High-power laser-induced optical aberrations on beam director mirrors

We present a full-scale numerical study of thermally induced optical aberrations on the primary mirror of a beam director telescope. In particular, we investigate high-power laser-induced deformations, resulting monochromatic aberrations, and their effects on imaging and laser focusing performance of primary telescope mirrors in shared aperture beam director systems. As a practical example, we consider a system based on 6 × 4 kW single-mode high-power laser sources and a primary mirror having a 500 mm circular clear aperture. A detailed comparison of the monochromatic aberrations and their implications on the optical performance is provided for borosilicate and Zerodur® substrates having identical reflective coatings for potential laser beam director applications. Our analyses show that high-power lasers can be efficiently directed with negligible imaging degradation using athermal substrates (i.e., Zerodur®) with high reflective coatings (>99.9 %) for primary mirrors. On the other hand, substrates with a relatively higher coefficient of thermal expansion (i.e., borosilicate) can only be used effectively under a strictly controlled ambient temperature

The role of grape seed extract in the effect of swimming exercises on epilepsy

Grape seed extract (GSE) is one of the strongest known antioxidants. GSE actively prevents the formation of free radicals and assists in their elimination. Our aim was to investigate the effects on epileptiform activity of GSE administered concurrently with swimming exercises. A total of 35 male albino Wistar rats were used in this study. Epileptiform activity was induced in rats through the injection of penicillin (500 IU) into the left cerebral cortex. Thirty minutes after the application of penicillin, 200 mg/kg of GSE dissolved in normal saline was administered intraperitoneally. Based on the results of the statistical analysis, a significant decrease in spike frequency was observed after 60 minutes in the 15-minute group (67%), after 40 minutes in the 30-minute group (43%), and after 40 minutes in the 60-minute group (42%), while no significant decrease was identified in the amplitude values of the groups. According to the study results, in rats performing short-, medium-, and long-term swimming exercises, GSE administration allowed epileptiform activity to decrease within a shorter period of time. Thus, patients with epilepsy can potentially perform swimming exercises more safely by regularly using antioxidant substances

The prevalence of mixed genotype infections in Turkish patients with hepatitis c: a multicentered assessment

AKTAS, OSMAN/0000-0002-7762-4108; Karsligil, Tekin/0000-0001-7672-3625; cekin, yesim/0000-0003-4393-5618; Sayiner, Ayca/0000-0001-6750-2353; Altindis, Mustafa/0000-0003-0411-9669WOS: 000463988900008PubMed: 30969089Background: HCV virus infections are one of the major health problems in the world that can cause cirrhosis and liver cancer at a higher rate than other hepatitis data. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of mixed infections with different HCV genotypes in Turkey and also to evaluate the current HCV genot pe and subtype distributions by a multicentered assessment. Methods: The HCV genotype data of 17,578 hepatitis C patients collected from 23 centers from different geographic regions covering all Turkey were collected. The data included information about the HCV genotypes in the last 10 years (bail een 2007 and 2016), demographic properties of the patients and the methods/systems used to determine the genotypes. Results: Two hundred twenty-eight of the patients (1.3%) had mixed genotype. The most common mixed genotype combination was 1b + 4 (0.83%) followed by 1a + 1b (0.26%). Genotype distribution varies according to geographical regions. However, genotype 1 (82.92%) was the most common genotype in all regions and all years. This was followed by genotype 3 (7.07%) and genotype 4 (5.43%). A variety of methods were used by the centers including sequencing, pyrosequencing, real-time PCR, in-house RFLP, reverse hybridization (LIPA), and hybridization. Conclusions: Infection with mixed HCV genotypes in Turkey is uncommon. Genotype distribution varies according to geographic regions; the most common genotype 1 is encountered all oN er the country, while genotypes 3 and 4 are only in some of the centers. Since there is limited information about mixed HCV infection, further investigations are needed to determine the clinical importance of mixed HCV infection