The Effect of Short-Term Supplementation of Melissa Officinalis Extract on the Level of Serum Malondialdehyde and Total Antioxidant Capacity after Aerobic Activity at a Negative Slope

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of downhill running and short-term supplementation of Melissa officinalis on the level of serum Malondialdehyde and total antioxidant capacity in male athletes. In this study, 20 healthy male athletes were randomly divided into two groups of 10 subjects (supplement and placebo). The level of serum Malondialdehyde and total antioxidant capacity were measured before and after supplementation. After data collection, repeated variance analysis test for investigating time series and if significant, Bonferroni post hoc test was used and independent t-test was used to assess the differences between groups. The level of significance of (p≤0.05) was used. The study findings showed that the level of serum Malondialdehyde in the supplement group was increased less than placebo. Also, the total antioxidant capacity rate in the supplement group was more. In general, it is concluded that this herbal supplement can prevent the increase of serum malondialdehyde level and increase the total antioxidant capacity

The Effect of Short-Term Supplementation of Melissa Officinalis Extract on the Level of Serum Malondialdehyde and Total Antioxidant Capacity after Aerobic Activity at a Negative Slope

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of downhill running and short-term supplementation of Melissa officinalis on the level of serum Malondialdehyde and total antioxidant capacity in male athletes. In this study, 20 healthy male athletes were randomly divided into two groups of 10 subjects (supplement and placebo). The level of serum Malondialdehyde and total antioxidant capacity were measured before and after supplementation. After data collection, repeated variance analysis test for investigating time series and if significant, Bonferroni post hoc test was used and independent t-test was used to assess the differences between groups. The level of significance of (p≤0.05) was used. The study findings showed that the level of serum Malondialdehyde in the supplement group was increased less than placebo. Also, the total antioxidant capacity rate in the supplement group was more. In general, it is concluded that this herbal supplement can prevent the increase of serum malondialdehyde level and increase the total antioxidant capacity

Experimental Investigation of the Effect of Micro-Silica and Zeolite on Repair Mortar of Concrete Pavements

In the recent years, by replacing a part of our country’s asphalt pavements with concrete pavements, it is necessary to perform appropriate actions in order to preserve and repair destructions (due to executive weaknesses, loading and environmental conditions) during pavement lifetime. In order to increase mechanical properties and durability of repair mortars, micro-silica and zeolite were used as pozzolan, polypropylene fibers for controlling crack (due to fluctuations in concrete and temperature change) and the cement type 3 for obtaining high resistivity in short-term. In this study, 11mixing designs were investigated, and the composition of polypropylene fibers with micro-scale thickness with cement complements can be considered as the most optimal mixing design in 0.2% of fibers with 10% micro-silica and 15% zeolite in order to promote effective parameters of elasticity modulus, modulus of rupture and decrease of contraction in repair mortars of concrete pavements. By adding polypropylene fibers, the samples were not completely ruptured in the tension of primary strength that they showed. The samples containing 0.4% fibers with deformation from spherical state to elliptical state with splay value in rupture surface showed individual characteristic which caused minimizing rupture and crunch in the repaired area.In the recent years, by replacing a part of our country's asphalt pavements with concrete pavements, it is necessary to perform appropriate actions in order to preserve and repair destructions (due to executive weaknesses, loading and environmental conditions) during pavement lifetime. In order to increase mechanical properties and durability of repair mortars, micro-silica and zeolite were used as pozzolan, polypropylene fibers for controlling crack (due to fluctuations in concrete and temperature change) and the cement type 3 for obtaining high resistivity in short-term. In this study, 11 mixing designs were investigated, and the composition of polypropylene fibers with micro-scale thickness with cement complements can be considered as the most optimal mixing design in 0.2% of fibers with 10% micro-silica and 15% zeolite in order to promote effective parameters of elasticity modulus, modulus of rupture and decrease of contraction in repair mortars of concrete pavements. By adding polypropylene fibers, the samples were not completely ruptured in the tension of primary strength that they showed. The samples containing 0.4% fibers with deformation from spherical state to elliptical state with splay value in rupture surface showed individual characteristic which caused minimizing rupture and crunch in the repaired area

New onset left frontal lobe seizure presenting with ictal asystole

AbstractIctal asystole is a presumably rare but potentially fatal complication of seizures, most often of temporal lobe origin. It is believed that at least some cases of sudden unexplained death in epilepsy (SUDEP) might be triggered by ictal bradycardia or asystole. Current standard practice is to implant a permanent pacemaker in these patients to prevent syncope and/or death. However, emerging data suggests that effective medical or surgical treatment of epilepsy might be enough to prevent cardiac asystole, eliminating the need for permanent pacemaker placement. We describe a case of new onset left frontal lobe epilepsy in a young athletic patient who presented with near-syncopal episodes but whose comprehensive work-up revealed frequent events of ictal bradycardia and asystole. He responded well to monotherapy using oxcarbazepine, avoiding a permanent pacemaker

Diagnosis and Surgical Treatment of Drug-Resistant Epilepsy

Despite appropriate trials of at least two antiepileptic drugs, about a third of patients with epilepsy remain drug resistant (intractable; refractory). Epilepsy surgery offers a potential cure or significant improvement to those with focal onset drug-resistant seizures. Unfortunately, epilepsy surgery is still underutilized which might be in part because of the complexity of presurgical evaluation. This process includes classifying the seizure type, lateralizing and localizing the seizure onset focus (epileptogenic zone), confirming the safety of the prospective brain surgery in terms of potential neurocognitive deficits (language and memory functions), before devising a surgical plan. Each one of the above steps requires special tests. In this paper, we have reviewed the process of presurgical evaluation in patients with drug-resistant focal onset epilepsy

Epidemiologic study of Phenylketonuria disease in Lorestan province

Background : Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a metabolic disease with autosomal recessive pattern of inheritance caused by a deficiency or absence of the enzyme phenylalanine hydroxylase in the liver. Phenylketonuria incidence is 1 in 10,000 births. This study aimed to determine the epidemiological characteristics of phenylketonuria in Lorestan province. Materials and Methods: All 81 phenylketonuria patients known in Lorestan province up to winter 2014 were considered in this descriptive epidemiologic study. Based on the goals and variables of the study, a complete questionnaire was developed to collect data through interviews with parents and the records and they were analyzed by use of SPSS v.16 software with preparing tables and graphs and using chi-square and t-test. Results: Results showed that phenylketonuria prevalence is 4.3 out of 100,000 people in Lorestan province. Twenty of the patients (24.7%) were identified through screening and 61 patients (75.3%) through other methods. Forty-six of the samples (56.8%) were female and 35 cases (43.2%) were male. Nearly 75% of PKU patients had a positive history of consanguinity marriage in their parents. The prevalence of the disease was significantly different from other cities. Conclusion: Neonatal screening for phenylketonuria is necessary and should be done within 3-5 days of birth. In families with children suffering from PKU, prenatal diagnosis is necessary for other pregnancies

A comparison between CHROMagar, PCR-RFLP and PCR-FSP for identification of Candida species

Background and Purpose: The epidemiological alteration in the distribution of Candida species, as well as the significantly increasing trend of either intrinsic or acquired resistance of some of these fungi highlights the need for a reliable method for the identification of the species. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is one of the methods facilitating the quick and precise identification of Candida species. The aim of this study was to compare the efficiency of CHROMagar, PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP), and PCR-fragment size polymorphism (PCR-FSP) assays in the identification of Candida species to determine the benefits and limitations of these methods. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted on 107 Candida strains, including 20 standard strains and 87 clinical isolates. The identification of the isolates was accomplished by using CHROMagar as a conventional method. The PCR-RFLP assay was performed on the entire internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of ribosomal DNA (rDNA), and the consequent enzymatic digestion was compared with PCR-FSP results in which ITS1 and ITS2 regions were separately PCR amplified. In both molecular assays, yeast identification was carried out through the specific electrophoretic profiles of the PCR products. Results: According to the results, the utilization of CHROMagar resulted in the identi-fication of 29 (33.3%) Candida isolates, while the PCR-RFLP and PCR-FSP facilitated the identification of 83 (95.4%) and 80 (91.9%) isolates, respectively. The obtained concordances between CHROMagar and PCR-RFLP, between CHROMagar and PCR-FSP, as well as between PCR-RFLP and PCR-FSP were 0.20, 0.23, and 0.77, respectively. Conclusion: The recognition of the benefits and limitations of PCR methods allows for the selection of the most efficient technique for a fast and correct differentiation. The PCR-RFLP and PCR-FSP assays had satisfactory concordance. The PCR-FSP provides a rapid, technically simple, and cost-effective method for the identification of Candida species. Nevertheless, to accurately differentiate among the taxonomically related species, PCR-RFLP should be implemented. &nbsp

Molecular characterization of environmental Cladosporium species isolated from Iran

Background and Purpose: Cladosporium species are ubiquitous, saprobic,dematiaceous fungi, only infrequently associated with human and animal opportunisticinfections. Materials and Methods: Airborne samples were collected using the settle plate method, and soil samples were obtained from a depth of 5-10 cm of the superficial soil layer. Samples were cultured on Sabouraud dextrose agar (SDA) plates, incubated at 25°C, and examined daily for fungal colonies for two to three weeks. Isolates were identified as Cladosporium species according to the macroscopic and microscopic criteria. For species differentiation, DNA from 53 isolates was extracted and subjected to amplification of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region followed by sequencing. Results: A total of 270 samples were collected from various environmental sources, of which 79 strains of Cladosporium species were isolated. The most frequent species was C. cladosporioides (50.6%), followed by C. iridis (44.3%), C. elatum (2.5%), C. peranqestum (1.3%), and C. alicinum. (1.3%). Conclusion: The collected data can serve as baseline information for future research and may be useful in the development of preventive and educational strategies