Neurocognitive Functions Related to Parietal Lobe in Patients with Schizophrenia and Methamphetamine Induced Psychotic Disorder and Healthy Individuals: A Comparative Study

Background: There are some inconsistent findings about neurocognitive functions in schizophrenia and methamphetamine induced psychosis (MIP). This study aimed to compare these two disorders in terms of neurocognitive functions related to parietal lobe.Methods: This was a cross-sectional study in which 30 patients with schizophrenia, 30 patients with MIP, and 32 healthy individuals were compared. The two groups of patients were selected through convenience sampling from among patients hospitalized in Shahid Beheshti hospital in Kerman, Iran and healthy individuals were selected via convenience sampling from among the employees of Kerman University of Medical Sciences. The three groups were administered clock-drawing test (CDT), Rey-Osterrieth complex figure (ROCF) copying test, and interlocking finger test (IFT) and their demographic and clinical data were collected. The one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to investigate the differences between the groups. Multivariate analysis of covariance was also used to examine the effects of confounding factors. Besides, follow-up pairwise comparisons were performed after adjustment for multiple testing.Findings: The group with schizophrenia had significantly more impairment than the group with MIP with reference to the results of IFT and the ROCF test. However, the scores of patients with MIP on these two tests were not different from those of the normal controls. With regard to the CDT, the only significant difference was observed between the group with schizophrenia and controls.Conclusion: On the condition that the results are replicated in other studies, some parietal lobe neurocognitive tests might be used when it is difficult to differentially diagnose schizophrenia and MIP

Effects of in-vitro application of pentoxifylline on the morphology of human spermatozoa after vitrification in asthenozoospermic patients

Cryopreservation of human spermatozoa is widely used in many assisted reproduction units to preserve male fertility [1]. Vitrification is based on the ultrarapid freezing and is routinely assayed for cryopreservation in assisted reproductive technology. Mohamed [2] showed that cryopreservation significantly affects progressive motility, viability and mitochondrial membrane potential of spermatozoa. Pentoxifylline (PX) is a phosphodiesterase considered to be a sperm movement enhancer, hyperactivation agent, inhibitor of reactive oxygen species and acrosome reaction-improving agent. The aim of our study was to evaluate the effect of in-vitro application of PX on sperm parameters and ultrastructure after vitrification. A total of 30 asthenozoospermic semen samples were selected and divided into two groups after vitrification: control (without PX) and experimental (with PX). A significant decrease in sperm motility, morphology and viability was observed post vitrification, but sperm motility was increased significantly following application of PX. On the other hand, PX did not exert any significant effect on the ultrastructure of the acrosome, plasma membrane and tail of vitrified spermatozoa

Altered Expression of Specific Transcription Factors of Th17 (RORγt, RORα) and Treg Lymphocytes (FOXP3) by Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells from Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

The imbalance in Th17/Treg cell-related responses plays an important role in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS). The development of Th17- and Treg cells is regulated by specific transcription factors—RORγt and RORα— and FOXP3, respectively. The aim was to determine the expression of RORγt, RORα, and FOXP3 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from MS patients following in vitro stimulation. The PBMCs from 22 MS patients and 20 healthy subjects were cultured in the presence of 10 μg/ml MOG, 10 μg/ml PHA, or without stimulation. The PBMCs were incubated at 37 °C for 24 h, and then the messenger RNA (mRNA) expression of RORγt, RORα, and FOXP3 was determined by real-time PCR. The expression of RORγt and RORα was increased in non-stimulated, MOGstimulated, and PHA-stimulated PBMCs from MS patients in comparison with same cultures from the healthy group (P < 0.01, P < 0.01, and P < 0.02 forRORγt; P < 0.001, P < 0.001, and P < 0.05, for RORα, respectively). The FOXP3 expression in non-stimulated PBMCs from MS patients was significantly lower than that in equal culture from healthy subjects (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences between healthy subjects and MS patients regarding the expression of FOXP3 mRNA by MOG-stimulated and PHAstimulated PBMCs. These results showed an imbalance in Th17/Treg cells at transcription factor levels with a deviation toward Th17 cell in MS. The correction of Th17/Treg balance at transcription levels should be considered to design novel therapeutic strategies for MS treatment

A systematic review of antimicrobial peptides from fish with anticancer properties

Fish is a potential source of various forms of bioactive compounds. It can be used as a source of specific proteins, especially in medicine. Recently, studies related to the use of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) from fish are being carried out to find an alternative cure for cancer. To achieve this objective, the AMP used must meet a condition where it possesses the ability to target tumor cells without affecting the normal cell. Therefore, this study aims to systematically review and classify the recent AMPs isolated from fish and their therapeutic activities, focusing on their anticancer and antimicrobial activities. A systematic review of studies published in English between 2017 and 2020 was conducted in PubMed NCBI, Biomed Central, Science Direct, and Google Scholar databases using keywords and inclusion and exclusion criteria. A systematic review conducted has identified 38 potential AMPs isolated from fish that have been reported to have antimicrobials activity. Of all of these, 21 AMPs also have anticancer properties. Therefore, it is important to continue to explore and study natural ingredients in developing new approaches in medicine. This research is essential to enable the potential of AMPs to be identified and applied

Colchicine effect on the DNA content and stomata size of Glycyrrhiza glabra var.glandulifera and Carthamus tinctorius L. cultured in vitro

In vitro induction of polyploids using colchicine causes an increase in DNA content in plants. This is of high importance especially for plants that have medicinal and commercial values. Seeds of two medicinal plants, licorice Glycyrrhiza glabra L. var.glandulifera and safflower Carthamus tinctorius were treated with different concentrations of colchicine, 0%, 0.03%, 0.05%, 0.08%, 0.1% (W/V) in vitro for 24 and 48 h. Treated seeds then were cultured on solid Murashige and Skoog (MS) media under controlled conditions. After a month, the length of the stomata was measured to study the effect of colchicine on stomata size. Cellular DNA content of the regenerated plants was measured by spectrophotometry. Flow cytometry was used for confirming the results obtained from stomata size measurement and spectrophotometry. Results suggested that treated plants have a fair amount of larger stomata, significantly in licorice plantlets that were treated with 0.1% colchicine for 24 h and safflower plantlets that were treated with 0.03%, 0.05% and 0.1% colchicine. Safflower DNA content in all treatments enhanced significantly, but in licorice only DNA content of plantlets that were treated with 0.05% colchicine for 24 h and 0.1%, 0.03% colchicine for 48 h found to be increased significantly. The morphological features of treated plantlets such as shoot and leaf thickness were found to be increased. Flow cytometry confirmed the previously mentioned results and suggested tetraploids in all treated safflower plantlets and licorice plantlets obtained from treatment with 0.08% of colchicine and mixoploids in licorice plantlets obtained from treatment with 0.1% of colchicine

Comparing the effectiveness of case-based technology-enhanced learning with face-to-face method

Introduction: Technical advances highlight the need for dynamic strategies in medical training. Active medical education helps students sufficiently understand the real clinical situation. This study endeavored to compare the effectiveness of technology-enhanced Case-based Educational Intervention with In-person training on Knowledge and Satisfaction of Medical Students at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences. Methods: This study was an educational intervention with a post-test design on 584 medical students of clinical surgery departments (neurology and orthopedics) of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences in the academic year 2017-2019. The research samples were selected by convenience sampling and divided into intervention (case-based technology-based education) and control (scores of students participating in the previous in-person course) based on the non-random Consecutive sampling method. Data collection tools included a final exam in the surgical ward and a researcher-made questionnaire to assess the satisfaction of multimedia content. An independent t-test was used to compare the mean post-test knowledge score of the research samples. Results: The mean and standard deviation of knowledge score after the intervention in the intervention group (13.7±33.1 and 12.9±72.7) were not significantly different from the control group (13.62±2.7 and 13.27±2.7). Besides, 51% of students rated the quality of multimedia content as appropriate. Conclusion: The results revealed that case-based technology-based educational intervention leads to improved learning of medical students similar to face-to-face training. Due to the effectiveness, convenience, and low cost of this method, the use of this method is recommended for medical education in the clinical level

A Context-Aware Smartphone-Based 3D Indoor Positioning Using Pedestrian Dead Reckoning

The rise in location-based service (LBS) applications has increased the need for indoor positioning. Various methods are available for indoor positioning, among which pedestrian dead reckoning (PDR) requires no infrastructure. However, with this method, cumulative error increases over time. Moreover, the robustness of the PDR positioning depends on different pedestrian activities, walking speeds and pedestrian characteristics. This paper proposes the adaptive PDR method to overcome these problems by recognizing various phone-carrying modes, including texting, calling and swinging, as well as different pedestrian activities, including ascending and descending stairs and walking. Different walking speeds are also distinguished. By detecting changes in speed during walking, PDR positioning remains accurate and robust despite speed variations. Each motion state is also studied separately based on gender. Using the proposed classification approach consisting of SVM and DTree algorithms, different motion states and walking speeds are identified with an overall accuracy of 97.03% for women and 97.67% for men. The step detection and step length estimation model parameters are also adjusted based on each walking speed, gender and motion state. The relative error values of distance estimation of the proposed method for texting, calling and swinging are 0.87%, 0.66% and 0.92% for women and 1.14%, 0.92% and 0.76% for men, respectively. Accelerometer, gyroscope and magnetometer data are integrated with a GDA filter for heading estimation. Furthermore, pressure sensor measurements are used to detect surface transmission between different floors of a building. Finally, for three phone-carrying modes, including texting, calling and swinging, the mean absolute positioning errors of the proposed method on a trajectory of 159.2 m in a multi-story building are, respectively, 1.28 m, 0.98 m and 1.29 m for women and 1.26 m, 1.17 m and 1.25 m for men

Cryopreservation enhances vacuolization in human spermatozoa

Objective: To evaluate the impact of freezing–thawing on the human sperm head vacuoles and the potential value of motile sperm organelle morphology examination for selection of frozen-thaw spermatozoa.Methods: In 30 sperm samples from infertile men, analysis for conventional sperm parameters (motility, vitality, and normal morphology) and a morphological analysis at high magnification for vacuoles examination were done before cooling and after warming. For description of sperm head vacuoles, two hundred spermatozoa were examined and were classified into three groups according to presence and vacuole areas including no vacuole group (free of any vacuole), small vacuole group (occupy not more than 4% of the nuclear area), and large vacuole group (occupy more than 4% of the normal nuclear area).Results: Significant reduction of progressive motility and vitality was observed following cryopreservation (P<0.001). Also, normal morphology decreased significantly after cryopreservation (P<0.05). Spermatozoa with a vacuole-free head had a significant reduction in cryopreservation group (P=0.013). The percentage of spermatozoa with small vacuoles increased slightly, but not significantly after cryopreservation (P=0.296).Conclusions: Motile sperm organelle morphology examination is a powerful research tool for investigating spermatozoa abnormalities such as vacuoles that are increased post cryopreservation

Effective teaching methods in higher education: requirements and barriers

Introduction: Teaching is one of the main components in educational planning which is a key factor in conducting educational plans. Despite the importance of good teaching, the outcomes are far from ideal. The present qualitative study aimed to investigate effective teaching in higher education in Iran based on the experiences of best professors in the country and the best local professors of Isfahan University of Technology. Methods: This qualitative content analysis study was conducted through purposeful sampling. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten faculty members (3 of them from the best professors in the country and 7 from the best local professors). Content analysis was performed by MAXQDA software. The codes, categories and themes were explored through an inductive process that began from semantic units or direct quotations to general themes. Results: According to the results of this study, the best teaching approach is the mixed method (student-centered together with teacher-centered) plus educational planning and previous readiness. But whenever the teachers can teach using this method confront with some barriers and requirements; some of these requirements are prerequisite in professors’ behavior and some of these are prerequisite in professors’ outlook. Also, there are some major barriers, some of which are associated with the professors’ operation and others are related to laws and regulations. Implications of these findings for teachers’ preparation in education are discussed. Conclusion: In the present study, it was illustrated that a good teaching method helps the students to question their preconceptions, and motivates them to learn, by putting them in a situation in which they come to see themselves as the authors of answers, as the agents of responsibility for change. But training through this method has some barriers and requirements. To have an effective teaching; the faculty members of the universities should be awarded of these barriers and requirements as a way to improve teaching quality. The nationally and locally recognized professors are good leaders in providing ideas, insight, and the best strategies to educators who are passionate for effective teaching in the higher education. Finally, it is supposed that there is an important role for nationally and locally recognized professors in higher education to become more involved in the regulation of teaching rules

Comparison between Semen Parameters of Ejaculates Collected Via Masturbation Versus Coitus Interruptus

Proper collections of human ejaculates are necessary for semen analysis and infertility treatment purposes. The objective of this study was to assess the seminal characteristics of ejaculates collected by patients via masturbation and coitus interruptus. Thirty individuals produced one sample via masturbation and one via incomplete coitus during a 3-days interval. The semen parameters were compared and analyzed with student t-test and Nemar test. The results showed that mean values for progressive motility of spermatozoa were increased from 46.81°15.7% to 58.76°13.5% in coitus interruptus and masturbation, respectively (P<0.01). Also, the mean values for normal sperm morphology was 54.03°25.1% in coitus interruptus and 63.36°13.4% in samples collected via masturbation (P<0.01). In addition, sperm concentration was significantly improved in ejaculates collected with masturbation (P<0.05). Although, insignificant, the concentration of round cells were lower in specimens collected via masturbation than coitus interruptus. Therefore, via masturbation method, better semen characteristics were yielded which subsequently may improve the infertility treatment outcome