Background: The pathogenesis of recurrent pregnancy loss includes complex interaction of several genetic and environmental factors. Changes in blood coagulation factors during pregnancy may play an important role in the occurrence of recurrent abortions (RA). Recently, inherited thrombophilia has been considered as a possible cause. Therefore, in this study we have investigated association of factor V (G1691A) and factor II (G20210A) polymorphisms in Iranian patients with recurrent abortions.

Materials and Methods: A total of 203 women participated in this study: 105 women with two or more consecutive unexplained miscarriage as cases and 98 women with at least two healthy children as control group. Total genomic DNA was isolated from Peripheral blood leukocytes. The presence or absence of mutation in the FV (G1691A) and FII (G20210A) polymorphisms were assessed by PCR-RFLP, using Mnl1 and HindIII digestion enzymes, respectively. Finally, the data were  analyzed using Chi-Square test.

Results: The results showed no statistical significant differences in the prevalence of FV (G1691A) and FII (G20210A) polymorphisms between patients and control group.

Conclusion: considering the results of this study, these polymorphisms Seem to have no role in etiology of recurrent pregnancy loss in the studied population.

Background: Shigella is the causative agent of human shigellosis and its lipopolysaccharide is detected by TLR4. TLR4 belongs to Toll-like receptors family and many immunological pathways are triggered when these receptors are stimulated. Many researches showed increasing in TLR4 expression in mesenchymal stem cells through lipopolysaccharide treatment. The main goal of this study is detecting the optimum lipopolysaccharide between shigella strains through stimulation of immune system for vaccine studies.

Materials and Methods: In this experimental study human bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells were treated with three distinct concentrations (0.1, 0.01, and 0.001) of shigella (S. flexneri, S. dysenteriae, S. sonnei) extract containing lipopolysaccharide. Then TLR4 expression in mRNA level was investigated by RT-PCR and Q-PCR. The cells treated with phosphate buffered saline have been considered as a control group.

Results: Expression of TLR4 was shown in all of case groups except treatment with concentration 0.001 of extracts from sonnei and dysenteriae and also control group. The variations in the expression of TLR4 was dose-dependent in all of case groups. The maximum expression of TLR4 related to treatment with extract from shigella flexneri strain and the minimum expression related to treatment with shigella sonnei extract. The use of lipopolysaccharide from E. coli as a positive control indicated that lipopolysaccharide in shigella extracts is responsible for the increased expression of TLR4.

Conclusion: The TLR4 expression level was increasesed by S. flexneri extract, so it could be recommended for increasing vaccine efficiency.

Background: There have been numerous reports of snake venoms being employed as analgesics in attempts to relieve severe pain associated with cancer, immune dysfunction and viral infections. This study investigates the antinociceptive effects of iranian cobra snake venom (Naja naja oxiana) in comparison with morphine and lidocain on laboratorial femal mice.

Materials and Methods: This study has been done on 48 NMRI female mice of 18-20 g in weight. Antinociceptive activeity of snake venom was evaluated by formalin test. In this test, the animals were divided into 6 groups (each group consisting of 8 mice): Sham, positive Control (receiving morphine at dose of 5 mg/kg, and receiving lidocain at dose of 20 mg/kg), and experimental groups receiving venom at doses of 1, 3 and 4.5 µg/mice. In all groups, the formalin test was recorded for 60 min after administration of venom and drugs in mice. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA and Tukey test.

Results: The results showed that the venom of Naja naja oxiana decreased nociception meaningfully in both acute and chronic phases. We also showed that this venom revealed even a better analgesic activity in comparison with morphine and lidocain.

Conclusion: This study showed that the antinociceptive effect of the venom was mediated through central nervous system and peripheral mechanisms. Although details of the mechanism remain unclear, and further studies should be considered to demonstrate its therapeutic effects.

Background: Brucellosis is a highly contagious zoonotic disease between humans and animals known for high frequency of relapsing and ability to cause chronic infection. The function of immune system plays an important role in induction of chronic diseases. However, the role of immune system response is not completely studied. Therefore, this study designed to investigate the cytokine profile of the patients suffering from chronic and acute brucellosis.

 Materials and Methods: This descriptive- analytical study was performed on 22 patients with acute brucellosis (mean age 38±17), 21 patients with chronic brucellosis (mean age 43±10) and 21 healthy people (mean age 26±4) with the same age and sex as patients. The serum IFN-&gamma, IL-17, IL-5 and TGF- &beta levels were measured using ELISA method.

 Results: The mean IFN-&gamma serum level in acute and chronic brucellosis patients group was significantly higher than control group (p=0.045). The mean IL-17 serum level in acute brucellosis patients was significant decreased once compared with control group and in chronic patients was significantly decreased when compared with control group (p=0.024). In addition, the mean IL-5 and TGF-&beta serum levels of acute brucellosis patients group were significantly decreased as compared to chronic patients (p=0.001).

 Conclusion: The results of current study indicate that cytokine profile of chronic brucellosis patients is more related to Th2 immune response. Hence, Th2 immune response inhibition would be an appropriate way to treat and prevent disease to become chronic.

        Background: Dendrimers are a subset of branched structures that have certain structural order. The aim of this study was to investigate the performance of Polypropylenimine-G2 (PPI-G2) dendrimers in removal of Escherichia coli, Proteus mirabilis, Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus from aqueous solution .

        Materials and Methods: In this experimental study , initially dilution of 10³ CFU/ml was prepared from each strain of bacteria . Then , different concentrations of dendrimers (0.5, 5, 50 and 500 µg/ml) was added to water . In order to determine the efficiency of dendrimers in removal of bacteria, samples were taken at different times (0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60 min) and were cultured on nutrient agar medium . Samples were incubated for 24 hours at 37 ° C and then the number of colonies was counted .

       Results: By the increasment of dendrimer concentration and contact time , the number of bacteria in aqueous solution decreased. In times of 40 , 50 and 60 minutes, and the concentrations of 50 and 500 µg/ml, all kinds of bacteria in aqueous solution were removed . 0.5 µg/ml of dendrimer concentration had not effect in reducing the number of Escherichia coli and Proteus mirabilis . The effect of dendrimer on gram-negative bacteria was weaker than gram-positive bacteria.

       Conclusion: Results of this study indicated that PP I -G2 dendrimer is able to remove Escherichia coli , Proteus mirabilis , Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis in aqueous solution. However, using dendrimers can be considered as a new approach for drinking water disinfection but it requires further wide range studies.

Background:  Recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) is defined as the occurrence of two or more consecutive pregnancy losses prior to 20^th week of gestation. There are several leading causes of RPL including uterine anatomical defects, infections, genetic, immunological, and environmental factors. However, despite in a large number of cases no causes have been identified, therefore, it is introduced as idiopathic.

Recent studies have implicated the role of miRNAs in endometriosis, preeclampsia, infertility and RPL. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the association of miR-196a2C>T (rs11614913) with RPL in Iranian women.

Materials and Methods: In this case-control study, 183 Iranian women including 83 patients with at least two unexplained consecutive pregnancy losses and 100 healthy controls with at least one live birth and no history of pregnancy loss were investigated. Patients with recurrent pregnancy losses due to anatomic, hormonal, chromosomal, infectious, autoimmune, or thrombotic causes were excluded from the study group. Genotyping was performed using Tetra- ARMS PCR method.

Results:  Significant difference in distribution of miR-196a2 rs11614913 genotypes was found in RPL patients in comparison to controls, with p value of 0.04 and odds ratio equal to 2.96 (95% CI: 1.03-7.03).

Conclusion: The results of the present study provide evidence for association between genetic variation in miR-196a2 and recurrent pregnancy loss. Further studies will be required to validate the significance of the studied genetic variation in diverse populations and its regulatory role on target genes.

Background: Dendrimers are macromolecules with regular three-dimensional structure that have many branches. The aim of this study was to investigate the fficiency of Nano Polyamidoamine–G5 (NPAMAM-G5) dendrimers in removal of Escherichia coli, Klebsiella oxytoca, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus mirabilis and Staphylococcus aureus from aqueous solution.

Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, initially, dilution of 10³ CFU/ml was prepared from each strain of bacteria. Then, different concentrations of dendrimers (0.025, 0.25, 2.5 and 25 µg/ml) in the ambient temperature (23-25°C) was added to water. In order to determine the efficiency of dendrimers in removal of bacteria, samples were taken at different times (0, 10, 20, 30, 50 and 60 min) and were cultured on nutrient agar medium. Samples were incubated for 24 hours at 37 ° C and then the number of colonies was counted.

Results: There is a direct relation between antibacterial properties of dendrimers in aqueous solution and increasing the dendrimer concentration and contact time. At a concentration of 25 μg/ml and 60 minutes, all kinds of bacteria except Staphylococcus aureus, and at 30 minutes, E. coli and Klebsiella bacteria, were removed by 100% The concentration of 2.5 μg/ml at 60 minutes of  bacteria, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella and Proteus mirabilis, 100% Were removed. All concentrations of dendrimer at different times were reduced bacteria.

Conclusion: Results of this study indicated that NPAMAM–G5 dendrimer is able to remove Escherichia coli, Klebsiella oxytoca, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus mirabilis and Staphylococcus aureus from aqueous solution.

Background: Brucella is an intracellular bacterium that causes chronic infection in humans and domestic animals. The underlying mechanisms that cause prolonged illness are complex and not fully understood. Immune responses may have an important role in the chronicity of infection. Here, we evaluated the lymphocyte proliferation responses in patients with chronic and acute brucellosis.

Materials and Methods: This descriptive - analytical study was performed on 22 patients with acute brucellosis, 21 patients with chronic brucellosis and 21 healthy people with the similar age, sex and genetic background as control group. Peripheral lymphocytes were isolated using Ficoll and the cellular proliferation was quantified in presence of antigen and phytohemaglutinin-A by MTT method.

Results: The brucella antigen-specific stimulation index in patients with chronic brucellosis was significantly lower than the acute brucellosis patients (p=0.001). Also, stimulating the lymphocytes with phytohemaglutinin-A has shown that proliferative response in patients with chronic brucellosis was lower than the other groups (p=0.04).

Conclusion: The results indicated that chronic brucellosis inhibits lymphocyte proliferation. This inhibition of lymphocyte proliferation may be due to the induction of anergy.

Background: A small percent of patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) respond to 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU), as a first line of chemotherapy. In this study in, in order to design a new chemotherapy protocol, the effect of 5-FU and acriflavine (ACF) cotreatment on mortality rate of CRC cell lines was investigated.

Materials and Methods: Cytotoxicity of 5-FU and ACF against CRC cell lines (LS174T, SW480 and HCT116) was detected using MTT assay. Cells were treated with different concentrations of 5-FU (0.5-64 µM) or ACF (0.07-5 µM) for 72 hours and then cell viability and drugs IC50 was calculated. To assess the effect of ACF on anticancer activity of 5-FU, cells were cotreated with different concentrations of 5-FU and IC30 concentration of ACF.

Results: ACF and 5-FU suppress the viability of CRC cell lines in dose-dependent manner. 5-FU and ACF have most cytotoxic effect on LS174T and the lowest cytotoxic effect on SW480 cells. Cotreatment of ACF with 5-FU could not significantly change the sensitivity of cells against 5-FU (p>0.05).

Conclusion: In this study, the fatal and cytotoxic effect of ACF on three CRC cell lines was shown. However, cotreatment of ACF with 5-FU could not improve the anticancer activity of 5-FU.

Background: The prediction models for infertility treatment success have presented since 25 years ago. There are scientific principles for designing and applying the prediction models that is also used to predict the success rate of infertility treatment. The purpose of this study is to provide basic principles for designing the model to predic infertility treatment success.

Materials and Methods: In this paper, the principles for developing predictive models are explained and then the design of such models in infertility treatments is described in more details by explaining one sample.

Results: The important principles for models that firstly are described are: identifying and defining the purpose, expected function of model, input data that will be used to develop a model: type of intervention or diagnostic procedures that can lead to changes in the samples and output definition or expected result of model function. Further, characteristics of predictive factors in final model, drawing the information flowchart, internal and external validation and attention to the analysis programme of results are the important subjects that have been described.

Conclusion: If predictive models are used properly, can help treatment team and patients to achive best treatment in ART.

Abstract

Background: Probiotics are known as a factor for prevention of infectious diseases such as urinary tract infection(UTI). The present study aimed to investigate the positive effects of probiotics on urinery truct infection of cateterized intensive care unit patients.

Materials and Methods: In a triple blind clinical trial, 125 cateterized intensive care unit patients were randomly selected and divided into two groups, Treatment group (n = 63) was well matched with placebo group (n = 62) for age and sex and duration of admission .Case group received one lactocare capsule for 10 days and control group with a same method received placebo for 10 days. In both groups urine analysis and urine culture were measured with a same method at the first day and then twentieth day and finally data were analysed with t-test.

Results: The incidence of urinary tract infection between treatment and control group (respectively 17.4% and 22.5%) had no statistically significant difference (p=0.672). But, in terms of sex, incidence of urinary tract infections in women compared to men with the same condition was significantly different(p=0.002). In treatment group with long term cathetrization, urinary tract infections significantly were significantly different(p=0.041).

Conclusion: Administration of lactocare capsule has no statistically significant impact on the incidence of urinery truct infection of cateterized intensive care unit patients. In comparsion of cateterized men and women receiving probiotics, the reduction of urinary tract infection in women was more than in men. Probiotics had preventive effects on long term catheterization.

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of fed fish oil (FO) with or without vitamin E for mothers on the testis cells of male offsprings.

Materials and Methods: Sixty mature female NMRI mice were divided into different groups: control (CTR; Standard diet(vitamin E 50 mg IU/kg) pre and postnatal period); I) Gavages 0.01 ml/day/mother fish oil (FO)+CTR diet during prenatal period; II) Gavages FO+CTR diet during postnatal period; III) consumed VITE(125 mg IU/kg) 2.5 folded greater than standard recommendations(2×)during prenatal period; IV)consumed VITE(2×)diet during pre and postnatal period; V)consumed VITE(2×)diet during postnatal period; VI) Gavages FO+VITE(2×) diet during prenatal period; VII) Gavage FO+VITE(2×)diet during postnatal period ;VIII) Gavages FO+VITE (2×)diet during pre and postnatal period. After weaning, the testes were collected and histological data were analyzed using SAS software by Duncan test.

Results: testes cells length, width and weight was lower in offspring which their mothers fed FO+CTR diet during prenatal, (p<0.05).Vitamin E consumption during postnatal period improved these parameters (p<0.05). Spermatogoni (47 vs. 43), spermatocyte (43 vs. 34), Spermatid (63 vs. 44), Sertoli (0.9 vs. 2), and Leydig (3 vs. 1.7) were increased as FO+VITE was used than CTR (p<0.05).

Conclusion: The positive effects of supplementation maternal diet by FO with VITE or sole VITE was observed. Thus, antioxidants should be consumed along with omega-3 fatty acids in maternal diet.

Abstract

Background: The prevalence of obesity among children is alarmingly rising. Obesity in a chronical inflammatory condition accompanies with inflammatory markers such as Chemerin and CRP; therefore, the aim of this following study is to compare the affection of Endurance & High Intensity Interval Trainings on levels of Chemerin & Protein of C-reactive plasma in obese children.

Materials and Methods: This experimentation included 21 obese children (average weight 61.46±2.5 kg and BMI 7.1±4.31) aging 9-12 years old who were randomly divided into three groups of endurance, HIIT and control (n=7). The training groups performed regular exercises for 8 weeks long (3 sessions in every week). The differences between groups were evaluated using covariance analysis. (p<0.05).

Results: In both training groups, there was a more significant decrease in weight, BMI and body fat percentage than there was before workouts. In HIIT group, we witnessed a significant reduction in level of Chemerin (p=0.016) than before. CRP level was also decreased in both groups, but the changes were not significant.

Conclusion: In summary, 8 weeks of HIIT exercises compared to endurance trainings have greater effect on Chemerin and CRP levels in obese children.

Abstract

Background: Uterine myomas are benign tumors of the uterus which are derived from smooth muscle cells of the myometrium. Genetic factors play a major role in the progression of the disease. One of the most important genes which have impression in the mechanism of formation of the myoma is epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) that plays a basic role in the process of cell growth, differentiation, proliferation and mitogenesis. The aim of this study is survey of EGFR gene common mutations in Iranian women with uterine myomas. In this test, the common mutations of the exon 21 and 19 in the EGFR gene were surveyed.

Materials and Methods: In this case-control study, 80 women with myoma and 80 healthy women were studied as control. For checking deletion mutation of the Exon 19 (rs121913438), the Tetra ARMS/PCR method has been used and also for checking point mutation of the exon 21(rs121434568), the ARMS/PCR method has been used and results of the experiments were analyzed via χ 2 test.

Results: The comparison of the genotypes frequency of exon 21 (TT, TG, GG) and exon 19 (WW, WD, DD) related to EGFR gene in two groups of patients and control with using statistical test respectively represents the significant difference (p=1.320e-16) and (p=3.053e-13) in the different genotypes frequency among the patients and control groups.

Conclusion: The results of research indicate a significant relationship between EGFR gene mutations in exon 19 and exon 21 and potential for myoma in the studied population.