Topological viewpoint of two-dimensional group III-V and IV-IV compounds in the presence of electric field and spin-orbit coupling by density functional theory and tight-binding model

Using the tight-binding (TB) model and density functional theory, the topological invariant of the two-dimensional (2D) group III-V and IV-IV compounds are studied in the absence and the presence of an external perpendicular electric field and spin-orbit coupling. It will be recognized that a critical value of these parameters changes the topological invariant of 2D graphene-like compounds. The significant effects of an external electric field and spin-orbit coupling are considered to the two-center overlap integrals of the Slater-Koster model involved in band structures, changing band-gap, and tuning the topological phase transition between ordinary and quantum spin Hall regime. These declare the good consistency between two theories: TB and density functional. So, this study reveals topological phase transition in these materials. Our finding paves a way to extend an effective Hamiltonian, and may instantly clear some computation aspects of the study in the field of spintronic based on the first-principles methods.

Hepatoprotective effects of silymarin on CCl4-induced hepatic damage in broiler chickens model

This study was conducted to investigate the hepatoprotective effects of silymarin on CCl₄-induced oxidative stress in broiler chickens model. A total of 240 day-old broilers were divided into 4 equal groups (n = 60) composed of a control group (receiving 1 mL/Kg BW saline) and 3 groups treated with silymarin (receiving 100 mg/Kg BW silymarin), CCl₄ (receiving 1 mL/Kg BW CCl₄), and combination of silymarin + CCl₄. Results indicated that silymarin has potential to mitigate the deleterious effects of CCl₄ on protein and lipid metabolism. The protective activity of silymarin against CCl₄-mediated lipid peroxidation was demonstrated by the lower serum content of MDA, as lipid peroxidation marker. CCl₄-induced hepatotoxicity was demonstrated by the elevation of serum contents of ALP, AST, ALT, and GGT enzymes, whereas silymarin decreased serum activity of ALP and AST hepatic enzymes. The CCl₄-challenged birds revealed considerable hepatic injures characterized by moderate to severe hepatocellular degeneration around the portal vein, aggregation of inflammatory cells, granulomatosis, cytolytic necrosis, periportal space fibrosis, and sinusoidal dilatation. However, liver damages were amended by the silymarin. In line with molecular study, a remarkable down-regulation was detected in the expression of CAT, GPx, and Mn-SOD hepatic genes in CCl₄-challenged birds, whereas silymarin significantly up-regulated aforementioned genes. In general, current study showed that silymarin has potential to alleviate the adverse effects of oxidative stress in poultry farms.

Antioxidant activity and preventive effect of aqueous leaf extract of Aloe Vera on gentamicin-induced nephrotoxicity in male Wistar rats

OBJECTIVE

In the present study, the nephroprotective and curative effects of aqueous extract of AV on gentamicin-induced tubular toxicity in male Wistar rats were investigated. Antioxidant activity, phenolic and flavonoid contents of AV were also determined.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In a preclinical study, 60 male Wistar rats were designated into 6 groups of 10 and treated as follows: Group I: Treated with vehicle (distilled water) and kept as control. Group II: Received 300 mg/kg/d AV for three days then, AV plus GM (80 mg/kg; intraperitoneally) for 7 more days and sacrificed. Group III: Received 300 mg/kg AV orally for 10 days, then sacrificed. Group IV: Received GM for 7 days and sacrificed. Group V: Received GM for 7 days and saline for ten days and sacrificed on 17th day. Group VI: Received GM for 7 days, then AV for 10 days and sacrificed.

RESULTS

The levels of flavonoid and phenolic compounds in Aloe vera extract were 43 ± 3.8 mg/g (Rutin equivalent) and 80.1 ± 3.8 mg/g (Gallic acid equivalent), respectively. The antioxidant activity of the extract was 38%. The intensity of nephrotoxicity in group 2 that received AV 300 mg/kg/d as prophylaxis was not significantly different from the group I and from the group II which treated with 300 mg/kg/d AV without GM. This finding reveals that AV as prophylaxis could potentially attenuate the GM-induced nephrotoxicity.

CONCLUSIONS

Aole vera significantly protects the renal cells and reduces the severity of tubular damage caused by gentamicin. However, it cannot regenerate tubular damage.

Two lung development-related microRNAs, miR-134 and miR-187, are differentially expressed in lung tumors

INTRODUCTION

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are involved in various cellular events needed for embryonic development and tumorigenesis. As some of the development-specific gene expression patterns could be observed in cancers, we speculated that the expression pattern of lung development-specific miRNAs miR-134 and miR-187 might be altered in lung tumor samples. Lung cancer is the first cause of cancer related deaths worldwide, mostly due to its late diagnosis. Therefore, finding a reliable diagnostic tumor marker, based on molecular profile of tumorigenesis, would be critical in lowering lung cancer mortality.

METHODS

We employed a real-time RT-PCR approach to evaluate the expression alteration of two lung development-related miRNAs in lung tumor tissues. The suitability of miRs expression alterations as lung tumor biomarkers was tested by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. The effect of miR-187 overexpression on a lung carcinoma cell cycle was assessed using flow cytometry analysis.

RESULTS

Our data revealed a significant upregulation (7.8 times, p<0.02) of miR-134 in lung tumors. However, its expression level failed to discriminate different tumor types and grades of malignancies from each other. Moreover, the ROC curves analysis did not give it a good score as a reliable biomarker (AUC=0.522, P=0.729). In contrast, miR-187 showed a significant down-regulation (P=0.008) in lung tumors. Similarly, its expression level failed to differentiate different tumor types or grades of malignancies. Nevertheless, ROC curve analysis gave it an AUC score of 0.669 (P=0.012), which suggests its suitability as a potential biomarker for lung cancer. Furthermore, ectopic expression of miR-187 in A549 cells caused a cell cycle arrest in G1 phase (P=0.013).

CONCLUSION

Altogether, our data demonstrated an altered expression of two development-related miRNAs namely miR-134 and miR-187 in lung tumors for the first time. Moreover we have shown that miR-134 and miR-187 expression alternation were in accordance with their approved regulatory roles, therefore these miRNAs could serve as new biomarkers with potential usefulness in lung cancer diagnosis and treatments. In addition, miR-187 expression in tumor cells could perturb cell cycle which supported its possible role as tumor suppressor.

Significance of extracapillary proliferation in IgA-nephropathy patients with regard to clinical and histopathological variables

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Extracapillary proliferation (crescent) was not included in the Oxford classification, although previous attempts to correlate the crescent with clinical outcomes have produced conflicting results. In this study, we investigated the clinical and morphological significance of extracapillary proliferation in a group of IgA nephropathy (IgAN) patients with regard to the Oxford classification.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

In an observational study conducted on IgAN patients, we collected a total of 114 biopsies. We diagnosed IgAN by light and immunofluorescence for all patients.

RESULTS

Of the 114 patients, 70.2% were male. The mean age of the patients was 37.7 ± 13.6 years. The mean proteinuria was 1742 ± 1324 mg/day. The mean serum creatinine was 1.6 ± 1.5 mg/dL. Twenty-five (21.9%) patient kidney biopsies had extracapillary proliferation. We found a significant positive correlation between the number of crescents and serum creatinine (p<0.001). Furthermore, we found a positive association between the nephrotic syndrome and the total number of crescents (p<0.05). Additionally, we observed a significant positive correlation between the amount of sclerosed glomeruli and extracapillary proliferation (p=0.028).

CONCLUSION

Our findings confirm that extracapillary proliferation has a significant association with proteinuria and sclerotic glomeruli. We anticipate that extracapillary proliferation will be included in a revision of the Oxford classification of IgAN to widen the scope of the classification.

Study of promoter methylation pattern of 14-3-3 sigma gene in normal and cancerous tissue of breast: A potential biomarker for detection of breast cancer in patients

Background:

In recent years, DNA methylation as a main epigenetic modification in human cancer is found as a promising biomarker in early detection of breast cancer. Possible applications of numerous hypermethylated genes have been reported in diagnosis of breast cancer but there has been a little comprehensive study on the clinical usefulness of these genes in breast cancer. The aim of the present study was to investigate the promoter methylation status of 14-3-3 sigma gene with the goal of developing a diagnostic application in breast cancer.

Materials and Methods:

Totally 40 cases of cancerous and noncancerous tissues were studied. DNA was extracted from tissue samples, and promoter methylation pattern was determined by using methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction.

Results:

Methylation pattern of 14-3-3 sigma promoter significantly differed between control and malignant breast tissues (P = 0.001), and there was no remarkable correlation between methylation and age (P > 0.05).

Conclusion:

The relationship of promoter methylation of 14-3-3 sigma with development of breast cancer found in this study and confirmed the results of previous reports suggests that we can provide the foundation for possible application of 14-3-3 sigma as a potential biomarker for early detection and monitoring disease status.

High frequency of microsatellite instability in sporadic colorectal cancer patients in Iran

Microsatellite instability in sporadic colorectal cancer patients was assessed, and the clinicopathological associations were evaluated in northeastern Iran, which is a high-risk region for gastrointestinal malignancies. Microsatellite instability (MSI) status of tumoral tissue, compared to normal tissue, was assessed with a standard panel of MSI markers on paraffin-embedded surgically resected tissues from 67 consecutive sporadic colorectal cancer patients. Eleven of the patients were under 40 years old. Female patients were significantly younger than male patients (mean age 54.2 vs 62.1 years, P = 0.020). MSI analysis revealed 18 cases of MSI-H (26.9%), 11 MSI-L (16.4%) and 38 MSS (microsatellite stable tumors; 56.7%). While a greater proportion of patients consisted of males, 56.7 vs 43.3% females, MSI-H was more frequent in females (34.5 vs 21.5%). MSI was associated with proximal location of tumor (P = 0.003) and lower stages of tumor (P = 0.002), while MSS tumors were associated with node metastasis. MSI has a higher frequency in sporadic colorectal cancer patients, suggesting that molecular epidemiology of the genetic alterations involved in colorectal cancer carcinogenesis has a different pattern in the Iranian population, which deserves further epidemiological attention. The high frequency of MSI-H in this population suggests that we should look at microsatellite instability prior to chemotherapy to determine the most appropriate chemotherapeutic strategy in our population.

Effect of metformin on serum ferritin level in women with polycystic ovary syndrome

BACKGROUND

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common diseases among women associat-ed with various inflammatory reactants such as C-reactive protein (CRP) and ferritin. This study aimed to investi-gate the effect of metformin on probable reduction of serum ferritin in patients with PCOS.

METHODS

This study was conducted on 45 patients with PCOS who had not other systemic diseases and did not take any medications. Weight, waist and hip circumstances (WHR), body mass index (BMI), metabolic indexes, CRP, ferritin and "Homeostasis Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) ˝ were measured before the study. Metformin (500 mg/tid) tablets were prescribed for three months and then same above parameters were re-measured.

RESULTS

Of 45 patients, 19 (42.2%) were overweight and 14 (31.1%) were obese. After drug therapy, there was a significant reduction in waist circumstance and serum ferritin. This reduction was significant only in the lean and overweight groups but not in the obese group. There was not significant association between serum ferritin and CRP, HOMA-IR, BMI and WHR. There was not significant correlation between CRP and HOMA-IR and also BMI.

CONCLUSION

The effect of metformin on reduction of serum ferritin was not significant just in obese group and was not associated with metabolic and anthropometric indexes.

Association of serum lipoprotein(a) with ultrasonographically determined early atherosclerotic changes in the carotid and femoral arteries in kidney transplanted patients

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the association of serum lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] with carotid intimal media thickness (IMT) and carotid femoral plaque occurrence in kidney transplant patients.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Fifty-four subjects included 29 group 1 normal healthy persons and 25 group 2 kidney transplant patients underwent carotid IMT measurements and carotid femoral plaque assessment by B-mode ultrasonography. Also we measured cholesterol, triglyceride, HDL-C, LDL-C and Lp(a) as well as BUN and creatinine.

RESULTS

There was a significant difference between Lp(a) in the two groups (P = .016). There was a significant difference between carotid IMT of the two groups (P < .001). Moreover there was a significant difference between the plaque scores of kidney transplant patients and the normal group (P = .05). There were no correlations between carotid IMT and plaque score in normal subjects or in kidney transplant patients (P > .05). There was a significant correlation between carotid IMT with age in Group 1 (P = .035). No correlation between carotid IMT and serum Lp(a) was seen in the two groups. No significant correlations between plaque score and serum Lp(a) were observed. There was no correlation between duration of transplant and thickening of intimal media complex in this group. In this group a positive correlation was demonstrated between carotid IMT with serum LDL-C (P < .001).

CONCLUSIONS

Age was the most important factor associated with thickening of intimal media complex in normal subjects and in plaque formation in the renal transplant group. Serum LDL-C may be associated with thickening of intimal media complex in kidney transplant patients. Serum Lp(a) may not be a significant factor in thickening of the intimal media complex or plaque occurrence in kidney transplant patients.

Close association between parathyroid hormone and left ventricular function and structure in end-stage renal failure patients under maintenance hemodialysis

OBJECTIVES

Cardiovascular risk factors are a significant burden in end-stage renal disease patients under hemodialysis and cardiovascular-related diseases are the leading cause of death among these patients and are responsible for almost half of all deaths in dialysis patients. In this study we aimed to consider the role of excess PTH in the development of left ventricilar hypertrophy (LVH) and LV ejection fraction in patients with end-stage renal disease under regular hemodialysis.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

This study is cross-sectional, and was done in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) undergoing maintenance hemodialysis treatment. Calcium, Phosphorus, Alkalin phosphatase and Intact PTH (iPTH) were measured. Hypertensive patients were stratified into three stages. The total of 73 patients (F=28, M=45) consisted of 58 non-diabetic hemodialysis patients (F=22, M=36) and 15 diabetic hemodialysis patients (F=6, M=9).

RESULTS

Significant inverse correlation of serum ALP with percent age of LV ejection fraction, marginal correlation of serum ALP with LVH and marginal correlation of serum iPTH with LVH were observed. Also significant inverse correlation of serum iPTH with percent age of LV ejection fraction in non diabetic HD patients was observed.

CONCLUSIONS

Adverse effects of secondary hyperparathyroidism on LV function and structure in this study show the role of excess PTH in the development of left ventricilar (LV) hypertrophy as well as low LV ejection fraction in patients with end-stage renal disease under hemodialysis which needs more attention to control of secondary hyperparathyroidism to reduce the risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in dialysis patients. (Tab. 5, Fig. 3, Ref: 29.)

GAL4 enhancer traps expressed in the embryo, larval brain, imaginal discs, and ovary of Drosophila

We have screened a collection of approximately 400 GAL4 enhancer trap lines for useful patterns of expression in the embryo, larval brain, imaginal discs, and ovary using a UAS-lacZ reporter construct. Although similar patterns of expression have previously been reported in the original P[lacZ] enhancer trap screens, these lines are useful for directing ectopic expression of genes in discrete patterns during these stages. In addition, we have identified some unique patterns of expression that have not been previously reported.