Genetic variability of Taenia saginata inferred from mitochondrial DNA sequences

Taenia saginata is an important tapeworm, infecting humans in many parts of the world. The present study was undertaken to identify inter- and intraspecific variation of T. saginata isolated from cattle in different parts of Iran using two mitochondrial CO1 and 12S rRNA genes. Up to 105 bovine specimens of T. saginata were collected from 20 slaughterhouses in three provinces of Iran. DNA were extracted from the metacestode Cysticercus bovis. After PCR amplification, sequencing of CO1 and 12S rRNA genes were carried out and two phylogenetic analyses of the sequence data were generated by Bayesian inference on CO1 and 12S rRNA sequences. Sequence analyses of CO1 and 12S rRNA genes showed 11 and 29 representative profiles respectively. The level of pairwise nucleotide variation between individual haplotypes of CO1 gene was 0.3–2.4 % while the overall nucleotide variation among all 11 haplotypes was 4.6 %. For 12S rRNA sequence data, level of pairwise nucleotide variation was 0.2–2.5 % and the overall nucleotide variation was determined as 5.8 % among 29 haplotypes of 12S rRNA gene. Considerable genetic diversity was found in both mitochondrial genes particularly in 12S rRNA gene. © 2015, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

Amodiaquine-induced toxicity in isolated rat hepatocytes and the cytoprotective effects of taurine and/or N-acetyl cysteine

Amodiaquine is an antimalarial drug used in the prophylaxis and treatment of this disease. However, hepatotoxicity as a life-threatening adverse effect is associated with its clinical use. We evaluated amodiaquine-induced toxicity in isolated rat hepatocytes as an in vitro model for studying drug-induced hepatotoxicity. This study attempts to investigate the protective effects of taurine and N-acetyl cysteine against the cytotoxicity induced by amodiaquine. Hepatocytes were prepared by the method of collagenase enzyme perfusion via portal vein. This technique is based on liver perfusion with collagenase after removal of calcium ion (Ca2+) with a chelator (ethylene glycol tetraacetic acid (EGTA) 0.5 mM). Cells were treated with different concentrations of amodiaquine, taurine and N-acetyl cysteine. Cell death, protein carbonylation, reactive oxygen species formation, lipid peroxidation, and mitochondrial depolarization were assessed as toxicity markers. Amodiaquine cytotoxic mechanism involved protein carbonylation as well as reactive oxygen species formation and lipid peroxidation. In addition, mitochondria seem to be a target for amodiaquine to induce cellular damage. Administration of taurine (200 µM) and/or N-acetyl cysteine (200 µM) reduced oxidative stress, lipid peroxidation and protein carbonylation caused by amodiaquine. Furthermore, amodiaquine-induced mitochondrial injury was significantly mitigated by taurine and/or Nacetyl cysteine. In glutathione-depleted cells, only N-acetyl cysteine protected hepatocytes against amodiaquine, and taurine showed no protective properties in this situation. Taurine and N-acetyl cysteine protect hepatocytes against amodiaquine probably via their antioxidant properties and counteracting oxidative stress

Molecular and morphological characterization of the tapeworm Taenia hydatigena (Pallas, 1766) in sheep from Iran

Although Taenia hydatigena is one of the most prevalent taeniid species of livestock, very little molecular genetic information exists for this parasite. Up to 100 sheep isolates of T. hydatigena were collected from 19 abattoirs located in the provinces of Tehran, Alborz and Kerman. A calibrated microscope was used to measure the larval rostellar hook lengths. Following DNA extraction, fragments of cytochrome c oxidase 1 (CO1) and 12S rRNA genes were amplified by the polymerase chain reaction method and the amplicons were subjected to sequencing. The mean total length of large and small hooks was 203.4 μm and 135.9 μm, respectively. Forty CO1 and 39 12S rRNA sequence haplotypes were obtained in the study. The levels of pairwise nucleotide variation between individual haplotypes of CO1 and 12S rRNA genes were determined to be between 0.3-3.4% and 0.2-2.1%, respectively. The overall nucleotide variation among all the CO1 haplotypes was 9.7%, and for all the 12S rRNA haplotypes it was 10.1%. A significant difference was observed between rostellar hook morphometry and both CO1 and 12S rRNA sequence variability. A significantly high level of genetic variation was observed in the present study. The results showed that the 12S rRNA gene is more variable than CO1. © 2013 Cambridge University Press

Magnetomotive drive and detection of clamped-clamped mechanical resonators in water

We demonstrate magnetomotive drive and detection of doubly clamped string resonators in water. A compact 1.9 T permanent magnet is used to detect the fundamental and higher flexural modes of $\mathrm{200 \mu m}$ long resonators. Good agreement is found between the magnetomotive measurements and optical measurements performed on the same resonator. The magnetomotive detection scheme can be used to simultaneously drive and detect multiple sensors or scanning probes in viscous fluids without alignment of detector beams.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure