Structural and functional analysis of the nucleotide and DNA binding activities of the human PIF1 helicase

Pif1 is a multifunctional helicase and DNA processing enzyme that has roles in genome stability. The enzyme is conserved in eukaryotes and also found in some prokaryotes. The functions of human PIF1 (hPIF1) are also critical for survival of certain tumour cell lines during replication stress, making it an important target for cancer therapy. Crystal structures of hPIF1 presented here explore structural events along the chemical reaction coordinate of ATP hydrolysis at an unprecedented level of detail. The structures for the apo as well as the ground and transition states reveal conformational adjustments in defined protein segments that can trigger larger domain movements required for helicase action. Comparisons with the structures of yeast and bacterial Pif1 reveal a conserved ssDNA binding channel in hPIF1 that we show is critical for single-stranded DNA binding during unwinding, but not the binding of G quadruplex DNA. Mutational analysis suggests that while the ssDNA-binding channel is important for helicase activity, it is not used in DNA annealing. Structural differences, in particular in the DNA strand separation wedge region, highlight significant evolutionary divergence of the human PIF1 protein from bacterial and yeast orthologues

Erratum: COMPARE CPM-RMI trial: Intramyocardial transplantation of autologous bone marrow-derived CD133+ cells and MNCs during CABG in patients with recent MI: A phase II/III, multicenter, placebo-controlled, randomized, double-blind clinical trial. (Cell Journal (2018) 20:3 (449) DOI: 10.22074/cellj.2018.5197)

This article published in Cell J (Yakhteh), Vol 20, No 2, Jul-Sep 2018, on pages 267-277, four affiliations (1, 4, 5, and 10) were changed based on authors request. © 2018 Royan Institute (ACECR). All rights reserved

COMPARE CPM-RMI Trial: Intramyocardial transplantation of autologous bone marrow-derived CD133+ Cells and MNCs during CABG in patients with recent MI: A Phase II/III, multicenter, placebo-controlled, randomized, double-blind clinical trial

Objective: The regenerative potential of bone marrow-derived mononuclear cells (MNCs) and CD133+ stem cells in the heart varies in terms of their pro-angiogenic effects. This phase II/III, multicenter and double-blind trial is designed to compare the functional effects of intramyocardial autologous transplantation of both cell types and placebo in patients with recent myocardial infarction (RMI) post-coronary artery bypass graft. Materials and Methods: This was a phase II/III, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial COMPARE CPM-RMI (CD133, Placebo, MNCs - recent myocardial infarction) conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki that assessed the safety and efficacy of CD133 and MNCs compared to placebo in patients with RMI. We randomly assigned 77 eligible RMI patients selected from 5 hospitals to receive CD133+ cells, MNC, or a placebo. Patients underwent gated single photon emission computed tomography assessments at 6 and 18 months post-intramyocardial transplantation. We tested the normally distributed efficacy outcomes with a mixed analysis of variance model that used the entire data set of baseline and between-group comparisons as well as within subject (time) and group�time interaction terms. Results: There were no related serious adverse events reported. The intramyocardial transplantation of both cell types increased left ventricular ejection fraction by 9 95% confidence intervals (CI): 2.14% to 15.78%, P=0.01 and improved decreased systolic wall thickening by -3.7 (95% CI: -7.07 to -0.42, P=0.03). The CD133 group showed significantly decreased non-viable segments by 75% (P=0.001) compared to the placebo and 60% (P=0.01) compared to the MNC group. We observed this improvement at both the 6- and 18-month time points. Conclusion: Intramyocardial injections of CD133+ cells or MNCs appeared to be safe and efficient with superiority of CD133+ cells for patients with RMI. Although the sample size precluded a definitive statement about clinical outcomes, these results have provided the basis for larger studies to confirm definitive evidence about the efficacy of these cell types (Registration Number: NCT01167751). © 2018 Royan Institute (ACECR). All Rights Reserved

Enhanced Fertility after Diagnostic Hysterosalpingography in Unexplained Infertility

Introduction: Infertility is a common complication present in 10-15% of the population. It causes serious problems for the family. There are different methods for evaluation and treatment of infertility. One of the routine tests is hysterosalpingography that was first used in1922 and with changes in types of contrast media and its techniques, it is the primary test for simultaneous evaluation of tube, uterus body and cervix. Methods: This descriptive clinical outcome study was carried out on the base of a case series study. The study was performed on 117 patients who referred for HSG procedure and were followed for 2 years for detection of pregnancy. Data was analyzed by SPSS.14, and statistical tests included student’s t-test, chi-square and Fisher exact test. Results: The mean age of patients was 26±4.7 years. Duration of infertility was 6 years. Of the total, 98(83.8%) cases had one or both patent tubes on HSG. They didn’t have any established causes of infertility after scrutiny of other findings and 51(43.6%) cases became pregnant during 2 years (CI=95%,34.6-52.6%). Notable point was that 86.3% of pregnancies occurred in the first 6-months after HSG procedure. Conclusion: HSG plays a significant role in infertility diagnosis and treatment in spite of the new techniques and methods for infertility diagnosis and treatment; so follow up and control of patient for 6 months after HSG is recommended. If HSG fails, other procedures such as laparoscopy can be done

Estimating saturation flow under weak discipline traffic conditions, case study: Iran

Intersections, as the critical elements and the major bottleneck points of urban street networks, may have inconsistent performances in different countries. This is largely due to the fact that the factors affecting their performance e.g. driving behavior, vehicle characteristics, control methods, and environmental conditions may vary from one country to another. It is, therefore required to take into account these factors when developing or applying available models and methodologies for their capacity analysis or signal control setting. This is particularly important for the countries with heterogeneous and weak discipline traffic streams such as Iran. Meanwhile, estimating the saturation flow rate, which is a key parameter in capacity and delay analysis and in optimal timing of traffic signals, is of great importance. In this study, the possibility of identifying and or developing appropriate models for estimating the saturation flow rate at the signalized intersections in these situations has been explored. For this purpose, a case study performed at the signalized intersections located in the city of Yazd, a medium sized city located in the middle of Iran. Using the data obtained from several intersections together with the application of analytical procedures proposed by American, Australian, Canadian, Indonesian, Iranian and Malaysian highway capacity guides, the saturation flow rate was estimated from both field observations and analytical methods. A comparison of these results indicated that in the protected left-turn situations, the Australian guide produced the best comparable results with the field data. On the other hand, in the permitted left-turn situations, the method proposed in the American Highway Capacity Manual guide produced the best comparable results with the field data. Furthermore, three new models were developed for estimating the saturation flow rate in three different situations namely, unopposed mixed straight and turning traffic movements, opposed mixed straight and turning traffic movements and merely straight through movement. The effective width, traffic composition, and opposite oncoming through traffic flow were considered as the effective parameters in the proposed models. Moreover, using the multivariate regression analysis, the Passenger Car Equivalent coefficients for motorcycles and heavy vehicles were calculated as 0.51 and 2.09, respectively

Factors Affecting Quality of Life after Menopause in Women,

Introduction: Most women experience significant changes in quality of life(QOL) during and after menopausal and few researchers have quantified these changes. The aim of the present research was to assess quality of life(QOL) and determine factors related to its impairment among postmenopausal Iranian women. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted by cluster sampling method among 300 post-menopausal women in Yazd, Islamic Republic of Iran in 2008. Data was collected using the menopause quality of life questionnaire(MENQOL) by interview. Content validity and Cronbach's alpha were used respectively to ensure the validity and reliability of the questionnaires. Inferential and descriptive statistics via SPSS.15 software were used for data analysis. Results: The mean scores for quality of life in various dimensions were as follows: vasomotor dimension 12.34±4.71, psychological dimension 18.15±8.89, physical dimension 41.09±16.37 and in sexual dimension it was 10.97±6.52. There were significant relationships between psychological , physical and sexual dimensions and education level, economic level ,health level (p < 0.05) regardless of Spearman’s correlation, There were significant relationships between ,physical and sexual dimensions and number of pregnancies and age(p < 0.05). Conclusion: Menopause causes a decrease in quality of life that is dependent on work and other sociodemographic variables. It is therefore necessary to develop effective interventional programs to improve quality of life after menopause

Prevalence of depression and its related factors among truck drivers in Yazd Province -2008

Background and aims   Driving is a dangerous and difficult job. In proportion to the other occupational groups, driving has a higher rate of mortality, morbidity and absent due to illness.  Drivers are susceptible to depression. Depression alters the thought, attitude and operational skills and leads to higher rates of accident. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of depression and its related factors among truck drivers.  Methods   This was a cross-sectional study that carried out on 400 male truck drivers in Yazd province. Subjects were selected by simple random sampling method from Transport Organization List of truck drivers who live in Yazd province. Presence and severity of depression were assessed by the Beck Depression Inventory Short Form. Data were collected by interview and analyzed with SPSS software.  Results    Most of drivers(70.3%) had some degrees of depression: major depression was obsereved in 14.8%, moderate depression in 25.4% and mild depression in 30.1%. Only 29.7% of drivers had no depression symptoms. Pearson correlation showed a significant positive relatioship between depression score and the number of cigarettes smoking daily and also the distance of trip.Moreover, negative correlation was found between depression score and the sleep duration in trip. Depression score in drivers who had experienced accident during previous year was significantly higher than those with no accident experience.  Conclusion our results regarding depression among truck drivers indicate necessity for establishing special committees in order to consulting and guidence of truck drivers as well as further assessing of their problems and finding solutions to help them having a better compatibility with their jobs situations

A survey on knowledge, attitude and practice of high consumption households towards proper use of water in Yazd

Background: Population growth, urban development due to the migration to the cities and the increasing demand are of the component that influences on volume of water available. therefore water conservation in cities, espically in yazd is very important. Methods: This research as a cross-sectional study was conducted on high consumption households. Sampling was carried out to cluster method and in two stages, finally 188 questionnaires by SPSS statistical software (T-test, Mann-Whitney) were analyzed. Results: Average and SD of knowledge scores 60.04 &plusmn; 15.5, the attitude 22.28 &plusmn; 3.97 and the practice was 11.6 &plusmn; 3.63. This study showed that there is a statistically significant association between total knowledge with job and sex. The results of factor analysis indicated that the category of &quot;other parts of the house(cooler, washing automobiles,devices of reducer water consumption, etc),&quot; the highest and category of &quot;causes of water loss at house (washing yard, water leak from pipes, non-closure water faucet when brushing your teeth, etc.)&quot; had the lowest contribution in the states of total knowledge. There isn&rsquo;t any statistically significant association between the attitudes and practice of households in all the variables. Conclusion: The results showed that studied households have relatively good level of practice than the water conservation behaviors. However, intervention efforts to promote these behaviors to a higher level, is important and necessary

Investigating students’ attitude towards the importance of factors included in the teaching evaluation forms of School of Public Health of Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences in 2010-2011

Introduction: students’ attitudes about teaching methodology have been widely recognised as a valid tool of evaluating teaching activities of faculty members. This study aims to determine the importance of the factors included in the teaching evaluation, from the students’ point of view. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study. Using a random cluster sampling, 332 students of the school of public health of Shahid Sadoughi University were selected .To collect data, a questionnaire containing three partswere used. These were demographic items, teachers’ evaluation (14 items) and self-evaluation (4 items). Results: The students (80%) scoredpersonal characteristics more. Among different fields of study, those studying occupational health scored the factorsless than others, and those studying at masters level scored them more than others.   The results indicated that there are significant correlation between age, marital status, and employment status of the students and the total average score.   The students scored the self-evaluation items more than 60%, There was a significant correlation between the average scores of evaluation and self-evaluation items. The students at bachelor level scored the factor more than masters students. Conclusion: The students’ focus on personal characteristics of teachers was remarkable. There is a need to revise the process of academics’ recruitment based on these findings. There is also a need to review the items included in evaluation forms of the school

The Knowledge, Attitude & Practice of Women Referred to Health Centers of Yazd on Moldy Food Contaminated with Aflatoxin

Introduction: Aflatoxins are toxic metabolites produced by certain fungi in/on foods and feeds. The damage they do to DNA can be mutagenic, and also carcinogenic with liver cancer. The aim of this study was to The effect of education on knowledge, attitude & practice of women referred to health centers of Yazd on moldy food contaminated with aflatoxin. Materials and Methods: This study was a cross sectional-descriptive study that was done in 2014. One hundred and fifty - two women were selected among women who were referred to health centers of Yazd. The Sampling was conducted in multi stages. The data was collected by a researcher-developed questionnaire. The validity and reliability of the questionnaire have been confirmed by content validity, face validity and equivalent reliability. The collected data was analyzed by SPSS20. Results: 107 (70%) of the patients studied to the poor knowledge of aflatoxins and Only 6.2% of them were relatively good knowledge. The performance levels were a 38 (25%), good performance, 108 (1/71%), moderate performance and 6 (9/3%) had poor performance. 0.25%, 74.3% and 0.7% Participant to the hazards food contaminated with aflatoxins were moldy and positive, average and negative attitude, respectively. Conclusions: Based on our findings, Poor knowledge of participants to aflatoxin, and the average of the attitudes and performance of most of the participants. Is necessary to provide strategies to increase public awareness in order to increase the level of attitude and function and reduce exposure to aflatoxin