Introducing a simple tissue equivalent anthropomorphic phantom for radiation dosimetry in diagnostic radiology and radiotherapy

       It is important to measure organ dose in diagnostic radiology & radiotherapy. Because measurement on patients has some limitations, phantoms are being constructed to be implemented. One kind of several phantoms which is being used so far is anthropomorphic phantom which is similar to a man. In this work, using human natural bone as phantom skeletal tissue & paraffin plus NaCl (as impurity) as soft tissue substitute an anthropomorphic phantom was constructed which consists of three parts: 1. head & neck 2.torso 3.hip. Phantom dimensions were selected from the standard man. To measure absorbed dose in tissues, at the sites of parotid, thyroid, sternum, diaphragm, abdomen and hip some cylinders were inserted which were constructed from phantom material and had some cavities to insert TLDs in different depths. Due to importance of photoelectric effect in diagnostic radiology & Compton effect in radiotherapy, two important parameters which should be considered in construction of a phantom is effective atomic number and electronic density were6.57& 3.36×1023 electron.gr-1 , respectively

MRI based morphometry of caudate nucleus in normal persons

Because of continuous changing of anatomy, function and metabolism of the human brain, age- related change is a major risk factor in most prevalent neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinsons and Huntingtons disease. Therefore, knowing patterns of age-related atrophy of brain tissue can identify causes and possible role of diseases in decreasing brain function with age. The aim of this study was to determine the age, sex, and hemispheric differences in volume of the human neostriatum (striatum) nucleus in right-handed healthy humans. This study was performed on 120 normal human subjects (60 males, 60 females) 15–65 years old that was divided into young (<40 years) and old (≥40 years) groups. The sectional brain images obtained via magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was analyzed and processed using the Image-J software and the caudate volume was calculated using the Cavalieri’s principle. The analyses revealed bilateral age-related changes in the caudate volume of both sexes and the caudate nucleus was significantly smaller in older than younger subjects (P<0.001). There were statistically significant volume differences between males and females (P<0.05) and there was a significant negative correlation between age and volume of the caudate nucleus. Our results provide useful baseline data on age and gender-related changes of caudate volume in neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinsons and Huntingtons, which has the potential to diagnose neurodegenerative disease before the appearance of typical clinical symptoms. 

ON GENERALIZED RELATIVE COMMUTATIVITY DEGREE OF FINITE MOUFANG LOOP

For a given element $g$ of a finite group $G$, the probablility that the commutator of randomly choosen pair elements in $G$ equals $g$ is the relative commutativity degree of $g$.  In this paper we are interested in studying the relative commutativity degree of the Dihedral group of order $2n$ and the Quaternion group of order $2^{n}$ for any $n\geq 3$ and we examine the relative commutativity degree of infinite class of the Moufang Loops of Chein type, $M(G,2)$

Conductive Nanofibrous Chitosan/PEDOT:PSS Tissue Engineering Scaffolds

Design of a proper scaffold is the first step in fabrication of a tissue engineering product, which should be able to support cellular growth in in vitro conditions. This study focuses on the fabrication and characterization of chitosan (CS) scaffolds containing PEDOT:PSS, a conductive polymer. The scaffold is primarily designed for cardiac tissue engineering, although it can be used for other applications too. Chitosan scaffolds containing 0.3, 0.6 and 1 wt% of PEDOT:PSS are fabricated through electrospinning. The structure and morphology of scaffolds are characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), 3D Laser Measuring Microscopy and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The electrical and mechanical properties, as well as biocompatibility and cell viability of scaffolds are also investigated. It is found that addition of PEDOT:PSS to chitosan scaffold not only enhances the mechanical properties and electrical conductivity of electrospun scaffolds, but also improves their biocompatibility and cell viability. Our results have shown that increasing the PEDOT:PSS content up to 1 wt% results in 30–40% reduction of fiber diameter and increase in electrical conductivity by around 100-fold. Additionally, in the scaffold containing 1 wt% of PEDOT:PSS, the tensile strength increases about 9 MPa compared to the neat sample. Results obtained from scaffolds compared with the properties of native myocardium extracellular matrix reveal its potential application for cardiac tissue engineering

Amending in vitro culture condition to overcome oxidative stress in assisted reproduction techniques (ART)

    In assisted reproduction techniques (ART) settings, reactive oxygen species (ROS) can be produced from endogenous and exogenous sources during in vitro manipulation. Endogenous sources of ROS include gametes and embryo, whereas exogenous sources are oxygen tension, light exposure, culture media, and the nature of some protocols, such as centrifugation or cryopreservation. Elevated ROS production can result in oxidative stress (OS), which is harmful to gametes and embryos, and reduces the procedure’s outcomes. Therefore, addressing various aspects of the adverse effects of oxidative stress and its management is necessary

The Histological, Histomorphometrical and Histochemical Changes of Testicular Tissue in the Metformin Treated and Untreated Streptozotocin-Induced Adult Diabetic Rats

In this investigation, diabetes was induced in adult male Sprague-Dawley rats by single intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ) at 45 mg kg-1 of body weight. A group comprised of 8 diabetic rats was treated with metformin at 100 mg kg-1 of body weight for reducing the elevated blood glucose level. The results revealed that, in the untreated diabetic rats, the body and testicular weight reduced in comparison with the control rats (P < 0.05) , the metformin treated diabetic rats showed body weight loss in comparison with the control group (P < 0.05). In the untreated diabetic rats, the blood glucose level significantly increased in comparison with control and metformin treated diabetic rats. Histomorphological examinations revealed a reduction in testicular capsule diameter, seminiferous tubules (STs) and germinal epithelium height, increase of amorphous material of interstitial tissue, germ cell depletion, decrease in cellular population and activity and disruption of spermatogenesis in the untreated diabetic rats in comparison with control group. In metformin treated diabetic rats, the histomorphological alterations were seen in lesser part in comparison with untreated diabetic group. The results from this study proved that, there was a direct relationship between increased levels of blood glucose as a result of STZ-induced diabetes and the histomorphological changes of testicular tissue

Health services system for seafarers and fishermen in Iran

The maritime health services system is presented in this review article. The national Iranian shipping line IRISL owns the largest commercial fleet in the Middle East and it operates 137 ships. This company and several other national shipping companies employ over 5 900 seafarers. There are 11 000 fishing ships and boats and the number of Iranian fishermen reaches 124 000. Seafarers and fishermen are regularly medically examined and issued health certificates, according to the national regulations. The health services system for them is linked to the port authorities throughout the country. Observations, data and relevant statistics on the health problems of the national maritime workers have been regularly collected

Using leprosy elimination campaign on leprosy case finding: Case series study in Kurdistan, Iran

BACKGROUND: Because of the long incubation period of leprosy and disability caused by it, even mother to fetus transmission has been reported. Thus, this disease causes much alarm. Kurdistan Province, which is located in the Western part of Iran, is one of the regions that have previously suffered from endemic leprosy. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of the leprosy elimination campaign (LEC) on leprosy case finding in Baneh, Iran, in 2012. METHODS: This case series study was conducted in Baneh District. Case finding was performed via LEC method, which is a recommended method for leprosy case finding in endemic areas. The performed steps included public education, and screening families of ex-patients through careful examination, identification of suspected cases, and diagnosis based on specialist’s examination. RESULTS: The families of ex-patients were assessed and 76 people who had prolonged exposure to ex-patients were invited to be examined by a trained general physician. Subsequently, 50 people were referred to a dermatologist for further examinations, 5 of whom and 1 unexposed person underwent bacteriological test for further evaluation. The results of all the tests were negative. CONCLUSION: Active leprosy case finding and use of LEC method require a great deal of money and efforts to identify a small number of patients. Because a district like Baneh is in the process of eliminating leprosy and since the economic and social situation has changed greatly over the past two decades, LEC method is no longer cost effective