Gene, Cell and Tissue
Volume:10 Issue: 3, Jul 2023

Context:

 Since most scientists tend to investigate live biological samples, there is inadequate data on efficient molecular techniques for the anthropological sciences. In this short review, multiple methods were mentioned and compared to provide a brief insight into the application of genomics and proteomics on the post-mortal specimen.

Evidence Acquisition: 

Through the use of proper keywords, the PubMed and Elsevier databases were selected for acquiring relevant articles.

 During cell death, DNA and proteins degenerate, hence, it is difficult to perform molecular assessments efficiently. Fortunately, with the aid of novel techniques, including uracil-N-glycosylase (UNG) and N-phenacylthiazolium bromide (PTB), we could partly recover the damaged DNA, and by applying PTB-DTT and Qiagen kit, we could analyze the remaining DNA with high efficiency. Nevertheless, there are countless gene sites for molecular studies, and the hypervariable region I (HVRI) of the D-loop in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y chromosome microsatellites (Y-STRs) are two potential sites for anthropological studies. Finally, we could utilize proteomics in the remaining mineralization samples of a corpse to study protein variation and different phenotypes in human beings.

 Genomics and proteomics are two domains of molecular studies in which we can gather useful information about the events which occur in a cell over time. These domains give us data about the Archeological and Anthropological sciences.

Context: 

In the last few years, humanity has faced one of the most twisted pandemics in history. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on people’s lives during its outbreak, especially on people with underlying diseases such as diabetes. This study reviewed diabetes care during the COVID-19 outbreak to facilitate diabetes management during the coronavirus outbreak and promote the survival of these patients in this global pandemic.

 This work was done as a study on diabetes and coronavirus. Scopus, PubMed, and Web of Science databases were searched on January 20, 2021.

 Studies demonstrated that diabetes is not the leading cause of comorbidity or ultimate cause of mortality or morbidity of COVID-19 disease, as mentioned above.

 This review study concluded that with the peak of the coronavirus, diabetes management is critical. Besides, providing conditions to maintain the health of diabetic patients by informing them and communicating effectively with healthcare personnel is of great importance.

Context: 

The SLC6A4 gene encodes the serotonin transporter. Mutations in this gene can lead to various diseases, such as diabetes. Diabetes is one of the most common metabolic disorders with a genetic background. This review study evaluated the role of SLC6A4 gene polymorphisms in the risk of diabetes.

Evidence Acquisition:

 In this review article, a literature search was conducted in scientific databases, including Google Scholar and PubMed, to find studies published within 2000 to 2021 on the role of SLC6A4 gene polymorphisms on the risk of diabetes.

 Some genetic and environmental factors are involved in the development of diabetes. Additionally, the association between diabetes and disorder in different genes has been investigated in numerous studies. The discovery of these genetic changes in diabetes might shed light on the functional role of genetic mutations in the development of diabetes.

 Further genomic research is needed to determine the possible role of SLC6A4 gene polymorphisms in diabetes and obesity.

 Chemotherapy drugs can cause liver damage by causing hepatotoxicity.

 This study aimed to determine the interactive effect of continuous training and Crocin supplementation on hepatocyte apoptosis in male rats induced by doxorubicin.

 In this experimental study, 40 Wistar rats were randomly assigned to: (1) healthy, (2) doxorubicin (Dox), (3) Dox + crocin (Cr), (4) Dox + continuous training (CT), and (5) Dox + CT + Cr. Group 1 received normal saline daily; groups 2 to 5 received (7 × 2 mg/kg) Dox intraperitoneal; groups 3 and 5 received 10 mg/kg crocin orally on a daily basis, and groups 4 and 5 were trained 5 days/week (60 - 70 of maximum speed) for 8 weeks.

 The Dox group had the highest mean percentage of apoptotic hepatocytes (64.33 ± 6.02) compared to other groups (P < 0.05). In contrast, tissue apoptosis was significantly reduced (P < 0.05) in all intervention groups: Dox + CT (30.67 ± 4.04%), Dox + Cr (18 ± 2.64%), and Dox + CT + Cr (13.67 ± 1.52%); however, the improvement was greater in the group receiving crocin.

 Continuous training, Cr, and their combination significantly reduced hepatocyte apoptosis in male rats exposed to Dox-induced toxicity. However, a greater reduction in liver tissue apoptosis was recorded for the Crocin-treated groups.

Women worldwide are concerned about breast cancer, resulting in high mortality and morbidity.

In this research, to investigate the function of Taxol, Vinblastine, and Vincristine on the MCF-7 cell line, different concentration levels (10, 20, 40, 80, 160, and 320 µmol/mL) of the drugs were examined. Taxolwas also used in combination with Vinblastine and Vincristine.

The examined compounds were applied to the cells for 48 h. The MTT test was employed for assessing cytotoxicity, and the nonlinear regression method was run to estimate the values of IC50 (half maximal inhibitory concentration) values.

It was found that taxol + vincristine, taxol, and vinblastine treatments with concentrations of 41.45, 64.46, and 67.12 µmol/mL resulted in the best 50% inhibitory effect. The lowest effective concentration that had significant effects on cancer cells was vinblastine (160 µmol/mL), taxol + vincristine (80 µmol/mL), taxol (80 µmol/mL), taxol + vinblastine (80 µmol/mL), and vincristine (40 µmol/mL), respectively (P < 0.05).

From the results of the current study, a synergistic reaction was found between taxol and vincristine based on calculated CI values.

 Colorectal cancer is the most common malignancy in humans, and it is predicted that 145,600 new cases will be diagnosed in the United States by 2019. The bioactive properties of curcuminoids and their synthetic analogs, especially their performance with an anticancer approach in different cancer cell line models, are of interest. In vivo and in vitro studies show their anticancer activity against colon cancer cell lines.

 In this descriptive-analytical study, colorectal cancer cells of the Caco2 cell line were cultured in DMEM medium containing 10% FBS at 37°C and 5% CO2. After calculating the IC 50, the cells were exposed to logarithmic concentrations of curcumin (curcumin) 10, 100, and 500 µg/mL for 24 hours. Finally, the effect of the toxicity of materials and low-power laser combined with melanin was measured by the MTT assay test.

 The changes in the survival rate of colorectal cancer cells show the effect of curcumin on cell proliferation that is completely dependent on concentration and time. Calculating the survival percentage of cancer cells after treatment with different concentrations for 24, 48, and 72 hours showed that the decrease in viable cells compared to the control sample was significant (P < 0.001).

 The results showed that the use of curcumin either alone or together with a low-power laser could improve the treatment efficiency against colon cancer. The present review highlights the mechanism of synergistic effect and new delivery methods to improve curcumin's therapeutic potential.

 Inorganic arsenic (As) has destructive effects on the kidneys. The exact mechanism and effects of Tribulus terrestris (TT) and endurance training (ET) on renal apoptosis and oxidative stress are not quite clear.

 The effects of ET and TT on apoptotic markers and oxidative stress were examined in the kidney tissue of rats, poisoned with As.

 In total, 49 rats were randomly allocated to seven groups: (1) control; (2) As (68 mg/L/day for 8 weeks); (3) As + 5 mg/kg TT (As + TT5); (4) As + 10 mg/kg TT (As + TT10); (5) As + ET (running on a treadmill, five sessions each week, for eight weeks); (6) As + ET + 5 mg/kg TT (As + ET + TT5); and (7) As + ET + 10 mg/kg TT (As + ET + TT10). At the end of 8 weeks, the rats were sacrificed and levels of cytochrome-C (Cyt-C), malondialdehyde (MDA), O-6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT), and prooxidant-antioxidant balance (PAB) in their kidney tissues were measured.

 Renal Cyt-C, MDA, PAB, and MGMT decreased by ET (P≤0.05). ATP levels increased in TT5, TT10, ET + TT5, and ET + TT10 groups (P ≤ 0.05), while Cyt-C, MDA, PAB, and MGMT decreased in these four groups (P ≤ 0.05). Reduction of Cyt-C, MDA, PAB, and MGMT was greater in TT10 than in TT5 group and in ET + TT10 than in ET + TT5 group (P ≤ 0.05).

 ET and TT, synergistically and/or alone, reduced oxidative stress and apoptotic markers in the kidney tissues of rats. A dose-dependent effect was observed for TT.

 Nephropathy is one of the most common microvascular complications of diabetes. Type 2 diabetic patients with subclinical hypothyroidism are associated with a high prevalence of diabetic nephropathy.

 This study aims to investigate the effect of thyroid hormones on diabetic nephropathy in type 2 diabetic patients referred to Ahvaz hospitals in 2017.

 In this case-control study, 200 diabetic patients (100 with nephropathy and 100 without nephropathy) referred to Ahvaz hospitals were randomly selected. After sampling, biochemical parameters such as fasting blood sugar, BUN, creatinine, uric acid, calcium, and phosphorus were measured. Then, thyroid hormones and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) hormones were measured by the quantitative luminescence method.

 Thyroid hormones in the patient group were lower than in the control group (P < 0.001). The concentration of TSH in the patient group was higher than in the control group (P < 0.001). Thyroid hormones were negatively and significantly related, and TSH hormone was positively and significantly related to kidney assessment markers. Other results showed that increased TSH and decreased thyroid hormones could increase the risk of developing diabetic nephropathy. So that the T3 hormone was associated with diabetic nephropathy with a greater effect (0.000002 - 0.001057) (CI) = 0.000048 = Odds ratio T3 hormone at 0.73 ng/mL levels has a diagnostic value with a sensitivity of 83% and the specificity was 84% for the differentiation of nephropathy in diabetic patients.

 The results of this study showed that an increase in TSH hormone and a decrease in thyroid hormones could increase the chance of developing diabetic nephropathy. The T3 hormone is more effective with diabetic nephropathy, and with high diagnostic value, it can be suggested as a biomarker for predicting nephropathy in diabetic patients.

 Due to the fact that colon inflammation is one of the most common diseases in the country, the interest in using herbal medicines to cure intestinal inflammation is increasing day by day.

 In the present research, we aimed to identify the target molecules in the immune system by analyzing the transcriptome of these diseases and using the virtual screening technique to search for plant compounds that have antagonistic capabilities for these receptors. Also, by using this in vitro culture, check and confirm the anti-inflammatory properties of these compounds.

 The population study includes 200 human transcriptome runs, about 60 thousand compounds related to medicinal plants, and in vitro experiments with at least three experimental replicates and three technical replicates. In this study, the anticancer and immunomodulatory effects of aqueous extracts of rosemary and nettle medicinal plants were investigated as a promising source of cancer treatment against the AGS cell line derived from gastric cancer (AGS-Cell-DGC). IC50 of the extracts was determined by MTT assay. Flow cytometry and real-time PCR (RT-PCR) were measured.

 The MTT test on the survival percentage of AGS cell line (90%) derived from gastric cancer showed that the highest amount of live cells was observed in control, and the lowest amount was observed in the simultaneous combination of rosemary and nettle extract and then nettle (100%). The highest expression of interleukin 1-beta (IL-1β) gene occurred in the control, and the lowest expression occurred in the simultaneous combination of nettle and rosemary extracts. The highest expression of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) gene occurred in the control, and the lowest expression occurred in the simultaneous combination of nettle and rosemary extracts.

 The results showed that the highest amount of live cells was observed in the control, and the lowest amount was observed in the simultaneous combination of rosemary and nettle extract and then nettle (100%) alone. However, further clinical trials are needed to confirm the results of this research.

 Aging, which has globally increased, reduces male fertility and damages the testes. The effect of aerobic exercises and the use of medicinal plants like rosemary on fertility remains controversial.

 The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of rosemary extract and exercise on testicular tissue.

 In this study, 30 male Wistar rats were divided into five groups: (1) control group (without treatment); (2) gavage group [received the solvent of rosemary extract (distilled water) and put on a turned-off treadmill for 10 minutes daily]; (3) exercise group (put on a turned-on treadmill based on an exercise protocol for 12 weeks); (4) extract group (received 100 mg/kg of rosemary extract for 12 weeks); (5) exercise and extract group (received 100 mg/kg of rosemary extract and concurrently put on a turned-on treadmill for 12 weeks). After the treatment, the testis tissue of rats was collected, and the seminiferous tubular diameter, luminal diameter, and epithelial height were analyzed. Also, spermatogenic lineage was counted in different groups.

 The tubal diameter and epithelial height significantly increased following the consumption of rosemary extract and exercise training compared with the control group (P < 0.01). Also, a significant increase was observed in the luminal diameter in the exercise group compared to the control group (P < 0.01). The rosemary extract and exercise training significantly increased the number of spermatogonia cells (P < 0.01). However, there were no significant differences in the number of primary spermatocyte and spermatozoa cells among the different groups (P > 0.05).

 Generally, low-intensity aerobic exercise improved testicular histomorphology parameters. However, rosemary extract had no positive effects as an aerobic exercise on male fertility during aging.

 Some evidence demonstrated the relationship between long non-coding RNA and autoimmune disease development. The current study assessed the possible association between the nuclear enriched abundant transcript 1 (NEAT1) gene rs512715 polymorphism and Hashimoto and Graves’ diseases.

 Two hundred forty-eight participants with autoimmune thyroid disease (133 Hashimoto thyroiditis (HT) patients and 115 Graves’ disease (GD) patients) and 135 age- and sex-matched controls were enrolled in the study. The polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method was used for genotyping NEAT1 rs512715 polymorphism.

 Significant differences were observed in the frequency of the CC genotype of rs512715 in the HT group compared to the controls; the CC genotype may act as a risk factor for HT development. Also, the dominant and recessive genetic models showed the same results. Regarding the frequency of alleles, the C allele frequency was higher in the HT group than in the controls. In the GD group, there was no significant difference in the distribution of genotypes and the genetic models. Also, no significant difference was observed in the frequencies of alleles in Graves’ patients.

 Our findings indicated that NEAT1 rs512715polymorphism might play an influential role in Hashimoto’s disease development as the risk factor.