نشریه دانشگاه علوم پزشکی البرز
سال نهم شماره 4 (پاییز 1399)

Achillea millefolium L. is one of the most famous medicinal herbs that has been used extensively in ancient medicine for the treatment of diseases in general and wounds and burns in particular. This plant has many subspecies that different compounds of monoterpene and sesquiterpene are found in its essential oil. The purpose of this study was to analyze and compare the yields and essential oil compositions of two subspecies of Achillea millefolium subsp. millefolium and Achillea millefolium subsp. elbursensis with an economical usability approach in the pharmaceutical and medical sciences. For this purpose, two subspecies were collected from two subspecies in flower and leaf mountain range in July and flowering with three replications. Essential oil extraction was performed by Clevenger method and essential oils were identified by mass spectrometry chromatography (GC / MS). The results of analysis of variance showed that there was a significant difference between the two subspecies in flower and leaf essential oil yield at 1% level and the highest yield belonged to Alborz flower. Also, comparison of the essential oils and essential oils of Alborz aquatic leaves showed that the major part of the essential oils of both organs was chamazolene and was always higher in flower (79.3%) than in leaves (69.2%). However, in the Hibernians, the composition of 1 and 8 cineol was 14.4% in flowers and 5.6% in leaves. Thus, Alborz subspecies can be a unique natural economic resource for the pharmaceutical industry in the production of comazolene-containing drugs such as anti-inflammatory drugs and skin diseases and a subspecies of thousands of leaves grown in Alborz Mountains for extraction of 1 and 8 cineols in various medical and pharmaceutical applications.

In recent years, the number of people with cancer has increased. For this reason, different drugs have been suggested for the treatment of cancer, but none of them has resulted in complete remission. Many bio-toxins are biologically active compounds with anticancer activity. In the meantime, bee venom (BV) has a potent anti cancer and tumor effects. The aim of present study is evaluation of BV anticancer effects on breast cancer cell line (MDA-MB-231).

Crude bee venom was obtained from Apis mellifera and the amount of its protein was determined. MDA-MB-231 cancer cell line was cultured and then the cells were exposed to 1.56, 3.125, 3.25, 6.25, 12.5, 25 and 50 µg/ml of bee venom for 24 and 48 h, respectively. The morphology and apoptosis were evaluated and cell viability was determinedby MTT assay.

MTT assay showed that BV at concentration 6.25 µg/ml for MDA-MB-231 killed 50% of cells (p<0.05). Morphological analysis and the obtained data indicated that cell death caused by BV was induced apoptosis.

Findings indicated that BV have anticancer effects and with further investigation, it can be used in production of anticancer drugs.

Cell penetrating peptides (CPPs) can enter a cell through the cell membrane, and used in the fields of drug delivery, gene therapy, and cancer therapy by their property transporting various molecules into cytoplasm. Gold nanospheres (GNSs) are a useful tool for molecular imaging, because they are not cytotoxic and have high solubility, excellent light scattering property and ease of synthesis. We constructed a drug delivery system by developing gold nanospheres conjugated to MCaUF1-9-C, a CPP derived from maurocalcine (MCa) scorpion toxin. We examined the applicability of this cell-selective anti-cancer drug delivery system by evaluating its cell-penetrating and cell death activities.

Cell viability of HeLa and MDA-MB-231 cells, against 500 nanomolar concentration of doxorubicin (DOX)-conjugated gold nanoparticles (DOX-GNPs, and DOX-MCaUF1–9-C-GNP) were evaluated using MTT assay. Cell penetrability of MCaUF1-9-C peptide conjugated to gold nanoparticles investigated using of dark field imaging and atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS).

HeLa cell viability was about 87% when treated with DOX-GNP and DOX-MCaUF1-9-C-GNP, whereas DOX-MCaUF1–9-C-GNP induced high cytotoxicity in MDA-MB-231 cells (30%). Dark field imaging demonstrated higher affinity of MCaUF1–9-C-GNP for the MDA-MB-231 cell compared with HeLa cells. Moreover, atomic absorption spectrometry data analysis showed that 33% of the total amounts of the applied MCaUF1–9-C-GNP were internalized in MDA-MB-231 cells. 

These results demonstrated that peptide conjugated GNP would be a useful tool for the development of a cell-selective drug delivery system.

Doxorubicin is one of the most commonly used anticancer drugs. The purpose of this study was to investigate the protective effect of hydroalcoholic extract of Carob (Ceratonia Siliqua) on testicular tissue in adult rats treated with doxorubicin.

In this experimental study, 56 adult male Wistar rats were used in 8 groups of seven. The control group received only ordinary water and food. The sham group received distilled water at a dose of 3 mg / kg by intraperitoneal injection. The sham group 1 received dose of doxorubicin (3mg / kg) once weekly for 4 weeks intraperitoneally. The sham group 2 group received (600 mg / kg) maximum dose of hydroalcoholic extract of Carob (Ceratonia Siliqua)  for 48 days by  gavage method. Experimental groups 1, 2 and 3 received doxorubicin with  3 mg/kg once weekly for 4 weeks intraperitoneally and 150, 300 and 600 mg / kg  of hydroalcoholic extract of Carob (Ceratonia Siliqua) for 48 days with gavage  method. Hematoxylin-eosin staining method was used to test the testicular tissue.

The mean body weight, number of spermatogonial cells, spermatocyte count, spermatocyte count and number of leydig cells in the experimental group receiving doxorubicin and 300 mg / kg dose of hydroalcoholic extract of Carob (Ceratonia Siliqua) increased significantly compared to the group receiving doxorubicin. In experimental groups receiving doxorubicin and 150 and 600 mg / kg doses of  hydroalcoholic extracts of Carob (Ceratonia Siliqua), the mean number of spermatogonia, spermatocyte, spermatid and leydig cells decreased significantly compared to control and sham groups (P <0.05). Histologic studies also showed that the amount of  shrinkage  in testicular tissue in the experimental group receiving doxorubicin and 300 mg / kg dose of hydroalcoholic extract of Carob (Ceratonia Siliqua) , as compared with the group receiving doxorubicin, was decreased, which indicates the effect of this dose on the recovery of testicular tissue.

Hydroalcoholic extract of 300 mg / kg dose of Carob (Ceratonia Siliqua) has a protective effect on spermatogenesis poisoning  induced by doxorubicin.

According to marked advances in bioinformatics studies, development of influenza vaccines has been greatly modified in many studies. In this study, we have designed a multi-epitope recombinant protein, consisting of several conserved epitopes from Hemagglutinin protein of the H1N1 and H5N1 strains of Influenza virus by immunoinformatics approaches.

The registered sequences of hemagglutinin proteins from H1N1 and H5N1 strains have been analyzed and selected epitopes have been chosen and directed for further analysis. After investigation of immunological and physicochemical parameters, the selected regions were fused together by linkers and sequence of target constructs was determined following codon optimization. The target construct has been integrated into BamHI/XhoI cleavage sites of PET32a+ expression vector.

A physicochemical analysis revealed that the designed recombinant protein has 214 amino acid with molecular weight of 22.451 kDa. The isoelectric point was determined as 7.25 , solubility of 100% and  Extinction coefficient of 60170 M-1cm-1.finally, after codon optimization, the Codon Adaptation Index (CAI) was calculated as 0.95.

According to these results, it has been predicted that designed multiepitop recombinant protein has reasonable and unique immunological properties. The expressed protein could be used for future immunological studies against type A influenza virus

Several studies have been carried out on the use of cell lines in researches, production and processing of drugs and biological products, and on the identification of toxicity and efficacy.The present study was conducted to determine the characteristics of BHK-21 cell lines as a suitable substrate for use in vaccine production and quality control, viral culture and research and diagnostic studies.

In this study cloning of the cells by limit dilution was performed by preparing the appropriate seed cells. After checking the cell growth characteristics, sterility tests performed to ensure the absence of bacterial, fungal, mycoplasma, and mycobacterial infections.  Detection of chromosomal diversity by karyotyping and cell identity using molecular tests along the CHO,LK,RBK,MRC5,Vero,GL cell lines was done. Also, master cell seed was tested for detection of adventitious viruses in two

  in direct way through cytopathic effect during incubation of cell cultures and in indirect method using hemadsorption test, inculation into embryonic eggs, injection into mature and newborn mice.

The results indicated, this cell line had suitable growth charestristics without cross contaminations. Also the cell identity was confirmed by karyotyping and molecular tests.  

The results of various tests indicated that this cell line has the necessary requirements for use in the production and quality control of the biological products and viral researches.

Family faces different hardships and challenges that are such stressful that can destroy it. No doubt that we need to protect and last family. So, this research aims at developing a local model for family resilience.

To do so, at primer level 13 couples who qualified the criteria, were selected through purpose-focused, available, and voluntary sampling method. In order to identify local elements of family resilience the families experienced a crisis in their marriage, and obtained high scores in Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD- RISC), Sixbey Family Resilience Surrey (SFRS), and Family Assessment Device (FAD) were voluntarily interviewed. Qualitative Grounded method was used to collect information.

In analyzing transcripts of interviews with couples, 168 and 15 categories were obtained respectively from open coding and axial coding based on topic similarity. As a result, a model of family resilience was constructed including 5 dimensions: Personality, Belief System, Skills, Family Structure, and Social Resource.

The developed Iranian model is integrative, and it can be used for designing interventions to increase family resilience and patience toward problems.

Osvix drug is an internal brand of Plavix, which is used to prevent blood coagulation in many heart diseases. The aim of the present study was to measure this drug by gold nanorods in optimum conditions and in real samples.

Gold nanorods were synthesized by the seeded-mediated method. Measurement of Osvix drug by gold nanorods was performed by optimizing important factors at a maximum wavelength of 650 nm. The concentration of annoying agents and the effect of electrolyte were investigated .

The optimum values were calculated using a Visible-Ultraviolet spectrophotometer at 650 nm for factors of pH=8, nanoparticles volume of 1 mL, buffer volume of 2.5 mL and residence time of 40 seconds, As well as the type of buffer, phosphate was obtained. The calibration curve was linear in the concentration range of 0.2 - 10 ppm. Drug concentration was measured in real samples.

The limit of detection and limit of quantification were 0.206 and 0.687 ppm, respectively. This method , which is rapid and simple, with high Precision and reproducibility and appropriate limit of detection , a desirable suggested method is for measuring of Osvix drug .

Paraphilia can disrupt their marital relationship. The purpose of this study was to investigate couples 'experiences of paraphilia and its effect on couples' relationships.

For this purpose, in a qualitative study, 7 individuals referring to Bonyani Family Health Counseling Center in Tehran with paraphilia were selected through purposeful sampling and were studied using in-depth semi-structured interviews. The interviews lasted 60 to 90 minutes and were written word to word. The data were analyzed simultaneously by continuous comparative analysis of Strauss and Carbon.

The findings indicate that factors such as lack of communication skills, self-awareness and problem solving, as well as the influence of media on one's lifestyle, can be considered as underlying factors in the phenomenon of paraphilia. Emotional and sexual frustration factors such as lack of attention and affection by spouse, cold emotional couple, reluctance to have sex with spouse, and sexual diversity were identified as causal factors of paraphilia. Consequences of paraphilia in couples included a reluctance to have sex with a spouse, the failure to meet the expectations of the spouse, the cooling of emotional relationships and infidelity. Coping factors included belief norms and self-awareness skills.

Based on the results and considering the underlying causal factors of paraphilia in couples, it is possible to develop educational programs such as teaching life skills to individuals and to free them from this problem.

Aerobic granules as a novel type of bio-sorbent have an excellent settling ability and high-porosity structure. This study investigated the feasibility of aerobic granules for chromium (VI) removal from synthetic aqueous solution and compare it with conventional activated sludge.

In this research the effect of some important parameters including pH (5, 7, and 9), initial chromium (VI) concentration (25, 50, and 100 mg/l), and equilibration time (30, 60, 120, 180, 240, and 360 minutes) in removal of chromium (VI) from synthetic aqueous solution in batch system have been studied. The amount of chromium (VI) was determined using Spectrophotometer at 540 nm.

The results indicated that at pH=5, initial chromium concentration of 25 mg/L  and equilibration time of 120 minutes, 97.65 % of chromium (VI) was found by aerobic granules. In the second stage, chromium (VI) removal was examined using conventional activated sludge which the efficiency of chromium (VI) were obtained 58% in the optimum conditions (pH=5, initial chromium (VI) concentration =25 mg/l, and retention time=120 minutes).

Totally, it can be concluded that aerobic granules sludge as an effective and low-cost biodegradable adsorbent has a good performance for the removal of chromium (VI) from aqueous solutions.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the microbial quality of drinking water in Karaj, Iran in terms of heterotrophic bacteria count index (HPC) and its variation trend using geographic information system (GIS) in 2016.

In this study, water sampling was carried out in Karaj distribution network in all 12 regions and based on this, 3 samples were taken from each region by grab sampling technique.

The findings indicated that the mean terms of free residual chlorine, turbidity, and pH in the 12 regions of Karaj were respectively measured 0.2-0.8 mg/l, 0.22-0.94 NTU, and 7.3-7.8. The highest levels of HPC in regions of 3, 6 and 9 of Karaj were detected at 70, 115 and 320 colonies, respectively. The highest turbidity rates were 2.48 and 1.62 NTU in regions 3 and 9, respectively, and the lowest rate was 0.22 NTU in region 5.

According to results, in all samples, the obtained HPC levels were within the recommended national standards. Furthermore, the results of water quality zoning using ordinary point kriging represent high quality drinking water and its complete overlap in the studied cases.

Due to their antibacterial effects, herbal remedies have an important role in the treatment of infections; particularly in infected wounds. Increased bacterial resistance to antibiotics combined with increased side effects related to their administration has led many researchers to investigate alternative herbal treatments in recent years. In line with this trend, the objective of this study was to assess the antimicrobial effects of Dr Kamkar’s cream on different microbial strains in vitro.

The susceptibility of isolates to the cream was evaluated using well diffusion, the Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimal Bactericidal Concentration (MBC) methods. 11 microorganisms were analyzed which included 5 strains routinely used to assess antibacterial effects and 6 clinical isolates were obtained from patients’ wounds. Based on CLSI (2018) standards, the Kirby& Bauer method was utilized to investigate the sensitivity of the strains to commonly used antibiotics.

The herbal cream was effective against 10 strains, while only 1 strain demonstrated resistance. Bacillus subtilis was the most susceptible bacteria to the cream with a zone of Inhibition of 31mm, followed by Bacillus anthracis (25mm), Staphylococcus aureus (22mm), Acinetobacter baumannii (22mm), Staphylococcus epidermidis (20mm), Bacillus cereus (16mm), Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (14mm), Streptococcus pyogenes and Candida albicans (20mm) and resistant to Escherichia coli.
MIC findings indicated that the herbal cream had maximal effect against Bacillus cereus, and minimal efficiency against Streptococcus pyogenes and Candida albicans, while MBC results showed maximal effect against Bacillus cereus and minimal effect against Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
 Results of antibiograms revealed resistance to several antibiotics.

According to the results, Dr Kamkar’s herbal cream has suitable antimicrobial activity against certain pathogenic microorganisms and can be used alone or in combination with Antibiotics in the treatment of infected wounds.