Umbilical cord blood concentration of connecting peptide (C-peptide) and pregnancy outcomes

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Acute and critical care for rabies bitten patients and the different outcomes in a Family: A Post Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) Failure report

Rabies is a zoonotic viral disease that spread via infected animal saliva. Rabies virus belongs to Lyssavirus genus (Rhabdoviridae family) and the disease is endemic in Iran. The disease causes a fatal encephalomyelitis by infecting the nervous system. Dogs are the most common source of human rabies cases. In this presentation, we had a 58-year-old man who had a dog bitten history on his face and hands with his other two family members with the same dog at the same time. They received post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) as soon as possible (from day 0). Eighteen days after bitten the man hospitalized and died of rabies three days after hospitalization. Other two relatives were healthy without any rabies symptom. The man was an Iranian veteran with residual body insults during the attacks of chemical warfare from the combat front. Obtained data in this study suggested that the direct inoculation of the virus to the nerve and immune system inability in virus clearing system were possible etiologies of PEP failure in the reported case. Keywords: Rabies Virus, Immunoglobulin, Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), Immunosuppressio

Dysregulated Expression of MiR-19b, MiR-25, MiR-17, WT1, and CEBPA in Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia and Association with Graft versus Host Disease after Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

Objectives Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a blood malignancy characterized by the proliferation of aberrant cells in the bone marrow and blood that interfere with normal blood cells. We have investigated whether changes in the level of micro-ribonucleic acid (miR)-19b, miR-17, and miR-25, Wilms' tumor (WT1), and CCAAT enhancer-binding protein α (CEBPA) genes expression affect disease prognosis and clinical outcome in AML patients. Materials and Methods The expression level of miR-19-b, miR-17, and miR-25, as well as WT1 and CEBPA genes in a group of patients and controls as well as different risk groups (high, intermediate, and favorite risk), M3 versus non-M3, and graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) versus non-GvHD patients were assessed using a quantitative SYBR Green real-time polymerase chain reaction method. Results When compared with the baseline level at the period of diagnosis before chemotherapy, the expression of miR-19b and miR-17 in AML patients increased significantly after chemotherapy. The level of miR-19b and miR-25 expression in AML patients with M3 and non-M3 French–American–British subgroups differ significantly. MiR-19b and miR-25 expression was elevated in GvHD patients, while miR-19b and miR-25 expression was somewhat decreased in GvHD patients compared with non-GvHD patients, albeit the difference was not statistically significant. Also, patients with different cytogenetic aberrations had similar levels of miR-19-b and miR-25 expression. Conclusion MiR-19b, miR-17, and miR-25 are aberrantly expressed in AML patients' peripheral blood leukocytes, which may play a role in the development of acute GvHD following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

Antioxidant Activity of Peptides Derived from Enzymatic Digestion of Spirulina platensis Protein Extract by Different Proteases : Antioxidant activity of protein digests of S. platensis

One of the attractive sources of bioactive compounds is cyanobacteria and in particular, Chlorella vulgaris and Spirulina platensis. Enzymatic digestion of the Spirulina protein extract can result in bioactive peptides with diverse activities, including antioxidant function. This study aims to produce peptides with antioxidant properties after the enzymatic digestion of Spirulina platensis protein extract using three enzymes: bacterial protease, pepsin, and papain. The protein extract from Spirulina platensis was subjected to enzyme hydrolysis for 3 hours at 37°C (pH 7.4 for papain and bacterial protease and pH 5 for pepsin). The concentration of peptide fragments was evaluated to determine the yield of protein digestion. In order to measure the level of anti-oxidative potential of the hydrolysates, the DPPH assay was run. The results indicated that the bacterial protease led to the highest concentration of peptide fragments, while the hydrolysate obtained from pepsin digestion showed the most antioxidant activity (80%), mainly the peptides that have molecular weights less than 14 KDa. Consequently, pepsin can be a proper enzyme to produce antioxidant peptides from the protein extract of S. platensis. In conclusion, the results of the study confirmed that the products of enzymatic digestion by different enzymes have distinct features. HIGHLIGHTS Spirulina platensis protein extract was digested with three types of protease. Digestion of protein extract by pepsin resulted in higher antioxidant activity. Digestion by bacterial protease from Bacillus licheniformis resulted in higher yield of peptide formation

Umbilical cord blood concentration of connecting peptide (C-peptide) and pregnancy outcomes

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Repeated mouth rinsing of coffee improves the specific-endurance performance and jump performance of young male futsal players

Background Mouth-rinsing with ergogenic solutions such as carbohydrate and caffeinated drinks has been considered among athletes as a practical nutritional strategy. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the effect of repeated coffee mouth-rinsing (CMR) doses on specific performances of futsal players. Method Twenty-four male futsal players randomly participated in this randomized, double-blind, and crossover design study. During the intervention, participants were randomly placed in four different conditions including 1. low-dose CMR (LDC, n = 6, ~60 mg caffeine); 2. high-dose CMR (HDC, n = 6, ~125 mg caffeine); 3. decaffeinated CMR (PLA, n = 6, ~10 mg caffeine); and 4. no CMR (CON, n = 6). Vertical jump height was measured at baseline, baseline after CMR (baseline-CMR), immediately after the intermittent futsal endurance test (FIET) (IA-FIET), 5 min after the FIET (5”A-FIET) and 10 min after the FIET (10”A-FIET). Perceived fatigue was also measured by visual analogue scale (VAS) at baseline, IA-FIET, 5”A-FIET, and 10”A-FIET. CMR was also performed at baseline, during FIET (Repeated between levels), and 10’A-FIET. The collected data were analyzed (with SPSS software) by one- and two-way repeated measure ANOVA and Bonferroni post hoc test at P  0.05). However, HDC and LDC rose significantly the distance covered in FIET compared to CON and PLA (P  0.05), baseline-CMR increased significantly the vertical jump height (P < 0.05). At IA-FIET, vertical jump height decreased to baseline levels in CMR conditions but increased in 5”A-FIET, which remained constant until 10”A-FIET (P < 0.05). In addition, vertical jump height in HDC and LDC conditions was significantly higher than CON in IA-FIET, 5”A-FIET, and 10”A-FIET. Conclusion This study showed that repeated CMR with low and high doses is a useful strategy to improve specific futsal performance. However, higher dose CMR appears to have more profound effects on performance improvement than lower doses

Cerium and samarium blocked antioxidant enzymes in wheat plants

Abstract This work was conducted to study positive and negative impacts of cerium (Ce) and samarium (Sm) on two cultivars (Arta and Baharan) in wheat plant. Symbols of stress such as proline, malondialdehyde (MDA) and antioxidant enzymes, which may be complicated in the suppression responses of plants, were also studied. Wheat plants were exposed to 0, 2500, 5000, 7500, 10,000 and 15,000 μM of Ce and Sm for 7 days. The growth enhanced in plants treated with lesser Ce and Sm concentration (2500 μM) and declined in plants treated with upper concentrations as compared to untreated plants. The treatment with 2500 μM of Ce and Sm increased dry weigh in Arta by 68.42 and 20% and in Baharan by 32.14% and 27.3%. Thus, Ce and Sm had hormesis effect on growth in wheat plants. According to plant’s growth parameter patterns, Arta cultivar had more sensitive to Sm than to Ce, whereas Baharan cultivar had sensitive to Ce than to Sm. Our results indicated impact of Ce and Sm on proline accumulation depended on the dosage of Ce and Sm. It was observed that Ce and Sm accumulated in wheat plants at higher exposure doses. Increment of MDA content by Ce and Sm treatments showed that these metals caused oxidative stress in wheat plants. Ce and Sm blocked enzymatic antioxidant system (superoxide dismutases, peroxidase and polyphenol peroxidase) in wheat. In wheat plants treated with lower Ce and Sm concentrations higher amounts of non-enzymatic antioxidant metabolites were detected. Thus, we showed the potential negative impact of unsuitable utilization of REEs in plants and suggested growth and interruption in physiological and biochemical mechanisms as a possible factor to recognize the underlying toxicological processes

A Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies on Prolactin Levels in Women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) are reported to have different levels of prolactin (PRL) compared to women without PCOS. This study aimed to evaluate the PRL levels in women with PCOS, compared to the control group, before and after adjustment for potential confounders. Using a logical combination of keywords, a comprehensive search was carried out in PubMed and Web of Science, from inception to 30 August 2022. Weighted mean differences (WMDs) with corresponding 95% CIs in PRL levels were employed with a random-effects model. I2 was applied to evaluate heterogeneity among studies. A meta-regression analysis and subgroup analysis were conducted to explore heterogeneity sources. Publication bias was assessed by the Egger test. Thirty-two studies, measuring PRL levels in 8551 PCOS patients according to the Rotterdam criteria and 13,737 controls, were included in the meta-analysis. Pooled effect size suggested that the overall weighted mean difference (WMD) of PRL level was significantly higher in women with PCOS, compared to controls (WMD = 1.01, 95% CI: 0.04–1.98, p = 0.040). The result of meta-regression adjusted for age, BMI, and the continent of origin, revealed no confounding effect on results. Sub-group analysis of PRL levels according to the continent of origin showed significantly higher PRL levels among Eurasian PCOS patients compared to the control; this difference was not statistically significant in the subgroups of women from Asia, Europe, and South America. In conclusion, PRL levels in patients who were diagnosed according to the Rotterdam criteria were significantly higher than non-PCOS participants. Slightly higher levels of PRL could be presented as a diagnostic feature of PCOS

Quantitative expression of developmental genes, Pou5f1 (Oct4) and Mest (Peg1), in vitrified mouse embryos

Background: Embryo cryopreservation is the process that water is removed from the cell by cryoprotectant materials, and embryos are stored at temperature below zero. This process may affect the viability and developmental potential of embryos. Objective: In this study, the effect of the vitrification cryotop method on the expression level of Oct4 and Mest developmental genes in mouse blastocysts was examined. Materials and Methods: The collected 2-cell embryos of superovulated mouse by oviduct flushing were divided into non-vitrified and vitrified groups. These embryos were cultured to the blastocyst stage directly in the non-vitrified group and in the vitrified group, these embryos were cultured to 4-8 cell embryos, vitrified with cryotop in these stages and after 2-6 months, warmed and cultured to blastocyst embryos. Quantitative expression of two developmental genes, namely Oct4 and Mest, were performed in these groups, using RNA purification and Real-time RT-PCR. Results: Quantitative PCR analysis showed that the expression level of both genes, Oct4 and Mest, was reduced significantly in the vitrified-warmed group relative to the control group (p=0.046 and p=0.001). Conclusion: This study revealed that morphologically normal embryos show a reduced amount of Oct4 and Mest transcripts which indicate that the vitrification method negatively effects the expression level of these two developmental genes

Ghrelin and ghrelin/total cholesterol ratio as independent predictors for coronary artery disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Download PDFPDF Review Ghrelin and ghrelin/total cholesterol ratio as independent predictors for coronary artery disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7611-7799Maryam Niknam1, Taraneh Liaghat2, Mehrdad Zarghami3, Mehdi Akrami2, Seyed Mehdi Shahnematollahi2, Ahmad Ahmadipour4, Fatemeh Moazzen5, http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3628-9438Sahar Soltanabadi2 Correspondence to Dr Sahar Soltanabadi, Cardiovascular Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz 7175735865, Iran (the Islamic Republic of); [email protected] Abstract The present meta-analysis aimed to summarize the available data regarding the circulating levels of ghrelin in patients with cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). A comprehensive search was performed in electronic databases including PubMed, Scopus, EMBASE, and Web of Science up to January 20, 2021. Since the circulating levels of ghrelin were measured in different units across the included studies, they were expressed as the standardized mean difference (SMD) and 95% CI (summary effect size). A random-effects model comprising the DerSimonian and Laird method was used to pool SMDs. Sixteen articles (20 studies) comprised of 1087 cases and 437 controls were included. The pooled results showed that there were no significant differences between cases and controls in terms of ghrelin levels (SMD=−0.61, 95% CI −1.38 to 0.16; p=0.120; I2=96.9%, p<0.001). The ghrelin concentrations in the CAD stratum were significantly lower than in controls, whereas they increased in other disease strata. New combined biomarkers demonstrated a significant decrease in the SMD of the ghrelin/total cholesterol (TC) ratio (−1.02; 95% CI −1.74 to –0.29, p=0.000; I2=94.5%). However, no significant differences were found in the SMD of the ghrelin/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio, ghrelin/low-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio, and ghrelin/triglyceride (TG) ratio in cases with CVDs compared with the control group. Ghrelin was associated with CAD; therefore, it may be considered a biomarker for distinguishing between patients with and without CAD. Furthermore, the ghrelin/TC ratio could be proposed as a diagnostic marker for CVD