Old Remedies for Epilepsy: Avicenna\u27s Medicine.

BACKGROUND: The history of epilepsy and its treatments dates back to at least 4 millennia. Avicenna, c. 980 AD in Bukhara, Khorasan-1037 in Hamedan was a Persian-speaking Iranian physician, who has many recommendations and suggested various therapies for epilepsy in his book, The Canon of Medicine. METHODS: We first reviewed the most important ancient treatments for epilepsy mentioned by Avicenna and considered those as the key words for our next step. Then, we made a literature search (medline and scopus) with those key words to find out new scientific findings in modern medicine about the Avicenna\u27s suggestions. RESULTS: Among the Avicenna\u27s recommended therapies for epilepsy, only Rue has been tested for anticonvulsant activities in modern medicine. Interestingly, it had a dose dependent anticonvulsant effect. CONCLUSION: It is worthwhile to consider the Avicenna\u27s recommended therapies for epilepsy and to design future scientific studies based on his suggestions

Effect of surface layer thickness on the performance of lime and cement treated aggregate surfaced roads

A gravel layer of adequate thickness, laid over a subgrade, forms the most basic structure of aggregate surfaced roads. Since the pavement system of such roads consists of only a base layer, the thickness of this layer has considerable effects on the performance of the roads. In this study, both laboratory experiments and finite element analysis were conducted to evaluate the performance of lime and cement treated base layers with different thicknesses. To achieve this, five types of lime and cement treated mixtures were defined, three of which were chosen and modelled as base layers with different thicknesses using the finite element software, PLAXIS. The PLAXIS models were then loaded, analysed and compared by vertical deformation under a specific load as well as the maximum applicable load. Analytical and numerical modelling of the lime and cement treated soils requires a number of soil parameters that are usually obtained from expensive and time-consuming laboratory experiments. An alternative method was proposed in this study, in which the soil parameters required for the finite element analysis were obtained from unconfined compressive strength tests, and estimated using the failure criteria available in existing literature. Results of this study showed that an increase in the base layer thickness leads to a reduction in the vertical deformation of the pavement system under a specific load; however, the increase in the thickness of the base layer does not necessarily result in the increase in bearing capacity of the pavement system

Thermal Stress Analysis of Absorber Tube for a Parabolic Collector under Quasi-Steady State Condition

AbstractThe design of parabolic trough collectors is based on the concentration of solar heat flux on its absorber tube. This may be subjected to high thermal stresses which could cause deflection of the absorber tube and failure of its cover glass tube. Investigation of earlier studies on thermal gradient and thermal stresses demonstrates that so far, the issue is considered for steady state condition based on the assumption of constant solar heat flux distribution during the day hours. However, in practice, solar heat flux distribution on the receiver tube has continues changes with respect to time and deformation is basically transient. Due the low speed of sun during a day and for specific time intervals, the average solar radiation could be considered constant for thermal stress and deflection analysis. Hence, in this study, thermal gradients as well as thermal stresses in the absorber tube are numerically investigated in quasi steady condition. Due to the wide changes of solar radiation during a year, computations are performed for four specific days of Spring Equinox, Summer Solstice, Autumnal Equinox and Winter Solstice. To compute solar heat flux distribution, SolTrace software is used and three dimensional heat flux distribution is applied as an external boundary condition to calculate temperature distribution in the absorber tube. By using Von-Misses theory, maximum equivalent of total stress is computed. Maximum deflection is evaluated for various different inlet temperatures and hot oil mass flow rates in the common range of solar thermal power plants for atypical parabolic trough collector which is under construction in Shiraz, Iran

Effects of soy protein base diet supplemented with lysine and methionine on digestive enzymes activity and hematological parameters in silvery-black porgy (Sparidentex hasta) juveniles

The effect of dietary partial replacement of fish meal (FM) by soybean protein (SP) alone or in combination with lysine (Lys) and methionine (Met) supplementation were tested in a 60-days feeding trial for silvery-black porgy (Sparidentex hasta) juveniles. Seven isoproteic (ca. 50% crude protein) and isoenergetic (ca. 22.4 MJ/kg) diets were formulated in which 45% (SP45), 60% (SP60) and 75% (SP75) of FM protein were replaced by SP and the control diet (FM) was prepared with FM as the major source of protein. In SP45+, SP60+ and SP75+ diets, 45 to 75% of FM was replaced by SP with supplementing blends of Lys and Met (98% of purity). The activities of the trypsin, lipase and α-amylase were higher in fish fed SP diets with crystalline amino acids supplementation than in the other groups (P < 0.05). Fish fed SP75 and SP75+ diets had the lowest red blood cell count and hematocrit level (P < 0.05). The results of the current study indicated that anti-nutritional factors in a soy-protein based diet rather than lysine and methionine deficiencies may have adverse effects on digestive enzymes activities and health condition in silvery-black porgy juveniles.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Effects of enrichment of Artemia urmiana with LC-PUFA on survival and resistance to pH stress in larvae of Angel fish (Peterophylum scalar)

The effects of using n-3 LC-PUFA -enriched Artemia nauplii and newly hatched Artemia on survival and resistance to pH stress in larvae of angel fish (Peterophylum scalar) were examined In tow 20 days period. In the first step of the experiment the larvae with an average weight of 0.86 ±0.03mg were fed with tow diets (enriched Artemia nauplii and newly hatched Artemia) for 20 days. At the end of the first step of the experiment, the significantly (p<0.05) higher survival rate was observed in larvae fed with enriched Artemia (90.66%) than the larvae fed with newly hatched Artemia (83.66%). In the second step of the experiment the larvae with an average weight of 20. 03 ±3.73mg were fed only with commercial diet for 20 days. At the end of the second 20th days of the experiment, larvae exposed at pH stress (including 5.5, 6.5, 8.8 and 9.5) for 96 hours. The Result showed that the larvae were fed with n-3 LC-PUFA-enriched Artemia have a higher significant survival rate than other group in the period of the experiment and pH stress (p<0.05). Therefore, using of n-3 LC-PUFA-enriched Artemia recommended for increasing survival rate and the resistance to pH stress

Lysine and methionine supplementation in high soy protein content diets for silvery-black porgy (Sparidentex hasta) juveniles

A two-month feeding trial was conducted to evaluate the effect of partial replacement of fish meal (FM) by soybean protein (SP) alone or in combination with lysine (Lys) and methionine (Met) supplementation in practical diets for silvery-black porgy juveniles (16.7±0.1 g). Seven isoproteic (ca. 50% crude protein) and isoenergetic (ca. 22.4 MJ kg-1) diets were formulated in which 45% (SP45), 60% (SP60) and 75% (SP75) of FM protein were replaced by SP and the control diet (FM) was prepared with FM as the major source of protein. In SP45+, SP60+ and SP75+ diets, 45 to 75% of FM was replaced by SP with supplementing blends of Lys and Met. Growth performance, feed utilization, and protein and lipid digestibility decreased with increasing dietary SP levels (p<0.05). Fish fed SP75 had the highest whole body lipid content, but with the lowest whole body arginine, lysine, histidine, phenylalanine and taurine concentrations (p<0.05). Supplementing Lys and Met in SP based diets did not improve growth performance, suggesting that the anti-nutritional factors in soybean protein products rather than Met and Lys deficiency might limit FM substitution with SP in silvery-black porgy juveniles.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Three-dimensional flow effects on forced convection heat transfer in a channel with stepwise-varying width

A numerical investigation based on the finite volume methodology of the three-dimensional laminar flow and conjugate heat transfer inside a plate-fin heat sink with stepwise-varying channel width is presented. Results are obtained for the three-dimensional flow developed in the vicinity of the flow contraction as manifested by the existence of two pairs of contra-rotating longitudinal vortices, one at the corners of the fin leading edge and the other at the flow separated regions. The topology of the flow is thoroughly examined and the contributions of the endwalls and the front surface of the flow-contracting fin to the mechanisms that cause the emergence of the three-dimensionality are determined. It is established that the corner longitudinal vortices are in fact horseshoe vortices, which emerge due to the deceleration effect of the fin front surface on the oncoming fluid. Furthermore, the interaction between the corner longitudinal vortices and the downstream recirculation bubble formed over the fin tip is also elucidated. The analysis covers a wide range of flow conditions within the laminar region in order to monitor the effect of the Reynolds number on the flow topology and to verify that the flow remains symmetrical in this region. From the numerical results, it is deduced that the recirculation downstream of the flow contraction has a beneficial impact on the heat sink thermal performance, a fact quantified through the local Nusselt number distributions

The blockchain: a new framework for robotic swarm systems

Swarms of robots will revolutionize many industrial applications, from targeted material delivery to precision farming. However, several of the heterogeneous characteristics that make them ideal for certain future applications --- robot autonomy, decentralized control, collective emergent behavior, etc. --- hinder the evolution of the technology from academic institutions to real-world problems. Blockchain, an emerging technology originated in the Bitcoin field, demonstrates that by combining peer-to-peer networks with cryptographic algorithms a group of agents can reach an agreement on a particular state of affairs and record that agreement without the need for a controlling authority. The combination of blockchain with other distributed systems, such as robotic swarm systems, can provide the necessary capabilities to make robotic swarm operations more secure, autonomous, flexible and even profitable. This work explains how blockchain technology can provide innovative solutions to four emergent issues in the swarm robotics research field. New security, decision making, behavior differentiation and business models for swarm robotic systems are described by providing case scenarios and examples. Finally, limitations and possible future problems that arise from the combination of these two technologies are described

Potential drugs used in the antibody–drug conjugate (ADC) architecture for cancer therapy

Cytotoxic small-molecule drugs have a major influence on the fate of antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs). An ideal cytotoxic agent should be highly potent, remain stable while linked to ADCs, kill the targeted tumor cell upon internalization and release from the ADCs, and maintain its activity in multidrug-resistant tumor cells. Lessons learned from successful and failed experiences in ADC development resulted in remarkable progress in the discovery and development of novel highly potent small molecules. A better understanding of such small-molecule drugs is important for development of effective ADCs. The present review discusses requirements making a payload appropriate for antitumor ADCs and focuses on the main characteristics of commonly-used cytotoxic payloads that showed acceptable results in clinical trials. In addition, the present study represents emerging trends and recent advances of payloads used in ADCs currently under clinical trials. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc