The Global Media and Information Literacy Week: Moving Towards MIL Cities

The Global Media and Information Literacy Week commemorates the progress in achieving “MIL for all” by aggregating various MIL-related local and international events and actions across different disciplines around the world.The MIL Global Week 2018, 24 to 31 October, was marked by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization in collaboration with various organizations including the UN Alliance of Civilizations, the Global Alliance for Partnership on MIL, the International Federation of Library Associations, the International Association of School Libraries, and the UNESCO-UNAOC University Cooperation Programme on Media and Information Literacy and Intercultural Dialogue

Effect of Harvest Time on Yield and Quality of Thymus vulgaris L. Essential Oil in Isfahan Province, Iran

Thyme (Thymus vulgaris L.) is a perennial sub shrub belonging to family Lamiaceae. Thyme essential oils have been used for many thousands of years, especially in food preservation, pharmaceuticals, alternative medicine and natural therapies. In order to determine the effect of harvest time on quality and quantity of essential oil in thyme, this experiment was done in a randomized complete block design with three replications at research station of Islamic Azad University, Khorasgan (Isfahan) during 2010-2011. Plants were harvested in five stages: before blooming, beginning of blooming, 50% blooming, full blooming and fruit set. The essential oils obtained from the phenological stages of thyme were analyzed by using GC/MS. The results obtained in our study showed that the phenological stages had very significant effects (P < 0.01) on essential oil yield and percentage as well as thymol percentage and yield. The highest essential oil content of thyme (2.42%) was extracted at the beginning of blooming stage. Analysis and identification of components showed that thymol is the main compound in all samples. The highest thymol content of thyme (74.8%) was extracted at the full blooming stage. According to the results of this research, harvesting the thyme at 50% blooming stage have maximum essential oil quality and quantity in Isfahan province

Effect of Harvest Time on Yield and Quality of Thymus vulgaris L. Essential Oil in Isfahan Province, Iran

Thyme (Thymus vulgaris L.) is a perennial sub shrub belonging to family Lamiaceae. Thyme essential oils have been used for many thousands of years, especially in food preservation, pharmaceuticals, alternative medicine and natural therapies. In order to determine the effect of harvest time on quality and quantity of essential oil in thyme, this experiment was done in a randomized complete block design with three replications at research station of Islamic Azad University, Khorasgan (Isfahan) during 2010-2011. Plants were harvested in five stages: before blooming, beginning of blooming, 50% blooming, full blooming and fruit set. The essential oils obtained from the phenological stages of thyme were analyzed by using GC/MS. The results obtained in our study showed that the phenological stages had very significant effects (P < 0.01) on essential oil yield and percentage as well as thymol percentage and yield. The highest essential oil content of thyme (2.42%) was extracted at the beginning of blooming stage. Analysis and identification of components showed that thymol is the main compound in all samples. The highest thymol content of thyme (74.8%) was extracted at the full blooming stage. According to the results of this research, harvesting the thyme at 50% blooming stage have maximum essential oil quality and quantity in Isfahan province

Combining Ability of Biological Yield and Harvest Index in Diallel Cross of Wheat Cultivars under Drought and Non-drought Stress Conditions

In order to determine the mode of inheritance, genes action, general and specific combining abilities and effect of various environmental conditions on genetic parameters of harvest index and biological yield in bread wheat, diallel crosses design with eight parents was used. Parents and F1 progenies were sown in a randomized complete block design with three replications under drought stress and non-stress conditions in experimental field of Shahrekord Agricultural Research Center during 2011-2013 growing season. The data were analyzed according to method of Hallauer and Miranda as well as fixed model of Griffing’s method II. Jinks-Hayman model was used to estimate broad and narrow-sense heritabilities and mean degree of dominance. There were significant differences between genotypes for mentioned traits in both conditions. Studying mean square of general combining ability (GCA) and specific combining ability (SCA), the ratio of GCA to SCA mean square and portion of additive and dominance variances showed importance of both additive and non-additive genes effects for harvest index in both conditions, but in biological yield heredity, additive effect was more important. Estimating broad-sense and narrow-sense heritabilities showed low efficiency of harvest index and high efficiency of biological yield for selection programs in both conditions

The Implementation of Preconditioned Epidermal Neural Crest Stem Cells to Combat Ischemic Stroke. Comment on Othman, F.A.; Tan, S.C. Preconditioning Strategies to Enhance Neural Stem Cell-Based Therapy for Ischemic Stroke. <i>Brain Sci. 2020, 10</i>, 893

In the recent review published in Brain Sciences, Othman and Tan suggested several preconditioning strategies to improve stem cell therapy after ischemic brain injury [...

Oxytocin accelerates tight junction formation and impairs cellular migration in 3D spheroids: evidence from Gapmer-induced exon skipping

Oxytocin (OXT) is a neuropeptide that has been associated with neurological diseases like autism, a strong regulating activity on anxiety and stress-related behavior, physiological effects during pregnancy and parenting, and various cellular effects in neoplastic tissue. In this study, we aimed to unravel the underlying mechanism that OXT employs to regulate cell-cell contacts, spheroid formation, and cellular migration in a 3D culture model of human MLS-402 cells. We have generated a labeled OXT receptor (OXTR) overexpressing cell line cultivated in spheroids that were treated with the OXTR agonists OXT, Atosiban, and Thr4-Gly7-oxytocin (TGOT); with or without a pre-treatment of antisense oligos (Gapmers) that induce exon skipping in the human OXTR gene. This exon skipping leads to the exclusion of exon 4 and therefore a receptor that lost its intracellular G-protein-binding domain. Sensitive digital PCR (dPCR) provided us with the means to differentiate between wild type and truncated OXTR in our cellular model. OXTR truncation differentially activated intracellular signaling cascades related to cell-cell attachment and proliferation like Akt, ERK1/2-RSK1/2, HSP27, STAT1/5, and CREB, as assessed by a Kinase Profiler Assay. Digital and transmission electron microscopy revealed increased tight junction formation and well-organized cellular protrusions into an enlarged extracellular space after OXT treatment, resulting in increased cellular survival. In summary, OXT decreases cellular migration but increases cell-cell contacts and therefore improves nutrient supply. These data reveal a novel cellular effect of OXT that might have implications for degenerating CNS diseases and tumor formation in various tissues

The roles of RFamide-related peptides (RFRPs), mammalian gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone (GnIH) orthologues in female reproduction

Objective(s): To benefit from reproduction and deal with challenges in the environmental conditions, animals must adapt internal physiology to maximize the reproduction rate. Maladaptive variations in the neurochemical systems and reproductive system can lead to manifestation of several significant mammalian reprocesses, including mammalian ovarian lifespan. RFamide-related peptide (RFRP, Rfrp), mammalian orthologues of gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone (GnIH), which is a regulator to prevent the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neural activity, is known to be related to reproductive traits. This review aimed to summarize recent five-year observations to outline historic insights and novel perspectives into the functions of RFRPs in coding the mammalian reproductive physiology, especially highlight recent advances in the impact on RFRPs in regulating mammalian ovary lifespan.Materials and Methods: We reviewed the recent five-year important findings of RFRP system involved in mammalian ovary development. Data for this review were collected from Google Scholar and PubMed using the RFRP keyword combined with the keywords related to physiological or pathological reproductive functions.Results: Recent discoveries are focused on three major fronts in research on RFRP role in female reproduction including reproductive functions, energy balance, and stress regulation. The roles of RFRPs in various development phases of mammal reproduction including prepuberty, puberty, estrous cycle, pregnancy, milking, menopause, and/or ovarian diseases have been shown.Conclusion: Overall, these recent advances demonstrate that RFRPs serve as critical mediators in mammalian ovarian development

The Implementation of Preconditioned Epidermal Neural Crest Stem Cells to Combat Ischemic Stroke. Comment on Othman, F.A.; Tan, S.C. Preconditioning Strategies to Enhance Neural Stem Cell-Based Therapy for Ischemic Stroke. Brain Sci. 2020, 10, 893.

From MDPI via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: accepted 2021-05-13, pub-electronic 2021-05-17Publication status: PublishedIn the recent review published in Brain Sciences, Othman and Tan suggested several preconditioning strategies to improve stem cell therapy after ischemic brain injury [...

The beneficial effects of chick embryo extract preconditioning on hair follicle stem cells: A promising strategy to generate Schwann cells

The beneficial effects of hair follicle stem cells in different animal models of nervous system conditions have been extensively studied. While chick embryo extract (CEE) has been used as a growth medium supplement for these stem cells, this is the first study to show the effect of CEE on them. The rat hair follicle stem cells were isolated and supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum plus 10% CEE. The migration rate, proliferative capacity and multipotency were evaluated along with morphometric alteration and differentiation direction. The proteome analysis of CEE content identified effective factors of CEE that probably regulate fate and function of stem cells. The CEE enhances the migration rate of stem cells from explanted bulges as well as their proliferation, likely due to activation of AP-1 and translationally controlled tumour protein (TCTP) by thioredoxin found in CEE. The increased length of outgrowth may be the result of cyclic AMP response element binding protein (CREB) phosphorylation triggered by active CamKII contained in CEE. Further, CEE supplementation upregulates the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), brain-derived neurotrophic factor and glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor. The elevated expression of target genes and proteins may be due to CREB, AP-1 and c-Myc activation in these stem cells. Given the increased transcript levels of neurotrophins, VEGF, and the expression of PDGFR-α, S100B, MBP and SOX-10 protein, it is possible that CEE promotes the fate of these stem cells towards Schwann cells

The Hospitalization Rate of Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis before and during COVID-19 Pandemic Era: A Single-Center Retrospective Cohort Study

Objectives: There are several reports of the association between SARS-CoV-2 infection (COVID-19) and cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST). In this study, we aimed to compare the hospitalization rate of CVST before and during the COVID-19 pandemic (before vaccination program). Materials and methods: In this retrospective cohort study, the hospitalization rate of adult CVST patients in Namazi hospital, a tertiary referral center in the south of Iran, was compared in two periods of time. We defined March 2018 to March 2019 as the pre-COVID-19 period and March 2020 to March 2021 as the COVID-19 period. Results: 50 and 77 adult CVST patients were hospitalized in the pre-COVID-19 and COVID-19 periods, respectively. The crude CVST hospitalization rate increased from 14.33 in the pre-COVID-19 period to 21.7 per million in the COVID-19 era (P = 0.021). However, after age and sex adjustment, the incremental trend in hospitalization rate was not significant (95% CrI: -2.2, 5.14). Patients \u3e 50-year-old were more often hospitalized in the COVID-19 period (P = 0.042). SARS-CoV-2 PCR test was done in 49.3% out of all COVID-19 period patients, which were positive in 6.5%. Modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score ≥3 at three-month follow-up was associated with age (P = 0.015) and malignancy (P = 0.014) in pre-COVID period; and was associated with age (P = 0.025), altered mental status on admission time (P\u3c0.001), malignancy (P = 0.041) and COVID-19 infection (P = 0.008) in COVID-19 period. Conclusion: Since there was a more dismal outcome in COVID-19 associated CVST, a high index of suspicion for CVST among COVID-19 positive is recommended