samaneh borooni

The therapeutic effects of the olibanum, the resin of Boswellia serrata (B. serrata) from Burseracea family in inflammatory disease have been reported. There are more than 200 active ingredients in this resin including Boswellic acid (BA). We are proposed that aqueous extract of Boswellia Serrata can improve memory impairment induced by cerebral inflammation result in administration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS).

In the current study, the neuroprotective effects of aqueous extract of Boswellia Serrata were investigated against LPS -induced spatial memory disorders in rats. In this study, after treatment of rat with LPS, brain toxicity induction was performed and finally, the behavioral tests were evaluated. Following cerebral inflammation induction and treatment, learning and memory performance and biochemistry tests were assessed in all groups.

LPS administration increased the duration and distance to find the platform in the Morris water maze (MWM) test in compare to control group in 5 days (P<0.05 to P<0.001) while, LPS decreased the latency to enter to the dark compartment after receiving the sock in passive avoidance (PA) test (P<0.001). Pretreatment with both doses of aqueous extract of Boswellia Serrata enhanced performances of the rats in MWM (P<0.05 to P<0.01) and PA test (P<0.01 to P<0.001). LPS also increased hippocampus IL-6, MDA levels (P<0.001).

Aqueous extract of Boswellia Serrata can be used as an effective drug in memory impairment caused by LPS-induced inflammation.

Klebsiella pneumoniae is one of the most important opportunistic enteric bacteria and is a major cause of pneumonia and urinary tract infection. In addition, the serotype capsules of K1 and K2 can cause intense diseases. Further, the acquisition of plasmid that codes the production of extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs) confers K. pneumoniae resistance on a number of broad-spectrum antibiotics posing a global public health problem. Accordingly, this study aimed to identify 120 K. pneumoniae isolates that were detected from infected wound samples in Isfahan hospitals in Iran.

Capsular serotypes and antibiotic resistance genes were studied in 120 isolates of K. pneumoniae from different clinical cases in Isfahan, Iran. To this end, the frequency of resistance genes at the presence of specific primers was examined and all resistant isolates were tested for the detection of capsular serotypes genes using special primers.

The results demonstrated that 120 isolates had serotype K2 with the redundancy of 78% and most cases had serotype K5 with the redundancy of 63%. Based on the results, aac (3)-IV gene was observed in most isolates with the redundancy of 54.1% and tetA with the redundancy of 75.86%. In this study, the highest resistance belonged to ceftazidime (74.3%), ciprofloxacin (78.5%), and tetracycline (72). Furthermore, the results revealed that serotype K2 is one of the most important serotypes of K. pneumonia. Finally, there seems to be a strong relationship between the presence of integron and increased resistance to different antibiotics.

In general, this was the first extensive study regarding the distribution and antimicrobial resistant profile of K. pneumoniae and related genes. Therefore, the continued monitoring of the antimicrobial resistance establishment of a surveillance system is urgently needed to prevent further dissemination in Iran.

Based on the results, Staphylococcus aureus is one of the serious infectious agents found in community and hospitals with remarkable potential for high morbidity and mortality around the globe. The present study was carried out for molecular investigation of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains and Staphylococcal Chromosomal Cassette mec (SCCmec) phenotypes isolated from the intensive care unit in Hazrat Fatemeh Zahra hospital of Isfahan.

A total of 76 clinical wound samples were collected from Hazrat Fatemeh Zahra Hospital in Isfahan and evaluated by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods. The Methicillin resistance Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) screening was performed by genotypic and phenotypic methods; also antibiotic resistance pattern was determined by using the disk diffusion method and related genes by PCR.

Totally, 53 (69.7%) out of 76 clinical samples were positive for MRSA. Of the 76 MRSA strains, 39 (63.51%) were PVL positive (51.3%). The most commonly infected samples were collected from wounds (40.8%). The most commonly detected antibiotic resistance genes were mecA (89.61%), tetK (88.23%), tetM (49.15%) and msrA (46.93%). Resultantly, it was shown that MRSA has the highest level of resistance against methicillin (98%), penicillin (97.24%), tetracycline (89.64%). It was also revealed that the most commonly detected SCCmec types in the MRSA strains are types II (14.53%) and III (16.82%).

In summary, this paper argues that the orderly surveillance of hospital-associated infections and initial management and supervision of the antibiotic resistance patterns are required to control the prevalence of MRSA.

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) triggers production of reactive oxygen species and inflammatory cytokines. Nowadays Silybum marianum has been shown to treat liver and gall bladder disorders, especially to protect the liver against poisoning from various toxins. Therefore, we decided to evaluate the protective effect of silymarin on LPS-induced liver toxicity in male Wistar rat.

Totally, 40 male Wistar rats were divided into 4 groups (n=10 in each): The animals were treated with silymarin for two weeks before the biochemical tests. Apoptosis was assessed by evaluating the amount of proteins in liver tissues by western blotting.

LPS induced hepatotoxicity as evidenced by histopathological damages and biochemical abnormalities. Data showed that malondialdehyde level significantly increases in the liver of LPS-treated rats. Destructive effects of LPS on histopathological and biochemical parameters were improved. LPS also increased expression of Bax/Bcl2 ratio and activation of caspase 3, caspase 8 and caspase 9. Western blot analysis showed silymarin treatment inhibiting apoptosis stimulated by LPS in the liver (p<0.001).

The results of this research demonstrated that silymarin can exert protective effects against toxic effects of LPS in rat liver. Anti-inflammatory drug can play a protective role in attenuating the liver inflammation induced by LPS injection.

Staphylococcus epidermidis is an important bacterium, also one of the 40 species related to the Staphylococcus family. It can be found in the human normal body flora, commonly on the skin, and less commonly on mucosal flora. In the cross-sectional study, we were isolated samples according to the laboratories standards, and S. epidermidis identification were collected for 1 year, 90 S. epidermidis from urinary tract infections of children were selected from educational hospitals in Isfahan, (Iran). In this way, we use the Kirby–Bauer method. S. epidermidis isolates were collected for determined biofilm producing method, with culturing in (Congo red agar) medium and microplate titration. The results reveal that 45 methicillin resistance S. epidermidis isolates produce biofilm in different levels. The high resistance was for methicillin (50%), erythromycin (43.5%), ciprofloxacin (50.2%), and penicillin (46.9%). The lowest resistance was for linezolid (4%) and nitrofurantoin (5%). The results of our study show the high prevalence of antibiotic-resistant and biofilm producing of S. epidermidis strains, especially, in methicillin resistance S. epidermidis strains in the Isfahan hospitals, which could be a reservoir for antibiotic resistance genes.

  Staphylococcus aureus is a gram positive pathogen which causes a wide range of infections. The present study aimed to investigate genotypic and phenotypic screening about biofilm formation in S. aureus isolated from wound infections in a diabetes clinic in Hazrat Fatemeh Zahra (SA) hospital. A total of 267 clinical samples were collected from various types of wound infections in the diabetes clinic of Hazrat Fatemeh Zahra (SA) hospital, Isfahan, Iran. The methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) isolates were selected and biofilm formation and its related genes were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The results showed that 95 out of 132 samples were MRSA. The high resistance was seen to methicillin, erythromycin, ciprofloxacin, and penicillin. Phenotypic results showed that 48.3% of the isolates were high biofilm producers, 29.1% were average biofilm producers, and 10.6% were low biofilm producers. According to the results of this study, the expression levels of biofilm-associated genes significantly increased, and high prevalence of antibiotic resistance was one of the important reasons for the development of drug resistance in patients.

Acinetobacter baumannii (A. baumannii) is an important multidrug-resistant opportunistic pathogen frequently causing various nosocomial infections and is a serious threat to burn patients. These infections are usually caused by the outbreak strains. The aim of this study was to show antibiotic resistance pattern and molecular typing of A. baumannii genes isolates collected from burn patients and also distribution of different types of burn patients. In this study, 307 different strains were detected. Totally 100 A. baumannii strain was selected in burn center of Isfahan hospital. Antibiotic resistance pattern was determined by disk diffusion method (Kirby Bauer). The presence of genes coding in antibiotic resistance were analyzed by using multiplex-PCR method. The standard strains of Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 and A. baumannii ATCC 19606 were used as negative and positive controls. The antibiotic resistance pattern for A. baumannii showed high resistance for ciprofloxacin, ceftazidime, and tetracycline with frequency of 82.5%, 75.3%, 72%, respectively. Moreover, the most sensitive antibiotics were chloramphenicol, and nitrofurantoin with the resistance frequency of 3.9% and 2.8%. CITM (91.1%) was the highest detected gene. High prevalence of antibiotic resistance pattern among A. baumannii isolated from burn center hospitals indicates the important role of multidrug resistant isolates.

Staphylococcus aureus is a significant pathogen and major cause of nosocomial and community-acquired infections. The current study aimed at investigating the frequency of Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) gene as a serious virulence factor causing WBC destruction.
Collectively, 100 species of S. aureus were isolated from Isfahan, Iran, hospitals and confirmed by biochemical tests (coagulase, mannitol fermentation, and DNase). The antibiotic resistance patterns were studied by the disk diffusion method.
Out of the 100 isolates, 56.2% were PVL positive of which 19.8% from abscess, 51.7% from wound, 23.2% from bedsore, and 5.3% from tracheal secretion. Among the detected isolates, 87.8% were resistant to methicillin.
The current study showed the high frequency of PVL in wound strains. Further studies are required to understand the distribution of these virulent isolates in order to decrease the risk of infection. High quality hospital cares as well as new antibiotics is required to combat the multidrug resistant bacteria.

Aims: Brucellosis is one of the important infectious factors in most areas of Iran and other developing countries. Brucellosis has different clinical manifestations and should be considered in the differential diagnosis of infectious and noninfectious diseases. The aims of this study was to determine the epidemiological, clinical findings of the brucellosis in patients based on blood culture and serological tests.
In this cross-sectional study, 190 brucellosis patients admitted in Isfahan Hospital in 2016–2017 that were studied based on positive immunological tests such as Wright, 2-mercaptoethanol (2ME), and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Samples of blood were cultured (BACTEC) and incubated at 37°C for 5 days and then on Brucella agar. In addition, clinical and laboratory characteristics of brucellosis were done. The patients who had brucellosis (Coombs test ≥1/80 and 2ME ≥1/40) were selected. Data were analyzed using SPSS statistical package.
About 62.5% of patients were female with mean age of 37.5% years. 54.8% of cases were living in urban and 45.2% in rural areas. The most contagious seasons were spring. The most common transmission way was consuming of contaminated dairy products (59.3%); however, some of the patients had a history of animal contacts. The most common symptoms were fever (65.2%), arthralgia (68.1%), sweating (32%), malaise and fatigue (37.2%). The most common clinical signs were fever and peripheral arthritis. High leukocytosis and elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate (>20 mm/h) were reported in all of the cases. Elevated C-reactive protein was detected in 72.1% of patients.
Brucellosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of patients with prolonged fever, spondylitis, or peripheral arthritis in endemic areas.