Stapes Management in Tympanosclerosis

Background: Stapes management in tympanosclerosis has always been controversial. There are evidences supporting stapes mobilization, but there are concerns regarding refixation and recurrence of conductive hearing loss; therefore, supporting stapedectomy.Methods: In this retrospective study, clinical records, operative notes, and audiologic data of patients with stapes fixation (1994–2011) were analyzed. Audiometric findings are reported according to the recommendations of the Committee on Hearing and Equilibrium 1995 Guidelines for the Evaluation of Results of Treatment of Conductive Hearing Loss.Results: In the present study, 66 patients were enrolled (23 male, 43 female). Stapedectomy and stapes mobilization both had good hearing results (12.1 dB vs. 10.6 dB reduction in ABG) and there was no significant difference. Overall, 63.6% of patients had achieved good results (mobilization: 57.9%, stapedectomy: 71.4%). The difference in success rate between the two groups was not statistically significant.Conclusions: Stapedectomy and mobilization of stapes both seem to be efficacious and safe in the treatment of stapes involvement in tympanosclerosis. The hearing improvement is long lasting in both procedures

The Effect of Different Types of Coating and Packaging on the Physical Properties of Persimmon Fruit under Load

Since persimmon is a pressure-sensitive fruit and it is difficult to store this fruit in warehouses, in this research, an attempt has been made to examine the parameters affecting the reduction of changes in its physical properties. The samples were loaded at 150 and 250 N, three types of foam container packaging with polyolefin film, polyethylene-terephthalate, and ordinary box, and four types of polyamine putrescine coating with concentrations of 1 and 2 mM, distilled water and uncoated. Properties such as Physiological Weight Loss, volume, and the density of persimmon fruit, as well as the firmness of this fruit in the prepost-storage stage were examined. The results showed, the highest firmness was obtained in the treatment of putrescine at a concentration of 1 mM and a foam container with polyethylene film with a value of 6.5 N, which was almost three times the firmness of uncoated fruits. The lowest Physiological Weight Loss, volume, and density were obtained in the same type of coating and packaging. The values of these parameters were 2.458%, 1.82, and 0.833%, respectively, compared to the first day of storage. Overall, the use of polyamine treatment showed a significant effect on changes in the physical properties of persimmon fruit, and foam containers with polyolefin film emerged as the optimal packaging option, resulting in the least amount of change among the different types of packaging used

Marker-Assisted Selection for Recognizing Wheat Mutant Genotypes Carrying HMW Glutenin Alleles Related to Baking Quality

Allelic diversity of HMW glutenin loci in several studies revealed that allelic combinations affect dough quality. Dx5 + Dy10 subunits are related to good baking quality and Dx2 + Dy12 are related to undesirable baking quality. One of the most regular methods to evaluate the baking quality is SDS-PAGE which is used to improve baking quality labs. Marker-assisted selection is the method which can recognize the alleles related to baking quality and this method is based on polymerase chain reaction. 10 pairs of specific primers related to Dx2, Dx2.1, Dx5, Dy10, and Dy12 subunits were used for recognizing baking quality of some wheat varieties and some mutant genotypes. Only 5 pairs of them could show the specific bands. All subunits were recognized by the primers except Dx2.1. Some of the primers were extracted from previous studies and the others were designed based on D genome subunits of wheat. SDS-PAGE method accomplished having confidence in these marker’s results. To realize the effect of mutation, seed storage proteins were measured. It showed that mutation had effect on the amount of seed storage protein on the mutant seeds (which showed polymorphism)

Development of a front-end electronics for an innovative monitor chamber for high-intensity charged particle beams

A multi-gap ionization monitor chamber has been developed by INFN and Torino University, for monitoring of high intensity pulsed charged particle beams. The read-out of the chamber is based on a 64-channel ASIC, designed in CMOS 0.35μm technology which features for each channel an independent current-to-frequency converter followed by a synchronous counter. The chip was designed for connecting each channel to a different detector element. However, high beam intensities may lead to an input current above the saturation level of a single channel. A novel readout has been tested where all the input channels of the chip have been connected in parallel to the same detector element allowing to reach 64-times higher input current with only a modest deterioration of the resolution. Results will be presented in terms of linearity and noise, and will be compared to a simulation where the chip is modeled as a set of independent and uncorrelated channels