopathic male infertility? Design: A total of 226 infertile and 213 fertile men participated in the present case-control study. ERα-PvuII genotyping was performed using the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism PCR-RFLP method. Meta-analysis was also performed by pooling data collected from seven other eligible studies identified by searches of PubMed, Embase, Google Scholar, and Science Direct databases. Summary odds ratios were estimated by fixed- or random-effects models. The molecular effects of ERα-PvuII polymorphism were evaluated by bioinformatics tools. Results: A significant protective association was reported between ERα-PvuII and male infertility in the homozygote model OR=0.54, 95%CI=0.3�0.98, p=0.042. Also, a similar association was observed in asthenozoospermia subgroup OR=0.4, 95%CI=0.18�0.9, p=0.025. Meta-analysis also revealed that the ER-PvuII polymorphism was significantly associated with the decreased risk of male infertility in the heterozygote co-dominant model OR=0.80, 95%CI=0.64�0.99, p=0.042. Moreover, similar protective results were reported in stratified analyses in Caucasian subgroup in the dominant genetic model OR=0.66, 95%CI=0.45�0.96, p=0.029 and in the heterozygote co-dominant model OR=0.62, 95%CI=0.41�0.93, p=0.021. A significant association was also found in studies with sample size of less than 400 subjects in heterozygote co-dominant model OR=0.69, 95%CI=0.50�0.95, p=0.023. The bioinformatics data indicated that ER-PvuII polymorphism could significantly affect RNA structure of ERα p=0.004. Conclusion: The ERα-PvuII polymorphism could be considered as a possible protective factor against male infertility. © 2019 Reproductive Healthcare Ltd