Tight-Binding Studio: A Technical Software Package to Find the Parameters of Tight-Binding Hamiltonian

We present the Tight-Binding Studio (TBStudio) software package for calculating tight-binding Hamiltonian from a set of Bloch energy bands obtained from first principle theories such as density functional theory, Hartree-Fock calculations or Semi-empirical band structure theory. This will be helpful for scientists who are interested in studying the electronic properties of structures using Green's function theory in tight-binding approximation. TBStudio is a cross-platform application written in C++ with a graphical user interface design that is user-friendly and easy to work with. This software is powered by Linear Algebra Package C interface library for solving the eigenvalue problems and the standard high-performance OpenGL graphic library for real-time plotting. TBStudio and its examples together with the tutorials are available for download from tight-binding.com

Association of plasma nitric oxide concentration and endothelial nitric oxide synthase T-786C gene polymorphism in coronary artery disease

Nitric oxide (NO) is synthesized from l-arginine by endothelium nitric oxide synthase (NOS3) and plays important roles in many physiologic and pathologic processes. NO involved in the pathogenesis of coronary atherosclerosis. In the present study we hypothesized that polymorphisms of NOS gene might be associated with increased risk of coronary artery disease (CAD) and plasma NO concentrations. The eNOS gene polymorphism was investigated in 241 unrelated CAD patients with positive coronary angiograms and 261 ages matched control subjects without a history of symptomatic CAD. The NOS3 gene polymorphisms were analyzed by RFLP. Plasma NO, lipid profile and other risk factors were also assessed. The genotype frequencies for T-786C polymorphism differed significantly between CAD patients and controls (p=0.041). The mean plasma NO x concentrations showed significant differences according to genotypes of T-786C polymorphism in total population only. The mean plasma NO x increased in those individuals that are homozygote for C allele in promoter compared with those individuals are heterozygote for this allele and homozygote for T allele in total population and Controls, but no in CAD patients. The present study provides evidences that T-786C polymorphism of the NOS3 gene is associated with CAD. T-786C polymorphism was not associated with increased plasma NO in CAD patients. © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd

Dynamic Properties of Mixtures of Waste Materials

The stockpiling of waste mining by-products, i.e. steel furnace slag (SFS) and coal wash (CW) has brought significant environmental hazard and attracted research attention to reuse them in a more innovative way. In recent years, SFS+CW mixtures have been successfully applied in geotechnical projects, while the inclusion of rubber crumb (RC, from waste tyres) will extend them into dynamic projects. Thus the investigation of the geotechnical properties of SFS+CW+RC mixtures under dynamic loading is in urgent need. In this paper, the dynamic properties (i.e. shear modulus and damping ratio) have been explored based on extensive drained cyclic triaxial tests. The influences of number of loading cycles, RC contents, shear strain level, and the effective confining pressure have been presented. The dynamic properties of SFS+CW +RC mixtures presented in this paper will be essential for the application of the mixtures in the seismic isolation projects or railway foundation

The Prevalence and Characteristics of Performance-Enhancing Drug Use Among Bodybuilding Athletes in the South of Iran, Bushehr

Background: Several reports have implied progressive increase of performance-enhancing drug (PED) use among Iranian athletes. More importantly, most of the previous research in the Iranian population had mainly focused on the anabolic steroid abuse, and ignored other agents. Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and characteristics of PED use among bodybuilding athletes in Bushehr, south of Iran. Methods: Four hundred and fifty three male bodybuilding athletes were recruited from Bushehr gyms between February and May of 2015. Men were eligible to participate in the survey if they had regularly participated in the strength-training exercise (minimum of 1 year and 4 hour/week). Data were collected via a face-to-face interview. The survey consisted of three separate parts including demographic data, exercise pattern and PED use. Results: According to this study, 234 (51.7%) of bodybuilding athletes had used PEDs. The PED users reported an average of 3.80 � 4.52 agents’ use in their programs and they had used PEDs for the average of 3.24 � 3.99 years. The most prevalent agents which had been abused by the athletes were anabolic steroids (used by 185 athletes (79.4% of athletes). Furthermore, 110 (47%) of athletes reported stimulant agents’ use during their routines. The most prevalent motivation for using PEDs was increasing muscle mass that was reported by 164 (70.1%) of PED users. In addition, sexual and dermatologic effects were the most prevalent adverse effects reported by the PED user athletes (114 (49.4%) and 103 (44.2%), respectively). Conclusions: This study showed the high rate of PED use among recreational and professional Iranian bodybuilding athletes that can expose them to the serious side effects of these agents

Correction to: Comparison of Vitamin B12, Vitamin D, and Folic Acid Blood Levels in Plumbism Patients and Controls in Eastern Iran (Biological Trace Element Research, (2021), 199, 1, (9-17), 10.1007/s12011-020-02119-6)

The original version of this article unfortunately contained mistakes. & The name of �Namam Ali Azadi� is now corrected in the author group & Fourth to seventh sentence of the Abstract section should be �The results indicated that the mean vitamin B12, vitamin D, and folic acid levels for the case group were 517.3 ± 419.4 pg/ml, 25.1 ± 10.8 ng/ml, and 9.2 ± 6.1 ng/ml, respectively. Mean folic acid level in the case group was significantly lower than control group (Fisher exact test, P < 0.001), whereas the mean of the vitamin D levels at the case group was no significantly higher than the control group (Fisher exact test, P = 0.059). Moreover, mean vitamin B12 levels were significantly different between the case and control groups (Fisher exact test, P = 0.009). In the control group, three patients had folic acid below normal level (< 6 ng/mL), while twelve subjects at case group had folic acid below normal level (P < 0.05).Also, none of the control group had low vitamin B12 concentrations (< 180 pg/ml), while seven subjects of case group had vitamin B12 below normal level (P < 0.05).� & In page 6, Discussion part, 4th paragraph: We found that mean blood folate levels in the lead-poisoned patients, who had a mean BLL of 66 ± 37. 3 µg/dl, were significantly lower than in healthy subjects (9.2 ± 6.1 ng/ml vs. 12.70 pg/ml). © 2020, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature

Prevalence of Cannabis Lifetime Use in Iranian High School and College Students: A Systematic Review, Meta-Analyses,and Meta-Regression

Cannabis is the most widely used substance in the world. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of cannabis lifetime use (CLU) in high school and college students of Iran and also to determine factors related to changes in prevalence. A systematic review of literature on cannabis use in Iran was conducted according to MOOSE guideline. Domestic scientific databases, PubMed/Medline, ISI Web of Knowledge, and Google Scholar, relevant reference lists, and relevant journals were searched up to April, 2014. Prevalences were calculated using the variance stabilizing double arcsine transformation and confidence intervals (CIs) estimated using the Wilson method. Heterogeneity was assessed by Cochran's Q statistic and I-2 index and causes of heterogeneity were evaluated using meta-regression model. In electronic database search, 4,000 citations were retrieved, producing a total of 33 studies. CLU was reported with a random effects pooled prevalence of 4.0 (95 CI = 3.0 to 5.0). In subgroups of high school and college students, prevalences were 5.0 (95 CI = 3.0 to -7.0) and 2.0 (95 CI = 2.0 to -3.0), respectively. Meta-regression model indicated that prevalence is higher in college students (beta = 0.089, p < .001), male gender (beta = 0.017, p < .001), and is lower in studies with sampling versus census studies (beta = -0.096, p < .001). This study reported that prevalence of CLU in Iranian students are lower than industrialized countries. In addition, gender, level of education, and methods of sampling are highly associated with changes in the prevalence of CLU across provinces

Alternative Strategies to Reduce Maternal Mortality in India: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis

A cost-effectiveness study by Sue Goldie and colleagues finds that better family planning, provision of safe abortion, and improved intrapartum and emergency obstetrical care could reduce maternal mortality in India by 75% in 5 years

Decreases in Community Viral Load Are Accompanied by Reductions in New HIV Infections in San Francisco

BACKGROUND: At the individual level, higher HIV viral load predicts sexual transmission risk. We evaluated San Francisco's community viral load (CVL) as a population level marker of HIV transmission risk. We hypothesized that the decrease in CVL in San Francisco from 2004-2008, corresponding with increased rates of HIV testing, antiretroviral therapy (ART) coverage and effectiveness, and population-level virologic suppression, would be associated with a reduction in new HIV infections. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We used San Francisco's HIV/AIDS surveillance system to examine the trends in CVL. Mean CVL was calculated as the mean of the most recent viral load of all reported HIV-positive individuals in a particular community. Total CVL was defined as the sum of the most recent viral loads of all HIV-positive individuals in a particular community. We used Poisson models with robust standard errors to assess the relationships between the mean and total CVL and the primary outcome: annual numbers of newly diagnosed HIV cases. Both mean and total CVL decreased from 2004-2008 and were accompanied by decreases in new HIV diagnoses from 798 (2004) to 434 (2008). The mean (p = 0.003) and total CVL (p = 0.002) were significantly associated with new HIV cases from 2004-2008. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Reductions in CVL are associated with decreased HIV infections. Results suggest that wide-scale ART could reduce HIV transmission at the population level. Because CVL is temporally upstream of new HIV infections, jurisdictions should consider adding CVL to routine HIV surveillance to track the epidemic, allocate resources, and to evaluate the effectiveness of HIV prevention and treatment efforts