Knowledge and attitudes toward brain death and organ donation in Bojnurd

دانش و نگرش مردم شهر بجنورد (خراسان شمالی) در باره مرگ مغزی و اهدای عض

Quantitative imaging of gas adsorption equilibrium and dynamics by X-ray Computed Tomography

We present the development and application of X-ray Computed Tomography (CT) for the determination of the adsorption properties of microporous adsorbents and the study of breakthrough experiments in a laboratory fixed-bed adsorption column. Using the model system CO2/helium on activated carbon, equilibrium and dynamic adsorption/desorption measurements by X-ray CT are described, and the results are successfully compared to those obtained from conventional methods, including the application of a one-dimensional dynamic column breakthrough model. The study demonstrates the practical feasibility of applying X-ray CT to measure internal and transient concentration profiles in adsorbent systems on the length-scales from a single adsorbent pellet to a packed column

Touchstone Stars: Highlights from the Cool Stars 18 Splinter Session

We present a summary of the splinter session on "touchstone stars" -- stars with directly measured parameters -- that was organized as part of the Cool Stars 18 conference. We discuss several methods to precisely determine cool star properties such as masses and radii from eclipsing binaries, and radii and effective temperatures from interferometry. We highlight recent results in identifying and measuring parameters for touchstone stars, and ongoing efforts to use touchstone stars to determine parameters for other stars. We conclude by comparing the results of touchstone stars with cool star models, noting some unusual patterns in the differences.Comment: Proceedings of the 18th Cambridge Workshop on Cool Stars, Stellar Systems, and the Sun, Eds G. van Belle & H. Harri

Comparison of three different therapies for cutaneous leishmaniasis and identification of the etiologic isolates in Isfahan, Iran

Background: In Iran, zoonotic and anthroponotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) are caused by Leishmania major and L. tropica respectively. Despite extensive studies, no effective therapies have ever been reported for CL. The main objective of this research was to determine and compare the three different protocols for treatment of CL patients referring to Skin Diseases and Leishmaniasis Research Center (SDLRC), affiliated to Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran from September 2017 to October 2018. Methods: In a randomized controlled parallel groups clinical trial, 150 selected CL patients who met our inclusion criteria were randomly assigned to one of the three therapy groups: A, intra-lesional glucantime plus 50 trichloroacetic acid (TCA), B, intra-lesional glucantime and C, systemic glucantime. All patients in the three groups received the complete course of treatment and were followed for 6 months. To identify the etiologic agents, smears from their lesions were prepared and PCR-RFLP was used after parasite culture. Also, clinical characteristics, history of previous involvement, endemic emigration and demographic data were collected. Results: The results showed that the mean value of healing period was 53.12 ± 25.88 (median: 45, IQR: Q1 = 30-Q3 = 77) days in group A, 57.22 ± 44.02 (median: 42.5, IQR: Q1 = 30-Q3 = 60) days in group B, and 73.56 ± 41.08 (median: 71, IQR: Q1 = 45-Q3 = 90) days in group C; the observed differences were statistically significant (P = 0.024). There was a significant difference between group A and group C (P = 0.049), and between group B and group C (P = 0.047) in terms of mean healing period. Finally, complete recovery rates of 80, 62 and 42 were shown in the three medicinal groups of A, B and C, respectively (P = 0.022). Conclusion: In this study, the average duration of lesion healing among the three groups was the shortest in patients with IL glucantime plus 50 TCA treatment regimen. Also, the use of 50 TCA in patients suffering from CL was associated with a significant improvement in the depth of scars, the time and the percentage of recovery, and the low cost of this agent in the treatment of CL. © 2020 Academy of Medical Sciences of I.R. Iran. All rights reserved

Discovery of novel heterocyclic amide-based inhibitors: an integrative in-silico approach to targeting soluble epoxide hydrolase

Inhibition of soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) is considered as an emerging druggable target to reduce blood pressure, improve insulin sensitivity, and decrease inflammation. Despite the availability of different classes of sEH small molecule inhibitors for the potential treatment of hypertension, only a few candidates have reached clinical trials, making the optimal control of blood pressure presently unattainable. This necessity motivated us to explore a series of novel quinazoline-4(3H)-one and 4,6-disubstituted pyridin-2(1H)-one derivatives targeting sEH enzyme. Herein, comprehensive computational investigations were performed to probe the inhibition efficacy of these potent compounds in terms of inhibitor-enzyme interactions against sEH. In this study, the 39 in-house with a focused library comprising 39 in-house synthesized compounds were selected. The structure-based pharmacophore modeling was developed based on the crystal structure of sEH with its co-crystallized biologically active inhibitor. The generated hypotheses were applied for virtual screening-based PHASE fitness scores. Docking-based virtual screening workflows were used to generate lead compounds using HTVS, SP and XP based GLIDE G-score values. The candidate leads were filtered using ADMET pharmacological and physicochemical properties screening. A 100-ns of molecular dynamics simulations with Molecular dynamics simulations (100 ns) were performed to explore the binding affinities of the considered compounds. Our study identified four best candidates from quinazoline-4(3H)-one derivatives, which indicated that a quinazolinone ring serves as a suitable scaffold to develop novel small molecule sEH inhibitors

Treatment of Complicated Henoch-Schönlein Purpura with Mycophenolate Mofetil: A Retrospective Case Series Report

Background. Henoch-Schönlein purpura (HSP) is the most common childhood vasculitis with an incidence of approximately 10 per 100 000 children. There is some evidence to support steroid therapy in the treatment of severe abdominal pain, severe nephritis, and central nervous system involvement. However, the routine use of corticosteroids is controversial. Frequent relapses, lack of response to steroid, steroid dependency, and steroid side effects may occur in some patients. Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) gains increasing popularity in the treatment of autoimmune disorders, but hitherto, the available evidence to support the use of MMF in HSP is limited to some case study reports. Case Presentation. We report six children with HSP who failed to respond to systemic steroid therapy, whereas MMF successfully treated the manifestations of the disease. Conclusion. The manifestations of HSP disappeared mainly during the first week of treatment with MMF and all the patients were in a complete remission at the end and after discontinuation of the therapy. In our experience, MMF appeared to be safe and effective for the maintenance of remission in the HSP patients

The effects of anxiety and dual-task on upper limb motor control of chronic stroke survivors

This study was designed to investigate the effects of anxiety and dual-task on reach and grasp motor control in chronic stroke survivors compared with age- and sex-matched healthy subjects (HC). Reach and grasp kinematic data of 68 participants (high-anxiety stroke (HA-stroke), n = 17; low-anxiety stroke (LA-stroke), n = 17; low-anxiety HC, n = 17; and high-anxiety HC, n = 17) were recorded under single- and dual-task conditions. Inefficient reach and grasp of stroke participants, especially HA-stroke were found compared with the control groups under single- and dual-task conditions as evidenced by longer movement time (MT), lower and earlier peak velocity (PV) as well as delayed and smaller hand opening. The effects of dual-task on reach and grasp kinematic measures were similar between HCs and stroke participants (i.e., increased MT, decreased PV that occurred earlier, and delayed and decreased hand opening), with greater effect in stroke groups than HCs, and in HA-stroke group than LA-stroke group. The results indicate that performing a well-learned upper limb movement with concurrent cognitive task leads to decreased efficiency of motor control in chronic stroke survivors compared with HCs. HA-stroke participants were more adversely affected by challenging dual-task conditions, underlying importance of assessing anxiety and designing effective interventions for it in chronic stroke survivors. © 2020, The Author(s)

Study of properties and strength of no-fines concrete

Nowadays, special concrete is widely adopted in construction industry. No-fines concrete is a one of the special concrete which eliminate the use of fine aggregates in concrete mixing. The application of no-fines concrete has been introduced to construction industry especially pavement construction. Due to its high porosity behavior, the relative density of no-fines concrete is lower than normal concrete of 2400kg/m3 which also helps in reducing dead weight in the design. In term of strength, no-fines concrete also gave lower compressive strength compared to normal conventional concrete. The aggregate/cement ratio also found to be a factor affecting its strength as it is depending on the interlocking or the strength of bonding between aggregate and cement. Also, concrete with varies mix ratio gives different has been studied for its physical and mechanical properties. In addition, there are further study of introducing fiber materials to determine the chance of enhancement in no-fines concrete study. By elimination of fines aggregates, the development and application of no-fines concrete in the construction industry will be more economical than normal concrete. This paper reviews and studies the performance characteristics and strength of no fine concrete based on previous researcher's outcome

Imaging Electronic Correlations in Twisted Bilayer Graphene near the Magic Angle

Twisted bilayer graphene with a twist angle of around 1.1{\deg} features a pair of isolated flat electronic bands and forms a strongly correlated electronic platform. Here, we use scanning tunneling microscopy to probe local properties of highly tunable twisted bilayer graphene devices and show that the flat bands strongly deform when aligned with the Fermi level. At half filling of the bands, we observe the development of gaps originating from correlated insulating states. Near charge neutrality, we find a previously unidentified correlated regime featuring a substantially enhanced flat band splitting that we describe within a microscopic model predicting a strong tendency towards nematic ordering. Our results provide insights into symmetry breaking correlation effects and highlight the importance of electronic interactions for all filling factors in twisted bilayer graphene.Comment: Main text 9 pages, 4 figures; Supplementary Information 25 page