bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The impact of the program of basketball, volleyball and handball on the situation-motorized capability of the first classes of the elementary school
Authors: Nikšić E. , Beganović E. , Joksimović M.
Published: December 2019

Purpose: Determining the state of the student and his situational-motor skills, and their comparison, enables the teacher to control his work in an immediate manner, and he programmes and implements well planned and additional contents in order to realize the set goals. In order to achieve these functions, it is necessary to determine the current state of the students, as well as the state after the implemented specific contents and programs. The aim of the research was to determine the partial changes (differences) of situational-motor abilities that were created under the influence of a four-month program of basketball, volleyball and handball in the pupils of the fifth grades of elementary school. Material: The study included N = 106 class V students, aged 10 to 11 years. The sample of respondents was divided into two subgroups, an experimental group (53 students), who conducted physical and health education classes according to the modified plan and program of sports games (basketball, volleyball and handball) for a half-year and control group (53 students) who attended regular classes from physical and health culture according to the current curriculum. 9 variables were used to assess situational-motor abilities. Descriptive statistics and discriminatory analysis were used to determine the changes (differences) in situational-motor skills. Results: The results of the research at the descriptive level showed certain differences between the groups in the final versus the initial measurements on the individual variables of situational motors. Based on the results of the discriminatory analysis, the relative contribution of each of the variables of the situational motor in the final measurement is seen. The SMKVLS (Running the ball with your hand in the slalom) and SMRBLZ (Throwing the ball against the wall for 30 seconds) variables are the biggest contributors, and the smallest SMOGCPM (Aiming the goal over the net from the basic stand) and SMOSD (Lower frontal serve). Conclusions: Physical and health culture in schools has the primary task of influencing positive transformation processes in all dimensions of students by applying appropriate content.
Improving technical fitness of race walkers on the basis of special exercises to focus on key parameters of movements
Authors: Vinogradova O. A. , Sovenko S. P.
Published: December 2019

In race walking, the reliability of competitive activity, the risks of disqualification are determined by athlete's stable control of the key motion characteristics at a distance, especially in the face of fatigue. Therefore, the formation of specialized sensations in an athlete to control these movements is an important condition for sports technique improvement. Hypothesis of study: the use of special exercises to increase the analytical perception of motion key parameters will increase the effectiveness of race walking technique, control for fatigue development. Objective of study: to show the possibilities of increasing special fitness in race walking through the use of special exercises, improvement of the analytical perception of motion key parameters. Subjects and methods of study: 10 athletes aged 17-20 years and engaged in sports training for 4-6 years participated in the study. Special exercises, assessment of race walking technique (video shooting) before and after their performance within three weeks (10 sessions) were used. Results: it is shown that the targeted use of special exercises with the analysis of subjective sensations creates conditions for the activation in the athlete of specialized perceptions for the basic sports technique elements. After the use of special exercises, the increase in speed was due to an increase in the stride length - 1.14 m (S = 0.04), relative to the initial one - 1.09 m (S = 0.03) (p < 0.01). The stride length increase in athletes occurred at the expense of the length of the “rear” stride ( = 0.43 м; S = 0.02) at statistically significant differences from the initial indices. This created the prerequisites for improving athletic performance. Conclusions. Special exercises focusing on key parameters of movements contribute to increase of technical fitness of race walkers. The proposed approach creates the prerequisites for further research on the formation of the motor composition of the skill of body position accuracy, the development of sensations of free movement, inertia, liberation from excessive degrees of freedom in the parts of the body with account for the functional state of the athlete.
Fotossíntese: etapa dependente da luz desenvolvida a partir de metodologias ativas de aprendizagem para alunos de um curso de licenciatura em ciências biológicas
Authors: Cortelazzo Angelo Luiz , Lourenço Luciana Bolsoni
Published: December 2019

Neste trabalho, a etapa fotoquímica da fotossíntese foi utilizada como tema para a demonstração do uso de metodologias ativas de aprendizagem (MAA), para alunos de Metodologia de Ensino de curso de Licenciatura em Ciências Biológicas. No início da disciplina houve uma aula abordando o tema das MAA e sua importância para o processo de ensino-aprendizagem e, um mês depois, a partir do uso da sala de aula invertida, foram disponibilizados textos e vídeos sobre o assunto escolhido e, na semana seguinte, a discussão do assunto entre estudantes e professores, seguida de dramatização do fenômeno. Os resultados foram avaliados por questionário de preenchimento espontâneo pelos alunos e revelaram a importância das MAA no desenvolvimento de temas complexos e o fato de que o seu uso requer um grande envolvimento e trabalho do professor, não só para motivar a realização das atividades anteriores à aula, mas também na condução das discussões em classe, na orientação geral e conclusão do trabalho.
METHOD OF CONGESTION MANAGEMENT AND BALANCED RESOURCE ALLOCATION ON MPLS-TE TELECOMMUNICATION NETWORK ROUTERS
Authors: LEMESHKO Oleksandr , LEBEDENKO Tetiana
Published: December 2019

The method of congestion management
and balanced resource allocation in telecommunication networks operating on the
basis of technology of multi-protocol label switching with support of the
concept of Traffic Engineering is considered. The essence of the method is the
coordinated solution of the problems of aggregation of packet flows and their
distribution according to the queues formed on the router interface, as well as
the balanced allocation of interface bandwidth in accordance with the principles
of Traffic Engineering queues. These technological tasks were reduced to linear
programming optimization problems. The proposed method allows increasing the
efficiency of distribution and use of network resources while simplifying the
computational complexity of the calculations.
Competitiveness of tourist destinations: demand and performance factors
Authors:   Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro –UERJ, Braz, Oliveira Carlyle Tadeu Falcão de , Zouain Deborah Moraes ,   Universidade do Grande Rio –UNIGRANRIO, Brazil, Souza Luiz Alexandre Valadão ,   Universidade do Grande Rio –UNIGRANRIO, Braz, Duarte André Luís Faria ,   Universidade do Grande Rio –UNIGRANRIO, Braz
Published: December 2019

The present article aims to answer whether tourists and experts have different views on factors that impact tourism at a destination. To that end, we used a qualitative approach and adopted the Critical Incident Technique, which allows respondents to express particular needs and expectations. Data were collected through open-ended questions, the answers were recorded, and notes were taken about the interviewees and relevant parts of their narrative. Data were submitted for content analysis and examined in light of the Brazilian competitiveness model. We considered 77 interviews and classified 209 critical incidents. Results showed that half of the critical incidents did not fit into the analysis categories proposed in the Brazilian competitiveness model, with nine “new categories” emerging in the process. Therefore, there is a difference of perspective between the visitor and the expert concerning what is more important about tourism at a destination.
3D domain swapping, protein oligomerization, and amyloid formation.
Authors: Jaskólski M
Published: December 2019

In 3D domain swapping, first described by Eisenberg, a structural element of a monomeric protein is replaced by the same element from another subunit. This process requires partial unfolding of the closed monomers that is then followed by adhesion and reconstruction of the original fold but from elements contributed by different subunits. If the interactions are reciprocal, a closed-ended dimer will be formed, but the same phenomenon has been suggested as a mechanism for the formation of open-ended polymers as well, such as those believed to exist in amyloid fibrils. There has been a rapid progress in the study of 3D domain swapping. Oligomers higher than dimers have been found, the monomer-dimer equilibrium could be controlled by mutations in the hinge element of the chain, a single protein has been shown to form more than one domain-swapped structure, and recently, the possibility of simultaneous exchange of two structural domains by a single molecule has been demonstrated. This last discovery has an important bearing on the possibility that 3D domain swapping might be indeed an amyloidogenic mechanism. Along the same lines is the discovery that a protein of proven amyloidogenic properties, human cystatin C, is capable of 3D domain swapping that leads to oligomerization. The structure of domain-swapped human cystatin C dimers explains why a naturally occurring mutant of this protein has a much higher propensity for aggregation, and also suggests how this same mechanism of 3D domain swapping could lead to an open-ended polymer that would be consistent with the cross-beta structure, which is believed to be at the heart of the molecular architecture of amyloid fibrils.
Structure of small G proteins and their regulators.
Authors: Paduch M , Jeleń F , Otlewski J
Published: December 2019

In recent years small G proteins have become an intensively studied group of regulatory GTP hydrolases involved in cell signaling. More than 100 small G proteins have been identified in eucaryotes from protozoan to human. The small G protein superfamily includes Ras, Rho Rab, Rac, Sarl/Arf and Ran homologs, which take part in numerous and diverse cellular processes, such as gene expression, cytoskeleton reorganization, microtubule organization, and vesicular and nuclear transport. These proteins share a common structural core, described as the G domain, and significant sequence similarity. In this paper we review the available data on G domain structure, together with a detailed analysis of the mechanism of action. We also present small G protein regulators: GTPase activating proteins that bind to a catalytic G domain and increase its low intrinsic hydrolase activity, GTPase dissociation inhibitors that stabilize the GDP-bound, inactive state of G proteins, and guanine nucleotide exchange factors that accelerate nucleotide exchange in response to cellular signals. Additionally, in this paper we describe some aspects of small G protein interactions with down-stream effectors.
Structural basis of negative cooperativity in transthyretin.
Authors: Neumann P , Cody V , Wojtczak A
Published: December 2019

A comparison of the AC and BD binding sites of transthyretin (TTR) was made in terms of the interatomic distances between the Ca atoms of equivalent amino acids, measured across the tetramer channel in each binding site. The comparison of the channel diameter for apo TTR from different sources revealed that in the unliganded transthyretin tetramers the distances between the A, D and H beta-strands are consistently larger, while the distances between the G beta-strands are smaller in one site than in the other. These differences might be described to have a 'wave' character. An analogous analysis performed for transthyretin complexes reveals that the shape of the plot is similar, although the amplitudes of the changes are smaller. The analysis leads us to a model of the changes in the binding sites caused by ligand binding. The sequence of events includes ligand binding in the first site, followed by a slight collapse of this site and concomitant opening of the second site, binding of the second molecule and collapse of the second site. The following opening of the first, already occupied site upon ligand binding in the second site is smaller because of the bridging interactions already formed by the first ligand. This explains the negative cooperativity (NC) effect observed for many ligands in transthyretin.
Comparison of binding interactions of dibromoflavonoids with transthyretin.
Authors: Muzioł T , Cody V , Wojtczak A
Published: December 2019

The crystal structure of rat transthyretin (rTTR) complex with the dibromoflavone EMD21388 was determined to 2.3 A resolution and refined to R = 0.203 and Rfree = 0.288. Two different orientations of EMD21388, which differ in the channel penetration by 1.6 A, were found in the A/C binding site of rTTR. The single ligand position observed in the BID site is intermediate between the two positions found in the A/C site. The position of the dibromoflavone in the B/D site is similar to that reported for dibromoaurone in human TTR. The bromine atoms of EMD21388 form strong interactions in the P3 and P3' pockets of rTTR. Due to the different molecular architectures of both ligands, dibromoflavone forms only one interaction with Lys-15 near the channel entrance, while direct interactions with the pair of Lys-15 were reported for dibromoaurone. The C3* methyl group of EMD21388 mediates the bridging interactions between two TTR subunits in the P2 pockets. The interactions of the O2* hydroxyl group of dibromoaurone with the Thr-119 side chain in the P3 pockets are not matched by similar interactions in EMD21388. Both these alternative interactions can explain the competitive binding of 3',5'-dibromoflavonoids to transthyretin.
Computer modeling studies of the structural role of NADPH binding to active site mutants of human dihydrofolate reductase in complex with piritrexim.
Authors: Nowak W , Cody V , Wojtczak A
Published: December 2019

Dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR, EC 1.5.1.3) is one of the enzymes active in the folate cycle which plays an important role in DNA synthesis. Inhibition of DHFR is a key element in the treatment of many diseases, including cancer and AIDS related infections. A search for new selective inhibitors is motivated by the resistance to common drugs observed in the course of treatment. In this paper, results of a detailed computer analysis of human DHFR interactions with the lipophilic inhibitor piritrexim (PTX) are presented. It was found that the NADPH cofactor contributes 30% of the total PTX-enzyme interaction energy. Substitution of the highly conserved Glu30 with alanine does not lead to the release of the inhibitor from the hDHFR pocket. The important L22F point mutation does affect PTX orientation but does not changethe binding energy. Simulations of the dynamics of binary hDHFR-PTX complexes were performed with the use of Extensible Systematic Force Field (ESFF) and the results indicate structural changes in the enzyme induced by NADPH binding.
Two disulphide bridges are present in juvenile hormone binding protein from Galleria mellonella.
Authors: Kołodziejczyk R , Dobryszycki P , Ozyhar A , Kochman M
Published: December 2019

The hemolymph juvenile hormone binding protein (JHBP) from Galleria mellonella contains two disulphide bridges/molecule and no free Cys residues. An alignment of primary structures of other Lepidopteran JHBPs indicates that Cys residues, equivalent to Cys10,17,151,195 in G. mellonella JHBP, maybe involved in -S-S- bridge formation.
Mg2+ does not induce isomerization of the open transcription complex of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase at the model Pa promoter bearing consensus -10 and -35 hexamers.
Authors: Kolasa I K , Loziński T , Wierzchowski K L
Published: December 2019

The kinetics and thermodynamics of the formation of the transcriptional open complex (RPo) by Escherichia coli RNA polymerase at the synthetic Pa promoter bearing consensus -10 and -35 recognition hexamers were studied in vitro. Previously, this promoter was used as a control one in studies on the effect of DNA bending by An x Tn sequences on transcription initiation and shown to be fully functional in E. coli (Loziński et al., 1991, Nucleic Acids Res. 19, 2947; Loziński & Wierzchowski, 1996, Acta Biochim. Polon. 43, 265). The data now obtained demonstrate that the mechanism of Pa-RPo formation and dissociation conforms to the three-step reaction model: bind-nucleate-melt, commonly accepted for natural promoters. Measurements of the dissociation rate constant of Pa-RPo as a function of MgCl2 concentration allowed us to determine the number of Mg2+ ions, nMg approximately/= 4, being bound to the RPo in the course of renaturation of the melted DNA region. This number was found constant in the temperature range of 25-37 degrees C, which indicates that under these conditions the complex remaines fully open. This observation, taken together with the recent evidence from KMnO4 footprinting studies that the length of the melted region in Pa-RPo at 37 degrees C is independent of the presence of Mg2+ ions (Lozinski & Wierzchowski, 2001, Acta Biochim. Polon. 48, 495), testifies that binding of Mg2+ to RPo does not induce its further isomerization, which has been postulated for the lambdaP(R)-RPo complex (Suh et al., 1992, Biochemistry 31, 7815; 1993, Science 259, 358).
Saccharomyces cerevisiae--a model organism for the studies on vacuolar transport.
Authors: Kucharczyk R , Rytka J
Published: December 2019

The role of the yeast vacuole, a functional analogue of the mammalian lysosome, in the turnover of proteins and organelles has been well documented. This review provides an overview of the current knowledge of vesicle mediated vacuolar transport in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells. Due to the conservation of the molecular transport machinery S. cerevisiae has become an important model system of vacuolar trafficking because of the facile application of genetics, molecular biology and biochemistry.
Antisense hairpin loop oligonucleotides as inhibitors of expression of multidrug resistance-associated protein 1: their stability in fetal calf serum and human plasma.
Authors: Rebowski G , Wójcik M , Boczkowska M , Gendaszewska E , Soszyński M , Bartosz G , Niewiarowski W
Published: December 2019

Multidrug resistance-associated protein (MRP1) is a transmembrane pump protein responsible for the efflux of chemotherapeutic drugs, an important cause of anticancer treatment failure. Trying to circumvent MRP-mediated resistance we designed and synthesized hairpin loops forming antisense oligodeoxyribonucleotides (ODNs), both phosphodiesters (PO-ODNs) and their phosphorothioate analogues (PS-ODNs), to reduce the protein expression by targeting its mRNA in a sequence specific manner. Melting temperature measurements as well as polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis supported the preferential formation of a secondary structure, which was expected to protect ODNs against 3'-exonuclease degradation. ODNs and PS-ODNs designed in this work were successfully tested as antisense inhibitors of the expression of MRP1 in the leukaemia HL60/ADR cell line. Foreseeing the necessity to perform clinical studies with such ODNs we investigated their stability against the 3'-exonuclease activity of fetal calf serum and human plasma. Under the conditions, corresponding to physiological ones, we observed high stability of hairpin loop forming ODNs, especially those containing longer (e.g. 7 base pair) stems. Comparative studies on the stability of chemically unmodified hairpin loop forming ODNs and their PS-counterparts indicated that endonuclease activity did not play any important role in the process of their nucleolytic degradation. Our studies provide strong evidence for high stability of chemically unmodified hairpin loop ODNs, making them an attractive alternative to phosphorothioate analogues commonly used in antisense strategy.
Micro-capillary liquid chromatography Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry--a powerful tool for peptide and protein identification.
Authors: Ramström M , Palmblad M , Amirkhani A , Tsybin Y O , Markides K E , Håkansson P , Bergquist J
Published: December 2019

In order to be able to study complex biological samples, a micro-capillary liquid chromatography system was coupled to a 9.4 T Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer. The setup was tested on a tryptic digest of bovine serum albumin, which resulted in high sequence coverage (> 92%) of the protein.
Evolutionary principles for generating protein mimetics: directed assembly of peptide loops on topological templates.
Authors: Banfi D , Mandal B , Mutter M , Patiny L
Published: December 2019

A novel methodology for the reversible competitive condensation of peptide loops to chemoreactive topological templates is presented.
Mass spectrometric analysis of head-to-tail connected cyclic peptides.
Authors: Macht M , Pelzing M , Palloch P , Sauerland V , Volz J
Published: December 2019

Tandem mass spectrometry is an extremely useful tool for high sensitive sequence identification of peptides. In the case of cyclic peptides fragmentation can easily be performed for sequence analysis. However, analysis is usually tedious due to the lack of a defined beginning and end of the sequence. Since cyclic peptides are a highly interesting class of compounds especially for the pharmaceutical industry, ways have to be found to identify their strictures. In this work we demonstrate how software and dedicated analytical strategies can be used for detailed analysis of these substances.
Supported liquid membrane extraction of peptides.
Authors: Drapała A , Dzygiel P , Jönsson J A , Wieczorek P
Published: December 2019

The application of supported liquid membrane (SLM) extraction for the enrichment of short peptides is presented. The extraction efficiency is dependent on the pH of donor phase and salt concentration in acceptor phase. Moreover, the extraction efficiency is also influenced by the peptide amino-acid sequence and hydrophobicity.
Enhanced microdialysis of neuropeptides.
Authors: Pettersson A , Markides K , Bergquist J
Published: December 2019

An enhanced microdialysis method for neuropeptides is described and some preliminary results of this novel approach are presented. The enhancement is achieved by adding a vehicle (solid support) to the perfusion fluid in order to increase the diffusion coefficient across the membrane and efficiently transport the analytes towards the detector. The microdialysis samples are desalted and then analyzed on an electrospray ionization orthogonal time-of-flight mass spectrometer. The preliminary results show major increase in signal when comparing this new approach of microdialysis with ordinary microdialysis.
DALDA analogues containing alpha-hydroxymethylamino acids.
Authors: Olma A , Chung N N , Schiller P W , Zabrocki J
Published: December 2019

To evaluate the role of aromatic amino-acids residues, four analogues of the mu-selective opioid peptide agonist DALDA (H-Tyr-D-Arg-Phe-Lys-NH2) containing the amphiphilic, a,a-disubstituted amino acid (R)- or (S)-alpha-hydroxymethyltyrosine (HmTyr) in position 1 and (R)- or (S)-alpha-hydroxymethylphenylalanine (HmPhe) in position 3 of the peptide sequence were synthesized. Only the [(R)-HmPhe3)]DALDA analogue displayed full agonistic activity in both the guinea pig ileum and the mouse vas deferens assays and turned out to be a delta receptor-selective opioid agonist.
Evaluation of high temperature glycation of proteins and peptides by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry.
Authors: Stefanowicz P , Boratyński J , Kańska U , Petry I , Szewczuk Z
Published: December 2019

Recently Boratyński & Roy (Glycoconjugate J., 1998, 15, 131) described a fast and convenient procedure for the synthesis of glycoconjugates. In the present study we used ESI-MS and circular dichroism as tools to analyze non-enzymatic glycation products of proteins and peptides. We discuss influence of reaction conditions on the rate of glycation of lysozyme. We analyze for the first time collision induced dissociation spectra of the obtained peptide conjugates.
Synthesis and application of chiral triazine condensing reagents prepared from esters of amino acids.
Authors: Kamiński Z J , Zajac K J , Jastrzabek K
Published: December 2019

Treatment of cyanuric chloride with chiral amines or esters of chiral amino acids gave chiral 2,4-dichloro-6-alkylamino-1,3,5-triazines (2-5) in 49-69% yield, which were found useful as coupling reagents. Enantioselective activation and enantioselective aminolysis in the presence of 2-5 was observed.
Search for new synthetic immunosuppressants II. Tetrazole analogues of hymenistatin I.
Authors: Zubrzak P , Kociołek K , Smoluch M , Silberring J , Kowalski M L , Szkudlińska B , Zabrocki J
Published: December 2019

Linear and cyclic hymenistatin I (HS I) analogues with dipeptide segments Ile2-Pro3 Pro3-Pro4 and Val6-Pro7 replaced by their tetrazole analogues Ile2-psi[CN4]-Ala3', Pro3-psi[CN4]-Ala4 and Val6-psi[CN4]-Ala7 were synthesized by the solid phase peptide synthesis method and cyclized with the TBTU and/or HATU reagent. The peptides were examined for their immunosuppressive activity in the lymphocyte proliferation test (LPT).
A novel cis-peptide bond motif inducing beta-turn type VI. The synthesis of enkephalin analogues modified with 4-aminopyroglutamic acid.
Authors: Kaczmarek K , Kaleta M , Chung N N , Schiller P W , Zabrocki J
Published: December 2019

A new pathway leading to a mixture of four isomers of 4-aminopyroglutamic acid is described. Michael type addition of Z-deltaAla-OMe to enolates prepared from acylaminomalonates, followed by hydrolysis and decarboxylation give protected 4-aminopyroglutamic acid with the cis:trans ratio approximately 3:2. This mixture was incorporated into Leu-enkephalin (position 2-3). After separation of peptides it appeared that all analogues were essentially inactive in guinea pig ileum and mouse vas deferens bioassays.
Acetylation of methyl 5-amino-1H-[1,2,4]triazole-3-carboxylate.
Authors: Dzygiel A , Masiukiewicz E , Rzeszotarska B
Published: December 2019

Acetylation with acetic anhydride of methyl 5-amino-1H-[1,2,4]triazole-3-carboxylate, one of the hetareneamino acids, was studied using HPLC, H NMR, FTIR and GC-MS. The compound has a significantly decreased susceptibility to acetylation compared to 5-amino-1H-[1,2,4]triazole itself. Two isomeric diacetylated products were found.
Novel side reactions accompanying activation and aminolysis of N-benzoyl-2-alkylserines.
Authors: Kamiński Z J , Woszczyna A , Kolesińska B , Redliński A
Published: December 2019

2-Phenyl-4-alkyl-4-hydroxymethyl-1,3-oxazolones (2a-d) have been identified as side products accompanying activation of N-benzoyl-2-alkylserines (1a-d). Oxazolones 2a-d in the presence of amine rearrange subsequently to corresponding 4-alkyl-2-phenyl-4,5-dihydro-1,3-oxazole-5 carboxylic acids (4a-d) at a 20-68% yield.
Conformational properties of N',N'-dimethylamides of N-acetyldehydroalanine and N-acetyl-(Z)-dehydrophenylalanine.
Authors: Siodłak D , Broda M A , Rzeszotarska B , Kozioł A E , Dybała I
Published: December 2019

Conformational preferences of Ac-deltaAla-NMe2 and Ac-(Z)-deltaPhe-NMe2 were studied and compared with those of their monomethyl counterparts as well as with those of their saturated analogues. X-Ray data and energy calculations revealed a highly conservative conformation of the dehydro dimethylamides, which is located in a high-energy region of the Ramachandran map.
Hematological and antifungal properties of temporin A and a cecropin A-temporin A hybrid.
Authors: Wade D , Silveira A , Rollins-Smith L , Bergman T , Silberring J , Lankinen H
Published: December 2019

Temporin A (TA) and a cecropin A-temporin A hybrid peptide (CATA) were synthesized and assayed for their hemolytic, anticoagulant, and antifungal properties. CATA retains significant antifungal activity, is less hemolytic than TA, and inhibits blood coagulation. These results recommend further studies of the biological activities of CATA.
Influence of organic solvents on papain kinetics.
Authors: Szabelski M , Stachowiak K , Wiczk W
Published: December 2019

Papain activity was studied in water-organic solvent mixtures using the fluorogenic substrate Dabcyl-Lys-Phe-Gly-Gly-Ala-Ala-Edans. The increase of organic solvent (MeOH, EtOH, iPrOH, TFE, MeCN, (MeO)2Et and DMF) concentration in the mixture caused a substantial decrease the initial rate of papain-catalyzed hydrolysis. Moreover, the number of papain active sites decreased with the increase of DMF and MeOH concentration.
Probiotic Bifidobacterium Lactis Bacteria Inhibit the Invasion Phenotype of Shigella Dysenteriae Induced By Invasion Plasmid Antigen C
Authors: Mirfarsi Maryamsadat , Mehrabian Sedighe , Siasi Torbati Elham
Published: December 2019

Background and Aims: Shigellosis is an acute gastroenteritis and Invasion plasmid antigen C (IpaC) is the first effector protein for Shigella invasion of intestinal cells. Among lactic acid bacteria, Bifidobacterium lactis (B. lactis) has received increasing attention for protection of a potential host against gastrointestinal infections. The aim of this study was to investigate the inhibitory activity of B. lactis against Shigella dysenteriae (S. dysenteriae) harboring IpaC gene strains from clinical specimens. Materials and Methods: Sixty stool samples of patients with bloody diarrhea were collected from three teaching hospitals in Tehran and subjected to further analysis for the identification of Shigella colonies by biochemical tests. DNA was assessed for IpaC gene by polymeraese chain reaction (PCR). Furthermore, IpaC gene expression analysis by real-time PCR was carried out to investigate whether probiotic B. lactis can inhibit the invasion phenotype of S. dysenteriae induced by IpaC.  Results: Analysis of gene expression in S. dysenteriae harboring IpaC gene strains showed the expression of IpaC gene in treated S. dysentery with B. lactis being much lower than that of non-treated group (p<0.000). The results revealed that B. lactis at the concentration of 500 μg/ml bears strong inhibitory activity on the growth of S. dysenteriae by decreasing IpaC expression. Conclusions: Our results revealed the positive role of B. lactis in reducing the expression of the ipaC gene and inhibition of epithelial cell invasion by S. dysenteriae. Therefore, probiotics can be used as a complementary biotherapeutic agent in severe Shigella infection.
Genotyping of Acanthamoeba Species Isolated from Keratitis Patients by PCR Sequencing Methods in Tehran, Iran
Authors: Nayeri Chegeni Tooran , Ghaffarifar Fatemeh , Pirestani Majid , Khoshzaban Fariba , Dalimi Asl Abdolhosein , Maspi Nahid
Published: December 2019

Background and Aims: Amoebae of the genus Acanthamoeba are unicellular amphizoic opportunistic pathogens that may cause fatal granulomatous encephalitis, eye keratitis, amebic pneumonitis and skin nodules as well as abscesses in humans and animals. Acanthamoeba keratitis is caused by trauma to the eye, contaminated cleaning solutions and the use of contact lenses. The aim of the present study was to identify the genotypes of Acanthamoeba in all patients with a clinical diagnosis of Acanthamoeba keratitis referring to eye clinic in Tehran using polymerase chain reaction (PCR).  Materials and Methods: In this study, samples were collected from 35 patients who had referred to the eye clinic and were cultured on 1.5% non-nutrient agar. DNA was extracted, and then PCR amplification was performed using genus specific primers. Sequencing analysis and basic local alignment search tool search were conducted to determine the genotypes. Phylogenetic tree was generated using maximum likely algorithm in phylogenetic program MEGA version 6.  Results: Eight cases were positive for Acanthamoeba using genus specific primer pairs. All specimens were reported as genotype T4. Conclusions: Determination of genotypes showed all isolates belonging to genotype T4; this abundance may be due to its higher prevalence in the environment or its greater virulence. However, further analysis of clinical and environmental samples is necessary to clarify this property.
In Vitro Evaluation of Antifungal Activity of Three Traditionally Used Medicinal Plants; Umbilicus Intermedius Boiss, Cuminum Cyminum and Zingiber Officinale Extracts
Authors: Takesh Ameneh , Fatahinia Mahnaz , Mahmoudabadi Ali Zarei
Published: December 2019

Background and Aims: The study aimed to determine the effectiveness of three medicinal plant extracts on fungi with three methods and to compare methods.  Material and methods: This study examined the antifungal properties of cumin (Cuminum cyminum L), ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) and Nafe Venus (Umbilicus intermedius boiss) extracts against fungi including, Aspergillus spp., Penicillium spp., Mucor spp., Stemphylium spp., Drechslera spp., Alternaria spp., Cladosporium spp., and Aureobasidium pullulans. Furthermore, 17 candida isolates including, C. albicans, C. glabrata and C. dubliniensis were tested. In the present study two methods of disc diffusion method, agar wells diffusion method were used for assay. Then, the mixing with culture medium method was used for assessment of the antifungal activity of extracts against Alternaria sp.(as black mold), A. terreus (as hyaline mold) and C. albicans (as yeast) to compare methods as well. Results: No fungi were susceptible to extracts in disc diffusion method and agar wells diffusion method. But, this study showed that in mixing with culture medium method, cumin extract has valuable anti-fungal property and Umbilicus intermedius boiss has the inhibitory properties against the black fungi. Furthermore, it is found that mixing with culture medium method is more efficient than disc and agar well diffusion methods. Alternaria sp. and C. albicans were susceptible and resistant to all extracts.  Conclusions: it is found that mixing with culture medium method is more efficient than disc and agar well diffusion methods and inhibitory potency of the extracts varies according to the type of extraction and their concentration.
Neutrophil Gelatinase-associated Lipocalin Value in Patients' Urine with Gram Positive Cocci Infection in the Urinary Tract
Authors: Saadi Somayeh , Tabatabaei Seyed Mahdi , Hooshmandi Zahra , Salehizadeh Somayeh
Published: December 2019

Background and Aims: This study aimed to investigate the amount of Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) in patients' urine with Grampositive cocci infections  Materials and Methods: The microbial culture was prepared from 100 urine samples and the results were recorded. The genus and bacterial were species identified and an antibiogram test was conducted to investigate their resistance. Human Lipocalin /NGAL enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay test was used. To analyze the data, Tukey and One Way ANOVA tests were used. Results: The highest mean of NGAL in the patient group was related to the men's category with 8.77, and the gender had a significant impact on the mean of NGAL. White blood cells has a significant impact on the mean of NGAL (p<0.05). The negative significance of the mean value also indicates the amount of NGAL being higher in the patient group.  Conclusions: These data suggest a relationship between the amount of NGAL with white blood cells value in patients who present urinary infection of Grampositive cocci. NGAL value plays an important role as an adjuvant and surrogate marker in early diagnosis of urinary tract infections and acute renal damage in line with microbiological investigations.
Honey Bee Dry Venom Reduces Hepatitis B Virus Surface Antigen Secretion in PLC/PRF/5 Cell Line
Authors: Khani Hussein , Ghorbani Mahdi , Nojoomi Farshad , Mohebbi Alireza
Published: December 2019

Background and Aims: Currently, many efforts are directed toward functional Hepatitis B virus (HBV) treatment. This is achievable by suppression of HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) secretion. In this regard, use of natural products has been the areas of interest by scientific communities.  Materials and Methods: Dried Honey Bee venom was extracted for assessing its anti-HBsAg secretion potential. Hepatoma cell-derived PLC/PRF/5 was propagated in complete medium. The cell line was treated by a serial dilution of Bee venom. Cell cytotoxicity (IC50) was measured by MTT colorimetric assay at three post-treatment times. HBsAg secretion was evaluated from PLC/PRF/5 supernatant treated by under-cytotoxic concentrations of Bee venom by using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.  Results: The results indicated that dried Bee venom extract is able to reduce secretion of HBsAg from the cell line with Selectivity Index (SI) of eight. Reduced levels of HBsAg were in dose-dependent manner and it was in its lower concentrations at 8 ppm after 12 hr post treatment. The IC50 was observed to be 63.78 ppm. Conclusions: The Bee venom has anti-HBV activity. The way we used under-cytotoxic concentration of Bee venom, the HBsAg secretion was restored after 24 hr post treatment. Furthermore, mechanism of action of Bee venom in reducing HBsAg level needs to be further investigated.
Prothrombin Gene G20210A Variant in Angiographically Documented Patients with Coronary Artery Stenosis
Authors: Pourgholi Leyla , Goodarzynejad Hamidreza , Ziaee Shayan , Zare Elmira , Jalali Arash , Boroumand Mohammadali
Published: December 2019

Background: Studies on the association between the prothrombin G20210A variant and coronary artery disease (CAD) risk are inconclusive. This study aimed to investigate the possible association between the G20210A variant in the prothrombin gene and documented CAD and its severity.
Methods: This study enrolled 1460 patients who were consecutively admitted for elective coronary angiography. Via the standard angiographic techniques, coronary angiographies were done and the presence and severity of CAD were determined through the clinical vessel score and the Gensini score. Prothrombin G20210A genotypes were identified using PCR-RFLP.
Results:  This cross-sectional study was performed on 953 men and 507 women at a mean age of 58.21±10.33 years. The median and the interquartile range for the Gensini score were not statistically significantly different between the wild (GG) and mutant (AA+GA) genotypes (P=0.440). The association between the G20210A polymorphism and the severity of CAD with respect to the vessel score also showed no significant linear trend of higher numbers of diseased vessels (P= 0.765 for the Mantel–Haenszel test of linear trend) in the AA+GA genotype as compared with the GG genotype.
Conclusion: Our data failed to confirm the hypothesis that the G20210A variant mutation may be a significant determinant of CAD risk or its severity.
 
J Teh Univ Heart Ctr 2019;14(4):150-155
 
This paper should be cited as: Pourgholi L, Goodarzynejad H, Ziaee S, Zare E, Jalali A, Boroumand M. Prothrombin Gene G20210A Variant in Angiographically Documented Patients with Coronary Artery Stenosis. J Teh Univ Heart Ctr 2019;14(4):150-155.
Development of Pacemaker Lead Thrombosis in a Patient with Atrial Fibrillation during Apixaban Treatment
Authors: Adar Adem , Önalan Orhan , Cakan Fahri
Published: December 2019

Apixaban was introduced in clinical use for nonvalvular atrial fibrillation as an alternative to warfarin. There is a dearth of information regarding apixaban use in patients suffering from atrial fibrillation with intracardiac foreign bodies such as pacemaker leads. In this report, we describe a 72-year-old female patient with a complaint of weakness in both legs of a few days’ duration. She was detected to have a thrombus over the pacemaker lead and inside the left atrial appendage during apixaban treatment. After the discontinuation of apixaban and the commencement of warfarin, the thrombus was resolved. Our case is the first report to show that apixaban treatment (5 mg, twice daily) may not prevent the development of pacemaker lead thrombosis in patients with atrial fibrillation.
 
J Teh Univ Heart Ctr 2019;14(4):183-186
 
This paper should be cited as: Adem Adar, Orhan Önalan, Fahri Cakan. Development of Pacemaker Lead Thrombosis in a Patient with Atrial Fibrillation during Apixaban Treatment. J Teh Univ Heart Ctr 2019;14(4):183-186
The relationship between spiritual health and job satisfaction among the employees of Legal Medicine Organization
Authors: SHOJAEI BAGHINI Ahmad , BARZEGAR Abdolrazagh , DANESHPARVAR Hamid Reza , ADIBZADEH Abdolraoof , AHMADI Armindokht , SABERI Seyed Mehdi
Published: December 2019

Background: Employees' job satisfaction is one of the most important issues in the field of organizational manpower and spiritual health is one of the essential aspects of people's health and well-being. The goal of the study was to investigate the relationship between these two factors in Legal Medicine staff.
Methods: This research is a descriptive-correlational study and the statistical population of this study includes the staff of Legal Medicine Organization throughout the country. Data collection instruments included two questionnaires of spiritual health and job satisfaction (JDI) and demographic information. The sample size was 321 according to the completed questionnaires. Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation test and SPSS 16 software were used for data analysis. The significance level of the test is considered to be 5درصد.
Results: Among the dimensions of job satisfaction, the highest mean was related to job satisfaction (53.50) and the lowest was related to salary satisfaction (19.72). The study found that there was a relationship between job satisfaction and spiritual health (p = 0.049, r = 0.102). Also, between spiritual attitude to creator with job satisfaction (p = 0.032, r = 0/120) and also between spiritual attitude to self with job satisfaction (p = 0.022, r = 0/128), between spiritual health with satisfaction of the supervisor (p = 0.020, r = 0.139) and there was a relationship between spiritual attitudes toward the Creator with the satisfaction of supervisors and colleagues (p = 0.035, r = 0.118 and p = 0.042, r = 0.114, respectively).
Discussion and suggestions: Job satisfaction is associated with higher spiritual health as well as higher spiritual health related to job satisfaction. Paying attention to the spiritual health of staff can be helped by promoting spiritual attitudes, and this requires using up-to-date scientific spirituality training. This can be effective in planning for the promotion of spiritual health and thus improve the performance of the organization's staff.
The Relationship between Occupational Stress and Mental Health in Central Bafgh Iron Workers
Authors: Afkhami Aghda Mohammad , Afkhami Aghda Faezeh , Abdollahi Masoomeh , Falahati Maryam , Moahammad Mirzaee Hossein
Published: December 2019

Introduction: Occupational stress is one of the most important phenomena in the workplace. Mental health, as an important factor in all personal, social, and occupational life aspects, is one of the areas of interest in mental health. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between job stress and mental health among workers of central iron ore in Bafgh City, Iran.
Methods: This was a descriptive correlational study. The statistical population included 2400 people (1600 workers and 800 employees) working in central Bafgh iron ore in 2014. The sample size was estimated as 331 using the Morgan and Krejcie table. Approximately, 216 persons were employed in the labor sector and 115 in the employment sector. Data collection tools included the Goldberg general health questionnaire (GHQ) and Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS). The DASS was designed in three parts. The first part included demographic data (7 items). The second section had 28 questions and dealt with the participants' general health status. The third part included 42 questions and was about occupational stress. Later, Spss21 was used and Pearson correlation coefficient and regression tests were run to analyze the data and test the hypotheses.
Results: The results showed that mental health was higher in employees, while job stress was higher among the workers. This indicated a significant association between job stress and mental health in both employees and workers. However, regarding the demographic variables, only gender was related to mental health and rest of the demographic variables had no significant relationship with mental health and job stress (5≥participants).
Conclusion: Occupational stress was related to mental health in employees and workers; this can affect the level of production and product quality. Furthermore, occupational tress and mental health not only affect the workers and employees, but also expose the society and other people at risk.  Consequently, it is necessary to plan and render different services at the occupation environment to decrease job stress and improve the current situation.
Analysis of Futile Events in Small Industrial and Production Workshops of Isfahan Province by Mort Method
Authors: Khanali Zafra Vajihe , Sadeghi Banis Mohammad Reza
Published: December 2019

Introduction: One of the important and growing organizational considerations is the staff health and safety. Workplace events cause death and disability in a large number of employees annually. So, employers have seriously focused their attention and organizational resources on this important issue. The purpose of this study was to investigate causes of the fatal industrial-production activities using the Morte's technique and to provide management solutions to reduce the incidents caused by the workshop in Yazd province, Iran.
Methods: Initially, a total of 57 fatal accidents were identified and investigated in Isfahan industrial enterprises. Among this number, 12 cases of work-related incidents were studied. In the second stage, events were analyzed by Morte tree. This descriptive, correlational, and applied research was a fieldwork conducted as a library study to collect the required data.
Results: The results showed that most causes of defect accidents were among the management system factors and covered 40.4% of the total causes. This was followed by the human errors and defects in working processes (36.5%), defects in fences and barriers (19.2%) in rescue process, and other causes of accidents (3.9%).
Conclusion: By adopting safety measures in compliance with the protective regulations, extent and severity of the accidents can be reduced to a large extent. Many good practices can also be prevented by appropriate management measures.
Assessment of Safety and Health Risks of Seismic Project of Fars Mountain 1 Using HAZAN Method
Authors: Razmjoei Arsalan , Ebrahimi Ghavam Abadi Leila , Delavar Amin , Pakbaz Hamid Reza
Published: December 2019

Introduction: The overall oil and gas industries are considered as the most important industry in the country, where a significant part of the budget depends on it. The significant health and safety implications of these industries have been highlighted by staff and stakeholders as well.
Methods: The present study was conducted to identify and assess the safety and health risks of the Fars Mountain 1 Seismology project using the HAZAN method in 2016 and 2017. The HTA was used to analyze the main tasks of the main occupations: digger, surveyor, shooter, drivers and helicopter pilot. The risk assessment process identified in the HAZAN method was based on qualitative matrix. In HAZAN, 50 health and safety risks were identified.
Results: The results showed that 8 risk (16درصد) were unacceptable, 25 unsatisfactory (50درصد) and 17 (34درصد) were acceptable.
Conclusion: The results showed that the processes of aviation and land transport, as well as traffic on mountain routes, are the most expensive activities of the project. Finally, management solutions were proposed to reduce the risk level of the most important project activities.