Molecular phylogeny of some coral species from the Persian Gulf.

As evolutionary relationships among some coral species still remain unclear, studies on unstudied area such as the Persian Gulf (PG), as part of the western Indo-Pacific, may reveal a better understanding of phylogenetic positions and relationships of corals. In the present study, the phylogenetic relationships of eight common coral species (Favites pentagona, Platygyra daedalea, Cyphastrea microphthalma, Siderastrea savignyana, Pavona decussata, Pavona cactus, Goniopora columna, and Goniopora djiboutiensis) collected from two Iranian Islands were compared with the congeneric sequences from the Indo-Pacific (IP) using rDNA region. The result shows that some coral species which were hitherto considered as representatives of widespread species from IP are related to distinct lineages. Further, it appears that morphological convergence between the taxa leads to an underestimation of the real coral species diversity in the PG. The current study is the first attempt to investigate the phylogenetic position of coral species from the PG in comparison to their counterparts from the IP. As conservation planning hinges on the identification of species, taxonomic revisions have to be undertaken in order to obtain a more reliable picture of coral species diversity in the PG.

Assessment of the Inhibitory Effects of Ficin-hydrolyzed Gelatin Derived from Squid (Uroteuthis duvauceli) on Breast Cancer Cell Lines and Animal Model.

Marine novel natural products have been applied for cancer therapy. Enzyme-digested gelatin hydrolysates have proven to serve as promising sources of potent biologically active peptides. Potential anti-breast cancer properties of the extracted Ficin-digesterd gelatin hydrolysate from Indian squid (Uroteuthis duvauceli) was extensively characterized by cellular and animal models. Gelatin was extracted from squid skin, hydrolyzed by Ficin, and characterized by standard physico-chemical methods. Ficin-digested gelatin hydrolysate was used at various doses of 0-0.1 mg/mL for assessment of MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells versus HUVEC normal cells. Cytotoxicity, phase-contrast morphological examination, apoptosis/necrosis, clonal-growth, cell-migration, Matrix-metalloproteinases (MMPs) zymography, and Western blotting were used for cellular assessments. For animal studies, breast tumor-induced BALB/c mice received hydrolyzed gelatin regimen, followed by tumor size/growth and immune-histochemical analyses. Significant inhibition of MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 with no cytotoxicity on HUVEC cells were detected. Apoptosis was increased in cancer cells, as revealed by elevated ratio of cleaved caspase-3 and PARP. MMP-2 and MMP-9 activities in both cancer cells were diminished. In mice, gelatin hydrolysate prevented weight loss, decreased tumor size, induced p53, and down-regulated Ki67 levels. These findings suggest that Ficin-digested gelatin hydrolysate could be a beneficial candidate for novel breast cancer therapies.

Inducing Apoptosis of Cancer Cells Using Sea Pen Virgularia gustaviana Extract Which is Comparable to Cembrane Diterpene Sarcophine.

Marine Soft corals have frequently been studied in recent years because of their specific chemical compounds in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. The aim of this study was to investigate anti-cancer property of extracted compound from Virgularia gustaviana and their effect on inducing of apoptosis. The extraction process was carried out with ethyl acetate for 5 days and the extract was separated by silica-gel column chromatography. The column was washed with n-hexane-ethyl acetate solvent at ratio of 10:0 to 0:10. Thin layer chromatography (TLC), High performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC), high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and 13C NMR spectroscopy were used for qualitative identification of compounds. The viability of HeLa and MDA-MB-231 cancer cells was investigated using MTT assay at the concentrations of 25, 50, and 100 µL/mL of extracted compounds. Immunocytochemistry and Western Blot analyses were used to evaluate expression of apoptotic markers caspase-3 and caspase-8 in cancer cells after treating with effective fractions (based on viability of cancer cells) and the results were compared with Sarcophine. From ten isolated fractions (A-J), Retention time and Retention Factors (Rf) of fractions G, I, and J were the same as Sarcophine. Fraction G, I, and J dose-dependently decreased cancer cell viability compared to control group and Sarcophine. Treatment of cancer cells with the latest fraction increased expression of caspase-3 and caspase-8 demonstrating induction of apoptosis as possible mechanism of action. According to the results, the compounds extracted from Virgularia gustaviana inhibit the growth of cancer cells by inducing of apoptosis pathway; an effect which needs to be further investigated in the future studies.

The Scleractinia (Cnidaria: Anthozoa) of Abu-Musa and Sirri Islands, Persian Gulf.

Parisa Alidoost Salimi, Pargol Ghavam Mostafavi, Chaolun Allen Chen, Seyed Mohammad Reza Fatemi, and Michel Pichon (2018) There are many islands in the Iranian waters, but little is known about their coral species. This is a first attempt to describe and illustrate the coral species occurring in Abu-Musa and Sirri Islands. Overall, 26 species belonging to 9 families are reported, and three unidentified species and two species are added to coral communities of Iran. This study also provides overall insight on coral fauna in the Persian Gulf.

A New, High Yield, Rapid, and Cost-Effective Protocol to Deprotection of Cysteine-Rich Conopeptide, Omega-Conotoxin MVIIA.

Almost all conopeptides purified from Conus venoms are cysteine-rich peptides. Among them, omega-conotoxin MVIIA, FDA approved peptide drug (Prialt(®)), selected as a cysteine-rich model that its protection from oxidation is critical during solid phase synthesis. Deprotection of cysteines is a crucial step after peptide synthesis. The current study aimed to set up a new highly efficient deprotection protocol for omega-conotoxin MVIIA. Deprotection was performed based on mercury acetate with significant major modification. The protocol accomplished based on the best molar ratio of peptide/mercury/2-ME that adjusted to 0.2 mm/3 mm/10 mm (50 µg/1 mg/10 µL). The yield and purity of omega-conotoxin MVIIA obtained at 93 and 95%, respectively. The total time of protocol shortened to 90 min instead of 6-20 h in routine methods. In this study, omega-conotoxin MVIIA was recovered in high yield and in the shortest time. Despite of other known protocols, molar ratio adjusted to minimum amount. In conclusion, this protocol would be suggested to cost-effective deprotection of thiol groups for similar cysteine-rich peptides.