Association of cytotoxic T-lymphocyteassociated protein 4 polymorphisms with recurrent pregnancy loss: A case-control study

Background: A large proportion of cases of recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) are associated with immunological factors. Objective: This study investigated the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms of cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated protein (CTLA)-4 gene in women with a history of RPL compared to healthy women. Materials and Methods: A case-control study was performed on 2 groups consisting of 120 healthy women with no history of abortion and at least one delivery (control) and 120 women with a history of 2 or more primary RPLs (case). In addition, 5 mL of peripheral blood sample was taken from all subjects. The frequencies of CTLA-4 rs3087243 and rs231775 polymorphisms were assayed by restriction fragment length polymorphism polymerase chain reaction and rs5742909 using the high-resolution melting real-time polymerase chain reaction method. Results: The mean age of the women in the control and RPL groups were 30.03 ± 4.23 (range 21-37), and 28.64 ± 3.61 yr (range 20-35), respectively. Pregnancy loss numbers ranged between 2-6 in women with a history of RPL, and between 1 and 4 in the successful pregnancy group. Statistical analysis showed a significant difference between the genotypes of GG and AG in the 2 groups in rs3087243 polymorphism (OR 1.00 for GG genotype and OR 2.87 for AG genotype, p = 0.0043). No significant difference was observed in the genotype frequencies of rs231775 and rs5742909 polymorphisms, of the 2 groups (p = 0.37, and p = 0.095), respectively. Conclusion: Our findings indicated that CTLA-4 polymorphism, rs3087243, might be associated with a risk of RPL in Iranian women. Key words: Recurrent pregnancy loss, Single nucleotide polymorphisms, CTLA-4 gene

Molecular Investigation of Glutaric Aciduria Type1 in Iran

Glutaric Acidemia, Type I (GA I), was first described in 1975. The disease is caused by a genetic deficiency of the enzyme, Glutaryl-CoA Dehydrogenase (GCD), which leads to the buildup of Glutaric acid in the tissues and its excretion in the urine of affected patients. GCD is involved in the catabolism of the amino acids, Lysine, Hydroxylysine, and Tryptophan. Over 200 cases of GA I have been reported in the medical literature. GA I is one of the most common organic acidemias and has an estimated incidence of about 1 in 50,000 live births.Because of the initial slow progression of clinical symptoms, GA I is frequently undiagnosed until an acute metabolic crisis occurs. A total of 25 unrelated patients suspected to GA1 were investigated in our study. Genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral blood cells of the 25 probands whom were biochemically and/or clinically and/or neuro-radiologically suspected to GA1. 15 of them had elevated glutaric acid in the urine organic acid test.PCR and direct sequencing of all 11 exons and their flanking region of the GCDH gene were examined.Some of them were investigated for known mutation in the other their family members. Fifteen patients had homozygous mutations and 10 patients were normal for GCDH gene. Our Results Showed:• 60% Known mutation were found in our 15 patients• 80% can be detected by 4 exons sequencing so for molecular investigatins exon 6, 7, 8, 10 are good choice for beginning of analysis• 33% was mutation in exon 7, so because of the cost of genetic diagnosis we suggest that investigation begin with this exon.• Pro 348 Leu was most detected 20%.• 40% are new mutations wich will be investigated for phenotype Genotype Correlations

Synthesis of silver nanocatalyst in presence of poly(ethylene glycol) and its application for electrocatalytic reduction of hydrogen peroxide

The synthesis of powdered Ag nanoparticles in presence of poly(ethylene glycol) as reducing agent and stabilizer in aqueous medium is reported. The structure and properties of the Ag nanoparticles have been characterised by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray data. XRD study shows that the particles are crystalline in nature with face centered cubic geometry. Formation of stable silver nanoparticles gives mostly spherical particles with diameter in the range of 12–30 nm. The catalytic activity of the nanocrystalline AgNPs, for the reduction of hydrogen peroxide has been studied at the surface of glassy carbon electrode modified with Ag nanoparticles and poly(methyl methacrylate) (AgNPs-PMMA/GCE) prepared by casting of the AgNPs-PMMA solution on GCE. The sensor responds to H2O2 with high selectivity, good reproducibility and stability, over a linear range of 22–1700 µM with a detection limit of 4.8 µM using amperometry.

Thermodynamic characterization of the dimerization equilibrium of newly synthesized polymethine cyanine dyes

The monomer–dimer equilibrium and thermodynamics of three new cyanine dyes were investigated by spectrophotometric and chemometric methods. The dimerization constants of these new cyanine dyes were determined by studying the dependence of their absorption spectra on the temperature in the range 25–80 °C at concentrations of 3.0×10-4, 1.9×10-4 and 1.1×10-4 M for dye 1, 2 and 3, respectively. The processing of the data, performed for the quantitative analysis of pure spectral profiles, was based on the simultaneous resolution of the overlapping bands in the whole set of absorption spectra. From the dimerization constant and its dependence on temperature, the values of the standard enthalpy change and entropy change of dimerization were calculated

2D Quantitative Structure-Property Relationship Study of Mycotoxins by Multiple Linear Regression and Support Vector Machine

In the present work, support vector machines (SVMs) and multiple linear regression (MLR) techniques were used for quantitative structure–property relationship (QSPR) studies of retention time (tR) in standardized liquid chromatography–UV–mass spectrometry of 67 mycotoxins (aflatoxins, trichothecenes, roquefortines and ochratoxins) based on molecular descriptors calculated from the optimized 3D structures. By applying missing value, zero and multicollinearity tests with a cutoff value of 0.95, and genetic algorithm method of variable selection, the most relevant descriptors were selected to build QSPR models. MLR and SVMs methods were employed to build QSPR models. The robustness of the QSPR models was characterized by the statistical validation and applicability domain (AD). The prediction results from the MLR and SVM models are in good agreement with the experimental values. The correlation and predictability measure by r2 and q2 are 0.931 and 0.932, repectively, for SVM and 0.923 and 0.915, respectively, for MLR. The applicability domain of the model was investigated using William’s plot. The effects of different descriptors on the retention times are described

The unfinished agenda of communicable diseases among children and adolescents before the COVID-19 pandemic, 1990-2019: a systematic analysis of the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

BACKGROUND: Communicable disease control has long been a focus of global health policy. There have been substantial reductions in the burden and mortality of communicable diseases among children younger than 5 years, but we know less about this burden in older children and adolescents, and it is unclear whether current programmes and policies remain aligned with targets for intervention. This knowledge is especially important for policy and programmes in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. We aimed to use the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study 2019 to systematically characterise the burden of communicable diseases across childhood and adolescence. METHODS: In this systematic analysis of the GBD study from 1990 to 2019, all communicable diseases and their manifestations as modelled within GBD 2019 were included, categorised as 16 subgroups of common diseases or presentations. Data were reported for absolute count, prevalence, and incidence across measures of cause-specific mortality (deaths and years of life lost), disability (years lived with disability [YLDs]), and disease burden (disability-adjusted life-years [DALYs]) for children and adolescents aged 0-24 years. Data were reported across the Socio-demographic Index (SDI) and across time (1990-2019), and for 204 countries and territories. For HIV, we reported the mortality-to-incidence ratio (MIR) as a measure of health system performance. FINDINGS: In 2019, there were 3·0 million deaths and 30·0 million years of healthy life lost to disability (as measured by YLDs), corresponding to 288·4 million DALYs from communicable diseases among children and adolescents globally (57·3% of total communicable disease burden across all ages). Over time, there has been a shift in communicable disease burden from young children to older children and adolescents (largely driven by the considerable reductions in children younger than 5 years and slower progress elsewhere), although children younger than 5 years still accounted for most of the communicable disease burden in 2019. Disease burden and mortality were predominantly in low-SDI settings, with high and high-middle SDI settings also having an appreciable burden of communicable disease morbidity (4·0 million YLDs in 2019 alone). Three cause groups (enteric infections, lower-respiratory-tract infections, and malaria) accounted for 59·8% of the global communicable disease burden in children and adolescents, with tuberculosis and HIV both emerging as important causes during adolescence. HIV was the only cause for which disease burden increased over time, particularly in children and adolescents older than 5 years, and especially in females. Excess MIRs for HIV were observed for males aged 15-19 years in low-SDI settings. INTERPRETATION: Our analysis supports continued policy focus on enteric infections and lower-respiratory-tract infections, with orientation to children younger than 5 years in settings of low socioeconomic development. However, efforts should also be targeted to other conditions, particularly HIV, given its increased burden in older children and adolescents. Older children and adolescents also experience a large burden of communicable disease, further highlighting the need for efforts to extend beyond the first 5 years of life. Our analysis also identified substantial morbidity caused by communicable diseases affecting child and adolescent health across the world. FUNDING: The Australian National Health and Medical Research Council Centre for Research Excellence for Driving Investment in Global Adolescent Health and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

The global burden of cancer attributable to risk factors, 2010-19 : a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Background Understanding the magnitude of cancer burden attributable to potentially modifiable risk factors is crucial for development of effective prevention and mitigation strategies. We analysed results from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019 to inform cancer control planning efforts globally. Methods The GBD 2019 comparative risk assessment framework was used to estimate cancer burden attributable to behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risk factors. A total of 82 risk-outcome pairs were included on the basis of the World Cancer Research Fund criteria. Estimated cancer deaths and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) in 2019 and change in these measures between 2010 and 2019 are presented. Findings Globally, in 2019, the risk factors included in this analysis accounted for 4.45 million (95% uncertainty interval 4.01-4.94) deaths and 105 million (95.0-116) DALYs for both sexes combined, representing 44.4% (41.3-48.4) of all cancer deaths and 42.0% (39.1-45.6) of all DALYs. There were 2.88 million (2.60-3.18) risk-attributable cancer deaths in males (50.6% [47.8-54.1] of all male cancer deaths) and 1.58 million (1.36-1.84) risk-attributable cancer deaths in females (36.3% [32.5-41.3] of all female cancer deaths). The leading risk factors at the most detailed level globally for risk-attributable cancer deaths and DALYs in 2019 for both sexes combined were smoking, followed by alcohol use and high BMI. Risk-attributable cancer burden varied by world region and Socio-demographic Index (SDI), with smoking, unsafe sex, and alcohol use being the three leading risk factors for risk-attributable cancer DALYs in low SDI locations in 2019, whereas DALYs in high SDI locations mirrored the top three global risk factor rankings. From 2010 to 2019, global risk-attributable cancer deaths increased by 20.4% (12.6-28.4) and DALYs by 16.8% (8.8-25.0), with the greatest percentage increase in metabolic risks (34.7% [27.9-42.8] and 33.3% [25.8-42.0]). Interpretation The leading risk factors contributing to global cancer burden in 2019 were behavioural, whereas metabolic risk factors saw the largest increases between 2010 and 2019. Reducing exposure to these modifiable risk factors would decrease cancer mortality and DALY rates worldwide, and policies should be tailored appropriately to local cancer risk factor burden. Copyright (C) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license.Peer reviewe

Global, regional, and national burden of disorders affecting the nervous system, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

BackgroundDisorders affecting the nervous system are diverse and include neurodevelopmental disorders, late-life neurodegeneration, and newly emergent conditions, such as cognitive impairment following COVID-19. Previous publications from the Global Burden of Disease, Injuries, and Risk Factor Study estimated the burden of 15 neurological conditions in 2015 and 2016, but these analyses did not include neurodevelopmental disorders, as defined by the International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-11, or a subset of cases of congenital, neonatal, and infectious conditions that cause neurological damage. Here, we estimate nervous system health loss caused by 37 unique conditions and their associated risk factors globally, regionally, and nationally from 1990 to 2021.MethodsWe estimated mortality, prevalence, years lived with disability (YLDs), years of life lost (YLLs), and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), with corresponding 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs), by age and sex in 204 countries and territories, from 1990 to 2021. We included morbidity and deaths due to neurological conditions, for which health loss is directly due to damage to the CNS or peripheral nervous system. We also isolated neurological health loss from conditions for which nervous system morbidity is a consequence, but not the primary feature, including a subset of congenital conditions (ie, chromosomal anomalies and congenital birth defects), neonatal conditions (ie, jaundice, preterm birth, and sepsis), infectious diseases (ie, COVID-19, cystic echinococcosis, malaria, syphilis, and Zika virus disease), and diabetic neuropathy. By conducting a sequela-level analysis of the health outcomes for these conditions, only cases where nervous system damage occurred were included, and YLDs were recalculated to isolate the non-fatal burden directly attributable to nervous system health loss. A comorbidity correction was used to calculate total prevalence of all conditions that affect the nervous system combined.FindingsGlobally, the 37 conditions affecting the nervous system were collectively ranked as the leading group cause of DALYs in 2021 (443 million, 95% UI 378–521), affecting 3·40 billion (3·20–3·62) individuals (43·1%, 40·5–45·9 of the global population); global DALY counts attributed to these conditions increased by 18·2% (8·7–26·7) between 1990 and 2021. Age-standardised rates of deaths per 100 000 people attributed to these conditions decreased from 1990 to 2021 by 33·6% (27·6–38·8), and age-standardised rates of DALYs attributed to these conditions decreased by 27·0% (21·5–32·4). Age-standardised prevalence was almost stable, with a change of 1·5% (0·7–2·4). The ten conditions with the highest age-standardised DALYs in 2021 were stroke, neonatal encephalopathy, migraine, Alzheimer's disease and other dementias, diabetic neuropathy, meningitis, epilepsy, neurological complications due to preterm birth, autism spectrum disorder, and nervous system cancer.InterpretationAs the leading cause of overall disease burden in the world, with increasing global DALY counts, effective prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation strategies for disorders affecting the nervous system are needed

The Effect of Gender Identity on Job Satisfaction of Employers

Introduction The importance and the role of gender identity in constituting the mental and personal structure of people within the society has caused this variable to be analyzed as one of the key elements in subjects and researches of the social and cultural sciences. This variable implicates as an index for evaluation of the femininity and masculinity on learned social roles and formed gender priorities. In recent years, job satisfaction and its related subjects have been introduced as one of the important research areas in the sociology of occupations. Job satisfaction is the pleasure and joy that an individual gains from his or her work. Several studies have been performed relating to job satisfaction of employers and managers. In some of them, researchers have studied the motivating factors of job satisfaction for masculine and feminine employers. The results show that the motivating factors in females are different from the motivating factors in males and this difference is related to gender (being men or women). But perusing results show that we cannot prioritize job satisfaction factors by considering people's gender. For example, some of the results show that feminine employers (in comparison with masculine employers) emphasize job satisfaction factors based on situation derived from increasing economic advantages, trade development and business growth, although they merely emphasize social – internal job satisfaction factors derived from the relationship with costumers and perusing social goals . On the other hand, other surveys show that some feminine employers put more emphasis on job satisfaction factors based on situation and some masculine employers put more emphasis on social–internal job satisfaction factors. Thus we cannot determine which job satisfaction factor has the highest priority for a masculine or a feminine employer. So, the gender controversy and important discrepancies coming out of it lead sociologists to study sex and the gender. The term sex implies the biological and physical differences between men and women, but gender implies personal and mental characteristics and cultural, psychological and social acquisitive differences between men and women that society determines. So we need to study the relationship between masculinity and femininity (gender identity) and job satisfaction factors. This study concerns the effects of masculinity and femininity dimensions of gender identity on determining the priorities of job satisfaction factors among employers. Materials & Methods The data of this study is gathered by quantitative method, survey technique and questionnaire. Statistical population is composed of the employers of NajafAbad industrial city, Isfahan. Sample size is 180 individuals, selected by cluster sampling method with probability proportional to the sample. In the part related to the evaluation of the gender identity, Bem Sex-Role Inventory was used for the evaluation of the male and female dimensions of gender identity. Discussion of Results & Conclusions After surveying the results using Bem tool and computation of the results, four main groups of the employer's gender identities were determined in underlying statistical sample. It showed that in masculine sample % 26.7 with high scores in masculine scale have a masculine identity, %16.8 with high scores in feminine scale have a feminine identity, %34.7 with high scores in two masculine and feminine scales have a both-gender identity (hermaphrodite) and %21.8 with low scores in both masculine and feminine scales have an indifferent identity. Also, in feminine sample, %35.5 have a feminine identity, %10.1 have a masculine identity, %40.5 have a both-gender identity and % 13.9 have an indifferent identity. There is a meaningful difference in X2 TEST between belonging to both-gender identity groups (masculine and feminine) and the rate of importance rendered to job satisfaction situation factors (X2 = 10.542 , df=1. sig= 0.000 ) . It means there are differences between employers with masculine identity and employers with feminine identity in the rate of the importance they render to the situation factors. In addition, the evaluation rank average for situation factors is higher between the employers with masculine gender identity. The results of the X2 test show that the employers in feminine gender identity group in statistical sample (compared to masculine identity employers) put more emphasis on participation in society, assistance to others and having good relationship with employees. The X2 test shows no meaningful difference for the evaluation of the relationship among employers gender identity and the rate of the importance they render to corresponding with the costumers. (X2 = 0.352, df= 1, sig= 0.553). So the results show that the employers with stronger masculine gender identity dimension , pay more attention to satisfaction factors associated with situation development (e.g. increasing salary , trade development , having leadership role and guiding a great company with rapid growth ), compared to employers with stronger feminine gender identity dimension. Moreover, employers with stronger feminine gender identity dimension prefer satisfaction factors based on having good relations with employees, participation in society and association with others to situation factors. Totally, the results show that gender identity is a proper anticipator for determining the priorities of job satisfaction factors of the employers, because masculine gender identity is related to satisfaction factors based on situation and feminine gender identity is related to satisfaction factors based on relationship with employees and participation in society