Aspartame subacute exposure does not affect immune system of BALB/c mice following a tiered approach.

Background: The objective of the present study was to assess potential immunotoxic effects of aspartame in BALB/c mice.

Methods: Aspartame was administered orally at 400 and 2000 mg/kg for two weeks (five days per week). Specific parameters of humoral and cellular immune responses including hemagglutinating antibody (HA) titer, cytokine production (IFN-γ and IL-4 levels), delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) response to SRBCs, histopathological examination of spleen and bone marrow, and T-lymphocyte proliferation in response to phytohemagglutinin-A (PHA) were evaluated.

Immunomodulation Induced in BALB/c Mice after Subacute Exposure to Hydroalcoholic Extract of .

Introduction: Tarragon, with the scientific name of , is a perennial herbaceous plant with a wide spectrum of pharmacologic properties. In the current investigation, BALB/c mice were used to examine the immunomodulatory effects of hydroalcoholic extract of tarragon (HET).

Methods: Mice were treated with hydroalcoholic extract of (HET) at two doses (250 and 500 mg/kg) for 14 days.

Evaluation of the diagnostic value of Sentinel Lymph Node in patients with gastric adenocarcinoma.

Objectives: Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) has been proven as a safe and efficient procedure in some cancers like breast cancer and melanoma with a reduction of complications and side effects of unnecessary lymphadenectomy in many patients. However, the diagnostic value of SLNB in gastric cancer is a point of debate. This study evaluated the diagnostic value of SLNB using radiotracer and isosulphan blue dye injection in patients with Gastric Adenocarcinomas (GA).

Crosslinked hydrogel loaded with chitosan-supported iron oxide and silver nanoparticles as burn wound dressing.

Burns can result in infection, disability, psychosocial and economic issues. Advanced wound dressings like hydrogel absorb exudate and maintain moisture. Considering the antimicrobial properties of silver nanoparticles and iron oxide nanoparticles, the efficiency of cross-linked hydrogel loaded with chitosan-supported iron oxide and silver nanoparticles for burn wounds repair was investigated in animal model.

Melittin as a safe compound to BALB/c mice immune system; a tiered approach immunotoxicity screening.

Background: Maintenance of immune system integrity is a vital requirement to protect human body against pathogens/cancers. Natural compounds have long been used due to their benefits for the immune system. One of which is bee venom that contains a peptide called melittin having antimicrobial and anticancer effects.

The potential therapeutic impact of a topical bacteriophage preparation in treating -infected burn wounds in mice.

Aim: This study compared a topical formulation containing lytic phages with a routine antibiotic in the murine model of burn/ infected wound healing.

Methods & Materials: Isolated and purified lytic bacteriophages from hospital sewage were added to the polyethylene glycol (PEG) based ointment. A second-degree burned wound on the back of twenty-four adult female mice was created.

Elucidated tumorigenic role of MAML1 and TWIST1 in gastric cancer is associated with Helicobacter pylori infection.

Background: Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) has a fundamental role in tumor initiation, progression, and metastasis. Helicobacter pylori (HP) induces EMT and thus causes gastric cancer (GC) by deregulating multiple signaling pathways involved in EMT. TWIST1 and MAML1 have been confirmed to be critical inducers of EMT via diverse signaling pathways such as Notch signaling.

Effects of Sertraline on Spermatogenesis of Male Rats and its Reversibility after Terminating the Drug.

Purpose: The purpose of this research was to studding the effects of Sertraline on spermatogenesis of male rats and whether these probable effects are constant or provisional after terminating the drug.

Materials And Methods: In this study, 32  two-month old male Wistar albino rats were equally divided into the Sertraline-treated and the control groups. The drug group was gavaged with Sertraline daily while the control group was gavaged with water at the same volume.

The accuracy of sentinel node biopsy by Tc-sodium phytate in patients with pancreatic cancer.

Backgrounds/aims: Pancreaticoduodenectomy is the only potentially curative treatment for pancreatic cancer. The identification of the first nodal drainage site (sentinel node) may improve the detection of metastatic nodes and can contribute to a less invasive surgery. We aimed to determine the accuracy of sentinel node mapping in patients with pancreatic cancer using intraoperative radiotracer injection technique.

GSTs polymorphisms are associated with epigenetic silencing of CDKN2A gene in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Esophageal cancer is the eighth most common cancer and the sixth most frequent cause of cancer mortality worldwide. Exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons formed by incomplete combustion of organic matter is an important risk factor. Genetic polymorphisms in genes encoding PAH-metabolizing enzymes like glutathione S-transferases (GSTM1, GSTP1, GSTT1) which conjugate glutathione to PAHs for reduction of oxidative stress may affect an individual's response to PAH exposure.

Role of MAML1 in targeted therapy against the esophageal cancer stem cells.

Background: Esophageal cancer is the sixth-leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are the main reason for tumor relapse in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). The NOTCH pathway is important in preservation of CSCs, therefore it is possible to target such cells by targeting MAML1 as the main component of the NOTCH transcription machinery.

Induction of T cell-mediated immune response by dendritic cells pulsed with mRNA of sphere-forming cells isolated from patients with gastric cancer.

Gastric cancer (GC) as the third most common cause of cancer-associated mortality worldwide is one of the cancers with very high heterogeneity. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) as a small subset of cancer cells in solid tumors with the self-renewal, differentiation and tumorigenic ability are responsible for tumor initiation, progression, recurrence, metastasis, and resistance to current treatments. Therefore, eradication of CSCs is very vital to cure cancer.

ErbB1 and ErbB3 co-over expression as a prognostic factor in gastric cancer.

Background: Epidermal growth factor receptor family members such as ErbB1 and ErbB3 are involved in tumor progression and metastasis. Although, there are various reports about the prognostic value of EGFR members separately in gastric cancer, there is not any report about the probable correlation between ErbB1 and ErbB3 co-expression and gastric cancer prognosis. In present study, we assessed the correlation between ErbB1 and ErbB3 co-overexpression (in the level of mRNA and protein expression) and gastric cancer prognosis for the first time.

A STROBE compliant observational study on trace elements in patients with ulcerative colitis and their relationship with disease activity.

Nutritional deficiencies and malnutrition are considered to be related to ulcerative colitis (UC); however, the association between serum levels of micronutrients and UC is not well known. This study aimed to evaluate the serum levels of micronutrients in UC patients and investigate their association with disease activity.This cross-sectional study was conducted on UC patients visiting the Department of Gastroenterology at 3 different teaching hospitals between January 2016 and January 2017.

Immunomodulatory effects of silymarin after subacute exposure to mice: A tiered approach immunotoxicity screening.

Silymarin is a flavonoid complex extracted from the Silybum marianum plant with a wide range of pharmacological and biochemical effects. In the present study, the immunomodulatory effects of silymarin were investigated in BALB/c mice. Silymarin was administered daily by intraperitoneal injection at doses of 50, 100 and 150 mg/kg for 14 consecutive days.

Effect of L. stigma (saffron) against subacute effect of diazinon: histopathological, hematological, biochemical and genotoxicity evaluations in rats.

Objective: In this study, the effects of saffron stigma against subacute diazinon (DZN) toxicity on enzymes levels, biochemical, hematological, histopathological and genotoxicity indices were studied in rats.

Methods: Vitamin E (200 IU/kg) and the aqueous extract of saffron (50, 100 and 200 mg/kg) were injected intraperitoneally three times per week alone or with DZN (20 mg/kg/day, orally) for 4 weeks. The hematological and biochemical parameters were evaluated at the end of 4 weeks.

Evaluating the expression of cyclooxygenase-2 enzyme by immunohistochemistry in normal and tumoral tissue before and after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in patients with esophageal cancer in Khorasan Province.

Background: Esophageal cancer is the third most common cancer in Iran. Neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (NCRT) is the appropriate treatment for esophageal cancer.

Aim: This study investigated the expression of cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 enzyme in normal and tumoral tissues before any treatment in patients with esophageal cancer, this study also assessed the effect of NCRT on the expression of COX-2 enzyme in normal and tumoral tissue in samples derived by surgery furthermore, and this study investigated the relationship between expression of COX-2 enzyme and the pathologic tumor regression grade (PTRG) patients.

Ectopic Expression of Human Gene in ESCC Cell Line Using Retroviral System.

Background: Cancer/Testis Antigens (CTAs) are a sub-group of tumor-associated antigens which are expressed normally in germ line cells and trophoblast, and aberrantly in a variety of malignancies. One of the most important CTAs is Developmental Pluripotency Associated-2(DPPA2) with unknown biological function. Considering the importance of in developmental events and cancer, preparing a suitable platform to analyze roles in the cells seems to be necessary.

Association of Two CD44 Polymorphisms with Clinical Outcomes of Gastric Cancer Patients.

Objective: CD44 is an important cell adhesion molecule that plays a key role in growth, invasion, proliferation and metastasis of cancer cells. CD44 protein over-expression is associated with a poor prognosis of gastric cancer (GC) and previous studies have shown that CD44 gene polymorphisms could affect survival and recurrence. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that polymorphisms impacting on the CD44 signaling pathway may predict clinical outcomes in patients with GC.

Isolation and identification of chemotherapy-enriched sphere-forming cells from a patient with gastric cancer.

Gastric cancer (GC) is the third and fifth cause of cancer-associated mortality for men and women throughout the world, respectively. Despite the use of surgery and chemotherapy for GC therapy, there are no efficient therapeutic protocols for it to date. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) due to their pivotal role in tumor initiation, growth, progression, invasion, distant metastasis, recurrence and resistance to anticancer drugs are very appealing targets for cancer therapies.

Protective effect of thymoquinone, the main component of , against diazinon cardio-toxicity in rats.

Several studies have shown that oxidative stress and cell damage can occur at very early stages of diazinon (DZN) exposure. The present study was designed to determine the beneficial effect of thymoquinone (Thy), the main component of (black seed or black cumin), against DZN cardio-toxicity in rats. In the present experimental study, 48 male Wistar rats were randomly divided into six groups: control (corn oil gavages), DZN gavages (20 mg/kg/day), Thy gavages (10 mg/kg/day) and Thy + DVN gavages (2.

Expression of p63 and CD44 in oral squamous cell carcinoma and correlation with clinicopathological parameters.

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the sixth most frequent malignant tumor of the head and neck region. Despite advances in therapeutic options over the last decades, the rate of mortality and morbidity has not been improved markedly. A small subset of cells, cancer stem cells (CSCs), with self-renewal properties have become a major focus of current cancer research.

The prevalence and expression pattern of melanoma-associated antigen 1 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: a historical cohort study.

Introduction: Melanoma-associated antigen 1 (MAGE1) expression in normal tissues is restricted to the testes, whilst being over-expressed in a number of human cancers. This feature of MAGE1 makes it a promising cancer biomarker. This study aimed to determine the expression of MAGE1 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and its relationship with clinicopathological factors.

EGFR Expression in Patients with Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma and its Association with Pathologic Response to Preoperative Chemoradiotherapy: A Study in Northeastern Iran.

Introduction: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) accounts for 80% of all esophageal cancers worldwide. It is the most common histological type of esophageal carcinoma in low-resource countries. ESCC is prevalent in Asian countries, accounting for more than 95% of esophageal cancers.

Evaluation of serum HBV viral load, transaminases and histological features in chronic HBeAg-negative hepatitis B patients.

Aim: To evaluate the association between biochemical, virologic and histologic features in patients with HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis B (CHB).

Background: Hepatitis-B e-antigen (HBeAg)-negative is common in Iran, is progressive with poor prognosis. Therefore, it seems necessary to perform a comprehensive evaluation of different spectrum of laboratory measurements accompanying histological findings.