Conditioning DRASTIC model to simulate nitrate pollution case study: Hamadan-Bahar plain

One of the major causes of groundwater pollution in Hamadan-Bahar aquifer in western Iran is a non-point source pollution resulting from agricultural activities. Withdrawal of over 88% of drinking water from groundwater resources, adds urgency to the studies leading to a better management of water supplies in this region. In this study, the DRASTIC model was used to construct groundwater vulnerability maps based on the "intrinsic” (natural conditions) and "specific” (including management) concepts. As DRASTIC has drawbacks to simulate specific contaminants, we conditioned the rates on measured nitrate data and optimized the weights of the specific model to obtain a nitrate vulnerability map for the region. The performance of the conditioned DRASTIC model improved significantly (R 2=0.52) over the intrinsic (R 2=0.12) and specific (R 2=0.19) models in predicting the groundwater nitrate concentration. Our study suggests that a locally conditioned DRASTIC model is an effective tool for predicting the region's vulnerability to nitrate pollution. In addition, comparison of groundwater tables between two periods 30years apart indicated a drawdown of around 50m in the central plain of the Hamadan-Bahar region. Our interpretation of the vulnerability maps for the two periods showed a polluted zone developing in the central valley requiring careful evaluation and monitorin

The role of men in recurrent miscarriage; a Narrative Review

Background and Method: Recurrent Pregnancy Loss (RPL) is defined as the occurrence of two or more consecutive miscarriages within the first 20 weeks of pregnancy. The key challenge remains to be what it is that has to be done with couples experiencing RPL. Infections, endocrine disturbances, a suboptimal uterine environment, advanced maternal age, and genetic influences are some of the factors which may increase the chances of RPL occurrence. Despite all medical and research efforts, approximately 40 percent of RPL cases are categorized as unexplained. This is while amongst all the various factors which may lead to such condition, fathers’ genetic influences have often been ignored in the past. In fact, parental chromosomal anomalies, gene mutations such as the microdeletion of chromosome Y, and/or some polymorphism of HLA-G have shown to contribute and lead to miscarriage.Result: Furthermore, high levels of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) can cause DNA damage in spermatozoa. Meantime, sperm DNA damage has been closely linked with indicators such as fertilization, embryo quality, implantation, spontaneous abortion, congenital malformations, and childhood diseases. Sperm Chromatin Structure Assay (SCSA) is a test to measure DNA fragmentation. Moreover, the other SCSA parameter that needs to be considered is high DNA stainability (HDS). It is worth mentioning that HDS is associated with frequency of aneuploidy in spermatozoa. In addition, high HDS can be associated with an increased risk of early abortion in IVF and ICSI cycles.Conclusion: Additionally, increasing paternal age and varicocele can increase the risk of miscarriage. Advanced Paternal Age (APA) can also increase the relative risk of offspring neurocognitive defects. In saying that, the microsurgical varicocelectomy effectively increases the odds of natural pregnancy, the rate of high-quality embryos, and the success rate of in vitro fertilization

Comparison of Properties of Breads Enriched with Omega-3 Oil Encapsulated in β-Glucan and Saccharomyces cerevisiae Yeast Cells

  Background and objective: Flaxseed oil, as a potential source of polyunsaturated fatty acids, is susceptible to oxidation. Yeast cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and β-glucan can be used as biocompatible and biodegradable matrices for the protection of this nutritious oil from oxidation in foods enriched with omega-3 fatty acids. The aim of this study was to investigate quality properties of breads containing encapsulated and free flaxseed oils. Materials and methods: Flaxseed oil was encapsulated in either yeast cells or β-glucan. Functional wheat bread samples were prepared using unencapsulated and encapsulated flaxseed oils. These were compared with control samples in terms of dough rheological and bread quality parameters. Results and conclusion: Encapsulation significantly increased dough rheological properties (G′ and G″ values), firmness and density and decreased lightness, compared to control samples. Breads, containing flaxseed oil encapsulated in yeast cells, showed a lower peroxide index and a higher α-linolenic acid value, compared to two other samples containing oil samples. This showed a better protection of unsaturated fatty acids against deleterious oxidation reactions. Results of this study indicate that addition of microencapsulated flaxseed oil into breads helps preserve sensory properties of the control sample, compared to breads fortified with free flaxseed oil. Conflict of interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest

Levels of Blood Biomarkers among Patients with Myocardial Infarction in Comparison to Control Group

BACKGROUND: Myocardial infarction (MI) as a term for a heart attack happens due to reduced blood flow to heart myocardium and lack of oxygen supply caused by plaques inthe interior walls of coronary arteries. With respect to the importance of MI etiology, we aimed to study the relationship of MI and blood examination variables.METHODS: This study was conducted in Mazandaran Heart Center as a hospital-based case-control Comprising 894 participants including 465 cases and 429 controls, individually matched by sex and age. Considered blood markers were analyzed using routine laboratory methods and equipment.RESULTS: Of all participants, 64.3% of the cases and 51.0% of the controls were males with a mean age of 61.2 (±13.8) in cases and 62.4 (±14.) in controls. We could not find any differences between cases and controls for total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and alkaline-phosphatase (ALP) (P>0.05). However, levels of creatine-kinase-muscle/brain (CK-MB) (P<0.0001), fasting-blood-sugar (FBS) (P<0.0001), aspartateaminotransferase (AST) (P<0.0001), alanine-transferase (ALT) (P<0.0001) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) (P=0.001) were significantly higher in cases compared to the controls (P<0.05). Multivariable analyses revealed that the risk of MI was associated with high levels of AST (adjusted OR=24.3, 95%CI=3.5±165.6, P=0.001) and LDL (adjusted OR=7.4, 95%CI=1.0±51.8, P=0.001).CONCLUSION: Our investigation indicated that the levels of CK-MB, FBS, AST, ALT and ESR were significantly higher in patients with MI. Besides, our findings showed that the risk of MI in cases with high levels of AST and LDL was about 24 and 7 times more than the control group respectively

Global depression in Breast Cancer patients: systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Breast cancer is known as one of the most common diseases among women, the psychological consequences of which are common in women and affect various aspects of their lives, so this study aims to investigate the prevalence of depression among women with breast cancer globally. Method: The present meta-analysis was performed by searching for keywords related to breast cancer and depression in 4 main databases: PubMed, Embase, Web of Sciences and Scopus in the period of January 2000 to November 2021 and the results of the study using R and CMA software were analyzed. Results: A total of 71 studies were selected in English and the results of the analysis showed that the prevalence of depression in women with breast cancer is 30.2%, with Pakistan having the highest (83%) prevalence of depression and Taiwan having the lowest (8.3%). And in the WHO regions, EMRO region had the highest (49.7%) rate and SEARO region had the lowest (23%) prevalence of depression. Also, with increasing age, the prevalence of depression among women with breast cancer increases. Conclusion: Community and family support for women with breast cancer, holding psychology and psychotherapy courses, lifestyle modifications and training in this area can be effective in preventing the reduction of the prevalence of depression, and given the pivotal role of women in family affairs, this This can be in line with the work of health system policymakers

Microneedle Arrays Combined with Nanomedicine Approaches for Transdermal Delivery of Therapeutics

Organic and inorganic nanoparticles (NPs) have shown promising outcomes in transdermal drug delivery. NPs can not only enhance the skin penetration of small/biomacromolecule therapeutic agents but can also impart control over drug release or target impaired tissue. Thanks to their unique optical, photothermal, and superparamagnetic features, NPs have been also utilized for the treatment of skin disorders, imaging, and biosensing applications. Despite the widespread transdermal applications of NPs, their delivery across the stratum corneum, which is the main skin barrier, has remained challenging. Microneedle array (MN) technology has recently revealed promising outcomes in the delivery of various formulations, especially NPs to deliver both hydrophilic and hydrophobic therapeutic agents. The present work reviews the advancements in the application of MNs and NPs for an effective transdermal delivery of a wide range of therapeutics in cancer chemotherapy and immunotherapy, photothermal and photodynamic therapy, peptide/protein vaccination, and the gene therapy of various diseases. In addition, this paper provides an overall insight on MNs’ challenges and summarizes the recent achievements in clinical trials with future outlooks on the transdermal delivery of a wide range of nanomedicines