Docetaxel Enhances the Expression of STING Protein in PC3 Cells, and cGAMP Attenuates this Effect

Background: The stimulator of interferon genes (STING) agonist (cGAMP) kills the cancer cells through the activation of the innate immune system. PC3 cells are high in BTK and low in STING. In this study, the effect of adding STING agonist, cGAMP, to docetaxel investigated. Materials and Methods: PC3 cells were treated with docetaxel, cGAMP, and a combination of the docetaxel and cGAMP. Cell toxicity was evaluated by MTT assay, and changes of STING, IRF3, BTK, and DDX41 genes’ expression were quantified by the real-time PCR. STING protein was also detected by Western blotting. Results: The IC50 of docetaxel was 31.1 nM, and cGAMP did not change it significantly but decreased docetaxel toxicity about 30%. Docetaxel increased IRF3, BTK, and DDX41 gene expression significantly, and STING protein about 5 folds. By adding cGAMP to docetaxel STING, IRF3, and BTK, expression decreased several folds. Conclusion: In this in vitro study, cGAMP potentiated docetaxel’s effects and alleviated it

Oropharyngeal candidiasis and resistance to antifungal drugs in patients receiving radiation for head and neck cancer

BACKGROUND: Oropharyngeal candidiasis is a common infection in patient receiving radiotherapy for head and neck cancer. Accurate and rapid identification of candida species is very important in clinical laboratory, because the incidence of candidiasis continues to rise after radiotherapy. The genus Candida has about 154 species that show different level of resistance to antifungal drugs and have high degree of phenotypic similarity. The aim of this study was to investigate oral yeast colonization and infection and resistance to antifungal drugs in these patients. METHODS: Thirty patients receiving a 6-week course of radiation therapy for treatment of head and neck cancer at the Oncology Unit in Shafa Hospital, in 2008, were enrolled in the study. Specimens from patients were cultured weekly for Candida. All isolates were plated on CHROM agar and RPMI-based medium. They were subcultured and submitted for antifungal susceptibility testing (nystatin, fluconazole, clotrimazole and ketoconazole) and molecular typing. RESULTS: Infection (clinical and microbiological evidence) occurred in 50% of the patients and Candida colonization (only microbiological evidence) occurred in 70% of subjects in the first week. Candida albicans alone was isolated in 94.9% of patient visits with positive cultures. Candida tropicalis was isolated from 5.1% of patient visits with positive cultures. All isolates were susceptible to nystatin, but did not respond to the other antifungal drugs CONCLUSIONS: The irradiation-induced changes of the intraoral environment such as xerostomia lead to increased intraoral colonization by Candida species. All yeast isolates were susceptible to nystatin. Thus prophylactic therapy with nystatin should be considered for these patients. KEY WORDS: Oropharyngeal candidiasis, radiation, colonization, antifungal drugs, cance

An Epidemiological Survey of Tongue Lesions in the Oral Pathology Department of Khorasgan Dental School From 2010 to 2020

Background and aims: Many pathologic conditions can affect the tongue and their pattern of occurrence may differ. The objective of this study was the epidemiological survey of tongue lesions reported in a 10-year period in the Oral Pathology Department of Khorasgan Dental School. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 800 biopsy records were retrieved from the archives of the Oral Pathology Department of Khorasgan Dental School and examined. Moreover, the prevalence of lesions was investigated in terms of age and gender using descriptive statistics. Results: The prevalence of lesions analyzed in the present study was 4.37. About 71.42 of the participants were female and 28.58 were male. Irritation fibroma had the highest frequency (20). The most frequent lesion among women was lichen planus with a prevalence of 20 and the most frequent lesion among men was irritation fibroma with a prevalence of 30. The highest frequency was observed in the age group of 21-30 years. Squamous papilloma, lichen planus, and irritation fibroma were the most common lesions with a prevalence of 25. No lesion was detected in people aged 1-10 years. Conclusion: In the present study, reactive lesions were the most prevalent tongue lesions. According to the findings, changing the lifestyle and observing oral hygiene seem to help prevent these lesions to a large extent

Application of Balanced Scorecard (BSC) in Evaluating the Performance of Health Care Providers: A Review

Background: As a comprehensive approach to assessing the performance of hospitals, Balanced Scorecard methodology is a tool to transform the organization's mission into concrete measurable objectives, activities and performance. Methodology: The present study is a systematic review conducted via searching in different sites, such as: Magiran, Irandoc, Google Scholar, Iranmedex. Several studies on the balanced scorecard have been done in different organization. In this study, we chose the articles aiming to assess the health care and hospital using BSC. Then their subjects were compared with the present study, and then the related studies were briefly mentioned. Finding: Based on the results of studies in this area, the main purpose of using the balanced scorecard can be used in studies such as the ability to update the strategy, the establishment of the strategy throughout the organization, coordination unit and individual goals of the strategy, linking strategic objectives to long-term goals and annual budget through performance measures, assessment of performance for learning and improvement strategies. Results: The results of this study showed that combining models is a way for assessing function and increasing the satisfaction and commitment. And the balanced scorecard is recommended as a model that can help increase efficiency and better evaluation of the performance

Assessing the levels of livability in informal settlements (Case study: Falahat neighborhood, Urmia city)

Objective: Informal settlements face many problems due to lack of proper planning, as they suffer from low service per capita and do not have space to spend their free time. The main purpose of this study is to assess the mental perception of people about the state of living needs and in general the levels of livability in Falahat neighborhood. This neighborhood has poor living conditions due to being marginalized. Methods: The research method is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive-analytical in nature, which has been collected in the form of documents and field surveys. livability criterias in this study include social, economic and physical and environmental. The statistical population of this study is the residents of Falahat neighborhood of Urmia, which according to the health care center statistics in 1397, has a population of 15,000 people. The Cochran's formula was used for sampling and the sample size is 374, which was randomly distributed. Data analysis was performed quantitatively through statistical methods (one-sample t-test and Friedman test). The validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by experts and the reliability of the questionnaire was confirmed by Cronbach's alpha test with a value of 0.732. Results: Findings show that in the social dimension of the three indicators of medical and health considerations and care, personal and social security and participation and solidarity, in the economic dimension of the index of consumer goods and in the physical and environmental dimensions of the facilities and services of infrastructure, pollution and environmental health, Landscape, green space and wasteland have a moderate level of livability. Also, social, economic, physical and environmental dimensions have the same ranking. Conclusion: The results of the research show that the livability of Falahat neighborhood in Urmia is at a moderate level according to the three dimensions of social, economic and physical and environmental, which requires the adoption of empowerment strategies

Primjena D-optimalnog dizajna za poboljšanje fizikalnih i senzorskih svojstava pljeskavica sa smanjenim udjelom masnoća, izrađenih od goveđeg mesa uz dodatak inulina, β-glukana i biljnih ulja

In this study, the D-optimal mixture design methodology was applied to determine the optimised proportions of inulin, β-glucan and breadcrumbs in formulation of low-fat beef burgers containing pre-emulsified canola and olive oil blend. Also, the effect of each of the ingredients individually as well as their interactions on cooking characteristics, texture, colour and sensory properties of low-fat beef burgers were investigated. The results of this study revealed that the increase of inulin content in the formulations of burgers led to lower cooking yield, moisture retention and increased lightness, overall acceptability, mouldability and desired textural parameters. In contrast, incorporation of β-glucan increased the cooking yield, moisture retention and decreased lightness, overall acceptability, mouldability and desired textural parameters of burger patt ies. The interaction between inulin and β-glucan improved the cooking characteristics of the burgers without significantly negative effect on the colour or sensory properties. The results of the study clearly stated that the optimum mixture for the burger formulation consisted of (in g per 100 g): inulin 3.1, β-glucan 2.2 and breadcrumbs 2.7. The texture parameters and cooking characteristics were improved by using the mixture of inulin, β-glucan and breadcrumbs, without any negative effects on the sensory properties of the burgers.U ovom je radu pomoću D-optimalnog dizajna određen optimalan omjer inulina, β-glukana i krušnih mrvica u smjesi za pljeskavice kojoj je prethodno dodana mješavina repičinog i maslinovog ulja. Osim toga, ispitan je pojedinačan i zbirni učinak sastojaka na kalo kuhanja, teksturu, boju i senzorska svojstva pljeskavica sa smanjenim udjelom masnoća. Rezultati pokazuju da se povećanjem udjela inulina povećao kalo kuhanja, smanjilo zadržavanje vlage, a dobivene su pljeskavice dobre teksture, svjetlije boje, koje se lako oblikuju te nakon pečenja postižu bolje senzorske ocjene. Interakcijom inulina i β-glukana poboljšana su svojstva pljeskavica tijekom pečenja, bez negativnog učinka na boju i senzorske osobine. Optimalna smjesa za izradu pljeskavica dobivena je dodatkom 3,1 g inulina, 2,2 g β-glukana i 2,7 g krušnih mrvica. Tekstura pljeskavica te njihova svojstva tijekom pečenja bitno su poboljšana dodatkom inulina, β-glukana i krušnih mrvica, pri čemu se senzorske ocjene nisu smanjile

Differential regulatory effects of chemotherapeutic protocol on CCL3_CCL4_CCL5/CCR5 axes in acute myeloid leukemia patients with monocytic lineage

Aims AML (Acute myeloid leukemia) is characterized as a heterogeneous cancer. Chemokines play fundamental roles in the onset, progression cellular, migration, survival and improvement of AML therapy outcomes. The CCR5 receptors together with their ligands have indirect effects on the progression of cancer. In the present study, we have decided to investigate the impact of chemotherapy on the expression of CCR5 and its related ligands (CCL5, CCL4 and CCL3). Main methods In this study, peripheral blood and bone marrow specimens were collected prior and post the first stage of (7 + 3) chemotherapy from 25 AML-M4/M5 patients. The expression of CCR by Lymphocytes in peripheral blood was examined by flow cytometry and QRT-PCR. The serum levels of chemokines were measured by ELISA. Key findings There was not observed leukemic blast cells in peripheral blood smear at post first stage of chemotherapy. We found that the expression of CCR5 was attenuated in patients post the first stage of chemotherapy and the healthy control subjects. We have also observed that the serum levels of chemokines were elevated in AML patients prior to chemotherapy. Although in post-chemotherapy stage, only CCL3 was found to reach to the baseline level, CCL5 and CCL4 have not returned to the basal level and were significantly higher than healthy control subjects. Significance The current chemotherapy protocol was not able to completely inhibit CCL5 and CCL4. In conclusion, our findings in harmony with previous studies suggest that inhibition of chemokines along with chemotherapy in AML patients may aid therapy Keywords:Acute myeloid leukemiaChemotherapyChemokineCCL5CCL4CCL

Epidemiology Study And Methods Of Suicide Under The Age Of 18 Years During 2010-2020 In Tehran Province

Background: Type of suicide is determined by various factors such as accessibility to drugs, economic problems and psychological disorders. Objective: This study aimed to assess the epidemiology of suicide death, autopsy and effective factors in children<18 years. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study carried out on 350 autopsy bodies less than 18 years of age in Tehran Forensic Medicine Center during 2010-2020 who had struggled with suicide. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 18. Results: Mean age of children was 16.36±1.76 years. The most common method in children less than 15 years and over 15 years was hanging (n=36) and poisoning with chemical substance (n=139), respectively (p<0.001). The most common method of the suicide was poisoning with chemical substance (n=147, 42%). The most common method of suicide in girls and boys was poisoning with chemical substance (n=81) and hanging (n=75), respectively. The highest number of children struggled with were residents in the outskirt of Tehran (n=113, 32.5%). Suicide rate in people with depressive disorder and tentative injury was 10% (n=35) and 18.6% (n=65). In 13 patients, vitreous humor alcohol was positive (mean alcohol: 60.61±43.03 mg/dl).  The most common toxin observed in toxicology was rice tablet or aluminum phosphide (n=90, 25.7%). Regarding drug toxicity in toxicology, 52.6% (n=86) was not positive. Opium was found 7.4% of cases (n=26). Conclusion: The suicide rate has been on the rise during the past ten years through hanging and poisoning with chemical substance such as aluminum phosphide, opium and tricyclic antidepressants especially in outskirts

An analysis of the prioritization of indicators of a child-friendly city (Case study: 5 regions of Urmia)

Introduction: The main purpose of this study is an analysis of the prioritization of indicators of a child-friendly city in the five regions of Urmia to review strategies for improving the situation of each region by examining the indicators of a child-friendly city and ranking the regions of this city.Data and Method: The research method of the present study is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive-analytical in nature. The statistical population of this study is the residents of 5 regions of Urmia. To determine the sample size, Cochran's formula was used. The sample size was 384, which was randomly distributed in the range. The criteria studied in this study include physical, access, socio-cultural and environmental criteria. Data analysis has been done quantitatively and qualitatively. One-sample t-test, Kruskal-Wallis, Spearman correlation, and THIESSEN and OPA method were used to analyze the data. The validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by experts and its reliability was confirmed by Cronbach's alpha test with a value of 0.790.Results: The findings of this study indicate that based on field data and the child-friendly city criteria questionnaire, Urmia Region 1 is ranked first and Urmia Region 2 is ranked fifth among other regions. The results of the Spearman correlation test indicate that the physical criterion has the greatest impact on a child-friendly city.Conclusion: The results of this study indicate that the city of Urmia is at a moderate level in terms of the feasibility of the criteria of a child-friendly city and needs the attention of urban management to improve the situation in regions 2 and 3 of Urmia

Mortality due to H1N1 Influenza in Cases Registered at the Autopsy Halls of Kahrizak, Tehran

H1N1 swine flu is an acute disease that infects the upper respiratory tract and can cause inflammation of the upper respiratory tract, trachea, and possibly the lower respiratory tract. The known course for H1N1 swine flu is varied from one to four days, on average for most people about two days, but in some cases, it can be up to seven day