Prevalens av Puumalaviruset i skogssorkar (Myodes glareolus) efter en stor skogsbrand

Our knowledge on the impact of forest fires on the prevalence (proportion of infected individuals in a population) and dynamics of zoonotic pathogens is largely limited. A large forest fire in late 2006 at Bodträskfors in northern Sweden provided a unique opportunity to investigate the effect of habitat change on disease prevalence. Pummala virus (PUUV) is one of the most prominent zoonotic viruses in this northern boreal forests with bank vole as its only competent host. Human’s infection occurs by breathing the aerosolized viral particles shed through saliva, urine and feces of the infected host. The infection causes Nephropathia Epidemia, a milder form of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome. The disease has relatively low death rates but can cause lifelong symptoms in humans. Here I have investigated the prevalence of PUUV in bank voles between spring and autumn of 2007-2010 and again in 2015. Small mammals were trapped in trapping plots in the Bodträskfors forest fire area (n=7), mature reference forests (n=7) and unburned clear-cuts (3). In total 1048 small mammals were trapped from which 1013 bank voles were autopsied and analyzed for anti PUUV antibody with indirect Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay. I used generalized linear mixed effect model to compare PUUV prevalence in the three areas. All bank voles were also weighed and probable weight’s correlation with PUUV prevalence was investigated using nominal logistic fit and univariate ANOVA (analysis of variance). Species composition was one of the most striking results of this study. In the burned area, there appeared to be a one species system, comprised of bank voles only, between 2008-2010 and again in 2015. My results suggest a staggering 78 and 73 percent infection prevalence in burned forest in 2007 and 2015 compared to respective 55 and 44 percent infection prevalence in mature forest. This significant difference was reversed in 2010 with the reference area having the highest infection prevalence (65 to 33 percent respectively). The low species diversity, along with habitat loss due to direct effect of forest fire are suggested to be the two major contributing factors that have led to the very high infection prevalence in forest fire area. The weight of bank voles was directly correlated with infection prevalence. The weight was highest in spring, in all locations. The burned area consistently had the highest weight average in spring with the reference sites and clear-cut following it respectively. In autumn however, the weight varied slightly between areas without any consistency. PUUV prevalence differed between the burned and mature reference forests. To pinpoint the exact environmental factors that have resulted in this variation requires further environmental studies, which were out of the scope of this study. The one species system in the forest fire area along with the described infection prevalence portray a unique opportunity for identifying the environment’s effect on infection prevalence and also the epidemiologic base of infection prevalence in bank voles with regards to species diversity

Why are Men more susceptible to COVID-19: A narrative review of current global knowledge

Since its inception on December 2019, COVID-19 epidemic now has been titled a global emergency. Rich literature on the global descriptive epidemiology of the cases has shown that the burden of COVID-19 epidemic in terms of both morbidity and mortality is more pronounced among men. Physiological and genetic traits along with numerous differences in social and cultural profile of men are attributed to this discrepancy. This review attempted to delineate various proposed explanations for the observed gender-differences in COVID-19 morbidity and mortality

The Effect of Percutaneous Laser Disc Decompression on Reducing Pain and Disability in Patients With Lumbar Disc Herniation

Introduction: As low back pain incidence is increasing, noninvasive modalities are gaining attention for their ability to achieve the best possible outcome with the least complications. Percutaneous laser disc decompression (PLDD) is currently popular for this purpose. This study aims to evaluate the effect of PLDD on disability and pain reduction in patients with lumbar disc herniation.Methods: Thirty patients were enrolled in this study. Spinal nerve blocks were conducted by laser discectomy single stage injection of a needle into the disc space. The nucleus pulposus of herniated discs were irradiated with laser in order to vaporize a small part of the nucleus pulposus of the intervertebral discs and reduce the voluminosity of diseased discs. Patients were treated with 1000 J of 980 nm diode laser with 5 W energy. In order to measure the severity of pain, visual analog scale (VAS) and also ODI (Oswestry Disability Index) were used. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 12.Results: Thirty patients participated in this trial including 11 men and 19 women with a mean age (SD) of 40.8 (10.8) years. The mean patients VAS score and ODI level before and after discectomy showed statistically significant differences. The mean VAS and ODI scores showed no statistical difference between males and females (P < 0.05) and percutaneous laser discectomy decreased the VAS and ODI at both groups of patients similarly.Conclusion: We found the use of PLDD reduces pain and disability in patients as a noninvasive procedure

Comparison of the effects of Crataegus oxyacantha extract, aerobic exercise and their combination on the serum levels of ICAM-1 and E-Selectin in patients with stable angina pectoris

Background: Adhesion molecules play an important role in the development and progression of coronary atherosclerosis. The aim of this study was comparing the effect of Cratagol herbal tablet, aerobic exercise and their combination on the serum levels of Intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1 and E-Selectin in patients with stable angina pectoris. Methods: Eighty stable angina pectoris patients aged between 45 and 65 years, were randomly divided into four groups including three experimental groups and one control group: aerobic exercise (E), Crataegus oxyacantha extract (S), aerobic exercise and Crataegus oxyacantha extract (S+E), and control (C). Blood sampling was taken 24 h before and after 12 weeks of aerobic exercise and Crataegus oxyacantha extract consumption. The results of serum levels of ICAM-1 and E-selectin were compared. Results: Intergroup comparison of the data revealed a significant reduction (P < 0.01) in serum levels of ICAM-1 and E-selectin in experimental groups. Analysis of data showed that the serum levels of ICAM-1 had significant difference when group S+E was compared with groups S and C, but not group E (P = 0.021, P = 0.000 and P = 0.068, respectively). Also the difference between the levels of E-selectin was significant comparing S+E and S but not E with group C (P = 0.021, P = 0.000 and P = 0.052, respectively). Conclusions: Twelve weeks effects of aerobic exercise and Crataegus oxyacantha extract consuming is an effective complementary strategy to significantly lower the risk of atherosclerosis and heart problems

Suspension Culture Alters Insulin Secretion in Induced Human Umbilical Cord Matrix-Derived Mesenchymal Cells

Objective: Worldwide, diabetes mellitus (DM) is an ever-increasing metabolic disorder. A promising approach to the treatment of DM is the implantation of insulin producing cells (IPC) that have been derived from various stem cells. Culture conditions play a pivotal role in the quality and quantity of the differentiated cells. In this experimental study, we have applied various culture conditions to differentiate human umbilical cord matrix-derived mesenchymal cells (hUCMs) into IPCs and measured insulin production. Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, we exposed hUCMs cells to pancreatic medium and differentiated them into IPCs in monolayer and suspension cultures. Pancreatic medium consisted of serum-free Dulbecco’s modified eagle’s medium Nutrient mixture F12 (DMEM/F12) medium with 17.5 mM glucose supplemented by 10 mM nicotinamide, 10 nM exendin-4, 10 nM pentagastrin, 100 pM hepatocyte growth factor, and B-27 serum-free supplement. After differentiation, insulin content was analyzed by gene expression, immunocytochemistry (IHC) and the chemiluminesence immunoassay (CLIA). Results: Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) showed efficient expressions of NKX2.2, PDX1 and INSULIN genes in both groups. IHC analysis showed higher expression of insulin protein in the hanging drop group, and CLIA revealed a significant higher insulin production in hanging drops compared with the monolayer group following the glucose challenge test. Conclusion: We showed by this novel, simple technique that the suspension culture played an important role in differentiation of hUCMs into IPC. This culture was more efficient than the conventional culture method commonly used in IPC differentiation and cultivation

An Epidemiological Survey of the Suicide Incidence Trends in the Southwest Iran: 2004-2009

Background : Elimination of suicide attempts is impossible, but they can be reduced dramatically by an organized planning. The present study aimed to survey the suicide trends in Fars province (Iran), during 2004-2009 to better understand the prevalence and status of suicide. Methods: This survey was a cross-sectional study. The demographic data were collected from the civil status registry between 2004 and 2009. Suicide and suicide attempt data were collected of three sources including the affiliated hospitals of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, mortality data of Vice Chancellery of Health in Fars province and data from forensic medicine. Then, they were analyzed by Excel and SPSS. Chi-square and regression analyses were used for data analysis. Results: During the study, 10671 people attempted suicide, of which 5697 (53%) were women and 4974 (47%) were men. Among them, 1047 people (9.8%) died, of which 363 (34%) were women and 679 (64%) were men. There was a significant relationship between gender and fatal suicide. The mean suicide attempt for both genders was 53 per 100,000 and 49, 57 for men and women, respectively. The trends in the incidence of Suicidal attempts were decreasing. Conclusion: Without implementing effective preventive measures, the health care system in Iran will face a further burden of fatal suicides among young people. Therefore; enhancing the primary health care and specialized mental health services for those with unsuccessful suicide attempts can effectively reduce the burden of suicide

In vitro evaluation of different protocols for the induction of mesenchymal stem cells to insulin-producing cells

Stem cells therapy is a new promising approach for diabetes mellitus (DM) treatment, but the insulin secretion rate in differentiated cells is low when compared with pancreas beta cells embedded in Langerhans islets. In this study, we evaluated different protocols of insulin secretion to achieve the most appropriate protocol for in vitro insulin secretion. We differentiated human umbilical cord matrixderived mesenchymal cells (hUCMs) into insulinproducing cell (IPC) by the aim of three previously reported protocols and a modified protocol. The insulin content was analyzed through gene expression and immunocytochemistry (IHC). Dithizone (DTZ) staining was done for identification of islet-like structures. Insulin and C peptide secretion was measured by chemiluminesence immunoassay (CLIA) and enzyme immunoassay (EIA) as well. Reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) showed efficient expression of insulin genes in all the study groups. IHC analysis showed higher expression of insulin and proinsulin proteins in the modified protocol. DTZ staining exhibited variable islet-like clusters in the different protocols except control. This finding was confirmed by the higher response to glucose challenge test in this group. A modified protocol using an intermediate step that makes the cells vulnerable to nestin production in combination with inducing agent results in the higher differentiation of stem cells into insulin-producing cells and more insulin secretion in vitro

Molecular dynamics simulations reveal structural insights into inhibitor binding modes and functionality in human group IIA phospholipase A2

Human Group IIA phospholipase A(2) (hGIIA) promotes inflammation in immune-mediated pathologies by regulating the arachidonic acid pathway through both catalysis-dependent and -independent mechanisms. The hGIIA crystal structure, both alone and inhibitor-bound, together with structures of closely related snake-venom-derived secreted phospholipase enzymes has been well described. However, differentiation of biological and nonbiological contacts and the relevance of structures determined from snake venom enzymes to human enzymes are not clear. We employed molecular dynamics (MD) and docking approaches to understand the binding of inhibitors that selectively or nonselectively block the catalysis-independent mechanism of hGIIA. Our results indicate that hGIIA behaves as a monomer in the solution environment rather than a dimer arrangement that is in the asymmetric unit of some crystal structures. The binding mode of a nonselective inhibitor, KH064, was validated by a combination of the experimental electron density and MD simulations. The binding mode of the selective pentapeptide inhibitor FLSYK to hGIIA was stipulated to be different to that of the snake venom phospholipases A(2) of Daboia russelli pulchella (svPLA(2)). Our data suggest that the application of MD approaches to crystal structure data is beneficial in evaluating the robustness of conclusions drawn based on crystal structure data alone. Proteins 2017; 85:827-842. (c) 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc

Antihypertensive drug prescription trends in shahrekord, iran

Introduction: Hypertension is one of the most leading causes of death worldwide. It is an important risk factor for ischemic heart disease (IHD), chronic kidney disease (CKD) and cerebrovascular diseases. Objectives: The aim of the study was evaluation of the status of blood pressure control and trends in prescribed antihypertensive medication usage among hypertensive patients in Shahrekord, Iran. Patients and Methods: In a cross-sectional descriptive study 250 hypertensive patients were enrolled. The patients were evaluated based on the status of blood pressure (BP) control and the prescription trends and efficacy of antihypertensive drugs. The data were also evaluated in subgroups of diabetics or non-diabetics, smokers or non-smokers, patients with or without CKD, patients with or without IHD. Results: A total of 250 patients (149 women and 101 men) were enrolled in this study. The mean age of participants was 66.22 ± 13.58 years. Mean systolic and diastolic BP were 143.4 ± 29.4 mm Hg and 85.8 ± 12.5 mm Hg respectively. Poor controlled BP was seen in 106 patients. The more common prescribed antihypertensive drugs were angiotensin receptor blockers (46), diuretics (33.6) and beta-blockers (32.8). Conclusion: The study showed that most of the patients had poor controlled BP and physicians increasingly prescribe angiotensin receptor blockers

Potential of Human Umbilical Cord Matrix and Rabbit Bone Marrow–Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Repair of Surgically Incised Rabbit External Anal Sphincter

PURPOSE: Anal sphincter defects and fecal incontinence are complicated surgical problems. We investigated the ability of human umbilical cord matrix (hUCM) and rabbit bone marrow (rBM) stem cells to improve anal sphincter incontinence due to induced sphincter defects without surgical repair. METHODS: We harvested hUCM cells from human Wharton’s jelly and rBM stem cells from rabbit femurs and tibias. To induce sphincter defects, we made an incision in the external anal sphincter. Rabbits were randomly allocated to 5 groups to receive either no intervention (n � 3) or injections of 104 hUCM cells in medium (10 �L RPMI-1640), rBM cells in medium, medium only, or normal saline (n � 7 per group), 2 weeks after sphincterotomy. Transplanted cells were tracked in the injured sphincters by prelabeling with bromodeoxyuridine. Electromyography was performed before and 2 weeks after the external anal sphincterotomy, and 2 weeks after cell transplantation. We also evaluated the proliferation and differentiation of injected cells with histopathologic techniques. RESULTS: Electromyography showed significant improvement in sphincter function 2 weeks after local injection of rBM stem cells compared with pretreatment values and controls. Moderate, nonsignificant improvement was observed with hUCM cell injection. Cells with incorporated bromodeoxyuridine were detected at the site of injury after transplantation of hUCM and rBM. Histopathologic evaluation showed normal or muscle-dominant sphincter structure in all animals receiving rBM and fibrous-dominant sphincter structure in most animals receiving hUCM. CONCLUSIONS: Stem cell injection at the site of injury can enhance contractile function of the anal sphincter without surgical repair. Transplantation of stem cells, particularly bone marrow mesenchymal cells, may provide an effective tool for treating anal sphincter injuries in humans