Introduction: Fluorscence in situ hybridization (FISH) enables specific detection of unique sequences of varying length, chromosomal regions or entire chromosomes within metaphase or interphase cells. Recent developments in this technology permit the rapid mapping and ordering of DNA fragments on single metaphase chromosome bands. The technique of FISH incorporates several stages including: probe preparation and labelling, hybridization of probe with chromosome preparation and detection of signal, and imaging. Using these technique chromosomal alterations in ataxia telangiectasia lymphoblastoid cells which are highly sensitive to clastogenic and mutagnic effects of chemnical and physical agents were investigated. Materials and Methods: Normal and A-T cells were grown in RPMI – 1640 medium and irradiated at G2 and G1 phases of the cell cycle. After democolcine treatment and metaphase chromosome preparation, slides were prepared and FISH is performed for all samples using whole chromosome probe for chromosomes 5, 1, 4, 7 and 14. Fifty mitoses were analysed for each sample by Zeiss fluorescent microscope attached to a computerized programme. Results: Analysis of normal and A – T mitoses before and after irradiation revealed a very low frequency of chromosomal abnormalities, for specific chromosomes 5 painted in  this study. However, more aberration was found in A-T cells of varios chromosomal rearrangements such as translocation, trisomy, Robertsonian translocation and chromatid type breaks. Conclusion: In routin cytogentic methodologies visualisation of various chromosomal rearrangements is not always possible in a single preparation. Although detecton sensitivity of FISH is limited to the specific chromosomes, but as seen for A – T cells, FISH can be considered as one of the most effective method for visualization of various chromosomal alterations. This technique can have wide application not only in human genome mapping and the genome of other organisms, but also in clinical cytogenetics, somatic cell genetics, cancer diagnosis and gene expression studies.

Twenty-one promising lines and cultivars of durum wheat were studied electrophoretically for the seed storage protein variation at the Glu-A1 Glu-B1, and Gli-B1/Glu-B3 loci. Allelic variation at the above loci was identified according to the International Nomenclature Systems. Most of the lines and cultivars were homogene for seed storage proteins, whereas in some cases the existence of intracultivar heterogeneity was observed. Gliadin components in an off-type genotype in cultivar Lican showed two bands of slow mobility in (J)region which are characteristic of D genome of bread wheat. In all samples analysed low molecular weight glutenin-subunits type-1 (LMW-1) and type-2 (LMW-2) were accompanied with γ 42 and γ 45 gliadins, respectively. However in cultivar Bronte which is a progeny of a cross between cultivar Berillo (recombinant, LMW-2, γ42, ω35) and Latino (LMW-1 / γ 42, ω 33-35-38)), LMW-2 was accompanied with y 42 and (J) 35 gliadins. Out of 24 seeds analysed in this cultivar, two showed gliadin and LMW-glutenin subunit composition as those in cultivar Latino. Twenty of 21 lines and cultivars analysed showed inactivity at the Glu-A1x locus. In the remaining Line (line-7) a novel high molecular weight glutenin subunit (HMW-G.S.) of slow mobility was observed and named subunit 1.2. Three types of HMW-G. subunit (7 +8, 7+ 151 and 20) were observed at the Glu-B1 locus, in this study. Only five of 21 lines and cultivars analysed, showed type-1 and the remainings showed type-2 of the B-group of the LMW-G. subunits. The results of the present study can be used in durum wheat breeding programs for improving the flour quality and increasing the purity of the lines.

Cervical cancer is one of the most frequently found cancers in women and appears to have a viral aetiology. Certain types of the human papillomavirus (HPV) are well established as the primary causes of cervical cancer. Clinical follow-up data; histopathologic diagnosis, Insitu hybridization (ISH) and HPV DNA typing were available from 60 patients .ISH technique was performed with commercial biotinylated probes. The presence of 7 high risks HPV was evaluated in 60 cervical biopsies with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and Cervical Intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) of different degrees by ISH. We analyzed 60 biopsies from Iranian women. 42 of 60 (70%) carcinoma specimens were positive for HPV-DNA. HPV 31/33/51 (25%) was most frequently found, followed by HPV 16/18 (23.33%) and HPV 6/11 (21.66%) while HPV negative cases were 18(30%).High risk HPV types appear to be most frequently associated with SCC and CIN. ISH is a sensitive test in the detection and typing of HPV DNA both in clinical and latent infections.

A potyvirus differing from previously reported maize and sugarcane potyviruses in Iran was isolated from maize in Dasht-e-Naz, Sari, and tentatively designated as "Maize, Mazandaran" (MM). In the host range experiment MM was transmissible to johnsongrass(Sorghum halepense)but not oat (Avena sativa)by mechanical inoculation. The viruswas partially purifiedby differential centrifugation. An antiserum produced by injection of a rabbit with purified preparation of MM had a titer of 1024 in microprecipitin test and 16 in SDS-agar gel diffusion. In SDS-agar gel diffusion the antiserum formed a precipitin line against purified virus and crude infected Sap, but not against sap from healthy plants. MM reacted strongly with MDMV antiserum and weakly with MS and ScMV antisera, but not with johnsongrass mosaic virus (JgMV) and sorghum mosaic virus (SrMV) antisera in agar-gel diffusion tests. Using antiserum against MM, this virus was quite distinct from MS and ScMV of Dasht-e-Naz in ELISA, DIBA, and SDS-agar gel diffusion tests. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of the virus coat protein showed a single band of about 37 kDa. The genomic RNA had a molecular weight of 3.3x 106 Da in agarose gel electrophoresis.On the basis of host range, serological relations, and molecular weights of coat proteinand genomic RNA, MM was identified as a MDMV strain.MM was found to be the most important component of maize infection complex in Dasht-e-Naz by ELISA tests. It was detected in 70 percent of 396 samples of maize with mosaic symptoms tested.