Population structure of Caspian roach (Rutilus Rutilus caspicus) in southern coasts of Caspian Sea using micro satellite maker

Caspian roach is regarded as a valuable bony fish that has economic importance in southern parts of Caspian Sea. Investigations show that natural reproduction of this species has been declining during recent years. Restocking of this fish is achieved by the way of artificial reproduction. Loss of genetic stock of this species is of great concern. In the current study, in order to study the population structure of roach, 54 individuals were captured from Gomishan and Anzali wetlands (27 individuals from each region) in April 2007. Genomic DNA was extracted using phenol-chloroform method and investigated by 10 microsatellite loci. The genetic diversity of two regions [(Gomishan: average number of alleles, Na= 11.4, average effective number of alleles, Ne= 7.92, observed heterozygosity, Ho= 0.69 and expected heterozygosity, He= 0.85) (Anzali: Na= 10.2, Ne= 7.38, Ho= 0.71 and He= 0.84)] were not statistically different (P>0.05). Analysis of molecular variance showed high genetic diversity (%95) within populations. The Fst value was 0.046, indicating low genetic differentiation among Anzali and Gomishan regions. In this study, 10 of 20 (10 loci × 2 populations) tests showed significant deviation (P≤ 0.005) from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium due to the heterozygosity deficiency. Results from UPGMA cluster analysis, based on Nei´s genetic distance, showed that the regions are probably separated from each other

Prognostic factors for esophageal squamous cell Carcinoma-A Population-Based study in Golestan province, Iran, a high incidence area

Golestan Province in northern Iran is an area with a high incidence of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). We aimed to investigate prognostic factors for ESCC and survival of cases in Golestan, on which little data were available. We followed-up 426 ESCC cases participating in a population-based case-control study. Data were analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method and the Cox proportional hazard models. Median survival was 7 months. Age at diagnosis was inversely associated with survival, but the association was disappeared with adjustment for treatment. Residing in urban areas (hazard ratio, HR = 0.70; 95 CI 0.54-0.90) and being of non-Turkmen ethnic groups (HR = 0.76; 95 CI 0.61-0.96) were associated with better prognosis. In contrast to other types of tobacco use, nass (a smokeless tobacco product) chewing was associated with a slightly poorer prognosis even in models adjusted for other factors including stage of disease and treatment (HR = 1.38; 95 CI 0.99-1.92). Opium use was associated with poorer prognosis in crude analyses but not in adjusted models. Almost all of potentially curative treatments were associated with longer survival. Prognosis of ESCC in Golestan is very poor. Easier access to treatment facilities may improve the prognosis of ESCC in Golestan. The observed association between nass chewing and poorer prognosis needs further investigations; this association may suggest a possible role for ingestion of nass constituents in prognosis of ESCC. © 2011 Aghcheli et al

A qualitative exploration of Malaysian cancer patients' perspectives on cancer and its treatment

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cancer patients' knowledge about cancer and experiences with its treatment play an important role in long-term adherence in their disease management. This study aimed to explore cancer patients' knowledge about cancer, their perceptions of conventional therapies and the factors that contribute to medication adherence in the Malaysian population.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A qualitative research approach was adopted to gain a better understanding of the current perceptions and knowledge held by cancer patients. Twenty patients were interviewed using a semi-structured interview guide. A saturation point was reached after the 18^thinterview, and no new information emerged with the subsequent 2 interviews. All interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed by means of a standard content analysis framework.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The majority of patients related the cause of their cancer to be God's will. Participants perceived conventional therapies as effective due to their scientific methods of preparations. A fear of side effects was main reasons given for delay in seeking treatment; however, perceptions were reported to change after receiving treatment when effective management to reduce the risk of side effects had been experienced.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study provides basic information about cancer patients' perceptions towards cancer and its treatment. These findings can help in the design of educational programs to enhance awareness and acceptances of cancer screening. Priorities for future research should focus on patients who refused the conventional therapies at any stage.</p

Current trend in synthesis, Post-Synthetic modifications and biological applications of Nanometal-Organic frameworks (NMOFs)

Since the early reports of MOFs and their interesting properties, research involving these materials has grown wide in scope and applications. Various synthetic approaches have ensued in view of obtaining materials with optimised properties, the extensive scope of application spanning from energy, gas sorption, catalysis biological applications has meant exponentially evolved over the years. The far‐reaching synthetic and PSM approaches and porosity control possibilities have continued to serve as a motivation for research on these materials. With respect to the biological applications, MOFs have shown promise as good candidates in applications involving drug delivery, BioMOFs, sensing, imaging amongst others. Despite being a while away from successful entry into the market, observed results in sensing, drug delivery, and imaging put these materials on the spot light as candidates poised to usher in a revolution in biology. In this regard, this review article focuses current approaches in synthesis, post functionalization and biological applications of these materials with particular attention on drug delivery, imaging, sensing and BioMOFs

Energy Communities: A review on trends, energy system modelling, business models, and optimisation objectives

Fostered by the European Union and governments worldwide, Energy Communities are promising measures aimed at promoting local energy generation and consumption, which are needed to meet the energy transition targets. Under appropriate policies, users of the Energy Community can form aggregations that collectively promote common economic, social, and environmental goals by coordinating their production and consumption in agreement with the available resources, the needs of the public market, and the policy scheme. To achieve this, the technical design and organisational structure of Energy Communities shall be coordinated to pursue the desired goals, which requires complex analyses. However, the involved mathematical modelling of the energy systems, the adopted business models, and the definition of objectives are infrequently considered. In this paper, the literature on Energy Communities is reviewed to draw the state of the art of energy communities modelling. Compared to previous studies, a focus on the inclusion and detailed description of business models and objective functions is pursued: these aspects are also analysed to provide a comprehensive scheme of the obtained model results. Given the multidisciplinary topic, a qualitative analysis highlights collaborations across nations and research fields, alongside the traditional trend analyses. The results highlight significant research opportunities at the crossroad among technical design, policy, and economics, especially when considering multi-energy and sector-coupled systems, which have rarely been considered in the energy community field

How does inter-annual variability of attainable yield affect the magnitude of yield gaps for wheat and maize? An analysis at ten sites

Provision of food security in the face of increasing global food demand requires narrowing of the gap between actual farmer's yield and maximum attainable yield. So far, assessments of yield gaps have focused on average yield over 5–10 years, but yield gaps can vary substantially between crop seasons. In this study we hypothesized that climate-induced inter-annual yield variability and associated risk is a major barrier for farmers to invest, i.e. increase inputs to narrow the yield gap. We evaluated the importance of inter-annual attainable yield variability for the magnitude of the yield gap by utilizing data for wheat and maize at ten sites representing some major food production systems and a large range of climate and soil conditions across the world. Yield gaps were derived from the difference of simulated attainable yields and regional recorded farmer yields for 1981 to 2010. The size of the yield gap did not correlate with the amplitude of attainable yield variability at a site, but was rather associated with the level of available resources such as labor, fertilizer and plant protection inputs. For the sites in Africa, recorded yield reached only 20% of the attainable yield, while for European, Asian and North American sites it was 56–84%. Most sites showed that the higher the attainable yield of a specific season the larger was the yield gap. This significant relationship indicated that farmers were not able to take advantage of favorable seasonal weather conditions. To reduce yield gaps in the different environments, reliable seasonal weather forecasts would be required to allow farmers to manage each seasonal potential, i.e. overcoming season-specific yield limitations