Fermionic Tachyons as a Source of Dark Energy

A model for the universe on the basis of a self interacting fermionic tachyon field is investigated here. It is shown that, devising a self interaction potential of a proper form, the fermionic tachyon field is capable of producing an accelerating expansion that at late time tends to a constant value which is in consistence with the cosmological constant. This way the introduced fermionic tachyon field can be interpreted as the source of dark energy.Comment: 5 figure

Comparison of fitting stability of the different soft toric contact lenses

Purpose: To compare lens orientation and rotational recovery of five currently available soft toric lenses. Methods: Twenty subjects were recruited and trialed with each of the study lenses in a random order. Study lenses were PureVision® Toric (B&L), Air Optix® for Astigmatism (Alcon), Biofinity® Toric (CooperVision), Acuvue® Advance for Astigmatism (Vistakon), and Proclear® Toric (CooperVision). Lens orientation in primary position to determine the lens rotation form the vertical position and rotational recovery to primary gaze orientation following a 45° manual misorientation for the different lenses was compared. Results: The Biofinity Toric showed the lowest rotation from the vertical position and the Proclear Toric the highest. Also, the highest and the lowest reorientation speed were related to the Biofinity Toric and the Acuvue Advance for Astigmatism, respectively. The Repeated Measures ANOVA showed a significant difference in the lens rotation (P=. 0.004) and rotational recovery (P<. 0.001) among different contact lenses and the performed multiple comparisons indicated differences in rotation and also in reorientation speed were only seen between the Biofinity Toric when compared to four other lenses (P<. 0.05). Conclusion: Although there was appropriate fitting, based upon lens orientation and reorientation speed, with each of the study lenses it would appear that the optimized ballast technique used in the design of the Biofinity Toric helps reduce lens rotation and improve rotational recovery compared to others

A study on the association of diabetic dermopathy with nephropathy and retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Background: Diabetic dermopathy is one of the most prevalent skin complications in diabetes patients. Some studies have pointed to association of diabetic dermopathy with retinopathy and nephropathy in patients with type 2 diabetes as microangiopathy presentations, but no rigorous study has been conducted to confirm this association. Objectives: This study investigated association of diabetic dermopathy with nephropathy and retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes referring specialty clinic of Shahrekord. Patients and Methods: This descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted on 102 type 2 diabetes patients with dermopathy referring clinic constantly or as outpatient. Dermatological and ophthalmological examinations and examination for nephropathy were done for all patients. Demographic data and results of examinations and patients history, and biochemical tests were gathered and recorded by researcher developed checklists. Results: Mean age of patients was 83.8 2.60 years, of whom 64 (63.7%) were female and 37.3% were male. Prevalence of retinopathy in patients was 4.31% and nephropathy 3.33%. In this study, significant associations of diabetic dermopathy with diabetic nephropathy (P = 0.001), with retinopathy (P 0.05). Conclusions: Results of this study confirm the association of diabetic dermopathy with retinopathy and nephropathy in patients with type 2 diabetes. Since dermopathy is usually developed before retinopathy and nephropathy, dermopathy could be used as a clinical finding in early diagnosis and prevention of retinopathy and nephropathy in diabetes patients. © 2016 The Author(s)

Investigating the Degree of Compliance of Bibliographic Records of the Manuscript Database of the Library of the Holy Shrine of Hazrat Abdolazim with the Iranian MARC Standard

Purpose: This research investigated the overlap between bibliographical records in the manuscripts database of Abdulazim library with Iran Marc standard. Methodology: The methodology of this research is the descriptive- survey method, and used a combination method of study and review literature. For the research aim, is chosen 100 title manuscripts that were the same in the manuscripts database of Abdulazim library and the manuscripts database of the national library of Iran. For data gathering used checklist. Cheklist had 2 sections including bibliographical features and manuscript features. Data was collected by direct observation method, then these were surveyed and compared. Findings: Findings showed, the manuscripts database of Abdulazim library didn’t consider some manuscript features such as leaf size, donated notes, consideration, and adornments, and this is a weak point for the Abdulazim library. In comparison this database described bibliographical features thoroughly. Most overlap between Abdulazim database and, IRANMARC fields assigned adornment of manuscripts, consideration, cover size, type of cover, number of leaves, donate note, type of chirography, the place that book was written, scribe, annotation, adornment of cover, complete/ incomplete, possession and etc. Most overlap between libraries in the description of bibliographical features assigned original title, subject, date of writing, language, number of manuscripts, introduce of the manuscript. Conclusion: The results indicate that the Abdulazim library database has performed well in describing the bibliography section and has been able to complete the main fields related to the author, main title, etc., By the standard rules of the Iranian brand. The description of the bibliographic characteristics of the manuscripts has performed poorly, and only one field is used to mention the appearance characteristics of the manuscripts. Value: The present study is the first to identify the differences in the description and cataloging of the manuscripts of the Astan library of Hazrat Abdul Azim with the standard cataloging rules of the Iranian MARC (manuscript)

Investigation of high-resolution computed tomographic (HRCT) outcomes associated with chronic pulmonary microaspiration (CPM) in Tehran and Zahedan, Iran

Background: In patients with chronic pulmonary microaspiration (CPM) the recognition of high-resolution computed tomographic (HRCT) findings and their pattern is important. Objective: To investigate the HRCT detections in patients with CPM. Materials and Methods: This descriptive study enrolled 100 consecutive patients with CPM underwent HRCT of the lungs between 2017 and 2018 in Tehran and Zahedan Hospitals and private centers. The required variables were recorded for each patient with a questionnaire. Subsequently, HRCT was performed and abnormalities were then reported by two radiologists. Results: Most of patients exhibited bronchial thickening in 33.6% of cases, followed by ground-glass opacity (12.4%), emphysema (11.1%), and bronchiectasis (8.5%). In addition, the most common HRCT findings were found in left lower lobe (LLL) (37.1%), followed by right lower lobe (RLL) (35.9 %), right upper lobe (RUL ) (6,2%), and left upper lobe (LUL) (6%). Conclusion: Our data showed the most common findings in HRCT were bronchial thickening ground-glass opacity, emphysema, and bronchiectasis, where these findings was dominantly found in LLL, RLL, RUL, and LUL, indicating its high tendency to dependent areas

Sensitivity to Antibiotics of Bacteria Exposed to Gamma Radiation Emitted from Hot Soils of the High Background Radiation Areas of Ramsar, Northern Iran

Background: Over the past several years our laboratories have investigated different aspects of the challenging issue of the alterations in bacterial susceptibility to antibiotics induced by physical stresses. Objective: To explore the bacterial susceptibility to antibiotics in samples of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Typhimurium (S. typhimurium), Staphylococcus aureus, and Klebsiella pneumoniae after exposure to gamma radiation emitted from the soil samples taken from the high background radiation areas of Ramsar, northern Iran. Methods: Standard Kirby-Bauer test, which evaluates the size of the zone of inhibition as an indicator of the susceptibility of different bacteria to antibiotics, was used in this study. Results: The maximum alteration of the diameter of inhibition zone was found for K. pneumoniae when tested for ciprofloxacin. In this case, the mean diameter of no growth zone in non-irradiated control samples of K. pneumoniae was 20.3 (SD 0.6) mm; it was 14.7 (SD 0.6) mm in irradiated samples. On the other hand, the minimum changes in the diameter of inhibition zone were found for S. typhimurium and S. aureus when these bacteria were tested for nitrofurantoin and cephalexin, respectively. Conclusion: Gamma rays were capable of making significant alterations in bacterial susceptibility to antibiotics. It can be hypothesized that high levels of natural background radiation can induce adaptive phenomena that help microorganisms better cope with lethal effects of antibiotics

Li-Doped Bioactive Ceramics:Promising Biomaterials for Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine

Lithium (Li) is a metal with critical therapeutic properties ranging from the treatment of bipolar depression to antibacterial, anticancer, antiviral and pro-regenerative effects. This element can be incorporated into the structure of various biomaterials through the inclusion of Li chloride/carbonate into polymeric matrices or being doped in bioceramics. The biocompatibility and multifunctionality of Li-doped bioceramics present many opportunities for biomedical researchers and clinicians. Li-doped bioceramics (capable of immunomodulation) have been used extensively for bone and tooth regeneration, and they have great potential for cartilage/nerve regeneration, osteochondral repair, and wound healing. The synergistic effect of Li in combination with other anticancer drugs as well as the anticancer properties of Li underline the rationale that bioceramics doped with Li may be impactful in cancer treatments. The role of Li in autophagy may explain its impact in regenerative, antiviral, and anticancer research. The combination of Li-doped bioceramics with polymers can provide new biomaterials with suitable flexibility, especially as bio-ink used in 3D printing for clinical applications of tissue engineering. Such Li-doped biomaterials have significant clinical potential in the foreseeable future

Global prevalence of suicide in patients living with HIV/AIDS: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: In fact, people living with HIV are at a greater risk of mental health disorders. Based on lack of necessary information in this area the present systematic review and meta-analysis study was conducted to determine the magnitude of committed suicides among HIV/AIDS people as well as their associated factors in a global setting. Method: Firstly we registered the protocol of study in PROSPRO. Then the publications were searched in the 4 main databases from January 2000 to April 2022. After removing duplication and inappropriate studies we applied inclusion and exclusion criteria. Finally 60 studies were included for analysis. Comprehensive meta-analysis software were used for analyzing. Results: After reviewing 60 articles published from January 2000 to April 2021 in 24 countries, the total prevalence rate of suicide among 61,904 patients was estimated at 0.249 (95 % CI, 0.2–0.306). Findings indicated that the highest suicide prevalence was related to single patients estimated at 0.257 (95 % CI, 0.184–0.347). A gender-based meta-analysis depicted that the prevalence of suicide/ suicidal ideation was higher among females estimated at 0.22 (95 % CI, 0.15–0.29) compared with men at 0.17 (95 % CI, 0.11–0.23). Conclusion: Health planners and policymakers should develop suicide-prevention strategies aimed at female patients in younger age groups who live alone and are deprived of social support to effectively promote their self-efficacy in successful management of the disease. Integrating mental health services into anti-retroviral therapy for HIV/AIDS patients is also suggested in order to effectively design integrated programs for the management of individuals living with HIV/AIDS

Essays on Experimental Economics

This dissertation consists of two independent essays on experimental economics. The first essay examines how different ways of providing common pool resources affect users\u27 extraction behavior. Common pool resource (CPR) users often face two types of problems to solve: provision problems and appropriation problems. The first essay presents a laboratory experiment to study the choices of CPR users under different provision schemes, in a heterogeneous environment. In the first two treatment conditions, the level of contribution to the provision process is determined exogenously: in the regressive treatment, poor and rich individuals pay equal amounts to the provision of the resource, and in the progressive treatment, the entire provision cost is paid by rich members. Finally, in the endogenous condition, subjects voluntarily choose how much to contribute through the Provision Point Mechanism. The experimental results provide strong evidence for inequality aversion motivating subjects\u27 decisions. Interestingly, inequality aversion motivates subjects\u27 choices differently in the exogenous and in the endogenous provision conditions: under the regressive and the progressive treatments, inequality aversion motivates subjects\u27 extraction choices while in the endogenous treatment, inequality aversion motivates subjects\u27 contribution choices but not their extraction choices. The second essay studies the effect of interim performance information on individual effort choices. Costly effort choices are often made sequentially and over multiple steps. In many situations, individuals who make effort choices do not fully observe how well they are performing during the process. A more informed party may choose to reveal their private information about the agent\u27s performance to the agent. The second essay presents an experiment to study the impact of interim performance information on individuals\u27 effort choices under different incentive schemes. Subjects make costly effort choices in two subsequent stages under convex and concave payment conditions. In No-Feedback treatments, subjects make their second effort choice without knowing the outcome of the first stage, and in Feedback treatment, subjects learn the outcome of the first stage before making their second effort choice. Experimental results show that interim feedback can be used as an effective tool to increase individual effort. However, the extent to which feedback impacts effort depends on the incentive scheme, as well as individual attitudes towards losses and risks