[Chemical composition and antibacterial activity of the essential oil of salvia hydrangea from two localities of Iran]

The genus Salvia L. [Lamiaceae] consists of 58 annual and perennial species in Iran, of which 17 are endemic. S. hydrangea DC. ex Benth. with common Persian name of "Gol-e Arooneh" has been used in folk medicine of Iran as antiinflammatory, antispasmodic, carminative and sedative. Infusion of flowers was used for treating cold in traditional medicine of Fars province. Study of chemical composition and antibacterial activity of the essential oils of S. hydrangea from two different localities of Iran. Aerial parts of S. hydrangea were collected in full flowering stage from two different localities; Abadeh [Fars province] and Takab [Azarbaijan province]. The oils were obtained by hydrodistillation using a Clevenger type apparatus and analyzed by GC and GC-MS instruments. Antibacterial activities of the oils were evaluated by disc diffusion method. MIC values were measured by microdilution broth susceptibility assay. The essential oils yield of Abadeh and Takab were 0.1 and 0.13% [w/w] based on dry weight of plants, respectively. Thirty-seven and 35 compounds were identified in the oil samples which constituted 97.4 and 98.3% of the total oils, respectively. In the oil obtained from Abadeh, beta-caryophyllene [25.2%], 1,8-cineole [15.2%] and caryophyllene oxide [11.1%] were found as the major components. From Takab sample beta-caryophyllene [26.2%], 1, 8-cineole [14.2%] and alpha-pinene [11.2%] were characterized as the main compounds. The oils showed moderate antibacterial activity. The differences observed in essential oil composition of two studied samples could be attributed to their different ecological, geographical and edaphical origin factors. The moderate antibacterial activity of the oils could be associated with the presence of 1, 8-cineole

Preparation of a K39sub recombinant antigen for the detection of Leishmania infantum antibodies in human: a comparative study with an immunochromatographic test and direct agglutination

The Mediterranean type of kala-azar is occurred in different parts of Iran and caused by Leishmania infantum. A rapid and valid test for early detection of visceral leishmaniasis in human would be highly desirable because it could decrease mortality rate of the disease. In this study, we aimed to compare the results of K39sub antigen with a commercial immunochromatographic dipstick rk39 test [Cypress Diagnostic Company, Belgium] for early detection of L. infantum infection in human. K39sub recombinant antigen of L. infantum LON49 was expressed in prokaryotic system and evaluated for the diagnosis of human visceral leishmaniasis. This study evaluated the performance of recombinant K39sub antigen by ELISA and an commercial immunochromatographic dipstick rk39 test for the detection of L. infantum antibodies in 43 clinically infected patients with direct agglutination test [DAT] at a 1: 3200 cut off titer and higher. Controls included 69 healthy volunteers and 28 patients with other diseases including malaria [n=5], tuberculosis [n= 3], toxoplasmosis [n= 4], cystic hydatidosis [n= 5] and cutaneous leishmaniasis [n= 11]. The sensitivity of the K39sub antigen and an immunochromatographic dipstick rk39 test was 90.7%, and 97.7%, respectively, while the specificity was 95.6% and 97.9%, correspondingly. A good concordance was found between k39sub antigen and commercial dipstick rk39 strips [k= 96.4%]. The accuracy of the K39sub antigen in the detection of L. infantum antibodies in human infection is confirmed

Diagnosis of canine visceral leishmaniasis by ELISA using K39sub recombinant antigen

Surveillance of the canine reservoir is highly important to help control of visceral leishmaniasis in human. It is therefore imperative to improve and develop new tools reliable, easy to use, and cheap for the diagnosis of canine leishmaniasis. K39 sub recombinant antigen of Leishmania infantum was expressed in prokaryotic system and evaluated for sero-diagnosis of canine visceral leishmaniasis [CVL]. The gene fragment encoding a single 39-amino acid subunit of the kinesin-related protein k39 [k39sub] was amplified from DNA of Iranian strain of L. infantum [MCAN/IR/96/LON49] and cloned into a pMAL-p2 expression vector in frame with maltose-binding protein [MBP] fusion. The antigenic properties of L. infantum recombinant K39 subunit [39 amino acids] have been tested for the serological diagnosis of CVL by ELISA. K39sub ELISA for CVL was compared with a standard direct agglutination test [DAT] on 55 clinically infected dogs and 71 healthy controls from endemic areas of Ardabil and East Azerbaijan provinces, north-west of Iran. A sensitivity of 72.7% and specificity of 87.3% were found at a 1:320 cut off titer when DAT confirmed cases were compared with healthy control. A good concordance was found between k39sub ELISA and DAT [k= 81.0]. Given the antigenic properties shown by the k39sub, we think this protein carry immunodominant epitopes and are valuable for the sero- diagnosis of L. infantum infection in dogs