Comparative evaluation of shear bond strength of three flowable compomers on enamel of primary teeth: An in-vitro study

Background: The aim of the present study was to determine Shear bond strength (SBS) of different flowable compomers on the enamel surface of primary teeth. The null hypothesis to be tested was that none of the flowable compomer would differ significantly from the other two with respect to SBS. As a result, the tested materials that have the easiest application on child patient is preferred. Material and Methods: Sixty newly extracted non carious primary molars were selected. The buccal surface was cleaned and polished to obtain a flat enamel surface. The specimens were randomly divided into three groups of 20 teeth each, based on the flowable compomers applied, as follows: group I: Dyract Flow® (Dentsply, Konstanz, Germany); group II: Twinky Star Flow® (Voco, Cuxhaven, Germany); and group III: R&D Series Nova Compomer Flow® (Imicryl, Konya, Turkey). Results: SBS in group II (6.78± 0.45 MPa) were significantly lower than groups I and III (8.30 ± 0.29 and 8.43 ± 0.66 MPa, respectively) (P<.001). No significant difference was found between groups I and III (P<.05). Conclusions: Significant differences existed between the SBS of the groups. Therefore, the null hypothesis was rejected. Flowable compomers can provide adequate SBS with self-etching system at restoration of primary teeth. Thus, successful restorations in pediatric patients can be done in a practical way. © Medicina Oral S.L

The effect of carob (Ceratonia siliqua) bean extract on male New Zealand White rabbit semen

[EN] The carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua) grows naturally in the Mediterranean region. The empiric use of carob cures for their aphrodisiac properties is very common in Turkey. Thus, the experiment was conducted to determine the effects of carob bean extracts on some reproductive parameters in male New Zealand White rabbits. During the adaptation period (stage 1), 6-8 mo old rabbits were trained in semen collection for 30 d. At the beginning of the treatment period (stage 2), rabbits were assigned randomly to 2 groups of 8 animals each. For a period of 49 d (1 spermatogenesis duration), one group was treated with a daily oral dose (10 mL) of carob extract and the other group received the corresponding volume of tap water. Semen was collected weekly. Semen samples taken at week 1 and 7 were analysed separately. At the beginning of stage 2, no differences were observed in the volume and pH of the ejaculate, sperm concentration, percentage of motility, percentage of live spermatozoa, percentage of sperm plasma membrane integrity, plasma concentration of testosterone, and seminal plasma protein levels between the control and carob extract treated animals. Similarly, at the end of stage 2, there were no differences in the volume and pH of the ejaculate, motility percentage, the percentage of live spermatozoa, percentage of sperm plasma membrane integrity, and the seminal plasma protein levels between the control and the carob extract treated animals. However, sperm concentration (P<0.05), plasma concentration of testosterone (P<0.05), and percentage of change in spermatozoa concentration (P<0.02) between groups were affected at the end of stage 2. The data suggested that the use of carob cures prepared by boiling carob fruit could have beneficial influences on sperm concentration in rabbits.Ata, A.; Yildiz-Gulay, O.; Güngör, S.; Balic, A.; Gulay, M. (2018). The effect of carob (Ceratonia siliqua) bean extract on male New Zealand White rabbit semen. World Rabbit Science. 26(3):209-215. doi:10.4995/wrs.2018.10154SWORD209215263Abd El-Ghany M.A. 2007. The relation of antioxidants and sodium nitrite on the oxidation reduction system and reproductive ability of male rats. Egypt J. Nutr., 2: 33-64.Agnes V.F., Akbarsha M.A. 2003. Spermatotoxic effect of aflatoxin B1 in the albino Mouse. Food. Chem. Tox., 41: 119-130. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0278-6915(02)00171-0Amico F.P., Source E.G. 1997. Medical plants and phytotheraphy in Mussomeli area (Caltenisseta, Scily, Italy). Fitoterapia, 68: 143-159.Ata A., Hatipoglu F.S., Yildiz-Gulay O., Gulay M.S. 2007. Protective role of ascorbic acid on subacute sperm toxicity in male New Zealand White Rabbits treated with endosulfan. Drug Chem. Toxicol., 30: 181-195. https://doi.org/10.1080/01480540701374896Ayaz F.A., Torun H., Ayaz S., Correia P.J., Alaiz M., Sanz C., Gruz J., Strand M. 2007. Determination of chemical composition of Anatolian carob pod (Ceratonia siliqua L.), Sugars, amino and organic acids, minerals and phenolic compounds. J. Food Quality, 30: 1040-1055. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-4557.2007.00176.xFeng P., Li TL., Guan Z.X., Franklin R.B., Costello L.C. 2002. Direct effect of zinc on mitochondrial apoptogenesis in prostate cells. Prostate, 52: 311-318. https://doi.org/10.1002/pros.10128Hala M.A.W. 2011. Protective effect of Nigella sativa, linseed and celery oil against testicular toxicity induced by sodium valproate in male rats. J. Am. Sci., 7: 687-693.Inouce M., Suzuki R., Koide T., Sakaguchi N., Ogihera Y., Yabu Y. 1994. Antioxidant, gallic acid, induces apaptosis in HL- 60RG cells. Biochem. Res. Commun., 204: 898-904. https://doi.org/10.1006/bbrc.1994.2544Karkacier M., Artik N. 1995. Determination of physical properties, chemical composition and extraction conditions of carob bean (Ceratonia siliqua L.). Gida, 20: 131-136.Katsiya G.V., Todua T.N., Gorlushkin V.M., Chirkov A.M., Goncharov N.P. 1989. Effect of immobilization stress on the gonadotropic function of the hypophysis in male hamadryas baboons (Papio hamadryas). Biol. Medit., 107: 231-234.Marakis S. 1996. Carob bean in food and feed: current status and future potentials: a critical appraisal. J. Food Sci. Technol., 33: 365-383.Merzouki A., Ed-Derfoufi F., El Allau A., Molero-Mesas J. 1997. Wild medicinal plants used by local Bouhmed population (Morocco). Fitoterapia, 68: 444-460.Rickard I.J., Holopainen J., Helama S., Helle S., Russell A.F., Lummaa V. 2010. Food availability at birth limited reproductive success in historical humans. Ecology, 91: 3515-3525. https://doi.org/10.1890/10-0019.1Robbins W.A., Xun L., FitzGerald L.Z., Esguerra S., Henning S.M., Carpenter C.L. 2012. Walnuts Improve Semen Quality in Men Consuming a Western-Style Diet: Randomized Control Dietary Intervention Trial. Biol. Reprod., 87: 101-108. https://doi.org/10.1095/biolreprod.112.101634Osaretin A.T., Gabriel A.A. 2008. Effect of zinc deficiency on memory, oxidative stress and blood chemistry in rats. Adv. Med. Dent. Sci., 2: 74-82.Saracoglu A.I. 2011. Şifa Kitabı, 1st ed. Haygrup Publishers, Istanbul, Turkey.Takeda A., Tamano H., Tochigi M. 2005. Zinc homeostasis in the hypocampus of zinc deficient young adult rats. J. Neurochem. Int., 46: 221-225. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuint.2004.10.003Tokeshi I., Yoshimoto T., Muto N., Nakamura S., Ashizawa K., Nakada T., Tatemoto H. 2007. Antihyaluronidase action of ellagic acid effectively prevents polyspermy as a result of suppression of the acrosome reaction induced by sperm-zona interaction during in vitro fertilization of porcine oocytes. J. Reprod. Develop., 53: 755-764. https://doi.org/10.1262/jrd.18173Turk G., Sonmez M., Aydin M., Yuce A., Gur S., Yuksel M., Aksu E.H., Aksoy H. 2008. Effects of pomegranate juice consumption on sperm quality, spermatogenic cell density, antioxidant activity and testosterone level in male rats. Clin. Nutr., 27: 289-296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnu.2007.12.006Würsch P. 1979. Influence of tannin-rich carob pod fiber on the cholesterol metabolism in the rat. J. Nutr., 109: 685-692. https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/109.4.685Zago M.P., Oteiza P.I. 2001. The antioxidant properties of zinc: interactions with iron and antioxidants. Free Rad. Biol. Med., 31: 266-274. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0891-5849(01)00583-

Nonlinear Evolution Equations Invariant Under Schroedinger Group in three-dimensional Space-time

A classification of all possible realizations of the Galilei, Galilei-similitude and Schroedinger Lie algebras in three-dimensional space-time in terms of vector fields under the action of the group of local diffeomorphisms of the space \R^3\times\C is presented. Using this result a variety of general second order evolution equations invariant under the corresponding groups are constructed and their physical significance are discussed

Simulation of a digital communication system

In this paper, basic components of a digital communication system are simulated by a computer program. The simulation program is modular and flexible to incorporate any future additions and updates. The simulation program allows the user to choose from various channel models, transmitter and receiver antenna systems, modulation and channel coding techniques. A communication system is defined by various parameters including the source, coding, modulation, antenna systems. In order to facilitate the input of these parameters and follow the flow of the simulation, the Graphical User Interface (GUI) is designed for convenience to the user. The input parameters can both be entered from the GUI or from prepared user files. The major contribution of this simulation system to the existing communication simulators is the addition of flexible antenna systems both at the transmitting and receiving ends. With this simulation program, the antenna arrays can be located anywhere on Earth, on any platform and array elements can be placed on the platform by any desired orientation. The simulation program results are compared with both theoretical computations and commercial simulator results and excellent agreement is observed in both cases

CalibFPA: A Focal Plane Array Imaging System based on Online Deep-Learning Calibration

Compressive focal plane arrays (FPA) enable cost-effective high-resolution (HR) imaging by acquisition of several multiplexed measurements on a low-resolution (LR) sensor. Multiplexed encoding of the visual scene is typically performed via electronically controllable spatial light modulators (SLM). An HR image is then reconstructed from the encoded measurements by solving an inverse problem that involves the forward model of the imaging system. To capture system non-idealities such as optical aberrations, a mainstream approach is to conduct an offline calibration scan to measure the system response for a point source at each spatial location on the imaging grid. However, it is challenging to run calibration scans when using structured SLMs as they cannot encode individual grid locations. In this study, we propose a novel compressive FPA system based on online deep-learning calibration of multiplexed LR measurements (CalibFPA). We introduce a piezo-stage that locomotes a pre-printed fixed coded aperture. A deep neural network is then leveraged to correct for the influences of system non-idealities in multiplexed measurements without the need for offline calibration scans. Finally, a deep plug-and-play algorithm is used to reconstruct images from corrected measurements. On simulated and experimental datasets, we demonstrate that CalibFPA outperforms state-of-the-art compressive FPA methods. We also report analyses to validate the design elements in CalibFPA and assess computational complexity

Group-invariant solutions of a nonlinear acoustics model

Based on a recent classification of subalgebras of the symmetry algebra of the Zabolotskaya-Khokhlov equation, all similarity reductions of this equation into ordinary differential equations are obtained. Large classes of group-invariant solutions of the equation are also determined, and some properties of the reduced equations and exact solutions are discussed.Comment: 14 page

Whole genome sequencing of Turkish genomes reveals functional private alleles and impact of genetic interactions with Europe, Asia and Africa

Background: Turkey is a crossroads of major population movements throughout history and has been a hotspot of cultural interactions. Several studies have investigated the complex population history of Turkey through a limited set of genetic markers. However, to date, there have been no studies to assess the genetic variation at the whole genome level using whole genome sequencing. Here, we present whole genome sequences of 16 Turkish individuals resequenced at high coverage (32 × -48×). Results: We show that the genetic variation of the contemporary Turkish population clusters with South European populations, as expected, but also shows signatures of relatively recent contribution from ancestral East Asian populations. In addition, we document a significant enrichment of non-synonymous private alleles, consistent with recent observations in European populations. A number of variants associated with skin color and total cholesterol levels show frequency differentiation between the Turkish populations and European populations. Furthermore, we have analyzed the 17q21.31 inversion polymorphism region (MAPT locus) and found increased allele frequency of 31.25% for H1/H2 inversion polymorphism when compared to European populations that show about 25% of allele frequency. Conclusion: This study provides the first map of common genetic variation from 16 western Asian individuals and thus helps fill an important geographical gap in analyzing natural human variation and human migration. Our data will help develop population-specific experimental designs for studies investigating disease associations and demographic history in Turkey. © 2014 Alkan et al

Transdermal flux predictions for selected selective oestrogen receptor modulators (SERMs):Comparison with experimental results

The aim of this work was to evaluate the feasibility of delivering transdermally a series of highly lipophilic compounds (log P similar to 4-7), comprising several selective oestrogen receptor modulators and a modified testosterone (danazol). The maximum fluxes of the drugs were predicted theoretically using the modified Potts & Guy algorithm (to determine the permeability coefficient (k(p)) from water) and the calculated aqueous solubilities. The correction provided by Cleek & Bunge took into account the contribution of the viable epidermal barrier to the skin permeation of highly lipophilic compounds. Experimental measurements of drug fluxes from saturated hydroalcoholic solutions were determined in vitro through excised pig skin. Overall, the predicted fluxes were in good general agreement (within a factor of 10) with the experimental results. Most of the experimental fluxes were greater than those predicted theoretically suggesting that the 70:30 v/v ethanol-water vehicle employed may have had a modest skin penetration enhancement effect. This investigation shows that the transdermal fluxes of highly lipophilic compounds can be reasonably predicted from first principles provided that the viable epidermis, underlying the stratum corneum, is included as a potentially important contributor to the skin's overall barrier function. Furthermore, the absolute values of the measured fluxes, when considered in parallel with previous clinical studies, indicate that it might be feasible to topically deliver a therapeutically useful amount of some of the compounds considered to treat cancerous breast tissue. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved