Evaluating of psychiatric behavior in obese children and adolescents

Abstract IntroductionObesity is a medical condition  that it may have a harmful effect on health, leading to increased illness and reduced life expectancy. This study is aimed to evaluate the relationship of psychiatry disorders in overweight and obese children and adolescents.MethodsIn this was case-control study, one hundred and sixty child and Adolescent were recruited. The sampling method of this study was non-probability and biased. Study instruments were SDQ, CDI, STAI, Peds QL. All questionnaires were self-administrating that was completed by subjects or their parents. Differences between groups were examined using t-test and chi-square tests as appropriate. ResultsThe results our study showed no significant different in scores of anxiety between two groups. But showed significant different in scores of depression, quality of life, and strength and difficult between two groups.  Also there was no significant difference in gender effect on anxiety and Depression. However, in Quality of life test showed that emotional symptoms were more in girl than boys. In contrast, the conduct problems were more in boys than girls. Anxiety and Depression was more in adolescents than childrenConcussion Our study showed obesity has a negative effect on the anxiety, depression, and self-esteem of children and adolescents. It can be suggested that obesity might be a more important risk factor for depression, anxiety, and other psychiatry disorders. This study also emphasizes the importance of prevention of obesity

Cell-specific targeting by engineered M13 bacteriophage expressing VEGFR2 nanobody

Objective(s): Filamentous bacteriophage M13 was genetically engineered to specifically target mammalian cells for gene delivery purpose. Materials and Methods: A vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2)-specific nanobody was genetically fused to the capsid gene III of M13 bacteriophage (pHEN4/3VGR19). A mammalian expression construct containing Cop-green fluorescent protein (Cop-GFP), as a reporter gene, was amplified by PCR and then sub-cloned in the pHEN4/3VGR19 phagemid. The resulting construct was transfected into 293KDR cell. The recombinant phage was extracted and confirmed and then transduced into VEGFR2 expressing cell (293KDR). Results: Seventy-two hr after transfection, green fluorescence was detected in 30% of the cells. About 1% of the cells which transduced by recombinant phages were able to express GFP. Conclusion: It is hoped that the results from this study will help to find potential vectors to improve the efficiency of gene delivery. Taken together, we conclude that this newly-introduced vector can be used in cancer researches

Effect of citalopram and sertraline on the expression of miRNA- 124, 132, and 16 and their protein targets in patients with depression

Objective(s): This study aimed to evaluate the effect of SSRIs on the expression of miRNAs and their protein targets.Materials and Methods: In a 100 day open-label study of citalopram (n=25) and sertraline (n=25), levels of miRNA 16, 132, and 124 and glucocorticoid receptor (GR), Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and serotonin transporter (SERT) protein expression were measured by QRT-PCR and western blot in healthy control (n=20), patients with depression at the baseline, and same patients after 100 days of treatment.Results: Expression levels of GR and BDNF proteins were lower in the depressed group before treatment as compared with the healthy group (P<0.0001). The SERT level was higher among the depressed group before treatment in comparison with the healthy group (P<0.0001). The level of GR and BDNF significantly increased, and SERT expression decreased after receiving sertraline (P<0.05). When the depressed group received citalopram, only SERT and GR were altered (P<0.05). Among the microRNAs’ expression investigated, mir-124 and mir-132 were higher, and mir-16 was lower among the depressed compared with the healthy group (P<0.0001). Individuals receiving citalopram only showed an increase in the expression of mir-16 while administration of sertraline led to a significant increase in the expression of mir-16 and a decrease in mir-124 and mir-132 (P<0.05).Conclusion: This elucidated the relationship between antidepressant treatment and the expression of different microRNA that control gene expression in various pathways involved in depressed patients.  Receiving SSRI can affect the level of these proteins and their relevant microRNAs

Ginkgo biloba as an adjunct to methylphenidate in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in children: review of articles

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is one of the most common psychiatric disorders in childhood. The medications which inhibit the reuptake of noradrenline and dopamine including psychostimulants such as methylphenidate and dextroamphetamine and non-stimulating pre-frontal cortex noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor such as atomoxetine, are the standard treatment of ADHD. Adverse effects of stimulants have been reported in thirty percent of patients with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. More than fifty percent of the parents of these children have tried one or more complementary or alternative medicines including vitamins in their children. Ginkgo biloba has been described to be effective for various neuropsychiatric symptoms. It was assumed that ginkgo biloba might improve some symptoms of attention deficit disorder as well. Nevertheless, no systematic study reported a possible efficacy of ginkgo biloba in attention deficit disorder. This review article evaluates the available evidence on the efficacy of ginkgo biloba medication in Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder children to present an appropriate guidance for this common child disorder

Phylogenetic analysis of metalloprotease from transcriptome of venom gland of Hemiscorpius lepturus

Hemiscorpius lepturusis a dangerous scorpion and referred to health concern issue in Khuzestan, Iran. The venom of H.lepturus is cytotoxic and its effect is similar to spider Loxosceles reclusa. Metalloproteinases are the important class of enzymes in the venom that has hemorrhagic activity. The early finding suggests the existence of metalloproteases in the transcriptome of venom gland of H.lepturus. Phylogenetic analysis was accomplished to reveal the evolutionary relationship of identified metalloproteases. The phylogenetic tree was constructed by Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis software and neighbor-joining method. Results showed among three sequences, two metalloproteinases named HLMP1 and HLMP3 of H.lepturus were most close to spider P. tepidariorum. The third sequence named HLMP2 was different and formed an independent clade in the phylogenetic tree. The results suggest that the sequence of metalloproteases in the venom component of H.lepturus is similar to the spider than the scorpion

Oligoclonal selection of nanobodies targeting vascular endothelial growth factor

While monoclonal antibodies are efficient therapeutics for cancer treatment, nanobodies or variable heavy domain – due to their small size, high stability, and solubility – have many advantages in comparison. Oligoclonal nanobodies are a mixture of nanobodies against different epitopes of an antigen. Specific nanobodies against vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF, which has an important role in cancer angiogenesis) were selected from an immune camel library using biopanning. Specific binding of the nanobodies to VEGF antigen was assessed by periplasmic extract enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Bioinformatics analysis and molecular docking were performed on selected nanobodies against VEGF. The in vitro inhibitory effects of each single nanobody, as well as a pool of selected nanobodies (oligoclonal nanobodies), on proliferation and tube formation by/in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) cells was evaluated using MTT and Tube formation assays, respectively. Four nanobodies showed the highest signal intensity in the periplasmic extract ELISA. Sequencing revealed that four unique nanobodies with different CDR3 rejoin were selected. Oligoclonal nanobodies inhibited proliferation and tube formation of the HUVEC cells more potently than did each individual nanobody. Taken together, this data from this study suggests that in vitro use of nanobodies (in an oligoclonal mode) that target distinct epitopes on VEGF could be promising as a novel therapy to treat VEGF-dependent pathologies. However, this needs to be further tested in in vivo studies