Seroprevalence and Trend of HBV, HCV, and HIV Infections among Blood Donors of Fars Province, Iran (2006-2018)

BACKGROUND: Blood transfusion is a life-saving procedure; millions of lives are saved each year. However, blood transfusions are associated with certain risks that can lead to adverse consequences. This study aimed to survey the prevalence and trend of hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) among blood donors of Fars province, Iran (2006-2018).METHODS: This retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted by reviewing the records of the blood transfusion organization of Fars province. A total of 1952478 blood units were screened for transfusion-transmitted infections (TTIs). Then, data were entered into SPSS software (Negare. version 25). Chi-square test was used to compare the sof TTIs among blood donors. Chisquare test for trend was used to analyze the variations in trends of TTIs during this period. Finally, p-values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. GraphPad Prism software was used for the depiction of the graphs.RESULTS: Among the 1952478 blood donations within the 13-years, 4479(0.229 %) of donors were HBsAg, HCV Ab, and HIV Ag-Ab positive. The seroprevalence of HBV, HCV, and HIV was 2684(0.137%), 1703(0.087 %), and 92(0.0047%), respectively.CONCLUSION: The current study showed that the overall prevalence of TTIs among blood donors was low and had a descending trend over the years of study

Genetic analysis of host and phosphite mediated resistance to Phytophthora cinnamomi in Arabidopsis thaliana

Phosphite (Phi), an analogue of phosphate (Pi) is highly effective for the control of Phytophthora cinnamomi, a devastating necrotrophic pathogen worldwide. This study describes the effect of phosphite (Phi) on the induction of defence responses in Phytophthora cinnamomi-infected Arabidopsis thaliana accessions Ler and Col-0, and mutants defective in salicylic acid (SA), jasmonic acid (JA), ethylene (ET), abscisic acid (ABA), phosphate starvation response (PSR) and auxin response signalling pathways. The inoculation of the resistant Col-0 with P. cinnamomi induced a rapid increase in callose deposition (by 6 h after inoculation) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) production (by 24 h after inoculation) whereas inoculation of susceptible Ler showed a delayed and reduced response. Treatment of Ler with Phi produced a response to P. cinnamomi inoculation similar to that observed in Col-0 in terms of timing and magnitude suggesting Phi primes the plant for a rapid and intense response to infection involving heightened activation of a range of defence responses. A reliable method for measuring disease progression is important when evaluating susceptibility in host–pathogen interactions. A sensitive quantitative polymerase chain reaction (QPCR) assay was developed for the quantitative measurement of P. cinnamomi DNA (biomass) in planta that avoids problems caused by variation in DNA extraction efficiency and degradation of host DNA during host tissue necrosis. Purified plasmid DNA, containing the pScFvB1 mouse gene, was added during DNA extraction and the pathogen’s biomass was normalized based on plasmid DNA rather than host DNA or sample fresh weight. It was demonstrated that normalization of pathogen DNA to sample fresh weight or host DNA in samples with varying degrees of necrosis led to an overestimation of the pathogen’s biomass. Inoculation of mutants in the SA, JA, and ET defence signalling pathways did not affect the resistance of Col-0 suggesting alternative pathways are involved. A high level susceptibility was observed in the aba2-4 mutant suggesting a role for ABA signalling in the induction of resistance to P. cinnamomi. Phi treatment of aba2-4 increased resistance but not to the wild type levels indicating a possible role for ABA-dependent and ABA independent signalling in Phi mediated resistance. Application of Phi to non-inoculated A. thaliana seedlings elevated transcription of defence genes in the SA (PR1 and PR5) and JA/ET (THI2.1 and PDF1.2) pathways. Furthermore, analysis of gene expression in Col-0 revealed that either Phi or P. cinnamomi caused the down-regulation of the transcriptional level of AtMYC2 (a positive regulator of ABA signalling which also negatively regulates JA-related genes) and increased the transcriptional abundance of PDF1.2. Together these results suggest that the resistance response of Col-0 and Phi treatment both act partially through an ABA dependent mechanism which is independent of the antagonism between ABA and elements of the JA/ET pathway such as PDF1.2. Phosphite has been suggested to interfere with various plant processes including Pi homeostasis therefore the potential involvement of the Pi and auxin signalling pathways in resistance to P. cinnamomi was investigated using several PSR and auxin response pathway mutants. The mutants tir1-1, an auxin response mutant deficient in the auxin-stimulated SCF (Skp1−Cullin−F-Box) ubiquitination pathway and phr1-1, a mutant defective in response to Pi starvation were highly susceptible to P. cinnamomi compared to their parental background Col-0. Complementation restored resistance to the level observed in Col-0. Moreover, inhibition of auxin transporters by TIBA (2,3,5-triiodobenzoic acid) led to a significant increase in susceptibility of Lupinus angustifolius seedlings to P. cinnamomi supporting the importance of the auxin signalling pathway in P. cinnamomi resistance. The 26S proteasome subunits mutants; rpn10-1 (Defective in ubiquitin/26S proteasome-mediated proteolysis) and pbe1-1 (proteasome subunit beta type-5-A) were also susceptible to P. cinnamomi. The rpn10-1 mutant has also been associated with the auxin signalling pathway and the susceptibility of rpn10-1 and pbe1-1 indicates that the 26S proteasome and auxin signalling could play a role in resistance to P. cinnamomi. Given the apparent involvement of auxin and PSR signalling in the resistance to P. cinnamomi, the possible involvement of these pathways in Phi mediated resistance was also investigated. Application of Phi at both low and high concentrations attenuated some of the Pi starvation inducible genes such as At4, AtACP5 and AtPT2. However, in phosphate sufficient plants, Phi treatment mimicked Pi starvation responses in terms of enhanced expression of PHR1, AUX1, AXR1, AXR2 and SGT1B; suppression of primary root elongation, and increased root hair formation. Together, these results suggest that the auxin response pathway, particularly auxin sensitivity and transport, plays a role in the plant’s resistance to P. cinnamomi and suggest that phosphite-mediated resistance may in some part be through its effect on stimulation of the auxin response pathway

Analyzing and comparing the results of Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE), in-group evaluation and final improvement examination of neurosurgical assistants of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in 2009-2010

Introduction: Assessment tools of academic achievement in the field of surgery have always been received considerable attention. The issue that has received less attention is that which one of these methods has higher efficiency to cover appropriately educational objectives in surgical groups. This survey aimed to evaluate the results of three examinations (including OSCE, in-group educational assessment, final improvement examination) of neurosurgical assistants of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in 2009-2010. Methods:In this retrospective cross-sectional study, results of examinations (OSCE, the annual improvement examination and in-group educational assessment) of neurosurgical assistants of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences were investigated. Scores from all three tests were extracted and analyzed. The 1-4 academic -years' scores of 15 individuals from 18 residents were analyzed. Results: The results of these exams showed that there is a significant difference between the scores in OSCE, the annual improvement examination and in-group educational assessment. This difference for the results of in-group exam was significant in comparison with the two other exams (p=0.000), but the results did not show significant difference (p=0.21) for annual improvement examination in comparison with OSCE. In addition, high grade residents’ score in OSCE and in-group was somehow similar and their mean rank was close together. But their scores in in-group exams showed considerable difference. Conclusion: Although annual improvement examination will be held as MCQ, and measures scientific and cognitive assistants’ ability and OSCE essentially assess psychomotor capabilities, but accurate planning and applying the MCQ is effective on its result. Holding annual improvement examination as focused, its proper conducting by Medical Education Development Center, participating all professors in designing questions, proper questions distributing of all references, applying two axes table tables for designing questions, its quality, adherence to the principles of designing question, using more than 70 percent questions in the taxonomy of two or three are factors which are effective for closing this test to the standard tests and making an accepted tests for assessing academic progress and differentiating assistants

Coronary Artery Spasm During Dobutamine Stress Echocardiography: A Case Report

Dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE) has been widely used as a diagnostic and prognostic modality in the management of stress. DSE is associated with limited complications and adverse effects on the health of patients. In this case report, we described a 42-year-old female patient with dobutamine-induced coronary artery spasm with history of exertional dyspnea, which had deteriorated recently. No risk factors of coronary artery disease were observed in the patient, and she had previous non-diagnostic exercise tolerance test. DSE was performed on the patient, and at the end of the infusion rate of 30 mcg/min, retrosternal pain was detected. Standard 12-lead electrocardiogram was indicative of ST segment elevation in inferior leads. Moreover, echocardiographic imaging of the patient revealed concomitant akinesia in the right coronary artery. On the other hand, subsequent coronary angiograms showed only mild coronary atherosclerosis

High-quality permanent draft genome sequence of Bradyrhizobium sp. strain WSM1743 - an effective microsymbiont of an Indigofera sp. growing in Australia.

Bradyrhizobium sp. strain WSM1743 is an aerobic, motile, Gram-negative, non-spore-forming rod that can exist as a soil saprophyte or as a legume microsymbiont of an Indigofera sp. WSM1743 was isolated from a nodule recovered from the roots of an Indigofera sp. growing 20 km north of Carnarvon in Australia. It is slow growing, tolerates up to 1 % NaCl and is capable of growth at 37 °C. Here we describe the features of Bradyrhizobium sp. strain WSM1743, together with genome sequence information and its annotation. The 8,341,956 bp high-quality permanent draft genome is arranged into 163 scaffolds and 167 contigs, contains 7908 protein-coding genes and 75 RNA-only encoding genes and was sequenced as part of the Root Nodule Bacteria chapter of the Genomic Encyclopedia of Bacteria and Archaea project

Tumor suppressor MCPH1 regulates gene expression profiles related to malignant conversion and chromosomal assembly

Abstract Strong inherited predisposition to breast cancer is estimated to cause about 5–10% of all breast cancer cases. As the known susceptibility genes, such as BRCA1 and BRCA2, explain only a fraction of this, additional predisposing genes and related biological mechanisms are actively being searched for. We have recently identified a recurrent MCPH1 germline mutation, p.Arg304ValfsTer3, as a breast cancer susceptibility allele. MCPH1 encodes a multifunctional protein involved in maintenance of genomic integrity and it is also somatically altered in various cancer types, including breast cancer. Additionally, biallelic MCPH1 mutations are causative for microcephaly and at cellular level premature chromosome condensation. To study the molecular mechanisms leading to cancer predisposition and malignant conversion, here we have modeled the effect of MCPH1 p.Arg304ValfsTer3 mutation using gene‐edited MCF10A breast epithelial cells. As a complementary approach, we also sought for additional potential cancer driver mutations in MCPH1 p.Arg304ValfsTer3 carrier breast tumors. We show that mutated MCPH1 de‐regulates transcriptional programs related to invasion and metastasis and leads to downregulation of histone genes. These global transcriptional changes are mirrored by significantly increased migration and invasion potential of the cells as well as abnormal chromosomal condensation both before and after mitosis. These findings provide novel molecular insights to MCPH1 tumor suppressor functions and establish a role in regulation of transcriptional programs related to malignant conversion and chromosomal assembly. The MCPH1 p.Arg304ValfsTer3 carrier breast tumors showed recurrent tumor suppressor gene TP53 mutations, which were also significantly over‐represented in breast tumors with somatically inactivated MCPH1

Additional file 2: of High-quality permanent draft genome sequence of Bradyrhizobium sp. strain WSM1743 - an effective microsymbiont of an Indigofera sp. growing in Australia

Annotation Summary, GenBank Accession Summary, Strain ID Summary, Plant Name Summary, Scientific Name Summary and Reference Search Summary. (DOC 78 kb

Additional file 1: Table S1. of High-quality permanent draft genome sequence of Bradyrhizobium sp. strain WSM1743 - an effective microsymbiont of an Indigofera sp. growing in Australia

Associated MIGS record for WSM1743. (PDF 74 kb