Publications by authors named "Fatemeh Ashrafian"

Article Synopsis
  • * Research indicates that circulating miRNAs may be valuable for diagnosing and predicting the severity and outcomes of COVID-19, even before symptoms appear.
  • * The review highlights how extracellular vesicle miRNAs can also relate to antibody levels following COVID-19 vaccination, suggesting their potential as new biomarkers in understanding the disease.
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During COVID-19 pandemic, international pharmaceutical companies put effort to build global manufacturing networks for vaccines. Soberana Plus vaccine, a recombinant protein based vaccine (RBD dimer), with the trade name of PastoCovac Plus in Iran, is based on a protein subunit platform in Cuba and completed preclinical and toxicological assessments. This study aimed at presenting the steps of vaccine technology transfer from Cuba to Iran.

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Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is a progressive and debilitating respiratory condition characterized by excessive deposition of extracellular matrix proteins and scarring within the lung parenchyma. Despite extensive research, the pathogenesis of PF remains incompletely understood, and effective therapeutic options are limited. Emerging evidence suggests a potential link between gut microbiota dysbiosis and the development of PF, highlighting the gut-lung axis as a promising therapeutic target.

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  • - This study, conducted from April 2021 to October 2022, focused on the potential impact of COVID-19 vaccines on menstrual cycles in women who received three doses of the vaccine.
  • - Out of 308 participants, 22 women (7.1%) reported abnormal menstrual changes after vaccination, with metrorrhagia being the most common issue observed in nearly half of these cases.
  • - A significant percentage (59%) of those who reported disturbances experienced persistent symptoms, and some participants also contracted COVID-19 after showing menstrual disorders, suggesting that the virus might contribute to these changes alongside vaccination effects.
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  • * Out of 329 vaccinated individuals, 12.4% experienced various disorders, with gynecological and osteoarticular issues being the most common; about 73.1% were possibly linked to vaccination.
  • * The research highlighted the challenge of distinguishing between complications caused by vaccination and those from long-COVID, emphasizing the need for further long-term studies in larger populations to clarify these persistent health issues.
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Purpose: Paraprobiotics are a non-viable form of probiotics that are reported to provide significant health benefits. Nevertheless, little is known about the beneficial effects of paraprobiotics on inflammatory bowel disease. Although probiotics show potential as therapeutic agents for a range of diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), there are certain risks associated with their use.

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  • - PastoCovac is a COVID-19 subunit protein vaccine that uses tetanus toxoid to enhance immune response, aimed at generating a stronger reaction against SARS-CoV-2's RBD.
  • - A study evaluated the immune response to tetanus in groups receiving one to three doses of PastoCovac compared to a Td vaccine and other COVID-19 vaccines, finding that PastoCovac effectively raised anti-tetanus antibodies, particularly with additional doses.
  • - Despite a decline in antibody levels over six months, the PastoCovac recipients maintained positive antibody responses and reported no side effects, suggesting it could be a viable option for inducing immunity against tetanus along with COVID-19.
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  • This study investigated how blood types affect the immune response to COVID-19 vaccines, focusing on antibody levels after vaccination at the Pasteur Institute of Iran between April 2021 and December 2022.
  • Results demonstrated that blood type A had a significantly higher increase in anti-Spike antibodies for those vaccinated with AstraZeneca compared to Sinopharm, while blood type O positively influenced antibody levels in both AstraZeneca and Sinopharm groups.
  • Additionally, Rh-positive individuals showed a greater antibody response in AstraZeneca vaccine recipients, across both homologous and heterologous regimens, suggesting blood types A and O, as well as Rh-positive status, may enhance vaccine effectiveness.
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Several studies have shown that probiotics can prevent and reduce inflammation in inflammation-related diseases. However, few studies have focused on the interaction between host and probiotics in modulating the immune system through autophagy. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the preventive and/or therapeutic effects of native potential probiotic breast milk-isolated Bifidobacterium spp.

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There have been massive studies to develop an effective vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 which fortunately led to manage the recent pandemic, COVID-19. According to the quite rapidly developed vaccines in a fast window time, large investigations to assess the probable vaccine-related adverse events are crucially required. COVID-19 vaccines are available of different platforms and the primary clinical trials results presented acceptable safety profile of the approved vaccines.

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  • This study evaluated the effectiveness of the PastoCovac Plus vaccine as a booster compared to the original vaccines (ChAdOx1-S and BBIBP-CorV) in volunteers who had already received two doses of either.
  • A total of 194 previously vaccinated participants were divided into groups to receive either the PastoCovac Plus or another dose of their initial vaccine, with serum samples collected before and four weeks after the booster to measure antibody levels.
  • Results showed significant increases in anti-spike IgG levels for those receiving the PastoCovac Plus booster, with no notable differences in neutralizing antibody levels, indicating that both booster options are similarly effective.
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COVID-19 pandemic has been managed through global vaccination programs. However, the antibody waning in various types of vaccines came to notice. Hereby, PastoCovac Plus as a protein subunit vaccine was investigated in immunized health care workers by COVAXIN (BBV152).

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Objectives: A better understanding of host-microbe interactions as a cross-talk between the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and the gut microbiota can help treat and prevent GI disorders by improving the maintenance of GI homeostasis. The gut microbiota can affect signaling molecules, such as serotonin, which regulates endocrine systems through the GI tract. Moreover, studying the effects of gut microbiota in the small intestine on the human GI tract health is pivotal.

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Data on immunogenicity, immune response persistency, and safety of COVID-19 boosters in patients with comorbidities are limited. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate three different boosters' immunogenicity and safety in individuals with at least one underlying disease (UD) (obesity, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus) with healthy ones (HC) who were primed with two doses of the BBIBP-CorV vaccine and received a booster shot of the same priming vaccine or protein subunit vaccines, PastoCovac Plus or PastoCovac. One hundred and forty subjects including sixty-three ones with a comorbidity and seventy-seven healthy ones were enrolled.

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The optimal booster vaccine schedule against COVID-19 is still being explored. The present study aimed at assessment of the immunogenicity and antibody persistency of inactivated-virus based vaccine, BBIP-CorV and protein-subunit based vaccines, PastoCovac/Plus through heterologous and homologous prime-boost vaccination. Totally, 214 individuals who were previously primed with BBIBP-CorV vaccines were divided into three arms on their choice as heterologous regimens BBIBP-CorV/PastoCovac (n = 68), BBIBP-CorV/PastoCovac Plus (n = 72) and homologous BBIBP-CorV (n = 74).

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Article Synopsis
  • * Key findings showed significant associations between mortality and factors like age, blood pressure, oxygen levels, and underlying health conditions such as diabetes and lung disease.
  • * Understanding these risk factors can help in preventing complications and reducing COVID-19 related deaths in the future.
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Article Synopsis
  • - Recent studies have investigated the long-term effects of COVID-19, revealing that symptoms can vary widely and persist for weeks after recovery, highlighting the need for effective management guidelines for post-acute COVID-19. - A study involving 254 individuals with confirmed COVID-19 found that 64.1% experienced at least one symptom in the post-acute phase, with neurological issues being the most common (91.6%); risk factors such as underlying diseases and age were also linked to the severity of symptoms. - The research calls for more investigations into long COVID-19 to better understand its impact on quality of life and to develop timely treatments, particularly for the complex clusters of symptoms that may arise months after recovery.
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Inflammation plays a critical role in the promotion of hepatocyte damage and liver fibrosis. In recent years the protective role of Akkermansia muciniphila, a next-generation beneficial microbe, has been suggested for metabolic and inflammatory disorders. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effects of live and pasteurized A.

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Article Synopsis
  • COVID-19 can cause serious health issues, particularly cardiovascular problems, which include arrhythmias, myocarditis, and acute coronary artery disease.
  • A study involving 137 hospitalized COVID-19 patients aimed to evaluate the frequency of these cardiovascular complications and their impact on patient prognosis, with assessments through regular ECGs and lab tests for cardiac biomarkers.
  • The findings revealed that while arrhythmias did not correlate with patient outcomes, factors like age over 60, diabetes, and hyperlipidemia were significant indicators affecting the prognosis of COVID-19 patients.
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Background: Several studies have shown that probiotics have beneficial effects on weight control and metabolic health. In addition to probiotics, recent studies have investigated the effects of paraprobiotics and postbiotics. Therefore, we evaluated the preventive effects of live and pasteurized Akkermansia muciniphila MucT (A.

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Akkermansia muciniphila, as a member of the gut microbiota, has been proposed as a next-generation probiotic. Liver fibrosis is the main determinant of liver dysfunction and mortality in patients with chronic liver disease. In this study, we aimed to determine the beneficial effects of live and pasteurized A.

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Recently, Akkermansia muciniphila an anaerobic member of the gut microbiota, has been proposed as a next-generation probiotic. The aim of this study was evaluation of the effect of alive and pasteurized A. muciniphila on health status, intestinal integrity, immune response, lipid metabolism, and gut microbial composition in normal-diet fed mice as well as direct effects of the bacterium on Caco-2 cell line.

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Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) are immune-mediated, chronic relapsing diseases with a rising prevalence worldwide in both adult and pediatric populations. Treatment options for immune-mediated diseases, including IBDs, are traditional steroids, immunomodulators, and biologics, none of which are capable of inducing long-lasting remission in all patients. Dendritic cells (DCs) play a fundamental role in inducing tolerance and regulating T cells and their tolerogenic functions.

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Objectives: Osteoporosis is characterized by slow deterioration in bone mass and disruption of its structure, leading to an increased risk of bone fractures. Gut microbiota plays an important role in the transport and absorption of nutrients needed for bone health. is one of the gut microbiota members that its beneficial role in prevention of metabolic disorder was suggested.

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