Calreticulin regulates insulin receptor expression and its downstream PI3 Kinase/Akt signalling pathway

Defects in insulin signalling and glucose metabolism are associated with the development of diabetes. Insulin signalling is initiated by the binding of insulin to its receptor and triggering cascades of events including activation of PI3kinase/Akt signalling pathway. Calreticulin (CRT) is a calcium binding chaperone molecule located in the endoplasmic reticulum. Targeted deletion of CRT in mice is embryonic lethal as a result of developmental and metabolic abnormalities. Rescued CRT null mice develop severe hypoglycemia the reason for which is not known. In addition, ventricular cardiomyocytes isolated from CRT null (crt-/-) mice have increased glycogen deposits. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the changes in the glucose uptake and insulin signalling pathway (mainly PI3 kinase/Akt) in the absence of CRT. Here we show a significant increase in the glucose uptake by the crt-/- cells. This increase was accompanied by a significant increase in both insulin receptor beta expression, Insulin receptor substrate-1 phosphorylation, GLUT-1 expression and in insulin stimulated Akt phosphorylation and kinase activity in the crt-/- cells. Intriguingly, the increased expression of insulin receptor beta in the crt-/- was due to decreased levels of p53 protein. The current study is the first evidence for the up-regulation of insulin receptor density and activity in the absence of CRT function.     

Novel water-soluble polyurethane nanomicelles for cancer chemotherapy: physicochemical characterization and cellular activities

Background  

Efficient delivery of anticancer chemotherapies such as paclitaxel (PTX) can improve treatment strategy in a variety of tumors such as breast and ovarian cancers. Accordingly, researches on polymeric nanomicelles continue to find suitable delivery systems. However, due to biocompatibility concerns, a few micellar nanoformulations have exquisitely been translated into clinical uses. Here, we report the synthesis of novel water-soluble nanomicelles using bioactive polyurethane (PU) polymer and efficient delivery of PTX in the human breast cancer MCF-7 cells.     

Length–weight and length–length relationships for two gobiids from the Anzali Wetland,in the southern Caspian Sea basin

Length–weight (LWR) and length–length (LLR) relationships were estimated for specimens of two gobiid species collected from the Anzali Wetland and its related streams in the southern Caspian Sea basin, in August 2017. These represent the first reports of LWR and LLR data for Rhinogobius cf. similis Gill, 1859 (37°28′13″N, 49°20′33″E; 50 individuals) and Proterorhinus nasalis (De Filippi, 1863) (36°54′10.89″N, 53°48′48.33″E; 30 individuals) from the Wetland. A new maximum length is reported for P. nasalis. The length–weight parameter b for these species ranged a minimum of 2.99 for Rhinogobius cf. similis to a maximum of 3.04 for P. nasalis with regression coefficients (r²) ranging from .95 to .97. All LLRs were highly significant (r²>.96).     

3D QSAR studies,pharmacophore modeling,and virtual screening of diarylpyrazole–benzenesulfonamide derivatives as a template to obtain new inhibitors,using human carbonic anhydrase II as a model protein

A 3D-QSAR modeling was performed on a series of diarylpyrazole-benzenesulfonamide derivatives acting as inhibitors of the metalloenzyme carbonic anhydrase (CA, EC 4.2.1.1). The compounds were collected from two datasets with the same scaffold, and utilized as a template for a new pharmacophore model to screen the ZINC database of commercially available derivatives. The datasets were divided into training, test, and validation sets. As the first step, comparative molecular field analysis (CoMFA), CoMFA region focusing and comparative molecular similarity indices analysis (CoMSIA) in parallel with docking studies were applied to a set of 41 human (h) CA II inhibitors. The validity and the prediction capacity of the resulting models were evaluated by leave-one-out (LOO) cross-validation approach. The reliability of the model for the prediction of possibly new CA inhibitors was also tested.     

Length‐weight and length‐length relationships of Oxynoemacheilus frenatus (Heckel, 1843) and Petroleuciscus esfahani Coad & Bogutskaya, 2010 from the Cheshmeh‐Langan river,Iran

The study presents length‐weight relationships (LWRs) and length‐lenght relationships (LLRs) for two freshwater fish species from the Cheshmeh‐Langan River (Iran; 32°50′N, 50°04′E), a part of the Tigris drainage basin. Fish were sampled by electrofishing (Samus 725M) in August and September 2017. The LWRs and LLRs obtained showed a high level of correlation (r² > .98).     

Length–weight and length–length relationships for three Sillago species (Sillaginidae) from the Persian Gulf

This study investigates length–length and length–weight relationships of three Sillago species [Sillago arabica McKay & McCarthy (Memoirs of the Queensland Museum, 27, 1989, 551), Sillago attenuata McKay, 1985 and Sillago sihama (Forsskål, 1775)] captured in the Persian Gulf, Iran. A collection of 220 specimens was captured from August 2015 to January 2016 by cast net (mesh size: 10 mm) and beach seine (mesh size: 15 mm). The relationships of total length (TL) and standard length (SL) and the relationships between total length and body weight are given. This study presents the first reference on LWRs for two of the species (S. arabica and S. attenuata) in their range of distribution.     

Length–weight relationships of five commercial fish species from the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf

Length‐weight relationships are described for five fish species from the coast of the Hormuz Strait in the Persian Gulf, Iran. Specimens were collected between August 2010 and July 2011 using shrimp beam trawls, gill nets and intertidal fishing weirs. Relationships for three of the species had no previous data in the international science global databank on fishes: www.FishBase.org . A new maximum length was recorded for Acanthopagrus latus.