Identification and Evaluation of Unconventional Hydrocarbon Reserves: Examples from Zagros and Central Iran Basins

It is notable that over the past decade, proven reserves of natural gas have dramatically increased as higher prices and advances in technology have turned previously unrecoverable resources into major sources of domestic production. Moreover, the decline in crude oil reserves has significantly slowed over the past decade. Therefore, there would be an end to the conventional hydrocarbon resources sooner or later and, in the meantime, global natural gas consumption is projected to grow 52% from about 108 Tcf in 2009 to about 163 Tcf in 2030, which is an annual increase of almost 2%. In addition, since natural gas combustion produces less CO2 than coal and other petroleum products, governments are encouraged to use it as an alternative to other fossil fuels to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Shale gas accumulations, with a unique all in one nature, where all petroleum system elements reside in just one lithology, have become the focus of gas exploration strategies after recent successes in the Barnett Shale gas production. Meanwhile, significant advances in drilling and stimulation technologies have made gas shale attractive for development in many countries including Iran. The unconventional gas resources such as coal bed methane and gas trapped in shale are growing in importance. Such estimated reserves account for approximately 18% of total proven gas reserves. Shale formations in particular offer enormous potential for future production. This study compares several shale gas resources in different areas and highlights the possible potential unconventional resources in Iran

Effects of intravenous Semelil (ANGIPARS�) on diabetic foot ulcers healing: A multicenter clinical trial

Some diabetic foot ulcers, which are notoriously difficult to cure, are one of the most common health problems in diabetic patients .There are several surgical and medical options which already have been introduced for treatment of diabetic foot ulcers, so some patient will require amputation. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of intravenous Semelil (ANGIPARS�), a naive herbal extract to accelerate healing of diabetic foot ulcers. A multi-centric randomized controlled trial was conducted to evaluate intravenous Semelil for healing of diabetic foot ulcers. Sixteen diabetic patients were treated with intravenous Semelil, and nine other patients were treated with placebo as control group. Both groups were otherwise treated by wound debridement and irrigation with normal saline solution, systemic antibiotic therapy and daily wound dressing. Before and after intervention, the foot ulcer surface area was measured, by digital photography, mapping and planimetry. After 4 weeks, the mean foot ulcer surface area decreased from 479.93±379.75 mm2 to 198.93±143.75 mm2 in the intervention group (p = 0.000) and from 766.22±960.50 mm2 to 689.11±846.74 mm2 in the control group (p = 0.076). Average wound closure in the treatment group was significantly greater than placebo group (64 vs. 25, p= 0.015). This herbal extract by intravenous rout in combination with conventional therapy is more effective than conventional therapy by itself probably without side effect. However, further studies are required in the future to confirm these results in larger population

Optimizing Winter Wheat Resilience to Climate Change in Rain Fed Crop Systems of Turkey and Iran

Erratic weather patterns associated with increased temperatures and decreasing rainfall pose unique challenges for wheat breeders playing a key part in the fight to ensure global food security. Within rain fed winter wheat areas of Turkey and Iran, unusual weather patterns may prevent attaining maximum potential increases in winter wheat genetic gains. This is primarily related to the fact that the yield ranking of tested genotypes may change from one year to the next. Changing weather patterns may interfere with the decisions breeders make about the ideotype(s) they should aim for during selection. To inform breeding decisions, this study aimed to optimize major traits by modeling different combinations of environments (locations and years) and by defining a probabilistic range of trait variations [phenology and plant height (PH)] that maximized grain yields (GYs; one wheat line with optimal heading and height is suggested for use as a testing line to aid selection calibration decisions). Research revealed that optimal phenology was highly related to the temperature and to rainfall at which winter wheat genotypes were exposed around heading time (20 days before and after heading). Specifically, later winter wheat genotypes were exposed to higher temperatures both before and after heading, increased rainfall at the vegetative stage, and reduced rainfall during grain filling compared to early genotypes. These variations in exposure to weather conditions resulted in shorter grain filling duration and lower GYs in long-duration genotypes. This research tested if diversity within species may increase resilience to erratic weather patterns. For the study, calculated production of a selection of five high yielding genotypes (if grown in five plots) was tested against monoculture (if only a single genotype grown in the same area) and revealed that a set of diverse genotypes with different phenologies and PHs was not beneficial. New strategies of progeny selection are discussed: narrow range of variation for phenology in families may facilitate the discovery and selection of new drought-resistant and avoidant wheat lines targeting specific locationsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Phylogenomics revealed migration routes and adaptive radiation timing of holarctic malaria mosquito species of the Maculipennis group

BackgroundPhylogenetic analyses of closely related species of mosquitoes are important for better understanding the evolution of traits contributing to transmission of vector-borne diseases. Six out of 41 dominant malaria vectors of the genus Anopheles in the world belong to the Maculipennis Group, which is subdivided into two Nearctic subgroups (Freeborni and Quadrimaculatus) and one Palearctic (Maculipennis) subgroup. Although previous studies considered the Nearctic subgroups as ancestral, details about their relationship with the Palearctic subgroup, and their migration times and routes from North America to Eurasia remain controversial. The Palearctic species An. beklemishevi is currently included in the Nearctic Quadrimaculatus subgroup adding to the uncertainties in mosquito systematics.ResultsTo reconstruct historic relationships in the Maculipennis Group, we conducted a phylogenomic analysis of 11 Palearctic and 2 Nearctic species based on sequences of 1271 orthologous genes. The analysis indicated that the Palearctic species An. beklemishevi clusters together with other Eurasian species and represents a basal lineage among them. Also, An. beklemishevi is related more closely to An. freeborni, which inhabits the Western United States, rather than to An. quadrimaculatus, a species from the Eastern United States. The time-calibrated tree suggests a migration of mosquitoes in the Maculipennis Group from North America to Eurasia about 20-25 million years ago through the Bering Land Bridge. A Hybridcheck analysis demonstrated highly significant signatures of introgression events between allopatric species An. labranchiae and An. beklemishevi. The analysis also identified ancestral introgression events between An. sacharovi and its Nearctic relative An. freeborni despite their current geographic isolation. The reconstructed phylogeny suggests that vector competence and the ability to enter complete diapause during winter evolved independently in different lineages of the Maculipennis Group.ConclusionsOur phylogenomic analyses reveal migration routes and adaptive radiation timing of Holarctic malaria vectors and strongly support the inclusion of An. beklemishevi into the Maculipennis Subgroup. Detailed knowledge of the evolutionary history of the Maculipennis Subgroup provides a framework for examining the genomic changes related to ecological adaptation and susceptibility to human pathogens. These genomic variations may inform researchers about similar changes in the future providing insights into the patterns of disease transmission in Eurasia

Demographic, clinical and antibody characteristics of patients with digital ulcers in systemic sclerosis: data from the DUO Registry

OBJECTIVES: The Digital Ulcers Outcome (DUO) Registry was designed to describe the clinical and antibody characteristics, disease course and outcomes of patients with digital ulcers associated with systemic sclerosis (SSc). METHODS: The DUO Registry is a European, prospective, multicentre, observational, registry of SSc patients with ongoing digital ulcer disease, irrespective of treatment regimen. Data collected included demographics, SSc duration, SSc subset, internal organ manifestations, autoantibodies, previous and ongoing interventions and complications related to digital ulcers. RESULTS: Up to 19 November 2010 a total of 2439 patients had enrolled into the registry. Most were classified as either limited cutaneous SSc (lcSSc; 52.2%) or diffuse cutaneous SSc (dcSSc; 36.9%). Digital ulcers developed earlier in patients with dcSSc compared with lcSSc. Almost all patients (95.7%) tested positive for antinuclear antibodies, 45.2% for anti-scleroderma-70 and 43.6% for anticentromere antibodies (ACA). The first digital ulcer in the anti-scleroderma-70-positive patient cohort occurred approximately 5 years earlier than the ACA-positive patient group. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides data from a large cohort of SSc patients with a history of digital ulcers. The early occurrence and high frequency of digital ulcer complications are especially seen in patients with dcSSc and/or anti-scleroderma-70 antibodies

Genetic Drivers of Heterogeneity in Type 2 Diabetes Pathophysiology

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a heterogeneous disease that develops through diverse pathophysiological processes1,2 and molecular mechanisms that are often specific to cell type3,4. Here, to characterize the genetic contribution to these processes across ancestry groups, we aggregate genome-wide association study data from 2,535,601 individuals (39.7% not of European ancestry), including 428,452 cases of T2D. We identify 1,289 independent association signals at genome-wide significance (P \u3c 5 × 10-8) that map to 611 loci, of which 145 loci are, to our knowledge, previously unreported. We define eight non-overlapping clusters of T2D signals that are characterized by distinct profiles of cardiometabolic trait associations. These clusters are differentially enriched for cell-type-specific regions of open chromatin, including pancreatic islets, adipocytes, endothelial cells and enteroendocrine cells. We build cluster-specific partitioned polygenic scores5 in a further 279,552 individuals of diverse ancestry, including 30,288 cases of T2D, and test their association with T2D-related vascular outcomes. Cluster-specific partitioned polygenic scores are associated with coronary artery disease, peripheral artery disease and end-stage diabetic nephropathy across ancestry groups, highlighting the importance of obesity-related processes in the development of vascular outcomes. Our findings show the value of integrating multi-ancestry genome-wide association study data with single-cell epigenomics to disentangle the aetiological heterogeneity that drives the development and progression of T2D. This might offer a route to optimize global access to genetically informed diabetes care

Genetic drivers of heterogeneity in type 2 diabetes pathophysiology

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a heterogeneous disease that develops through diverse pathophysiological processes1,2 and molecular mechanisms that are often specific to cell type3,4. Here, to characterize the genetic contribution to these processes across ancestry groups, we aggregate genome-wide association study data from 2,535,601 individuals (39.7% not of European ancestry), including 428,452 cases of T2D. We identify 1,289 independent association signals at genome-wide significance (P &lt; 5 × 10-8) that map to 611 loci, of which 145 loci are, to our knowledge, previously unreported. We define eight non-overlapping clusters of T2D signals that are characterized by distinct profiles of cardiometabolic trait associations. These clusters are differentially enriched for cell-type-specific regions of open chromatin, including pancreatic islets, adipocytes, endothelial cells and enteroendocrine cells. We build cluster-specific partitioned polygenic scores5 in a further 279,552 individuals of diverse ancestry, including 30,288 cases of T2D, and test their association with T2D-related vascular outcomes. Cluster-specific partitioned polygenic scores are associated with coronary artery disease, peripheral artery disease and end-stage diabetic nephropathy across ancestry groups, highlighting the importance of obesity-related processes in the development of vascular outcomes. Our findings show the value of integrating multi-ancestry genome-wide association study data with single-cell epigenomics to disentangle the aetiological heterogeneity that drives the development and progression of T2D. This might offer a route to optimize global access to genetically informed diabetes care.</p

Glycine Supplementation Ameliorates Retinal Neuronal Damage in an Experimental Model of Diabetes in Rats: A Light and Electron Microscopic Study

Purpose: To investigate the potential neuroprotective effect of glycine supplementation on the retinal ultrastructure of streptozocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. Methods: Adult male Wistar rats weighing 200–250 g (n = 40) were randomly divided into four groups of 10 each: normal group (C), glycine + normal group (G), STZ group (D), and glycine + STZ group (DG). The G and DG groups received glycine (130 mM and 1% w/v) freely in their drinking water seven days after the induction of diabetes for up to 16 weeks. Retinal samples for histopathology were examined using light and electron microscopy. Results: Diabetes-induced histological changes were attenuated in the retinas of rats in the DG group. The ultrastructural alterations produced by experimental diabetes in the inner nuclear layer, outer nuclear layer, and ganglion cell layer were significantly ameliorated by glycine supplementation. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that glycine supplementation effectively attenuates retinal neuronal damage in experimental diabetic rats, and thus may be a potential candidate to protect retinal ultrastructure against diabetes