Background: Members of Anopheles maculipennis complex are effective malaria vectors in Europe and the Caspian Sea region in northern Iran, where malaria has been re-introduced since 1994. The current study has been designed in order to provide further evidence on the status of species composition and to identify more accurately the members of the maculipennis complex in northern Iran.

No abstract

The Ral (Ras‐Like) signaling pathway plays an important role in the biology of cells. A plethora of effects is regulated by this signaling pathway and its prooncogenic effectors. Our team has demonstrated the overactivation of the RalA signaling pathway in a number of human malignancies including cancers of the liver, ovary, lung, brain, and malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors. Additionally, we have shown that the activation of RalA in cancer stem cells is higher in comparison with differentiated cancer cells. In this article, we review the role of Ral signaling in health and disease with a focus on the role of this multifunctional protein in the generation of therapies for cancer. An improved understanding of this pathway can lead to development of a novel class of anticancer therapies that functions on the basis of intervention with RalA or its downstream effectors.

Lung cancer is recognized as a leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Over the past several years, evidence emerged that microRNAs (miRNAs), a class of small non-coding RNA molecules regulating gene expression at posttranscriptional level, play an important role in cell functioning, as well as in human diseases. Here, we analyzed expression of miR-15a/16, miR-21, miR-34a, miR-126, miR-128, and miR-210 at transcriptional level in 30 non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) tumor tissues compared to the matched adjacent normal tissues and their correlation with clinicopathological features of the patients. Samples were collected from the NSCLC patients undergoing surgery before radiotherapeutic or chemotherapeutic treatment. Expression levels of miRNAs were assessed by TaqMan RT-PCR assay. The data obtained in this study were processed using REST 2009 and SPSS statistical software. The graphs were designed by GraphPad prism 5.0. In tumor samples, we found downregulation of miR-15a/16 (50/83.3%), miR-34a (83.3%), miR-126 (70%), and miR-128 (63.3%). At the same time, miR-21 and miR-210 were upregulated by 53.3 and 66.6% in cancer tissue versus matched adjacent normal tissues, respectively. No significant correlation was found between the expression levels of miR-15a/16, miR-21, miR-34a, miR-126, miR-128, and miR-210 and lymph node, tumor size, sex, and smoking. However, the study demonstrated a correlation between a change in expression of miR-15, miR-16, miR-34a, miR-126, and miR-210 compared to normal tissues and TNM staging (P < 0.05). Furthermore, miR-126 expression level was different in adenocarcinomas and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) subtype (P < 0.1). Detailed analysis revealed significant change in expression of miR-15a/16, miR-34a, miR-126, and miR-210 in NSCLC tumor samples indicating involvement of these miRNAs in lung cancer pathogenesis. miR-210 demonstrated the most consistent increase in tumor tissues between different patients, suggesting its potential significance for NSCLC.