Comparison of cognitive behavioral group therapy and acceptance and commitment group therapy on quality of life of breast cancer women

Background: Breast cancer diagnosis always causes a great deal of stress and result in significant changes in the patient’s routine life which is apart from physical injuries, can lead to losing social roles and increased risk of mental disorders which can negatively effects their quality of life.Objective: The present study aimed at comparing the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral group therapy and acceptance and commitment group therapy on quality of life of breast cancer women.Methods: This is a quasi-experimental pre-test, post-test and follow-up with control group design. Thirty women suffering from breast cancer randomly and equally assigned in to two interventions and a control groups. The treatments consisted of eight weekly acceptance and commitment group therapy and also eight weekly cognitive-behavioral group therapy sessions and follow-up evaluations were carried out two months later. The QLQ-C30, QLQ-BR23 questionnaires were applied in this study.Results: Comparing with cognitive-behavioral group therapy, significant enhancement was indicated in total and all scales of QlQ-C30 and QlQ-BR23 scores in acceptance and commitment group therapy’s post-test and the results were also preserved at follow-up test.Conclusions: It is suggested by the findings of this research that acceptance and commitment program appears to be more efficient and feasible therapeutic intervention than cognitive-behavioral therapy for improving quality of life of women suffering from breast cancer

An insight to HTLV-1-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) pathogenesis; evidence from high-throughput data integration and meta-analysis

Background Human T-lymphotropic virus 1-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) is a progressive disease of the central nervous system that significantly affected spinal cord, nevertheless, the pathogenesis pathway and reliable biomarkers have not been well determined. This study aimed to employ high throughput meta-analysis to find major genes that are possibly involved in the pathogenesis of HAM/TSP. Results High-throughput statistical analyses identified 832, 49, and 22 differentially expressed genes for normal vs. ACs, normal vs. HAM/TSP, and ACs vs. HAM/TSP groups, respectively. The protein-protein interactions between DEGs were identified in STRING and further network analyses highlighted 24 and 6 hub genes for normal vs. HAM/TSP and ACs vs. HAM/TSP groups, respectively. Moreover, four biologically meaningful modules including 251 genes were identified for normal vs. ACs. Biological network analyses indicated the involvement of hub genes in many vital pathways like JAK-STAT signaling pathway, interferon, Interleukins, and immune pathways in the normal vs. HAM/TSP group and Metabolism of RNA, Viral mRNA Translation, Human T cell leukemia virus 1 infection, and Cell cycle in the normal vs. ACs group. Moreover, three major genes including STAT1, TAP1, and PSMB8 were identified by network analysis. Real-time PCR revealed the meaningful down-regulation of STAT1 in HAM/TSP samples than AC and normal samples (P = 0.01 and P = 0.02, respectively), up-regulation of PSMB8 in HAM/TSP samples than AC and normal samples (P = 0.04 and P = 0.01, respectively), and down-regulation of TAP1 in HAM/TSP samples than those in AC and normal samples (P = 0.008 and P = 0.02, respectively). No significant difference was found among three groups in terms of the percentage of T helper and cytotoxic T lymphocytes (P = 0.55 and P = 0.12). Conclusions High-throughput data integration disclosed novel hub genes involved in important pathways in virus infection and immune systems. The comprehensive studies are needed to improve our knowledge about the pathogenesis pathways and also biomarkers of complex diseases.Peer reviewe

Socio-economic Impacts of Investment Development Policy on the Agricultural Sector

Investment in the agricultural sector is important because this sector greatly affects the realms of providing food independence and security, employment, sustainable development, and environmental preservation. So, this study investigated the socio-economic impacts (direct and indirect effects) of the investment development policy on the agricultural sector and its sub-sectors in Iran in 2011 using a social accounting matrix (SAM). The results included three scenarios including a 15% increase in investment in the agricultural sector, a 10% increase in the investment in the farming and gardening sub-sector, a 15% increase in the investment in the farming and gardening sub-sector, and a 10% increase in the investment in the other sub-sectors. They indicated that the total income of the economy was increased when these scenarios were implemented; however, the first scenario had a greater impact on the total income of the economy (13.12%) compared to the other scenarios. Furthermore, it can be said that the sectors of agriculture (2.98%) and industry (0.36%) were most influenced by the first scenario and the sub-sector of farming and gardening and the industrial sector were most influenced by the second and third scenarios. According to the results of this study, it is suggested to take some actions to develop crop insurance and secure investment against potential losses by the available risks in the agricultural sector. Moreover, the government can play an influential role in controlling inflation and preventing price fluctuations so as to assure and motivate investors to increase investment in the agricultural sector

Socio-economic Impacts of Investment Development Policy on the Agricultural Sector

Investment in the agricultural sector is important because this sector greatly affects the realms of providing food independence and security, employment, sustainable development, and environmental preservation. So, this study investigated the socio-economic impacts (direct and indirect effects) of the investment development policy on the agricultural sector and its sub-sectors in Iran in 2011 using a social accounting matrix (SAM). The results included three scenarios including a 15% increase in investment in the agricultural sector, a 10% increase in the investment in the farming and gardening sub-sector, a 15% increase in the investment in the farming and gardening sub-sector, and a 10% increase in the investment in the other sub-sectors. They indicated that the total income of the economy was increased when these scenarios were implemented; however, the first scenario had a greater impact on the total income of the economy (13.12%) compared to the other scenarios. Furthermore, it can be said that the sectors of agriculture (2.98%) and industry (0.36%) were most influenced by the first scenario and the sub-sector of farming and gardening and the industrial sector were most influenced by the second and third scenarios. According to the results of this study, it is suggested to take some actions to develop crop insurance and secure investment against potential losses by the available risks in the agricultural sector. Moreover, the government can play an influential role in controlling inflation and preventing price fluctuations so as to assure and motivate investors to increase investment in the agricultural sector

Effects of leached components from a hybrid resin composite on the reproductive system of male mice

Background and Aims: There is concern that leached components from dental composites may cause adverse changes in the reproductive health. This study aimed to assess the effects of leached components from a hybrid resin composite on the reproductive system of male mice.Materials and Methods: In the present animal study, twenty adult Syrian male mice were divided into two groups of 10 mice each. In the test group, components which leached from samples made from Filtek Z250 resin composite into 75% ethanol were daily administered to the mice for 28 days. In the control group, the procedure was repeated in the same way as the test group but without placing composite samples in the solution. Then, the body weight, weights of paired testes, Gonado Somatic Index, sperm viability, sperm motility, epididymal sperm reserve and daily sperm production were recorded. Four male mice in each group were mated with untreated female mice for 10 days. After that, the number of pregnant females and number of infants were recorded. The data were analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA, Chi-square test and t-test.Results: There was a significant reduction in the sperm viability and sperm motility of male mice in the test group compared to the control group (P=0.001). There was no any significant differences in other parameters between two groups (P>0.05).Conclusion: This study showed that the leached components from resin composites cannot cause infertility but they could potentially cause some adverse effects on the reproductive system of male mice