Effects of plant proteins as food on growth performance, carcass quality and plasma biochemical parameters of Beluga juvenile (Huso huso)

The possibility of replacing fish meal with plant protein sources (soybean meal and corn gluten) for beluga (initial body mass 159.55±2.14g) was studied in autumn 2009. Experimental feeds with 46.5% of crude protein, GE: 5.4 Cal g -1 in four replacement levels: 0, 270, 450 and 660 gr kg 1 were prepared and fish were fed on the diets for 60 days. Significant differences were found in growth performance (P0.05). Moisture of beluga carcass fed with diet 4 was significantly higher (P0.05) among diets. The hematocrit percentage was significantly higher in experimental treatments 1 and 2 than 3 and 4 and the plasma glucose was significantly different between diets 1 and 4 (P<0.05). With decreased fish meal, significantly (P<0.05) decreased plasma cholesterol was found in diet 1 compared to the diets 3 and 4. Results showed that combination of soybean meal and corn gluten is not a good substitute for fish meal and deceased growth performance of the fish

Expression levels of vascular endothelial growth factors A and C in patients with peptic ulcers and gastric cancer

Purpose: Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is one of the most important growth factors for metastatic tumors. To clarify the role of VEGF-A and C in patients with peptic ulcer disease (PUD) or gastric cancer (GC), we evaluated the expression levels of these two molecules. We also analyzed the effect of Helicobacter pylori infection on VEGF-A and C expression levels

The effect of dietary nucleotide on the haematological and serum biochemical parameters of Persian sturgeon (Acipenser persicus) juveniles

This study was aimed to examine the impact of different levels of dietary nucleotides (Vannagen) on serum biochemical and blood parameters of Persian sturgeon (Acipenser persicus). Fish (42.37± 2.12 g and 23.67± 0.61 cm) were divided into four treatments with different levels of dietary nucleotides (0, 0.25, 0.35 and 0.5 percent of diet). There were three replicates with a density of 12 fish per tank. After 10 weeks of feeding, serum biochemical and blood parameters were measured. Among the measured factors, blood glucose, triglycerides, cholesterol, erythrocyte and heterophil showed significant differences between the groups fed with nucleotides and the control group (P ≤ 0.05). By increasing the nucleotide levels, the mean heterophil and serum glucose showed significant increase and decrease, respectively. The highest and lowest values of cholesterol and triglyceride were found in groups fed with 0.25% and 0.35% nucleotides, respectively. The other measured factors had no significant difference (P≤0.05). Therefore, it could be said that with regard to the limited capacity of cells to synthesize nucleotides, external preparing of nucleotides could result in the production of needed nucleotides and an increase of its production speed, especially during stress. Such preparation can also improve fish physiology and health status

Elevated blood pressure reduction after α-lipoic acid supplementation: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

The aim of the comprehensive meta-analysis was to systematically explore the reductive effect of α-lipoic acid (ALA) supplementation on systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP). The related records were selected from PubMed, Scopus, EMBASE, Cochrane library, and Persian databases including SID and Magiran from earliest date 1980 until August 2018. The heterogeneities were assessed by I 2 test (I 2 &lt; 50) and � 2 test on Cochrane�s Q statistic. Standardized mean difference (SMD) and their 95 confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated for change in SBP and DBP. Subgroup analyses were also carried out by baseline BP, clinical condition, dosage of supplementation, and duration of study. As a result, a total of seven studies with 478 participants were included in the meta-analysis. Compared to the controls, ALA supplementation significantly reduced both SBP (SMD = �0.81, 95 CI: �1.20, �0.41) and DBP (SMD = �1.50, 95 CI: �2.86, �0.15) with a reduction of 8.1 and 6.7 mmHg of the mean SBP and DBP, respectively. Significant heterogeneity was detected in SBP and DBP; however, subgroup analysis of baseline BP showed significant reduction in both SBP and DBP heterogeneities. Indeed, a statistically significant reduction in BP was observed in subsets of elevated BP as compared with hypertensive patients. In conclusion, the current meta-analysis revealed that ALA supplementation lowers BP in subjects, especially those with elevated BP. © 2019, Springer Nature Limited

Effects of conjugated fatty acid supplementation on central obesity and blood pressure in women with benign breast disease: A randomized controlled-clinical trial

Summary. Objective: Health benefits of conjugated fatty acids, particularly conjugated linolenic acid (CLNA), have recently provide substantial insights in a variety of obesity-related tumorigenesis including breast neoplasia. This study aims to investigate the effects of CLNA-contained oil (CLNAO) supplementation on central obesity indices and blood pressure in women with benign breast disease (BBD). Methods: Forty six pre-menopausal women with BBD were randomly allocated to intervention group (n=23) or placebo (n=23). Patients in the intervention group received 1000 mg/day CLNAO capsule and the placebo group received 1000 mg/day inert oil-contained capsule during 13 weeks. Measures of blood pressure and some anthropometric variables were performed at the baseline and end of study. Result: Systolic (P<0.01) and diastolic (P<0.05) blood pressures decreased within CLNAO group on subjects whom were overweight. Normal weight participants who received placebo showed significant increases in total body fat (P<0.05), waist circumference (P<0.05), and waist circumference to height ratio (P<0.05), meantime CLNAO group showed no changes on both variables. Intervention with CLNAO caused no significant increases on skinfolds of abdomen and suprailiac, whereas these measures were remarkably increased in placebo (P<0.001 and P<0.05, respectively). Conclusion: Findings from this study show that CLNAO can attenuate development of central fat acquisition in the BBD patients who weighted normally. Administration of CLNAO decline systolic and diastolic blood pressures of overweight subjects. © Mattioli 188

A meta-analysis of randomized control trials: The impact of vitamin c supplementation on serum crp and serum hs-crp concentrations

Objective: The present meta-analysis was designed to assess the effects of vitamin C supplementation on serum C-reactive Protein (CRP) levels. Methods: We conducted a comprehensive systematic search of the literature in Scopus, PubMed and Google Scholar until May 2018. The pooled Weighted Mean Difference (WMD) and its 95 Confidence Interval (CI) in baseline and at the end of the trial were calculated to assess the net change in serum CRP by using random-effects model. The heterogeneity was assessed by I2 test. Combined and stratified analyses were used in the meta-analysis. Results: From 306 articles found and screened in our initial search, 12 studies were included with 446 participants in supplementation groups and 447 in control groups. The pooled effect size analysis showed a significant reducing effect of vitamin C supplementation on circulating CRP level (�0.23 mg/L, 95 CI, �0.44,-0.03, p=0.02), with a significant heterogeneity effect across the studies involved. Subgroup analyses showed that vitamin C supplementation significantly lowered CRP among trials. The most significant effect was found 1) on hs-CRP as the representative inflammatory marker (-0.43 mg/L, 95 CI-0.76,-0.1) 2) in subjects with a baseline CRP�3 (-1.48 mg/L, 95 CI-2.84,-0.11) 3) in subjects under <60 years old of age (-0.23 mg/L, 95 CI-0.44,-0.01) 4) or using intravenous administration of vitamin C (-0.89 mg/L, 95 CI-1.49,-0.3). Conclusion: The present meta-analysis shows that vitamin C supplementation reduces serum CRP level, particularly in younger subjects, with higher CRP baseline level, at a lower dosage and intravenous administration. © 2018, Bentham Science Publishers B.V. All rights reserved

The effect of halogenation of salicylaldehyde on the antiproliferative activities of {Δ/Λ-[Ru(bpy)2(X,Y-sal)]BF4} complexes

Ru(II) polypyridyl complexes are widely used in biological fields, due to their physico-chemical and photophysical properties. In this paper, a series of new chiral Ru(II) polypyridyl complexes (1-5) with the general formula {Δ/Λ-[Ru(bpy)2(X,Y-sal)]BF4} (bpy = 2,2'-bipyridyl; X,Y-sal = 5-bromosalicylaldehyde (1), 3,5-dibromosalicylaldehyde (2), 5-chlorosalicylaldehyde (3), 3,5-dichlorosalicylaldehyde (4) and 3-bromo-5-chlorosalicylaldehy (5)) were synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, FT-IR, and 1H/13C NMR spectroscopy. Also, the structures of complexes 1 and 5 were determined by X-ray crystallography; these results showed that the central Ru atom adopts a distorted octahedral coordination sphere with two bpy and one halogen-substituted salicylaldehyde. DFT and TD-DFT calculations have been performed to explain the excited states of these complexes. The singlet states with higher oscillator strength are correlated with the absorption signals and are mainly described as 1MLCT from the ruthenium centre to the bpy ligands. The lowest triplet states (T1) are described as 3MLCT from the ruthenium center to the salicylaldehyde ligand. The theoretical results are in good agreement with the observed unstructured band at around 520 nm for complexes 2, 4 and 5. Biological studies on human cancer cells revealed that dihalogenated ligands endow the Ru(II) complexes with enhanced cytotoxicity compared to monohalogenated ligands. In addition, as far as the type of halogen is concerned, bromine is the halogen that provides the highest cytotoxicity to the synthesized complexes. All complexes induce cell cycle arrest in G0/G1 and apoptosis, but only complexes bearing Br are able to provoke an increase in intracellular ROS levels and mitochondrial dysfunction

Cyber attacks in smart grid - Dynamic impacts, analyses and recommendations

© 2020 Institution of Engineering and Technology. All rights reserved. Cyber attacks can cause cascading failures and blackouts in smart grids. Therefore, it is highly necessary to identify the types, impacts and solutions of cyber attacks to ensure the secure operation of power systems. As a well-known practice, steady-state analysis is commonly used to identify cyber attacks and provide effective solutions. However, it cannot fully cover non-linear behaviours and cascaded blackouts of the system caused by dynamic perturbations, as well as provide a postdisturbance operating point. This study presents a novel approach based on dynamic analysis that excludes the limitations of the steady-state analysis and can be used in the events of various cyber attacks. Four types of common attacks are reviewed, and their dynamic impacts are shown on the IEEE benchmark model of the Western System Coordinating Council system implemented in MATLAB Simulink. Then, recommendations are provided to enhance the security of the future smart power grids from the possible cyber attacks

A Fast Time-Domain Current Harmonic Extraction Algorithm for Power Quality Improvement Using Three-Phase Active Power Filter

© 2013 IEEE. Harmonic current estimation is the key aspect of Active Power Filter (APF) control algorithms to generate a reference current for harmonic compensation. This paper proposes a novel structure for harmonic current estimation scheme based on Trigonometric Orthogonal Principle (TOP) and Self Tuning Filter (STF). The key advantages of the proposed method are its simplicity, low computational burden and faster execution time in comparison to the conventional harmonic current estimation approaches. The TOP method provides a simple and fast approach to extract the reference current, while STF provides a simplified structure to generate the required synchronization signal that eliminates the need of a Phase Locked Loop (PLL) algorithm for synchronization. As a result, it exhibits less complexity in implementation and less consumption of microcontroller's resources; thus, the proposed method can be implemented using a low-cost microcontroller. It is shown in the paper that the proposed method provides 10 times gain in processing speed as compared to the conventional DQ method. The proposed approach is analyzed in detail, and its effectiveness and superior performance are verified using simulation and experimental results

Learning the fundamental mid-infrared spectral components of galaxies with non-negative matrix factorization

The mid-infrared (MIR) spectra observed with the Spitzer Infrared Spectrograph (IRS) provide a valuable data set for untangling the physical processes and conditions within galaxies. This paper presents the first attempt to blindly learn fundamental spectral components of MIR galaxy spectra, using non-negative matrix factorization (NMF). NMF is a recently developed multivariate technique shown to be successful in blind source separation problems. Unlike the more popular multivariate analysis technique, principal component analysis, NMF imposes the condition that weights and spectral components are non-negative. This more closely resembles the physical process of emission in the MIR, resulting in physically intuitive components. By applying NMF to galaxy spectra in the Cornell Atlas of Spitzer/IRS sources, we find similar components amongst different NMF sets. These similar components include two for active galactic nucleus (AGN) emission and one for star formation. The first AGN component is dominated by fine structure emission lines and hot dust, the second by broad silicate emission at 10 and 18 μm. The star formation component contains all the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon features and molecular hydrogen lines. Other components include rising continuums at longer wavelengths, indicative of colder grey-body dust emission. We show an NMF set with seven components can reconstruct the general spectral shape of a wide variety of objects, though struggle to fit the varying strength of emission lines. We also show that the seven components can be used to separate out different types of objects. We model this separation with Gaussian mixtures modelling and use the result to provide a classification tool. We also show that the NMF components can be used to separate out the emission from AGN and star formation regions and define a new star formation/AGN diagnostic which is consistent with all MIR diagnostics already in use but has the advantage that it can be applied to MIR spectra with low signal-to-noise ratio or with limited spectral range. The seven NMF components and code for classification are available at https://github.com/pdh21/NMF_software/