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>2010
>October-December
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23409226
Editorial
In the previous editorial I made mention of the two important conferences on ethical aspects of genetic technologies that had been planned to be held in Iran (November 2010 and February 2011). In the November conference which was held by the Avicenna Research Institute, the ethical and social aspects of using genetic technologies were presented to the academic and non-academic audiences. This conference was widely covered by the national media and the subject of genetics with its interdisciplinary nature initiated discussion between experts in both fields of natural and social sciences. Since some of our colleagues were not able to attend the conference, I thought it would be appropriate to provide a brief summary of the theme of presentations in the conference. The two day conference was organized in four panels and the topics presented in each panel were discussed from ethical, legal and social points of view. The four panels were as follows:
1) Genetics and the Emergence of Life
2) Genetics in Diagnosis and Treatment of Diseases
3) Plant and Animal Genetics
4) New Findings on the Science of Genetics
In the first panel 10 lectures were presented on topics of eugenics, cloning, genetic diagnostics and abortion. In the second panel 7 lectures were presented on topics of stem cells, Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD), pharmacogenomics and gene therapy. In the third panel on the second day, 8 lectures were presented on topics of genetically modified organisms (GMO), transgenic plants, bio-safety issues and its implementations at the national level, agricultural genetic engineering, Intellectual Property, issues of patent and bio-safety and the rights of consumers with regards to transgenic products. In the fourth panel on the second day, 9 lectures were presented on topics of mental health and human genome, genetic enhancements, completion of human genome and social implications, genetic predisposition to crime and legal responsibility, DNA tests and proof of identity. The topics listed above clearly demonstrate that genetic engineering has had a profound impact on human life in societies worldwide at multilevel. Therefore, it is important for leaders of societies in the modern world to pay attention to the advances in genetic technologies and prepare themselves and institutions under their control to face the challenges which these new technologies induce in the areas of ethics, law and social policies.
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https://www.ajmb.org/En/Article.aspx?id=160
https://www.ajmb.org/PDF/En/FullText/160.pdf
AliM. ArdekaniReproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR, Tehran, Iran2
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23407304
The Role of MicroRNAs in Human Diseases
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short RNA molecules which bind to target mRNAs, resulting in translational repression and gene silencing and are found in all eukaryotic cells. Approximately 2200 miRNA genes have been reported to exist in the mammalian genome, from which over 1000 belong to the human genome. Many major cellular functions such as development, differentiation, growth, and metabolism are known to be regulated by miRNAs. Proximity to other genes in the genome and their locations in introns of coding genes, noncoding genes and exons have been reported to have a major influence on the level of gene expressions in eukaryotic cells. miRNAs are well conserved in eukaryotic system and are believed to be an essential and evolutionary ancient component of gene regulatory networks. Therefore, in recent years miRNAs have been studied as a likely candidate for involvement in most biologic processes and have been implicated in many human diseases.
Disease, Human Genome, Micro RNA, miRNA
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https://www.ajmb.org/En/Article.aspx?id=44
https://www.ajmb.org/PDF/En/FullText/44.pdf
AliM. ArdekaniReproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR , Tehran, Iran2
MozhganMoslemi NaeiniDepartment of Biology, Brock University, St Catharines , Ontario, Canada37
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23408759
Regulation Studies of Telomerase Gene in Cancer Cells by Lentinan
Lentinan a polysaccharide from medicinal mushroom i.e Lentinus, has been known to have anticancer properties. Telomerase activity is not observed in normal healthy cells, whereas in cancerous cells telomerase expression is high. Telomerase represents a promising cancer therapeutic target. We investigated the inhibitory effect of lentinan on telomerase reverse transcriptase gene (hTERT) which is essential for telomerase activity. To assess the transcriptional effect, DLD -1 cancer cells were cultured in the presence of various concentrations of lentinan. TRAP assay, RT-PCR analysis were performed to find telomerase activity and hTERT gene expression respectively. Since C-myc is known to regulate hTERT, expression of C-myc was also determined. Culturing cells with lentinan resulted in down regulation of hTERT and C-myc expression.These results indicate that lentinan inhibits telomerase activity by down regulating hTERT expression via suppression of C-myc in cancer cells.
C-myc gene, Gene expression, hTERT, Lentinan, Telomerase
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https://www.ajmb.org/En/Article.aspx?id=45
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KammaSreenivasuluDepartment of Biotechnology, KL University, Vijayawada. A.P., India150
MuvvaVijayalakshmiDepartment of Botany and Microbiology, Acharya Nagarjuna University, Guntur, India151
KrothapalliRS. SambasivaraoDepartment of Biotechnology, Acharya Nagarjuna University, Guntur, India152
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23408729
Cytotoxic Activities of Silver Nanoparticles and Silver Ions in Parent and Tamoxifen-Resistant T47D Human Breast Cancer Cells and Their Combination Effects with Tamoxifen against Resistant Cells
Studies on biomedical applications of nanoparticles are growing with a rapid pace. In medicine, nanoparticles may be the solution for multi-drug-resistance which is still a major drawback in chemotherapy of cancer. In the present study, we investigated the potential cytotoxic effect of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) and silver ions (Ag+) in both parent and tamoxifen-resistant T47D cells in presence and absence of tamoxifen. Ag NPs were synthesized (< 28 nm) and MTT assay was carried out. The associated IC50 values were found to be: 6.31 ?g/ml for Ag NPs/parent cells, 37.06 ?g/ml for Ag NPs/tamoxifen-resistant cells, 33.06 ?g/ml for Ag+/parent cells and 10.10 ?g/ml for Ag+/resistant cells. As a separate experiment, the effect of subinhibitory concentrations of Ag NPs and Ag+ on the proliferation of tamoxifen resistant cells was evaluated at non-toxic concentrations of tamoxifen. Our results suggested that in non-cytotoxic concentrations of silver nanomaterials and tamoxifen, the combinations of Ag+-tamoxifen and Ag NPs-tamoxifen are still cytotoxic. This finding may be of great potential benefit in chemotherapy of breast cancer; since much lower doses of tamoxifen may be needed to produce the same cytotoxic effect and side effects will be reduced.
Breast neoplasms, Chemotherapy, Cytotoxicity, Nanoparticles, Tamoxifen
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https://www.ajmb.org/En/Article.aspx?id=46
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Seyed NaserOstadDepartment of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences , Tehran, Iran153
ShahrzadDehnadPharmaceutical Research Division, Azad Islamic University , Tehran, Iran154
ZeinabEsmail NazariDepartment of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Biotechnology Research Center, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences , Tehran, Iran155
ShohrehTavajohi FiniDepartment of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences , Tehran, Iran156
NargesMokhtariDepartment of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Biotechnology Research Center, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences , Tehran, Iran157
MojtabaShakibaieDepartment of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Biotechnology Research Center, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences , Tehran, Iran158
Ahmad RezaShahverdiDepartment of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Biotechnology Research Center, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences , Tehran, Iran59
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23407145
High Expression of Methylotrophic Yeast-Derived Recombinant Human Erythropoietin in a pH-Controlled Batch System
To accomplish the worldwide demand for recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEpo) as a therapeutic, application of cost-efficient expression system of methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris (P. pastoris) rather than mammalian cells is indispensable. Herein, a report on high levels secreted-expression of Pichia-derived rHuEpo by batch fermentation in a pH stabilized format is presented. The full length cDNA of rHuEpo was inserted into pPICZaA vector under control of AOX1 promoter, downstream of the secretion-a-factor and electroporated into P. pastoris strain X33. The highest expression transformant was selected by screening among the colonies surviving high concentration of Zeocin (1.0 mg/ml), followed by comparative small scale expression analysis by ELISA. Stabilization of pH around 6.0 by adding phosphoric acid into the culture media during induction period, improved the yield of expression to 150 mg/l of the media. Single-step Nickel-affinity chromatography was employed for purification of rHuEpo-6xHis to 80% purity. Analyses by SDS- PAGE, Western blot and N-terminal protein sequencing confirmed the authenticity of the 33 kDa expressed rHuEpo with a native N-terminal indicating the proper cleavage of secretion-signal. Results of this study, further confirmed the possibility of employing methylotrophic yeast for scaled up production aims of rHuEpo as a cost-efficient expression system when provided evidence for higher expression yields through application of pH-controlled systems.
Erythropoietin, Fermentation, Pichia Pastoris, Yeasts
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https://www.ajmb.org/En/Article.aspx?id=47
https://www.ajmb.org/PDF/En/FullText/47.pdf
AhmadMalekiResearch and Production Plant, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Karaj, Iran159
FarzinRoohvandHepatitis & AIDS Department, Pasteur Institute of Iran , Tehran, Iran160
HosniehTajerzadehFaculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Science , Tehran, Iran161
HosseinKhanahmadResearch and Production plant, Pasteur Institute of Iran , Karaj, Iran162
Maryam B.NobariOpen University of Zanjan , Zanjan, Iran163
AhmadBeirutiResearch and Production plant, Pasteur Institute of Iran , Karaj, Iran164
AbdolhosseinRouholamini NajafabadiFaculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Science , Tehran, Iran165
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23408744
Development of a Sensitive Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay for Detection of Hepatitis B Surface Antigen Using Novel Monoclonal Antibodies
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is the 10th leading cause of death worldwide. The most important diagnostic and screening marker for HBV infection is Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), and the most widely used HBsAg screening test is Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). In this study, an ELISA assay has been developed for detection of HBsAg using two novel monoclonal antibodies (mAb) as capture layer and a polyclonal biotinylated Ab as detector phase. We evaluated the sensitivity, specificity, detection limit, seroconversion time, positive and negative predictive values and reproducibility of our assay with standard panels and different serum samples. The results were compared with a well established commercial kit. Both assays showed similar detection limit values of 0.5 to 0.7 ng/ml and the same seroconversion periods of 42 and 65 days for “ad” and “ay” serotypes of HBsAg, respectively. Sensitivity and specificity of the assay were 98.98% and 99.6%, respectively. The positive and negative predictive values of our assay were also calculated as 99.49% and 99.2%, respectively. Analysis of reproducibility of the present assay demonstrated 3.96% and 5.85% intra-and inter-assay coefficient of variations, respectively, which were less than those obtained by the commercial kit. There was a highly significant correlation between our designed assay and the commercial ELISA kit (p < 0.0001, r = 0.957). Altogether, our results indicate that the designed assay is comparable to the commercial kit in terms of sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and reproducibility and could be employed for diagnosis of HBV infection in blood samples.
ELISA, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis B surface antigens, Monoclonal antibody
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https://www.ajmb.org/En/Article.aspx?id=48
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YaghoubYazdaniDepartment of Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Advanced Medical Science Technologies, Golestan University of Medical Sciences , Gorgan, Iran166
AzamRoohiMonoclonal Antibody Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR , Tehran, Iran167
JalalKhoshnoodiDepartment of Immunology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences , Tehran, Iran168
FazelShokriMonoclonal Antibody Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR , Tehran, Iran5
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23408779
Hypolipidemic Activity of Chloroform Extract of Mimosa pudica Leaves
Mimosa pudica Lin., known as chue Mue, is a stout straggling prostrate shrubby plant, with spinous stipules and globose pinkish flower heads, and grows as weed in almost all parts of the country. It is traditionally used for its various properties and hence in the present study, chloroform extract of Mimosa pudica leaves has been screened for its hypolipidemic activity. Hypolipidemic activity is screened by inducing hyperlipidemia with the help of atherogenic diet in wistar albino rats and serum levels of various biochemical parameters such as total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL, VLDL and HDL cholesterol were determined. Atherogenic index shows the measure of the atherogenic potential of the drugs. Chloroform extract showed significant (p < 0.05) hypolipidemic effect by lowering the serum levels of biochemical parameters such as significant reduction in the level of serum cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL, VLDL and increase in HDL level which was similar to the standard drug Atorvastatin. Chloroform extract exhibited significant atherogenic index and percentage protection against hyperlipidemia. These biochemical observations were in turn confirmed by histopathological examinations of aorta, liver and kidney sections and are comparable with the standard hypolipidemic drug Atorvastatin. Preliminary phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of phytoconstituents such as steroids, flavonoids, glycosides, alkaloids, phenolic compounds which is further confirmed by the thin layer chromatography, High Performance Thin Layer Chromatography (HPTLC). The overall experimental results suggests that the biologically active phytoconstituents such as flavonoids, glycosides alkaloids present in the chloroform extract of Mimosa pudica, may be responsible for the significant hypolipidemic activity and the results justify the use of Mimosa pudica as a significant hypolipidemic agent.
Atherogenic diet, Atorvastatin, Biological markers Chloroform, Thin layer chromatography
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https://www.ajmb.org/En/Article.aspx?id=49
https://www.ajmb.org/PDF/En/FullText/49.pdf
RekhaRajendranDepartment of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry, SRM Univeristy, SRM College of Pharmacy , Tamil Nadu, India122
EkambaramKrishnakumarPharmaceutical Biotechnology, Mohamed Sathak A. J. College of Pharmacy , Tamil Nadu, India123
en
23409227
A Brief View on Molecular Diagnosis and Surveillance of West Nile Virus
<p> West Nile Virus (WNV) is an important zoo-notic agent having a wide host range. Due to its emergence with increased virulence in a wide geographical range, its monitoring becomes im-perative. Development of more rapid and sensitive molecular techniques for instance Reverse Trans-criptase-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR), reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) and Nucleic Acid Se-quence Based Amplification (NASBA) assays are vital for detection of the virus. Various surveil-lance techniques according to epidemiological, climatic and geographical conditions in the ex-posed area have also been developed. The surveil-lance can be set up at different levels of the WNV transmission cycle using birds, horses and mos-quitoes as sentinels.</p>
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https://www.ajmb.org/En/Article.aspx?id=50
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PranayKumarDepartment of Veterinary Microbiology, College of Veterinary Sciences & A. H. , Gujarat, India169
ShankerK.SinghDivision of Medicine, Indian Veterinary Research Institute , Izatnagar, India170
YogranjanR.SinghDepartment of Agriculture Biotechnology, College of Agriculture , Tikamgarh, India171
MayurdhvajK.JhalaDepartment of Veterinary Microbiology, College of Veterinary Sciences & A. H. , Gujarat, India172