Cephalometric Comparison of Position of the Hyoid Bone in Class I and Class II Patients

Background: According to the close proximity of hyoid bone with dentofacial structures and its muscular attachments, a probable relationship between it and different types of skeletal patterns is suspected. Objectives: The aim of this study is compare the position of hyoid bone in skeletal class I and class II patients. Methods: In this study 50 cephalograms were divided into two groups, skeletal class I (1 ≤ ANB ≤ 4) and skeletal class II (ANB > 4), with 24 and 26 patients in each group, respectively. Horizontal and vertical position of hyoid bone were evaluated. SPSS software and student t-test were used to analyze the data. Results: According to the results of our study, there is no statistically significant difference between the hyoid bone position in skeletal class I and skeletal class II patients. Conclusions: Since the hyoid bone position is similar in skeletal class I and class II patients, the skeletal pattern is not the only determinant of the position of hyoid bon

A New Tsunami Hazard Assessment for Eastern Makran Subduction Zone by Considering Splay Faults and Applying Stochastic Modeling

Tsunami hazard imposed by possible rupture of splay faults is important as it may significantly intensify tsunami heights locally. The Makran Subduction Zone (MSZ) in the northwestern Indian Ocean can generate large thrust earthquakes that could trigger significant tsunamis. In this paper, the effects of possible rupture of splay faults on the tsunami hazards of eastern MSZ are studied by developing a framework that uses stochastic earthquake rupture models and considers uncertainties related to rupture location, rupture geometry, seismic moment split ratio, earthquake slip asperity location within a fault plane, and earthquake slip heterogeneity. To quantify these uncertainties, 484 different parameter combinations of tsunami sources are considered systematically. The geometry of splay faults is developed using the most recent marine seismic surveys of the tectonic structure of the MSZ. A moment magnitude of 8.6 is considered as a scenario magnitude. The results of this study are generated in two parts, by considering average sources and stochastic sources. Results show significant local amplification of the maximum tsunami heights due to splay faults. For instance, the maximum wave height in Pasni, Pakistan can be amplified by a factor of four due to a single splay fault rupture scenario of average sources.</p

Damage evaluation of H-section steel columns under impulsive blast loads via gene expression programming

Increasing terrorist attacks towards ordinary or strategic buildings and soft targets represent one of the major impetus to improve existing methods of design for blast-resistant structures. When a building undergoes an extreme dynamic event such as blast or impact, local damage of its key structural components (i.e., the columns) may lead to severe failure and even collapse of the entire building. Consequently, the availability of simplified, time efficient and reliable methods of analysis can be relevant for design. In this paper, H-section steel columns subjected to blast loads are numerically investigated, so as to derive practical formulations for damage evaluation assessment. The strategy is based on parametric Finite Element (FE) models (with up to 5600 configurations), validated towards experiments and, used as an extensive data bank, for further elaboration via Gene Expression Programming. Analytical formulations are in fact proposed for calculating some relevant parameters of design, such as (a) the initial and (b) the residual axial capacity of the examined columns. The collected results show that the proposed formulations can offer a good level of accuracy and high calculation efficiency for blast loaded H-section steel columns. In addition, an expression is proposed to relate the damage index (based residual axial capacity) to the conventional displacement/rotational index. Sensitivity analyses and some calculation examples are finally presented, to further investigate the potential of the approach for design purposes

Evaluation of spironolactone plus hydrochlorothiazide in reducing proteinuria in type 2 diabetic nephropathy

Introduction: Inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin aldosterone system (RAAS) are the basic drugs for treatment of diabetic nephropathy, as to some extent is spironolactone. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of spironolactone versus spironolactone plus hydrochlorothiazide in decreasing proteinuria in type 2 diabetic mellitus (T2DM) patients. Methods: In a double-blind clinical trial, 60 T2DM patients with nephropathy randomly assigned to three equal groups were enrolled. Spironolactone (50 mg/day) plus placebo, spironolactone (50 mg/day) plus hydrochlorothiazide (25 mg/day), and hydrochlorothiazide (25 mg/day) plus placebo were prescribed, respectively. The duration of treatment was three months for all patients. Urine protein was measured at the beginning and end of the study and analysis of data was performed. Results: Twenty-six of the patients were male, with a total mean age of 56.88.3 years. Mean 24-h urine protein was reduced in patients in groups 1 and 2 compared to the third group (p < 0.001). Serum potassium in the first group showed a significant increase of 0.26 meq/lit with mean 4.64 +/- 0.28 meq/lit (p=0.002), but it did not change in the second and third groups. Conclusion: Our results showed that spironolactone plus hydrochlorothiazide is an effective and inexpensive modality in the treatment of diabetic nephropathy without increasing serum potassium

Reproductive season, maturation size (LM50) and sex ratio of Metapenaeus affinis (Decapoda: Penaeidae) in Hormozgan shrimp fishing grounds, south of Iran

This study aimed to investigate the spawning season, length at first maturity (LM50) and sex ratio of Metapenaeus affinis in the shrimp fishing grounds of Hormozgan Province, west of the Persian Gulf, Iran. Samples were taken by the swept area method and Trawl net with 2 cm mesh size in the cod end from January 2010 to February 2011. Results showed that the sex ratio deviated from 1:1 and female’s number were significantly higher than males. Metapenaeus affinis females had continuous spawning in all seasons but the peak spawning season was found in spring, and stage 3 of maturity was observed in all seasons. Length at maturity (LM50) for females was estimated at 27.12 mm based on carapace length

Effect of hydraulic conductivity and permeability on drug distribution, an investigation based on a part of a real tissue

In this study, a computational simulation is employed to place two essential parameters, the permeability of vessels and hydraulic conductivity, under assessment. These parameters impact the movement of drug particles through vessels, and normal and tumoral tissue to examine the concentration of nanoparticles, interstitial pressure, and velocity. To provide a geometric model detailing the capillary network under normal and tumoral tissue conditions, the geometry is extracted via real image processing. Subsequently, the real conditions were considered to solve the equations pertaining to drug transport and intravascular and interstitial flows in the tissue. The results showed that an increase in permeability and hydraulic conductivity leads to an increase in drug concentration in the tumor. Finally, Methotrexate drug has the most effect in the treatment of tumors. Overall, the computational model for anti-cancer delivery provides a powerful tool for understanding and optimizing drug delivery strategies for the treatment of cancer.Comment: 15 page

Quantitative evaluation of human sperm viability using MTT assay: A laboratory study

Background: 3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay which evaluates cellular mitochondrial activity is widely used for the assessment of cell proliferation and viability. Objective: This study was performed to assess human sperm viability using MTT assay. Materials and Methods: In this laboratory study, human-ejaculated semen samples (n = 56 from different donors) were used. The sperm viability was determined using quantitative MTT assay and the sperm motility was assessed according to World Health Organization guidelines. Sperm viability and the correlation between sperm viability and motility were analyzed. Results: Data revealed a marked positive correlation between MTT reduction rate and the percentage of viable spermatozoa. The Pearson’s correlation coefficients also showed a significant correlation between sperm viability and motility. Conclusion: MTT assay which is based on mitochondrial functionality is a reliable method for evaluating human sperm viability and could be used as a diagnostic test for predicting sperm fertilization ability in clinical settings. Key words: Human sperm, Viability, MTT assay