Conscience Understanding Among Nurses Working at Education Hospital of Arak

Methodology: In the current descriptive study, 193nurses working in hospitals affiliated to Arak Universityof Medical Sciences in 2017 were included in the studyusing random sampling. Data were collected through ademographic questionnaire and a conscience perceptionquestionnaire. Data were analyzed in SPSS 16 softwareusing descriptive and inferential statistics (chi-square test).Results: The mean total score of nursing conscience perceptionwas 68.19 ± 15.12. In addition, the mean dimensionsof moral conscience, guardian conscience, directorconscience, caring conscience, conscience reflection wasobtained 29.7 ± 4.3, 20.5 ± 3.3, 16.8 ± 2.4, 12.6 ± 2.06,and 21.9 ± 2.6, respectively. Moreover, a positive and significantrelationship was found between nursing conscienceand some demographic variables (age and type of hospital).Conclusion: Nurses are considered as the basic componentin the process of improving the quality of services.Therefore, their ethical practice is very helpful in advancingorganizational goals. Nurses with a high ethical consciencecan have many benefits in the work environment.Thus, it is recommended that the educations needed toenhance the knowledge of nurses on identifying the factorsinhibiting or enhancing conscience to be provided fornurses by senior managers

Ocena skali ABCD2 u pacjentów z napadem przemijającego niedokrwienia mózgu lub udarem mózgu

Background and purpose Stroke risk prediction scores have been designed to stratify risk of recurrent cerebrovascular events in patients with transient ischaemic attack (TIA) or minor ischaemic stroke (MIS). Material and methods Consecutive patients with TIA or MIS referring to Ghaem Hospital, Mashhad presenting within 24 hours from the onset of symptoms were recruited to the prospective cohort study between 2010 and 2011. MIS was defined as an ischaemic stroke with National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score < 4. The end-point of the study was a new ischaemic cerebrovascular event or vascular death at 90 days and, additionally, at 3 days after the index TIA or MIS. The decision to admit and of method of treatment in each case was left to the discretion of the stroke neurologist. The predictive accuracy of the ABCD2 scoring system for recurrent stroke or TIA was quantified by the area under the curve (AUC), using the c-statistics. Results The study included 393 patients with TIA (238 males, 155 females) and 118 patients with MIS (77 males, 41 females). Among 511 patients with minor ischaemic events, 117 strokes (23.2%), 99 TIAs (19.6%), and 11 vascular deaths (2.2%) occurred within 3 months after the index event. The ABCD2 score had a weak predictive value for 3-month and 3-day recurrent stroke in patients with TIA (AUC = 0.599 and 0.591, respectively), but a high predictive value for 3-month and 3-day recurrent stroke in patients with MIS (AUC = 0.727 and 0.728, respectively). Conclusions The ABCD2 score is highly predictive for short-term recurrent stroke in patients with MIS but not in patients with TIA, although it was originally designed for patients with TIA.Wstęp i cel pracy Punktację oceny ryzyka wystąpienia udaru mózgu opracowano w celu stratyfikacji ryzyka nawrotowego incydentu naczyniowego mózgu u pacjentów z napadem przemijającego niedokrwienia mózgu (transient ischaemic attack – TIA) lub niewielkim udarem niedokrwiennym mózgu (minor ischaemic stroke – MIS). Materiał i metody Do badania włączono kolejnych chorych zgłaszających się w latach 2010–2011 do szpitala Ghaem w Mashad w ciągu 24 godzin od wystąpienia TIA lub MIS. Niewielki udar niedokrwienny mózgu definiowano jako udar niedokrwienny mózgu powodujący ubytkowe objawy neurologiczne ocenione w skali National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) na < 4 pkt. Punktem końcowym badania było wystąpienie kolejnego incydentu naczyniowego mózgu lub zgon w ciągu 90 dni, a dodatkowo również w ciągu 3 dni od pierwszego zachorowania. Decyzję o przyjęciu do szpitala i o sposobie leczenia podejmował neurolog specjalizujący się w chorobach naczyniowych mózgu. Dokładność rokowniczą skali ABCD2 w przewidywaniu wystąpienia nawrotowego udaru mózgu lub TIA oceniono liczbowo i określono ilościowo metodą pola pod krzywą (area under the curve – AUC) z użyciem statystyki c. Wyniki W badaniu wzięło udział 393 chorych na TIA (238 mężczyzn i 155 kobiet) oraz 118 chorych na MIS (77 mężczyzn i 41 kobiet). W grupie obejmującej łącznie 511 chorych z lekkimi incydentami naczyniowymi mózgu w okresie 3 miesięcy od wystąpienia pierwszego incydentu naczyniowego mózgu wystąpiło 117 udarów mózgu (23,2%), 99 TIA (19,6%) i 11 zgonów z przyczyn naczyniowych (2,2%). Wartość predykcyjna punktacji ABCD2 w odniesieniu do wystąpienia nawrotowego udaru mózgu w okresie 3 miesięcy lub 3 dni po pierwotnym incydencie naczyniowym była niewielka u pacjentów z TIA (wartość AUC odpowiednio 0,599 i 0,591), a duża u pacjentów z MIS (wartość AUC odpowiednio 0,727 i 0,728). Wniosek Punktacja ABCD2 ma dużą wartość predykcyjną wczesnego wystąpienia nawrotowego udaru mózgu u pacjentów z MIS, ale nie z TIA, chociaż pierwotnie została zaprojektowana do użycia w drugiej z tych populacji

Role of Schwann Cells in Preservation of Retinal Tissue Through Reduction of Oxidative Stress

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of subretinal injection of Schwann cells on preservation of retina by decreasing oxidative stress in Dystrophic Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) rats. Schwann cells were harvested from the sciatic nerve of postnatal day 5, RCS rats. Twenty-five RCS rats randomly assigned to cell and sham groups. Schwann cells injected in the sub-retinal space in one eye of the cell group and carrier medium was injected in one eye of the sham group. The proof for the appropriate site of injection of Schwann cells confirmed by the green fluorescent protein (GFP) positive cells. Electroretinogram (ERG) and enucleation for histopathology and enzymatic evaluation were performed 1, 2 and 3 months post-injection. The enzymatic evaluation included catalase, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase 1 (GPx1) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. Three months after injection, histopathology assessments showed a complete absence of the outer nuclear layer (ONL), photoreceptors and obvious reduction of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) in the sham group. Cell group showed marked preservation of RPE, choroidal congestion and mild presence of ONL. The green fluorescent protein positive Schwann cells remained in one integrated layer during the study under RPE. The enzymatic evaluation showed that in cell group expression of SOD and GPx1 until month 2 and catalase until month 1 were significantly more than the sham group. At the end of month 3, the amplitude of ERG waves significantly preserved in cell group in comparison to baseline waves and the sham group. We concluded that Schwan cells are able to preserve retinal in RCS rats by reducing oxidative stress. Epub: October 1, 2019

Effect of 8 Weeks Resistance Training and Irisin Injection on BDNF and Spatial Memory of Male Mice

The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of eight weeks of resistance training and irisin injection on BDNF and spatial memory in male rats. 19 male mice (mean weight 18g and 5 weeks old) were randomly divided into control groups, sham, resistance training and irisin injection gruops. The resistance training program was conducted for eight weeks and three days each week. At the first week, the closed weights were 50% of the body weight of the rats and gradually increased to about 200% of their weight in the final week each session consisted of 3 repetitve 5 repetitions with 3 minutes of rest between turns and one minute between repetitions. Irisin injection was also performed three times a week. Elisa method was used to measure plasma irisin and BDNF and to evaluate spatial memory of Barns maze. Results showed a positive and significant correlation between irisin and BDNF (P = 0.66, P = 0.01). Also results showed irisin levels increased significantly in the training groups and irisin injection compared to the control group (P=0.001, F=14.25). This level was higher in the resistance training group than the irisin injection group, but the spatial memory (P=0.658, F=0.546) and BDNF levels (P=0.635, F=0.584) in the two groups did not have a significant effect. It can be concluded 8 weeks of resistance training and irisin injection did not have a significant effect on blood BDNF and spatial memory, but significantly increased the level of irisin

Knee Muscle Reciprocal Co-Activation in Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome During Isokinetic Exercise: A Voluntary Response Index Analysis

Introduction: The origin of the Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (PFPS) is not still completely clear and may have a biomechanical or biochemical cause. Motor control dysfunction may have a role in this condition. Voluntary Response Index (VRI) is able to show changes in the central nervous system motor output that occur with intervention, recovery, or progression of the disorder. Therefore, the outcomes may contribute to offer another tool for PFPS motor control evaluation. The aim of the present study, therefore, was to assess the changes in the quadriceps and hamstring reciprocal coactivation patterns that may be observed in individuals with PFPS using the VRI. Methods and Materials: A total of 24 female participants, 12 with sound knees and 12 with PFPS participated in the present study. The study was accomplished in the Biomechanics Laboratory at Rehabilitation School of Tehran University of Medical Sciences in 2015. The participants sat on a Biodex dynamometer. They were asked to perform 10 continuous knee extension and flexion motions with maximal strength at 45˚/s and 300˚/s, distinctly. Simultaneously, electromyographic activities of the vastus medialis (VM), vastus lateralis (VL), rectus femoris (RF), and biceps femoris (BF) were recorded and VRI was calculated. A two-way analysis of variance was run to assess the effect of group and velocity on the VRI (similarity index and magnitude). Results: There was no velocity or group main effect observed for the VRI (P>0.05). In addition, no significant velocity × group interaction was found for the VRI (P>0.05). Conclusion: PFPS may not be linked to altered quadriceps and hamstring reciprocal co-activation patterns during isokinetic exercise. In addition, angular velocity may not be an important parameter in voluntary motor control assessment during isokinetic exercise.Keywords: Reciprocal co-activation; Voluntary response index; Patellofemoral pain syndrome; Isokineti

Evaluation of the relationship between serumsVisfatin and Resistin levels with BMI in PCOS young women

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine / metabolic disorder in women of reproductive age .Abdominal adiposity and obesity are frequently present in PCOS. It now appears that, obesity is associated with a low-grade inflammation of white adipose tissue.Adipokines play a significant role in the pathogenesis of a low-grade inflammation associated with obesity. Among variety of adipokines, resistin and visfatin are proposed as important pro inflammatory mediators and they have recently been suggested to be associated with obesity related diseases.The aim of this study is to evaluate the correlation of visfatin and resistin serum levels and the ratio of these two adipokines with BMI in PCOS women under age of 35 years old. Twenty eight young women with clinically confirmed PCOS disease (14 lean and 14 obese), and 12 young, healthy and lean women with stable weight and BMI<25 were enrolled. Blood was obtained from the included persons, and visfatin and resistin were assessed by ELISA method. We did not observe any significant differences in serum visfatin and resistin concentrations and also in the Visfatin/Resistin ratio between PCOS and control group. Also we did not found a significant correlation between visfatin and resistin with BMI. This study demonstrated that serum resistin and visfatin levels do not seem to be directly involved in the pathology of PCOS

The Dilemma of TP53 Codon 72 Polymorphism (rs1042522) and Breast Cancer Risk : A Case-Control Study and Meta-Analysis in The Iranian Population

The authors would like to thank all participants in this research. We would also like to thank Mashhad University of Medical Sciences and Omid Hospital (Mashhad, Iran) for their support to the project. This work was financially supported by Mashhad University of Medical Sciences under Grant No. 930891. No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Reinforcement of Calcium Phosphate Cement with Hybrid Silk Fibroin/Kappa-Carrageenan Nanofibers

Calcium phosphate cements (CPCs) offer a promising solution for treating bone defects due to their osteoconductive, injectable, biocompatible, and bone replacement properties. However, their brittle nature restricts their utilization to non-load-bearing applications. In this study, the impact of hybrid silk fibroin (SF) and kappa-carrageenan (k-CG) nanofibers as reinforcements in CPC was investigated. The CPC composite was fabricated by incorporating electrospun nanofibers in 1, 3, and 5% volume fractions. The morphology, mineralization, mechanical properties, setting time, injectability, cell adhesion, and mineralization of the CPC composites were analyzed. The results demonstrated that the addition of the nanofibers improved the CPC mixture, leading to an increase in compressive strength (14.8 ± 0.3 MPa compared to 8.1 ± 0.4 MPa of the unreinforced CPC). Similar improvements were seen in the bending strength and work fracture (WOF). The MC3T3-E1 cell culture experiments indicated that cells attached well to the surfaces of all cement samples and tended to join their adjacent cells. Additionally, the CPC composites showed higher cell mineralization after a culture period of 14 days, indicating that the SF/k-CG combination has potential for applications as a CPC reinforcement and bone cell regeneration promoter

Impact of Rifampin Induction on the Fermentation Production of Ganoderic Acids by Medicinal Mushroom Ganoderma lucidum

Backgrounds and Objectives: Ganoderic acids are the most valuable secondary metabolites in Ganoderma lucidum traditional medicinal mushrooms, which have shown antitumor properties in many studies. However, application of ganoderic acids is limited due to low yield production. Recently, it was shown that static liquid culture could be a proven technology for producing ganoderic acids in Ganoderma lucidum, and that applying elicitors could be a potential strategy to improve their production. Materials and Methods: In this work, the effect of rifampin, a cyto-chromes P450 inducer, on production of ganoderic acids was studied, and Response Surface Methodology was applied to optimize the elicitor induction. Then total ganoderic acid in the harvested mycelia was extracted and its absorbency was measured. Results and Conclusion: The results showed an increase in the concen-tration of ganoderic acid in all samples. Moreover, optimum concentration and induction time of rifampin were obtained. The proposed model predicted the maximum ganoderic acid production as 18.6 mg g-1 in which the optimal concentration and time induction obtained were 100 μM and day 9, respectively. This work demonstrated a useful method for the enhanced production of ganoderic acids by Ganoderma lucidum.

Reinforcement of Calcium Phosphate Cement with Hybrid Silk Fibroin/Kappa-Carrageenan Nanofibers

Calcium phosphate cements (CPCs) offer a promising solution for treating bone defects due to their osteoconductive, injectable, biocompatible, and bone replacement properties. However, their brittle nature restricts their utilization to non-load-bearing applications. In this study, the impact of hybrid silk fibroin (SF) and kappa-carrageenan (k-CG) nanofibers as reinforcements in CPC was investigated. The CPC composite was fabricated by incorporating electrospun nanofibers in 1, 3, and 5% volume fractions. The morphology, mineralization, mechanical properties, setting time, injectability, cell adhesion, and mineralization of the CPC composites were analyzed. The results demonstrated that the addition of the nanofibers improved the CPC mixture, leading to an increase in compressive strength (14.8 ± 0.3 MPa compared to 8.1 ± 0.4 MPa of the unreinforced CPC). Similar improvements were seen in the bending strength and work fracture (WOF). The MC3T3-E1 cell culture experiments indicated that cells attached well to the surfaces of all cement samples and tended to join their adjacent cells. Additionally, the CPC composites showed higher cell mineralization after a culture period of 14 days, indicating that the SF/k-CG combination has potential for applications as a CPC reinforcement and bone cell regeneration promoter.This research was funded by the Materials and Energy Research Center (MERC, Iran), Grant Number 781398057