Neuro-Immuno-Endocrine Interactions in Early Life Stress and Heroin Withdrawal Timeline

Both heroin abuse and early life stress (ELS) affect the immune system and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Additionally, accelerated aging due to mild inflammation has been indicated in these conditions. The present study aims to compare plasma levels of apoptosis markers, inflammatory markers, and stress hormones during early heroin abstinence period. Thirty-one individuals with heroin/opioid use disorder who had heroin-ELS and 26 of their siblings who were not abusing substances (ELS), and 32 individuals with heroin/opioid use disorder without a history of ELS (heroin-no ELS) were included in the study. The levels of interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, albumin, alanine transaminase, aspartate transaminase, and white blood cell count were assessed as the inflammatory and biochemistry markers. Also, apoptosis markers including tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-related weak inducer of apoptosis, TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand, soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor type I as apoptosis markers were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. ELS was simultaneously evaluated using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, and beck depression inventory scales. Besides, heroin craving was assessed by Daily Drinking/Drug Questionnaire score in individuals with heroin use disorder. This is the first study to evaluate the inflammatory, stress, and apoptosis markers during heroin abstinence, supporting the association between ELS and peripheral pro-inflammatory markers' levels and HPA axis. © 2019 S. Karger AG, Basel

Synthesis of fluorapatite–hydroxyapatite nanoparticles and toxicity investigations

In this study, calcium phosphate nanoparticles with two phases, fluorapatite (FA; Ca10(PO4)6F2) and hydroxyapatite (HA; Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2), were prepared using the solgel method. Ethyl phosphate, hydrated calcium nitrate, and ammonium fluoride were used, respectively, as P, Ca, and F precursors with a Ca:P ratio of 1:72. Powders obtained from the sol-gel process were studied after they were dried at 80°C and heat treated at 550°C. The degree of crystallinity, particle and crystallite size, powder morphology, chemical structure, and phase analysis were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and Zetasizer experiments. The results of XRD analysis and FTIR showed the presence of hydroxyapatite and fluorapatite phases. The sizes of the crystallites estimated from XRD patterns using the Scherrer equation and the crystallinity of the hydroxyapatite phase were about 20 nm and 70%, respectively. Transmission electron microscope and SEM images and Zetasizer experiments showed an average size of 100 nm. The in vitro behavior of powder was investigated with mouse fibroblast cells. The results of these experiments indicated that the powders were biocompatibile and would not cause toxic reactions. These compounds could be applied for hard-tissue engineering

Digital background calibration algorithm and its FPGA implementation for timing mismatch correction of time-interleaved ADC

Sample time error can degrade the performance of time-interleaved analog to digital converters (TIADCs). A fully digital background algorithm is presented in this paper to estimate and correct the timing mismatch errors between four interleaved channels, together with its hardware implementation. The proposed algorithm provides low computation burden and high performance. It is based on the simplified representation of the coefficients of the Lagrange interpolator. Simulation results show that it can suppress error tones in all of the Nyquist band. Results show that, for a four-channel TIADC with 10-bit resolution, the proposed algorithm improves the signal to noise and distortion ratio (SNDR) and spurious-free dynamic range (SFDR) by 19.27 dB and 35.2 dB, respectively. This analysis was done for an input signal frequency of 0.09fs. In the case of an input signal frequency of 0.45fs, an improvement by 33.06 dB and 43.14 dB is respectively achieved in SNDR and SFDR. In addition to the simulation, the algorithm was implemented in hardware for real-time evaluation. The low computational burden of the algorithm allowed an FPGA implementation with a low logic resource usage and a high system clock speed (926.95 MHz for four channel algorithm implementation). Thus, the proposed architecture can be used as a post-processing algorithm in host processors for data acquisition systems to improve the performance of TIADC

The Effect of Silymarin on Serum Concentration of Soluble Apoptosis Markers in β-Thalassemia Major Patients Receiving Desferrioxamine

ABSTRACT Background: Despite appropriate chelation therapy with desferrioxamine, iron deposition in visceral organs causes tissue damage in thalassemia major patients. Excess iron can generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) that may lead to cell death and apoptosis. Therefore, antioxidants such as plant flavonoids can be an effective treatment to reduce ROS in thalassemia patients. Aims: In this study, we aimed to investigate the serum levels of apoptosis markers in βthalassemia major patients treated with silymarin and ..

Effect of La³⁺ ions on the habit of KDP crystals

A few KDP (KH2PO4) and KDP: La³⁺ (LaCl₃) single crystals were grown being based on the temperature reduction method. Investigations show that the presence of three valent ions like La³⁺ could be a cause of retarded growth rate and induced crystalline lattice defects. Here the pure KDP crystals are compared with KDP: LaCl₃ before and after their exposure to gamma irradiation. Both types of crystals also were studied in aspect of other structural and optical properties

Growth of a KDP (KH₂PO₄) twin crystal and comparison of its characteristics with a single crystal

KDP single and twin (prepared from two-glued seeds) crystals have been grown by the method of temperature reduction. Then, the grown crystals were cut and polished in the (100) direction for optical characterization. The transmission spectra and XRD analysis of the crystals were determined and compared. The Vickers microhardness tests carried out on the two types showed that duplication of the crystal lattice did not reduce the hardness of it