Manifestation of Social Trust among Migrants: The Case of Iranian Residents in Toronto, Canada

This paper is excerpted from a research project titled “A Sociological Analysis of Socio-economic Situation of Iranian Migrants in Canada (Case Study: Toronto). This survey research has been carried out in 2005. Its main goal is to answer the following questions: What is the trust level among Iranian migrants residing in Toronto? What is the difference between the in-group social trust level (trust among Iranians) and the out-group trust level (confidence toward Canadians living in Toronto)? In an attempt to answer these questions a sample of 182 Iranians were interviewed on the basis of a standardized questionnaire. The findings reveal that the in-group social trust level – as measured against the defined scale – is slightly below the average, whereby the difference from the middle point of the scale is statistically significant. Moreover, it demonstrates that the mean figure for out-group social trust is significantly higher than the average defined on the scale. The results also suggest that the most important cause for lower in-group trust should be sought for in the pre- migration period. Researches carried out on social confidence indicate that weakness of social trust in home country is often transferred to other countries – after migration – and is intensified due to problems of the migrant community and increase of social risk

Association of the single nucleotide polymorphism C1858T of the PTPN22 gene with unexplained recurrent pregnancy loss: A case-control study

Background: Lymphoid-tyrosine-phosphatase which is encoded by the protein tyrosine phosphatase non-receptor 22 (PTPN22) gene plays a pivotal role in the regulation of immune responses by dephosphorylating several signaling intermediates of immune cells. Objective: Since a balanced immune response has been shown to be important during pregnancy, the purpose of this research was to compare the frequency of the PTPN22 C1858T polymorphism in women with unexplained recurrent pregnancy loss (URPL) vs. in a control group for the first time. Materials and Methods: Genomic DNA from 200 individuals with URPL and 200 individuals without URPL (the control group) at the infertility center in Yazd, Iran was isolated using the salting-out method. The PTPN22 C1858T polymorphism of the two groups was analyzed using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism. Genotype frequencies in the women with URPL and the fertile control group were compared using the Chi-square test. Results: There were significant differences in the frequency of the PTPN22 1858T polymorphism in the URPL individuals vs. the healthy controls, i.e. 32.0% and 21.5%, respectively (p = 0.01). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the PTPN22 1858T polymorphism could play a role in recurrent pregnancy loss. Therefore, genotyping of the mentioned polymorphism can help clinicians to predict the probable risk of URPL. Key words: Recurrent pregnancy loss, PTPN22 protein, Single nucleotide polymorphism

ETHNOBOTANICAL STUDY OF MEDICINAL PLANTS USED BY KURD TRIBE IN DEHLORAN AND ABDANAN DISTRICTS, ILAM PROVINCE, IRAN

This paper provides significant ethnobotanical information on pharmaceutical plant uses, where some degree of acculturation exists, so that there is urgency in recording such data. The aim of this work is to catalogue, document, and make known the uses of plants for folk medicine in Dehloran and Abdanan districts, Ilam Province, Iran. An analysis was made of the species used, parts of the plant employed, preparation methods, administration means, and the ailments treated in relation to pathological groups. A folk botanical survey was carried out from February 2007 to October 2009. The information was collected from 81 persons (60% men and 40% women) in 20 villages. The informants reported data on 122 species, belonging to 49 botanical families, were claimed as medicinal. This work is focused on human medicinal plant uses, which represent 95% of the pharmaceutical uses. The most commonly represented families were Asteraceae (37.5%), Lamiaceae (20.8%), Rosaceae (18.7%), Fabaceae (16.7%) and Apiaceae (14.6%). Some of the uses were found to be new when compared with published literature on ethnomedicine of Iran. The folk knowledge about medicinal plant use is still alive in the studied region, and a number of scarcely reported plant uses has been detected, some of them with promising phytotherapeutical applications. The results of the study reveal that some of species play an important role in primary healthcare system of these tribal communities

Behaviour of functionally graded reinforced-concrete beams under cyclic loading

Tijekom zadnjih deset godina primjenjuje se slojevito mikroarmiranje kao nova metoda za proizvodnju armiranobetonskih elemenata. U radu su prikazani rezultati ispitivanja svojstava slojevito mikroarmiranih betonskih greda izloženih djelovanju cikličnog opterećenja. Za pripremu uzoraka primijenjena su čelična i polipropilenska vlakna. Betonske grede s potpunim kompozitnim djelovanjem ojačane su sa 0,5 do 2 % čeličnih vlakana, a slojevito mikroarmnirane grede sadrže 1,3 % čeličnih vlakana. Dobiveni rezultati pokazuju da se primjenom slojevitog mikroarmiranja betona povećava disipacija energije uslijed cikličkog opterećenjaOver the past decade, the functional grading has been applied as a new method for the manufacturing of reinforced-concrete elements. The objective of this investigation is to evaluate performance of the functionally graded reinforced-concrete beams exposed to cyclic loading. The steel and polypropylene fibres are used for the preparation of samples. Concrete beams with full composite action are strengthened with 0.5 to 2 % of steel fibres, and functionally graded RC beams contain 1.3 % of steel fibres. The use of the functionally graded method to reinforce concrete increases the dissipated energy due to the applied cyclic loading

Effect of Smear Layer on the Push-Out Bond Strength of Two Different Compositions of White Mineral Trioxide Aggregate

Introduction: The aim of this in vitro study was to evaluate the effect of smear layer on the push-out bond strength of white mineral trioxide aggregate (WMTA) with and without disodium hydrogen phosphate (Na2HPO4). Materials and Methods: Dentin discs with standard cavities were obtained from extracted human single-rooted teeth and divided to 4 groups (n=15) according to the irrigation regimen and the canal filling material. In groups 1 and 3, canals were irrigated with normal saline; in groups 2 and 4, irrigation method included sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) and then ethylenediaminetetra-acetic acid (EDTA). The canals were filled with WMTA in first and second groups and with WMTA+Na2HPO4; in groups 3 and 4. The samples were wrapped in wet gauze and incubated in 37°C for 3 days. The push-out bond strength was then measured by means of the Universal Testing Machine and the failure modes were examined under stereomicroscope at 40× magnification. Tow-way ANOVA was used to evaluate the effect of material type and smear layer removal. Post hoc Tukey test was used for the two-by-two comparison of the groups. Results: The greatest and lowest mean±standard deviation for push-out bond strength were observed in groups 4 (4.54±1.14 MPa) and 1 (1.44±0.96 MPa), respectively. The effect of removing the smear layer on the push-out bond strength of WMTA+Na2HPO4 was significant (P=0.01), but not for WMTA (P=0.52). Interestingly, there was significant difference between groups 1, 3 and 2, 4 (P<0.05). The failure mode for all experimental groups was of mixed type. Conclusion: Under circumstances of this in vitro study, removal of smear layer increases push-out bond strength when Na2HPO4 is added to WMTA

Effect of Smear Layer on the Push-Out Bond Strength of Two Endodontic Biomaterials to Radicular Dentin

Introduction: This in vitro study was designed to evaluate the effect of smear layer removal on push-out bond strength of white mineral trioxide aggregate (WMTA) and calcium-enriched mixture cement (CEM). Materials and Methods: Dentin discs with 3 mm thicknesses were divided into 4 groups (n=15): group 1: irrigation of the canal with normal saline and filling with WMTA; group 2: irrigation with sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), and then filling with WMTA; group 3: same as group 1 but the lumens were filled with CEM; group 4: same as group 2 but the lumens filled with CEM. The samples were incubated at 37°C for 3 days after wrapping in gauze pieces moistened with distilled water. The push-out bond strengths were then measured by the universal testing machine and the failure modes were examined under a stereomicroscope at 40× magnification. Data were analyzed using two-way ANOVA and post-hoc Tukey’s test for bond strength. Statistical significance was set at P<0.05. Results: The greatest and lowest mean standard deviation for push-out bond strength were observed for groups 4 (3.13±1.46 MPa) and group3 (1.44±0.96 MPa), respectively. The effect of smear layer removal on push-out bond strength of CEM was significant (P=0.01), however, it was not significant for WMTA (P=0.52). The failure mode for all the groups was of mixed type. Conclusion: Under the limitations of this study, smear layer removal is recommended for CEM in order to gain higher push-out strength