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Comparison of various methods for DNA extraction from human isolated paraffin-embedded hydatid cyst samples
Get PDFSuccessful molecular research with reliable results depends on achieving significant and uniform amounts of genomic DNA from the parasite as the first and most basic step. Therefore, selection of an appropriate method that minimizes damage to the DNA of the parasite, is very important. In this study, we are going to describe a method that can extract DNA from human isolated paraffin-embedded hydatid cysts with a high quality and quantity. Formalin fixed and Paraffin-embedded hydatid cyst samples isolated from human lung and archived in the pathology laboratory were used for this purpose. Several sections of the paraffin blocks were prepared with 5 micron thickness and DNA were extracted by three different methods including; modified boiling, commercial kit and the method described by Larissa A. Pikor et al. The obtained DNA were evaluated by Nanodrop in terms of the yield of DNA and possible contaminations. To compare the quality of DNA prepared, cox1 region was amplified using specific primers. It was found that the DNA extracted by modified boiling had the lowest rate of contamination and the best electrophoretic band on the gel, compared to other two performed methods. Considering the findings of this study, this simple and high throughput DNA extraction method with high yield and quality can be recommended for extraction of DNA from formalin fixed and paraffin-embedded hydatid cysts
The efficacy of sour tea (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) on selected cardiovascular disease risk factors: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials
No full textThis study sought to summarize clinical evidence of sour tea (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) administration on cardiovascular disease risk factors. PubMed, Scopus, Institute for Scientific Information Web of Science, and Google Scholar were systematically searched from inception to June 2019 to identify randomized clinical trials, which assessed the effect of sour tea consumption on lipid profiles, fasting plasma glucose, and blood pressure in adult populations. Mean and standard deviation for each parameter were extracted to calculate effect size. Cochrane Collaboration tools were used to evaluate risk of bias assessment. A total of seven randomized clinical trials consisting 362 participants were included in the meta-analysis. Pooled effect size demonstrated that sour tea consumption significantly reduces fasting plasma glucose (−3.67 mg/dl, 95% confidence interval, CI [−7.07, −0.27]; I2 = 37%), systolic blood pressure (−4.71 mmHg, 95% CI [−7.87, −1.55]; I2 = 53%), and diastolic blood pressure (−4.08 mmHg, 95% CI [−6.48, −1.67]; I2 = 14%). Although no significant effect was observed on triacylglycerol, total cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol following sour tea consumption, a trend toward a significant reduction was found in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol serum concentrations (p = 0.08). This systematic review and meta-analysis suggests that sour tea consumption could have beneficial effect in controlling glycemic status and blood pressure among adult population
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) leachates from cigarette butts into water
No full textCigarette butts (CBs) are the most common littered items in the environment and may contain high amounts of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from incomplete tobacco leave burning. The potential relevance of PAHs stemming from CBs for aquatic systems remain unclear since to date there is no systematic study on PAHs leaching from CBs. Therefore, in this study the leaching concentrations of 16 EPA-PAHs (except benzo(ghi)perylene) in 3 different types of water were measured. The concentrations of ΣPAHs leachates from 4 h to 21 days ranged from 3.9 to 5.7, 3.3–5.5, and 3.0–5.0 μg L−1 for deionized, tap, and river waters, respectively. For all contact times, there were no substantial differences of the leachate concentrations of PAHs among different water types. Lighter PAHs had the highest concentrations among the detected PAHs and they were detected in the leachates already after 4 h. Concentrations of indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene, and dibenz(a,h)anthracene were below the limit of detection in all water samples at different contact times. At all contact times naphthalene and fluorene had the highest concentrations among the studied PAHs. Tap and river water samples with addition of sodium azide as chemical preservative contained significantly higher concentration of ΣPAHs. Our leaching data showed that leached concentrations of PAHs exceeded the Water Framework Directive (WFD) standards and considering the number of CBs annually littered this may pose a risk to aquatic organisms and potentially also humans
Metabolic host response and therapeutic approaches to influenza infection
Get PDFBased on available metabolomic studies, influenza infection affects a variety of cellular metabolic pathways to ensure an optimal environment for its replication and production of viral particles. Following infection, glucose uptake and aerobic glycolysis increase in infected cells continually, which results in higher glucose consumption. The pentose phosphate shunt, as another glucose-consuming pathway, is enhanced by influenza infection to help produce more nucleotides, especially ATP. Regarding lipid species, following infection, levels of triglycerides, phospholipids, and several lipid derivatives undergo perturbations, some of which are associated with inflammatory responses. Also, mitochondrial fatty acid β-oxidation decreases significantly simultaneously with an increase in biosynthesis of fatty acids and membrane lipids. Moreover, essential amino acids are demonstrated to decline in infected tissues due to the production of large amounts of viral and cellular proteins. Immune responses against influenza infection, on the other hand, could significantly affect metabolic pathways. Mainly, interferon (IFN) production following viral infection affects cell function via alteration in amino acid synthesis, membrane composition, and lipid metabolism. Understanding metabolic alterations required for influenza virus replication has revealed novel therapeutic methods based on targeted inhibition of these cellular metabolic pathways
Characteristics, sources, and health risks of atmospheric PM10-bound heavy metals in a populated middle eastern city
No full textThis study reports on the characteristics, sources, and health risks of atmospheric PM10-bound heavy metals (HMs) on citizenship living in different regions of Ahvaz, Southwest of Iran were investigated during 2016–2017. A total of 84 samples were analyzed from different regions: (S1) industrial, (S2) high traffic, and (S3) residential. Blood samples were collected from people who came to the east health center of Ahvaz. High volume air samplers, equipped with quartz fiber filters (8 × 10) were utilized for sampling in this study. Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) was also used for HMs. Risk assessment and hazard index of these pollutants were estimated, using USEPA’s exposure parameters. Based on the results, the highest and the lowest concentration of HM were observed in industrial and residential areas. Blood’s HMs concentration for chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), and zinc (Zn) were 2.932, 4.199, 8.425, and 71.2 μg/dL, respectively. In conclusion, increasing exposure concentration of HMs would have a significant potential for increased cancer and risk of diseases. The results of this study show that increasing exposure concentration to HM in the studied scenarios have a significant potential for generating different health endpoints, although exposing to HMs led to generating diseases in individuals particularly in polluted and populated districts; so, environmental measures should be considered by urban air authorities to mitigate the concentration of these pollutants in ambient air
Role of γδ T cells in controlling viral infections with a focus on influenza virus: implications for designing novel therapeutic approaches
Get PDFInfluenza virus infection is among the most detrimental threats to the health of humans and some animals, infecting millions of people annually all around the world and in many thousands of cases giving rise to pneumonia and death. All those health crises happen despite previous and recent developments in anti-influenza vaccination, suggesting the need for employing more sophisticated methods to control this malign infection. Main body The innate immunity modules are at the forefront of combating against influenza infection in the respiratory tract, among which, innate T cells, particularly gamma-delta (γδ) T cells, play a critical role in filling the gap needed for adaptive immune cells maturation, linking the innate and adaptive immunity together. Upon infection with influenza virus, production of cytokines and chemokines including CCL3, CCL4, and CCL5 from respiratory epithelium recruits γδ T cells at the site of infection in a CCR5 receptor-dependent fashion. Next, γδ T cells become activated in response to influenza virus infection and produce large amounts of proinflammatory cytokines, especially IL-17A. Regardless of γδ T cells’ roles in triggering the adaptive arm of the immune system, they also protect the respiratory epithelium by cytolytic and non-cytolytic antiviral mechanisms, as well as by enhancing neutrophils and natural killer cells recruitment to the infection site. Conclusion: In this review, we explored varied strategies of γδ T cells in defense to influenza virus infection and how they can potentially provide balanced protective immune responses against infected cells. The results may provide a potential window for the incorporation of intact or engineered γδ T cells for developing novel antiviral approaches or for immunotherapeutic purposes
Interleukin 4 gene polymorphism (−589C/T) and the risk of asthma: a meta-analysis and met-regression based on 55 studies
Get PDFBackground: Numerous investigations have previously evaluated the association of interleukin (IL) 4 gene polymorphisms and the risk of asthma, conferring inconsistent results. To resolve the incongruent outcomes yielded from different single studies, we conducted the most up-to-date meta-analysis of IL4 gene −589C/T (rs2243250) polymorphism and susceptibility to asthma. Methods: A systematic literature search was performed in ISI web of science, Scopus, Medline/PubMed databases prior to September 2020, and the pooled odds ratio (OR) and their corresponding 95% CI were calculated to determine the association strength. Results: Literature search led to retrieving of 49 publications (55 case-control studies) containing 9572 cases and 9881 controls. It was revealed that IL4 gene −589C/T polymorphism increased the risk of asthma across all genetic models, including dominant model (OR = 1.22), recessive model (OR = 1.17), allelic model (OR = 1.21), and TT vs. CC model (OR = 1.34), but not the CT vs. TT model. The subgroup analysis by age indicated that IL4 gene -589C/T polymorphism was significantly associated with asthma risk in both pediatrics and adults. Additionally, the subgroup analysis by ethnicity revealed significant association in Asian, American, and Europeans. Finally, subgroup analysis by East Asian and non-East Asian populations indicated significant associations. Conclusions: The current meta-analysis revealed that IL4 gene -589C/T polymorphism was a susceptibility risk in both pediatrics and adults in the whole and different ethnic groups
Application of nano-silica particles generated from offshore white sandstone for cadmium ions elimination from aqueous media
No full textThe overall goal of this investigation was to produce nano-silica particles from white sandstone and control Cd(II) pollution from various aqueous matrixes. The generated nanoparticles have spherical morphology with a surface area of 298.71 m2/g and a size of 30–40 nm. Based on the ANOVA findings, pH, temperature, nano-adsorbent quantity, initial cadmium concentration, and contact time parameters were effective (p-value < 0.05) in the Cd(II) adsorption process. The experimental results had a good agreement with the Freundlich model. According to response surface methodology data, the maximum efficiency (98.74%) of cadmium elimination by nano-silica obtained at a temperature of 25 °C, Cd(II) content of 5 mg/L, contact time of 10 min, nano-silica dose of 0.67 g/L, and pH of 6.14. The maximum Cd(II) attraction onto white sandstone and nano-silica was 42.97 mg/g and 55.13 mg/g, respectively. The exothermic and spontaneous behavior was observed for the adsorption of Cd(II) onto nano-silica particles. The silica nanoparticles had a good ability to adsorb–desorb cadmium ions up to 8 steps. The pseudo-second-order was suitably modeled kinetic data. Nano-silica particle was applied for controlling Cd ions from shipbuilding industry wastewaters
Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) for neurodegenerative disease: A promising frontier
No full textNeurodegenerative disorders are a variety of diseases including Alzheimer's (AD), Parkinson's (PD), and Huntington's diseases (HD), multiple sclerosis (MS) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) along with some other less common diseases generally described by the advanced deterioration of central or peripheral nervous system, structurally or functionally. In the last two decades, mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) due to their unique assets encompassing self-renewal, multipotency and accessibility in association with low ethical concern open new frontiers in the context of neurodegenerative diseases therapy. Interestingly, MSCs can be differentiated into endodermal and ectodermal lineages (e.g., neurons, oligodendrocyte, and astrocyte), and thus could be employed to advance cell-based therapeutic strategy. Additionally, as inflammation ordinarily ensues as a local response provoked by microglia in the neurodegenerative diseases, MSCs therapy because of their pronounced immunomodulatory properties is noticed as a rational approach for their treatment. Recently, varied types of studies have been mostly carried out in vitro and rodent models using MSCs upon their procurement from various sources and expansion. The promising results of the studies in rodent models have motivated researchers to design and perform several clinical trials, with a speedily rising number. In the current review, we aim to deliver a brief overview of MSCs sources, expansion strategies, and their immunosuppressive characteristics and discuss credible functional mechanisms exerted by MSCs to treat neurodegenerative disorders, covering AD, PD, ALS, MS, and HD
Iron deficiency anemia in older females: A comparison between community-dwelling individuals and nursing home residents in the Southwest of Iran
No full textBackground: Iron deficiency anemia (IDA), as one of the most common problems of the elderly, is preventable and treatable. Objectives: The current study aimed at determining the prevalence of IDA and its related factors in older females and comparing it between community-dwelling individuals and nursing home residents in the Southwest of Iran. Methods: The current cross sectional study was conducted on 365 community-dwelling and nursing home residents in Bushehr Province, Iran. Data were collected in 2017. Blood samples were taken from all participants to measure hemoglobin and ferritin levels. Hemoglobin values less than 12 g/dL were considered as diagnostic criteria for anemia. Simple logistic regression was used to compare normal subjects with the ones with anemia, and after adjusting the marital status and age, the odds ratio (OR) was obtained. Furthermore, independent variables affecting them and ORs and their associated confidence intervals (CIs) were obtained, which were significant. Data were analyzed using SPSS software and the significant level was less than 0.05. Results: The mean ± SD age of participants was 82.00 ± 5.79 years, and the means of hemoglobin and ferritin levels were 12.6 ± 1.04 g/dL and 15.00 ± 5.11 µg/dL, respectively. Based on the hemoglobin rate, 30% of the elderly females had anemia, and the prevalence of IDA in the elderly living in the community and nursing homes was 27% and 39%, respectively. Conclusions: The prevalence of IDA in elderly females was high in Southwest of Bushehr. The crude and adapted ORs indicated that living in the nursing home was a risk factor for anemia. Therefore, this ailment requires a national screening, diagnosis, and early intervention