Cyclic and Post-cycling Anchor Response in Geocell-Reinforced Sand

Plate anchors are commonly used to resist static, cyclic and monotonic after cyclic-loading uplift loads. Under cyclic loading, progressive sudden failure may occur, characterized by accumulated displacement – even under loads significantly less than the static capacity. Despite extensive usage of geocell for increasing the cyclic resilience, the influence of geocell reinforcements on cyclic uplift capacity is not well-understood. In this study, a series of near-full scale, experimental tests with and without geocell are presented. Results show that the unreinforced system fails cyclically under a load that is almost 70% of its static capacity (Pu), but use of geocell enables stable cyclic resistance of over 100%Pu. For the given soil and configurations, a cyclic displacement rate that reaches less than 0.05 mm/cycle tends to highlight a likely stable response. Evaluation of the soil’s response to cyclic loading demonstrates that, with increasing loading cycles, the loading is increasingly transmitted through the soil close to the anchor in the unreinforced case, but that the reinforced case is less prone to this phenomenon. The monotonic post-cycling capacity of both reinforced and unreinforced anchors decreases after application of cyclic loading; however the unreinforced scenario demonstrates larger decreases in capacity, particularly in the residual state

Anti –MBP autoantibody changes as a predictor of response to treatment in MS patients

Myelin basic protein (MBP) is one of the most important constituents of the CNS myelin sheaths. It is supposed that an autoimmune response directed against MBP is crucial in the demyelination process in patients with multiple sclerosis. Studies have proved that free anti-MBP level in CSF of MS patients is declined when the patient entered into clinical remission. Some researchers evaluate the changes in serum or CSF level of this antibody during immunomodulatory therapy; the results are different and the relation between the changes in this antibody and response to treatment is poorly investigated. The objective of this study was to assess the relation between the changes in serum level of anti-MBP and clinical remission in patients during treatment with fingolimod. 37 MS patients that were non responder to interferon and glatiramer acetate and were candidates to receive fingolimod were nominated for this study.  In this study, the serum level of anti-MBP was evaluated before and after 3 and 6 months of therapy and clinical remission was assessed by changes in Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) scores. The result of this study showed that MS patients, after treatment with interferon, have lower serum anti-MBP level than healthy control group and this difference is statistically significant (p =0.03).  The present study demonstrated that the serum anti-MBP level in MS patient during 6 months of treatment with fingolimod significantly decreased (p<0.001). However, there was no significant difference in EDSS of MS patients during 6 months of treatment with fingolimod ( p < 0.001)

Effect of the cholinergic system of the lateral periaqueductal gray (lPAG) on blood pressure and heart rate in normal and hydralazine hypotensive rats

Objective(s): Due to the presence of the cholinergic system in the lateral periaqueductal gray (lPAG) column, the cardiovascular effects of Acetylcholine (ACH) and its receptors in normotensive and hydralazine (HYD) hypotensive rats in this area were evaluated.Materials and Methods: After anesthesia, the femoral artery was cannulated and systolic blood pressure (SBP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate (HR), and also electrocardiogram for evaluation of low frequency (LF) and high frequency (HF) bands, important components of heart rate variability (HRV), were recorded. ACH, atropine (Atr, a muscarinic antagonist), and hexamethonium (Hex, an antagonist nicotinic) alone and together microinjected into lPAG, changes (Δ) of cardiovascular responses and normalized (n) LF, HF, and LF/HF ratio were analyzed.Results: In normotensive rats, ACH decreased SBP and MAP, and enhanced HR while Atr and Hex did had no effects. In co-injection of Atr and Hex with ACH, only ACH+Atr significantly attenuated parameters. In HYD hypotension, ACH had no affect but Atr and Hex significantly improved the hypotensive effect. Co-injection of Atr and Hex with ACH decreased the hypotensive effect but the effect of Atr+ACH was higher. In normotensive rats, ACH decreased nLF, nHF, and nLF/nHF ratio. These parameters in the Atr +ACH group were significantly higher than in ACH group. In HYD hypotension nLF and nLF/nHF ratio increased which was attenuated by ACH. Also, Atr+ACH decreased nLF and nLF/nHF ratio and increased nHF.Conclusion: The cholinergic system of lPAG mainly via muscarinic receptors has an inhibitory effect on the cardiovascular system. Based on HRV assessment, peripheral cardiovascular effects are mostly mediated by the parasympathetic system

A comprehensive review on phytochemical, pharmacological and therapeutic properties of Agrimonia eupatoria L.

Agrimonia eupatoria is a perennial herb belonging to the Rosaceae family that all its parts are used to treat various diseases. In this article, we aimed to present a comprehensive review on the phytochemical, pharmacological, and therapeutic effects of this plant. We searched various databases and summarized the data documented in literature from 1976 to 2020. Agrimonia eupatoria has effects on various kinds of cancer, oxidative stress, diabetes mellitus, hepatitis B, and liver damage. It also has anti-adhesive, antibacterial, antimicrobial, and wound healing properties. It induces nitric oxide and inhibits pro-inflammatory cytokines production. Phytochemical studies related to this plant has led to isolation and identification of tannins, coumarins, and flavonoids as the most active chemicals with biological effects. Based on this comprehensive review about Agrimonia eupatoria, there will be more opportunities for investigators to search and discover ways to use bioactive agents of this herb to develop new Agrimony based medicines

A comprehensive review on phytochemical, pharmacological and therapeutic properties of Agrimonia eupatoria L.

Agrimonia eupatoria is a perennial herb belonging to the Rosaceae family that all its parts are used to treat various diseases. In this article, we aimed to present a comprehensive review on the phytochemical, pharmacological, and therapeutic effects of this plant. We searched various databases and summarized the data documented in literature from 1976 to 2020. Agrimonia eupatoria has effects on various kinds of cancer, oxidative stress, diabetes mellitus, hepatitis B, and liver damage. It also has anti-adhesive, antibacterial, antimicrobial, and wound healing properties. It induces nitric oxide and inhibits pro-inflammatory cytokines production. Phytochemical studies related to this plant has led to isolation and identification of tannins, coumarins, and flavonoids as the most active chemicals with biological effects. Based on this comprehensive review about Agrimonia eupatoria, there will be more opportunities for investigators to search and discover ways to use bioactive agents of this herb to develop new Agrimony based medicines

Protective effects of long-term administration of Ziziphus jujuba fruit extract on cardiovascular responses in L-NAME hypertensive rats

Objective: Ziziphus jujuba stimulates the release of nitric oxide (NO).  Because NO is involved in cardiovascular regulations, in this study the effects of hydroalcoholic extract of Z. jujuba on cardiovascular responses in acute NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) hypertensive rats were evaluated. Materials and Methods: Rats were divided into 6 group (n=6): 1) saline, 2) L-NAME received (10mg/kg) intravenously, 3) sodium nitroprusside (SNP) (50µg/kg)+L-NAME group received SNP before L-NAME and 4-6) three groups of Z. jujuba (100, 200 and 400mg/kg) that treated for four weeks and on the 28th day, L-NAME was injected. Femoral artery and vein were cannulated for recording cardiovascular responses and drug injection, respectively. Systolic blood pressure (SBP), Mean arterial pressure (MAP) and heart rate (HR) were recorded continuously. Maximal changes (∆) of SBP, MAP and HR were calculated and compared to control and L-NAME groups. Results: In L-NAME group, maximal ΔSBP (L-NAME: 44.15±4.0 mmHg vs control: 0.71±2.1 mmHg) and ΔMAP (L-NAME: 40.8±4.0 mmHg vs control: 0.57±1.6 mmHg) significantly increased (p0.05). All doses of Z. jujuba attenuated maximal ∆SBP and ∆MAP induced by L-NAME but only the lowest dose (100 mg/kg) had significant effects (ΔSBP: 20.36±5.6 mmHg vs L-NAME: 44.1±4.0 mmHg and ΔMAP: 20.8±4.5 mmHg vs L-NAME: 40.8±3.8 mmHg (p0.05). Conclusion: Because long-term consumption of Z. jujuba extract, especially its lowest dose, attenuated cardiovascular responses induced by L-NAME, we suggest that Z. jujuba has potential beneficial effects in prevention of hypertension induced by NO deficiency