Prevalence of avian influenza (H9N2) in commercial quail,partridge, and turkey farms in Iran, 2014–2015

Tropical Animal Health and Production - Avian influenza virus (AIV) H9N2 subtype is endemic in Iran and causes substantial economic loss to the growing poultry industry within the country. In this...     

Biochemical and Biological Evaluation of an L-Asparaginase from Isolated Escherichia coli MF-107 as an Anti-Tumor Enzyme on MCF7 Cell Line

Background: One of the most widely used anticancer agents is microbial L-ASNase. Herein, we assessed the biochemical and biological properties of an isolated L-ASNase from a Gram-negative bacteria strain, Escherichia coli MF-107. Methods:Using garden asparagus, we obtained several bacterial isolates. These strains were further screened for L-ASNase activity. A promising bacterial isolate was selected for L-ASNase production and subsequent purification. The molecular weight of purified L-ASNase was determined. The MTT assay was applied to assess the cytotoxic effect of the purified enzyme. Also, for caspase activity determination and the apoptotic effect of purified enzyme on in cells, we conducted a real-time PCR method. Results:The molecular weight of the enzyme was approximately 37 kDa. In the pH range of 7.5 to 8, the enzyme had considerable stability. At 35 °C, the purified L-ASNase optimum activity was recorded. The cytotoxic effect of the enzyme on treated cells was dose-dependent with an IC₅₀ value of 5.7 IU/ml. The Bax gene expression considerably raised by 5.75-fold (p < 0.001) upon L-ASNase treatment. On the other hand, the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 gene expression showed a 2.63-fold increase compared to the control (p < 0.05). It was detected that the mRNA levels of caspase-3 and p53 were considerably upregulated (5.93 and 1.85-fold, respectively). We did not find any alternation in the caspase-8 activity of the treated cells compared to untreated cells. Conclusion:In this research, the proliferation of the breast cancer cells remarkably inhibited via the cytotoxic effect of isolated L-ASNase from microbial sources.Key Words: Apoptosis, Breast cancer, Escherichia coli, MCF7 cell line     

Age estimation of Arabian mares by incisors morphometry and dentition changes

Veterinary Research Communications - Accurate estimation of a horse's age based on the condition of the tooth status is necessary as a scientific and artistic technique, which has not been...     

Effect of different levels of dietary sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) peel extract on humoral immune system responses in broiler chickens

This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of different levels of sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) peel extract (SOPE) on humoral immune system responses in broiler chickens. Three hundred 1‐day broilers (Ross‐308) were randomly allocated to treatments varying in supplemental SOPE added in the drinking water. The experimental groups consisted of three treatments fed for 42 days as follows: a control treatment without feed extract, a treatment containing 1000 ppm of SOPE and a treatment containing 1250 ppm of SOPE. All treatments were isocaloric and isonitrogenous. Broilers were vaccinated with Newcastle disease virus (NDV), avian influenza (AI), infectious bursal disease (IBD) and infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) vaccines. Antibody titer response to sheep red blood cells (SRBC) was higher in the group fed 1250 ppm of SOPE (P < 0.05) as well as for immunoglobulin G (IgG) and IgM. Similarly, antibody titer responses to all vaccines were constantly elevated (P < 0.05) by SOPE enrichment in a dose‐dependent manner. Relative weights of spleen and bursa of Fabricius were unaffected by treatments. Dietary SOPE supplementation may improve the immune response and diseases resistance, indicating that it can constitute a useful additive in broiler feeding. Thus, supplying SOPE in rations may help to improve relative immune response in broiler chickens.     

Designing E1 deleted adenoviral vector by homologous recombination

BACKGROUND: Adenoviruses are used extensively to deliver genes into mammalian cells, particularly where there is a requirement for high-level expression of transgene products in cultured cells, or for use as recombinant viral vaccines or in gene therapy. In spite of their usefulness, the construction of adenoviral vectors (AdV) is a cumbersome and lengthy process that is not readily amenable to the generation of large collection of clones. METHODS: In this project, to delete E1 gene in adenovirus, an adenoviral plasmid containing lateral sites of E1 region of adenovirus was made and recombination in the 293A cells between the homologous region of this linearized plasmid and the adenovirus genome resulted in the formation of the complete adenoviral recombinant. RESULTS: This recombination resulted in loss of E1 region and we constructed a recombinant adenovirus type 5 vector that E1 gene was deleted by homologous recombination. CONCLUSION: Homologous recombination is more easy and fast technique in the production of AdV.     

Effect of growth parameters on structural and optical properties of CdS nanowires prepared by polymer controlled solvothermal route

Cadmium sulfide nanowires were successfully obtained via a poly (ethylene glycol)-assisted solvothermal route. In this procedure, cadmium nitrate and thiourea were used as Cd and S sources, respectively, and polyethylene glycol 400 was used as an inducing soft template to control the one-dimensional growth of CdS nanostructures. The effects of different growth parameters in the solvothermal process such as type of the solvents, reaction time, and temperature on the morphology, structural and optical properties of the products were investigated. The provided structures were characterized by X-ray diffractometery, scanning electron microscopy, and UV-visible absorption spectroscopy. The results show that the as-prepared samples have hexagonal phase and grow into long nanowire shape with increasing the reaction time, temperature and volume ratios of ethylenediamine (en) to H₂O. Uniform sized nanowires with the average diameter of 75 nm and the average length of 2.5 µm were obtained using ethylenediamine solvent at 170 °C for 3 days.     

基于COI基因的入侵物种旧金山卤虫遗传多样性与遗传分化研究

伴随着中国水产养殖业的快速发展,原产美国的旧金山卤虫(Artemia franciscana)被引入至我国渤海湾地区.为研究旧金山卤虫被引入中国后其基因组遗传多样性改变情况,本研究利用COI线粒体分子标记,评估旧金山卤虫在非原生栖息地,即唐山曹妃甸南堡镇(渤海湾,河北省)定殖的旧金山卤虫的遗传多样性现状.研究分析发现:...     

Aberrant Promoter Methylation Profile of Niemann-Pick Type C1 Gene in Cardiovascular Disease

Background: The protein of Niemann-pick type C1 (NPC1) gene promotes the egress of cholesterol from late endosomes and lysosomes to other cellular compartments and contributes to a process known as reverse cholesterol transport. This study aimed to examine whether promoter methylation of NPC1 is associated with risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Methods: Fifty CVD patients and 50 healthy subjects as the control group were recruited in this study. Promoter methylation of NPC1 gene was defined using a nested-methylation specific polymerase chain reaction method. Statistical analyses were done using the chi-square, t-test or ANOVA tests. Results: Our study showed that the frequency of semi-methylated promoter (methylated/unmethylated status) was significantly higher in CVD patients than that in controls (OR = 6.521, 95% CI = 2.211-19.215, P = 0.008). However, a completely methylated promoter (methylated/methylated status) was not detected in any subjects in either of the two groups tested. Additionally, the analysis of clinical data according to the methylation status of NPC1 gene demonstrated that serum levels of total cholesterol, total triglycerides, high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) are influenced by NPC1 methylation, so that subjects with a completely unmethylated promoter (Unmethylated/unmethylated status) held lower levels of total triglycerides, total cholesterol, LDL-C and higher levels of HDL-C. Conclusion: Our findings propose that the NPC1 promoter methylation is a probable mechanism that can result in reduced/impaired NPC1 expression/activity and may thus contribute to progression of CVD. Key Words: Niemann-pick type C1 (NPC1), Promoter methylation, cardiovascular disease     

Growth enhancement of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) by passive immunization against somatostatin-14

Juvenile rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) were passively immunized by intraperitoneal immunization against somatostatin-14 (SS-14) using an antibody originating from egg-laying chicken (Gallus domesticus). Fish were immunized weekly (0, 7, 14, 21, 28, 35 days) with chicken egg yolk-derived immunoglobulin (IgY) against SS-14 (1:25 IgY, 5 mg mL^?1), and growth performance, feed utilization as well as plasma concentrations and mRNA levels of growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) were compared to the control group that received placebo immunization with PBS. Passive immunization significantly increased weight gain of treated fish (67.7 ± 7.4 g) compared to the control group (40.1 ± 2.0 g) after 35 days (p < 0.05). Feed conversion ratio (FCR) was significantly improved in the immunized fish (0.7 ± 0.08) compared to control group (1.2 ± 0.06) (p < 0.05). The concentrations of GH and IGF-I in the blood plasma showed no significant differences between the fish treated with anti-SS-14 and those of control during the treatment (p > 0.05). In both groups, GH levels decreased over the 35 days of the experiment (p < 0.05). However, IGF-I level during the period of treatment remained unchanged in both control and immunized fish with the anti-SS-14. Similarly, no changes were observed in pituitary GH and liver IGF-I mRNA levels between treatment and control at each sampling time (p > 0.05). There was no indication of a cumulative, long-lasting effect of repeated immunization on GH or IGF-I plasma concentrations or mRNA expression. The present study shows that a passive immunization of rainbow trout against SS-14 using a chicken egg yolk-derived SS-14 antibody could increase growth rate and improved FCR.     

Genetic analysis of flowering and maturity time in high latitude spring wheat

Due to the short growing season in the high northern latitudes, the development of early maturing spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars is important to avoid frost damage which can lower production and quality. We investigated earliness of flowering and maturity, and some associated agronomic traits, using a set of randomly selected high northern latitude adapted spring wheat cultivars (differing in maturity) and their F₁ and F₂ crosses made in a one-way diallel mating design. The parents, and their F₁ and F₂ crosses were evaluated under field conditions over 2 years. Anthesis and maturity times were controlled by both vernalization response and earliness per se genes, mainly acting additively. Non-additive genetic effects were more important in controlling grain fill duration, grain yield and plant height. Additive × additive epistatic effects were detected for all traits studied except time to anthesis. Segregation analyses of the F₂ populations for time to anthesis indicated the presence of different vernalization response genes. Molecular genetic analyses revealed the presence of Vrn-A1 and Vrn-B1 genes in the parental cultivars. Narrow-sense heritability was medium to high (60–86%) for anthesis and maturity times but low to medium (13–55%) for grain fill duration, plant height and grain yield. Selection for early flowering/maturity in early segregating generations would be expected to result in genetic improvement towards earliness in high latitude spring wheats. Incorporation of the vernalization responsive gene Vrn-B1 in combination with vernalization non-responsive gene Vrn-A1 into spring wheats would aid in the development of early maturing cultivars with high grain yield potential for the high latitude wheat growing regions of the northern hemisphere.