Jentashapir Journal of Cellular and Molecular Biology
Volume:6 Issue: 6, Dec 2015

Cumulative evidence shows that dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is involved in the depressive disorders and natural or synthetic glucocorticoids have a direct effect on HPA activity. Considering the reports that show zinc deficiency is one of the causes of depressive-like behavior, the current study aimed to examine the effects of systemic injection of zinc chloride (ZnCl2) and/or dexamethasone sodium-phosphate (DEX) on depression in adult male rats. Different groups received ZnCl2 (2.5, 5, 10, and 20 mg/kg) and DEX (0.5, 1, 5, 10, and 30 mg/kg) and then depression was assessed in the forced swimming test (FST). Results showed that DEX 1 significantly increased, while DEX 30 and groups treated with zinc 10 mg/kg and zinc 20 mg/kg decreased total immobility time as compared to that of saline group. Also there was a significant decrease of total immobility time when zinc administered to rats already received DEX 1, compared with that of control group. The current study findings suggest that zinc has antidepressant effects dose dependently, while administration of DEX induced dual effects on depression; therefore, a low dose of DEX showed an increased level of depressive-like behavior while higher doses had antidepressant effects. Also, results showed that zinc administration could ameliorate depressive-like behavior induced via dexamethasone in FST.

Dental composites are popular restorative material. The success of these restorations depends on many factors. The purpose of this study was to investigate the reasons for replacing composite restorations in patients who had referred to Babol dental school during years 2013 and 2014.Patients and Age, sex, type of occlusion, DMF, existing parafunction, type of tooth, class and reason of composite restoration replacement was recorded for patients who had referred to the Babol university of dentistry during years 2013 and 2014. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistical analysis. Among 242 patients, there were 56 (21.3%) males and 186 (70.7%) females. More than half of the patients were aged between 20 and 30 years old (51.7%), and had class Ι dental occlusion (63.1%). The mean DMF was 9.4 ± 2.8. Upper incisors were the most frequent teeth group for replacement of composite restorations, commonly due to secondary caries. Major causes for composite restoration replacement were secondary caries. The most common composite restoration replacements were class II restorations. Secondary caries was the most prevalent cause in class II MO / DO (20 cases (34.4% with secondary caries)). The most common cause of restoration replacement in patients referred to the Babol university of dentistry during years 2013 and 2014 was secondary caries that were found in Class II restorations.

Leptin, that is a marker of fat mass in the body, has an important role in the body total metabolism and glucose homeostasis. This study sought to determine whether subjects’ plasma leptin and glucose level were affected by the type of intensity exercise they carried out. A total of 24 male elite swimmers (Mean age: 25.33, SD: 3.54 y) were randomly assigned into one of two groups: control and training. Study design consisted of pretest, training phase, and the posttest phase (immediately and 24 hours after training). Participants of the training group took part in two training conditions: continuous and intermittent. Serum leptin and glucose were measured in pretest and posttest phases. The results demonstrated that serum leptin and glucose were significantly decreased in intermittent exercise compared to continuous intensity exercise. Furthermore, zero-order correlation indicated significant relationship between serum leptin and glucose in the posttest of intermittent type of intensity exercise. Overall, the results of this study indicate that intermittent exercise reduces the plasma leptin level. In addition, this reduction is significantly correlated to the glucose level in the blood. The continuous exercise was shown to have no effects on the plasma leptin level, and there was no relationship between the glucose and leptin levels.

Inhibiting the effect of aspirin on prostaglandin results in corpus luteum maintenance in pregnant mice. Uterine natural killer (uNK) cells activate between 5 - 7 days of pregnancy. uNK cell differentiation is indirectly regulated by ovarian hormones. Immune cells have important roles in the endometrium at early pregnancy stages. Although low-dose aspirin is effective on ovarian hormones, the effect of low-dose aspirin on the uNK cell population at early pregnancy stages is unknown. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of low-dose aspirin on uNK cells at day seven of pregnancy. Adult female mice were coupled and divided into two groups (control and experimental). Thereafter, mice in the experimental group received 7.5 mg/kg aspirin twice a day for one week. Blood samples were collected for the measurement of the level of ovarian hormones at day seven of pregnancy and finally the animals were sacrificed by cervical dislocation and uterine horns were removed for histological study. Periodic acid-schiff (PAS) staining was performed for uNK cell counting. Data analysis was conducted by SPSS software. The ovarian hormones level showed a significant difference between the experimental and control groups (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the uNK cell population showed a significant difference between the two groups (P < 0.05). Increased ovarian hormones due to low-dose aspirin administration resulted in decline in the uNK cells number, which may be effective in successful pregnancy.

Perfectionism as a personality trait can lead to students depression. It seems that academic rumination in the relationship between perfectionism and depression play a role of mediator in academic settings. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship of positive and negative perfectionism with depressive symptoms mediated by academic rumination.Patients and The sample comprised 368 undergraduate students of Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz in 2011 - 2012 academic year. They were randomly selected by multi-stage sampling method. The data were collected by 3 measures of positive and negative perfectionism scale (PANPS), beck depression inventory-II (BDI- II), and academic rumination inventory (ARI). Preliminary analyses revealed that positive perfectionism was negatively correlated with both depressive symptoms and academic rumination and had a significant negative correlation with negative perfectionism. Also, negative perfectionism was positively correlated with both depressive symptoms and academic rumination. Furthermore, academic rumination was positively correlated with depressive symptoms. The results of path analysis showed academic rumination mediated the relationship of positive and negative perfectionism with depressive symptoms. According to this model, students with high score on negative perfectionism by mechanism of academic rumination report higher depressive symptoms, however students with high score on positive perfectionism report lower depressive symptoms through reduction of ruminative thoughts.

The incidence of the stroke and its associated disorders has a multifactorial nature. Nowadays, researchers are looking for the relationship between circadian variations and the stroke incidence. The current study aimed to compare the incidence of the different types of stroke-induced aphasia in Ahvaz, Iran, on seasonal, diurnal (weekly), and circadian variations.Patients and In this retrospective hospital-based study, the medical records of 1817 patients with stroke were reread in Ahvaz hospitals in 2011. Types of aphasia were diagnosed based on speech and language symptoms in their records. The data were transferred into the SPSS version 16, for statistical comparison. According to the obtained results 39.9% of the studied patients had a stroke-induced aphasia. The highest incidence rates of aphasia due to the stroke in Ahvaz were, in the summer (38.2%), on Saturdays (16.1%), and 21.1% between 8:00 AM to noon. Chi-square test indicated a significant difference between the mentioned times and other time (P < 0.05). It seems that the incidence of different types of stroke-induced aphasia in Ahvaz is influenced by the calendar-temporal changes. According to the findings, to prevent the occurrence of stroke-induced aphasia, necessary counseling should be provided for lifestyle changes.

Endometrial cancer is the most frequent malignancy of the female genital tract. The aim of this study was to evaluate the five-year survival rates, prognostic factors and recurrence patterns of patients with endometrioid type endometrial cancer.Patients and The data for patients with endometrioid-type endometrial cancer (n = 208) who had been treated at the gynecology oncology ward of Vali-e-Asr Hospital of Tehran, Iran, between 1999 and 2009 were analyzed. The mean age at the time of diagnosis was 54 years (range, 28 - 74). Cause-specific survival rates of the entire group were 92%, 87% and 82%, at two, three and five years, respectively. The five-year cause-specific survival rates for grades one, two and three were 98%, 88% and 68%, respectively. Multivariate analysis revealed that age, depth of myometrial invasion, involvement of ovaries, tumor grades and involvement of serosa were significant independent predictors of survival (P = 0.015, 0.001, 0.015, 0.024, and 0.030, respectively). Timely detection of improvements in five-year survival rates might help prevent clinicians and their patients from undue discouragement or depression by outdated and often overly pessimistic survival expectations. It also adds to the value of cancer surveillance as a basis for appropriate public-health decisions.

Anxiety is one the most common psychiatric disorders. Recently, anti-oxidants have been shown to possess anxiolytic properties. The present study aimed to investigate anxiolytic effect of ellagic acid (EA) in mice and its interaction with GABAA receptor. 184 male albino mice (25 - 30 g) were randomly assigned into two subgroups (12 groups in each). In the first set of experiments, to evaluate acute administration of EA (single dose) on anxiety, experimental groups (10 groups, 8 mice per group) were control (received vehicle), EA-treated groups (received ellagic acid, 3, 10, 30 and 100 mg/kg, i.p.), diazepam (DZP)-treated groups (received DZP, 1, 3 and 5 mg/kg, i.p.), Flumazenil (FLZ) + diazepam-treated group (received FLZ, 3 mg/kg and + DPZ, 5 mg/kg, i.p.) and FLZ+EA-treated group (received FLZ, 3 mg/kg and ellagic acid, 30 mg/kg, i.p.). Moreover, in the first set of experiments, to evaluate the effect of chronic administration of EA on anxiety, experimental groups (2 groups, 8 mice per group) were control (received vehicle once a day for 10 days) and EA-treated group (received ellagic acid at the dose of 30 mg/kg, i.p. once a day for 10 days). In the second set of experiments, to evaluate acute (single dose) and chronic (for 10 days) administration of EA on motor activity, animal groupings were similar to the first set of experiment. Elevated plus maze (EPM) and open field tests used to study anxiolytic and motor activity effect of EA, respectively. Statistical analysis was performed by one-way ANOVA and post hoc Tukey’s test. P values less than 0.05 were considered as significant. Acute and chronic application of EA significantly enhanced the number of open arm entries and percentage of time spent in open arm compared with the control (P < 0.05). Pretreatment with flumazenil (FLZ + EA-treated group) significantly decreased the number of open arm entries and percentage of time spent in open arm compared with EA-treated group (only received EA at the dose of 30 mg/kg). Ellagic acid at the dose of 100 mg/kg significantly decreased ambulatory movement compared with the control, while EA at the dose of 30 mg/kg did not affect ambulation. Acute and chronic administration of ellagic acid had anxiolytic property. Also, the most effective dose of ellagic acid was 30 mg/kg. Pretreatment with flumazenil reversed the beneficial effect of ellagic acid and diazepam on anxiety. It is likely that the anxiolytic effect of ellagic acid is largely mediated by activation of GABAA receptor.

Changes in medical education system of country are the main policies of ministry of health. Thus, according to the inside incentives of this system along with other existing developments, this study was conducted to investigate the motivations to choose the field of study among dentistry students of Ahvaz Jundishapur university of medical sciences in March 2015. The aim of this study was to investigate the motivations for choosing the field of study among dental students of Ahvaz Jundishapur university of medical sciences (AJUMS). This cross-sectional descriptive and analytic study was performed on 264 students of professional MD (medidal doctorate) of dentistry in Ahvaz Jundishapur university of medical sciences. Sampling was conducted by the census method and a questionnaire distributed to all students of the dentistry college and nearly 118 students (45 males and 73 females) completed the questionnaires. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, frequency, the percent of frequency, and the Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Mann-Whitney U tests with SPSS software version 21. Results showed that having an independent office, earning high economic income and appropriate social status were the most important motivations for choosing this field of study among the students. It seems that considering to a high rate of unemployment of university graduates and available restrictions of employment in the public and private organizations, applicants tend to enter the dental field because of the reliable and independent income and high social status which can be considered as the most important influential factors for choosing this field of study.

Noise exposure is one of the most important problems in workplaces and general environments. Noise exposures can have both auditory and non-auditory health effects. The aim of this study was to determine the noise exposure levels in oil drilling rig floor and camp facilities in Ahvaz, Iran. This was a cross-sectional study. Environmental and personal noise exposure measurements were carried out by the method established by ISO-9612 with a sound level meter and noise level dosimeter. All the measurements were performed in two parts of an oil drilling rig: the operation area and the camp area. The noise levels in 100 points in the rig area were between 54 - 110 dB. The noise levels were also measured in 38 points in the camp area and ranged between 52 - 100 dB. Our results showed that only 17% of the measured points in the oil drilling rig floor were in safe area; 39% were in caution area and 44% were in danger area. In the camp facilities area, 51% of the points were in safe area, 38% were in caution area and 11% in danger area. The main sources of noise exposure in the rig floor area were power generators.

The most common variation of the axillary components in human is the Langer’s axillary arch (axillopectoral muscle). For the first time, Ramsay in 1795 explained this variation, and in 1864, Langer confirmed this and called it as axillary arch of Langer. During routine dissection, we encountered an aberrant slip of muscle and fascia expanded from latissimus dorsi to pectoralis major. The axillary arch variation is very clinically important, because it may entrap and implicate the neurovascular bundle. Also it is important for surgeons during operation, so they need to be aware of possible presence of such variations.

Muscular subpulmonic stenosis causing right ventricular outflow tract obstruction is an uncommon cardiac disease, especially when first diagnosed in adults. Diagnosis can be challenging when it is minimally symptomatic. We report a 40-year-old man who was referred to cardiology clinic for work-up of dyspnea and a heart murmur found on his physical examination. A transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE) revealed a muscular subpulmonic stenosis and a small perimembranous ventricular septal defect (VSD) with left-to-right shunt and severe right ventricular outflow tract obstruction (RVOT). Right heart catheterization showed an estimated gradient of 75 mmHg across the two chambers due to subpulmonary stenosis. The pressure in the proximal right ventricular chamber was 100/25 mmHg and 25/17 mmHg in the distal chamber. Surgical correction was successfully performed. A postoperative TEE showed no residual gradients across the RVOT. Full echocardiographic examination of the right ventricle, including RVOT is essential for the diagnosis of this disease. Surgical correction appears to be a successful strategy for management of this rare condition in adults.