Influenza virus is the most important cause of annual morbidities and mortalities worldwide with numerous antigenic drifts and shifts. Inaccessibility to effective drugs and vaccines has made world health authorities to be interested in traditional medicine in order to prevent spread of the infectious agent. Garlic is one of the most famous of all plants in human history. It has been shown that garlic extract has various effects on different diseases. The aim of this study was to evaluate garlic extract antiviral activity against influenza virus in cell culture. To study the potential antiviral activity, MDCK (Madin-Darbey Canin Kidney) cells were treated with effective minimal cytotoxic concentration of the extract and 100 TCID50 (50% Tissue Culture Infectious Dose) of the virus during infection at different time periods. The viral titers were determined by hemagglutination (HA) and TCID50 assays. The antiviral effect of the extract was studied at 1, 8 and 24 hours after treatment on the culture. To measure the amount of the viral genome synthesized at different times after treatment, RNA extraction, Reverse TranscriptionPolymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) and free band densitometry software were performed. Although the precise mechanism has not been defined yet, it was found that garlic extract with a good selectivity index (SI) has inhibitory effect on the virus penetration and proliferation in cell culture.

BackgroundViral pathogens are the main cause of acute gastroenteritis in developed and developing countries. Rotavirus and adenovirus are the two important agents associated with hospitalization for diarrhea especially in children. Limitation and control of diarrhea as a costly disease must be considered in national health programs.ObjectivesEpidemiological studies on viral diarrhea and collecting data for rotavirus and adenovirus prevalence, as two important viral agents of gastroenteritis, are valuable for planning of a prospective program.Materials and Methods827 stool samples of pediatrics patients with gastroenteritis who were admitted to Dastgheib Hospital, Shiraz, Iran, from September 2008 to February 2010 were tested for presence of rotavirus and adenovirus using the EIA method. A demographic and clinical study was performed to determine the relationship between viral infection and clinical outcomes of patients.ResultsRotavirus was identified in 347 patients out of 827 (42%), adenovirus was detected in 76 (9%) of samples and 34 (4%) of patients had rotavirus-adenovirus co-infection. Diarrhea was the most common symptom in viral infected patients.ConclusionsGiven the non-specific symptoms of these viruses and the high prevalence of viral diarrhea in our region, more laboratories should be equipped for virus detection and vaccination might be considered as a prevention strategy.

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In order to examine the systematic application of seed-coat micro-morphology in Gypsophila and allied genera, seed surfaces of 30 species and two varieties representing four genera of tribe Caryophylleae were examined with scanning electron microscope. The seeds of examined species range between 0.5Á2.1 mm in length and 0.3Á2.4 mm in diameter. The exomorphology of the seed coat shows two distinctive cell patterns. The epidermis is constructed either of elongated polygonal or of broad polygonal cells. The elongated type is the most common among the studied species, but the variation in alignment of testa cells, their size and shape as well as the density of protuberances may provide further information and useful diagnostic characters at generic and specific rank. The testa cells in Gypsophila and Saponaria are shallowly undulate, deeply undulate, lobed and armed at anticlinal walls. Deeply undulate anticlinal walls were observed in both Gypsophila and Ankyropetalum and a few species of Saponaria. Non-or indistinctly grooved anticlinal walls is the more common type in Allochrusa. Seed-coat characters support the separation of Gypsophila and Saponaria to some extent but disagree with recognition of Ankyropetalum as a genus separate from Gypsophila.

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The emergence of Escherichia coli sequence type 131 (ST131) as a multidrug-resistant and virulent pathogen represents a major challenge to public health globally. Recently, the O25b/ST131 E. coli producing CTX-M-15 with high virulence potential has been reported worldwide, but has received little attention in Iran. This study is the first in Iran to specifically determine the spread of the O25b/ST131 clone producing CTX-M-15 among E. coli isolates belonging to the B2 phylogenetic group. ST131 clone in phylogenetic group B2 was detected based on PCR detection of ST131-specific single-nucleotide polymorphisms in mdh and gyrB. O25b/ST131 E. coli clone was confirmed utilizing O25b/ST131 clone allele-specific PCR for the pabB gene. All group B2 E. coli isolates were characterized based on antibiotic susceptibility, extended-spectrum b-lactamase (ESBL) enzymes, and virulence traits. Our results demonstrated that 38 out of the 154 B2 group isolates (24.7%) were identified as belonging to the ST131 clone. Furthermore, of these, 28 isolates (73.6%) were detected as O25b/ ST131 clone. Antibiotic resistance of ST131 E. coli isolates to ciprofloxacin, gentamicin, cefotaxime, and aztreonam was significantly higher than non-ST131 isolates. Almost all of the O25b/ST131 isolates with the ability for ESBL production were reported as CTX-M-15 producing (95.5%). Our results showed that the most prevalent virulence trait in ST131 clone was ompT (94.7%). This study is the first to report the prevalence of the CTX-M-15-producing O25b/ST131 E. coli in Iran. Our findings reinforce the surveillance of dissemination of ST131 E. coli clone as a major drug-resistant pathogen and an important new public health threat.

Nanoparticles have been applied to medicine, hygiene, pharmacy and dentistry, and will bring significant advances in the prevention, diagnosis, drug delivery and treatment of disease. Green synthesis of metal nanoparticles has a very important role in nanobiotechnology, allowing production of non-toxic and eco-friendly particles. Green synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) was studied using pine pollen as a novel, cost-effective, simple and non-hazardous bioresource. The antifungal activity of the synthesized AgNPs was investigated. Biosynthesis of AgNPs was conducted using pollen of pine (as a novel bioresource) acting as both reducing and capping agents. AgNPs were characterized using UV-visible spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. In evaluation for antifungal properties, the synthesized AgNPs represented significant in vitro inhibitory effects on cultures. Pine pollen can mediate biosynthesis of colloidal AgNPs with an average size of 12 nm. AgNPs were formed at 22 °C and observed to be highly stable up to three months without precipitation or decreased antifungal property. AgNPs showed significant inhibitory effects against. The first report for a low-cost, simple, well feasible and eco-friendly procedure for biosynthesis of AgNPs was presented. The synthesized AgNPs by pine pollen were nontoxic and eco-friendly, and can be employed for large-scale production. The nanoparticles showed strong effect on quantitative inhibition and disruption of antifungal growth.