Reference Interval for Non-HDL-Cholesterol, Remnant Cholesterol and Other Lipid Parameters in the Southern Iranian Population; Findings From Bandare Kong and Fasa Cohort Studies.

BACKGROUND: Growing evidence shows the undisputable role of non-HDL-C and remnant cholesterol (remnant-C) in cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk assessment and treatment. However, the reference interval (RI) for these lipid parameters is not readily available. The aim of the present investigation was to determine the age and sex-specific RIs for non-HDL-C and remnant-C as well as other lipid parameters among a healthy population in southern Iran. We also report the RI of lipid parameters in rural and urban residents, smokers and post-menopausal women. METHODS: Among 14063 participants of Bandare Kong and Fasa cohort studies, 792 healthy subjects (205 men and 578 women) aged 35-70 years were selected. Fasting blood samples were used for determination of total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG) and HDL-C using colorimetric methods. Non-HDL-C and remnant-C were calculated using the valid formula. The 2.5th and 97.5th percentiles were calculated and considered as RI. RESULTS: In the total population (n=792, age 35-70), RIs for non-HDL-C and remnant-C was 74.0-206.8 and 8.0-52.7 mg/dL, respectively. Age (35-44 and≥45 years) and gender-specific RIs for serum non-HDL-C and remnant-C were determined. Remnant-C and non-HDL-C level were different between sex and age categories. The mean value of all lipid parameters except HDL-C was higher in men, urban residents, subject with age≥45 years and smokers. CONCLUSION: This is the first study in which the RIs for non-HDL-C and remnant-C in southern Iran are reported. This may help physicians to conveniently use these lipid parameters for patient care and better cardiovascular risk assessment.

Lipid-liquid crystals for 2 months controlled risperidone release: In-vitro evaluation and pharmacokinetics in rabbits.

In this study, a drug delivery system based on lipid liquid crystal (LLC) was developed for the long-term delivery of risperidone to improve psychological treatment. Optimal LLC formulation was achieved based on maximum release after 60 days with different ratios of phosphatidylcholine (PC) to sorbitol monooleate (PC: SMO), tween grade 80 (w/w %), and tocopherol acetate (TA) (w/w %) using the Box-Behnken method. In vitro and ex vivo studies, pharmacokinetics, and histopathological examination in rabbits were conducted to compare the optimal LLC with Risperdal CONSTA®. The optimum formulation containing the PC to SMO ratio of 58.6%, tween 0.82% w/w, and TA 3.6% w/w was selected because it had the highest drug release percentage (100%) during about two months. Polarized optical microscopy (POM) revealed HII mesophase with a 2-dimensional structure. Cell culture also revealed moderate cytotoxicity for LLC-risperidone. Pharmacokinetic data displayed that the optimal LLC created a more consistent drug serum level within 60 days, and histopathology results demonstrated slight to moderate damage in rabbits' organs. Furthermore, the accelerated stability test confirmed optimum stability for LLC and risperidone. This study confirmed the better pharmacokinetic potentials of SMO-based LLC systems compared with Risperdal CONSTA®, which would promote patient compliance and obviate the difficulties of additional oral therapy.

Enhanced gene delivery by polyethyleneimine coated mesoporous silica nanoparticles.

Due to large surface area, tunable pore size, easy surface manipulation, and low-toxicity mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) may act as a suitable vector for gene delivery. In order to make MSNs as a suitable gene delivery system, we modified the surface of phosphonated MSNs (PMSN) with polyethyleneimine (PEI) 10 and 25 KDa. Then nanoparticles were loaded with chloroquine (CQ) (a lysosomotropic agent) and complexed with plasmid DNA. The transfection efficiency and cytotoxicity of these nanoparticles was examined using green fluorescent protein plasmid (pGFP) and cytotoxicity assay. All PEI coated nanoparticles showed positive zeta potential and mean size was ranged between 170 and 215 nm with polydispersity index bellow 0.35. PEI-coated MSNs significiantly enhanced GFP gene expression in Neuro-2 A cells compared to PEI 10 and 25 KDa. The results of the cytotoxicity assays showed that these nanoparticles have an acceptable level of viability but CQ loaded nanoparticles showed higher cytotoxicity and lower transfection activity than CQ free nanoparticles.

Diversin, from Ferula diversivittata protects human lymphocytes against oxidative stress induced by H2O2.

In this study, the antigenotoxic effects of diversin, a prenylated coumarin obtained from Ferula diversivittata roots were evaluated using comet assay. Isolated lymphocytes from healthy volunteers' blood samples were incubated with diversin (10, 25, 50, 100, 200 and 400 µM) alone, or in the presence of H2O2 (25 µM). DNA break was measured based on the %tail DNA and compared with different concentrations of curcumin (10, 25 and 50 µM) as the positive control. It was shown that all concentrations of diversin significantly reduce DNA damage caused by H2O2.

Fuzzy modeling and control of HIV infection.

The present study proposes a fuzzy mathematical model of HIV infection consisting of a linear fuzzy differential equations (FDEs) system describing the ambiguous immune cells level and the viral load which are due to the intrinsic fuzziness of the immune system's strength in HIV-infected patients. The immune cells in question are considered CD4+ T-cells and cytotoxic T-lymphocytes (CTLs). The dynamic behavior of the immune cells level and the viral load within the three groups of patients with weak, moderate, and strong immune systems are analyzed and compared. Moreover, the approximate explicit solutions of the proposed model are derived using a fitting-based method. In particular, a fuzzy control function indicating the drug dosage is incorporated into the proposed model and a fuzzy optimal control problem (FOCP) minimizing both the viral load and the drug costs is constructed. An optimality condition is achieved as a fuzzy boundary value problem (FBVP). In addition, the optimal fuzzy control function is completely characterized and a numerical solution for the optimality system is computed.