The effects of endosulfan on P450 1A gene expression, antioxidant enzymes activity and histopathological alterations in liver of Persian sturgeon (Acipenser persicus Borodin, 1987)

The effects of 14 days exposure to sublethal concentrations of endosulfan (10 and 40 μg L−1) were investigated in mRNA- P450 1A expression, antioxidant enzymes (SOD and CAT) activity and histopathological alterations of Persian sturgeon (Acipenser persicus) fingerlings with weights of 3–5 g. The results illustrated that the relative mRNA- P450 1A expression level significantly increased (P < 0.05) compared to the control group. Highest significant increase (P < 0.05) was observed on the first day, then decreased towards day 14 of exposure. The SOD and CAT activity showed a significant increase in fish exposed to different concentrations up to day 7, then activity decreased on day 14 in fish of all treated groups. Although signs of tissue lesions were observed on day 4, they increased from day 7 and reached the highest level on day 14. The magnitude of all changed studied parameters (gene expression, enzymes and histopathological) follows a concentration-dependent manner. © 2016 Blackwell Verlag Gmb

On Rigidity of 3d Asymptotic Symmetry Algebras

We study rigidity and stability of infinite dimensional algebras which are not subject to the Hochschild-Serre factorization theorem. In particular, we consider algebras appearing as asymptotic symmetries of three dimensional spacetimes, the BMS3, u(1) Kac-Moody and Virasoro algebras. We construct and classify the family of algebras which appear as deformations of BMS3, u(1) Kac-Moody and their central extensions by direct computations and also by cohomological analysis. The Virasoro algebra appears as a specific member in this family of rigid algebras; for this case stabilization procedure is inverse of the In\"on\"u-Wigner contraction relating Virasoro to BMS3 algebra. We comment on the physical meaning of deformation and stabilization of these algebras and relevance of the family of rigid algebras we obtainComment: 50 pages, one figure and two tables; v2: minor improvements, references adde

Shadow-free multimers as extreme-performance meta-atoms

We generalize the concept of parity-time symmetric structures with the goal to create meta-atoms exhibiting extraordinary abilities to overcome the presumed limitations in the scattering of overall lossless particles, such as non-zero forward scattering and the equality of scattering and extinction powers for all lossless particles. Although the forward scattering amplitude and the extinction cross section of our proposed meta-atoms vanish, they scatter incident energy into other directions, with controllable directionality. These meta-atoms possess extreme electromagnetic properties not achievable for passive scatterers. As an example, we study meta-atoms consisting of two or three small dipole scatters. We consider possible microwave realizations in the form of short dipole antennas loaded by lumped elements. The proposed meta-atom empowers extraordinary response of a shadow-free scatterer and theoretically enables most unusual material properties when used as a building block of an artificial medium.Comment: 14 pages, 9 Figure

Bone mineral density in Iranian patients: Effects of age, sex, and body mass index

Introduction: Osteoporosis is a multifactorial skeletal disease that is characterized by reduced bone mineral density (BMD). BMD values de-pend on several factors such as age, sex and age at menopause. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and changes in bone mineral density in Iranian patients. Meth-ods: Three hundred patients were selected through random sampling technique in 2009. BMD was assessed by Norland (Excell) technique at the lumbar and femoral neck. Weight and height were measured through standard methods. A thorough history was taken from each patient. The data was analyzed using SPSS software version 13.0. P-values less than 0.05 were con-sidered statistically significant. Results: From among the 300 studied patients, 86.6% were fe-male. their mean age was 52.7 years. Their av-erage body mass index (BMI) was 28.14 kg/m2. Mean T-Score at lumbar spine and femoral neck was −1.07 ± 1.19 and −1.75 ± 1.33 respectively. Mean BMD value at lumbar spine and femoral neck was 0.92 ± 0.19 and 0.77 ± 0.16 respectively. The prevalence of osteoporosis at lumbar spine and femoral neck was 33.7% and 16.7, respec-tively. There was a significant correlation be-tween age, BMI and BMD values (P-Value < 0.01). Correlation between gender and BMD value at the lumbar spine and femoral neck was not sig-nificant. Conclusion: This study shows that age- ing and low BMI are risk factors associated with bone loss. it is recommended to measure BMD and implement prevention programs for high- risk people. Keywords: Bone Mineral Density; Body Mass Index;Age; Gende

Evaluation of coliform bacteria and nematode eggs in Haraz River runoff

Haraz River is an important river in north of Iran. This river is one of the vital importances in Mazandaran province and cities of Amol, Babol, Fereidoon'kenar and Nour. This river is considered the largest and most beautiful tourist destinations of Mazandaran because it has the path and landscape of the mountainous and forest. This study was conducted for survey the coliforms and nematode eggs in runoff of Haraz River. Forty eight samples from four stations were taken during a year and samples examined for total coliform, fecal coliform and nematode eggs. The results showed that maximum and minimum of total coliforms in runoff was observed in Nourrod (3.1 ±1.95 CFU/100ml) and Shahrak Esar Amole (2.2 ± 1.77CFU/100ml) and also maximum and minimum of fecal coliforms was in Nourrod (1.6 ± 1.23 CFU/100ml) and Shahrak Esar Amole (1.2 ±.54 CFU/100ml) respectively. Also, the average annual number of nematode worm's eggs in the studied stations was varied between 30 in Nourrod to 124 ±41 in Shahrak Esar Amole.The results of this study showed that due to discharging of wastewater, sewage and runoff into the River result in decrease of water quality. Low quality of this river is caused distribution of microbial and parasites infections and is also contaminated of water used for agriculture, fish farms and horticulture

Evaluation and isolation of Clostridium botulinum type E from fresh and smoked Cyprinus carpio, Rutilus frisii kutum and Hypophtalmicthys molitrix

In this study experiments were conducted to evaluate Clostridium botulinum type E in fresh and smoked Cyprinus carpio (60 samples) Rutilus frisii kutum (60 samples) and Hypophthalmichthys molitrix (60 samples). One hundred and eighty samples of fish were collected from different smoking plants, beach sein and breeding center in Mazandaran province, were sorted in order to quality and kind of fish. Two methods (Toxicology and Bacteriology) were used for recognition of toxin and bacterium C. botulinum type E. Bacterium was identified using cooked meat broth, egg yolk agar and biochemical tests. Toxin was recognized using antitoxin type E. The results indicated that 7 (3.8%), 4 (2.2%) and 2 (1.1%) samples of fresh and smoked Cyprinus carpio, Rutilus frisii kutum and Hypophthalmichthys molitrix were contaminated to C. botulinum type E respectively, (10 samples of smoked fish, 3 samples of fresh fish in total). In a conclusion, a serious consideration on handling and processing of fish in these plants are recommended

Boundary Heisenberg algebras and their deformations

We investigate the deformations and rigidity of boundary Heisenberg-like algebras. In particular, we focus on the Heisenberg and Heisenberg circle plus mitt algebras which arise as symmetry algebras in three-dimensional gravity theories. As a result of the deformation procedure we find a large class of algebras. While some of these algebras are new, some of them have already been obtained as asymptotic and boundary symmetry algebras, supporting the idea that symmetry algebras associated to diverse boundary conditions and spacetime loci are algebraically interconnected through deformation of algebras. The deformation/contraction relationships between the new algebras are investigated. In addition, it is also shown that the deformation procedure reaches new algebras inaccessible to the Sugawara construction. As a byproduct of our analysis, we obtain that Heisenberg circle plus mitt and the asymptotic symmetry algebra Weyl-bms(3) are not connected via single deformation but in a more subtle way

Ultrastructure of cytoplasmic fragments in human cleavage stage embryos

Purpose: The goal of this study was to evaluate the ultrastructure of cytoplasmic fragments along with the effect of cytoplasmic fragment and perivitelline space coarse granulation removal (cosmetic microsurgery) from embryos before embryo transfer on ART outcomes. Methods: One hundred and fifty intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles with male factor infertility were included in this prospective study. Patients were divided into three groups of case (n = 50), sham (n = 50), and control (n = 50). Embryos with 10–50 % fragmentation were included in this study. Cosmetic microsurgery and zona assisted hatching were only performed in case and sham groups respectively. Extracted fragments were evaluated ultrastructurally by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Rates of clinical pregnancy, live birth, miscarriage, multiple pregnancies, and congenital anomaly in the three groups were also compared. Results: Micrographs from TEM showed that mitochondria were the most abundant structures found in the fragments along with mitochondria-vesicle complexes, Golgi apparatus, primary lysosomes, and vacuoles. There were no significant differences in demographic characteristics, laboratory and clinical data, or embryo morphological features between the groups. The rate of clinical pregnancy in control, sham, and case groups had no significant differences (24, 18, and 18 %, respectively). The rates of live birth, miscarriage, multiple pregnancy, and congenital anomaly were also similar between the different groups. Conclusions: Our data demonstrated that cosmetic microsurgery on preimplantation embryos had no beneficial effect on ART outcomes in unselected groups of patients. As mitochondria are the most abundant organelles found in cytoplasmic fragments, fragment removal should be performed with more caution in embryos with moderate fragmentation

BMS4 Algebra, Its Stability and Deformations

We continue analysis of \cite{Parsa:2018kys} and study rigidity and stability of the BMS4 algebra and its centrally extended version. We construct and classify the family of algebras which appear as deformations of BMS4 and in general find the four-parameter family of algebras W(a,b;\bar{a},\bar{b}) as a result of the stabilization analysis, where BMS4=W(-1/2,-1/2;-1/2,-1/2). We then study the W(a,b;\bar{a},\bar{b}) algebra, its maximal finite subgroups and stability for different values of the four parameters. We prove stability of the W(a,b;\bar{a},\bar{b}) family of algebras for generic values of the parameters. For special cases of (a,b)=(\bar{a},\bar{b})=(0,0) and (a,b)=(0,-1), (\bar{a},\bar{b})=(0,0) the algebra can be deformed. In particular we show that centrally extended W(0,-1;0,0) algebra can be deformed to an algebra which has three copies of Virasoro as a subalgebra. We briefly discuss these deformed algebras as asymptotic symmetry algebras and the physical meaning of the stabilization and implications of our result