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Infective endocarditis (IE) is a severe disease that is still associated with high mortality despite recent advances in diagnosis and treatment. HACEK organisms (Haemophilus spp., Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Cardiobacterium hominis, Eikenella corrodens, and Kingella kingae) are gram-negative bacteria that are part of the normal flora of the mouth and upper respiratory tract in humans. These organisms cause a wide range of infections, of which IE is one of the most notable. In order to control and prevent endocarditis caused by HACEK, measures such as oral hygiene and the use of prophylactic drugs should be used for people at risk, including people with underlying heart disease and people with artificial valves. This review is a summary of the main aspects of IE focusing on HACEK organisms.

Objective Acinetobacter baumannii (A. baumannii) has caused many problems in nosocomial infections. Efflux pumps are considered as one of the most important mechanisms of resistance in this bacterium and have the ability to excrete toxic substances such as antibiotics out of the cell. Results In this study, 60 isolates of A. baumannii were collected from patients in several hospitals in Tehran, Iran. After diagnosis using standard biochemical methods, the pattern of antibiotic susceptibility was determined using the disk diffusion method according to CLSI guidelines. The adeA and adeS genes were identified by PCR method. The highest resistance to Piperacillin and the lowest resistance to Gentamicin were observed (100% compared to 48.4%). 6.6% of the isolates had only adeA gene and adeS gene was observed in 8.4% of isolates and both genes were detected in 73.4% of the samples. Despite the high resistance of t A. baumannii o antibiotics and due to the high frequency of genes of adeA and adeS efflux pumps in A. baumannii isolates, it can be concluded that these efflux pumps may play an important role in resistance of this bacterium. By determining the pattern of antibiotic the resistance before treatment, the resistance of this pathogen can be prevented in societies.

Background Ataxia telangiectasia-mutated (ATM) gene contributes to repair damaged DNA and to regulate cell cycle; therefore, ATM variants seem to increase breast cancer risk; however, the results are controversial. So we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to clarify the pooled association between various ATM variants and the risk of breast cancer. Methods The relevant studies were searched through Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed and Cochrane. Stratified and subgroup analyses were performed to explore heterogeneity between studies and assess effects of study quality. The pooled estimates logarithm with standard error logarithm of odds ratio and relative risk with confidence interval were calculated. Results This study revealed that there is association between ATM variants and the risk of breast cancer; according to the seven adjusted case-control studies, OR of this association was estimated as 1.67 (95%CI: 0.73–3.82), according to nine unadjusted case-control studies, the crude OR was 2.27 (95% CI: 1.17–4.40) and according to two cohorts, the RR was estimated as 1.68 (95% CI: 1.17–2.40). Conclusions The ATM variants are associated with an increased risk of breast cancer that ATM V2424G mutation is detected as the most predisposing factor while ATM D1853V, L546V, and S707P variants have the least predictive ability.

This study was conducted to identify patterns of cagA EPIYA motifs in H . pylori strains isolated from patients with gastrointestinal diseases in Hospitals of Shahrekord, and investigate the association between these biomarkers and clinical outcomes of gastrointestinal diseases due to H . pylori . In this study, 253 patients with gastrointestinal diseases were studied within 1395–1396. Histopathological investigations and urease test showed that 207 isolates were H . pylori -positive. Then, screening using a molecular technique, PCR, confirmed that 159 isolates had cagA. Finally, the pattern and prevalence of the motifs were determined by PCR and identified a number of motifs were sequenced. Results of this study showed that the pattern of motifs was as follows: ABC (140 isolates) (93/7%), ABCC (6 isolates) (3/77%), ABCCC (4 isolates) (2/5%), AB (7 isolates) (4/4%), AC (1 isolate) (0/6%), and BC (1 isolate) (0/6%). Sequencing results showed the presence of changed EPIYA motif in some isolates. CM motif sequence was also seen in all isolates. In this study, no significant association was seen between the prevalence rate of different patterns and clinical symptoms ( p = 0.71). There is a slight association between the presence of ABC motifs and the type of digestive disorder (p = 0.056). Results indicated that ABC was the most frequently seen pattern however, in such that positive cases of ABC motifs were more common in gastritis. All isolates had kinase phosphorylation region, and the observed pattern in this region was a generally western type (ABC).

Background: Since drug resistance has become one of the predominant problems of health worldwide, it is necessary to use new methods to combat drug-resistant bacteria. In this regard, medicinal plants are considered one of the richest sources to produce antibiotics. The aim of this study was to investigate the antibacterial effects as well as total phenolic and flavonoid contents of a number of medicinal plants collected from the Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari provinces of India, in order to investigate their potential use for the production of new antibiotics. Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, the maceration method was used to prepare hydroalcoholic extract of Medicago sativa, Onosma sericeum, Parietaria judaica L., Phlomis persica and Echinophora platyloba DC. The effect of these plants on Enterococcus faecalis (ATCC 29212) was investigated. To determine the antibacterial effect of the extracts, broth microdilution in sterile 96-well plate was used according to the McFarland standard (105 CFU/ml). The total phenolic content was assayed by using the Folin-Ciocalteu colorimetric method and expressed in terms of gallic acid equivalent. The total flavonoid content was assayed by aluminum chloride colorimetric method and expressed in terms of rutin equivalent. Results: Based on the results of this study, the 512, 256, 128, 32 and 32 µg/ml doses were determined to be the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs), and the 1024, 1024, 512, 128 and 128 μg/ml doses were derived as the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBCs) of M. sativa, O. Sericeum, P. judaica, P. persica and E. platyloba, respectively. E. faecalis and P. judaica contained the highest total phenolic content and flavonoid content, respectively. Conclusion: Given the comparatively higher antibacterial effect of P. persica and E. platyloba, as well as the presence of phenolic and flavonoid compounds in these plants, it is recommended that these plants be further investigated in feasibility studies for the production of new antibiotics.

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Background: Breast cancer (BC) is a common malignancy with a high mortality rate. Malignant cell transformation is associated with metabolic changes. One group pf proteins that are affected are the monocarboxylate transporters (MCTs-SLC16A). The MCTs comprise 14 members, and they play an important role in the growth, proliferation, and metabolism of cancer cells by transporting monocarboxylates such as lactate, pyruvate and thyroid hormones. We aimed to evaluate the expression of MCT3 (SLC16A8), MCT8 (SLC16A2) and MCT9 (SLC16A9) genes in breast cancer samples, comparing to normal adjacent tissues.Methods: Forty paired breast cancer tumor samples, the adjacent non-tumor and ve healthy tissues were collected. Three cancer cell lines (MCF-7, MDA-MB-231, and SKBR3) were also analysed. The expression of SLC16A8, SLC16A2 and SLC16A9 were assessed using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). The relationship between gene expression with the pathological features of the tumors, and the hormone receptors status [estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)] of the patients tumors were also analyzed. Microarray data and survival analyses for each of the candidate genes was undertaken Results: There was a signi cantly lower expression of the MCT3 gene in tumor samples compared to adjacent normal tissue and healthy samples (P-value < 0.05). There was a signi cant difference in the expression of all three candidate genes between the BC tissues and normal tissues, and for the, tissues with different hormone receptor status (ER, PR and HER2) and the molecular subtypes. Altered MCT8 and MCT9 gene expression was associated with a reduced survival Conclusion: MCT3 expression is signi cantly downregulated in breast cancer tissue. MCT3 may represent a novel therapeutic target in breast cancer patients, or in some hormone receptor subgroups, such as HER2-negative or triple-negative.