The correlation between reactive oxygen species

AbstractBackground and Purpose: An important factor involved in infertility is reactive oxygen species (ROS). ROS can damage sperm DNA, and involve lipid per-oxidation. ROS elevation is under the influence of leukocyte activation. The objective of this study was to evaluate the level of ROS as well as leukocyte, in normozoospermic (NO) and ologoasthenoteratozoospermic (OAT) ejaculates.Materials and Methods: The study population consisted of 75 individuals who were referred to the Research and Clinical Center, regarding infertility in Yazd, for semen analysis. Fifty (50) out of Seventy-Five (75) men were NO, and the remaining was OAT. ROS was measured with laminator, while leukocyte concentration was analyzed with the ENDTZ testResults: The results showed that ROS levels in OAT was significantly higher compared with NO (1253.49±200.95 vs. 75.64±149.52; P=0.00). Furthermore, men with OAT were divided into 2 groups, with sperm morphology and motility >5% and <5%. In group >5%, ROS level was significantly higher than the group with <5% (3627.55±407.79 vs. 81.29±100.48; P=0.007). In addition, leukocyte concentration in NO was 0.07±0.22x106; while it was 0.12±0.20x106 in OAT samples; P=0.35).Conclusion: The results indicate although ROS is present in normal seminal samples, it is significantly higher in OAT. This shows the vital role of antioxidants, which may improve the sperm quality. Further clinical studies will pinpoint the antioxidant capacity in improving the seminal contents.Key words: Infertility, OAT, ROS, Leukocyte, Sperm parametersJ Mazand Univ Med Sci 2008; 18(63): 91-99 (Persian

Assessment of Reproducibility of Geometric Distortion in MRI using Phantom Measurements

Introduction:  Image  distortion  is  one  of  the  major  problems  of  magnetic  resonance  imaging  (MRI) for use in 3DMRI, velocity MRI, FMRI and radiotherapy treatment planning (RTTP). It is  widely known that the most obvious effect of the inhomogenity of the magnetic fields and the  nonlinearity  of  the  gradient  is  the  Geometric  Distortion  of  MR  tomograms.  In  this  study,  the  accuracy of MR images was considered by the phantom study and the reproducibility of images  was evaluated by repeating the phantom measurements.  Materials and Methods: MRI scans of the phantom with grid pattern inside it were performed  using head coil in two 1.5 Tesla MRI systems (Picker VISTA TM HPQ, USA & GE Signa Echo  Speed, USA). For the Geometric Distortion reproducibility evaluation the T1W, T2W and PDW  SE  protocols  were  repeated  three  times.  The  Geometric  Distortion  was  measured  by  an  edge  detection program in MATLAB.   Results: The geometric distortion in the peripheral area of the images tends to be generally larger  than it in the central area in all images. The average displacement in Picker MRI was 3 pixels in  the y and 1 pixel in the x direction and in GE MRI it was 1 pixel in both x and y direction for 24  cm FOV (pixel = 0.9 mm).  Discussion and Conclusions: Since the positional variation was within 1 to 3 pixels for the head  coil, it will be possible to use this MR system in 3DMRI, velocity MRI, FMRI and RTTP. To  decrease the geometric distortion the use of suitable coil and protocol are expected

Suicide risk factors in Iranian patients with bipolar disorder: A 21- month follow-up from BDPF study

Objective: Bipolar disorder is strongly associated with suicidal ideations, attempts and commissions. Although several studies have been conducted on suicide risk factors in patients with bipolar disorder worldwide, a comprehensive study has not been reported from Iran.Methods: Patients with bipolar disorder type I, hospitalized in Iran Hospital of Psychiatry since May 2008 to August 2011 were sequentially enrolled. Patients were evaluated using Demographic and Clinical Variables Questionnaire, the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV axis I disorders (SCID-I), Young-Mania Rating Scale (Y-MRS), and Hamilton Depressive Rating Scale-7 (HDRS-7). One hundred patients were followed for 2 to 42 months (mean: 20.6 ± 12.5 months).Results: Only one patient attempted suicide during the follow-up period. 33 of the patients had history of previous suicide attempts. Female gender, divorce, and early age at onset of the disease were independently correlated with suicide attempt.Conclusion: Suicide attempts rarely occur during systematic follow-up of patients with bipolar disorder type I. Larger samples and longer follow-ups are needed to confirm this finding