Identification of a compound heterozygous missense mutation in LAMA2 gene from a patient with merosin-deficient congenital muscular dystrophy type 1A.

BACKGROUND: Merosin-deficient congenital muscular dystrophy type 1A (MDC1A) is occurred by mutations in LAMA2 gene that encodes the laminin α2 chain (merosin). MDC1A is a predominant subtype of congenital muscular dystrophy. Herein, we identified two missense mutations in LAMA2 gene in compound heterozygous status in an Iranian patient with MDC1A using whole-exome sequencing (WES). METHODS: In the present study, we evaluated genetic alterations in an Iranian 35-month-old boy with MDC1A and his healthy family using WES method. The identified mutations further confirmed by Sanger sequencing method. Finally, in silico analysis was conducted to further evaluation of molecular function of the identified genetic variants. RESULTS: We identified two potentially pathogenic missense mutations in compound heterozygous state (c.7681G>A p.Gly2561Ser and c.4840A>G p.Asn1614Asp) in LAMA2 gene as contributing to the MDC1A phenotype. The healthy parents of our proband are single heterozygous for identified mutations. These variants were found to be pathogenic by in silico analysis. CONCLUSIONS: In general, we successfully identified LAMA2 gene mutations in an Iranian patient with MDC1A using WES. The identified mutations in LAMA2 gene can be useful in genetic counseling, prenatal diagnosis, and predicting prognosis of MDC1A.

Wharton jelly stem cells inhibits AGS gastric cancer cells through induction of apoptosis and modification of MAPK and NF-κB signaling pathways.

BACKGROUND: Gastric cancer) GC) is one of the most common cancer with high mortality worldwide. The human Wharton's jelly stem cells (hWJSCs) can inhibit several cancer cells through several molecular pathways. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate anticancer effects of hWJSCs conditioned medium (hWJSC-CM) and cell-free lysate (hWJSC-CL) against of GC cell line AGS and underlying signaling pathways. METHODS: In this study, we evaluated the effects of hWJSC-CM and hWJSC-CL on viability, proliferation, migration, invasion, apoptosis, and MAPK and NF-κB signaling pathways in AGS cells. Moreover, mRNA expression of genes involved in apoptosis (BAX, BCL2, SMAC, and SURVIVIN), as well as expression of proteins involved in NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathways were evaluated. RESULTS: The obtained results showed that the hWJSC-CM and hWJSC-CL decreased viability, migration, and invasion of GC cell line AGS in a concentration and time dependent manner. We observed that the hWJSC-CM and hWJSC-CL induced apoptosis pathway through regulation of apoptosis involved genes mRNA expression. In addition, the hWJSC-CM and hWJSC-CL suppressed NF-κB signaling pathways as well as promoted MAPK signaling pathways. CONCLUSION: In general, our study suggested that the hWJSC-CM and hWJSC-CL inhibits proliferation and viability of GC cell line AGS through induction of apoptosis, as well as modification of NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathways.

Melatonin increases the anticancer potential of doxorubicin in Caco-2 colorectal cancer cells.

Colorectal cancer (CC) is an important human malignancy with high cancer related death worldwide. The chemotherapy using doxorubicin hydrochloride is one of the most common cancer therapeutic methods. However, drug resistance lowers the treatment efficacy in CC patients. The combination therapies seem to be more promising by taking the advantage of synergistic effects. The present study aimed to evaluate a new strategy to enhance the anticancer activity of doxorubicin in Caco-2 CC cell line by co-administration of melatonin. The effects of doxorubicin, melatonin, and their combinations (Dox-Mel) were investigated on the proliferation and viability, morphological alterations, and tumor spheroid formation. Flow cytometry was employed to compare the apoptotic situation of the cells in study groups. Changes in metastatic potential of the cells were assessed by wound healing assay and trans-well migration assays. Moreover, expression of BAX, SMAC, BCL-2, SURVIVIN, MMP-2, and MMP-9 genes were evaluated by quantitative real time PCR and western blotting. Our study showed that doxorubicin, melatonin, and Dox-Mel significantly decreased the proliferation and viability, tumor spheroid formation, invasion, and migration. Furthermore, the changes were in a concentration and time dependent manner. There was an increase in apoptosis rate in the treatment groups. Expression of genes involved in apoptosis and cell motility were altered significantly. It was observed that anticancer activity of Dox-Mel combination was significantly more than doxorubicin and melatonin treatments alone. We showed an enhanced apoptotic and anticancer activity of doxorubicin and melatonin combination chemotherapy on CC cell line than doxorubicin or melatonin treatments alone. This combination could promote the treatment efficiency and alleviate the un-intended side effects by lowering the dose of doxorubicin prescription.

In vivo and in vitro impact of miR-31 and miR-143 on the suppression of metastasis and invasion in breast cancer.

PURPOSE: The microRNA (miR)-31 and miR-143 are pleiotropic anti-metastatic miRs, with an expression that decreases significantly in metastatic breast cancer cells. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of miR-31 and miR-143 inhibition on metastasis and invasion in both MDA-MB231, MDA-MB468 as well as the MCF-7 breast cancer cell lines and 5-week old female mice. METHODS: Following the cloning of miR-31 and miR-143 into vectors, their expressions were determined before treatment with constructs of miR-31 and miR-143 in cancer cell lines and normal breast cells. Then miR-31 and miR-143 were transfected to the cell lines and the expression was assessed after 48 hrs. Moreover, the levels of migration and invasion were determined in cell lines. These experiments were performed in 5-week old female mice. RESULTS: The results showed that miR-31 expression before the transfection of miR-31 construct was decreased 4, 70 and 100 times in MCF-7, MDA-MB468 and MDA-MB231 cell lines, respectively, in comparison to normal breast cells; but after the transfection of miR-31 construct, the expression of miR-31 increased 80 times. Additionally, invasion and migration decreased by 15 and 10 times in MDAMB-468. All of the modifications in miR-143 were low in comparison to miR-31. The results of the in vivo experiments were approximately the same as in the in vitro experiments. CONCLUSIONS: It appears that the use of miR-31 is highly efficient than miR-143 in the inhibition of invasion and metastasis in breast cancer. Our study improved our conception about miR-31 and miR-143 and their roles in the identification and therapy of breast cancer.

Nanopowder synthesis of novel Sn(II)-imprinted poly(dimethyl vinylphosphonate) by ultrasound-assisted technique: Adsorption and pre-concentration of Sn(II) from aqueous media and real samples.

In this research, a novel Sn(II)-imprinted poly(dimethyl vinylphosphonate) nanopowder (Sn(II)-IPDMVPN) was prepared using Sn2+, dimethyl vinylphosphonate, azobis isobutyronitril and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as the template, ligand, initiator and cross linker, respectively. The non-imprinted poly(dimethyl vinylphosphonate) nanopowder (NIPDMVPN) was also synthesized utilizing the same procedure without using SnCl2·2H2O in order to compare the results with the Sn(II)-IPDMVPN. The structure, morphology and composition of the products were characterized by XRD, SEM, EDX, XRF, BET, FT-IR and NMR techniques. Some experimental conditions including pH, eluent concentration and sample volume were optimized to maximize Sn(II) adsorption by the Sn(II)-IPDMVPN. It was found that the optimum conditions are pH = 5, 1.00 M of HNO3 as eluent and sample volume up to 50 mL. The results obtained by ICP-MS indicated that the Sn(II)-IPDMVPN had much higher adsorption capacity for Sn(II) ions (about threefold) than the NIPDMVPN. The applicability of the Sn(II)-IPDMVPN was also investigated in three different real samples. Under the best experimental conditions, the calibration graphs were linear in the range of 0.19-90 µg L-1 with a coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.990. The detection limit was calculated to be 0.06 µg L-1. The relative standard deviation (RSD) for six replicate measurements of Sn(II) at 1.00 ng mL-1 was determined to be 1.8%. The results showed that the Sn(II)-IPDMVPN-ICP-MS is a very simple, rapid, sensitive and efficient method for the determination of Sn(II) ions in water samples.

The functional significance of 14-3-3 proteins in cancer: focus on lung cancer.

The 14-3-3 family proteins are phosphoserine/phosphothreonine binding proteins constituting a conserved class of proteins which are detected in all eukaryotic cells. In mammalians, 14-3-3 proteins have seven distinct isoforms (ß, γ, ε, η, ζ, σ and τ/θ) which are involved in various cellular processes including signal transduction, cell cycle, cell proliferation, apoptosis, differentiation and survival. 14-3-3 proteins do not have a distinct catalytic activity and often regulate the activity, stability, subcellular localization and interactions of other proteins. The 14-3-3 family proteins function through interacting with their client proteins or facilitating the interaction of other proteins likely as adaptor proteins. The versatile functions of these proteins in the regulation of cell growth, cell division, cell death and cell migration make them candidate proteins for which an important role in cancer development could be envisioned. Indeed, analysis of cancer cell lines and tumor-derived tissues have indicated the differential abundance or post-translational modification of some 14-3-3 isoforms. In this review, we aimed to show how deregulation of 14-3-3 proteins contributes to initiation, establishment and progression of cancers with a particular emphasis on lung cancer. The role of these proteins in cancer-relevant processes including cell cycle, cell migration, cell-cell communication and programmed cell death will be discussed in detail.

Mutation analysis in exons 22 and 24 of SCN4A gene in Iranian patients with non-dystrophic myotonia.

BACKGROUND: Non-dystrophic myotonias are a heterogeneous set of skeletal, muscular channelopathies, which have been associated with point mutations within sodium channel α-subunit (SCN4A) gene. Because exons 22 and 24 of SCN4A gene are recognized as hot spots for this disease, the purpose of the study is to identify mutation in exons 22 and 24 of SCN4A gene in Iranian non-dystrophic myotonias patients. METHODS: In this study, 28 Iranian patients with non-dystrophic myotonia analyzed for the mutation scanning in exons 22 and 24 of SCN4A gene by polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformational polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) and sequencing. RESULTS: We found 29073G>C substitution in SCN4A gene in one case and 31506A>G substitution in seven cases. The 29073G>C substitution causes a missense mutation G1306A, located in the conserved cytoplasmic loop connecting repeat III and IV of the SCN4A channel but, 31506A>G substitution do not alter amino acid in SCN4A protein. CONCLUSION: G1306A residue is located in functionally important protein region. In "hinged-lid model" for Na(+) channel inactivation in which glycines(1306) act as the hinge of the lid occluding the channel pore. Mutation in this region slowed fast inactivation. Therefore, it might be a pathogenic mutation. The causal relationship of this mutation with the disease is an object for further discussion.

Development of a fiber coating based on molecular sol-gel imprinting technology for selective solid-phase micro extraction of caffeine from human serum and determination by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry.

In this work, a molecular sol-gel imprinting approach has been introduced to produce a fiber coating for selective direct immersion solid-phase microextraction (SPME) of caffeine. The polymerization mixture was composed of vinyl trimethoxysilane and methacrylic acid as vinyl sol-gel precursor and functional monomer, respectively. Caffeine was used as template molecule during polymerization process. The prepared fibers could be coupled directly to gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and used for trace analysis of caffeine in a complex sample such as human serum. The parameters influencing SPME such as time, temperature and stirring speed were optimized. The prepared coating showed good selectivity towards caffeine in the presence of some structurally related compounds. Also, it offered high imprinting capability in comparison to bare fiber and non-imprinted coating. Linear range for caffeine detection was 1-80 µg mL(-1) and the limit of detection was 0.1 µg mL(-1). The intra-day and inter-day precisions of the peak areas for five replicates were 10 and 16%, respectively.

Efficient and green sonochemical synthesis of 3,3-bis(4-(dimethylamino)phenyl)indolin-2-ones.

A simple, green sonochemical synthesis of 3,3-bis(4-(dimethylamino)phenyl)indolin-2-ones, 2,2-bis(4-(dimethylamino)phenyl)-1H-indene-1,3(2H)-dione, 2,2-bis(4-(dimethylamino)phenyl)acenaphthylen-1(2H)-one and 5-(4-(dimethylamino)phenyl)-5-hydroxypyrimidine-2,4,6(1H,3H,5H)-triones using indium(III) chloride catalyst in aqueous media at room temperature is reported. Good yields, easy workup, short reaction time and the use of water as a solvent that is considered to be relatively environmentally benign are advantages of this new method.

Ultrasound-assisted three-component synthesis of 3-(5-amino-1H-pyrazol-4-yl)-3-(2-hydroxy-4,4-dimethyl-6-oxocyclohex-1-enyl)indolin-2-ones in water.

Indium(III) chloride was found to be an efficient catalyst for the synthesis of 3-(5-amino-1H-pyrazol-4-yl)-3-(2-hydroxy-4,4-dimethyl-6-oxocyclohex-1-enyl)indolin-2-ones by one-pot, three-component reaction of dimedone, 1H-pyrazol-5-amines and isatins in water under ultrasonic irradiation. The advantages of this method are the use of a readily available catalyst, easy workup, excellent yields, and the use of water as a solvent that is considered to be relatively environmentally benign.

Design of a new cartridge for selective solid phase extraction using molecularly imprinted polymers: selective extraction of theophylline from human serum samples.

This paper describes design of a new cartridge for selective solid phase extraction (SPE) using molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs). The apparatus which is termed solvent extraction-MISPE (SE-MISPE) cartridge, consisted of a modified conventional micro test tube and has been developed to perform simultaneous forward-extraction of analyte from aqueous sample solution to an organic phase and back-extraction to MIP solid phase. In order to evaluate the performance of the proposed method, extraction of theophylline (THP) from human serum sample was investigated. An appropriate amount of THP-imprinted polymer was placed in the bottom of the micro tube and an organic solvent pipetted onto it and left to swell the polymer completely. A polyethylene frit to secure MIP particles was positioned by two Teflon rings such that it was fixed below the level of the organic layer. Then, aqueous sample solution containing THP was layered over the organic phase and the lid was closed. After completion of extraction, the organic and aqueous phases were removed and the adsorbed analyte was desorbed using a polar organic solvent. In order to reach the highest recovery, the experimental parameters such as the type of organic solvent, pH and ionic strength of aqueous phase, organic to aqueous volume ratio, time of extraction, type and amount of desorbent solvent were optimized. Under the experimental conditions, a plot of HPLC peak areas vs. initial concentrations of THP in the concentration interval of 0.5-30 microg ml(-1) showed a good linearity (r=0.9974). The limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) based on three and ten times of the noise of HPLC profile were 0.09 and 0.3 microg ml(-1), respectively. The relative standard deviation (RSD) of the proposed method for the extraction and determination of 5 microg THP from 200 microl standard sample solution for 3 replicate measurements was 3.5%. The results showed that by means of the proposed cartridge, THP could significantly separate from the other structurally related compounds such as theobromine (THB) and caffeine (CAF). The added THP could be quantitatively recovered (79-83%) from the serum samples by the proposed procedure, being thus a guarantee of the accuracy of the SE-MISPE procedure. In addition, the loss of capability of the SE-MISPE cartridge was not considerably observed after 10 times loading and elution cycles.

Synthesis and evaluation of a selective molecularly imprinted polymer for the contraceptive drug levonorgestrel.

A molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) has been prepared using levonorgestrel (LEV) as template. The polymer was synthesised in a non-covalent approach using methacrylic acid (MAA) as functional monomer and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) as cross-linking monomer via a free radical polymerization. An equivalent blank polymer was also synthesised in the absence of the template compound. Batch adsorption experiments were used to evaluate the binding affinity of the imprinted polymer. After packing MIP into a stainless steel column (150 mm x 4.6 mm i.d.), retention and elution of the template and related compounds were evaluated by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). This LEV imprinted polymer was further applied for selective solid phase extraction (SPE) of LEV from human serum. It was confirmed that the binding ability of the prepared MIP for LEV was essentially sufficient in the presence of other compounds coexisting in serum sample. Therefore, as a selective and efficient solid phase material, LEV imprinted polymer has a high potential application in analysis of this steroidal hormone in clinical purposes.

Stability-indicating high-performance thin-layer chromatographic determination of levonorgestrel and ethinyloestradiol in bulk drug and in low-dosage oral contraceptives.

A stability-indicating high-performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC) method was developed and validated for simultaneous determination of steroidal hormones levonorgestrel and ethinyloestradiol both in bulk drug and in low-dosage oral contraceptives. Optimization of conditions for the spectrodensitometric procedure was reached by eluting HPTLC silica gel plates in a 10 cm x 10 cm horizontal chamber. The solvent system consisted of hexane-chloroform-methanol (1.0:3.0:0.25, v/v/v). This system was found to give compact, dense and typical peaks for both levonorgestrel (R(f)=0.65+/-0.03) and ethinyloestradiol (R(f)=0.43+/-0.02). Densitometric analysis of the drugs was carried out in the reflectance mode at 225 nm by using a computer controlled densitometric scanner. The calibration curves of levonorgestrel and ethinyloestradiol were linear in the range of 200-800 and 40-160 ng per spot, respectively. The method was validated for precision, robustness and recovery. As the proposed method can effectively separate the drugs from their degradation products, it can be employed as a stability-indicating method.

Synthesis and analytical application of a novel tetradentate N(2)O(2) Schiff base as a chromogenic reagent for determination of nickel in some natural food samples.

A novel sensitive chromogenic reagent, N,N'-bis(3-methylsalicylidene)-ortho-phenylene diamine (MSOPD), has been synthesized and used in the spectrophotometric determination of nickel. At pH 8, MSOPD can react with nickel ion at room temperature to form a 1:1 complex. The apparent molar absorptivity is 9.5x10(4)lmol(-1)cm(-1) at 430nm. Beer's low is obeyed over the range 0-1.0x10(-5)M of nickel with a detection limit of 1.36x10(-8)M. The relative standard deviation for measurement of 3.41x10(-6)M nickel is 1.3% (n=10). The method has successfully been applied to determination of trace amounts of nickel in some natural food samples.

Determination of nickel in natural waters by FAAS after sorption on octadecyl silica membrane disks modified with a recently synthesized Schiff's base.

A simple, highly sensitive, accurate and selective method for the determination of trace amounts of Ni(2+) ions in water samples is proposed. The method is based on the separation and preconcentration of Ni(2+) on an octadecyl-bonded silica (ODBS) membrane disk modified by a recently synthesized Schiff's base N,N'-bis (3-methylsalicylidene) ortho phenylene diamine (MSOPD) at pH 7. The synthesis of this extractant ligand is also described. The retained nickel on the membrane was eluted with 2x5ml 0.5M HNO(3) and measured by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) at 232.0nm. The extraction efficiency and the influence of the type and least amount of eluent for the stripping of Ni(2+) from the disks, pH, flow rates of sample solution and eluent, amount of MSOPD, effect of other ions, and breakthrough volume were evaluated. The maximum capacity of the membrane disks modified by 3mg of MSOPD was found to be 146+/-4mug Ni(2+). The 3sigma limit of detection of the method was 30ng per 1000ml and also an enrichment factor of 250 was obtained. The proposed method has been applied to the determination of nickel in several water samples with satisfactory results.