p. ghavam mostafavi

Marines are unique resource that provides a diverse array of natural products, primarily from invertebrates such as sponge. As infectious diseases evolve and develop resistance to existing pharmaceuticals, these ecosystems provide novel leads against microbial, cancer, and viral diseases. The purpose of this study is to investigate antimicrobial and antifungal activities of derivatives of phthalates extracted from Haliclona (Soestella) caerulea on some pathogenic organisms. Sponge samples from Larak Island were collected by divers at a depth of 10 meters. After that, marine sponge extract collection was done by chloroform-methanol extraction as a solvent and through chromatography column and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy on the sponge sample, components of dioctyl phthalate (DOTP) and dibutyl phthalate (DBP) were purified and identified. Anti-microbial and antifungal activity of extracted components were investigated by means of bacterial broth dilution method and microdilution broth method and minimum inhibitor concentration (MIC), minimum bactericide concentration (MBC), and minimum fungal concentration (MFC) were determined. The results indicated that DOTP of H. (Soestella) caerulea was active on Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus bacteria. MBC values of DOTP were determined as 2000 μg/m. DBP of H. (Soestella) caerulea was active on gram positive bacteria. MBC values of DOTP were determined as 1000 μg/m for B. cereus and Staphylococcus aureus and 500 μg/mL for B. subtilis. MFC values of DOTP and DBP were determined as 1000 μg/m and 2000 for Candida albicans. Hence it is assumed that the sponge Haliclona (Soestella) caerulea exhibited high antimicrobial activity.

A three-dimensional physical-biological numerical model namely ROMS was employed to investigate seasonal variations in biological parameters of Persian Gulf. The model domain included entire Persian Gulf and Sea of Oman. The model has run with climatic data. Lateral and surface boundary conditions were prepared from COADS and WOA09, respectively. The ROMS hydrodynamics model was coupled to bio-Fennel biological model including seven state variables (N2PChlZD2). After ten years’ successive run, numerical results reached a quasi-steady-state and results of the tenth year were used for analysis. The model results revealed area of phytoplankton blooms and were in good consistency with surface chlorophyll data obtained from GMIS archive. The results showed two different peaks of chlorophyll growth in the region. The first peak occurred in spring in northwestern part of Persian Gulf where the blooms begin to grow up and expand to the middle and eastern parts of the region, and the second one occurred in late summer and early autumn in middle and southern parts. The results showed that the amount of chlorophyll in northwest and southern coastal waters was higher throughout the year in comparison to other parts of Persian Gulf, while in deep regions the role of eddies and residual currents are important in changing chlorophyll concentrations. In addition, the model showed that seasonal changes of biological parameters in Persian Gulf were nearly independent of Sea of Oman, and there was a significant relationship between biological parameters variations and seasonal changes of the region.

Shark cartilage is considered as a natural dietary supplement consisting of anti-angiogenic, immunostimulatory, and anti-inflammatory characteristics. Therefore, this study was designed to inspect the possibility that whitecheek shark (Carcharhinus dussumieri) cartilage proteins motivate expression of NKG2D, CXCR3, NKP46, and NKP44 receptors on natural killer cells and their activities against SW742 cell line. To this end, cartilaginous areas of whitecheek shark were caught, minced, stored at −20°C and then lyophilized and kept in refrigerator. Peripheral blood samples were collected from healthy people and a number of 106 cells were considered for cell viability using trypan blue method. Activation of NK cells was determined using 106 cells stimulated following exposure to 0.2 and 3 mg mL-1 extracted shark cartilage proteins in 4, 8, and 18 h incubation. The results showed that cytotoxicity of NK cells increased significantly by elevating the concentration of extracted proteins at incubation period of 24 h (p˂0.05). The findings demonstrated that NK activity elevated markedly by increasing the concentration and volume of protein suspension and the exposure time (p˂0.05). Interestingly, the expression of NKG2D, CXCR3, NKP44, and NKP46 receptors was not significant in any transcription level by exposing to 0, 25, and 75 µg mL-1 in 4, 8, and 18 h incubation period (p˃0.05). Together, extracted shark cartilage protein could motivate the immune system capabilities through using NK cells against cancer tissues but specific receptors on T cells cannot be activated by these bioactive materials.

Recently, marine natural products have had a critical role in the development of medicinal goods. The present study aimed to determine and compare in vitro effects of hexane, butanol, ethyl acetate, and water extracts of the muscle of Portunus segnis on a colon cancer cell line. In this experimental study, the HT29 colon cancer cell line was treated with various concentrations of crude extracts in three periods of 24, 48, and 72 h. HT29 viability was evaluated by Trypan Blue staining and MTT assay. Cell apoptosis was determined by flow cytometry assays. Also, reactive oxygen species (ROS), lactate dehydrogenase, and caspase 3/7-9 activities were tested in butanol extract-treated HT29 cells. Bioactive compounds of butanol extract were analyzed by gas chromatography-mas spectrometry (GC-MS). Palmitoleic acid (4.83%), 9-octadecenoic acid (4.82%), docosane (4.66%) and eicosane (4.34%) were found in muscle butanol extract of P. segnis. The muscle butanol extract demonstrated an IC50 of 10.12±0.35 µg/mL, towards the cell line. The results also indicate that decreasing cell viability depends on both dose and time. The bioactive compounds led to a significant elevation in ROS production, as assessed by the measurement of fluorescence intensity in stained cells. Furthermore, activation of caspases-3/7 and -9 induced apoptosis. After treatment with the butanol extract compound, activation of caspases-3/7-9 was illustrated and confirmed the involvement of mitochondrial-mediated apoptosis. Butanol extract compounds of the muscle of P. segnis can be introduced as a potential candidate for the development of anticancer chemotherapeutic agents.

In this study, to investigate the seasonal changes in some biological parameters of the Persian Gulf, a coupled physical-biological ROMS model is used. The biological model coupled with the physical model has seven state variables includes two nutrients, phytoplankton, chlorophyll, zooplankton and small and large detritus (N2PChlZD2). The results show that the pattern of seasonal changes in chlorophyll-a in the Persian Gulf can be divided into two regions. The first region is the northwestern part, where the growth of chlorophyll begins in spring and extends eastwards along the southern coasts until late summer and early autumn. The amount of chlorophyll-a in this region throughout the year is higher than the other parts of the Gulf and also peaks in early spring. The second region, which includes the middle and east parts of the Persian Gulf blooms in summer and peaks from late summer until early autumn. Moreover the results also show that the pattern of growth and expansion of chlorophyll-a in the Persian Gulf are independent of the Sea of Oman pattern, and its changes follow the pattern of Persian Gulf currents. In addition, the results show that there is a high concentration of nitrate in the northwest of the Persian Gulf, that it is a good reason for beginning of the phytoplankton blooms from the northwestern part of the Persian Gulf and its extension to the other parts along with the regional currents.

Benthic foraminifera are important in sediment production of coral reef environments and are excellent indicators of water quality and reef health. There is a lack of precise information about the foraminifer’s fauna of the coral reefs in the Persian Gulf. In this study, sediment sampling was performed in June 2019 from two coral stations of Naz Island and Zeytoon Park. The surface sediment with three replicates for each location was collected using a mini corer and then were fixed in 70% ethanol. In this study, thirty species belong to 23 genera and 19 families of foraminifer's assemblages were identified based on morphological characters. Our results indicated that Foraminiferal assemblages were similar in both sampling localities. Quinqueloculina was the most abundant genera for both Naz Island and Zeytoon Park. Foraminifer's frequency of Zeytoon Park was higher than Naz Island. Symbiont-bearing foraminifera (e.g. Peneroplis) were observed just in Zeytoon Park. Higher frequency and the presence of symbiont-bearing foraminifera possibly indicate that Zeytoon Park has a more favorable condition for the coral reef growth in the future. Finally, we recommend that the structure of the foraminifer’s community could be used as an early warning system for water quality around coral reefs and in particular, would help resource managers make better decisions about protecting coral habitats.

Bivalvia is one of the least studied classes of the Persian Gulf. A survey and molecular analysis was conducted to determine bivalve species diversity in the Persian Gulf. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of barcoding data on bivalves of the Persian Gulf. We examined 40 individuals representing 8 species, 6 genera and 5 families. We collected samples from Hengam, Larak and Qeshm Islands and Bandar Lengeh in Persian Gulf, Iran. After DNA extraction, mitochondrial 16S ribosomal DNA (16SrDNA) and Cytochrome Oxidase subunit I were amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Based on obtained 16SrDNA and COI gene sequences and maximum parsimony, neighbor joining and maximum likelihood trees of these genes there was no overlap between maximum Kimura 2- parameter distance among conspecifics. Most species formed agglutinate sequence units with a small amount of changes. Eventually, comparison of the 8 selected studied species with metadata from India, Brazil, Japan, China, and America exposed that these species in Persian Gulf are classified in sister clades with high bootstraps except Pinctada. Since there is not much work on bivalves identification in the Persian Gulf, larger sampling and more research is needed to investigate mollusc diversity in this area.

Asteroidae, or starfish, is one of the classes of phylum Echinodermata that its phylogenetic relationships have not been studied in the Persian Gulf so far. In this research, the morphological identification, molecular analysis and phylogeny of 40 asteroid samples were studied from the northern islands of the Persian Gulf. For this purpose, starfish samples were identified using morphological characteristics. The molecular identification was performed based on two fragments of mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) and mt 16S rRNA. The phylogenetic relationships of asteroids were analyzed using maximum likelihood, maximum parsimony and Bayesian methods.  Eleven species of starfishes belonging to 6 genera as well as 5 families have been identified including Luidia hardwicki, Astropecten hemprichi, Astropecten indicus, Astropecten polyacanthus phragmorus, Astropecten polyacanthus polyacanthus, of Culcita novaeguineae, Pentaceraster mammillatus, Linckia laevigata, Linckia multifora, Aquilonastra iranica and Aquilonastra watersi. Since the species of Linckia laevigata (orange-green morph) and a specimen of Astropecten polyacanthus polyacanthus have been identified based on molecular analysis, this technique can be a useful tool in asteroids along with morphological studies. The obtained interspecies distances in genera Luidia and Astropecten suggest cryptic speciation might have occurred in these genera. The results of Asteroidae classifications at the genus and family levels indicated phylogenetic tree of mt 16S rRNA gene based on Bayesian method is consistent with previous morphological taxonomic and phylogenetic analyses.

The application and development of nanotechnology is increasingly expanded in many areas. However, considering this expansion, several concerns regarding their potential toxicity in marine biology have been addressed. Indeed, the overuse of these materials can adversely influence marine ecosystems and living organisms. Herein, the potential impact of copper-based nanoparticles on the expression level of three genes, i.e. prophenoloxidase, serine protein and glutathione peroxidase genes functioning in shrimp immune response, were assessed. For this end, the shrimps were exposed to three semi-acute toxicity treatments, including 0.25, 0.5 and 1 mg/L of CuNPs. The qRT-PCR results indicated negative effect of supplied nanoparticle on the expression level of these genes. Additionally, histopathological alterations in the hepatopancreas and lymphoid organs were observed in the shrimps after exposure in different concentrations of CuNPs. Overall, we showed that toxic concentration of CuNPs can damage shrimp immune system as well as some internal organs. These results open up novel insights into innate immunity of shrimps subjected to copper-based nanoparticles.

In this study the distribution and accumulation of diazinon, malathion and azinfos methyl in mullet fish Liza aurata, caspian white fish Rutilus frissi kutum and common carp fish Cyprinus carpio from five estuaries along the Caspian Sea was investigated. Also, the effect of pesticides concentration on the acetylcholinesterase enzyme (AChE) in fish species was studies. Pesticides concentration varied with fish species, sampling station and toxin type. The results indicate that the pesticides concentration varied from 0.01 to 0.16 mg/kg for diazinon, 0.01 to 0.15 mg/kg for malathion and 0.05 to 0.36 mg/kg for azinfos methyl in three fish species. There was significant difference between different toxin concentrations in fish species, (P < 0.05), and the order of toxic concentrations was as follows: azinfos methyl > diazinon > malathion. There was significant difference in toxin concentrations between three fish species, and the highest toxins concentrations were absorbed in detritivores fish (L. aurata), followed by herbivorous fish (C. carpio) and carnivore fish (R. kutum). The results confirmed that toxins bioaccumulation in fish species is strongly controlled by habitat and feeding habits.

Ibuprofen, as a drug contaminant, has deleterious and in some cases irreversible effects on aquatic organisms and in general on living things, which in many cases can result in genetic damage and damage to the DNA structure. The effects of different concentrations of ibuprofen on DNA damage and damage to zebrafish are investigated. In this study, genetic changes of p53 gene and its expression in zebrafish after two weeks of exposure to 0.1, 1 and 10 mg / l ibuprofen in vitro were investigated.

In this study zebrafish were exposed to the above mentioned concentrations for two weeks and then RNA extracted from them. The results were analyzed using QPCR method.

The low drug, 0.1 mg / l had no effect on p53 gene expression, while the other two concentrations, which were 1 and 10 mg / l ibuprofen, respectively, showed a significant difference between the control and the drug containing sample. As a result, the p53 gene was highly expressed. Also for the internal control gene that was GAPDH, there was no significant difference at the lowest drug concentration. Ray did not show a significant difference between the treatment and control samples, while in the subsequent treatments there was a significant difference between control and treatment samples.The final result of this study was that p53 gene expression increased 1.09, 0.57 and 2.2 fold in sample with lowest drug concentration, mean concentration and highest drug concentration, respectively.

Although polychaetes are the most abundant organisms in marine ecosystems, still their genetic diversity is understood inadequately. In this study, molecular identification of Nereididae polychaetes was performed by sequencing a segment of mitochondrial COI gene, isolated from mitochondrial DNA, and comparing nucleotide divergence, Molecular taxonomy, interspecific and intraspecific relations of Nereid species among 4 intertidal stations assigned in Persian Gulf of Iran. Analysis of 109 identified specimens, revealed 78 provisional gene sequences, related to 9 species and 6 genera, in which interspecific divergence was 1.4 times higher than intraspecific divergence (2.82% versus 1.95%). The average pairwise sequence divergence for all sequences was estimated at 1.37%. In three cases maximum divergence within a lineage exceeded the minimum nearest-neighbor distance: Perinereis sp., Platynereis sp. and Platynereis bicanaliculata. Maximum species similarity was observed amongst 3 sampling sites assigned in Bushehr Province whilst Bandar Abbas`s specimens showed less similarity to Bushehr station. Out of the 109 COI gene sequences of Nereididae polychaetes in this study, 34 contained multiple lineages. These results support the assertion that many Nereid populations in the Persian Gulf previously thought of as a single species, actually consist of two or more divergent lineages.

Echinoids were collected at depth of 0-5 m from coastal water of Larak Island, the Persian Gulf in January 2016. Soft tissues of the animal including peristome, peritoneum, gills, podium, ampulla, axial organ, gonads and food canal were taken and fixed in %10 formalin. Five micron sections were stained by hematoxylin and eosin method and studied under light microscope. The anatomy and histology of organs including peristome, peritoneum, gills, podium, ampulla, axial organ, gonads and food canal were investigated. In oral view, peristome, mouth, teeth, gills, spines, and pedicellariae were the six major compartments. Aboral view was seen as a round shape consisted of tube feet, spines, pedicellariae, madreporite, genital plate, ocular plate and anus. In both oral and aboral view seven types of spines and five types of pedicellariae were reported. Histological evaluation showed the organization of their layers and cells. In this study some anatomical and histological features of the Persian Gulf Echinometra mathaei were characterized. The data presented in this paper could be illuminating the path for marine biologists, anatomists, and histologists to use this creature in their desired research areas, basic or industrial approaches.

Methyl Tert-Butyl Ether(MTBE) increases oxygen consumption and reduces carbon monoxide and also air pollution. It is very active in soil, and its motility in water is a function of water movement in soil. MTBE is resistant to biodegradation, with high half-life and solubility in water and weak absorption in soil particles. The activities of SOD and CAT enzymes were examined in Rutilus caspicus in concentrations of 50, 100 and 150 mg L-1 MTBE for 7, 14 and 21 days. The mean water temperature and oxygen were 191°C and 7.60.2 respectively and salinity was maintained zero. 156 R. caspicus were stocked in aquariums, 3 specimens were randomly selected from aquarium in the first, second and third weeks. Blood serum was separated to assay the SOD and CAT activities. A strong significant positive relationship was found between MTBE concentration and SOD as well as CAT: [r(108)=0.73, P < 0.01]. Elevated MTBE increased the activity of SOD and CAT. In addition, there was a mean significant positive relationship between exposure time and SOD: [r(108)=0.41, P < 0.01]. SOD activity increased over time, and there was a negative weak significant relationship between exposure time and CAT [r(108)=-0.20, P < 0.05]. CAT activity decreased by prolonged exposure time. Moreover, there was a mean positive significant relationship between SOD and CAT [r(108)=0.41, P < 0.01].

MTBE increases oxygen consumption as well as reducing carbon monoxide and air pollution. It is very dynamic in soil, and its movement in water is a function of water movement in soil. MTBE is resistant to biodegradation, its half-life in water is long, its absorption in soil particles is weak, having high solubility in water, and being very dynamic. This research was aimed at investigating DNA blood cells of Rutilus caspicus in concentrations of 50, 100 and 150 mg/L MTBE for 7, 14 and 21 days. The mean temperature of water was 19 ± 1°C, water oxygen was 7.6 ± 0.2 mg/l, and salinity was considered zero. 220 R. caspicus with an average body length of 150 ± 30 mm and a weight of 15 ± 3 grams were prepared from Sijawal multiplication workshop located at the Turkmen port in Golestan Province and transferred to the laboratory by means of bags containing water (1/3) and oxygen (2/3). After the adaptation period, 13 fish were placed in 50-liter aquariums. The total number of control aquariums was three, and the number of treatment aquariums was nine. In the first, second and third weeks of the test, three fish were randomly taken from each aquarium and their blood samples were collected. After performing the determined stages, the blood samples of the fish were fixed on the slide and kept in the refrigerator for observation with a fluorescence microscope. In this study, Casp 1.2.3b1 software was used to evaluate the DNA degradation. In this software, several examples of alkaline comet data are extracted in data form. The results of this study showed that there was a significant difference between the control and other treatments in terms of DNA degradation. Furthermore, with increasing exposure time, the amount of DNA damage significantly increased (p < 0.01).

Black Mouth Croaker (Atrobucca nibe) is highly valued economically and There are very few published studies on genetic of this species. In the following study, the genetic diversity of Atrobucca nibe has been investigated using the PCR-sequencing method from two different regions of the Oman Sea, namely Chabahar in the Sistan and Baluchestan Province of Iran and Fujairah in the Fujairah Emirate of the United Arab of Emirates. 34 fish have been collected from the aforementioned regions. The DNA of the fish had been extracted through the Ammonium Acetate method and the quality of the DNAs were analyzed via the spectrophotometry and furthermore the quantity of the extracted DNA were assessed via electrophoresis. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) was conducted on the targeted DNAs and later DNA sequencing was carried out. Subsequently, through sequencing it was discovered that the D-loop region in the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of Black Mouth Croaker,contained 270 base pairs (bp). The nucleotide diversity discovered in the conduct of the following study was varied from 0.08 (Chabahar) to 0.1 (Fujairah), and the Haplotype diversity was estimated to be at 0.83 in Chabahar and 0.93 in Fujairah. Observed and expected heterozygosity averages were 0.47 and 0.69, respectively. So the observed heterozygosity had constantly been lower than that of the expected heterosygosity, reflecting the reduction in genetic diversity. Through observations of average levels of FST between the regions, it can be summed up that genetic differences do exist among the present populations. This study was showed there currently are two different populations of Atrobucca nibe residing in the waters of Sistan & Baluchestan and Fujairah.