Imipenem resistance in clinical Escherichia coli from Qom, Iran

OBJECTIVE: The emergence of metallo-\u3b2-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae is a worldwide health concern. In this study, the first evaluation of MBL genes, bla IMP and bla VIM , in Escherichia coli resistant to imipenem isolated from urine and blood specimens in Qom, Iran is described. Three hundred urine and blood specimens were analysed to detect the presence of E. coli. Resistance to imipenem and other antimicrobials was determined by disk diffusion and MIC. MBL production was screened using CDDT. PCR was also carried out to determine the presence of bla IMP and bla VIM genes in imipenem-resistant isolates. RESULTS: In total, 160 E. coli isolates were collected from March to May 2016. According to disk diffusion, high-level of resistance (20%) to cefotaxime was observed, whereas the lowest (1%) was detected for tetracycline. In addition, five isolates showed resistance to imipenem with a MIC\u2009 65\u20094 \ub5g/mL. CDDT test confirmed that five isolates were MBL-producing strains, but no bla IMP and bla VIM genes were detected. Results of this study show a very low level of resistance to imipenem in our geographical area

Sound-Induced Flash Illusion is Resistant to Feedback Training

A single flash accompanied by two auditory beeps tends to be perceived as two flashes (Shams et al. Nature 408:788, 2000, Cogn Brain Res 14:147–152, 2002). This phenomenon is known as ‘sound-induced flash illusion.’ Previous neuroimaging studies have shown that this illusion is correlated with modulation of activity in early visual cortical areas (Arden et al. Vision Res 43(23):2469–2478, 2003; Bhattacharya et al. NeuroReport 13:1727–1730, 2002; Shams et al. NeuroReport 12(17):3849–3852, 2001, Neurosci Lett 378(2):76–81, 2005; Watkins et al. Neuroimage 31:1247–1256, 2006, Neuroimage 37:572–578, 2007; Mishra et al. J Neurosci 27(15):4120–4131, 2007). We examined how robust the illusion is by testing whether the frequency of the illusion can be reduced by providing feedback. We found that the sound-induced flash illusion was resistant to feedback training, except when the amount of monetary reward was made dependent on accuracy in performance. However, even in the latter case the participants reported that they still perceived illusory two flashes even though they correctly reported single flash. Moreover, the feedback training effect seemed to disappear once the participants were no longer provided with feedback suggesting a short-lived refinement of discrimination between illusory and physical double flashes rather than vanishing of the illusory percept. These findings indicate that the effect of sound on the perceptual representation of visual stimuli is strong and robust to feedback training, and provide further evidence against decision factors accounting for the sound-induced flash illusion

Analysis and Design of Stiffened Slab Foundations on Reactive Soils using 3D Numerical Modelling

Sophisticated three dimensional (3D) hydro-mechanical finite element (FE) models are developed to address the major shortcomings of the current design methods of stiffened slab foundations on reactive soils. The models simulate the complex shrink-swell responses of unsaturated soils, by incorporating a coupled flow-deformation and stress analysis. The models are used to perform an extensive parametric study whose outputs are compiled in the form of design equations, which serve as a new, standalone design method

The Availability Heuristic in Judgments of Research Findings: Manipulations of Subjective Experience

Previous studies have demonstrated that what is easy to call to mind will influence judgments. The impact of a person\u27s subjective experience was tested for its influence on judgments of social psychological research findings. Eighty three college students generated examples of 40 research findings. Students subsequently judged the ease with which the examples came to mind and the probability of experiencing similar examples. Students then evaluated the obviousness and importance of and their interest in the research outcomes. Students also provided demographic information and indicated their previous knowledge in psychology. In the current study, the ease with which examples of research findings could be recalled influenced student\u27s obviousness but not importance judgments. Other studies found that obviousness and importance judgments of research findings are positively related. The relationship between these judgments was not replicated in the current study. Results are discussed in terms of the availability heuristic and other cognitive strategies involved in lay judgments of research

A Functional Programming Language with Patterns and Copatterns

Since the emergence of coinductive data types in functional programming languages, various languages such as Haskell and Coq tried different ways in dealing with them. Yet, none of them dealt with coinductive data types properly. In lazy languages such as Haskell, both inductive data types and coinductive data types are gathered and mixed in one list. Moreover, some languages such as Coq used the same constructors that are used for inductive data types as a tool to tackle coinductive data types, and while other languages such as Haskell did use destructors, they did not use them properly. Coinductive data types behave differently than inductive data types and therefore, it is more appropriate to deal with them differently. In this thesis, we propose a new functional programming language where coinductive data types are dealt with in a dual approach in which coinductive data types are defined by observation and inductive data types are defined by constructors. This approach is more appropriate in dealing with coinductive data types whose importance comes from their role in creating a safer and more sophisticated software

PRP and BMAC for Musculoskeletal Conditions via Biomaterial Carriers.

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC) are orthobiologic therapies considered as an alternative to the current therapies for muscle, bone and cartilage. Different formulations of biomaterials have been used as carriers for PRP and BMAC in order to increase regenerative processes. The most common biomaterials utilized in conjunction with PRP and BMAC clinical trials are organic scaffolds and natural or synthetic polymers. This review will cover the combinatorial strategies of biomaterial carriers with PRP and BMAC for musculoskeletal conditions (MsCs) repair and regeneration in clinical trials. The main objective is to review the therapeutic use of PRP and BMAC as a treatment option for muscle, bone and cartilage injuries

Band-edge Bilayer Plasmonic Nanostructure for Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy

Spectroscopic analysis of large biomolecules is critical in a number of applications, including medical diagnostics and label-free biosensing. Recently, it has been shown that Raman spectroscopy of proteins can be used to diagnose some diseases, including a few types of cancer. These experiments have however been performed using traditional Raman spectroscopy and the development of the Surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) assays suitable for large biomolecules could lead to a substantial decrease in the amount of specimen necessary for these experiments. We present a new method to achieve high local field enhancement in surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy through the simultaneous adjustment of the lattice plasmons and localized surface plasmon polaritons, in a periodic bilayer nanoantenna array resulting in a high enhancement factor over the sensing area, with relatively high uniformity. The proposed plasmonic nanostructure is comprised of two interacting nanoantenna layers, providing a sharp band-edge lattice plasmon mode and a wide-band localized surface plasmon for the separate enhancement of the pump and emitted Raman signals. We demonstrate the application of the proposed nanostructure for the spectral analysis of large biomolecules by binding a protein (streptavidin) selectively on the hot-spots between the two stacked layers, using a low concentration solution (100 nM) and we successfully acquire its SERS spectrum