Analysis of the primary volatile compositions in the Oort cloud and Jupiter-family comets towards the goal of understanding their origin and diversity

“Knowledge of the initial conditions present in the early solar nebula is required to understand the evolution and its current volatile content. Comets were some of the first objects to accrete in the solar nebula. They are among the most pristine (primitive) remnants of the solar system formation, and their present-day volatile composition likely reflects the composition and conditions where (and when) they formed. Therefore, they are fossils of the solar system formation. High-resolution near-infrared spectroscopy is a valuable tool for sampling the parent volatile (i.e., ices subliming directly from the nucleus) composition of comets via analysis of fluorescence emission in cometary comae. An overall goal of comet volatile composition studies is determining whether comets can be classified based on their volatile content and what this reveals about the history of the early solar system. Early work produced encouraging results, but recent work has left questions regarding whether a compositional taxonomy based on near-infrared measurements is feasible. These include questions such as: Are observed systematic compositional differences between Jupiter-family comets and Oort cloud comets the result of evolutionary effects or reflective of formative conditions? Is temporal variability in coma composition a common phenomenon, and if so, how can present-day measurements be related to natal solar system conditions? Can we place comet volatile compositions in a meaningful context? In this work we examine these questions in the context of near-infrared measurements of Oort cloud comets and Jupiter-family comets, as well as a comparison between our results and extensive results from the Rosetta mission to comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko”--Abstract, page iv

A prospective study of the effect of delivery type on neonatal weight gain pattern in exclusively breastfed neonates born in Shiraz, Iran

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In this exploratory study, the contribution of delivery type to the weight gain pattern for full-term infants with exclusive breastfeeding in the first month of infancy was determined. In addition, breastfeeding success among cesarean section (C-section) delivery mothers based on their neonate's weight gain at the end of the first month of infancy was evaluated.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A cohort of 92 neonates born in Shiraz, from July 10 to August 10, 2007 was followed longitudinally. The data were collected during the first month postpartum at three occasions: 3 to 7 days postpartum, 10-21 days postpartum and 24-31 days postpartum.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Among 92 mothers in this study, 35 (38%) were delivered by C-section. Generalized estimating equation (GEE) showed that delivery type (p < 0.01), receipt of advice about breastfeeding (p = 0.03) and neonate's age (p < 0.01) significantly affected weight gain. GEE estimated the values of the parameters under study and the testing contribution of each factor to weight gain, leading to the conclusion that gender, parities and maternal education did not contribute to weight gain. The neonate's weight gain pattern for C-section deliveries lies below that of normal vaginal deliveries until 25 days postpartum, when weight gain for C-section deliveries became higher than that for normal vaginal deliveries.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Type of delivery contributes strongly to the weight gain pattern in the first month of infancy. In spite of greater weight loss among C-section birth neonates in the first days of life, at the end of the first month neonates showed a similar weight gain. Consequently, mothers with C-section delivery can successfully exclusively breastfeed.</p

Curcumin as an indirect methylation inhibitor modulates the effects of Toxoplasma gondii on genes involved in male fertility

Toxoplasma gondii is a common protozoan parasite, which infects warm-blooded mammals, including mice and humans, throughout the world. The negative effects of T. gondii infection on the human reproductive system have been documented, especially in females. However, only few studies have examined the effects of T. gondii infection on the male reproductive system. Previous research shows that T. gondii can induce DNA methylation in some gene promoters, which are key regulators of spermatogenesis. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the effects of curcumin on the activity of DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs), as well as selected genes, involved in spermatogenesis in spermatogenic cells. In the spermatogenic cells exposed to T. gondii, there was a significant increase in DNMT1 and DNMT3A gene expression and a significant reduction in HSPA1A, MTHR, and DAZL gene expression, compared to the controls. The present results showed that curcumin could regulate changes in T. gondii-mediated gene expression. The effect of T. gondii on DNMT activity was also investigated in this study. A 40 % increase in DNMT activity was observed due to T. gondii infection. However, DNMT activity was restored by treatment with 20 μM curcumin for eight hours. The results revealed that T. gondii increases the NF-κB activity, compared to the control group. The increase in NF-κB activity, induced by T. gondii, was inhibited by curcumin. In conclusion, T. gondii, by increasing DNMT expression and activity, leads to an increase in NF-κB activity in cells. On the other hand, curcumin reduced DNA methylation, induced by T. gondii, owing to its NF-κB-inhibiting properties. Therefore, curcumin, as a hypomethylating agent, can be potentially used to alleviate the negative effects of T. gondii on the male reproductive system

Traditional effects of medicinal plants in the treatment of respiratory diseases and disorders: an ethnobotanical study in the Urmia

Objective: To identify, present and review the respiratoty medicinal plants which used by Urmian herbalists. Methods: The list of traditional healers of West Azarbaijan Province was prepared and data were obtained by direct observation, interviews and the questionnaires After that, herbarium samples were collected from the desired area and deposited in herbarium unit of the Faculty of Agriculture, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran. Results: Our results demonstrated that 20 medicinal plants from 10 plant families are used to treat respiratory disorders. Also, the most plant part that used for treating of respiratory disorders was seed (27%) and the most traditional form prescribed by herbalists was boiled (54%). Forty three percentage of Urmia herbalists have used herbs for the treatment of cough. Conclusions: People in this area have a strong belief that plants have a positive impact in the treatment of respiratory disorders and they have used medicinal plants since ancient times to treat these disorders. Our study revealed the importance of herbal medicines and traditional medicine in this area as medicinal resource for drug discovery in future

Investigating the Effect of Cochlear Size in Insertion of Electrode Depth in Patients with Cochlear Implantation evaluated by CT-Scan

Background Cochlear implant surgery is an invasive procedure for patients with bilateral Sensorineural hearing loss and may cause some risks such as cochlear damage. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of cochlear measures obtained by computed tomography (CT) scan in predicting depth of cochlear implant insertion. Materials and Methods This study was conducted in a retrospective and cross-sectional study on 39 patients undergoing cochlear implantation with MED-EL Device. High-resolution radiographs provided preoperative by CT-Scan were used to determine electrode array insertion depth and diameter of the cochlea’s basal turn. The insertion was considered deep when the electrode was placed at least 22 mm into the cochlea. Demographic data, CT-Scan results and cochlear implantation outcomes (deep or shallow) were evaluated. Data were analyzed by SPSS22 software and the significance level was less than 0.05. Results The mean age of patients was 8.026±1.77 years. The depth of insertion of the electrode in 34 (87.18%) patients was deep and in 5 (12.82%) patients was shallow that the difference was statistically significant (

Radiation mitigation of the intestinal acute radiation injury in mice by 1-[(4-nitrophenyl)sulfonyl]-4-phenylpiperazine.

The objective of the study was to identify the mechanism of action for a radiation mitigator of the gastrointestinal (GI) acute radiation syndrome (ARS), identified in an unbiased high-throughput screen. We used mice irradiated with a lethal dose of radiation and treated with daily injections of the radiation mitigator 1-[(4-nitrophenyl)sulfonyl]-4-phenylpiperazine to study its effects on key pathways involved in intestinal stem cell (ISC) maintenance. RNASeq, quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, and immunohistochemistry were performed to identify pathways engaged after drug treatment. Target validation was performed with competition assays, reporter cells, and in silico docking. 1-[(4-Nitrophenyl)sulfonyl]-4-phenylpiperazine activates Hedgehog signaling by binding to the transmembrane domain of Smoothened, thereby expanding the ISC pool, increasing the number of regenerating crypts and preventing the GI-ARS. We conclude that Smoothened is a target for radiation mitigation in the small intestine that could be explored for use in radiation accidents as well as to mitigate normal tissue toxicity during and after radiotherapy of the abdomen

The pattern of inherited microcephaly and role of the consanguineous marriage: A study from Southwestern Iran

Background: Microcephaly is a congenital disorder characterized by a head circumference falling more than two standard deviations below the mean with respect to age- and gender-matched population sample, which is divided into isolated and syndromic types. This study aimed to show the inheritance pattern of microcephaly and role of the consanguineous marriage in Southwestern Iran.Patients and Methods: In this study, medical records of 1202 people (out of 3951 families, 30.4%) with autosomal recessive pattern inherited disorder who attended the centers of Khuzestan state welfare organization, southwestern Iran during 2011 to 2016 for genetic counseling, were reviewed.Results: Overall, out of 1202 cases of microcephaly, 114 (9.48%, 2.3/100,000 live births) people were detected. The results showed that most patients were female (66.7%), from Arab ethnicity (63%). Most of the patient‘s fathers were at the level of primary school education (63%) and self-employed (63%), while patient‘s mothers completed primary school education (37%) or illiterate (37%) and housewife (100%). Income distribution showed that the majority of families were below the poverty line (63%), and lived in the urban area (37%). The study showed that the frequency of consanguineous marriage was much higher (81.5% vs. 18.5%, P= 0.0013).Conclusion: In as much as lack of access to early medical attention, poor socio-economic state and harsh environmental factors affect mental health response, these factors are believed play crucial role in reducing the incidence of mental health and associated abnormalities. Considering the relatively high prevalence of inherited microcephaly, it is important to set up clinical guidelines for early detection and management of these conditions to decrease the associated morbidity and mortality. [Ethiop. J. Health Dev. 2017;31(2):119-123]Keywords: Inherited microcephaly; consanguineous marriage; Southwestern Ira