The serological study of cystic echinococcosis and assessment of surgical cases during 5 years (2007- 2011) in Khorram Abad, Iran

Background: Echinococcus granulosus is a cestode whose larval stage causes cystic echinococcosis in wild animals, livestock, and human.Objective: The aim of this study is to highlight the seroepidemiology of E. granulosus infection and surgical cases in the general population of Khorram Abad district, southwest of Iran.Materials and Methods: Anti.E. granulosus antibodies were tested in 617 inhabitants in Khorram Abad by enzyme.linked immunoassay and antigen B. The surgical cases of cystic echinococcosis were investigated in Shohaday.e.Ashayer Hospital of Khorram Abad (as a referral center) from 2007 to 2011.Results: In total, 95 (15.4%) of the 617 participants (mean age 39.6 } 17.6 years) had anti.E. granulosus antibodies. Prevalence of infection was more in males (60%) than females (40%), and showed statistical significance (P < 0.001). High.titer antibodies were most prevalent among the subjects aged 20-29 years. There was significant association between the presence of Echinococcus antibodies and the sector of residence, education of volunteers, and occupation (P < 0.05). According to hospital records, 58 cystic echinococcosis cases were referred to the hospital during the 5 years. Among the cases, 28 (48.3%) were men and 30 (51.7%) were women. They were between 4 and 74 years of age (36.6 } 18.9 years). The liver was the organ where most of the hydatid cysts (51.7%) were located, followed by lungs (20.7%).Conclusion: This is the first report of the seroprevalence and contributing factors for E. granulosus infection in the general population in Khorram Abad. The findings confirm the importance of diagnosing human cystic echinococcosis in these regions, given the prevalence rates of surgical cases during the last 5 years, and need further evaluation of the risk factors present.Key words: Cystic echinococcosis, hospitals records, hydatidosis, seroepidemiolog

Atmospheric pressure leaching of nickel from a low-grade nickel-bearing ore

This study focused on the extraction of nickel from a low-grade lateritic ore. The characterization of representative samples was done by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and microscopic mineralogical studies. Nickel was uniformly distributed in iron (hydr)oxide minerals. The pre-concentration of nickel was attempted by magnetic separation, but was unsuccessful. The effect of the type of lixiviant, acid concentration, S/L ratio, time, and temperature were investigated in the atmospheric leaching process. Based on the experimental data, optimum conditions for the maximum recovery of nickel were determined under the following conditions: 5 M H2SO4, 25% (w/v), 90 ºC, and two hours. Pre-calcination, for increasing nickel extraction by converting goethite to hematite, was carried out on raw ores at different times (30-180 minutes) and temperatures (180-540 ºC). Recovery was found increasing from 69 to 95% under the same conditions. Kinetic studies were conducted by fitting the data with Shrinking Core (SC) models. The study determined, from the estimate of activation energy, that the rate of reaction controlled by chemical reaction

The susceptibility to diabetic retinopathy in type 2 diabetic patients of Iran is not affected by the M55V polymorphism of SUMO4

Introduction: Recent reports showed that the small ubiquitin-like modifier 4 (SUMO4) M55V polymorphism is affected development of type 2 diabetes and its complications such as diabetic nephropathy and retinopathy in some populations. In this regard we intend to investigate the impact of M55V polymorphism of SUMO4 on susceptibility to diabetic retinopathy in the type 2 diabetic patients of Iran. Methods: In current study, the control group had included 100 individuals of type 2 diabetic patients of Iran who have not retinopathy, while the patient group had included 100 individuals of type 2 diabetic patients of Iran suffering from retinopathy. We have matched all the confounding factors between patients and controls. The genotyping method was PCR-RFLP to trace a prevalent single nucleotide polymorphism at codon 55 encoding a substitution of methionine to valine (M55V) specified in the SUMO4 gene. Results: Genotype frequency of AA, AG, and GG of SUMO4 were obtained respectively 52, 30, and 18 in the patient group and 44, 36, and 20 in the control group. The frequencies of alleles A and G of SUMO4 were 67 and 33 in the patients with type 2 diabetes having retinopathy and 62 and 38 in the patients with type 2 diabetes without retinopathy. There genotypic and allelic frequencies of SUMO4 were not significantly (p>0.05) different between the patient and the control groups. Conclusions: The findings of the present study showed no correlation between M55V polymorphism of SUMO4 gene and diabetic retinopathy in type 2 diabetes patients of Iran. However, we emphasize that further studies is necessary to clarify the exact role of M55V polymorphism of SUMO4 in diabetic retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes

Comparaing the causes of abortion in patients with two or more than two consecutive miscarriages

"n 800x600 Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE AR-SA MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";} Background: Recurrent miscarriage is defined as the loss of three or more pregnancies. Recurrent Pregnancy Loss (RPL) is traditionally investigated after three or more consecutive losses. Although some believe that the investigation must be launched after two miscarriages, there is not enough compelling evidence to draw conclusion. "n"nMethods : In this cross-sectional study, we studied 58 women with two or more consecutive abortions (37 women with two and 21 women with three or more miscarriages) from 2005 to 2009. The following risk factors were analyzed and compared between the two groups: endocrine dysfunctions, genetic abnormalities, uterine anomalies, infections, thrombophilia, polycystic ovary syndrome, autoimmune disorders, sperm characteristics, and advanced maternal age."n"nResults : We did not find any known factor for pregnancy losses in 18 (31.03%) patients but in the rest, the most common cause of Recurrent pregnancy loss was endocrine disorders (41.4%). The other causes were uterine abnormalities (12.1%), infections (12.1%), maternal age more than 35 years (12.1%), thrombophilia (8.6%), abnormal semen analysis (8.6%), genetic defects (6.9%) and autoimmune disorders (1.7%). There were no significant differences between the two groups in regards with the causes of abortion except uterine abnormality (P=0.039) which was more frequent in women with three or more three miscarriages (23.8%) relative to women with two abortions (5.4%)."n"nConclusion: There were no significant differences between women with two or women with three or more three abortions in regards with the causes of abortion except uterine anomalies. Therefore, it seems quite reasonable and perhaps beneficial to start the investigation in patients with two abortions