The Dilemma of TP53 Codon 72 Polymorphism (rs1042522) and Breast Cancer Risk : A Case-Control Study and Meta-Analysis in The Iranian Population

The authors would like to thank all participants in this research. We would also like to thank Mashhad University of Medical Sciences and Omid Hospital (Mashhad, Iran) for their support to the project. This work was financially supported by Mashhad University of Medical Sciences under Grant No. 930891. No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Assessment of Radiation Dose to the Lens of the Eye and Thyroid of Patients Undergoing Head and Neck Computed Tomography at Five Hospitals in Mashhad, Iran

Introduction: In recent years, the number of computed tomography (CT) scans, which is a high-dose technique, has increased significantly. Head and neck CT is performed frequently and thyroid, particularly in children, has always been considered a sensitive organ. In recent years, radiobiologists and health physicists have been more concerned about the safety of lenses of the eyes, as cataract is no longer considered a deterministic effect. Material and Methods: In the present study, incurred doses to the thyroid and lens of the eye of 140 patients who underwent common head and neck CT at five hospitals were measured by thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLD-100). The patients were divided into two age groups of pediatrics and adults. TLD chips were placed on the patient’s skin surface. For each patient, scan parameters, sex and age were recorded. Exposed TLDs were read by a manual TLD reader. Results: The verage absorbed dose of the thyroid, as well as the lenses of the left and right eyes were 5.89±1.74, 15.84±2.81 and 16.25±2.57, respectively, for the pediatric patients and 5.00±1.17, 17.64±1.69 and 24.41±1.89 for adults. Patient-specific organ doses were influenced by the scanned region, scan protocol and patient's age. Conclusion: In the present study, the mean eye dose was much lower than the 500 mGy threshold recommended by International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) for lens of the eye damage, thus, it appears to be clinically safe. While CT scan remains a crucial tool, further dose reduction can be achieved by controlling different factors affecting patient doses

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

MicroRNA Microarray Profiling during Megakaryocyte Differentiation of Cord Blood CD133+ Hematopoietic Stem Cells

Objective In order to clarify the role of microRNAs (miRNA) in megakaryocyte differentiation, we ran a microRNA microarray experiment to measure the expression level of 961 human miRNA in megakaryocytes differentiated from human umbilical cord blood CD133+ cells. Materials and Methods In this experimental study, human CD133+ hematopoietic stem cells were collected from three human umbilical cord blood (UCB) samples, and then differentiated to the megakaryocytic lineage and characterized by flow cytometry, CFU-assay and ploidy analysis. Subsequently, microarray analysis was undertaken followed by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) to validate differentially expressed miRNA identified in the microarray analysis. Results A total of 10 and 14 miRNAs were upregulated (e.g. miR-1246 and miR-148-a) and down-regulated (e.g. miR- 551b and miR-10a) respectively during megakaryocyte differentiation, all of which were confirmed by qPCR. Analysis of targets of these miRNA showed that the majority of targets are transcription factors involved in megakaryopoiesis. Conclusion We conclude that miRNA play an important role in megakaryocyte differentiation and may be used as targets to change the rate of differentiation and further our understanding of the biology of megakaryocyte commitment

Nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus and its relation to hand contamination of the staff of Imam Reza hospital

Introduction: Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most important common factors of nosocomial infections which can lead to considerable fatality. Preventing patients from suffering infections resulting from S. aureus has a special place in controlling nosocomial infections, in which the first step is to determine and study the sources of bacteria in hospitals. Clinical staff is one of the sources of this bacterium. Materials and Methods: In the first step the samples were taken randomly from staffs, hands in different wards of Imam Reza Hospital. Then nasal samples were taken from the personnel whose culture was positive for S. aureus before and after washing, and S. aureus was determined by biochemical tests. Results: Of 90 people chosen for the first step, 35 had contaminated hands in both sampling steps and 28 of them were nasal carries of S. aureus.Although there was a significant relationship between nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus and hand contamination, the relationships between these variables and sex, work shift and hospital ward were not statistically significant. Conclusion: This study showed that nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus can enhance hand contamination with these bacteria which helps bacteria circulation in the hospital environment

Brucellosis and Coxiella burnetii Infection in Householders and Their Animals in Secure Villages in Herat Province, Afghanistan: A Cross-Sectional Study.

BACKGROUND:Brucellosis and coxiellosis are known to be endemic in ruminant populations throughout Afghanistan, but information about their prevalence and factors that affect prevalence in householders and livestock under diverse husbandry systems and pastoral settings is sparse. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:We conducted a cross-sectional survey to investigate the seroprevalence of brucellosis and Coxiella burnetii in humans and livestock in six secure districts in Herat from 26th December 2012-17th January 2013. A total of 204 households with livestock were surveyed in six Kuchi and five sedentary type villages. Blood samples from 1,017 humans, 1,143 sheep, 876 goats and 344 cattle were tested for brucellosis and Q fever. About one in six households (15.7%) had at least one Brucella seropositive person, about one in eight households (12.3%) had at least one Brucella seropositive animal and about one in four (24.5%) had either seropositive animals or humans. Ninety-seven percent of households had at least one C. burnetii seropositive person and 98.5% of households had one or more C. burnetii seropositive animals. Forty- seven householders had serological evidence of exposure to both C. burnetii and Brucella and eight animals were serologically positive for both diseases. Drinking unpasteurised milk (OR 1.6), treating animals for ticks (OR 1.4), milking sheep (OR 1.4), male gender (OR 1.4) and seropositivity to Brucella (OR 4.3) were identified as risk factors for seropositivity to C. burnetii in householders. Household factors associated with households having either Brucella seropositive animals or humans were Kuchi households (OR 2.5), having ≤ 4 rooms in the house (OR 2.9) and not owning land (OR 2.9). CONCLUSIONS:The results from this study provide baseline information for the planning and monitoring of future interventions against these diseases. The implementation of this study greatly improved collaboration, coordination and capability of veterinary and public health professionals from government, NGOs and donor funded projects

Coordination compounds of 4,5,6,7-tetrahydro-1<i>H</i>-indazole with Cu(II), Co(II) and Ag(I): structural, antimicrobial, antioxidant and enzyme inhibition studies

<p>Coordination behavior of 4,5,6,7-tetrahydro-1<i>H</i>-indazole (H-Ind) with Cu(II), Co(II), and Ag(I) was studied. The ligand affords complexes bearing different geometries depending upon the metal and anion present in the starting salts. Five compounds with different structural perspectives, <i>trans</i>-[CuCl₂(H-Ind)₄] (<b>1</b>), <i>trans</i>-[CuBr₂(H-Ind)₄] (<b>2</b>), <i>trans</i>-[Cu(CH₃COO)₂(H-Ind)₂] (<b>3</b>), <i>trans</i>-[CoCl₂(H-Ind)₄] (<b>4</b>), and [Ag(H-Ind)₂]NO₃ (<b>5</b>), were obtained. The ligand adopts tetrahydro-1<i>H</i>-indazole isomeric form in Cu(II) and Co(II) complexes and with Ag(I) ion the same ligand adopts tetrahydro-2<i>H</i>-indazole form. In the case of sterically demanding acetate counter ion in contrast to Cl or Br, the Cu(II) ion accepts two equivalents of the ligand and four-coordinated square planar complex was obtained. With AgNO₃, the expected complex was obtained. The yield of reactions was >80% and all complexes were obtained as crystalline material from the reaction mixtures. Their structures were determined by X-ray diffraction and all complexes were tested for antibacterial (<i>Enterobacter sakazkii</i>, <i>Escherichia coli</i>, <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i>, <i>Klebsiella pneumoniea</i>), antifungal (<i>Aspergillus flavus</i>, <i>Aspergillus fumegatus</i>, <i>Aspergillus nigar</i>, <i>Fusarium oxysporium</i>), and antioxidant (2,2′-azino-<i>bis</i>(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid (ABTS) and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH)) activities. The same were also tested as inhibitors against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) .</p

Logistic regression results for risk of households having either <i>Brucella</i> seropositive animals or humans.

<p>Village effect variance 0.3 (0.03, 2.5)</p><p>Logistic regression results for risk of households having either <i>Brucella</i> seropositive animals or humans.</p