Journal of Applied Biotechnology Reports
Volume:1 Issue: 3, Summer 2014

Regenerative medicine provides substitutes for organ transplantation, which is restricted in applicability due to immune responses against allograft and the large discrepancy between the need for organs and the number of available transplantation. An artificial environment is allowing cells to induce tissue regeneration. Growth factors (GFs) play a significant role in the cell fates in their microenvironment. Nevertheless, the short half-lives of GFs and poor in vivo stability infiltration suggest that the classical routes are useless and insist on use of a drug delivery system (DDS). In this review paper, growth factor-based tissue regeneration using polymeric hydrogels is reviewed to show great potential ability of hydrogels in tissue engineering (TE).

Findings in relation to the inhibitory effects of natural substances against microorganisms showed that herbal products may be alternatives to synthetic and chemical drugs due to their significant therapeutic effects. The pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium) as an important medicinal plant, belongs to the Lamiaceae family is applied in the pharmaceutical and food industries. In recent years, plant tissue culture techniques have appeared as a powerful tool for the micropropagation and breeding of many plant species. The aim of current study was to find the best medium composition for callus induction in M. pulegium. For this purpose, three explants (leaf, root and stem) of M. pulegium were cultured on MS medium supplemented with BAP (0.5 and 1.0 mg/L) and 2,4-D (0.0, 1.0, 2.0 and 4.0 mg/L) in a factorial experiment. The results showed that the leaf explant had the highest effect on callus induction (9.65 mm in callus diameters at 28 days after culture) and hormone levels of 1 mg/L 2,4-D and BAP-free identified as the most efficient concentrations for callus growth rate (0.29 mm/d). Also statistical analysis demonstrated that among interaction effects t he leaf explant in 1 mg/l 2,4-D and BAP-free found as the highest effect for callus induction (12.35 mm in callus diameter at 28 days after culture).

The broad consumption of antibiotics such as fluoroquinolones and the genetic adaption of opportunistic pathogenic bacteria including Pseudomonas aeruginosa, has led to develop of floroquinolone-resistant strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Thus, the aim of the present study is to reveal the types of hot spot mutations occurring in selected DNA gyrase subunit A gene in fluoroquinolone-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains. For this purpose, 70 fluoroquinolone-resistant partial cds genes of Pseudomonas aeruginosa TOHO strains (P12-P377) for DNA gyrase subunit A have been aligned with wild genes for DNA gyrase subunit A by BLAST program and multiple alignment, to detect probable gyrA mutations. Based on analyses hot spot mutations including Thr-83→Ile (92.44%), Ile-83→Thr (1.33%), Asn-87→Asp (0.44%) existing as single and Thr-83→Ile & Asn-87→Asp (5.78%) as double substitutions were detected. According to this survey, the point mutations in DNA gyrase subunit A gene need more consideration about fluroquinolone-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates. The strains with hot spot SNP mutations may rise a huge concern from epidemiologic aspect for antibiotic therapy treatment.

Land mines are one of the tragic problems to human security in many countries. Among many techniques suggested detecting landmines, plant-based detectors can be used as a reliable tool for unexploded ordnance detection. This study was conducted to determine different concentrations effect of trinitrotoluene (0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 45 and 60 ppm) on germination and early seedling growth of 6 species of cereals including Barley, Wheat, Durum wheat, Oat, Rye and Triticale. In contrast to oat and durum, barley and wheat genotypes had the best germination and germination index against different trinitrotoluene (TNT) concentrations. TNT showed no impact on the alpha amylase activity of the tolerant (Barley var. Bahman) and susceptible (Durum wheat) genotypes. Under higher TNT concentration, barley had the highest root length and root number and also was the best in dry matter allocation towards root tissues. We measured the different parameters for roots of 6 species of cereals, that oat was sensitive plant when exposed to TNT than others. With emphasis on the wide-range adaptation of cereals to climate and soil characteristics and their extensive and fibrous root systems, it is suggested that barley genotypes especially Bahman variety can be a confident plant to carry the essential genetic structure for explosive detection.

Lipofectamine LTX is a cationic based transfection reagent that offers high levels of different transgenes expression in a huge number of cell types in vitro utilizing an easy and rapid protocol. The level of transgenes expression depend on some experimental variables containing cell density, lipofectamine and DNA concentrations, lipofectamine -DNA complexing time, and the presence or absence of medium at the transfection time and antibiotics in medium. The significance of these factors in lipofectamine LTX based transfection will be considered. The main objective of this study is optimizing different situations for transfection of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (UC-MSCs) with lipofectamine LTX. For this purpose, UC-MSCs were transfected with lipofectamine LTX utilizing minicircle plasmid containing green fluorescent protein reporter gene. In this study, the medium existence on cell transfection efficiency as well as effects of time for culture, the ratio of lipofectamine LTX to plasmid DNA, the repetition times of transfection and volume of medium on transfection efficacy were evaluated, and the transfection efficacies were also compared. The growth rate of MSCs was associated with the density of the cells. The medium changing 4 hours after transfection certified the normal cells growth. Nevertheless, the freshness and amount of medium demonstrated no substantial effect on the cell state. The 1:2 ratio of plasmid to ipofectamine LTX (3ng:6µl), the transfection efficacy was pleasing. The transfection cells with different ratios of plasmid to lipofectamine LTX displayed substantial differences18 h post transfection. The differentconditions of MSCs transfection with lipofectamine LTX was optimized, which presented a reference for various adherent cells transfection.

Cobalt (II) Chloride was used as a precursor to prepare Co3O4 nanotubes in reverse micelles. Tween 80 was added as surfactant. The products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy. The diameter of Co3O4 nanotubes was about 58 nm and the average length of them was around 261 nm. The study provides a simple and efficient route to synthesize Co3O4 nanotubes at room temperature. Tremendous demands for electrochemical biosensors with high sensitivity and reliability, fast response and excellent selectivity have stimulated intensive research on developing versatile materials with ultrahigh electrocatalytic activity.

Schizophrenia affects 1% of population. Neonatal ventral hippocampus lesion (NVHL) model of schizophrenia designed in 1993 by Lipska and is a widely studied developmental animal model of schizophrenia. NVHL rats mimic many of the symptoms of schizophrenia in detail. We studied this model in molecular level and reelin expression in it. Reelin is an extracellular matrix glycoprotein that regulates some processes in CNS development and reduces significantly in schizophrenia. For this study, animals (male pups) take into 3 groups: control, sham and experiment. The lesion made by injection of 0.3 µl. Isotonic Neurotoxin withstereotaxic surgery in age 7 day and body weight 11-15 gr. Social behavioral and stereotypic movement assessed in age 56 day then reelin expression in frontal cortex evaluated by western blotting. Behavioral analysis and histological studies demonstrated the schizophrenia model. Western blotting of reelin protein in frontal cortex and hippocampus show a decrease of reelin (P value: 0.012) in experimental group as compared to control and sham group. So, in the NVHL as a common and more similar model of schizophrenia reelin expression significantly decreases in frontal cortex and hippocampus that means this model in molecular pathways is similar to the disease.