Journal of Ardabil University of Medical Sciences
Year:2024 | Volume:23 | Issue:4|Papers Count:8

2Background: Pneumocystis jirovecii (P. jirovecii) causes Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) in people, especially the immunocompromised ones. It is also one of the serious causes of numerous lung problems in affected patients. Since documented data about P. jirovecii is not available in patients with pulmonary infections in Tehran, this study aimed to investigate the molecular epidemiology and parasitology of Pneumocystis to determine the frequency of the organism infection. Methods: Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) samples were collected for 367 patients hospitalized in the lung department of Shariati Hospital in Tehran from July 2022 to July 2023. The samples were analyzed using Giemsa staining and molecular methods. After DNA extraction from samples, Nested polymerase chain reaction (Nested PCR) was employed for the amplification of the 18SrRNA gene and identification of P. jirovecii. The PCR products of Nested PCR were sequenced for final confirmation.  Results: Out of 367 samples, only one sample (0.27%) and 28 samples (6.7%) were found to be positive through parasitology and NestedPCR analysis, respectively. P. jirovecii was detected in seven (25%) and 21 (75%) immunocompromised and immunocompetent patients, respectively. Fever, shortness of breath and dry cough were the most common clinical symptoms among patients with Pneumocystosis. Patients with pulmonary disorders are prone to colonization by pneumocystis, which increases the risk of pneumocystosis and makes them a reservoir for transmission to susceptible people. Conclusion: It can be concluded that patients with distinct lung disease are prone to colonization by Pneumocystis and, importantly, are at risk of infection. Also, according to the current study, Nested PCR was a suitable method for detecting P. jirovecii organisms because it had a very high sensitivity and specificity.

2Background: Toxocariasis is one of the most common diseases among humans and animals. According to the various studies, the rate of soil contamination with the worm's eggs in the world has been reported on average at 13.2% and in Iran at between 3.5 and 63.5%. Due to a lack of information about the status of infection with this worm in animals and humans in Yasuj city and also the importance of toxocariasis, this study was conducted to investigate the soil contamination of the Yasuj public parks with the eggs of Toxocara spp. Methods: This descriptive study was performed on 150 soil samples from 6 parks in Yasuj in 2021. Samples were collected from five points based on geographical directions at a distance of 2–5 cm above the soil surface and transferred to the parasitology laboratory. To see the eggs of Toxocara species, a flotation method with saturated sugar water, and a light microscope with a 40X were used. Results: Out of 150 soil samples from six parks, 11 samples (7.33%) were found to be infected with Toxocara species eggs and 139 samples (92.67%) were not contaminated. In total, out of the six investigated parks, pollution was not observed in two parks (33.33%), but pollution was observed in four parks with a contamination rate of 8% in three parks and 16% in one park. Conclusion: According to the results of similar studies in Iran, it is concluded that Toxocara infections in the soil of Yasuj parks are similar to the national average and require more care, in terms of fencing the parks and preventing the free entry of dogs and cats.

2Background: Opportunistic pathogens such as Cryptosporidium, Isospora belli, Blastocystis, etc. cause various gastrointestinal and non-digestive diseases in people with HIV. These symptoms are especially severe in people with HIV who have a CD4 count of less than 200. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of parasitic infections in people living with HIV in Tabriz. Methods: This cross-sectional and descriptive study was performed on137 people with HIV referred to Behavioral Disease Counseling Centers in Tabriz, 2019-2021. Then, after receiving written consent, fecal samples were collected and evaluated for the detection of parasitic infections using direct methods, Ziehl-Neelsen and Trichrome Weber stain. Results: A total of 137 stool samples were collected, including 93 males and 44 females. Most of them were in the age range of 20-60 years. The overall frequency of parasitic infections was 57.7% and the highest prevalence was related to Blastocystis 24.1% and Cryptosporidium 14.6%. Conclusion: Due to the relatively high prevalence of parasitic infections, especially Blastocystis and Cryptosporidium in people with HIV in Tabriz, which can endanger the health of these patients, essential interventions, including personal hygiene training to control and prevent infection with these pathogens, seem to be necessary.

2Background: Many scientific Researches have shown that diethylnitrosamine, which is used to induce liver carcinoma, has destructive effects on the kidney. Menthol is a monoterpene type with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer effects. In the current study, we investigated the effect of menthol on the expression of tumor-related factors and HIF-1α/VEGF signaling in the kidney cells of mice receiving diethylnitrosamine. Methods: In this research, 16 male mice at the age of 14 days were divided into four groups including Control, Menthol, Nitrosamine, and Nitrosamine-Menthol groups. Nitrosamine and Nitrosamine-Menthol groups received diethyl-nitrosamine intraperitoneally (25 mg/kg) at the age of 14 days. Menthol and Nitrosamine-Menthol groups also received menthol by gavage (50 mg/kg) three times a week for 6 consecutive months. At the end of this period, the expression level of SFRP1, VHL, CTNNB1, HIF-1α, and VEGF in the kidney cells was measured using real-time PCR method. Results: Menthol treatment caused a significant increase in the expression level of SFRP1 (P=0.021) and VHL (P=0.013) and a significant decrease in the expression level of CTNNB1 (P=0.001), HIF-1α (P=0.000) and VEGF (P=0.000) in the kidney cells of Nitrosamine-Menthol treated group compared to the Nitrosamine group. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that menthol prevents the decrease in the expression of tumor suppressor factors and the increase in the expression of tumor stimulating factors and factors effective in angiogenesis in the kidney of mice treated with diethyl-nitrosamine, so menthol is probably useful in prevention and treatment of renal cancer.

2Background: The main purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of dry needling on pain and pain pressure threshold (PPT) in patients with non-specific chronic low back pain (NSCLBP). Methods: 29 patients with NSCLBP were randomly allocated into two experimental (N=14) and control (N=15) groups. The dry needling intervention was considered for quadratus lumborum, gluteus medius, and lumbar multifidus, in 6 sessions, and subjects of the control group followed their routine lifestyle. The measurements included pain and PPT, which were evaluated in the pre-test, post-test, and follow-up periods. The pain was a variable that had a three-month follow-up assessment. Analysis of variance of combined measurement with repeated measurement and Benferoni's post hoc test were used to investigate the effect of the intervention on the outcome measurements. Results: Three sessions of trigger point dry needling did not lead to a significant change in pain. However, after five sessions of dry needling, a significant decrease in pain was observed (p<0.05), and the positive changes significantly remained until one and three months after the end of the intervention (p<0.05). Furthermore; significant changes in PPT scores were detected following five sessions of trigger point dry needling treatment (p<0.05). These changes remained constant in the one-month follow-up assessment (p<0.05). Conclusion: Dry needling for the trigger points of the QL, GM, and LM muscles can improve pain intensity and PPT in patients with NSLBP.

2Background: Obesity is a major health problem worldwide. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the effects of l-carnitine supplementation on physical factors related to health and lipid profiles in obese female children with basic gymnastics exercises. Methods: In this quasi-experimental study, with a pre-test-post-test design and a placebo group, 60 obese children among the girl students of Isfahan with BMI=30.28 kg/m2 were selected purposefully and were divided into 4 groups (Basic gymnastics training, L-carnitine consumption, Combined, and Placebo). The training protocol was implemented for 12 weeks, three times a week, and 45 minutes for each session. Furthermore, the groups of L-carnitine consumption and combined used L-carnitine tablets with a dose of 2 g per day for 12 weeks. To analyze the data, multivariate covariance, and post hoc Tukey tests were used. Results: A significant increase in Cardio-respiratory endurance, muscular endurance, muscular strength and flexibility was observed in both basic gymnastics training and combined groups (p≤0.001). In addition, a significant decrease in total cholesterol, triglyceride, and LDL and a significant increase in HDL were observed in the basic gymnastics training, and combined groups (p≤0.002). Also, the changes caused by the combined group on all variables were significantly better than other groups. Conclusions: These findings indicate the beneficial effects of basic gymnastics training along with L-carnitine supplementation on physical factors related to health and lipid profile in obese children. Therefore, the combined use of basic gymnastic exercises and L-carnitine supplementation can be useful to improve these variables.

2Background: Systemic lupus erythematosus is an autoimmune disease in which organs and cells are damaged in the initial stages by tissue-binding autoantibodies and immune complexes. Clinical, demographic and laboratory information of patients with SLE in Ardabil province is the aim of this study. Methods: The present study is a cross-sectional descriptive study that examines demographic data (age, gender), clinical information such as the first manifestation of the disease, clinical symptoms, etc., and laboratory findings such as CBC, ESR, CRP, proteinuria, FANA, Anti dsDNA, C3, C4, Anti RO and APS Ab of patients who referred to the rheumatology clinic of Imam Khomeini Hospital (RA) in 2021. Results: Information related to the clinical characteristics of 50 patients, including 46 women (92%) and 4 men (8%), with an average age of 12.14 ± 40.78 years (range: 21-73) and age at diagnosis of 10.62 ± 31.76 years were investigated. The most common initial complaint in the studied patients was related to isolated joint symptoms (28%). The most common clinical symptoms observed in the examined patients were related to joint symptoms along with sensitivity to light with a frequency of 20%. ANA, anti-dsDNA tests positivity and reduced C3 and C4 levels were observed in 88%, 70% and 26% of patients, respectively. Conclusion: The establishment of a registry system for the structured registration of information of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus in each region is necessary to a better understanding of the characteristics of the disease and better management policy of patients.

2Background: Identifying protein interactions is one of the main challenges in the fields of biostructure and molecular biology. Despite extensive progress, the exact patterns of protein-protein interactions are still unknown. The main goal of this study is to computationally evaluate the interactions of fibronectin-1 in the extracellular matrix of decellularized trachea and integrins in adipose tissue stem cells in order to provide the most accurate possible visualization of these interactions and their role in biological processes. Methods: After decellularization of the sheep trachea through the detergent-enzyme method, histological evaluations and ultrastructure photography of the samples were done by scanning electron microscopy. Also, the simulations of fibronectin1 binding of extracellular matrix protein with integrin αvβ1 and α5β3 of stem cells derived from adipose tissue were investigated, and interaction energy analysis was applied to predict the structure of protein-protein complexes using the algorithms available in HDOCK and ClusPro servers. Results: The findings indicated the preservation of extracellular matrix components and scaffold ultrastructure. Also, in order to find the most favorable connection states in terms of energy, some of them were reported as stable interactions among the top types of connections. This insight provides a valuable understanding of cell-matrix adhesion, migration, and signaling, with potential implications for therapeutic development. Conclusion: The prepared scaffolds are ideal for engineering applications for which computational analysis and experimental data have been used for visualization of stable connection states with energy efficiency between fibronectin and integrin. Also, more studies on cell adhesion modeling in connection with tissue engineering science can provide a suitable field for the development of regenerative medicine in further studies.