Anthropological Study of Kerman Carpet Symbols, Shapes and Designs

Different traditional Iranian art forms can be known as a single semantic recreation in different forms. All of them imply some shared concepts which are a mix of Persian and Islamic beliefs. These arts have a symbolic tone and the artist speaks through its art using the appropriate allegorical tools. In this field the Kerman carpet should be known as an excellent manifestation of symbols and mysterious designs that are eloquently implemented on the carpet. The purpose of this study is the anthropological analysis of the symbols, designs and patters used in the Kerman carpet as well as the analysis on the Kermanian people's beliefs based on those designs and symbols.The research method used here is the Qualitative type and in the form of ethnographic, and also the information are collected using interview-participation and documents.The theoretical framework of this study is based on the Clifford Geertz’s Symbolic-Interpretive Anthropology Approach theory. The findings of this study show that the Kerman carpet alongside its beauty and charm includes meaningful designs and patters and these designs and symbols are derived from the geographical-cultural and social area and are connected with the everyday life, traditions and beliefs of the people of their area. Keywords: Anthropology, Symbol, Shape, Design, Kerman Carpet. DOI: 10.7176/RHSS/11-9-01 Publication date:May 31st 202

Nanomaterials for Cardiovascular Engineering

Cardiovascular diseases and disorders (i.e., those related to heart and blood vessels) are the main reasons for mortality worldwide. Nanomaterials, with their unique morphologies and properties, have a great potential for advancing cardiovascular engineering to treat diseases and disorders. In this dissertation, several cardiovascular applications of conductive nanomaterials were investigated. First, a conductive nanomaterial was explored to fabricate biohybrid nanomaterial-cardiomyocyte (CM – heart muscle cell) systems. Using Carbon Nanotube (CNT) forest as a 3D porous and conductive scaffold was investigated. The influence of the CNT forest on the viability, attachment, and spreading of CMs and their genetic information was studied via live-dead staining, fluorescence microscopy, and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). The developed scaffolds are cytocompatible, as evidenced by live-dead staining and PrestoBlue cell viability assay. Moreover, the scaffolds do not adversely affect the expression of genes related to CMs’ maturation and functionality. CMs formed a 3D network on a gelatin-coated CNT forest, forming a 3D conductive biohybrid actuating system. The developed 3D nano-biohybrid systems can be used for applications ranging from monitoring of cell function in organ-on-a-chip systems to muscle actuators for biorobots. Second, electrical stimulation in conjunction with nanomaterial scaffolds was utilized to mature CMs. A customized 3D-printed electrical stimulation setup with the capability to apply biologically relevant electrical signals to CMs was developed. The qPCR results for the expression of cardiac genes relevant to maturity and function were quantified for cells and different scaffolds. The results showed that the setup is capable of mimicking in vivo cues for in vitro cell and tissue models to make them more suitable for cardiac regeneration and disease/drug testing applications. Third, nanomaterials were exploited to develop bending actuators with the potential to be integrated with medical devices. For example, bending guidewires in tortuous vasculatures is critically important for therapeutic applications of catheters in the human body. The developed actuator showed reasonable bending and promising results for cardiovascular applications. The overall impact of this Ph.D. dissertation ranges from areas of tissue engineering to robotics and cardiovascular medical devices

Microbial quality assessment of disposal effluent and sludge from four decentralized wastewater

Background and Aims: Lack of adequate supervision on the quality of disposal effluent and sludge from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPS) caused to their discharge by many pollutants into the environment.This study aimed to assess the microbial quality of disposal effluent and waste sludge from decentralized WWTPS in Tehran.Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed in 12 months on disposal effluent and sludge from 4 decentralized WWTPS in Tehran city. Random sampling was conducted at a monthly period. The microbial quality of disposal effluent and waste sludge were compared with the guidelines of Iranian, and United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), respectively.Results: Effluent and sludge output from these plants typically were used for agricultural purposes. None of the samples of effluent meet Iranian environmental standards. Microbial quality of waste sludge from Shahrak Gharb and Ekbatan WWTPS were higher than class B of USEPA guidelines but, waste sludge from Gheitarieh and Shoosh WWTPS meet this index.Conclusion: At the present time, reuse of effluent and waste sludge from decentralized WWTPS in Tehran city were performed without any health considerations. This is a serious threat to public health; hence, executive and regulatory agencies must take action corrective measures and controls necessary in this regard as soon as possible.Key words: : Microbial quality, effluent, sludge, wastewater treatment plants, Tehran cit

Virulence factor diversity between imipenem resistant and imipenem susceptible strains of Escherichia coli isolated from hospitalized patients with severe urinary tract infections

From a clinical perspective, it is imperative to discern the differences in the distribution of virulence factors between imipenem resistant and imipenem susceptible strains of uropathogenic Escherichia coli isolated from hospitalized patients. The present study was carried out to find this purpose. One-hundred and sixty urine specimens of children and seniors were collected from the Educational Hospital of Tehran, Iran. The urine samples were cultured immediately and those that were E. coli-positive were analyzed for the antimicrobial susceptibility pattern against imipenem using disk diffusion method. Imipenem resistant and imipenem susceptible strains were analyzed for the presence of sfa, afa, pap, hly, cnf 1 and fim virulence factors using the PCR technique. Fifty out of 70 (71.42) children urines and 55 out of 90 (61.11) seniors urine samples harbored E. coli. The incidence of resistance against imipenem in children and seniors were 6 and 9.09, respectively. In the other hand, 99.39 of tested strains were susceptible to imipenem. Total prevalence of pap, cnf 1, hly, sfa, afa and fim genes in the imipenem resistant strains were 12.5 25, 50, 75, 62.5 and 25, respectively. Prevalence of the sfa, afa and hly genes was lower in the imipenem susceptible strains of E. coli, while the pap, cnf 1 and fim genes was entirely higher in the imipenem susceptible strains. This finding suggests that imipenem resistance could be directly associated with decreased prevalence of pap, cnf 1 and fim virulent genes. However, the findings of the present study are novel and valuable but more courtesy studies are necessary to authorize them

Luteinizing hormone changes in gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist protocol in in vitro fertilization cycles: A cross-sectional study

Background: Because of the unexpected and often dramatic inhibition of luteinizing hormone (LH) secretion related with the usage of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH)-antagonist, there has been a probable need for exogenous LH supplementation. There is a basic and clinical evidences that show late development of follicle needs an LH but there is a threshold for LH requirements during folliculogenesis.Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the changes in serum LH and the identification of patients who benefit from the addition of LH.Materials and Methods: Seventy volunteers for antagonist protocol in IVF cycle were enrolled in this prospective cross-sectional study. The study was carried out in Reproductive Health Research Center, University of Medical Sciences between July 2016 and February 2016. Serum LH level was estimated 24 h before and after the first(GnRH) antagonist injection. The primary outcome was the serum level of LH and its change in the three groups and the secondary outcome was Egg and Embryo quality.Results: LH changes above or below 50% had no effect on the number of follicle, the number of oocyte, Germinal vesicle oocyte, metaphase 1 oocyte, metaphase 2 oocyte, endometrial thickness, and chemical and clinical pregnancy.Conclusion: We evaluated the changes of serum LH in the patients who were entered in the antagonist protocol. Our study showed no significant difference in LH levels 24h before and after the injection of the antagonist between the three groups, and LH changes did not affect the outcome of pregnancy

Conductive 3D nano-biohybrid systems based on densified carbon nanotube forests and living cells

Conductive biohybrid cell-material systems have applications in bioelectronics and biorobotics. To date, conductive scaffolds are limited to those with low electrical conductivity or 2D sheets. Here, 3D biohybrid conductive systems are developed using fibroblasts or cardiomyocytes integrated with carbon nanotube (CNT) forests that are densified due to interactions with a gelatin coating. CNT forest scaffolds with a height range of 120–240 µm and an average electrical conductivity of 0.6 S/cm are developed and shown to be cytocompatible as evidenced from greater than 89% viability measured by live-dead assay on both cells on day 1. The cells spread on top and along the height of the CNT forest scaffolds. Finally, the scaffolds have no adverse effects on the expression of genes related to cardiomyocyte maturation and functionality, or fibroblast migration, adhesion, and spreading. The results show that the scaffold could be used in applications ranging from organ-on-a-chip systems to muscle actuators. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.

Frequency of IL-10+CD19+ B cells in patients with prostate cancer compared to patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia

Background: The function of the immune system in prostate cancer (PC) might promote carcinogenesis. PC is a common cancer in men. Regulatory B cells (Bregs) are a new subtype of B cells that have suppressive roles in the immune system. Interleukin-10 (IL-10) is a dominant mediator of immune suppression released by Bregs. Objective: The purpose of this research was to examine the frequency of CD19+IL10+ B cells and IL-10 mRNA expression in patients with PC compared to patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Methods: Forty paraffin tissue samples from patients with PC and 32 paraffin tissue samples from patients with BPH were entered in this study. The immunohistochemistry staining was used to evaluate the pattern expression of CD19 and IL-10 markers. IL-10 mRNA expression in fresh tissue was determined by real time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Results: The frequency of CD19+IL-10+ B cells and IL-10 mRNA expression in PC patients were significantly higher than patients with BPH. Also, there was no meaningful relationship between the frequency of IL-10+CD19+ B cells and gleason scores in patients with PC. Conclusions: Our findings suggested that frequency of IL-10+CD19+ B cells correlates with progressive stage of PC

Frequency of IL-10+CD19+ B cells in patients with prostate cancer compared to patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia

Background: The function of the immune system in prostate cancer (PC) might promote carcinogenesis. PC is a common cancer in men. Regulatory B cells (Bregs) are a new subtype of B cells that have suppressive roles in the immune system. Interleukin-10 (IL-10) is a dominant mediator of immune suppression released by Bregs. Objective: The purpose of this research was to examine the frequency of CD19+IL10+ B cells and IL-10 mRNA expression in patients with PC compared to patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Methods: Forty paraffin tissue samples from patients with PC and 32 paraffin tissue samples from patients with BPH were entered in this study. The immunohistochemistry staining was used to evaluate the pattern expression of CD19 and IL-10 markers. IL-10 mRNA expression in fresh tissue was determined by real time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Results: The frequency of CD19+IL-10+ B cells and IL-10 mRNA expression in PC patients were significantly higher than patients with BPH. Also, there was no meaningful relationship between the frequency of IL-10+CD19+ B cells and gleason scores in patients with PC. Conclusions: Our findings suggested that frequency of IL-10+CD19+ B cells correlates with progressive stage of PC

Tracking of chloramphenicol, erythromycin, and sulfamethoxazole antibiotic-resistant bacteria from untreated wastewater effluents to receiving river

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency and type of bacteria resistant to chloramphenicol (CHL), erythromycin (E), and sulfamethoxazole (SXT) antibiotics from untreated wastewater effluents to receiving river. Methods: In total, 32 samples were taken from eight sites located in the raw wastewater to the downstream of the receiving Ghotor river in Khoy city. Resistant microorganisms were studied through modified HPC method and CLSI standards. Different and specific colonies were selected and re-cultured in R2A culture medium and enough colonies were used for DNA extraction. Bacterial 16sr RNA target gene was amplified and sequenced. Pseudomonas sp., Comamonas sp., and Thiobacillus sp. were predominant bacterial species identified in water samples. Also, antibiotic-resistant genes (ARGs) including sul1, ermB, and cmlA1 were tracked by PCR. Results: The average total number of antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) increased in the downstream (2.4×102 to 2.6×104 CFU/100 mL). The comparison of the results related to the river’s upstream and downstream also indicated a significant difference between ARB and ARGs contents (P<0.05). The average number of bacteria resistant to SXT, E, and CHL antibiotics was obtained to be 2.3×104, 2.3×104, and 3.4×104 CFU/mL, respectively. Finally, the evaluation of water revealed that only the aeration lagoon was able to decline the number of CHL-resistant bacteria (88.9%) while this process increased the number of SXT- (51%) and E- (16%) resistant bacteria. The lowest and highest percentages of the identified genes were related to ermB (12.5%) and sul1 (81.25%), respectively. Conclusion: According to the results, wastewaters play an important role in releasing ARB and their antibiotic resistance genes to downstream of Ghotor rivers in Khoy city. Keywords: Heterotrophic bacteria, Sulfamethoxazole, Chloramphenicol, Erythromycin, Polymerase chain reaction, Wastewater, River

Mapping 123 million neonatal, infant and child deaths between 2000 and 2017

Since 2000, many countries have achieved considerable success in improving child survival, but localized progress remains unclear. To inform efforts towards United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3.2—to end preventable child deaths by 2030—we need consistently estimated data at the subnational level regarding child mortality rates and trends. Here we quantified, for the period 2000–2017, the subnational variation in mortality rates and number of deaths of neonates, infants and children under 5 years of age within 99 low- and middle-income countries using a geostatistical survival model. We estimated that 32% of children under 5 in these countries lived in districts that had attained rates of 25 or fewer child deaths per 1,000 live births by 2017, and that 58% of child deaths between 2000 and 2017 in these countries could have been averted in the absence of geographical inequality. This study enables the identification of high-mortality clusters, patterns of progress and geographical inequalities to inform appropriate investments and implementations that will help to improve the health of all populations