Proviral human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) DNA could be a useful marker for exploring viral reservoirs and monitoring antiretroviral treatment, particularly when HIV-1 RNA is undetectable in plasma. A new technique was developed to quantify proviral HIV-1 using a TaqMan real-time PCR assay. One copy of proviral HIV-1 DNA could be detected with 100% sensitivity for five copies and the ...

the objective of this study was to compare the effect of two conventional h9n2 avian influenza (ai) vaccines on replication and shedding of the h9n2 ai virus in broiler chickens. these inactivated oil emulsion vaccines contain either a uae or an iranian h9n2 ai isolate. one hundred and fifty one-day-old commercial broiler chickens were randomly divided into six groups. the birds, except for the...

The COBAS TaqMan HCV Test (TaqMan HCV; Roche Molecular Systems Inc., Branchburg, N.J.) for hepatitis C virus (HCV) performed on the COBAS TaqMan 48 Analyzer (Roche Molecular Systems) currently relies on a manual sample processing method. Implementation of an automated sample processing method would facilitate the clinical use of this test. In this study, we evaluated the performance characteris...

Prenatal diagnosis of genetic disorders has traditionally relied on invasive procedures such as amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling (CVS). As these procedures carry a small but significant risk of pregnancy loss, a convenient noninvasive prenatal diagnostic has long been sought. Although fetal cells circulating in the maternal blood have been used for prenatal screening, because of thei...

A Chlamydophila psittaci species-specific real-time PCR targeting the rDNA ribosomal spacer was developed as well as a genotype-specific real-time PCR targeting the Cp. psittaci outer membrane protein A (ompA) gene. The SYBR Green-based species-specific real-time PCR detected Cp. psittaci genotypes A to F, and the recently discovered E/B genotype. The genotype-specific real-time PCR could easil...

Background: Neuromyelitis Optica (NMO) is an autoimmune inflammation of the central nervous system in which autoantibodies are released against Aquaporin-4 (AQP-4), astrocytic water channels. The disease is characterized by transverse myelitis and optic neuritis. Viruses could be inflammatory agents in the brain. Due to such inflammatory reactions, autoantibodies would cross the blood brain bar...

Coronary artery disease (CAD) including myocardial infarction (MI) as its complication, is one of the most common heart diseases worldwide and also in Iran, with extremely elevated mortality. CAD is a multifactorial disorder. Twin and family studies at different loci have demonstrated that genetic factors have an important role in the progression of CAD. Many studies have reported a significant...