First evidence of Brachylaima sp. (Diplostomida; Brachylaimidae) infesting the Etruscan shrew (Suncus etruscus) in Iran

Of the eleven species of shrews described in Iran, the Etruscan shrew (Suncus etruscus), the smallest known extant mammal by mass, is recorded in northern and southern provinces. During rodent control programs, a female S. etruscus was trapped and found naturally infected with a trematode which was morphologically identified as Brachylaima sp. This finding represents the first report of trematodiasis in this host species

Seroepidemiological Survey of Human Visceral Leishmaniasis in Ilam Province, West of Iran In 2013

  Background: Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) as one of the most important human parasitic disease is endemic in some parts of Iran. Several cases of VL have been reported recently in the Ilam Province. The current study aimed to assess the pre-sent status of human VL in the region. Methods: A random cluster sampling method was used to collect 456 serums samples from the children up to 12 years of age and 10% of adults living in urban and rural areas of the province. All the collected serum samples were tested by di-rect agglutination test (DAT) to detect anti- Leishmania infantum antibodies. Results: Of the examined 456 serum samples with direct agglutination test (DAT), only 21 (0.43%) sera showed anti- Leishmania antibodies at titers 1:400 and higher. Distribution of anti- Leishmania antibodies titers were: 1:400(n=4), 1:800(n=11), 1:1600(n=3), 1:3200(n=1), and 1:6400(n=1). Individuals with titers ≥1:3200 showed clinical signs and symptoms such as fever and splenomegaly. The highest and lowest seropositivity were observed in the age groups of 5–9 and >15 years old, respectively. There were no significant difference between the rate of seroposi-tivity in males and females. Conclusion:VL with a low prevalence circulates in some parts of Ilam province, particularly in the southern parts. Complementary studies should be needed to find animal reservoir hosts and vectors. Furthermore

Effect of Acupressure on Preoperative Cesarean Section Anxiety

Anxiety is a common preoperative problem in cesarean section candidates. Nonpharmacologic anxiety control has been demonstrated to be more suitable in pregnant women. The current study was a randomized, single-blind clinical trial which evaluated the effect of acupressure on preoperative C-section anxiety. In this study, 60 patients facing surgery were randomly divided into two groups of 30 patients each. Those patients in the intervention group received simultaneous acupressure at the Yintang and HE-7 acupoints for 5 minutes before surgery, and patients in the control group received intervention at a sham acupoint. The anxiety level of patients was preoperatively assessed twice using the Spielberger's State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. The mean anxiety scores of the two groups were shown to be insignificantly different before the intervention (p = 0.859), whereas a significant difference between the mean anxiety scores of the two groups was observed after the intervention (p = 0.001), suggesting that acupressure reduced the anxiety of patients before surgery. Keywords: acupressure, anxiety, cesarean section, preoperative anxiet

Paleoparasitological Evidence of Pinworm (\u3ci\u3eEnterobius vermicularis\u3c/i\u3e) Infection in a Female Adolescent Residing in Ancient Tehran (Iran) 7000 Years Ago

Background: The Molavi street archeological site south of Tehran, Iran accidentally provided a unique opportunity for paleoparasitological studies in Iran. A female skeleton was unearthed and evaluated to be 7,000 years old. Soil samples were collected around the pelvic and sacrum bones. Findings: Careful microscopic investigation of rehydrated soil samples revealed the presence of one Enterobius vermicularis egg attached to the skeleton sacral region. Conclusion: The present finding likely represents the oldest evidence of a human pinworm infection in Asia

Milk thistle nano-micelle formulation promotes cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in hepatocellular carcinoma cells through modulating miR-155-3p /SOCS2 /PHLDA1 signaling axis

Abstract Background Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) is a prevalent form of liver cancer that causes significant mortality in numerous individuals worldwide. This study compared the effects of milk thistle (MT) and nano-milk thistle (N-MT) on the expression of the genes that participate in apoptosis and cell cycle pathways in Huh-7 and HepG2 cells. Methods IC50 values of MT and N-MT were determined using the MTT assay. Huh-7 and HepG2 cell lines (containing mutant and wild-type TP53 gene, respectively) were incubated with MT and N-MT for 24h and 48h and the impact of MT and N-MT on the proliferation of these cell lines was evaluated through a comparative analysis. Cell cycle and apoptosis were assessed by flow cytometry after 24h and 48h treatment in the cell lines mentioned. Real-time PCR was used to analyze miR-155-3p, PHLDA1, SOCS2, TP53, P21, BAX, and BCL-2 expression in the cell lines that were being treated. Results N-MT reduces cancer cell growth in a time and concentration-dependent manner, which is more toxic compared to MT. Huh-7 was observed to have IC50 values of 2.35 and 1.7 μg/ml at 24h and 48h, and HepG2 was observed to have IC50 values of 3.4 and 2.6 μg/ml at 24 and 48h, respectively. N-MT arrested Huh-7 and HepG2 cells in the Sub-G1 phase and induced apoptosis. N-MT led to a marked reduction in the expression of miR-155-3p and BCL-2 after 24h and 48h treatments. Conversely, PHLDA1, SOCS2, BAX, and P21 were upregulated in the treated cells compared to untreated cells, which suggests that milk thistle has the potential to regulate these genes. N-MT reduced the expression of TP53 in Huh-7 cells after mentioned time points, while there was a significant increase in the expression of the TP53 gene in HepG2 cells. No gene expression changes were observed in MT-treated cells after 24h and 48h. Conclusion N-MT can regulate cancer cell death by arresting cell cycle and inducing apoptosis. This occurs through the alteration of apoptotic genes expression. A reduction in the expression of miR-155-3p and increase in the expression of SOCS2 and PHLDA1 after N-MT treatment showed the correlation between miR-155-3p and PHLDA1/SOCS2 found in bioinformatics analysis. While N-MT increased TP53 expression in HepG2, reduced it in Huh-7. The findings indicate that N-MT can function intelligently in cancer cells and can be a helpful complement to cancer treatment

In Vitro Assay of Paecilomyces lilacinus Biocontrol Effects on Fasciola hepatica Eggs Illustrated in Scanning Electron Micrographs

Background: Fascioliasis is a zoonotic disease caused by the liver fluke Fasciola hepatica. Drug resistance, high costs of treatment and economic losses in meat production have emerged the need of alternative control measures into consideration. The aim of this study was to evaluate the in vitro ovicidal activity of Paecilomyces lilacinus fungus on F. hepatica eggs. Methods: P. lilacinus isolated from the soil of natural environment was challenged on F. hepatica eggs to observe the bio control effect of nematophagous fungi on trematode helminth eggs. The study was conducted in Tehran University of Medical Sciences, in 2015. Within 21 d of experiment, destructive effects exhibited on the eggshells were investigated using optical and Scanning Electron Microscopy. Results: The effective role of P. lilacinus on damaging the eggs of F. hepatica was noticed. Conclusion: This finding is promising for advantageous use of nematophagus fungi as a natural constituent in hyper endemic areas for certain helminthic infections like fascioliasis with diverse kinds of herbivores as egg passer hosts

Tracking the existence of Dioctophyma renale in Parthian Empire of Iran (247 BC-224 AD)

Paleoparasitological investigation in the archeological site of the Caspian Sea littoral revealed the presence of human Dioctophyma renale infection, a ubiquitous kidney-residing helminth of mammals, during the Parthian Empire of Iran (247 BC-224 AD). This study reports the oldest human infection with giant kidney worm in the Middle East, mainly in an area where the infection is reported nowadays. The paucity of records throughout the literature suggests that the same species of parasite occurred with low frequency in the past, as well. The cemetery in the archeological site of Kiasar represented a unique opportunity of studying human and animal parasites of the Parthian Empire in Iran