Is there an Association between Variants in Candidate Insulin Pathway Genes IGF-I, IGFBP-3, INSR, and IRS2 and Risk of Colorectal Cancer in the Iranian Population?

Karimi, Khatoon,Mahmoudi, Touraj,Karimi, Negar,Dolatmoradi, Hesamodin,Arkani, Maral,Farahani, Hamid,Vahedi, Mohsen,Parsimehr, Elham,Dabiri, Reza,Nobakht, Hossein,Asadi, Asadollah,Zali, Mohammad Reza Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.9

Background: Several epidemiological studies have shown associations between colorectal cancer (CRC) risk and type 2 diabetes and obesity. Any effects would be expected to be mediated through the insulin pathway. Therefore it is possible that variants of genes encoding components of the insulin pathway play roles in CRC susceptibility. In this study, we hypothesized that polymorphisms in the genes involving the insulin pathway are associated with risk of CRC. Materials and Methods: The associations of four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in IGF-I (rs6214), IGFBP-3 (rs3110697), INSR (rs1052371), and IRS2 (rs2289046) genes with the risk of CRC were evaluated using a case-control design with 167 CRC cases and 277 controls by the PCR-RFLP method. Results: Overall, we observed no significant difference in genotype and allele frequencies between the cases and controls for the IGF-I, IGFBP-3, INSR, IRS2 gene variants and CRC before or after adjusting for confounders (age, BMI, sex, and smoking status). However, we observed that the IRS2 (rs2289046) GG genotype compared with AA+AG genotypes has a protective effect for CRC in normal weight subjects (p=0.035, OR=0.259, 95%CI= 0.074-0.907). Conclusions: These findings do not support plausible associations between polymorphic variations in IGF-I, IGFBP-3, INSR, IRS2 genes and risk of CRC. However, the evidence for a link between the IRS2 (rs2289046) variant and risk of CRC dependent on the BMI of the subjects, requires confirmation in subsequent studies with greater sample size.

Proposed Pathway Linking Respiratory Infections with Depression

Zeinab Karimi,Maryam Chenari,Farhad Rezaie,Shima Karimi,Najmeh Parhizgari,Talat Mokhtari-Azad 대한정신약물학회 2022 CLINICAL PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY AND NEUROSCIENCE Vol.20 No.2

Depression is one of the most important causes of disability and loss of useful life of people around the world. Acute respiratory infection caused a large number of severe illnesses and deaths of the world and most of these due to viral infections, which is estimated more than 80% of respiratory infections. Detection of viruses by immune pathogen recognition receptors activates the intracellular signaling cascade and eventually cause produces interferons. Inflammatory process begins with secretion of interferons and the expression of interferon-stimulated genes. One of the most important of these genes is indoleamine-pyrrole 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), which plays a major role in tryptophan catabolism. IDO is an intracellular monomeric enzyme that is also responsible for breaking down and consuming tryptophan in the Kynurenine pathway. Increased inflammation has been linked to decrease tryptophan concentrations and increase kynurenine levels. We tried to explain the role of inflammation by viral respiratory infections in causing depression.

Implementation of a 35KVA Converter Base on the 3-Phase 4-Wire STATCOMs for Medium Voltage Unbalanced Systems

Karimi, Mohammad Hadi,Zamani, Hassan,Kanzi, Khalil,Farahani, Qasem Vasheghani The Korean Institute of Power Electronics 2013 JOURNAL OF POWER ELECTRONICS Vol.13 No.5

This paper discussed a transformer-less shunt static synchronous compensator (STATCOM) with consideration of the following aspects: fast compensation of the reactive power, harmonic cancelation and reducing the unbalancing of the 3-phase source side currents. The STATCOM control algorithm is based on the theory of instantaneous reactive power (P-Q theory). A self charging technique is proposed to regulate the dc capacitor voltage at a desired level with the use of a PI controller. In order to regulate the DC link voltage, an off-line Genetic Algorithm (GA) is used to tune the coefficients of the PI controller. This algorithm arranged these coefficients while considering the importance of three factors in the DC link voltage response: overshoot, settling time and rising time. For this investigation, the entire system including the STATCOM, network, harmonics and unbalancing load are simulated in MATLAB/SIMULINK. After that, a 35KVA STATCOM laboratory setup test including two parallel converter modules is designed and the control algorithm is executed on a TMS320F2812 controller platform.

Detailed analysis of the plasma extracellular vesicle proteome after separation from lipoproteins

Karimi, Nasibeh,Cvjetkovic, Aleksander,Jang, Su Chul,Crescitelli, Rossella,Hosseinpour Feizi, Mohammad Ali,Nieuwland, Rienk,Lö,tvall, Jan,Lä,sser, Cecilia Springer International Publishing 2018 Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences Vol.75 No.15

<P>The isolation of extracellular vesicles (EVs) from blood is of great importance to understand the biological role of circulating EVs and to develop EVs as biomarkers of disease. Due to the concurrent presence of lipoprotein particles, however, blood is one of the most difficult body fluids to isolate EVs from. The aim of this study was to develop a robust method to isolate and characterise EVs from blood with minimal contamination by plasma proteins and lipoprotein particles. Plasma and serum were collected from healthy subjects, and EVs were isolated by size-exclusion chromatography (SEC), with most particles being present in fractions 8–12, while the bulk of the plasma proteins was present in fractions 11–28. Vesicle markers peaked in fractions 7–11; however, the same fractions also contained lipoprotein particles. The purity of EVs was improved by combining a density cushion with SEC to further separate lipoprotein particles from the vesicles, which reduced the contamination of lipoprotein particles by 100-fold. Using this novel isolation procedure, a total of 1187 proteins were identified in plasma EVs by mass spectrometry, of which several proteins are known as EV-associated proteins but have hitherto not been identified in the previous proteomic studies of plasma EVs. This study shows that SEC alone is unable to completely separate plasma EVs from lipoprotein particles. However, combining SEC with a density cushion significantly improved the separation of EVs from lipoproteins and allowed for a detailed analysis of the proteome of plasma EVs, thus making blood a viable source for EV biomarker discovery.</P><P><B>Electronic supplementary material</B></P><P>The online version of this article (10.1007/s00018-018-2773-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.</P>

Increase in the Th1-Cell-Based Immune Response in Healthy Workers Exposed to Low-Dose Radiation - Immune System Status of Radiology Staff

Karimi, Gholamreza,Balali-Mood, Mahdi,Alamdaran, Seyed-Ali,Badie-Bostan, Hassan,Mohammadi, Elaheh,Ghorani-Azam, Adel,Sadeghi, Mahmood,Riahi-Zanjani, Bamdad KOREAN PHARMACOPUNCTURE INSTITUTE 2017 Journal of pharmacopuncture Vol.20 No.2

Objectives: Radiation is one of the most important sources of free radical (such as reactive oxygen species) production, which plays an essential role in the etiology of over hundred diseases. The aim of the study was to investigate some immune parameters and hematological indices in healthy workers of the Radiology Department, University Hospital of Mashhad, Iran. Methods: The study was performed on 50 healthy workers: 30 radiology staff as the case group and 20 laboratory workers as the control group. The radiation dose received by the radiology staff participating in the study was less than the annual maximum permissible level, 50 millisievert. Hematological parameters, lymphocyte proliferation and cytokine production were studied in both groups. Results: Among healthy radiology workers, the hematological indices did not differ statistically; however, their proliferation indices and $IFN-{\gamma}$ levels showed significant increases in parallel with decreases in the IL-4 levels as compared to controls. The immune system of workers exposed to low-dose ionizing radiation was found to be shifted from a Type 2 to a Type 1 response to promote cellular immunity. Conclusion: Based on our data, exposure to low-dose ionizing radiation may decrease the prevalence, frequency, and recurrence of various cancers and infectious diseases because of an increase in Th1-cell-based response, thus leading to more protection of the human body against tumor cells and foreign agents and possibly increased longevity. However, due to high rate of fluoroscopy use for interventional radiology, we suggest continuing research projects on radiation protection and hazards to prevent irreversible damage. As a recommendation, in future studies, radiology staff with a weakened immunity due to high radiation exposure should be considered as good choices to be treated using acupuncture techniques because acupuncture has been demonstrated to enhance the function and the number of immune cells.

Implementation of Proteomics for Cancer Research: Past, Present, and Future

Karimi, Parisa,Shahrokni, Armin,Nezami Ranjbar, Mohammad R. Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.6

Cancer is the leading cause of the death, accounts for about 13% of all annual deaths worldwide. Many different fields of science are collaborating together studying cancer to improve our knowledge of this lethal disease, and find better solutions for diagnosis and treatment. Proteomics is one of the most recent and rapidly growing areas in molecular biology that helps understanding cancer from an omics data analysis point of view. The human proteome project was officially initiated in 2008. Proteomics enables the scientists to interrogate a variety of biospecimens for their protein contents and measure the concentrations of these proteins. Current necessary equipment and technologies for cancer proteomics are mass spectrometry, protein microarrays, nanotechnology and bioinformatics. In this paper, we provide a brief review on proteomics and its application in cancer research. After a brief introduction including its definition, we summarize the history of major previous work conducted by researchers, followed by an overview on the role of proteomics in cancer studies. We also provide a list of different utilities in cancer proteomics and investigate their advantages and shortcomings from theoretical and practical angles. Finally, we explore some of the main challenges and conclude the paper with future directions in this field.

No Significant Association between Human Papillomavirus and Breast Cancer, Sanandaj, Iran

Karimi, Maryam,Khodabandehloo, Mazaher,Nikkhoo, Bahram,Ghaderi, Ebrahim Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2016 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.17 No.10

Background and Objective: Any role of human papillomavirus (HPV) in the development of breast cancer is conjectural. The aim of this study was to investigate possible links between HPV and breast cancer in women, Sanandaj, Iran. Methods: In this case-control study, 70 formalin fixed and paraffin embedded blocks of breast malignant tumors as a case group and 70 blocks of lesions without malignancy were selected as controls. Sections about $10{\mu}m$ thick were prepared. After removing the paraffin, DNA was extracted. Samples were tested by PCR using general and high-risk specific HPV primers. Results: All 70 malignant breast tumors (cases) were invasive ductal carcinomas, and of the 70 controls, 17 (24.3%) were fibrocystic tumors and 53 (75.7%) fibroadenomas. The age range of women in the case group was 25-72 years old and in the control group It was13-66 years. Using HPV general primers two samples were positive in the case group, confirmed to be HPV-18 using high-risk specific primers. Conclusion: No statistically significant association was found between breast cancer and HPV. It is necessary to confirm this result by further investigations in other populations.

Relationships for prediction of backstay effect in tall buildings with core-wall system

Karimi, Mahdi,Kheyroddin, Ali,Shariatmadar, Hashem Techno-Press 2020 Advances in computational design Vol.5 No.1

One of the prevailing structural systems in high-rise buildings is the core-wall system. On the other hand, the existence of one or more underground stories causes the perimeter below-grade walls with the diaphragm of grade level to constitute of a very stiff box. In this case or a similar situation, during the lateral response of a tall building, underground perimeter walls and diaphragms that provide an increased lateral resistance relative to the core wall may introduce a prying action in the core that is called backstay effect. In this case, a rather great force is generated at the diaphragm of the grade-level, acting in a reverse direction to the lateral force on the core-wall system, and thus typically causes a reverse internal shear. In this research, in addition to review of the results of the preceding studies, an improved relationship is proposed for prediction of backstay force. The new proposed relationship takes into account the effect of foundation flexibility and is presented in a non-dimensional form. Furthermore, a specific range of the backstay force to lateral load ratio has been determined. And finally, it is shown that although all suggested formulas are valid in the elastic domain, yet with some changes in the initial considerations, they can be applied to some certain non-linear problems as well.

Immunomodulatory effects of silymarin after subacute exposure to mice: A tiered approach immunotoxicity screening

Karimi, Gholamreza,Hassanzadeh-Josan, Samed,Memar, Bahram,Esmaeili, Seyed-Alireza,Riahi-Zanjani, Bamdad KOREAN PHARMACOPUNCTURE INSTITUTE 2018 Journal of pharmacopuncture Vol.21 No.2

Silymarin is a flavonoid complex extracted from the Silybum marianum plant with a wide range of pharmacological and biochemical effects. In the present study, the immunomodulatory effects of silymarin were investigated in BALB/c mice. Silymarin was administered daily by intraperitoneal injection at doses of 50, 100 and 150 mg/kg for 14 consecutive days. Following the exposure, host hematological parameters, spleen cellularity and histopathological examination, as well as delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) responses, hemagglutination titers (HA), splenocyte cytokine production and lymphocyte proliferation assay were studied in all of the test groups of animals. The results showed that the low dose of silymarin (50 mg/kg) could stimulate both cellular and humoral immune functions in the treated hosts. In addition, silymarin at 100 mg/kg appeared to impact on DTH responses and lymphoproliferation. Based on the finding here, it would seem that silymarin has efficient immunostimulant properties. As a recommendation, the application of silymarin along with acupuncture technique (herbal acupuncture) can be thought as a good plan to modulate and enhance the immune system for the management of several immunodeficiency disorders. However, further studies are required to demonstrate this hypothesis.

Identification of hub salt-responsive genes in Cucumis sativus using a long non-coding RNA and mRNA interaction network

Karimi Marzieh,Pakdel Mohammad Hossein,Bali lashaki Khosro,Soorni Aboozar 한국원예학회 2022 Horticulture, Environment, and Biotechnology Vol.63 No.4

Cucumber is a commercially important vegetable crop whose growth and productivity are significantly influenced by salinity. Currently, there is little information about salt-related genes and the associated biological pathways involved in salt stress response and tolerance in this crop. Accordingly, this study aimed to unravel the complex molecular mechanism components underlying salinity in cucumber using long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) identification and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA). Here, two previously published high-throughput RNA-seq datasets obtained from control and salt-treated tissues of cucumber roots and leaves were employed. First, the potential lncRNAs were identified based on a bioinformatics pipeline. Subsequently, differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and differentially expressed lncRNAs (DE-lncRNAs) were utilized as the input for the WGCNA to identify the clusters of highly interconnected lncRNAs and mRNAs. According to the results, 17 DE-lncRNAs out of 279 and 7 DE-lncRNAs out of 166 putative lncRNAs were detected between salt-treated and control samples in root and leaf tissues, respectively. Using WGCNA, 2226 unique DEGs and 23 DE-lncRNAs were categorized into 10 distinctive co-expression modules, of which, four modules, including blue, brown, yellow, and turquoise, contained the highest number of salt-related genes. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway enrichment analysis identified four significantly enriched pathways, including, “plant hormone signal transduction”, “starch and sucrose metabolism”, “MAPK signaling pathway”, and “phenylpropanoid biosynthesis”, related to salt stress response in cucumber. The novel hub genes identified in this study could be exploited for further functional studies aiming to introduce salt-tolerant cucumber varieties utilizing molecular engineering approaches.