Journal of Genetic Resources
Volume:8 Issue: 2, Summer-Autumn 2022

Sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) is mainly grown in temperate climate countries. Because of the economic importance of sweet cherry and its high genetic diversity in Arasbaran (a region in northwestern Iran), the selection of superior genotypes as resistant rootstocks has great importance for breeding programs. In this study, the genetic diversity of 28 genotypes of sweet cherry was by 11 qualitative and nine quantitative traits and SCoT markers, in the Ahar Afil area (a region of Arasbaran). In the first experiment, quantitative and qualitative characteristics of the fruits, leaves, trees as well as flowers were evaluated. Results of simple correlation coefficients showed a positive and significant correlation among some of the measured morphological traits. Cluster analyses of the morphological traits classified the genotypes into two main groups. In the second experiment, SCoT markers, by application of 12 primers, were used for genetic diversity analysis of the sweet cherry genotypes. The results, 89.9% of polymorphism was detected by 12 primers and the number of polymorphic bands per primer was between 2 to 9 bands, with an average of 5.3. The number of observed (Na) and effective (Ne) alleles, Marker index (MI), resolving power (RP), and an index for primer was an average of 11, 8.27, 3.78, and 5.07, respectively. A high variation was observed in the grouping of genotypes through cluster analysis. Cluster analysis based on Dice similarity coefficient matrix and structure analysis classified the populations into eight main groups. Our results showed a high level of genetic diversity in 28 sweet cherry genotypes. This study will be helpful for the conservation and management of sweet cherry genetic resources for further breeding programs.

As the water resources become more limited, the production levels of crops are declining, and following the rapid increase in population, the use of mankind from staple food products has increased. So, the development of drought-tolerant crops aimed at cultivation in the arid regions will be of great worth to provide the country's nutritional necessity. The following research aimed to elucidate the drought tolerance of durum wheat (Triticum turgidum ssp. durum) through comparative expressed sequence tags/EST analysis of unstressed library with 2534 EST and drought-stressed library with 4485 EST. Preliminary data were gathered from the Harvard university database. All unigenes were assembled using EGassembler software to detect similarities between the two libraries and were then analyzed through X-blast by CLCbio software against a non-redundant protein database. To identify statistically differentially expressed genes, the IDEG6 web tool was used. Over 150 differentially ESTs were detected by Audic-Claverie statistics of IDEG6 software, in which over 85% ESTs were upregulated in response to drought. The GoMapMan comparative classification tool was used to categorize gene functional annotations. All significant differential unigenes were divided into seven functional categories i.e., photosynthesis and energy (19%), regulatory pathways (25%), transport (5%), hormones, plant defense, response to drought stress (11%), cell metabolism (19%), cell organization and development (4%) and miscellaneous as well as unclassified processes (17%). Comparative analysis revealed that some of the promising traits in T. turgidum are specifically regulated in drought stress including genes related to response to stress and hormones pathways, development and growth (helicases and CPL phosphatase), maintenance of cell water content (transporters and osmolites), membrane stability (HSP) and preventing the accumulation of toxins. This study prominently demonstrates the helicase role under durum wheat’s drought tolerance as well as provides indices for assessing the drought tolerance of T. turgidum aims to the use of tolerant varieties in breeding programs in arid and semi-arid regions in Iran.

Parasites play a crucial role in ecosystems by interacting in population processes, shaping entire community structures and significantly reducing host fitness in the wild. The phylum Apicomplexa is a diverse group of obligate unicellular blood parasites with a vast distribution. Species of reptiles are exposed to apicomplexan blood parasites, mainly haemogregarines and haemosporidians. Haemogregarine parasites belonging to the suborder Adeleorina are common and widely distributed in lizards. The genus Karyolysus Labbe, 1894 (Apicomplexa: Adeleorina: Karyolysidae), is composed of intracellular haemogregarine parasites which can be found in various genera of Palearctic lizards. The vectors of the parasites are gamasid mites from the genus Ophionyssus. In the present study, we characterised molecularly the haemogregarine parasites from green bellied lizards, Darevskia chlorogaster in the north of Iran. The fragments of the 18S rRNA gene of reptile haemogregarines were amplified using the primer set Hep300 and Hep900. DNA sequences of 493 bp length were aligned with DNA sequences obtained from GenBank through blasting. The BLAST analysis revealed a 100% identity with published sequences of the genus Karyolysus. Phylogenetic analyses indicated that the obtained haplotypes were identical to the Karyolysus sp. (KJ461944) sequence from Ophionyssus mites isolated from Lacerta viridis from Hungary. In addition to being the first molecular characterisation of a Karyolysus within the Iranian lizards, it was also the first report of a species of Karyolysus infecting the Darevskia genus. The present study provided additional information about the new host of Karyolysus species, its distribution and host specificity and provided further hints to clarify future phylogenetic relations between these parasites.

Identification of gene expression profiles, RNA interactions, gene regulation patterns, and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) is important for determining the molecular mechanisms underlying the normal odontogenesis and the pathology of oral and dental disorders. Therefore, this in silico study aimed to identify novel proteins, RNA interactions, and deleterious SNPs related to four major genes (MSX2, SHH, SMAD7, TFAP2) involved in the odontogenesis process. After pathway enrichment and gene ontology analysis, the protein-protein, microRNA (miRNA)-mRNA, and miRNA-long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) interactions and networks were determined for the selected genes using integrated bioinformatics analyses. Moreover, the potential deleterious SNPs in the selected genes were identified and finally, their validation and implications on the structure of proteins were investigated by specific bioinformatics tools. The results of this study introduced UBE2I, RNF111, MYBL2, and VEGFA as novel factors that may involve in odontogenesis. It was also found that the MSX2, SHH, and TFAP2A are targeted by hsa-miR-6775-5p, hsa-miR-149-3p, and hsa-miR-432-5p, respectively. Moreover, the hsa-miR-134-5p regulated the SHH and TFAP2A gene expression. LINC02035 and C3orf35 were also introduced as important lncRNAs that may involve in competitive endogenous RNA interaction with the SHH for binding to the hsa-miR-149-3p. Moreover, LINC00319, interacting with the hsa-miR-6775-5p, indirectly regulated the MSX2 expression. We also identified various SNPs in the investigated genes that changed the normal structure and thus the function of their related proteins. This study, for the first time, introduces different new proteins, miRNAs, lncRNAs, and SNPs that may be important for normal odontogenesis and the pathology of oral and dental disorders.

In this paper, pod morphological traits of eleven populations of Medicago orbicularis (L.) Bartal., collected from the West, Northwest, and Southwest of Iran, have been assessed. In addition, nuclear ribosomal Internal Transcribed Spacer (nrITS, ITS1+5.8s+ITS2) variation in four populations of M. orbicularis was analyzed. Molecular phylogenetic analysis showed that all accessions of M. orbicularis formed a well-supported monophyletic clade while no geographical patterning was observed.  The result of Principle Components Analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis (Ward’s method) (despite a negative Mantel test), suggested a relationship between the morphology and geographical distribution of the populations.Moreover, three distinctive geographical groups were determined using PCA and cluster analysis. Correlation analyses between ecological variables and morphological traits were often negative. However, altitude, average temperature, and average monthly soil temperature showed positive correlations. Wind's relative effect on all morphological traits has also been observed. Two morphological traits- Seeds Total Number (STN) per pod and Fruit Diameter (FDM)-indicated a significant variation. A direct relationship was observed between the two mentioned characters in all populations.  Paveh (PVH) and Marivan (MRV) with the highest STN and FDM demonstrated useful potential for breeding and conservation programs in the future. Overall, it could be assumed that the high STN in M. orbicularis (comparison with other species of Medicago studied in Iran, such as M. minima, M. sinskiae, and M. polymorpha), as well as the effect of winds on seeds distribution, are two main influential factors in creating geographical pattern and morphological diversity.

The point of this consideration is to examine the possible influence of progesterone (P4), estradiol (E2), and testosterone (T) concentrations in follicular fluid (FF) on fertilization, implantation, and biochemical pregnancy rates in patients with polycystic ovary (PCO) and normal women during in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment. 30 normal-ovulatory women between 24-42 years old and 26 women with the PCO, between 21-37 years old under assisted reproductive therapy were recruited from two university hospital IVF centers during this study. The fluid from more than one preovulatory follicle was obtained on the day of ovulation for hormone measurement using the Elisa method. Association between the mentioned steroid levels and fertilization, implantation, and biochemical pregnancy rates were assessed by using spearman, Mann-Whitney, and regression tests. Among the assessed outcomes, in the PCO group, the FF, E2, and T levels appeared to have a noteworthy reverse relationship with fertilization rate (P= 0.050). In both groups, intrafollicular levels of the E2/T ratio correlated positively with implantation rate (P=0.024 in control vs. P= 0.009 in PCO) and biochemical pregnancy (P= 0.020 in control vs. P= 0.012 in PCO). Furthermore, intrafollicular E2/P4 levels showed a positive relationship with both implantation (P= 0.047) and biochemical pregnancy (P= 0.050) rates in the control group. Our results for the first time suggest that high intrafollicular levels of E2 and T may influence reduced fertilization rate. The E2/T ratio would be a good predictor of successful implantation and pregnancy rates regardless of infertility causes. Moreover, the E2/P4 ratio could be a valuable prescient marker for implantation and biochemical pregnancy rates in normal-ovulatory women. Beyond the mentioned results, the underlying pathological processes, and pathways, including hyperandrogenism and interruptions in the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian (HPO) axis could be the potent concepts in polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) etiology and an alteration in genetic variants of SHBGs and catalytic enzymes responsible in steroidogenesis pathways. Furthermore, possible correlations between the mentioned steroid hormones and the functions of genes related to gonadotropins and steroid hormones in the pathophysiological pathways involved in PCOS were explored.

Obesity is a multifactorial disorder that has increased dramatically in recent years in developing countries. The disproportion of energy uptake and expenditure, which is the result of several factors such as diet, behavior, environment, as well as metabolic and genetic factors, could eventually lead to this disease. Mutations in genes that regulate appetite and metabolism could affect various aspects of obesity. Adiponectin protein, the product of the ADIPOQ gene, is an essential adipokine for controlling energy homeostasis and fat storage and is secreted in white adipose tissues. It is an insulin-sensitive hormone whose blood concentration declines in obesity. In this study, we examined the association of rs2241766 +45 T>G polymorphism of the ADIPOQ gene with obesity and blood levels of High-Density Lipoprotein (HDL), Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL), Triglyceride (TG), and total cholesterol in the population of Borujen City. In this case-control study, blood samples were collected from people referred to Tamin Ejtemaee Laboratory of Borujen who suffered from obesity problems. Triglyceride, total cholesterol, LDL, and HDL levels were analyzed in the patient's blood using the alpha6 auto-analyzer. In the next step, total DNA was extracted from the blood samples and subjected to Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP) methods to investigate the rs2241766 polymorphism of the ADIPOQ gene. According to the results of this study, there is no significant correlation between any alleles and genotypes of this polymorphism with obesity (Chi-square p-value was 0.82 and 0.85 respectively for alleles and genotypes, odds-ratio 1.155, 95% CI= 0.32-4.14). There is no significant correlation between the blood lipid characteristics of the patients and the genotypes of the studied polymorphism. According to our results, it seems that the alleles and genotypes of the ADIPOQ gene rs2241766 do not affect the etiology of obesity in our samples.

‘Yaghoot’ grape cultivar is the earliest cultivar known in the history of Iran. The main problem of this cultivar is the compactness and small size of its berries, under the influenced genes that are controlled mainly by Gibberellic Acid (GA3). Those undesirable traits reduce customer interest and profitability. To alleviate these problems, we used GA3 and carried out Girdling (G) to enhance the quantitative and qualitative characteristics. The GA3 treatment was used at four concentrations, i.e.: 0, 60, 90, and 120 mg/l, and was sprayed on plants three times (i.e.: 10 days before flowering, in the midst, and after flowering). The G treatment has achieved the proximity of the branch bases during the formation of berries. In this experiment, various morphological and biochemical traits were measured. The results exhibited that the GA3 and G treatments significantly positively affected the fruits' quantitative and qualitative characteristics. Both treatments were observed to increase the berry length, berry weight, berry diameter, berry width, cluster width, cluster length, cluster weight, titratable acidity, total soluble solids, proline, malondialdehyde, H2O2 content, total phenolic content, anthocyanin content, ascorbate content, flavonoids content, antioxidant capacity, catalase activity, peroxidase activity, polyphenol oxidase activity, superoxide dismutase activity, and ascorbate peroxidase activity. The interaction between the GA3 and G showed that they significantly increased the berry weight, proline content, antioxidant capacity, ascorbate content, peroxidase activity, polyphenol oxidase activity, ascorbate peroxidase activity, catalase activity, and superoxide dismutase activity. Those treatments are promising treatments that can help improve the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of ‘Yaghoot’ grapes.

A step-by-step study of the anther and ovule developments, sporogenesis, from pre-meiotic stages to anthesis in anthers and seed development in the ovary, was done in Triticum aestivum L. The results showed that the wall development at tetrasporangiate anthers was consistent with the monocotyledonous type. The anther locule was surrounded by two inner temporal cell layers, including the tapetal cells and the middle layer, and two outer permanent layers, including the endothecium and epidermis. Tapetum cells were observed as uni- or bi-nucleated in the maturity stage. Asynchronous cytokinesis during the meiosis of microsporocytes caused the formation of tetragonal tetrads. The mature pollen grains were monoporated and three-celled type. Different origins of the tapetum cells, the polarity of the tapetum cells, and callose formation around the microsporangial cells were novel findings. The ovule was bitegmic, tenuinucellate, and orthotropous initially, and anatropous in the late developmental stages. Chalazal megaspore was functional causing the formation of monosporic embryo sac type. Due to the proliferation of the antipodal cells, a modified Polygonum type of embryo sac was observed. The first zygote division occurred before the endosperm mother cell division and gave rise to equal cells. The nuclear endosperm was formed by dividing the nucleus of the endosperm mother cell. However, it became cellular in later stages. The endosperm involved three types of cells: an aleurone layer around the embryo sac, the endosperm cells around the embryo with dense cytoplasm, and the more giant and vacuolated endosperm cells away from the embryo. Deposition of the residual callose in the micropylar opening wall of the megaspores tetrad stage, variation in endosperm cell type, and some details of the developmental process are among the novel findings.

Persian Maple, Acer velutinum, has a wide distribution in Hyrcanian forests. In this investigation, a provenance test (two years) was conducted with the open-pollinated seeds of seven populations collected from different altitudinal gradients. In the first year, all populations' seedling height and diameter/height ratio decreased significantly. However, no significant difference in collar diameter was detected in the populations. Seedlings from the populations of the lower altitudes (<700m) tended to grow taller compared to those from the higher altitudes (>1200m). The productivity in the first year indicated that some populations originating from the middle altitudes had higher production. In contrast, during the first growing season, there were no significant differences in survival rate among the various origins. In the second year, the seedlings originated from the middle altitudes as well as the local province (cite the elevation) had the highest survival rate. To minimize the mortality rate, we categorized four altitudinal groups and recommended restoring the genetic type of coverage of the original forest, using the seed from the same zone, because seeds from other zones have increased mortality.

Helicobacter pylori is a gram-negative, microaerophilic, and curved or spiral bacterium that lives in the stomach of 50% of humans. The bacterium causes various diseases, containing gastritis, stomach ulcer, and gastric cancer. Hence, eradicating the bacterium from the stomach is essential. Using several antibiotics to treat and eliminate H. pylori and creating resistant strains cause an imbalance of the normal intestinal flora. Therefore, the use of new therapies, such as the use of probiotics, is of particular importance. Yogurt contains probiotics such as Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium that balance the gastrointestinal microflora. Fruit and vegetable extracts are suitable carriers for probiotics. In this research, articles published in various sources were studied, including Web of Sciences databases, PubMed, Scopus, Elsevier, Wiley, Springer, and Google Scholar search engines. The search was conducted using the keywords H. pylori, probiotic therapy, gastritis, and stomach cancer. Probiotics produce different types of antibacterial compounds, including lactic acid, short-chain fatty acids, hydrogen peroxide, and bacteriocin. Therefore, they can play an important role in the treatment of H pylori infection. Various studies have shown that Lactobacillus spp., Bifidobacterium spp., Pediococcus strains, and Saccharomyces boulardii have had inhibitory effects on H. pylori in vivo and in vitro. A combination of probiotics and antibiotics is more effective in eradicating and treating infections caused by H. pylori. Probiotics reduce inflammation by binding to epithelial cells and controlling the excretion of anti-inflammatory cytokines. Lactobacillus salivarius inhibits the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin-8 stimulated by H. pylori in gastric epithelial cells.

Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) is the primary cause of mortality in developed and developing countries. Recently, oxidative stress has been reported to be associated with an increased incidence of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. This study aims to investigate the levels of Vitamin C, Uric acid, bilirubin, and lipoprotein (a) (Lp (a)) in patients diagnosed with CAD and their relationship with Malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration. This study consists of 47 control subjects (28 women, 19 men) and 53 patients (15 women, 38 men) with CAD. Blood samples were collected after overnight fasting, and the sera were separated with low-speed centrifugation. MDA levels were determined through the TBARS method. Vitamin C and Lp (a) were determined through dinitrophenylhydrazine photometry and electro immunoassay (EID(, respectively. Total bilirubin and Uric Acid (UA) were determined immediately by routine laboratory methods. The mean serum MDA and Lp (a) levels were higher in patients with CAD compared to the control group (MDA: 0.89±0.41 µmol vs. 0.66± 0.24 µmol, p<0.05), Lp (a): 35±20 mg/ml, vs. 26.2±14.6 mg/ml, p=<0.05). However, no significant correlation was observed between the patients with Lp (a) in their serum MDA and the control group. The mean total bilirubin level was higher in the control group compared to the CAD patients (1.030 vs. 0.830, p<0.05). A significant inverse relationship existed between the patient's bilirubin, vitamin C levels, and MDA. Other differences and relations were insignificant. Also, there was no significant difference between the frequency of APOA1 -75 genotypes (G/G, G/A, A/A) in the CAD patients versus the control group (P>0.05). Finally, the elevated serum levels of MDA and Lp (a) were known to be independent risk factors for coronary heart disease. Also, there was a significant correlation between serum MDA levels and age, bilirubin, and vitamin C in patients with CAD.