Herpes Simplex virus meningitis in children in South East of Caspian Sea, Iran

Background: Herpes simplex virus (HSV) is a member of Herpesviridae and a leading cause of human viral diseases. Meningitis occurs as a complication of HSV-1 or HSV-2 primary infection. Objectives: We aimed to evaluate HSV meningitis in children in Gorgan province, Iran. Patients and Methods: Forty-five cerebrospinal fluid samples were taken from children referred with meningitis symptoms. Samples with negative bacterial culture results were tested for viral, biochemical and cytological assays. DNA extraction and PCR were performed. Results: HSV-1 detected in 4 (8.8%) samples without any HSV-2 infections. Cases with positive results had fever and CSF pleocytosis. Vomiting, headache and higher count of WBC were observed in 3, 2 and 3 cases respectively. The cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) glucose and protein levels were normal and 3 cases showed positive C-reactive protein (CRP) results. Also erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) was higher than normal in all positive cases. Conclusions: Distribution of HSV types in children with meningitis in our area predominantly was type 1 compared with type 2, which has been reported more in other area. © 2014, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences; Published by Kowsar Corp

Mutations in pre-core and basal-core promoter regions of hepatitis B virus in chronic HBV patients from Golestan, Iran

Objective(s): It has been reported that the mutation of the pre-core (PC) and basal-core promoter (BCP) may play an important role in the development of HBV-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In this study the PC and BCP mutations were investigated in chronic HBV patients. Materials and Methods: In this study, 120 chronic HBV patients from Golestan, Northeast of Iran who were not vaccinated against HBV, were recruited from the year 2008 to 2012. HBV-DNA extraction from plasma and PCR were performed and positive PCR products were subjected to automated sequencing. Results: One hundred out of 120 (83.3%) patients were HBeAg negative. Comparison of our nucleotide sequences with reference sequence showed high rate mutation in BCP and PC region (96.66%). Frame shift mutation was found in 78 (65%) of patients in BCP region, among them 8 (6.6%) patients showed mutation in PC region. Conclusion: Our results demonstrated high rate of mutations in BCP and PC regions among HBV chronic patients in Northeast of Iran

“Wrapping myself in cotton wool“: Australian women's experience of being diagnosed with vasa praevia

© 2014 Javid et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. Background: Vasa praevia (VP) is an obstetric condition that is associated with significant perinatal mortality and morbidity. Although the incidence of VP is low, it is one of the few causes of perinatal death that can be potentially prevented through detection and appropriate care. The experience of women diagnosed with or suspected to have VP is largely unknown. The aim of this study was to explore the experiences and impact that a diagnosis or suspected diagnosis of VP had on a group of Australian women.Method: A qualitative study using a descriptive exploratory design was conducted and Australian women diagnosed with VP were recruited via online methods in 2012. An inductive approach was undertaken and interviews were analysed using the stages of thematic analysis. Results: Of the 14 women interviewed, 11 were diagnosed with VP during pregnancy with 5 subsequently found not to have VP (non-confirmed diagnosis). Three women were diagnosed during childbirth with one neonatal death. Five major themes were identified: feeling like a ticking time bomb; getting diagnosis right; being taken seriously; coping with inconsistent information; and, just a massive relief when it was all over.Conclusions: This is the first study to describe women's experience of being diagnosed with or suspected to have VP. The findings from this research reveal the dilemmas these women face even if their baby is ultimately born healthy. Their need for clear and consistent information, sensitive care, support and continuity is evident. Clinicians can use these findings in developing information, counselling and models of care for these women

Mutations in the S gene region of hepatitis B virus genotype D in Golestan Province-Iran

Mutations of HBsAg especially within the "a" determinant could alter the antigenicity of the protein causing failure of HBsAg neutralization and escaping from the host's immune system, resulting in active viral replication and liver disease. This project aimed to investigate mutation in the S gene region of HBV infected patients in Golestan Province-Iran. HBV-DNA extractions from plasma and PCR of 100 patients were performed. Direct sequencing and alignment of S gene were applied using reference sequence from Gene Bank database. All isolates were belonged to genotype D, subgenotype D1, subtype ayw2. Overall 92 point mutations occurred. Of them, 40 (43.47%) were missense and 52 (56.52%) were silent. Mutations were detected in 95 cases (95%). Five of 40 mutations (12.5%) occurred in "a" determinant and 13 (32.5%), 17 (42.5%), and 2 (5%) were seen in antigenic epitope regions of B cell, CD4⁺ and CTL, respectively. Frame shift mutations were seen in 22 cases (22%). 14% of mutations occurred at Major Hydrophilic Region(MHR) area which P120T/S and R122K/T substitutions were the most frequent ones (4%). Mutation in G145R of the S gene was observed in one case. A large number of MHR mutants are in association with failure of HBsAg detection, vaccine, and immunotherapy escape. This study showed "a" determinant S gene mutations in HBV infected people with HBsAg positivity in Golestan Province-Iran. The rate of mutation in our study was 95%. Collectively, the results of this project exhibited that most of mutations were clustered in CD4⁺ antigenic epitopes. © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2012

Chromium stress in Brassica juncea L. cv. 'Pusa Jai Kissan' under hydroponic culture

Chromium (Cr) entering plant tissue inhibits most physiological processes at all levels of metabolism including inhibition of growth, photosynthesis and nitrate assimilation. Since Cr exists in many forms, its toxicity to plants depends on its valence state, with Cr (VI) found to be highly toxic and mobile than Cr (III). Different concentrations of Cr (0, 25, 50 and 100 μM) in the form of K2Cr2O7 was added to 30 days old Brassica juncea plant and harvested on the 3rd and 5th days after treatment for estimation of plant growth, chlorophyll, total soluble protein, free amino acids and nitrate reductase activity. Cr was found to cause deleterious effects on whole plant growth. The potential of plants with the capacity to accumulate or to stabilize Cr compounds for bioremediation of Cr contamination has gained interest in recent years. The biochemical aspects like photosynthetic pigments (Chl a and Chl b), total protein and amino acids content decreased with Cr concentration. A significant increase in nitrate reductase activity was observed corresponding to Cr concentration.Key words: Brassica juncea, chromium, heavy metal, phytoremediation

Association between CTLA-4 gene polymorphism and the risk of systemic lupus erythematosus: Brief report

Background: Cytotoxic lymphocyte antigen-4 (CTLA-4) plays an important role in regulating T cell activation. CTLA-4 gene polymorphisms are related with genetic susceptibility to various autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We analyzed the role of CTLA-4 polymorphisms at positions -318CT in patients who suffer from SLE. Methods: This study was performed on 180 SLE patients referred to 5th Azar University Hospital in Gorgan, Iran. Three hundred and four ethnically-and age-matched healthy controls with no history of autoimmune diseases entered the study between 5th May 2008 and 23rd October 2009. DNA was extracted from blood samples according to the standard procedure. Polymerase chain reaction- restriction fragments length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) was used to analyze the genotype and allele frequencies of this polymorphism. PCR was carried out using the following primers: forward 5′- AAATGAATTGGACTGGATGGT-3′ and reverse 5′-TTACGAGAAAGGAAGCCGT G-3′. The frequency of alleles and genotypes were assessed using direct counting. Chisquare test and Fisher’s exact test were used to compare the association between the alleles and genotype frequencies and SLE. P<0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: The CC genotype was observed in 94.5% of the SLE patients and 82.4% of the controls; the difference was statistically significant (P=0.0001, OR=3.51, CI95%=1.77- 7.53). The CT genotype, on the other hand, was more frequently observed in the control group (17.1% vs. 5.5%, P=0.0001, OR=0.28). T allele was significantly more common in the controls compared to SLE patients (P=0.0001, OR=0.26, CI95%=0.13-0.53). Conclusion: Our results suggest that the -318C/T polymorphism of CTLA-4 gene might play a significant role in the genetic susceptibility to SLE. Therefore, further studies on populations, especially from other Middle East countries, are needed to confirm our results. © 2015, Tehran University of Medical Sciences. All Rights Reserved

Efficientone-pot synthesis of imidazoles catalyzed by silica-supported La0.5Pb0.5MnO3 nano particles as anovel and reusable perovskite oxide

Silica-supported La0.5Pb0.5MnO3 nanoparticles was prepared and used as a new perovskite-type catalyst for rapid and efficient synthesis of substituted imidazoles by an one-pot three-component condensation of [9,10]-phenanthraquinone, aryl aldehydes and ammonium acetate in excellent yield under reflux, and also solvent-free conditions