Monofilament gill net and trammel net selectivity for the silver crucian carp (Carassius gibelio Bloch, 1782) in the Eğirdir Lake, Isparta-Turkey

The aim of this study was to determine the selectivity of monofilament gillnets with different mesh size for silver crucian carp in Eğirdir Lake. In this study, it was investigated that the selectivity of monofilament gillnets with nominal mesh size (stretched) with 32, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 mm and trammel nets with 100, 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 mm for catching of silver crucian carp. Fieldwork was carried out in two different stations of Eğirdir Lake, between January-2010 and December-2010 with a three-month period and a total of 4 catching operations. Share Each Length class Catch Total (SELECT) method was used to determine the selectivity parameters. In the experiments 1562 silver crucian carp species in ranges of the length between 7.9 cm-37.0 cm were caught. As a result of calculations made according to the bi-modal model which gave the lowest deviation, for gill nets optimum length (cm) was found as 8.77, 10.96, 13.70, 16.44, 19.18, 21.92, 24.66 for 32, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 mm mesh size; for trammel nets optimum length (cm) was found to be 24.90, 27.39, 29.88, 32.37, 34.86 for 100, 110, 120, 130 and 140 mm mesh size monofilament trammel nets, respectively

Parliamentary government with a strong president: The post-1989 Turkish experience

[No abstract available

Islamist Political Engagement in the Early Years of Multi-party Politics in Turkey: 1945-60

This study examines what has been overlooked by most studies of Islamist activism in the early years of the multi-party politics (1945-60) in Turkey. By examining the formal and informal political institutions, power relations and practices, it reveals that the early Islamists did not remain content with only socio-cultural activities. They effectively and creatively engaged with and within the political field, enjoyed an impact disproportionate to their actual numbers and power, and set the parameters for future Islamist activism. In so doing, they reproduced the Republican orthodoxy while advancing their heterodox claims. © 2013 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC

EFFECT OF EIGHT WEEKS EXERCISE ON BODY COMPOSITION AND SOME BLOOD VALUES IN WOMEN

Purpose: In this study, it was aimed to investigate the effect of eight weeks exercise on body composition and some blood values in women. Methods: A total of 16 volunteer women with an age mean of 30,81 ± 9,44 years and an age mean of 159,44 ± 6,61 cm were participated in the study. Blood samples of the participants were taken at the health facility while they were hungry before starting the exercise program. After applying the eight-week and 3 days a week exercise program, blood samples of subjects were taken again. The results which obtained from the study were analyzed with the SPSS 23.0 package program. In the analysis of the data, independent samples t test was applied to determine the difference between the groups. Results: As a result of the analyzes, while no significant difference was found between glucose and urea, creatine, total crystallinity, pre-test and post-test values of direct crystallization (p>0,05), body weight, BMI, chest circumference, waist circumference, waist circumference / height ratio, baseline area, and uric acid were significantly different between the pretest and posttest measurements (p<0,05). Conclusion: As a result of the study, it was observed that the eight-week exercise had differences in body weight, BMI, chest circumference, waist circumference, waist circumference, and baseline region and uric acid levels. It can be said that the exercise played an important role in the formation of this difference

Effects of rearing systems on performance, egg characteristics and immune response in two layer hen genotype

White (Lohmann LSL) and Brown (ATAK-S) laying hens, were reared under organic and conventional cage rearing systems, and the effects of the rearing system on performance parameters, egg production, egg characteristics, and immune response were investigated. For this purpose, a total of 832 laying hens of two commercial hybrids, i.e., 416 white (Lohmann LSL) and 416 Brown (ATAK-S) layers, were used. The experiment lasted between 23 and 70 wk of age. In this study, the white layers yielded more eggs as compared to the brown layers in both organic and conventional production systems. Egg weight exhibited a similar pattern to that of laying performance. However, the total hen-housed egg number for the white birds in the organic system was fewer than that of white birds in the conventional cage facility; conversely, a contradictory tendency was observed for the brown birds. Livability of the white layers in the organic system was remarkably lower (14%) than that of the brown line, whereas the white line survived better (3.42%) than their brown counterparts in conventional cages. The feed conversion ratio of the white hens was markedly inferior in the organic system as compared to that of the white hens in the conventional system, whereas relatively lower deterioration was reported in brown layers when reared in an organic system. The organic production system increased egg albumen height and the Haugh unit in eggs of the brown layers. The yolk color score of organic eggs was lower than that of conventional eggs for both brown and white hens. The egg yolk ratio of eggs from white layers was found to be higher in organic eggs as compared to those obtained in the conventional system. All organic eggs had heavier shells than those produced in the conventional system. Eggs from brown layers had more protein content than eggs from white layers. Neither housing systems nor genotype influenced egg yolk cholesterol concentration. When compared to conventional eggs, n-3 fatty acid content was lower in organic eggs, and the n-6:n-3 ratio was higher in organic eggs. In conclusion, two hen genotypes showed different responses in terms of performance and egg quality to two different rearing systems. A commercial white strain produced more eggs with higher egg quality as compared to a native brown strain. The brown strain was found to have adapted well to organic production conditions when survival and total egg number was taken into consideration

Thrombotic risk assessment in antiphospholipid syndrome: do noncriteria antibodies contribute?

BACKGROUND/AIM: In this cross-sectional study, it was aimed to test the predictive value of noncriteria antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) in addition to the global antiphospholipid syndrome score (GAPSS) in predicting vascular thrombosis (VT) in a cohort of patients with APS and aPL (+) systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). MATERIAL AND METHODS: This study included 50 patients with primary APS, 68 with SLE/APS, and 52 with aPL (+) SLE who were classified according to VT as VT ± pregnancy morbidity (PM), PM only or aPL (+) SLE. Antiphospholipid serology consisting of lupus anticoagulant (LA), anticardiolipin (aCL) immunoglobulin G (IgG)/IgM/IgA, antibeta2 glycoprotein I (aβ2GPI) IgG/IgM/IgA, antiphosphatidylserine/prothrombin (aPS/PT) IgG/IgM and antidomain-I (aDI) IgG was determined for each patient. The GAPSS and adjusted GAPSS (aGAPSS) were calculated for each patient, as previously defined. Logistic regression analysis was carried out with thrombosis as the dependent variable and high GAPSS, aCL IgA, aβ2GPI IgA, and aDI IgG as independent variables. RESULTS: The mean GAPSS and aGAPSS of the study population were 11.6 ± 4.4 and 9.6 ± 3.8. Both the VT ± PM APS (n = 105) and PM only APS (n = 13) groups had significantly higher GAPSS and aGAPSS values compared to the aPL (+) SLE (n = 52) group. The patients with recurrent thrombosis had higher aGAPSS but not GAPSS than those with a single thrombotic event. The computed area under the receiver operating characteristic curve demonstrated that a GAPSS ≥13 and aGAPSS ≥10 had the best predictive values for thrombosis. Logistic regression analysis including a GAPSS ≥13, aCL IgA, aβ2GPI IgA, and aDI IgG showed that none of the factors other than a GAPSS ≥13 could predict thrombosis. CONCLUSION: Both the GAPSS and aGAPSS successfully predict the thrombotic risk in aPL (+) patients and aCL IgA, aβ2GPI IgA, and aDI IgG do not contribute to high a GAPSS or aGAPSS

Alien species in the Mediterranean Sea by 2012. A contribution to the application of European Union's Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). Part 2. Introduction trends and pathways

More than 60 marine non-indigenous species (NIS) have been removed from previous lists and 84 species have been added, bringing the total to 986 alien species in the Mediterranean [775 in the eastern Mediterranean (EMED), 249 in the central Mediterranean (CMED), 190 in the Adriatic Sea (ADRIA) and 308 in the western Mediterranean (WMED)]. There were 48 new entries since 2011 which can be interpreted as approximately one new entry every two weeks. The number of alien species continues to increase, by 2-3 species per year for macrophytes, molluscs and polychaetes, 3-4 species per year for crustaceans, and 6 species per year for fish. The dominant group among alien species is molluscs (with 215 species), followed by crustaceans (159) and polychaetes (132). Macrophytes are the leading group of NIS in the ADRIA and the WMED, reaching 26-30% of all aliens, whereas in the EMED they barely constitute 10% of the introductions. In the EMED, molluscs are the most species-rich group, followed by crustaceans, fish and polychaetes. More than half (54%) of the marine alien species in the Mediterranean were probably introduced by corridors (mainly Suez). Shipping is blamed directly for the introduction of only 12 species, whereas it is assumed to be the most likely pathway of introduction (via ballasts or fouling) of another 300 species. For approximately 100 species shipping is a probable pathway along with the Suez Canal and/or aquaculture. Approximately 20 species have been introduced with certainty via aquaculture, while >50 species (mostly macroalgae), occurring in the vicinity of oyster farms, are assumed to be introduced accidentally as contaminants of imported species. A total of 18 species are assumed to have been introduced by the aquarium trade. Lessepsian species decline westwards, while the reverse pattern is evident for ship-mediated species and for those introduced with aquaculture. There is an increasing trend in new introductions via the Suez Canal and via shipping.The research leading to these results was partly supported by funding from the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme ([FP7/2007-2013]) under grant agreement n° 287600 - PERSEUS project (Policy-oriented marine Environmental Research for the Southern European Seas). MAMIAS has been developed for the Regional Activity Centre for Specially Protected Areas of the UNEP/ Mediterranean Action Plan under contracts No 67, 68, 69, 70 and 71 /2011/RAC/RPA

Prediction of pathological stage in patients with prostate cancer: a neuro-fuzzy model

The prediction of cancer staging in prostate cancer is a process for estimating the likelihood that the cancer has spread before treatment is given to the patient. Although important for determining the most suitable treatment and optimal management strategy for patients, staging continues to present significant challenges to clinicians. Clinical test results such as the pre-treatment Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) level, the biopsy most common tumor pattern (Primary Gleason pattern) and the second most common tumor pattern (Secondary Gleason pattern) in tissue biopsies, and the clinical T stage can be used by clinicians to predict the pathological stage of cancer. However, not every patient will return abnormal results in all tests. This significantly influences the capacity to effectively predict the stage of prostate cancer. Herein we have developed a neuro-fuzzy computational intelligence model for classifying and predicting the likelihood of a patient having Organ-Confined Disease (OCD) or Extra-Prostatic Disease (ED) using a prostate cancer patient dataset obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Research Network. The system input consisted of the following variables: Primary and Secondary Gleason biopsy patterns, PSA levels, age at diagnosis, and clinical T stage. The performance of the neuro-fuzzy system was compared to other computational intelligence based approaches, namely the Artificial Neural Network, Fuzzy C-Means, Support Vector Machine, the Naive Bayes classifiers, and also the AJCC pTNM Staging Nomogram which is commonly used by clinicians. A comparison of the optimal Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) points that were identified using these approaches, revealed that the neuro-fuzzy system, at its optimal point, returns the largest Area Under the ROC Curve (AUC), with a low number of false positives (FPR = 0.274, TPR = 0.789, AUC = 0.812). The proposed approach is also an improvement over the AJCC pTNM Staging Nomogram (FPR = 0.032, TPR = 0.197, AUC = 0.582)

PPAR-alpha L162V polymorphism in human hepatocellular carcinoma

Background/aims: Several lines of evidence suggest that peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha may be involved in hepatocarcinogenesis. L162V polymorphism of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha gene enhances the transactivation activity of this transcription factor. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency and clinical correlates of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha L162V polymorphism in hepatitis virus-induced hepatocellular carcinoma. Methods: 90 hepatocellular carcinoma patients diagnosed at Ankara University Gastroenterology Clinic between January 2002 and July 2003 and 80 healthy controls with normal body mass index, blood chemistry and with negative viral serology were included. peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha L162V polymorphism was determined by PCR-RFLP. Results: hepatocellular carcinoma etiologies were as follows: 56 HBV, 12 HBV+HDV, 22 HCV. Eighty-seven patients (97%) were cirrhotic, and 60 patients (67.5%) had advanced tumors. In 83 (92%) of 90 hepatocellular carcinoma patients, gene segment including polymorphic region could be amplified by PCR (50 HBV, 12 HBV+HDV, 21 HCV) and 6 of them (7.2%, all infected with HBV) had L162V polymorphism, while 2 (2.5%) of 80 controls had this polymorphism (p=0.162). This trend became more remarkable when only HBV (HBV+HDV)-infected patients were compared with controls (6/62, 9.7% vs. 2/80, 2.5%, respectively, p=0.071). Five of 6 patients with L162V had advanced disease. Conclusions: Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha L162V polymorphism tends to occur in HBV-induced epatocellular carcinoma and is absent in HCV-related epatocellular carcinoma. These findings may show clues for the existence of different carcinogenesis mechanisms in these two common etiologies. Frequent occurrence of advanced disease in patients with L162V polymorphism suggests a role for this polymorphism in tumor progression