Molecular epidemiology of hepatitis C virus genotypes in Bushehr province, Iran

Background and Objectives: Molecular epidemiology of hepatitis C virus (HCV) is very important for the treatment of hepatitis C infection. The aim of this study was to determine the distribution of HCV genotypes in Bushehr province (South West of Iran). Materials and Methods: A total of 100 patients who were detected as positive for HCV antibody (by using ELISA method and RIBA test) referred to Arya Virology Laboratory between 2007-2009 in order to molecular diagnosis and furthermore virus genotyping. After detection of HCV, RNA genotyping of virus was done by using genotype specific primers. Results: Genotype 1a was found in 49% of the patients and genotype 3a was found in 40% of the patients and 1b in 5% of patients, while the genotype of the virus could not be identified in 5% of the patients. Finally, in 1% of patients coinfection due to 1a-3a genotypes was identified. Conclusion: The dominant genotype of HCV in Bushehr province, Iran, was determined as 1a.with acute hepatitis C ultimately develop chronic infection1. Only a minority of cases of acute HCV recover completely, with spontaneous virus eradication. In most cases the acute infection progresses to chronicity. Chronic HCV infection is defined as an infection that persists for more than 6 months, with or without clinical manifestations of hepatic or extrahepatic disease. Chronic type of this infection can cause cirrhosis, liver failure, and liver cancer. HCV infection is a global health problem and it is estimated that 200 million people of the world population are infected5. The global spread of chronic HCV infection coincided with the widespread use of transfused blood and blood products and with the expansion of intravenous drug use but decreased prior to the wide implementation of anti-HCV screening6. There are at least six major genotypes designated by Arabic numerals and more than 50 subtypes of HCV identified by lower case letters. The different genotypes have different geographic distributions1,4. Genotype determination of HCV is one of the most important factors in order to prediction of the viral persistency, pathogenicity and resistancy to antivirals7. The success and the treatment period of interferon and ribavirin seems to be related to the genotype of virus8. Furthermore, HCV genotyping is a useful tool to determine its molecular epidemiology, as they are indicative of transmission route of infection9,10. There is no published data about the distribution of HCV genotypes from Bushehr province (South West of Iran). Prevalence of HCV genotypes in Bushehr is an issue that is not sufficiently investigated and there is a need, therefore, to study this in detail

Production of food nanomaterials by specialized equipment

In the past decade, there has been a great interest in using nanotechnology by different industries, including food, pharmaceutical, and beauty. Nanotechnology provides many advantages to produce functional compounds which tend to be delivered for desired properties, such as protection from the environment or food matrix, controlled release, and increased bioavailability and bioaccessibility (Muhammad et al., 2019, Sedaghat Doost et al., 2019b, Sedaghat Doost et al., 2018c). There is a variety of methods to prepare food nanomaterials. Specialized equipment is frequently employed for the production of efficient nano-delivery systems, which is the focus of this chapter; the basic principle of conventional and recent techniques, as well as their advantages and disadvantages are described

Indeks delovne zmožnosti medicinskih sester starih 50 let in več v hospitalni dejavnosti v Sloveniji

Nurses with reduced work ability are highly susceptible to the deleterious effects of their working environments,and their rates of sick leave, disability, and early retirement are higher than average. The aim of this study was to evaluate work ability in 433 Slovenian hospital nurses aged over fifty years providing secondary care in thirteen hospitals across Slovenia. To do that we used a standardised instrument known as work ability index (WAI). Mean WAI was 36.98±6.46 and median 38. WAI was not associated with age (Spearman’s ρ=-0.034, p=0.475). Total WAI score strongly correlated with the 1st item of the WAI questionnaire “current work ability” (ρ=0.726, p<0.001). Higher WAI scores were also associated with academic education, full-time employment, and working in a single (morning) or three shifts. Our WAI findings in nurses over fifty call for systemic changes in the nursing environment to maintain good work ability among nurses until the retirement age and beyond.Izvajalci zdravstvene nege z zmanjšano delovno zmožnostjo so bolj dovzetni za negativne vplive delovnega okolja ter podvrženi tveganju za bolniško odsotnost, invalidnost in predčasno upokojevanje. Namen raziskave je oceniti delovno zmožnost izvajalcev zdravstvene nege starih 50 let in več, zaposlenih v hospitalni dejavnosti v Sloveniji, s ciljem raziskati povezavo med oceno delovne zmožnosti in trenutno delovno zmožnostjo ter demografskimi dejavniki. V raziskavi, ki je potekala od aprila do decembra 2016 je sodelovalo 433 izvajalcev zdravstvene nege 50 let in več, iz 13 bolnišnic na sekundarnem nivoju v Sloveniji. Uporabljen je standardiziran merski instrument za merjenje delovne zmožnosti (WAI), kratke verzije. Izračunana aritmetična srednja vrednost WAI je znašala 36,98±6,46 ter mediana 38. Ob predpostavki p=0.05 je bilo ugotovljeno, da starost in WAI nista povezani (ρ= - 0.034, p=0.475). Izkazalo se je, da sta oceni WAI in »trenutna delovna zmožnost« močno pozitivno povezani (ρ=0,726, p<0.001). Demografske spremenljivke kot so višja izobrazba, polni delovni čas, enoizmenski ali triizmenski turnus so v naši raziskavi povezane z višjo oceno WAI. Izračunani WAI pri medicinskih sestrah, starejših od petdeset let, kaže na potrebo po sistemskih spremembah v okolju zdravstvene nege, tako da da bodo zaposleni v zdravstveni negi lahko ohranjali dobro delovno sposobnost vse do upokojitvene starosti in dlje

The normal state resistivity of CaTh- and La-doped Y(Nd)-123 superconductors in the bipolaron model

Polycrystalline samples of Y1-2xCaxThxBa2Cu3O7-δ (with 0.00 ≤x ≤ 0.075) and NdBa2-xLaxCu3O7-δ (with 0.0≤x≤ 0.30) were prepared by the standard solid state method. The transport and superconducting properties have been studied by the resistivity measurements as a function of temperature and doping concentration. Data of resistivity as a function of temperature was analyzed in terms of the bipolaran model. The model well described resistivity data up to near the critical temperature. Obtained results suggested that the hole localization is the main reason for superconducting suppression in the charge neutral doped cuprates and the La doped Nd-123 in addition charge filling