The Effect of Melatonin on Behavioral, Molecular, and Histopathological Changes in Cuprizone Model of Demyelination

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune, demyelinating disease of the central nervous system. The protective effects of melatonin (MLT) on various neurodegenerative diseases, including MS, have been suggested. In the present study, we examined the effect of MLT on demyelination, apoptosis, inflammation, and behavioral dysfunctions in the cuprizone toxic model of demyelination. C57BL/6J mice were fed a chaw containing 0.2 % cuprizone for 5 weeks and received two doses of MLT (50 and 100 mg/kg) intraperitoneally for the last 7 days of cuprizone diet. Administration of MLT improved motor behavior deficits induced by cuprizone diet. MLT dose-dependently decreased the mean number of apoptotic cells via decreasing caspase-3 and Bax as well as increasing Bcl-2 levels. In addition, MLT significantly enhanced nuclear factor-κB activation and decreased heme oxygenase-1 level. However, MLT had no effect on interleukin-6 and myelin protein production. Our data revealed that MLT improved neurological deficits and enhanced cell survival but was not able to initiate myelin production in the cuprizone model of demyelination. These findings may be important for the design of potential MLT therapy in demyelinating disorders, such as MS. © 2015, Springer Science+Business Media New York

Serum levels of vitamins A and D, and zinc in children with acute diarrhea: A cross-sectional study

Background: Diarrhea is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity during the early life period especially in developing countries. Micronutrients deficiencies have been proposed either as a risk factor or a consequence of diarrhea. Association studies highlight the relation of vitamins and minerals' deficiencies with acute diarrhea. In this regard we aimed to evaluate the status of vitamins A and D, and zinc serum levels in children with acute diarrhea. Methods: In this cross sectional study performed in a referral teaching hospital, we measured and compared baseline vitamin A, 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25(OH)D), and zinc serum levels in 25 children admitted with acute diarrhea and 25 other children who were admitted for undergoing elective surgeries. Results: 25-(OH)D levels were significantly lower in the diarrhea group (p=0.03). We were unable to demonstrate a significant difference in the levels of vitamin A and zinc between the case and control groups (p= 0.14 and p=0.07, respectively). Conclusion: We observed lower serum 25(OH)D levels in children with acute diarrhea. Whether this finding indicates a premorbid risk factor or simply a consequence of diarrhea needs further studies. Regardless of the cause and effect relationship, supplementation with vitamin D in acute diarrhea remains as a plausible consideration

Investigation of Qualitative Condition of Nekarud River and Tajan River by NSFWQI Index

Rivers are exposed to large amounts of impurities. The first step for keeping river water quality and purification of polluted parts is obtaining information on the qualitative changes of river water in dimensions of time and place and also, determination of major sources and various water pollutants. Analysis of measured parameters alone or in combination, give in complete information on water quality because of variety of parameters, samples and stations. WQI is a mathematical and statistical tool for conversion of quantitative values of large quantity of water quality data into single number which presents a simple and understandable tool for qualitative assessment. Samples were collected seasonally from stations at upstream, middle stream and downstream of two rivers in east of Mazandaran province (Nekarud River, Tajan River) in a 2 years interval of 2011-2012 years, and analyzed in laboratory of  Environmental Protection agency of Mazandaran according to standard methods. The values of NSFWQI (water quality index ofAmerica’s national health organization) were calculated for all stations and all of the stations were located on the level of unsuitable conditions. The condition of Tajan River was relatively better than Nekarud River due to lower residential villages and towns around the river

Investigation of Qualitative Condition of Nekarud River and Tajan River by NSFWQI Index

Rivers are exposed to large amounts of impurities. The first step for keeping river water quality and purification of polluted parts is obtaining information on the qualitative changes of river water in dimensions of time and place and also, determination of major sources and various water pollutants. Analysis of measured parameters alone or in combination, give in complete information on water quality because of variety of parameters, samples and stations. WQI is a mathematical and statistical tool for conversion of quantitative values of large quantity of water quality data into single number which presents a simple and understandable tool for qualitative assessment. Samples were collected seasonally from stations at upstream, middle stream and downstream of two rivers in east of Mazandaran province (Nekarud River, Tajan River) in a 2 years interval of 2011-2012 years, and analyzed in laboratory of  Environmental Protection agency of Mazandaran according to standard methods. The values of NSFWQI (water quality index ofAmerica’s national health organization) were calculated for all stations and all of the stations were located on the level of unsuitable conditions. The condition of Tajan River was relatively better than Nekarud River due to lower residential villages and towns around the river

Endoscopic screening for precancerous lesions of the esophagus in a high risk area in northern Iran

Background: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is a major health problem in many developing countries, including Iran. ESCC has a very poor prognosis, largely due to late diagnosis. As a first step in developing an early detection and treatment program, we conducted a population-based endoscopic screening for ESCC and its precursor lesion, esophageal squamous dysplasia (ESD), in asymptomatic adults from Golestan Province, northern Iran (a high-risk area for ESCC) to evaluate the feasibility of such a program and to document the prevalence and risk factor correlates of ESD. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among participants of the Golestan Cohort Study (GCS), a population-based cohort of 50,000 adults in eastern Golestan Province. Randomly selected GCS participants were invited by telephone. Those who accepted were referred to a central endoscopy clinic. Eligible subjects who consented were asked to complete a brief questionnaire. Detailed information about selected risk factors was obtained from the GCS main database. Endoscopic examination with was performed with Lugol's iodine staining; biopsies were taken from unstained lesions as well as the normally stained mucosa of the esophagus, and the biopsies were diagnosed by expert pathologists according to previously described criteria. Results: In total, 1906 GCS subjects were invited, of whom only 302 (15.8%) were successfully enrolled. Esophagitis (29.5%) and ESD (6.0%) were the most common pathological diagnoses. Turkmen ethnicity (adjusted OR = 8.61; 95%CI: 2.48-29.83), being older than the median age (OR = 7.7; 95% CI: 1.99-29.87), and using deep frying cooking methods (OR = 4.65; 95%CI: 1.19-18.22) were the strongest predictors for ESD. There were significant relationships between esophagitis and smoking (p-value<0.001), drinking hot tea (P value = 0.02) and lack of education (P value = 0.004). Conclusion: We observed a low rate of participation in endoscopic screening. The overall prevalence of ESD was 6.0%. Developing non-endoscopic primary screening methods and screening individuals with one or more risk factors may improve these rates

Correlation of sacral ratio and urinary tract infection in children

Introduction: The sacral bone anomalies have an important effect on urinary and gastrointestinal tract and sacral ratio was defined as an indicator for estimating the anorectal abnormalities in children. This study was carried out for determining the association between sacral ratio and Urinary Tract Infections (UTI) among children. Material and Methods: In a cross sectional study, 100 children under 15 years with proven febrile UTI were referred to a referral children center considering the presence and grading of VUR according to VCUG enrolled in this study. Sacral ratio was measured for all cases and the data were compared by student T test, Chi 2 and Mann Whitney tests. SPSS 16.0 software was used for data analysis. P values less than 0.05 were considered significant. Results: 41 boys and 59 girls with mean age 4.8 years were enrolled in this study. The average range of sacral ratio was 0.82. There was no staistical difference between two different genders and ages (p > 0.05). The values of SR in patients with VUR were lower than patients without VUR(P�0.05) but there was no statistically significant difference between both bilateral and unilateral VUR and SR (p > 0.05). Conclusion: The risk of sacral bone abnormality in patients with VUR is more than patients without VUR. Therefore, in patients with UTI and low SR simultaneously, tighter evaluation for VUR and treatment should be considered. © 2018 Kandarini et al

Novel fast semi-automated software to segment cartilage for knee MR acquisitions

AbstractObjectiveValidation of a new fast software technique to segment the cartilage on knee magnetic resonance (MR) acquisitions. Large studies of knee osteoarthritis (OA) will require fast and reproducible methods to quantify cartilage changes for knee MR data. In this report we document and measure the reproducibility and reader time of a software-based technique to quantify the volume and thickness of articular cartilage on knee MR images.MethodsThe software was tested on a set of duplicate sagittal three-dimensional (3D) dual echo steady state (DESS) acquisitions from 15 (8 OA, 7 normal) subjects. The repositioning, inter-reader, and intra-reader reproducibility of the cartilage volume (VC) and thickness (ThC) were measured independently as well as the reader time for each cartilage plate. The root-mean square coefficient of variation (RMSCoV) was used as metric to quantify the reproducibility of VC and mean ThC.ResultsThe repositioning RMSCoV was as follows: VC=2.0% and ThC=1.2% (femur), VC=2.9% and ThC=1.6% (medial tibial plateau), VC=5.5% and ThC=2.4% (lateral tibial plateau), and VC=4.6% and ThC=2.3% (patella). RMSCoV values were higher for the inter-reader reproducibility (VC: 2.5–8.6%) (ThC: 1.9–5.2%) and lower for the intra-reader reproducibility (VC: 1.6–2.5%) (ThC: 1.2–1.9%). The method required an average of 75.4min per knee.ConclusionsWe have documented a fast reproducible semi-automated software method to segment articular cartilage on knee MR acquisitions

MAPK and JAK/STAT pathways targeted by miR-23a and miR-23b in prostate cancer: computational and in vitro approaches

The long-lasting inadequacy of existing treatments for prostate cancer has led to increasing efforts for developing novel therapies for this disease. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are believed to have considerable therapeutic potential due to their role in regulating gene expression and cellular pathways. Identifying miRNAs that efficiently target genes and pathways is a key step in using these molecules for therapeutic purposes. Moreover, computational methods have been devised to help identify candidate miRNAs for each gene/pathway. MAPK and JAK/STAT pathways are known to have essential roles in cell proliferation and neoplastic transformation in different cancers including prostate cancer. Herein, we tried to identify miRNAs that target these pathways in the context of prostate cancer as therapeutic molecules. Genes involved in these pathways were analyzed with various algorithms to identify potentially targeting miRNAs. miR-23a and miR-23b were then selected as the best potential candidates that target a higher number of genes in these pathways with greater predictive scores. We then analyzed the expression of candidate miRNAs in LNCAP and PC3 cell lines as well as prostate cancer clinical samples. miR-23a and miR-23b showed a significant downregulation in cell line and tissue samples, a finding which is consistent with overactivation of these pathways in prostate cancer. In addition, we overexpressed miR-23a and miR-23b in LNCAP and PC3 cell lines, and these two miRNAs decreased IL-6R expression which has a critical role in these pathways. These results suggest the probability of utilizing miR-23a and miR-23b as therapeutic targets for the treatment of prostate cancer. © 2015, International Society of Oncology and BioMarkers (ISOBM)