Journal of Advanced Biomedical Sciences
Year:2016 | Volume:6 | Issue:1|Papers Count:20

Background & Objective: Vitamin D deficiency is common during pregnancy and at delivery. Recent data suggest that vitamin D deficiency in mothers is associated with some adverse pregnancy outcomes. This study is designed to determine the relationship between the low maternal serum vitamin D levels and several pregnancy outcomes such as: pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes, bacterial vaginosis and caesarean section.Material & Methods: This study is a review of the observational study (descriptive and analytic) articles published during 10 years (2000-2014) in English with full text which were indexed in PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Iranmedex, Science Direct and and the SID databases.Results: A collection of 25 observational study from 168 articles which were related to 25-hydroxyvitamin D and adverse pregnancy outcomes were studied. The results indicated that the low levels of serum 25(OH)D in pregnant women is a risk factor for pre-eclampsia, bacterial vaginosis and cesarean section, but in relation to preeclapsia this indication is focuse on the second and the third trimester of pregnancy and there is no agreement about the risk for gestational diabetes and vitamin D deficiency among all the researches.Conclusion: Several pregnancy outcomes may be related to mothers’ serum 25(OH)D levels. However there is a significant need to perform more researches such as randomized clinical trials to investigate the effect of supplementation and screening on the maternal and neonatal outcomes.

Background & Objective: Due to the burden on citizens seeking access to the pharmacies, the optimal location of pharmacies, patients' access to medicines, and the pharmacies proportional distribution, are some significantly important factors to consider. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the current distribution of pharmacies and to determine the best location for the establishment of new pharmacies in the study area.Materials & Methods: This study was a case study that was conducted in the city of Shiraz. This study collected data in the form of a map to locate the service centers, weighting the criteria and compare them with other test methods which were used to analyze the hierarchy in the geographical information system (GIS). The layers (maps) used in this study were eight dual-layer maps, including 200 meters of daily pharmacies and 1000 meters of overnight pharmacies. In addition, the final weight was calculated for each layer by AHP-Fuzzy method.Results: 24 locations in the city were demonstrated, as the best places to establish a new pharmacy according to the research criteria layers. The incompatibility rate of 0.8 was calculated, which shows the weight of the layers located within the accepted range. The government hospitals and pharmacies layers are in the highest weight (23%) and the lowest weight (3%) respectively.Conclusion: By the combination layers of information on the final map, the locations were identified for the establishment of pharmacies. This study showed that the current location of pharmacies in the city of Shiraz do not match the standards and requirements.

Background & Objective: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) has identified that FTO gene polymorphisms was associated with the risk of type 2 diabetes and obesity. However, the findings in subsequent studies were inconsistent in various populations. This study aimed to investigate the association of FTO rs16953002 with type 2 diabetes and obesity in Yazd, Iran.Methods & Materials: Unrelated study subject controls (n=200) and type 2 diabetes cases (T2DM) (n=200), were randomly selected from Yazd, Iran. Genotyping was done by the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method. Age and gender, smoking, weight and body mass index (BMI) were analyzed using the analysis of c2 test.Results: The rs16953002 A/G polymorphism of the FTO gene showed significant association with T2DM and obesity. The AG, GG genotypes were significantly higher in T2DM and obese subjects compared to the group subjects.Conclusions: The result of the present study indicate that the genetic variant in FTO may contribute to T2DM and obesity risk in Yazd population.

Background & Objective: Paraoxon (POX) as one of the most toxic organophosphorus pesticides, is widely used in agriculture, which can reduce the antioxidant capacity of the cell. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) as an antioxidant against POX-induced oxidative stress in rat liver and kidney.Material & Methods: In the present experimental study, male Wistar rats were randomly divided into four groups, control (corn oil as POX solvent), POX (0.7 mg/kg), NAC (160 mg/kg), and NAC+POX. 24 hours after the intraperitoneal injection, animals were anesthetized and the liver and kidney tissues were quickly removed. Followed by the tissues hemogenation, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione S-transferase (GST) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activities, as well as glutathione (GSH) and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were determined by the biochemical methods. The data were statistically analyzed using the analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by the post hoc analysis using Tukey test.Results: POX increased SOD, CAT and GST activities and decreased GSH content in rat liver and kidney as compared to control. In addition, the increased MDA level and decreased LDH activity were observed in the liver. The administration of NAC inhibited changing of these parameters.Conclusion: The administration of NAC as antioxidant, ameliorates POX-induced oxidative stress in rat liver and kidney by scavenging the free radicals and GSH synthesis, but does not provide the complete protection.

Background & objective: Obesity, as a major health concern in developed and developing countries, has many outcomes for people, among which is infertility in women. Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the correlation between the Body Mass Index (BMI) and the hormonal parameters in patients with unexplained infertility and normal subjects.Materials & Methods: This case-control study was conducted on 40 patients with unexplained infertility and 30 fertile women with inclusion criteria of Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH)<10, BMI<30, Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH)³1, normal Antral follicle count (AFC), and under the age of 35 years, after obtaining the informed consents, in Valiasr Fertility Clinic of Imam khomeyni Hospital in 2013-2014. On the third day of menstruation, the hormonal profile (including LH, FSH, Thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), Prolactin (PRL), and AMH was measured and then, 5 ml of blood was taken. In addition, the serum leptin was measured using the leptin ELISA kit, and the correlation between BMI and all the hormones was evaluated.Results: In all samples, the mean age, hormonal profile, and BMI had no statistically significant difference in the two groups. A direct and significant correlation was observed between BMI and leptin (p=0.003), and also between FSH and BMI (p=0.012) in the fertile women group.Conclusion: Given the presence of a correlation between leptin and BMI, and the effect of leptin on ovulation, it is recommended that the infertile women maintain the BMI in the normal range, exercise and put the physical activity in their daily life schedules.

Background & Objective: Klebsiella pneumonia (K. pneumoniae) is a Gram-negative enteric bacterium that causes nosocomial infections. The aims of the present study were to identify Klebsiella pneumoniae infections in hospitalized patients: characterization of cross-resistance and antibiotic resistance patterns in isolates and detection of cefepime susceptible-dose dependent in strains.Materials & Methods: In the present study (during 2014-2015), samples were collected from patients hospitalized in Ghotbadden, Faghihi and Nemazee hospitals (Shiraz, Iran). The isolates were identified as K. pneumoniae, based on the biochemical tests embedded in the API-20E system. The susceptibility testing (disc diffusion) was performed according to the clinical and laboratory standards institute guidelines (CLSI 2014). The dDetection of cefepime susceptible-dose dependent (SDD) was performed. The detection of AmpC b-lactamases producing strains was done based on the cefoxitin and cefepime disk tests.Results: In this study 111 strains of Klebsiella pneumoniae were isolated. The less effective drug was ceftazidime (37.8% were sensitive). All SDD strains were susceptible to colistin and imipenem. Colistin (96.4%) and imipenem (88.3%) were the most effective antibiotics against isolates. Respectively, 41.4% and 35.1% isolates displayed resistance to gentamicin and amikacin. All colistin resistant isolates were imipenem sensitive.Conclusion: Carbapenem drugs are effective against Klebsieella pneumoniae infections. These results indicate that multidrug-resistant strains of K. pneumoniae are rising. The routine investigation and reporting of antibiotics resistance profile in patients presenting with Klebsiella infections is suggested.

Background & Objective: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the spectrum of NAFLD ranges from simple steatosis to hepatocellular carcinoma. Genetic factors play an important role in developing the disease. Single nucleotide polymorphism (C> G) rs738409 of PNPLA3 gene increase liver fat content and metabolic disorders associated with liver damage. In this study, the relationship between this gene polymorphism with NAFLD and demographic and clinical characteristics were evaluated in the south Iranian population.Materials & Method: In this case-control study, 95 patients and 183 control subjects were studied. Blood samples from a cohort of Kavar were collected and normal blood donors from Shiraz blood transfusion center. The polymorphism genotypes were determined by PCR-RFLP.Results: Our results showed that there is significant association in genotype and sex parameter between patients and control subject (P-value(CG)=0.01, (SEX)< 0.005). Also we identified that there is no association between genotypes with demographic and clinical parameters.Conclusion: In the present study, G allele wasn’t a risk allele and CG genotype Carriers had a 2.63-fold (95% CI, 1.16 to 5.98, p-value = 0.01) increased risk of NAFLD. Age were identified as a risk factor for NAFLD in this study and by adjusting the variable age and three genotypes, it showed that by considering the age factor, the genotype didn't have a role in disease development. Also the no association between genotypes with demographic and clinical parameters was identified.

Background & Objectives: Every year millions of children die due to injuries. Since children are vulnerable to injuries, appropriate measures must be taken to prevent injuries in this group. To achieve this goal, it is vital to recognize the epidemiological patterns of injuries. The purpose of this study is to determine the frequency and characteristics of child injuries in Fasa (Fars, Iran) so as to direct the local and national health authorities’ attention towards controlling and preventing child injuries.Materials & Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2013 on 1245 children between 0-14 years of age suffering from injuries who referred to Vali-Asr Hospital. The data were extracted from the national software injuries registry program. They were analyzed by Chi-square test, Fisher exact test, and Independent T-Test, using SPSS19 software.Results: This study showed that 1245 children were injured in 2013 (mean age of 6.5±1.4 years). The majority of the injured were boys (62%) and two-year-old children (11.1%). Most of the injuries happened in urban areas (58.9%), in winter (33.8%), and at home (65.9%). Moreover, trauma (34.9%), falling (31.3%), and poisoning (16.1%) were more common in comparison to other injuries. Intentional and domestic injuries were significantly higher in girls (p=0.039 and p<0.001, respectively).Conclusion: According to the results, the priority of child injuries includes trauma, falling, and poisoning. Thus, these injuries should be considered in planning for the preventive measures of child injuries.

Background & Objectives: Today, the increase in diabetes all over the world and positive results of locomotor activity and exercise on factors related to this disease have been taken into consideration. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of different intensities of acute aerobic exercise on plasma resistin levels in men with type II diabetes.Materials & Methods: The psent study is a quasi-experimental one. Ten subjects with Type II diabetes after at least 10 hours of fasting in a crossover design with three levels of 40%, 60%, and 80% VO2max ran on a treadmill for three sessions. Blood samples were measured before, immediately after, and 24 hours after any severity. Two-way analysis of variance with repeated measures and Pearson correlation test were used to analyze the data.Results: The findings showed that resistin levels, glucose, insulin, and insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR) immediately after and 24 hours after the three intensities of acute aerobic exercise were not significantly different, as compared to exercise trials before There is no substantial difference between resistin, glucose, insulin, and HOMA-IR immediately after and 24 hours after the acute aerobic exercise at different intensities (p>0.05). There is also no noticeable relationship between resistin, glucose.Conclusion: It can be stated that acute exercise with different intensities does not affect resistin action in individuals with diabetes. These results may be due to the constant energy cost which is equivalent to 300 kcal per session, having no influence on the study variables.

Background & Objectives: Diabetes is one of the most common diseases which is usually seen in modern societies. Due to the increased risk of the disease and its related complications, in addition to the harmless properties of sesame seeds, this research was aimed to study the effect of consuming sesame seeds on some biochemical factors in type 2 diabetic patients.Materials & Methods: This clinical trial has been carried out on 60 type 2 diabetic patients who were randomly divided into two groups of 30 sesame seeds consumers (case) and 30 non sesame seeds consumers (control).The case group was given 60 grams sesame seeds per day for 2 months and the control group did not receive any sesame seeds. The patient information was collected by questionnaire. The fasting blood serum of patients at the beginning and the end of the testing were collected and the biochemical factors of this study were measured in laboratory. For the data analysis, two independent samples t-test and paired t-test were used.Results: In this study, the mean±SD (Standard Deviation) of the patients’ ages in the two groups, sesame seeds consumers (case) and non-sesame seeds consumers (control), was 72.5±40.52 and 11.6±00.56 years, respectively. The results showed that fasting blood glucose, HbA1C, cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL (Low-density Lipoprotein), ALT (Alanine Transaminase) and ALP (Alkaline Phosphatase) were statistically decreased after the consumption of sesame seeds (P<0.05).Conclusion: According to the results, and by considering the sesame seeds harmless effects, it can be suggested that probably this plant is useful as a complementary therapy for treatment and prevention of diabetes disorders.

Background & Objective: Recently, the increased prevalence of allergic diseases and this particular disorder causes lots of problems for those suffering from the disorder. Allergens are attributed to elements, which can bring allergies to those who are prone to it. They motivate the immune system, and activate biogenetic materials, released from mastocytes. Therefore, this study was performed to assess the prevalence of allergens causing diseases in Khuzestan Province.Materials & Methods: This study was a cross-sectional study, which involved 150 patients affected by allergies in 2014. The tools applied for collecting the information consisted of a checklist containing two parts: the patients’ satisfaction form and the demographic clues. In addition, for diagnosing allergies in patient's skin, prick test was conducted. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS13 software.Result: In this study, 88% were sensitive to allergens. From those diagnosed, 86 patients were diagnosed with allergic rhinitis, 22 patients with asthma, 13 patients with skin allergies, and 29 of those patients suffered from a mixture of skin allergies, nose allergies, and asthma. In patients, the most predominant symptoms resulted in patients were sneezing (76.6%), rhinorrhea (72%), and itching (68%) (p<0.001). There was a significant association between the family background of allergies and allergy diseases (p=0.012). The Salsola kali plant showed an increased number of allergy symptoms outbreak s in this area.Conclusion: According to this study, the amount of allergens and the rate of clinical symptoms is very high among the inhabitants of this area, therefore, it is recommended to conduct more studies in order to decrease the allergic symptoms and to identify the antigenic function of allergens in different climates.

Background & Objective: The future of each society is based on its youth. In addition, the physical-mental health as well as the presence of healthy and capable people is a considerable requirement for all the societies. Thus, the aim of this research was to study the prevalence rate of children’s postural abnormalities and its relationship with sport activity.Materials & Method: 148 children (74 boys and 74 girls) were randomly selected. The research tools were plummet (guideline), matrix sheet, mirror box and the personal characteristics questionnaire. All the results were analyzed by using chi-square, freedman statistical method and the spearman correlation coefficient.Result: The results indicated that there is a significant difference between the two normal and abnormal height structure states (p£0.01). Similarly, there was a significant negative difference between the number of skeletal abnormalities and the exercise activities in girls (r=0.355) and boys (r=0.369). In the case of abnormalities comparison between the sexes, the freedman test results indicated that there is a significant difference between the ranking of the boys’ skeletal abnormalities as compared to the girls, in a way that the dorsal lord sis and flat back were the highest and the lowest in the girls, respectively. Moreover, the results of the person correlation coefficient test indicated that there is only a positive significant relationship between the age of the girls and the number of skeletal abnormalities (p£0.01, r=0.586).Conclusions: According to the results of this research, it can be stated that majority of the children at least have single skeletal abnormality, resulted from some factors such as heredity, daily wrong habits, and nonstandard equipments and facilities. In addition, not attending the related sports activities may increase the chance of these skeletal abnormalities.

Background & Objective: Helicobacter pylori, which has infected about 50 percent of the world population, is one of the most common gastrointestinal pathogens and the most prevalent cause of gastro-intestinal diseases, such as chronic gastric ulcers, gastric and duodenal ulcers, gastric cancer and lymphoma. The CagA Gene (cytotoxin-associated gene A) is a major virulence factor of this pathogenic bacterium. The aim of this study was to construct a recombinant vector carrying the antigenic regions of CagA gene and also to express this gene.Material & methods: The major epitopes of the CagA gene were identified based on bioinformatics. Through this procedure, a gene fragment of 996 bp was isolated by PCR, inserted into a pET32a vector using the enzymatic digestion and then transformed into the E. coli strain BL2I (DE3).Results: The results of sequencing represented the successful cloning of the CagA gene in the expression vector and introducing the accessibility to the antigen. The molecular weight of the produced recombinant protein was estimated 57 KD on an SDS-PAGE gel and the accuracy of the protein expression was verified.Conclusions: The results of this study proved the successful cloning of the epitope area. The recombinant protein can probably be introduced as a good candidate for the production of IgY from the chicken immunized and the control of Helicobacter pylori infection in humans. It could also be possibly used for the design of diagnostic kits and vaccines for Helicobacter pylori.

Background & Objectives: Antibiotic resistance among pathogens bacteria are an important problem noted worldwide. Beta-lactamases that are produced by Enterobacteriaceae have been located mainly on plasmid. Treatment of these bacterial infections which produced b-lactamase are a major problem.Materials & Methods: 111 Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates were collected from hospitals in Kerman, therefore, antibiotic susceptibility test was performed by disk diffusion method. At first, detection of ESBLs were performed by phenotypic confirmatory test, and presence of bla-SHV, bla-TEM, and bla-CTX-M were detected by PCR.Results: Resistant to ampicillin (92.5%) was more than others antibiotics, and the imipenem (89%) was the most effective antibiotic against Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates. Additionally, the resistance to all antibiotics in ESBLs-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae was more than that of Non-ESBL Klebsiella pneumoniae. After the detection of bla-SHV, bla-TEM, and bla-CTX-M genes in Klebsiella pneumoniae by PCR, 56 (50.4%) isolates presented these genes.Conclusion: With regard to high prevalence of ESBLs genes and high level of antibiotic resistance in bacteria, detecting these genes can prevent the extension of antibiotic resistance through these bacteria.