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Background: Differentiation ofmesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) to hepatocyte-like cells could be associated with development of liver function factors. The impact of differentiation-dependent changes on DNA integrity is not well understood. In this study, hepatocytes and their progenitor stem cells were treated with aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and amplification of selected genes linked to DNA damage was examined. Methods: MSCs and CD34+ cells isolated from umbilical cord blood (UCB) were treated with AFB1 (0, 2.5, 10 and 20 µM) in selective media supporting the hepatocyte differentiation. After 24 htreatment the DNA damage (Comet assay) and amplification rates ofP53 and β-globin genes were measured using real time polymerase chain reaction (QPCR). Results:The results show that AFB1 treatments resulted in a concentration- dependent increase in the DNA damage and suppression of the specific gene amplification. The extent of DNA damage was significantly greater in hepatocytes differentiated from MSCs when compared to those obtained from CD34+ cells. The effects of AFB1 on the rate of selected gene amplification in QPCR showed that the lesions (expressed as lesions/10 kb) in P53 and β-globin genes was significantly greater in hepatocytes derived from MSCs as compared to the cells derived from CD34+ cells. Conclusions: These data together with the results of cytochrome P450 (CYP3A4) expression in the cells suggest that the non-differentiated stem cells are probably less vulnerable to genotoxic agents as compared to hepatocytes differentiated from them.

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Powdery mildew is one of the most important disease concerns of tomato production in different regions of the world, which is caused by different species of Erysiphales. The most important causal agents of which are Leveillula taurica and Oidium neolycopersici. In the present study tomato farms in Qazvin province were surveyed and tomato leaves with powdery mildew symptoms were collected. After morphological studies in laboratory and using reliable resources, the causal agent of tomato powdery mildew was identified as Leveillula taurica. The host range was determined by inoculation of Leveillula taurica from tomato on nine species of plants belonging to four different plant families. All cultivars of tomato, eggplant, pepper and cucumber used in this study, showed disease symptoms on their leaf surfaces. Other plant species including potato, alfalfa, sunflower, clover and sainfoin did not get infected by the pathogen. The nucleotide divergence for the rDNA internal transcribed spacers (ITS) region between tomato mildew and 21 other Leveillula taurica isolates ranged from 0.00 to 0.031 %. The sequence of ITS region of Leveillula taurica from tomato was identical to that of eight isolates from different plant species.  

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A specimen of an ascomycetous fungus collected during a field trip was identified as Gymnoascus Baran. Soil samples collected from 0-20 cm depth were studied for isolation of fungi using a soil dilution plate method. Based on the morphological and molecular characters the specimens were identified as Gymnoascus reesii. Genomic DNA was extracted and a nuclear rDNA region, containing the internal transcribed spacers 1, 2 and 5.8S gene of rDNA (ITS) were amplified and PCR products were sequenced. Amplicon was purified, sequenced and submitted to the GenBank (Acc. No. JQ387570-71). The resulting sequence (600 bp) was submitted to a BLAST search to find most similar sequences in GenBank. The search results showed highest similarity of Iranian isolates to other isolates of G. reesii from GenBank. In the light of literature on ascomycetous fungi, Gymnoascus Baran is a new record for Iran mycoflora. The specimens are kept in fungal collection of the Department of Plant Protection, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran.

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The aphid species, Cinara pini (Linnaeus, 1758) reported in our previous work as a new aphid on pinus trees for Iran, was described using the classic method and through analysis of COI gene sequence. In the next step, we addressed the efficiency of the entomopathogenic fungus, Lecanicillium longisporum (Zimm.) Zare and Gams strain LRC 190, on the aphid. The fungus was administered to the second instar nymphs and adults using topical application procedure. The results indicated that the entomopathogen caused 90% mortality in adults over seven days at a concentration of 10⁸ spores/ml, while the same control level was achieved for nymphs by 8 × 10⁷ spores/ml. The LC₅₀ values were obtained as 1.2 × 10⁶ and 6.9 × 10⁵ spores/ml for adults and nymphs, respectively. The present study suggests that the entomopathogenic fungus, L. longisporum could be considered as a potential candidate in biocontrol programs of C. pini. This is the first report on the pathogenicity of L. longisporum on C. pini.

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Two species of Pratylenchoides recovered from the grasslands in Sabalan region and one species recovered from natural habitats of Tehran are illustrated based on morphological, morphometric and molecular characters. The first species, P. crenicauda is characterized mainly by its lip region with three-four annuli, lateral field with four incisures areolated throughout the length and having rod shaped sperm cells. It is further distinguished by the positions of the pharyngeal glands nuclei. P. magnicauda was found in Tehran and its morphological characters and phylogenetic relations with other species are discussed. The Iranian populations of P. variabilis are characterized by three lip annuli, stylet 20-22 µm long, four and six incisures in lateral field, rounded sperm and one of the pharyngeal glands nuclei located posterior to pharyngo-intestinal valve. The phylogenetic tree inferred from the partial sequences of D2-D3 segment of 28S rDNA revealed the three sequenced species are separate from each other and form a clade with high (1.00) Bayesian posterior probability (BPP) in Bayesian inference (BI) and 86% bootstrap support value (BS) in maximum likelihood (ML) analyses with other two sequenced species of the genus for this genomic region.

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Samples from five sturgeon species including Persian sturgeon (Acipenser persicus), Russian sturgeon (A. gueldenstaedti), Great sturgeon (Huso huso),Ship sturgeon (A. nudi-ventris) and Stellate sturgeon (A. stellatus) were collected from the South Caspian Sea. DNA was extracted from the fins, eggs and skeleton muscle of the five species. RAPD markers were used for identifying different kinds of black caviar and sturgeon meat. The polymorphic band from RAPD amplification of DNA from two out of five sturgeon spe-cies was purified, cloned and sequenced. RAPD analysis was carried out in order to com-pare the five species using an operon primer set. Sequence Characterised Amplifed Re-gion (SCAR) primers were designed and used to amplify caviar DNA from five sturgeon species. A marker of potential economic importance was discovered that is able to distin-guish three species from caviar and also to distinguish Ship sturgeon caviar from osetra caviar (from Russian and Persian sturgeon) and also other species. This marker could as-sist international conservation and legal efforts to save what is left of the commercial Ship sturgeon populations which are endangered and whose caviar is at present substituted for the more expensive osetra caviar.

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Talebian.Y.,PH.D
Hosseini. N
 Abstract:
 
In the several last decades, structural approaches of the study of narrative had a great affect on narration and folklore. The first research in the field is a prop's, the morphology of the folktale" generalized and completed by some rhetoricians including Todorove, which analyzes the narratives into bits and studies the relations of them in categories of theme and space order.
This study, based upon the Todorve's view, deals with the typology of narrative in Sandbadname, an Iranian narrative, so that places it in the row of mythological narratives as Hezaroyekshab (one thousand and one night), an Iranian legend and Decomeron a European one, mentioning some traits of it and comparing them with the specifies of mythological narratives.
 
 

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The chloroplast gene matK, formerly known as ORF509, has been identified as one of the most rapidly evolving genes at the nucleotide and corresponding amino acid levels. This gene is located in the large single-copy region of the chloroplast genome, and placed between the 5’ and the 3’ exons of trnK (tRNA-lysine) within a group II intron. The matK RNA and protein levels are affected by light and developmental stages, suggesting functional roles for this putative maturase that affect in photosynthesis indirectly. The matK has been considered as one of the most useful genes for resolving phylogenetic and evolutionary relationships at a range of taxonomic levels, from closely related species to the generic, familial, and even supra-familial levels among land plants, especially Angiosperms. The matK as a DNA barcode for land plants showed high levels of discrimination among angiosperm species that can be used single or in combination with other genes.

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Leptonchus granulosus, recovered from Lorestan province, is described and illustrated based on morphological, morphometric and molecular data. The Iranian population of the species is characterized by its body length of 1091 - 1374 mm, cuticle distinctly two layered, outer layer finely annulated, inner layer distinctly annulated, being partly separated from the body and shriveled after fixation, cap-like lip region separated from the rest of body by constriction, distinctly sclerotised walls of prestoma and stoma, delicate needle-like odontostyle with distinct narrow lumen, 8.0-9.5 mm long, slightly arcuate odontophore, 17-21 mm long, with arms slightly thickened at base, small pear-shaped pharyngeal bulb, occupying 16.6-24.3% of pharynx length, simple intestine, very long prerectum (617-663 µm long), its junction with intestine having three distinct guard cells located between anterior ovary and cardia, didelphic female reproductive system, composed of equally sized less developed tracts, but with distinct parts (tubular uterus, simple oviduct and ovary), conoid to hemispheroid tail and absence of males. In comparison with the available reports of the species, no remarkable variation in morphometric data ranges was observed. This is the first representative of the genus for Iran’s nematode fauna found so far. Molecular phylogenetic studies of Iranian population of L. granulosus using 1669 nt partial sequences of 18S rDNA revealed it forming a clade with another isolate of the species in Bayesian inference (BI) with 0.95 Bayesian posterior probability (BPP).

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Background: The issue of airport noise pollution is of paramount importance to communities in the vicinity of airports.
Materials and Methods: The potential effects of aircraft noise at the Imam Khomeini International Airport (Iran) was investigated by employing remote sensing and the geographic information system (GIS) in conjunction with an optimization algorithm integrated with CadnaA software. CadnaA is a computer model used to develop noise exposure maps (NEMs) to determine how noise affects a specific area. The results of aircraft noise modeling with this software for three scenarios (in 2015, 2025 and 2035) are provided in the NEMs. A georeferenced GIS database was built in Envi software comprising topography and land use data, the results of the CadnaA model and project data. These maps were overlaid. Face-to-face interviews were carried out by canvassing door-to-door in the permitted survey sites near IKIA and by structural modeling of the questionnaire estimates using AMOS.7 software.
Results: The results showed that the CadnaA model well simulated and predicted noise changes in different scenarios. The results of the map overlay indicate the compatibility of existing land use around the IKIA airport with noise levels and provided alerts against the development of residential areas in the near future.
Conclusions: The results of the questionnaires indicate a high L_DEN correlation coefficient and irritation levels from aircraft noise. Urban development around the airport as well as an increase in the number of flights and runways at IKIA should be carefully studied.

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A total of ten isolates of fungi with Rhizoctonia-like mycelia were obtained from infected roots and stems of Pistachio Pistacia vera grown in a commercial nursery in Rafsanjan, Iran, during the autumn of 2011. The infected seedlings showed symptoms of chlorosis that later turned to necrosis. All of the isolates were identified as binucleate Rhizoctonia on the basis of hyphal characteristics and nuclear number. They were tested for detection of the anastomosis group, optimum growth temperature, rDNA-ITS region traits and pathogenicity on pistachio seedlings in vitro and in vivo. The analysis of hyphal anastomosis reaction was carried out with the tester isolates of binucleate Rhizoctonia AG-A, AG-Ba, AG-G and AG-F as well as multinucleate Rhizoctonia AG4 as already detected on pistachio seedlings. The optimum temperature for growth of binucleate Rhizoctonia sp.was 35 °C. In in vivo test, the symptoms of root rot were observed 30 days after inoculation and mortality happened two weeks thereafter. According to molecular characteristics and anastomosis test groups, all isolates showed greatest similarity to anastomosis group AG-F. This finding is the first report of anastomosis group F (AG-F) of binucleate Rhizoctonia, as causal agent of root and stem rot disease of pistachio in the world and Iran.

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Bark beetles are one of the most important pests in forests. Because of their small size and highly similar morphological characters, molecular approaches may be quite useful for a valid species determination. In this context molecular identification represents an accurate and modern method for species identification. The purity and high quantity of extracted DNA have important role in successful amplification of the target fragment of the genome. The aim of this study was comparing different DNA extraction methods in order to choose the highest quality and quantity of DNA extract for the identification of bark beetles. During the study bark beetles were collected from different parts of the North forests of Iran. Five different DNA extraction methods were performed and evaluated on individual specimen including Chelex, Phenol chloroform, CTAB, salting out and Lysis buffer in the laboratory. The quantity and quality of extracted DNA were measured by spectrophotometer and gel electrophoresis. The result of DNA quantity mean ranged between (23.6-579.7 ng/µl) and the mean quality which was measured by 260/280 ratio (0.9-1.8). The statistical analysis was done by SPSS software, revealing significant differences between extraction methods. The results suggested that Chelex and salting out showed the highest quantity of all used methods.

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The nucleotide sequences of 28S nuclear rDNA were determined for 34 powdery mil-dew taxa mostly collected from Iran in order to infer the phylogenetic relationships of these fungi. Total DNA was isolated from cleistothecia or mycelia using the chelex method. About a 650 nucleotide length of the 5´end of the 28S rDNA was amplified twice by the PCR using a nested primer set, PM3, TW14 and NLP2. Direct sequencing of the PCR product was done in an Applied Biosystems 373A sequencer. The results showed that powdery mildew taxa are divided into five groups, which were distinguished by their morphology. Members of Erysiphe section Erysiphe, Microsphaera and Uncinula clustered together. E. sect. Galeopsidis and E. sect. Golovinomyces were seperated from E. sect. Ery-siphe and formed the Euoidium without fibrosin bodies group. Leveillula and Phyllactinia showed a close evolutionary relationship and clustered together. The genera Cystotheca, Podosphaera, Sawadaea, and Sphaerotheca formed a monophyletic group (fibrosin body lineage) with 98% bootstrap support. These fungi are well characterized by the presence of fibrosin bodies in their conidia. Blumeria graminis, which is characterized by some unique morphological characters, clustered with fibrosin body lineage with a low boot-strap value. This result shows that B. graminis is not closely related to the Erysiphe spe-cies. The nucleotide divergence between the genera analyzed in this study ranged from 0.50 to 14.10%. The lowest nucleotide divergence was found between Microsphaera and E. sect. Erysiphe (0.50–4.50%). Podosphaera and Sphaerotheca showed a low level of diver-gence, too (2.30-2.60%), which suggests a close relationship between these two genera.

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In order to identify plant-parasitic nematodes of eastern forests in Guilan province, soil and root samples were collected and the extracted nematodes were studied based on morphological and morphometric characters. Twenty eight species of plant parasitic nematodes were identified. A population of the genus Hoplotylus was recovered and identified as H. femina. The identification was also verified by partial sequencing of the large subunit ribosomal DNA (rDNA). In addition, two populations of the genus Malenchus were also recovered and based on morphological and morphometric characteristics were identified as M. solovjovae and M. acarayensis. The two species Hoplotylus femina and Malenchus solovjovae are new records for Iran.

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True flies (Insecta: Diptera) are widely distributed and the key components in most ecosystems. The objective of this study was to identify the true flies’ diversity through DNA barcoding technique (658 bp sequence from the 5′-end of cytochromeoxidase I) in Bangladesh. Specimens were collected by a Malaise trap at Chittagong University Campus between April 2014 and March 2015. In this study, we examined 36476 sequences of 38267 true flies, and resulted 105 species, 109 genera, 54 subfamilies and 59 families. Among them 79 species, 69 genera, 12 subfamilies and 23 families are new country records. All the specimen records with the Barcode Index Numbers (BINs) (the species proxies), are available on the Barcode of Life Data System (BOLD).

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Newcastle disease is a fatal viral disease which is highly contagious that affects most species of birds and is a major economic threat in the poultry industry. Both the HN and F glycoproteins of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) are essential for pathogenicity and virus infectivity. This study describes immunization of DNA vaccines encoding the HN, F or both the genes of New castle disease virus. In our previous study, the antigen expression of the insert genes has been validated in vitro by Western Blotting and Indirect Immunosenest. In this study, ELISA and HI analysis of the in vivo experiment on SPF (specific Pathogen Free) chickens showed the induction of humoral responses by the DNA vaccines. Our finding indicated that twice vaccination with pDNA was able to elicit significant antibody titers (P< 0.05) by either monocistronic (pIRES/HN and pIRES/F) or bicistronic (pIRES/F/HN) plasmid, after one week of second pDNA vaccination (booster). The results proposed that DNA immunization of chickens at second vaccination had enhanced the antibody response successfully. Also, it revealed that vaccination with the co-expression plasmid pIRES/HN/F can induce a stronger antibody response than vaccination with pIRES/HN or pIRES/F alone.

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To assess the variability of Macrophomina phaseolina (Tassi) Goid, the causal agent of charcoal rot of Sesame, sixty isolates recovered from ten geographic regions, were analyzed using inter simple sequence repeat (ISSR) and universal rice primer (URP) markers. Isolates were grouped into eight clusters at 78% genetic similarity level. Our results showed that the five ISSR primers produced 105 bands of which 77.11% were polymorphic and eight URP-PCR primers generated 135 bands of which 66.84% were polymorphic. These methods showed a considerable genetic diversity among Iranian isolates, but no correlation was found between genetic diversity and geographical origins of the isolates. Analysis of molecular variance revealed that a large proportion of genetic variability resulted from the differences among isolates within regions. The findings of this study demonstrated that the low-genetic differentiation (G_ST) and high gene flow (N_m) among populations had a significant effect on the emergence and evolutionary development of M. phaseolina.
 
 

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