Cross-Slot Antenna with U-Shaped Tuning Stub for Ultra-Wideband Applications

A novel design of an ultra-wideband (UWB) slot antenna is presented. This antenna operates as a transmitter and receiver antenna. Effects of the antenna dimensional parameters are studied through experimental and simulation results. Design procedures are developed and verified for different frequency bands. The experimental and simulation results exhibit good impedance bandwidth, radiation pattern, and relatively constant gain over the entire band of frequency. Antenna gain and directivity at boresight and in their maximum states are close to each other and indicate high radiation efficiency. To use the antenna as a linearly polarized antenna, the radiation pattern in E-plane is better than that in H-plane

MCT4 Promotes Tumor Malignancy in F98 Glioma Cells

Monocarboxylate transporter 4 (MCT4, SLC16A3) is elevated under hypoxic conditions in many malignant tumors including gliomas. Moreover, MCT4 expression is associated with shorter overall survival. However, the functional consequences of MCT4 expression on the distinct hallmarks of cancer have not yet been explored at the cellular level. Here, we investigated the impact of MCT4 overexpression on proliferation, survival, cell death, migration, invasion, and angiogenesis in F98 glioma cells. Stable F98 glioma cell lines with MCT4 overexpression, normal expression, and knockdown were generated. Distinct hallmarks of cancer were examined using in silico analysis, various in vitro cell culture assays, and ex vivo organotypic rat brain slice culture model. Consistent with its function as lactate and proton exporter, MCT4 expression levels correlated inversely with extracellular pH and proportionally with extracellular lactate concentrations. Our results further indicate that MCT4 promotes proliferation and survival by altered cell cycle regulation and cell death mechanisms. Moreover, MCT4 overexpression enhances cell migration and invasiveness via reorganization of the actin cytoskeleton. Finally, MCT4 inhibition mitigates the induction of angiogenesis, suggesting that MCT4 also plays a crucial role in tumor-related angiogenesis. In summary, our data highlight MCT4/SLC16A3 as a key gene for distinct hallmarks of tumor malignancy in glioma cells

Epidemiological study of snakebites in Ardabil Province (Iran)

Background: The level of knowledge and using health information technology by clinicians, students and staff has always been one of the essential issues in the field of health. Objective: The objective of the present study was to evaluate HIT knowledge, attitude, and practice habits among health care professionals and students in educational hospitals in Iran. Methods: This case study was carried out in 2016 on 539 personnel of 65 educational hospitals in Iran entailing three subgroups of physicians (n=128), medical students (n=97), and health record staff (n=314). A pretested self- administered questionnaire was designed to evaluate the knowledge, attitude and practice of health information technology. It was comprised of three parts of "baseline general characteristics", "knowledge categories", and "attitude and practice". Results: In total, 28.8% of participants had a good level of knowledge about computer science, whereas 37.7% had a poor level of knowledge. A total of 40% showed good attitude and practice, while 25.6% had poor attitude and practice. Furthermore, 16.4% of physicians, 32% of students and 33.1% of health record staff had good knowledge, while poor knowledge was reported in 45.3% of physicians, 25.8% of students, and 37.6% of staff (p=0.304). The trend of good attitude and practice habits were respectively 28.9%, 50.5%, and 40.8% in physicians, students, and staff, whereas these trends were respectively 30.5%, 4.1%, and 29.9% for poor attitude and practice (p=0.163). Generally, the knowledge level of participants was positively related to the rate of attitude and practice (r=0.847, p<0.001), so the higher knowledge level brought about the higher score in attitude and practice. Conclusion: The level of knowledge and practice of HIT was low among the physicians, students, and staff. Our university can provide a plenary program to promote the level of knowledge and information on practice of HI

Healthy older adults balance pattern under dual task conditions: exploring the strategy and trend

Background: In line with health promotion plans, early intervention and fall prevention in geriatric population, it is important to study healthy individuals balance mechanisms. The aim of this research was to investigate the effect of adding and removing visual input and dual task on elderly balance. Methods: Twenty healthy elderly recruited from four different senior citizen health club centers and from the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences (USWR) participated in this analytic cross-sectional study. At USWR’s Motor Control Laboratory, the participants’ postural sway were assessed using force plate in 4 distinct double leg standing conditions with and without presence of visual input and Stroop dual task. Postural and Stroop variables were compared. Results: Findings indicated that when the elderly encountered with either dual task or absence of visual input, they can still manage the situation in a way that changes in sway parameter would not become significant. But, when these two conditions occurred simultaneously, the participant’s balance strategy fluctuated. Therefore, the mean velocity showed a significant difference between the "single quiet standing" condition and the condition of standing with eyes closed while the participants were answering Stroop dual task (Mean difference = -0.007, 95% CI = -0.012, -0.002). Conclusion: It appears that velocity parameter is sensitive to small changes, so it is recommended that researchers include this parameter in their future analyses. Balance in elderly can be manipulated by dual task and visual input deprivation

Investigating the Impact of Dual Task Condition and Visual Manipulation on Healthy Young Old During Non-Dominant Leg Stance

Objectives: The dominant leg has always received special attention in public health practices and even in professional clinical evaluation and interventions. The aim of this research study was to methodically examine the substrate balance character of the non-dominant leg under dual task conditions and visual deprivation to increase the baseline insight for maintaining body balance and for fall prevention in aging adults. Methods: Twenty healthy senior citizens with non-dominant left leg were conscripted into a cross-sectional study, the aim of which was to examine one-legged standing balance strategy on a force plate at Motor Control Laboratory in University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Four balance conditions with varied levels of difficulty, including: (a) single left leg standing with open eyes; (b) single left leg standing with open eyes performing Stroop dual task; (c) single left leg standing with eyes shut; and (d) single left leg standing with eyes shut under dual task condition. These conditions were applied to assess balance function of the non-dominant leg of the subjects.&nbsp; Results: Repeated measurement tests revealed that among the six variables, namely Area, Mean Velocity, Range Fore After, Range Side Way, Entropy X, and Entropy Y, that are measured by force plate, only Entropy X did not have a significant difference between conditions (P<0.05). Discussion: Standing on non-dominant leg is a challenging task that requires a well-balanced system to survive the primary decreased somatosensory input. Therefore, the examinee had to have the requisite capabilities to cope with the changes caused when extra manipulation was included. During the course of the study, the most challenging situation was encountered when the subjects were standing on their non-dominant leg with eyes shut, which should be exactingly checked not to create a risky point as an Achilles&rsquo; heel of balance system. It was observed that the non-dominant leg was more susceptible to be affected when an aging adult did not have access to the visual input or during performing dual tasks with eyes shut. It is thus recommended that such conditions should be included in balance assessment tests or interventions

Sunitinib impedes brain tumor progression and reduces tumor-induced neurodegeneration in the microenvironment

Malignant gliomas can be counted to the most devastating tumors in humans. Novel therapies do not achieve significant prolonged survival rates. The cancer cells have an impact on the surrounding vital tissue and form tumor zones, which make up the tumor microenvironment. We investigated the effects of sunitinib, a small molecule multitargeted receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor, on constituents of the tumor microenvironment such as gliomas, astrocytes, endothelial cells, and neurons. Sunitinib has a known anti-angiogenic effect. We found that sunitinib normalizes the aberrant tumor-derived vasculature and reduces tumor vessel pathologies (i.e. auto-loops). Sunitinib has only minor effects on the normal, physiological, non-proliferating vasculature. We found that neurons and astrocytes are protected by sunitinib against glutamate-induced cell death, whereas sunitinib acts as a toxin towards proliferating endothelial cells and tumor vessels. Moreover, sunitinib is effective in inducing glioma cell death. We determined the underlying pathways by which sunitinib operates as a toxin on gliomas and found vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2, KDR/Flk1) as the main target to execute gliomatoxicity. The apoptosis-inducing effect of sunitinib can be mimicked by inhibition of VEGFR2. Knockdown of VEGFR2 can, in part, foster the resistance of glioma cells to receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors. Furthermore, sunitinib alleviates tumor-induced neurodegeneration. Hence, we tested whether temozolomide treatment could be potentiated by sunitinib application. Here we show that sunitinib can amplify the effects of temozolomide in glioma cells. Thus, our data indicate that combined treatment with temozolomide does not abrogate the effects of sunitinib. In conclusion, we found that sunitinib acts as a gliomatoxic agent and at the same time carries out neuroprotective effects, reducing tumor-induced neurodegeneration. Thus, this report uncovered sunitinib's actions on the brain tumor microenvironment, revealing novel aspects for adjuvant approaches and new clinical assessment criteria when applied to brain tumor patients

Plasticity Related Gene 3 (PRG3) overcomes myelin-associated growth inhibition and promotes functional recovery after spinal cord injury

The Plasticity Related Gene family covers five, brain-specific, transmembrane proteins (PRG1-5, also termed LPPR1-5) that operate in neuronal plasticity during development, aging and brain trauma. Here we investigated the role of the PRG family on axonal and filopodia outgrowth. Comparative analysis revealed the strongest outgrowth induced by PRG3 (LPPR1). During development, PRG3 is ubiquitously located at the tip of neuronal processes and at the plasma membrane and declines with age. In utero electroporation of PRG3 induced dendritic protrusions and accelerated spine formations in cortical pyramidal neurons. The neurite growth promoting activity of PRG3 requires RasGRF1 (RasGEF1/Cdc25) mediated downstream signaling. Moreover, in axon collapse assays, PRG3-induced neurites resisted growth inhibitors such as myelin, Nogo-A (Reticulon/RTN-4), thrombin and LPA and impeded the RhoA-Rock-PIP5K induced neurite repulsion. Transgenic adult mice with constitutive PRG3 expression displayed strong axonal sprouting distal to a spinal cord lesion. Moreover, fostered PRG3 expression promoted complex motor-behavioral recovery compared to wild type controls as revealed in the Schnell swim test (SST). Thus, PRG3 emerges as a developmental RasGRF1-dependent conductor of filopodia formation and axonal growth enhancer. PRG3-induced neurites resist brain injury-associated outgrowth inhibitors and contribute to functional recovery after spinal cord lesions. Here, we provide evidence that PRG3 operates as an essential neuronal growth promoter in the nervous system. Maintaining PRG3 expression in aging brain may turn back the developmental clock for neuronal regeneration and plasticity

Sulfasalazine impacts on ferroptotic cell death and alleviates the tumor microenvironment and glioma-induced brain edema

The glutamate transporter xCT (SCL7a11, system Xc-, SXC) is an emerging key player in glutamate/cysteine/glutathione homeostasis in the brain and in cancer. xCT expression correlates with the grade of malignancy. Here, we report on the use of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and EMA-approved xCT inhibitor, sulfasalazine (SAS) in gliomas. SAS does not affect cell viability in gliomas at concentrations below 200 µM. At higher concentrations SAS becomes gliomatoxic. Mechanistically SAS inhibits xCT and induces ferroptotic cell death in glioma cells. There is no evidence for impact on autophagic flux following SAS application. However, SAS can potentiate the efficacy of the standard chemotherapeutic and autophagy-inducing agent temozolomide (Temcat, Temodal or Temodar®). We also investigated SAS in non-transformed cellular constituents of the brain. Neurons and brain tissue are almost non-responding to SAS whereas isolated astrocytes are less sensitive towards SAS toxicity compared to gliomas. In vivo SAS treatment does not affect experimental tumor growth and treated animals revealed comparable tumor volume as untreated controls. However, SAS treatment resulted in reduced glioma-derived edema and, hence, total tumor volume burden as revealed by T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging. Altogether, we show that SAS can be utilized for targeting the glutamate antiporter xCT activity as a tumor microenvironment-normalizing drug, while crucial cytotoxic effects in brain tumors are minor