Naturally occurring antisense RNAs are small, diffusible, untranslated transcripts that pair to target RNAs at specific regions of complementarity to control their biological function by regulating gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. This review focuses on known cases of antisense RNA control in prokaryotes and provides an overview of some natural RNA-based mechanisms that bacteria use to modulate gene expression, such as mRNA sensors, riboswitches and antisense RNAs. We also highlight recent advances in RNA-based technology. The review shows that studies on both natural and synthetic systems are reciprocally beneficial.

Since the rapid onset of the COVID‐19 or SARS‐CoV‐2 pandemic in the world in 2019, extensive studies have been conducted to unveil the behavior and emission pattern of the virus in order to determine the best ways to diagnosis of virus and thereof formulate effective drugs or vaccines to combat the disease. The emergence of novel diagnostic and therapeutic techniques considering the multiplicity of reports from one side and contradictions in assessments from the other side necessitates instantaneous updates on the progress of clinical investigations. There is also growing public anxiety from time to time mutation of COVID‐19, as reflected in considerable mortality and transmission, respectively, from delta and Omicron variants. We comprehensively review and summarize different aspects of prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of COVID‐19. First, biological characteristics of COVID‐19 were explained from diagnosis standpoint. Thereafter, the preclinical animal models of COVID‐19 were discussed to frame the symptoms and clinical effects of COVID‐19 from patient to patient with treatment strategies and in‐silico/computational biology. Finally, the opportunities and challenges of nanoscience/nanotechnology in identification, diagnosis, and treatment of COVID‐19 were discussed. This review covers almost all SARS‐CoV‐2‐related topics extensively to deepen the understanding of the latest achievements (last updated on January 11, 2022).

(R.A.) Please cite this article as: Rajaeifar M.A., Tabatabaei M., Abdi R., Latifi A.M., Saberi F., Askari M., Zenouzi A., Ghorbani M. Attributional and consequential environmental assessment of using waste cooking oil-and poultry fat-based biodiesel blends in urban buses: a real-world operation condition study. Biofuel Research Journal 15 (2017) Attributional and consequential environmental assessment of using waste cooking oil-and poultry fat-based biodiesel blends in urban buses: a real-world operation condition study Urban public transportation sector in general is heavily dependent on fossil -oriented fuels, e.g., diesel. Given the fact that a major proportion of urban pollution and the consequent threats towards public health are attributed to this sector, serious efforts at both technical and political levels have been being made to introduce less-polluting fueling regimes, e.g., partial replacement of diesel with biodiesel. In line with that, the present study was aimed at evaluating the emissions attributed to 5% blends of waste cooking oil (WCO) and poultry fat (PF) biodiesel fuels (i.e., B5-WCO and B5-PF fuel blends) when used in urban buses during idle operation mode. Moreover, the attributional and consequential environmental impacts of using these fuel blends were also investigated through a well to wheel life cycle assessment (LCA) by considering the real-world condition combustion data using ten urban buses. The findings of the ALCA revealed that the application of 1 L B5-WCO fuel blend could potentially reduce the environmental burdens in human health, ecosystem quality, and resources damage categories compared with using the B5-PF fuel blend. The situation was opposite for climate change damage category in which using 1 L B5-PF fuel blend had a lower impact on the environment. Overall, the environmental hotspots in the B5-WCO and B5-PF life cycles were identified as the combustion stage as well as the diesel production and transportation. From the consequential perspective, using 1 L B5-WCO fuel blend could potentially decrease the environmental burdens in human health, ecosystem quality, and resources damage categories. While, the situation was different for climate change damage category where using 1 L B5-PF fuel blend could have a lower impact on the environment. In conclusion, using B5-WCO fuel blend as an alternative for diesel could be an environmentally-friendly decision for the Iranian urban transportation sector at the policy level as long as the marginal suppliers of oil would be the same as the countries considered herein, i.e., Malaysia and Argentina.© 2017 BRTeam. All rights reserved. ABSTRACTJournal homepage: www.biofueljournal.com Rajaeifar al. / Biofuel Research Journal 15 (2017) 638-653 Please cite this article as: Rajaeifar M.A., Tabatabaei M., Abdi R., Latifi A.M., Saberi F., Askari M., Zenouzi A., Ghorbani M. Attributional and consequential environmental assessment of using waste cooking oil-and poultry fat-based biodiesel blends in urban buses: a real-world operati...

In the early years of the 20th century, the medical world was able to discover drugs that can eliminate microbial infections, and in the mid-twentieth century gradually began the clinical application of these drugs as antibiotics. Soon, however, scientists found that some microbes become resistant to these drugs and began attempts to identify new antibiotics. At the same time, microbes were also considering changes to escape the effects of antibiotics. The reality is that, like any other living creature, microorganisms, especially bacteria, adapt to their surroundings in order to survive. Therefore, the bacteria that were already affected by one or more antibiotics became resistant to them. Classically, drug resistance in bacteria is attributed to chromosomal mutations, but chiefly, it seems that it is associated with extrachromosomal elements acquired from environmental bacteria. Accordingly, this review investigated the molecular mechanisms that lead to drug resistance in bacteria.

A label-free optical immunosensor was developed based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR) method for rapid and selective detection of Brucella melitensis. This immunosensor was constructed by immobilizing capture antibody on 11-mercaptoundecanoic acid modified gold disk. This fabricated immunosensor detected B. melitensis at a concentration range from 10 3 to 10 7 cell mL -1 (R 2 = 0.998) and a detection limit of 100 cell mL -1. Additionally, the kinetic equilibrium dissociation constant (K D ) for assessment of the interaction affinity was calculated as 1.1 × 10 -9 mol L -1 that can be considered as high affinity interaction. This SPR immunosensor provided advantages in term of fast response, label free and accurate detection of B. melitensis in analytical systems.

Background This study was designed to evaluate the prevalence, genotypic patterns, and predominant mutations of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection among diabetic patients. Methods Serum samples were obtained from 733 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and 782 non-diabetic controls. The presence of HBsAg and HBcAb was determined by ELISA. Nested PCR, targeting S and pre-core regions of the HBV genome, followed by sequencing was carried out to determine HBV genotypes and predominant mutations in the S, basal core promoter (BCP), and pre-core regions of the HBV genome. Results Of 733 diabetic patients, 94 cases (12.82%) were positive for HBcAb, 28 cases (3.82%) were positive for HBsAg, and 19 cases (2.59%) had HBV-DNA with genotype D, sub-genotype D1/D3 and subtype ayw2. An occult HBV infection was found in one of the HBV DNA-positive samples, which was positive for HBcAb but negative for HBsAg. P120T/G145R, G1896A/G1899A, and A1762T/G1764T were the most frequent point substitution mutations detected in the S, pre-core, and BCP regions of the HBV genome, respectively. P120T and G145R mutations were associated with low levels or undetectable levels of HBsAg in serum. Therefore, routine tests based on HBsAg detection cannot detect HBsAg-negative infected patients. Conclusions Relatively high prevalence of HBV infection was found in diabetic patients, while all of the HBV-infected patients were unaware of their infection. Therefore, screening for HBV infection should be included in the management program of diabetes for timely diagnosis and treatment of infected but asymptomatic patients.

Rituximab (RTX) combined with short-term glucocorticoids (GC) is an effective therapeutic option for pemphigus. The newly developed Glucocorticoid Toxicity Index (GTI) tool provides the possibility to measure GC toxicities over time. To compare 1-year GTI between two groups of RTX-treated and RTX-naïve patients with pemphigus. The responsiveness of the GTI was also investigated. A prospective cohort of 129 adults with newly diagnosed pemphigus was conducted. GC-related toxicities were assessed at 3-month intervals according to Composite and Specific lists of the GTI. Of the patients, 76.7% (n = 99) received RTX. Throughout the time intervals, RTX-treated patients had lower GTI compared to RTX-naïve ones (p = 0.036). The mean GTI at 1-year was 34.3 in the RTX-treated group and 50.8 in the RTX-naïve group (p = 0.04). The most commonly observed GC-related toxicity was neuropsychiatric manifestations for 34% (224 events). The relapse rate of RTX-treated patients (1%) was significantly lower than RTX-naïve patients (10%) (p = 0.037). The GTI showed no correlation with cumulative GC consumption in both groups (p > 0.05, both). Patients treated with GC alone had remarkably higher GTI than patients treated with GC plus RTX. The GTI is an applicable tool to quantitatively capture GC toxicities at the patient level in pemphigus.

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