m. h. karimi

Given the extent to which statistics are used in today’s lives, any misguided utilization of numerical data can be considered a weapon of destruction and harm. Ways by which statistics are misused are known, and knowing them can help with the development of a critical view in regards to statistics. To assess the extent to which the coverage of Statistics in the high school textbooks includes familiarization of students with statistical fallacies, senior high school textbooks on mathematics in all three areas of study were content analyzed to determine the coverage of topics such as inaccurate explanations, unreasonable claims, and misguided relevancies. The findings show that from among the three areas of high school study, the textbooks for the experimental science area, as well as those for the Math & Physics area of study, have the least coverage of statistical fallacies. Given the fact that most of the junior high school graduates attend these two areas when attending high school, it can be expected that in the future most of our high school graduates would lack a critical view of statistics.

Microvascular inflammation characterized by peritubular capillaritis and/or glomerulitis is an evidence of tissue injury and antibody interaction in antibody-mediated rejection (ABMR) of renal allografts. According to the Banff classification, endothelial cell (EC) swelling and leucocyte infiltration characterize glomerulitis.

We evaluated the significance of peritubular capillary (PTC) density, dilatation and EC swelling in early renal allograft biopsies and correlated it with clinicopathological features.

Consecutive, early (<one year) renal allograft indication biopsies over a period of one year were included. PTC density was determined by analysing the average CD31-positive PTCs per tubule and per ten 20x microscopic field by image analysis. PTC capillary dilatation and EC swelling was recorded

27 of the 95 graft biopsies from 75 recipients were diagnosed as ABMR/mixed rejection. The mean PTCs per ten 20x field and per tubule in graft biopsies with ABMR were 144±5 and 2.7±0.38 respectively. The mean PTCs/ten 20x fields and per tubule did not show significant correlation with age, C4d positivity and presence of donor specific antibodies (DSA). PTC dilatation and endothelial cell swelling correlated significantly with peritubular capillaritis and DSA.

Our results show that PTC dilatation and PTC-endothelial cell swelling are associated with peritubular capillaritis and are additional morphological features of active ABMR, especially useful in the diagnosis of C4d-negative ABMR.

Microgrids as the local area power systems are changing the power system landscape due to their potential of offering a viable solution for integrating renewable energy resources into the main grid. From the operational point of view, microgrids should have the appropriate power electronic interfaces, control schemes, as well as monitoring and automation infrastructures to provide the required flexibility and meet the related IEEE 1547 standard requirements. This paper describes some of the efforts made in the smart microgrid educational laboratory to provide these facilities and create a real-world conditions needed to conduct researches and teach the related courses. Laboratory works not only increase the practical skills of the students but also can motivate them to pursue theoretical courses with more passion. The introduced facilities are somehow unique for the integration of both electric and communication infrastructures which overcome the shortcomings of not considering data transfer challenges in the studies. Complete hardware design of power plant components, and incorporation of solar photovoltaic (PV) and two types of wind turbine generations are some of the efforts made to bring the real-world conditions in the laboratory. In the load-related side, dynamic behaviors of the various types of motors are modeled.

The wind turbines (WTs) with doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) have active and reactive power as well as electromagnetic torque oscillations, rotor over-current and DC-link over-voltage problems under grid faults. Solutions for these problems presented in articles can be classified into three categories: hardware protection devices, software methods, and combination of hardware and software techniques.

Conventional protection devices used for fault ride through (FRT) capability improvement of grid-connected DFIG-based WTs impose difficulty in rotor side converter (RSC) controlling, causing failure to comply with grid code requirements. Hence, the main idea in this paper is to develop a novel coordinated model predictive control (MPC) for the power converters without need to use any auxiliary hardware. Control objectives are defined to maintain DC-link voltage, rotor current as well as electromagnetic torque within permissible limits under grid fault conditions by choosing the best switching state so as to meet and exceed FRT requirements. Model predictive current and electromagnetic torque control schemes are implemented in the RSC. Also, model predictive current and DC-link voltage control schemes are applied to grid side converter (GSC).

To validate the proposed control method, simulation studies are compared to conventional proportional-plus-integral (PI) controllers and sliding mode control (SMC) with pulse-width modulation (PWM) switching algorithm. In different case studies comprising variable wind speeds, single-phase fault, DFIG parameters variations, and severe voltage dip, the rotor current and DC-link voltage are respectively restricted to 2 pu and 1.2 times of DC-link rated voltage by the proposed MPC-based approach. The maximum peak values of DC-link voltage are 1783, 1463 and 1190 V by using PI control, SMC and the proposed methods, respectively. The maximum peak values of rotor current obtained by PI control, SMC and the proposed strategies are 3.23, 3.3 and 1.95 pu, respectively. Also, PI control, SMC and the proposed MPC methods present 0.8, 0.4 and 0.14 pu, respectively as the maximum peak values of electromagnetic torque.

The proposed control schemes are able to effectively improve the FRT capability of grid-connected DFIG-based WTs and keep the values of DC-link voltage, rotor current and electromagnetic torque within the acceptable limits. Moreover, these schemes present fast dynamic behavior during grid fault conditions due to modulator-free capability of the MPC method. The author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, as long as the original authors and source are cited. No permission is required from the authors or the publishers.

Among educational philosophies and approaches, the social reconstruction philosophy with a futuristic approach can be helpful in overcoming the challenges that Iranian education will be facing in the near future, as it can predict the future based on the rapid developments and changes occurring at present. From this perspective, a positive outlook on the future can help clarifying the goals and orientations of a society. Alvin Toffler, a futurist, has a comprehensive and multidimensional look at the future of the world with implications for educational systems. To clarify the extent to which the future of Iranian educational system, as portrayed in the Islamic Republic’s developmental plans, meets the demands of this perspective, a content analysis of related documents, especially the Fundamental Reformation of Education Act, was undertaken. Results show that in these documents extensive emphasis is put on finding meaning, correct knowledge of values, and strengthening family, while a futuristic look at strengthening personal capabilities such as thinking skills, decision making capability, media literacy, and the teaching of environmental skills is absent. Furthermore, future cultural necessities such as pluralism, cultural differences, and citizenship education need to be emphasized further.

Cytokines have regulatory crosstalk with CMV infection leading to manage of post-liver transplantation virus-related outcomes.

To investigate the link between IL-21, IL-23 and IL-27 mRNA and protein level with active CMV infection, which was evaluated in reactivated and non-reactivated liver transplant recipients.

Two groups of liver transplant recipients were enrolled in this study—54 without and 15 with active CMV infection. 3 EDTA-treated blood samples were taken on day 1, 4, and 7 post-liver transplantation. Plasma and buffy coats of all samples were separated. All samples were analyzed for CMV reactivation using antigenemia technique. The separated plasma of positive samples was used for viral DNA extraction and protein evaluation. For evaluating the mRNA expression level by real-time PCR, RNA extraction and cDNA synthesis were done for all samples. Also, the protein level of studied genes was estimated by ELISA.

The expression level of IL-21, IL-23A and IL-27A cytokine genes was increased in CMV reactivated liver transplant recipients in comparison with CMV non-reactivated ones; IL-27A expression pattern was significant (p=0.001) at all sampling times. IL-21 significantly increased on the 2nd and 3rd (p=0.028 and 0.01, respectively) sampling days in CMV reactivated compared with non-reactivated patients. The expression level of IL-23A cytokine significantly increased on the 3rd (p=0.017) sampling day in CMV reactivated compared with non-reactivated liver transplant recipients.

Elevation in the expression level of IL-21, IL-23A and IL-27A mRNA and protein level in CMV reactivated patien

Cytokines are important factors determining the outcome of transplantation. The host ability in cytokine production may be affected by cytokine genes polymorphisms. To investigate the effect of IL-12 and TNF-α gene polymorphisms on outcome of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. 90 bone marrow transplant recipients were included in this study. 30 (33%) of 90 recipients experienced graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). IL-12 and TNF-α gene polymorphisms were evaluated by PCR-RFLP and ARMS-PCR method, respectively. No significant difference in the distribution of IL-12 (rs3212227 +1188 A/C) and TNF-α (rs 1800629 -308 G/A) genotypes and alleles was observed between those with and without GVHD. There was no significant association between the distribution of genotypes and the recipient sex. IL-12 (rs3212227 +1188 A/C) and TNF-α (rs 1800629-308 G/A) genotypes and alleles were not risk factors for development of GVHD.

Interferon regulatory factors (IRFs) can play a critical role in the regulation of many facets of innate and adaptive immune responses through transcriptional activation of type I interferons, other proinflammatory cytokines, and chemokines. However, their roles in transplantation immunity still remain to be elucidated.
To evaluate the time course of mRNA expression of all 9 members of IRFs family of transcription factors during liver allograft acute rejection.
Blood samples of 19 patients with autoimmune hepatitis receiving liver transplants were collected on days 1, 3, 5, and 7 post-transplantation. The patients were followed for 6 months after transplantation and divided into two groups of acute rejection (AR) (n=4) and non-acute rejection (non-AR) (n=15).
All of the studied transcription factors were down-regulated in AR-group on days 3, 5, and 7 post-transplantation compared to non-AR group. The mean±SEM IRF5 on day 7 post-transplantation was significantly (p=0.005) lower in AR-group than in non-AR group (0.7±0.21 vs. 1.91±0.27, respectively); expression of other IRFs family members was not significantly different between the two groups on days 3, 5, and 7 post-transplantation.
IRF5 may have an important role during the acute rejection of liver transplants.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent cells with immunomodulatory effect on immune cells including dendritic cells (DCs). DCs are the most potent antigen-presenting cells (APC). MSCs have been found to modulate both differentiation and function of DCs. DCs express a broad range of Tolllike receptors (TLR), which play a critical role in DCs maturation and function.
To evaluate expression level of TLR3 and TLR9 transcripts in DCs following treatment with MSCs supernatant.
MSCs and DCs were derived from adult BALB/c mice bone marrow and spleen, respectively. MSCs supernatant was harvested following 24, 48, and 72 hours. Isolated DCs were treated with MSCs supernatant and incubated for 24 and 48 hours. TLR3 and TLR9 transcript levels were evaluated using real-time PCR.
The results showed that 48 and 72 hours MSCs supernatant significantly decreased the expression of TLR3 in DCs following 24 and 48 hours incubation in comparison with untreated cells (p TLR3 and TLR9 mRNA expression decreases in DCs after incubation with MSCs culture supernatant. This confirms the immunomodulatory role of MSCs in cell-base therapy.

Acute rejection is the main problem in liver transplantation that occurs in the first days or months of transplantation. It includes histological and cellular rejection. Acute histological rejection is confirmed by biopsy. Glutathione S-transferase family is the most important genes in phase II detoxification working in xenobiotic and drug metabolism. GSTO2 is one of the members of this family. GSTO2 (N142D) polymorphism may influence metabolism of immunosuppressive drugs.
To determine if GSTO2 polymorphism has association with acute liver rejection.
The present study included 120 patients with histological-proven acute liver rejection and 182 patients without acute rejection. Both groups were matched for sex and age. To determine variants of GSTO2, we used polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP).
There was a significant association between the GSTO2 genotype and acute liver rejection (NN: OR: 3.642, 95% CI: 1.179–5.444) and (ND: OR: 2.533, 95% CI: 1.672–8.149) compared to those with DD geneotype.
Recipients with either NN or ND genotype for GSTO2 are more likely to develop acute liver rejection compared to those with DD genotype.

Pancreatic duodenal homeobox1 (PDX-1) is a transcription factor that is important in regulating pancreas development and maintaining β-cell function. β-cell replacement is an effective approach for the treatment of type 1 diabetes. Human adipose-mesenchymal stem cells (hAMSCs) are the ideal population cells for differentiating into insulin-producing cells. To determine if islet-like cell aggregates production could be generated from hAMSCs by lentiviral overexpression of PDX-1. After isolation of hAMSCs, characteristics of these cells were identified by flow-cytometic analysis and multilineage differentiation studies. PDX-1 gene delivered into hAMSCs through lentiviral vector for differentiating hAMSCs into insulin-producing cells (IPCs) at the utilized protocol for 14 days. Characteristics of IPCs were evaluated by immunocytofluorescence, dithizone staining, and quantitative reverse transcription PCR. In response to high glucose medium, insulin release was detected by chemiluminescence enzyme immunoassay. The islet-like cell aggregates appeared about 10 days after introduction of PDX-1 into hAMSCs. PDX-1 induced its own expression (auto-induction), a number of islet-related genes such as Ngn3, Nkx2- 2, and insulin. The insulin-positive cells were detected in the PDX-1 transduced cells. In response to glucose challenge test, secretion of insulin hormone in the medium with high glucose concentration significantly increased in the PDX-1-transduced cells related to medium with low glucose concentration. Introduction of lentiviral PDX-1 significantly induces hAMSCs to differentiate into islet-like cell aggregates, which may provide a source of adipose stem cells-derived insulin-producing cells for cell replacement therapy in type 1 diabetes.

Liver is an exclusive anatomical and immunological organ that displays a considerable tolerance effect. Liver allograft acceptance is shown to occur spontaneously within different species. Although in human transplant patients tolerance is rarely seen, the severity level and cellular mechanisms of transplant rejection vary. Non-paranchymal liver cells, including Kupffer cells, liver sinusoidal endothelial cells, hepatic stellate cells, and resident dendritic cells may participate in liver tolerogenicity. The mentioned cells secret anti-inflammatory cytokines such as TGF-β and IL-10 and express negative co-stimulatory molecules like PD-L1 to mediate immunosuppression. Other mechanisms such as microchimerism, soluble major histocompatibility complex and regulatory T cells may take part in tolerance induction. Understanding the mechanisms involved in liver transplant rejection/tolerance helps us to improve therapeutic options to induce hepatic tolerance.

Cytokines and co-stimulatory molecules are important factors determining the outcome of transplantation. To investigate the effect of IL-18 and CD40 gene polymorphisms on the outcome of liver transplantation. 150 liver transplant recipients were included in this study. Alleles and genotypes frequencies for IL-18 (rs1946519) and CD40 (rs1883832) were determined in 28 acutely rejected (AR group) and 122 non-acutely rejected (non-AR group) liver transplant recipients. IL-18 and CD40 gene polymorphisms were evaluated by PCR-RFLP methods. There were no significant associations between IL-18 and CD40 polymorphism with acute rejection in liver transplant patients. IL-18TT and TG genotypes had a significant association with rejection in women compared to men. After grouping the liver recipients according to living vs cadaver donors, a significant association was found between CC genotype of CD40 and rejection in male living donor recipients. IL-18 TG genotype had a significant association with rejection in female cadaver donor recipients. There is no correlation between all genotype and alleles of IL-80 and CD40 polymorphism and the outcome of liver transplantation. However, gender and type of donor affect the correlation between all genotype and alleles of IL-18 and CD40, and the outcome of liver transplantation.

Patients undergoing renal transplantation consume immunosuppressive drugs to prevent graft rejection. Cardiovascular complications and reduced quality of sleep are among the side effects of these drugs. Studies have indicated that the use of non-therapeutic methods such as exercise is important to reduce these complications. To evaluate the effect of a period of exercise training, as a non-therapeutic method, on quality and quantity of sleep and lipid profile in renal transplant patients. 44 renal transplant recipients were selected to participate in the study and randomized into exercise (n=29) and control (n=15) groups. The exercise group participated in a cumulative exercise program 3 days a week for 10 weeks in 60–90-minute exercise sessions. Control group subjects did not participate in any regular exercise activity during this period. Sleep quality of the subjects was evaluated using Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire; the sleep quantity was assessed by recording the duration of convenient nocturnal sleep of the subjects. Physiological sleep-related variables (serum triglyceride [TG], and total, high-density lipoprotein [HDL], and low-density lipoprotein [LDL] cholesterol) were measured before and after 10 weeks of exercise training. In exercise training group, sleep quality of the subjects was improved by 27%; the sleep quantity was increased by 30 minutes (p<0.05). TG, cholesterol and LDL values were significantly (p<0.05) decreased after 10 weeks of exercise training in the exercise group compared to the control group, however, no change was observed in serum HDL level in exercise group compared to the control. There was also a significant (p=0.05) difference in sleep quality and quantity between control and exercise groups. However, there was no correlation between changing quality and quantity of sleep with sleep-related physiological factors. 10 weeks of exercise activity improved the quality and quantity of sleep as well as a number of sleep-related physiological parameters in renal transplant recipients, and would be an effective approach to treat sleep-related disorders in renal transplant recipients.

The important role of co-stimulatory molecules in immunological responses has been clearly demonstrated. With the development of new methods in molecular immunology, preventing the co-stimulatory signals in order to induce tolerance has emerged as a novel strategy. RNA interference is a new method that can specifically and effectively reduce target gene expression. In this study, we used a lentiviral system to target the expression of CD40 gene in dendritic cells. ShRNA sequence is able to reduce the expression of CD40 gene on murine dendritic cells. Our results indicate 64-fold decreased expression of CD40 mRNA in the group receiving lentiviral shRNACD40 as well as 31% decrease in expression of CD40 protein on the surface of dentridic cells (p<0.0001). Also, dendritic cells cannot stimulate T cells upon contact with them. This study indicates that a decrease in expression of CD40 molecule induces tolerogenic dendritic cells and prevents Th1 immunological response. Prevention of Th1 response would shift the immunological responses to Th2 response, and this type of response can be effective in autoimmune diseases including rheumatoid arthritis and type I diabetes. References 1- Groux H, Fournier N, Cottrez F. Role of dendritic cells in the generation of regulatory T cells. Sem in Immunol. 2004; 16: 99-106. 2- Kanako L, Reizis L, Reizis B. Dendritic Cells: Arbiters of Immunity and Immunological Tolerance. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Biol. 2012; 4: a007401. Avalable from: www.cshperspectives.org. 3- Morel PA. Dendritic cell subsets in type1diabetes: friend or foe? Frontiers in Immunol. 2013; 4. Avalable from: http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1155/ 2013/972865. 4- Machen J, Harnaha JO, Lakomy R, Styche A, Trucco M, Giannoukakis N. Antisense oligonucleotides down-regulating costimulation confer diabetes-preventive properties to nonobese diabetic mouse dendritic cells. The J Immunol. 2004; 173: 4331-41. 5- Maldonado R, Andrian UH. How tolerogenic dendritic cells induce regulatory T cells. Adv Immunol. 2010; 108: 111-165. 6- Peters AL, Stunz LL, Bishop GA. CD40 and autoimmunity: the dark side of a great activator. Sem Immunol. 2009; 21: 293-300. 7- Li L, Wang H, Wang B. Anergic cells generated by blocking CD28 and CD40 costimulatory pathways in vitro ameliorate collagen induced arthritis. Cell Immunol. 2008; 254: 39-45. 8- Zheng X, Suzuki M, Zhang Z, et al. RNAi-mediated CD40-CD154 interruption promotes tolerance in autoimmune arthritis. Arth Res & Ther. 2010; 12: R13. 9- Pletinckx K, Dohler A, Pavlovic V, Lutz M.B. Role of dendritic cells maturity/ costimulation for generation, homeaostasis and suppressive activity of regulatory T cells. Fronties in Immunol. 2011; 2: 7-22. 10- Gavrilov K, Saltzman WM. Therapeutic siRNA: Principles, challenges and strategies. Yale J Biol Med. 2012; 85(2): 187-200. 11- Manjunath N, Wu H, Subramanya S, Shankar P. Lentiviral delivery of short hairpin RNAs. Adv Drug Delivery Rev. 2009; 61: 732-45. 12- Inaba K, Inaba M, Romani M, et al. Generation of large numbers of dendritic cells from mouse bone marrow cultures supplemented with GM-CSF. J Exp Med. 1992; 176: 1693-702. 13- Virus packaging protocol. Stem Cell Biotechnology Research Center protocol, Iran. 2013. Avalable from: www.stemcellstech. com/index.php/fa/. 14- Muller G, Muller A, Jonuleit H. Fetal calf serum –free generation of functionally active murine dendritic cells suitable for invivo therapeutic approaches. J Inv Dermatol. 2000; 114: 142-8. 15- Marin-Gallen S, Clemente-Casares X, Planas R, et al. Dendritic cells pulsed with antigen-specific apoptotic bodies prevent experimental type 1 diabetes. Clin and Exp Immunol. 2009; 160: 207-14. 16- Hasse C, Ejrnaes M, Juedes AE, Wolf T. Immunomodulatory dendritic cells require autologous serum to circumvent nonspecific immunosuuressive activity in vivo. Blood. 2005; 106: 4225-33. 17- Feili-Hariri M, Dong X, Alber SM, Watkins SC, Salter RD, Morel PA. Immunotherapy of NOD mice with bone marrow–derived dendritic cells. Diabetes. 1999; 48: 2300-08. 18- Karimi MH, Ebadi P, Pourfathollah AA, et al. Immune modulation through RNA interference-mediated silencing of CD40 in dendritic cells. Cellular Immunol. 2009; 259: 74-81. 19- Mei S, Jin-Dong LI, Rui J, et al. Construction and characterization of lentiviral shRNA expression vector targeting rat CD40 gene in dendritic cells. Chem Res. 2009; 25(5): 666-72. 20- Jantsch J, Turza N, Volke M, et al. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) delivery into murine bone marrow-derived dendritic cells by electroporation. J of Immunological Methods. 2008; 337: 71-7. 21- Giannoukakis N, Trucco M. Dendritic cell therapy for type 1 diabetes suppression. Immunother. 2012; 4(10): 1-12. 22- Giannoukakis N. Tolerogenic dendritic cells for type 1 diabetes. Immunother. 2013; 5(6): 1-3. 23- Lee CN, Lew AM, Wu L. The potential role of dendritic cells in the therapy of Type1 diabetes. Immunother. 2013; 5(6): 591-606.

Adenovector gene transfer induces inflammatory response that finally leads to vector removal from delivered site. The effect of hydrodynamic pre-injection on Adenovector mediated liver inflammation remained elusive. Different mice groups were pre-treated by hydrodynamic saline, dexamethasone or nothing prior to Adeno-Luciferase administration. Their samples were collected in 18 hours later and serum IL-1β level as a marker of inflammation was quantified. Also, liver histological assessment was performed to score the inflammatory grade. Results and In spite of dexamethasone group, both hydrodynamic/Ad-Luc and Ad-Luc receiving groups induced the expression of IL-1β cytokine (p<0.05). The pathological views also indicated more inflammation and necrosis inside the different zones of liver tissue in these two adenovector injected groups. These results emphasized that Adenovector served as a suitable inflammatory model and hydrodynamic injection enhances this kind of inflammation.

Liver transplantation is the treatment of choice for both acute and chronic hepatic failure. GSTs family is one of the most important genes in phase II detoxification interfering with the xenobiotics and free radical metabolism. GSTO2 (N142D) is a member of this family the polymorphism of which may influence the metabolism of active components and free radicals and may contribute to hepatic failure. To investigate the association between GSTO2 genetic polymorphism and the susceptibility of hepatic failure that would lead to liver transplantation. This case-control study included 330 healthy people and 302 patients with liver transplantation as a result of hepatic failure. To determine the variants of GSTO2, we used polymerase chain reactionrestriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method. There was a significant association between D allele and hepatic failure, thus, people with DD genotype are more susceptible to develop heaptic failure leading to liver transplantation (OR=1.8, 95% CI: 1.10–2.95). We also observed that male sex increases the chance of hepatic failure (OR=2.69, 95% CI: 1.95–3.71). D allele may reduce the detoxification ability of liver so people with mutant D allele are more prone to develop hepatic failure.

Co-stimulatory molecules play a critical role in regulating T-cell function during CMV infection after liver transplantation. To investigate the relationship between the polymorphisms of the co-stimulatory genes and the susceptibility to CMV infection after liver transplantation. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in PD-1 gene (PD1.1 A/G, PD1.3 A/G, PD1.9 C/T) ICOS (-693 A/G, 1720 C/T), CTLA-4 gene (‑318 C/T, 1722 T/C, 1661 A/G, 49 A/G) and CD28 (+17 C/T) were analyzed by PCR-RFLP in 70 liver transplant patients. CMV infection was determined in these patients by antigenemia test. CTLA-4 49G showed significant association with CMV infection (p=0.03, OR=3.82, 95% CI: 0–3.5; p=0.01, OR=004, 95% CI: 0–1.3). G and T alleles in CTLA-4 gene (‑318 C/T and 1661 A/G) (p=0.03, OR=0, 95% CI: 0–3.5; p=0.01, OR=0.04, 95% CI: 0–1.3) were significantly higher in CMV-infected rejector group. CTLA-4 have significant role in CMV pathogenesis and rejection among CMV-positive liver transplant patients.

Pathogenesis of neonatal hepatitis relates to various underlying causes including viral infections. Both hepatotropic and non-hepatotropic viruses may induce liver failures in infants before birth, during delivery, or shortly after birth. The tissue impact of HCMV, HSV, HBV, HCV, and rotavirus and adenovirus infections was evaluated in studied infants with neonatal hepatitis. The history of viral infections was analyzed in paraffin-embedded biopsy and autopsy tissues of 22 infants with neonatal hepatitis between years 1996 and 2007, retrospectively. The tissue molecular presentation of HBV, HCV, HCMV, HSV, adenovirus, and rotavirus was evaluated by different qualitative simple and nested PCR and RT-PCR protocols. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) method was used for studying the antigenic prevalence of HSV-1, 2; HBV, HCMV and adenovirus infections. Also the laboratory liver indices of all patients with neonatal hepatitis were analyzed. The HBV and HSV genomes were detected in 3 (14%) of 22 infants. The rotavirus and HCV-RNA and also the HCMV-DNA were detected separately in 1 (4%) of 26 paraffin-embedded autopsy and biopsy tissues. The HBV and HSV-1 specific antigens were separately diagnosed in 1 (4%) of 26 neonatal samples by IHC protocols. Also the HSV-2 antigen was seen in 5 (23%) of 22 liver autopsy and biopsy specimens. Co-infections with HCMV, HSV, HBV, HCV, and rotavirus were detected in these infants with hepatitis. Diagnosis of single and mixed molecular and antigenic traces of HCMV, HSV, HBV, HCV and rotavirus underlines the etiologic role of these viruses in clinical pathogenesis of neonatal hepatitis.

The aim of the present study was to cephalometric evaluation of facial soft tissue facial profile for 16-21 years old students of Kerman with normal occlusion.Methods and Materials: In this cross-sectional study, we utilized 59 lateral cephalometric radiographs of 30 girls and 29 boys with mean age of 17.1 years and normal occlusion from Kerman department of orthodontics. Four angular and 10 linear measurements from Holdaway,Ricketts and Subtenly analyses were used to evaluate soft tissue profile. Mean values were utilizedto compare girls and boys with each other and with similar studies by t-test using SPSS 12 (α =0.05). In comparison of girls with boys, soft tissue facial angle, no to H-line and upper lip to Eline were significantly increased in Kermanian girls compared with Kermanian boys; while in boys, upper lip thickness and inferior sulcus to H-line were larger (p<0.05).When comparing with Holdaway soft tissue norms,6 values in boys and 5 values in girls were significantly different. In addition, position of lips and facial convexity showed significant difference with Ricketts and Subtenly norms. Kermanian boys differ from Kermanian girls in an increased lip thickness and more retruded position of chin. In comparison with Holdaway norms, Kermanians have more convex face and thicker chin.

One of the valuable tools for inhibiting the specific gene expression is antisense technique. To determine T cell responses, co-stimulatory molecule expression on the antigen presenting cells is important. In the present study, the effects of high affinity antisense against CD40 mRNA on the function and phenotype of DCs (dendritic cells) were investigated. The DCs were separated from the mice spleens and then cultured in vitro. By means of lipofectamine 2000, the antisense was delivered into the cells and the efficacy of transfection was estimated by flow cytometry. Also, the mRNA expression and protein synthesis were assessed by real time PCR and flow cytometry, respectively. The DCs were transfected with 6 μM antisense and 2 μl lipofectamine 2000. The percentage of CD40 expression in DCs was 38%. The results showed that CD40 expression is reduced in DCs to 22% and 24%. By annexine V and propidium iodine staining, we could evaluate the viability of the transfected cells. The inhibition of CD40 gene expression was associated with the increase in IL-4 secretion. This shifted the DCs to stimulate Th2 cytokine production from the allogenic T cells. In addition, in the MLR, the DCs without CD40 expression showed poor allostimulatory effects. This finding is valuable in the study of the costimulatory molecules of DCs. These data demonstrate that direct interference of the cell surface expression of CD40 at transcriptional level by antisense confers tolerogenecity potential of DCs. This approach is a useful tool through which DCs become tolerogenic and can be studied as a potential therapeutic option for the autoimmune diseases and allograft rejection.