Patients with cancer are vulnerable to infections caused by mycobacteria and Nocardia. Antimicrobial agents are necessary to treat these infections, but extensive antibiotic use can lead to drug-resistant strains. Due to this issue, in the present study, we aimed to isolate, molecularly identify, prevalence, and assess the resistance genes in mycobacterial and nocardial isolates from patients with cancer. 79 clinical samples were obtained from patients with cancer which were referred to Mohammad Rasolallah hospitals in Shiraz. Initial identification was conducted through phenotypic and biochemical assays, followed by molecular confirmation using PCR amplification of the 16S rRNA and hsp65 genes. Genus and species determination was achieved through direct sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene. Drug susceptibility testing was carried out using the serial dilution method, adhering to the guidelines set by the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) in 2021. Out of 79 clinical samples, 17 isolates (21.51 %) were recovered and identified as Mycobacterium and Nocardia species through molecular and biochemical analyses. In our study, the most prevalent species were M. tuberculosis complex 6 (35.3 %) isolates, M. avium complex 3(17.64 %) isolates, M. terrae 2(11.76 %)isolates, N.cyriacigeorgica 2 (11.76 %) ‏ ‏isolates, N. nova, N. kroppenstedtii, M. arupense, and M. canariasense 1 (5/89 %) isolate each. The analysis of the resistance profile of isolates showed that the M. tuberculosis (MTB) isolates HM7 and HM9 showed multidrug-resistant (MDR), and the isolates HM11 and HM12 showed extensively drug-resistant (XDR) profile, M. avium showed MDR profile, while no resistance patterns were observed in the Nocardia isolates. Moreover, the results show that some of the MTB isolates ‏ ‏harbored katG, ermA, and rpoB resistance genes and M. avium isolates harbored katG and rpoB resistance genes. In conclusion, our results showed, that patients with cancer are vulnerable to infections caused by mycobacteria and Nocardia, moreover the emergence of antibiotic resistance further complicates the management of these infections, necessitating vigilant surveillance and the development of tailored treatment guidelines.
We have identified and characterised a cDNA encoding a novel gene, designated myocyte stress 1 (ms1), that is up-regulated within 1 h in the left ventricle following the application of pressure overload by aortic banding in the rat. The deduced ms1 protein of 317 amino acids contains several putative functional motifs, including a region that is evolutionarily conserved. Distribution analysis indicates that rat ms1 mRNA expression is predominantly expressed in striated muscle and progressively increases in the left ventricle from embryo to adulthood. These findings suggest that ms1 may be important in striated muscle biology and the development of pressure-induced left ventricular hypertrophy.
A number of moisturizers are available containing natural hydrating, moisturizing, fi rming and occlusive property-imparting agent in the form of herbal extracts, juice and oils. The aim of this study is to assess the hydration and viscoelastic effect of commercially available herbal moisturizers, containing different herbs, on human skin, after a single and 3-week period of application using skin bio mechanical and electrical techniques. Twenty selected herbal moisturizers (HM) were coded as HM1-HM20. Forty volunteers, mean age of 40 ± 9 years, were participated in the short- and long-term study. Skin properties in terms of hydration and viscoelastic parameters were measured by multitester and cutometer, respectively. Measurements were done before and after 1, 2, and 3 h (single application) and for the 3-week period of daily application. After single application, significant increase has been observed in both the skin electrical (P < 0.001) and mechanical properties (P < 0.01) as compared to the control, at which no products were applied. After the 3-week period, both effects are maintained and found to be significant at P < 0.001. Short-and long-term study revealed that out of 20 herbal moisturizers, HM8 and HM10 show pronounced increase in skin hydration (90-100%) and HM8, HM10, and HM11 shown marked increase in skin viscoelasticity (90-95%). The possible reason of maximum effects obtained by these products is multifunctional effects of active ingredients of incorporated herbs. Combined used of both non invasive techniques is useful to substantiate the hydrating and viscoelasticity claim of herbal moisturizer. Short- and long-terms study revealed the best performing herbal moisturizer.
Ambulatory electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring can effectively reduce the risk and death rate of patients with cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). The Body Sensor Network (BSN) based ECG monitoring is a new and efficien method to protect the CVDs patients. To meet the challenges of miniaturization, low power and high signal quality of the node, we proposed a novel 50 mmX 50 mmX 10 mm, 30 g wireless ECG node, which includes the single-chip an alog front-end AD8232, ultra-low power microprocessor MSP430F1611 and Bluetooth module HM-11. The ECG signal quality is guaranteed by the on-line digital filtering. The difference threshold algorithm results in accuracy of R-wave detection and heart rate. Experiments were carried out to test the node and the results showed that the pro posed node reached the design target, and it has great potential in application of wireless ECG monitoring.
New fast-growing and less bitter varieties of Hypsizygus marmoreus were developed by crossing monokaryotic mycelia from a commercial strain (Hm1-1) and a wild strain (Hm3-10). Six of the better tasting new strains with a shorter cultivation period were selected from 400 crosses in a large-scale cultivation experiment. We attempted to develop sequence characterized amplified region (SCAR) markers to identify the new strain from other commercial strains. For the SCAR markers, we conducted molecular genetic analysis on a wild strain and the eight most cultivated H. marmoreus strains collected from various areas in East Asia by randomly amplified polymorphic DNA. Ten unique DNA bands for a commercial Hm1-1 strain and the Hm3-10 strain were extracted and their sequences were determined. Primer sets were designed based on the determined sequences. PCR reactions with the primer sets revealed that four primer sets successfully discriminated the new strains from other commercial strains and are thus suitable for commercial purposes.
Melon is an important agricultural and economic vegetable crop worldwide. The genetic male sterility mutant (ms-5) has a recessive nuclear gene that controls the male sterility germplasm. Male sterility could reduce the cost of F1 seed production in melon, but heterozygous fertile plants should be removed before pollination. In this study, bulked segregant analysis combined with specific length amplified fragment sequencing was applied to map the single nuclear male sterility recessive gene. A 30-kb candidate region on chromosome 9 located on scaffold 000048 and spanning 2,522,791 to 2,555,104 bp was identified and further confirmed by cleavage amplified polymorphic sequence markers based on parental line resequencing data and classical mapping of 252 F2 individuals. Gene prediction indicated that six annotated genes are present in the 30-kb candidate region. Quantitative RT-PCR revealed significant differences in the expression level of the LOC103498166 ABORTED MICROSPORES (AMS) gene in male-sterile lines (ms-5) and male-fertile (HM1-1) lines during the 2-mm (tetrad) and 5-mm (the first pollen mitosis) periods, and negative regulation of the AMS candidate gene transcription factor was also detected. Sequencing and cluster analysis of the AMS transcription factor revealed five single-nucleotide polymorphisms between the parental lines. The data presented herein suggest that the AMS transcription factor is a possible candidate gene for single nuclear male sterility in melon. The results of this study will help breeders to identify male-sterile and -fertile plants at seeding as marker-assisted selection methods, which would reduce the cost of seed production and improve the use of male-sterile lines in melon.
Increased costs of annual establishment of small grain pasture associated with fuel, machinery, and labor are eroding the profitability of stocker cattle enterprises. Interest has therefore increased in development of cool-season perennial grasses that are persistent and high quality. This study occurred on 24 ha (divided into thirty 0.81-ha paddocks) located at the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture Livestock and Forestry Branch Station, near Batesville. Two tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) cultivars infected with novel endophytes (NE), Jesup infected with AR542 endophyte (Jesup AR542), and HiMag infected with Number 11 endophyte (HM11) were established in September 2002. Jesup AR542 and HM11 were compared with endemic endophyte Kentucky 31 (KY-31) tall fescue; wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and cereal rye (WR, Secale cereale L.) planted in September 2003, 2004, and 2005; and annual ryegrass [RG, Lolium perenne L. ssp. multiflorum (Lam.) Husnot] planted in September 2004 and 2005. Each year, 3 steers (3.7 steers/ha) were placed on each pasture for fall and winter grazing, and 5 steers (6.2 steers/ha) were placed on each pasture for spring grazing. Animal performance is presented by year in the presence of a year x treatment interaction (P < 0.01). Body weight gain per hectare of steers grazing NE tall fescue was greater (P < 0.01) than those of KY-31 and WR during 2003 to 2004, whereas in 2004 to 2005, BW gain per hectare of steers grazing NE and RG did not differ (P < or = 0.29) and was greater (P < 0.01) than that of WR, which was greater (P < 0.01) than that of KY-31. During 2005 to 2006, BW gain per hectare was greater (P < 0.01) for steers grazing RG than those of NE and WR, which did not differ (P > or = 0.14). Body weight gain per hectare was least (P < 0.01) for steers grazing KY-31. Average net return of NE tall fescue was greater (P < 0.01) than KY-31, but profitability of NE did not consistently differ from cool-season annuals. Across the 3-yr study, NE tall fescue produced net returns per hectare of $219; this level of profitability would require 4 yr for a new planting of NE tall fescue to break even. Novel endophyte tall fescues offer potential benefits related to decreased risk of stand establishment of annual forage crops, longer growing season, and acceptable animal performance.
Discharge of wastewater from textile dyeing industries has been a problem in terms of pollution and treatment of these waters is a great task. Keeping this in mind, the aim of our current research is to study the effect of various bioprocess variables on decolorization of an azo dye, Congo red, by a fungal isolate, Aspergillus niger HM11. CENTRAL COMPOSITE DESIGN (CCD) AND RESPONSE SURFACE METHODOLOGY (RSM) HAVE BEEN APPLIED TO DESIGN EXPERIMENTS TO EVALUATE THE INTERACTIVE EFFECTS OF THE OPERATING VARIABLES: on the decolorization of Congo red. A total of 30 experiments were conducted in the present study and a regression coefficient between the variables was generated. The RSM indicated that pH 6.0, 150 rpm agitation, incubation time of 36 hrs and a glucose concentration of 1.0% were optimal for maximum decolorization of Congo red and the response indicated excellent evaluation of experimental data. From this study, it is very obvious that the fungal isolate, Aspergillus niger HM11 can be used as a promising microbial strain for decolorization of textile dyeing effluent containing similar dyes.
A key step in the cellular differentiation of Dictyostelium is the degradation of glycogen to provide the precursors for synthesis of the structural end products of development. We have found that the enzyme that initiates this degradative pathway, glycogen phosphorylase (1,4-alpha-D-glucan:orthophosphate alpha-glucosyltransferase; EC 2.4.1.1), is developmentally regulated and exists as two forms. During the time course of development, a previously undescribed activity, the "b" form, decreases, while that of the "a" form increases. The "b" form is inactive unless 5'AMP is included in the reaction mixture. The two forms differ in their elution from DE52 cellulose, affinity constants, thermal stability, affinity for 5'AMP Sepharose, subunit molecular weight, and peptide maps. In crude extracts, anti-a antiserum stains a 104-kD protein that is associated with phosphorylase "a" activity and appears late in development, while anti-b antiserum stains a 92-kD protein that is associated with phosphorylase "b" activity and is present throughout development. We have also demonstrated in vitro phosphorylation of the "b" form by an endogenous protein kinase and a corresponding loss of 5'AMP dependence. If intact cells were exposed to exogenous cAMP, "b" activity decreased and was replaced by "a" activity, as well as the 104-kD protein band on SDS-PAGE. In order to determine if the two forms of the enzyme are different gene products, we screened lambda gt11 expression libraries with antibodies against the purified "a" and "b" forms. Three clones were found to be overlapping by Southern analysis. A yeast glycogen phosphorylase cDNA clone (gpy) and a human muscle glycogen phosphorylase clone (HM-11) cross-hybridized with the Dictyostelium inserts, and gpy shared a few common restriction fragments with the Dictyostelium clones on genomic blots. Northern analysis of Dictyostelium total RNA showed that the Dictyostelium inserts and gpy recognize an mRNA of 3.2 kb, while on poly A-enriched RNA, the yeast clone detects preferentially a 3.6-kb message.
Small-scale solar helped renewables hit nearly triple coal's generation in the US
Researchers have discovered that beneficial soil bacteria give plants an unexpected survival advantage in salty soils。 Instead of helping plants keep salt out, the microbes stimulate the production of lignin, a natural compound that strengthens roots and makes plants more resilient。 Greenhouse and field tests showed healthier plants and higher yiel
The maps and images show the extent of destruction and give rescue operations a tool to find any remaining survivors
Two newly confirmed "super-puff" planets are so diffuse that they are less dense than cotton candy, despite being about the size of Jupiter。 Their rare orbital relationship and enormous, lightweight atmospheres could provide valuable clues about how some of the strangest planets in the galaxy come to exist
SCOTUS falls short of deeming geofence warrants unconstitutional, though
GPT系列用参数堆出了惊人的语言能力,Sora用视频生成震撼了全世界……但2026年,产业界达成了一组共识:2026年,是物理AI的元年。 年初拉斯维加斯CES上,英伟达CEO黄仁勋用一场演讲,17遍提及物理AI,用以宣布“物理AI的ChatGPT时刻已经来了”。这也是他近两年一直推崇备至的关键词
A common brain protein may be giving Alzheimer’s disease an unexpected way to spread, carrying toxic Tau proteins from damaged neurons into healthy ones。 By blocking these harmful protein packages before they reach new cells, researchers believe it may one day be possible to slow the disease's relentless progression
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-generated images are the public face of this election overhaul。 Behind the scenes, campaigns are using the technology to analyze voter data, craft campaign materials and write custom messages
A new study suggests Earth may have been sending tiny hitchhikers to Venus for billions of years。 Researchers found that asteroid impacts could launch microbes into space, where some might survive the journey and end up suspended in Venus' clouds。 If future missions detect life there, there's a surprising chance it didn't originate on Venus at all—
NASA’s Lucy spacecraft discovered that asteroid Donaldjohanson is a wobbling, peanut-shaped relic born from a violent collision and slowly reshaped by the subtle force of sunlight。 It also carries traces of ancient water, making it an important clue to the solar system’s mysterious past