Microfacies,sedimentary environment and paleoecology of Paleocene–Eocene deposits in the Zagros Basin,north of Shiraz,southwest Iran

The Jahrum Formation act as reservoir rocks in the Zagros Mountains west of Iran. For the study of this formation, a stratigraphic section of Lapoee which is situated north of Shiraz has been examined. Petrographic and stratigraphic results along with field observations show that the Jahrum Formation consists of cream-grey thin-to-medium-bedded limestone so that at the top of the formation, they are locally changed to dolomite. The Jahrum Formation overlies the Sachun Formation. We also found Nubecularids as paleoecology indicators in middle parts of the Jahrum Formation. The presence of Nubecularids in the Lapoee stratigraphic section (i.e. the Jahrum Formation) indicates a lagoon depositional environment.     

Lithium induces follicular atresia in rat ovary through a GSK‐3β/β‐catenin dependent mechanism

Lithium chloride (LiCl) is a drug used to treat bipolar disorder, but has side effects in the female reproductive system. Although lithium is known to decrease folliculogenesis and induce follicular atresia in rodent ovaries, its cellular and molecular effects in the ovary have not yet been addressed. To investigate these effects, 23‐day‐old immature female rats were injected with 10 IU pregnant mare serum gonadotropin (PMSG), followed by injections of 250 mg/kg LiCl every 12 hr for four doses. Ovaries were removed 40 and 48 hr after PMSG administration and prepared for histology, immunohistochemistry, Western blotting, and DNA laddering analysis. Our results showed that in the ovaries of LiCl‐treated rats, few antral but more atretic follicles were present compared to those of the control rats. The induction of atresia by LiCl was further confirmed by the presence of DNA fragmentation, accompanied by a reduced level of 17β‐estradiol in the serum. At the cellular level, lithium significantly decreased the number of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA)‐positive cells and conversely increased the number of TUNEL‐positive cells in the granulosa layer of the antral follicles. At the molecular level, lithium increased the level of phosphorylated glycogen synthase kinase‐3β, and unexpectedly decreased the expression of active (stabilized) β‐catenin. Altogether, our results indicate that lithium disrupts the balance between proliferation and apoptosis in granulosa cells, leading to follicular atresia possibly through the reduction in both the stabilized β‐catenin and 17β‐estradiol synthesis. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 80: 286–296, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Late Pleistocene human remains from Wezmeh Cave, western Iran

Paleontological analysis of remains from Wezmeh Cave in western Iran have yielded a Holocene Chalcolithic archeological assemblage, a rich Late Pleistocene carnivore faunal assemblage, and an isolated unerupted human maxillary premolar (P(3) or possibly P(4)). Species representation and U-series dating of faunal teeth place the carnivore assemblage during oxygen isotope stages (OIS) 3 and 2, and noninvasive gamma spectrometry dating of the human premolar places it at least as old as early OIS 2. The human premolar crown morphology is not diagnostic of late archaic versus early modern human affinities, but its buccolingual diameter places it at the upper limits of Late Pleistocene human P(3) and P(4) dimensions and separate from a terminal Pleistocene regional sample. Wezmeh Cave therefore provides additional Paleolithic human remains from the Zagros Mountains and further documents Late Pleistocene human association with otherwise carnivore-dominated cave assemblages.     

Facile and greener hydrothermal honey-based synthesis of Fe3O 4/Au core/shell nanoparticles for drug delivery applications

In the present research, we report a greener, faster, and low-cost synthesis of gold-coated iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄/Au-NPs) by different ratios (1:1, 2:1, and 3:1 molar ratio) of iron oxide and gold with natural honey (0.5% w/v) under hydrothermal conditions for 20 minutes. Honey was used as the reducing and stabilizing agent, respectively. The nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-visible spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area electron diffraction (SAED), vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM), and fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The XRD analysis indicated the presence of Fe₃O₄/Au-NPs, while the TEM images showed the formation of Fe₃O₄/Au-NPs with diameter range between 3.49 nm and 4.11 nm. The VSM study demonstrated that the magnetic properties were decreased in the Fe₃O₄/Au-NPs compared with the Fe₃O₄-NPs. The cytotoxicity threshold of Fe₃O₄/Au-NPs in the WEHI164 cells was determined by using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. It was demonstrated no significant toxicity in higher concentration up to 140.0 ppm which can become the main candidates for biological and biomedical applications, such as drug delivery.     

Motor Performance Assessment in Parkinson’s Disease: Association between Objective In-Clinic,Objective In-Home,and Subjective/Semi-Objective Measures

Advances in wearable technology allow for the objective assessment of motor performance in both in-home and in-clinic environments and were used to explore motor impairments in Parkinson’s disease (PD). The aims of this study were to: 1) assess differences between in-clinic and in-home gait speed, and sit-to-stand and stand-to-sit duration in PD patients (in comparison with healthy controls); and 2) determine the objective physical activity measures, including gait, postural balance, instrumented Timed-up-and-go (iTUG), and in-home spontaneous physical activity (SPA), with the highest correlation with subjective/semi-objective measures, including health survey, fall history (fallers vs. non-fallers), fear of falling, pain, Unified Parkinson''s Disease Rating Scale, and PD stage (Hoehn and Yahr). Objective assessments of motor performance were made by measuring physical activities in the same sample of PD patients (n = 15, Age: 71.2±6.3 years) and age-matched healthy controls (n = 35, Age: 71.9±3.8 years). The association between in-clinic and in-home parameters, and between objective parameters and subjective/semi-objective evaluations in the PD group was assessed using linear regression-analysis of variance models and reported as Pearson correlations (R). Both in-home SPA and in-clinic assessments demonstrated strong discriminatory power in detecting impaired motor function in PD. However, mean effect size (0.94±0.37) for in-home measures was smaller compared to in-clinic assessments (1.30±0.34) for parameters that were significantly different between PD and healthy groups. No significant correlation was observed between identical in-clinic and in-home parameters in the PD group (R = 0.10–0.25; p>0.40), while the healthy showed stronger correlation in gait speed, sit-to-stand duration, and stand-to-sit duration (R = 0.36–0.56; p<0.03). This suggests a better correlation between supervised and unsupervised motor function assessments in healthy controls compared to PD group. In the PD group, parameters related to velocity and range-of-motion of lower extremity within gait assessment (R = 0.58–0.84), and turning duration and velocity within iTUG test (R = 0.62–0.77) demonstrated strong correlations with PD stage (p<0.01).     

Studies on the chemistry of thienoanellated O,N- and S,N-containing heterocycles. Part 30: synthesis and pharmacological properties of thieno[2,3-b][1,4]thiazines with potential vasopressin receptor antagonistic activity

A series of new nonpeptide vasopressin antagonists with a 6-ethyl-thieno[2,3-b][1,4]thiazine or 6-benzyl-thieno[2,3-b][1,4]thiazine skeleton and structural modifications of the aryl side chain were synthesized in this study. The effects on guinea pig heart and smooth muscle preparations were investigated. In the presence of AVP the compounds showed an antagonistic effect. The compounds did not change spontaneous rate in right atria and exerted a slight but not significant negative inotropic effect in papillary muscles. The relaxing effect on vascular smooth muscle and terminal ileum was far more pronounced. Generally the relaxing effect on terminal ilea was more potent maybe due to difference in V1a receptor density. Our results demonstrate that compounds with an ethyl group in position six on the thienothiazine ring (14, 16, 18 and 22) exerted the most potent relaxing activity in terminal ilea, whereas compounds with a phenyl ring in position six reduced this effect.     

Characterization of extremely halophilic Archaea isolated from the Ayvalik Saltern,Turkey

Seven extremely halophilic strains were isolated from the Ayvalik Saltern in the north-eastern part of Turkey. Chemical analyses of the brine and salt samples were performed to measure their salt content, hardness and pH. Isolated strains were tested for their antibiotic sensitivities; cell and colony morphologies; hydrolysis of casein, starch, gelatin, Tween 20 and Tween 80; and oxidase and catalase activity. All strains were found to belong to the domain Archaea. Characterization of polar lipids by thin layer chromatography indicated that all isolates contained phytanyl diether derivatives of phosphatidylglycerol (PG), the methyl ester of phosphatidyl glycerophosphate (PGP-Me), and phosphatidylglycerosulphate (PGS). Four isolates had triglycosyl diether (TGD-2) as glycolipid, and the other three contained a sulphated diglycosyl diether instead. All isolates were examined for the presence of plasmids by agarose gel electrophoresis. Four strains were found to harbour plasmids ranging in size from 13.8 to 15.3 kbp. Correlation between the protein profiles in SDS–PAGE and the phenotypic properties of the strains was poor. The data presented here provide the first published account of the microbiota of the Ayvalik saltern, which provides a large part of the salt produced in Turkey.