Genetic diversity study of some medicinal plant accessions belong to Apiaceae family based on seed storage proteins patterns

Cumin (Cuminum cyminum L.), Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare L.) and Longleaf (Falcaria vulgaris Bernh) that all belong to Apiaceae family as medicinal plants are very important in many countries. Study of genetic diversity for medicinal plant is important for researches in future. One of the methods to evaluate plant genetic diversity and classification of them is the electrophoresis of seed storage proteins. This research was conducted in order to evaluate seed protein variability in different Iranian Cumin, Fennel and Longleaf accessions and grouping them based on these proteins as a biochemical marker. For this purpose, the samples were first powdered in liquid nitrogen and seed protein was extracted with extraction buffer. Then total soluble proteins were resolved on 12.5?% sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis gels. The electrophoretic protein pattern showed 38 bands that were low polymorphism among the accessions. The result of cluster analysis showed that the accessions were classified in three groups (all 29 Cumin accessions in the first group, three Fennel ecotypes in second group and three Longleaf accessions in the last one).     

Effects of vitamin D supplementation on the bone specific biomarkers in HIV infected individuals under treatment with efavirenz

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: It was reported that antiretroviral drugs such as efavirenz can increase the catabolism of vitamin D in HIV infected individuals. We have not found any study that evaluated effects of vitamin D supplementation on the bone specific biomarkers in HIV positive patients under treatment with antiretroviral regimen containing efavirenz. FINDINGS: Vitamin D deficiency was detected in 88.4 % of included patients. Baseline osteocalcin, but not collagen telopeptidase, serum levels were lower than normal range in all of these individuals. Both bone biomarkers' concentrations increased significantly (p < 0.001 for both of them) after supplementation of vitamin D and it was more predominant for osteocalcin. CONCLUSION: In the HIV-infected patients under treatment with efavirenz, vitamin D deficiency is prevalent. After supplementation with single dose of 300,000 IU vitamin D in this population, the activation of osteoblasts and osteoclasts stimulates bone formation and resorption respectively with favorable bone formation without any adverse event. Significant percent of HIV infected individuals are vitamin d deficient that could benefit from vitamin D supplementation.     

Differentiation of human ES cell-derived neural progenitors to neuronal cells with regional specific identity by co-culturing of notochord and somite

Limitations to the in vivo study of human nervous system development make it necessary to design an in vitro model to evaluate the in vivo effects of surrounding tissues on neurogenesis and regional identity of the human neural plate. Rostral neural progenitors (NPs) were initially generated from adherent human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) in a defined condition and characterized. Then, to find the role of somites (S) and notochords (N) in rostro-caudal (RC) and dorso-ventral (DV) patterning of neuronal cells, NPs were co-cultured with microencapsulated chicken S or N in alginate beads. In this study, N induced more neurogenesis as evaluated by expression of TUJ1 and MAP2-positive cells. Additionally, N induced spinal cord ventral brachiothoracic identity as well as NPs proliferation. We observed a synergic effect on motoneuron induction when S and N were used together. Moreover, S induced hindbrain identity in differentiated neuronal cells from NPs. These results indicate that highly enriched NPs can be generated in an adherent and defined system from hESCs. Moreover, S and N tissues highly influenced neuronal differentiation in point of proliferation, neurogenesis, and RC and DV regional identity. These results indicate a very simple and efficient protocol to mimic in vivo events of human neural development in vitro which is important in the context of developmental neuroscience and cellular replacement therapies.     

Differential proteome analysis of a selected bacterial strain isolated from a high background radiation area in response to radium stress

The present study describes the response of a bacterial strain, isolated from a hot spring in an area with the highest levels of natural radiation, under radium ((226)Ra) stress. The bacterium has been characterized as a novel and efficient radium biosorbent and identified as a variant of Serratia marcescens by biochemical tests and molecular recognition. In order to gain insights into key cellular events that allow this strain to survive and undergo (226)Ra adaptation and biosorption, the strain was tested under two experimental conditions of 1000 and 6000 Bq (226)Ra stress. A proteomic approach involving two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry was used to identify the differentially expressed proteins under (226)Ra stress. Functional assessment of identified proteins with significantly altered expression levels revealed several mechanisms thought to be involved in (226)Ra adaptation and conferring resistant phenotype to the isolate, including general stress adaptation, anti-oxidative stress, protein and nucleic acid synthesis, energy metabolism, efflux and transport proteins. It suggests that this strain through evolution is particularly well adapted to the high background radiation environment and could represent an alternative source to remove (226)Ra from such areas as well as industrial radionuclide polluted wastewaters.     

Complete genome sequence of Oceanimonas sp. GK1, a halotolerant bacterium from Gavkhouni Wetland in Iran

Oceanimonas sp. GK1 (IBRC-M 10197) is a marine halotolerant gammaproteobacterium which was characterized as producing large amounts of poly-β-hydroxybutyrate. Here we present the whole-genome sequence of Oceanimonas sp. GK1, which consists of a single circular chromosome of 3,514,537 bp and two plasmids 8,462 and 4,245 bp in length.     

Binding of long-chain α-neurotoxin would stabilize the resting state of nAChR: A comparative study with α-conotoxin

Background  

The details of interaction in a complex between potent antagonists such as long chain α-neurotoxins and α-conotoxins with nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR), and conformational changes induced by these antagonists, are not yet clear.     

A novel neuroprotectant PAN-811 protects neurons from oxidative stress

Hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), a major non-radical reactive oxygen species (ROS) could elicit intracellular oxidative damage and/or cause extracellular free calcium influx by activating the NMDA receptor or through calcium channels. In the present study, NMDA receptor antagonist MK-801 fully blocked H₂O₂-induced neuronal cell death, whereas green tea (GT) extract containing-antioxidants only partially suppressed the neurotoxicity of H₂O₂. These suggest that majority of ROS overproduction is downstream of H₂O₂-induced calcium influx. A novel neuroprotectant PAN-811 was previously demonstrated to efficiently attenuate ischemic neurotoxicity. PAN-811 hereby fully blocks H₂O₂-elicited neuronal cell death with a more advanced neuroprotective profile than that of GT extract. PAN-811 was also shown to protect against CaCl₂-elicited neurotoxicity. Efficient protection against oxidative stress-induced neurotoxicity by PAN-811 indicates its potential application in treatment of ROS-mediated neurodegenerative diseases. W.P. and C.M.D. had equal contributions to this project     

Computational design of Candida boidinii xylose reductase for altered cofactor specificity

In this study we introduce a computationally‐driven enzyme redesign workflow for altering cofactor specificity from NADPH to NADH. By compiling and comparing data from previous studies involving cofactor switching mutations, we show that their effect cannot be explained as straightforward changes in volume, hydrophobicity, charge, or BLOSUM62 scores of the residues populating the cofactor binding site. Instead, we find that the use of a detailed cofactor binding energy approximation is needed to adequately capture the relative affinity towards different cofactors. The implicit solvation models Generalized Born with molecular volume integration and Generalized Born with simple switching were integrated in the iterative protein redesign and optimization (IPRO) framework to drive the redesign of Candida boidinii xylose reductase (CbXR) to function using the non‐native cofactor NADH. We identified 10 variants, out of the 8,000 possible combinations of mutations, that improve the computationally assessed binding affinity for NADH by introducing mutations in the CbXR binding pocket. Experimental testing revealed that seven out of ten possessed significant xylose reductase activity utilizing NADH, with the best experimental design (CbXR‐GGD) being 27‐fold more active on NADH. The NADPH‐dependent activity for eight out of ten predicted designs was either completely abolished or significantly diminished by at least 90%, yielding a greater than 10⁴‐fold change in specificity to NADH (CbXR‐REG). The remaining two variants (CbXR‐RTT and CBXR‐EQR) had dual cofactor specificity for both nicotinamide cofactors.     

Investigation of stored wheat mycoflora,reporting the<Emphasis Type="Italic">Fusarium</Emphasis> cf.<Emphasis Type="Italic">langsethiae</Emphasis> in three provinces of Iran during 2007

Wheat is the most important cereal produced in Iran. A mycological survey was carried out for the first time, on the stored wheat samples in Tehran, East Azarbayejan and Mazandaran provinces in 2007. Exogenous and endogenous fungi, were isolated by the method of flotation with Malachite green agar (MGA 0.25) and Freeze blotter techniques respectively. In this study, 46 species belonging to 23 different genera were isolated.Cladosporium spp. (57.1–89.2%) andAlternaria spp. (82.4–100%) species were the predominant fungal species identified as endogenous mycoflora. The predominant exogenous fungi werePenicillium spp. (78.4–92.8%) andAspergillus spp. (71.4–85.7%) species.Fusarium proliferatum was the most prevalent species ofFusarium isolates.Aspergillus niger (39.4%) andAspergillus flavus (36.7%) were the predominantAspergillus species identified as exogenous mycoflora.Aspergillus flavus (26.6%) was the predominantAspergillus species identified as endogenous mycoflora. Flotation method with MGA 0.25 recommended for isolating of hyaline fungi from wheat cereals. In this study one isolate fromFusarium species was isolated on the basis of morphology and ribosomal internal transcribed spacer classified asFusarium langsethiae but on the basis of partial translation elongation factor-1alpha gene grouped withFusarium sporotrichioides. To our knowledge, this is the first report aboutF. cf.langsethiae in Iran and Asia.     

Amygdalus kurdistanica and A. orazii spp. nov. (Rosaceae) from Iran

Amygdalus kurdistanica Attar, Maroofi & Vafadar and A. orazii Maroofi, Attar & Vafadar, two new species of the genus Amygdalus L. from western Iran are described and illustrated. Amygdalus kurdistanica is closely related to A. haussknechtii (C. K. Schneider) Bornm. var. pubescens but differs by leaf and petiole size, drupe shape, pedicel indumentum and style length. Amygdalus orazii is closely related to A. communis L. but can be distinguished from A. communis by the following characters: leaf and petiole size, drupe size, pedicel length and sepal length.