Improving the Effects of Omega-3 Fatty Acid on the In Vitro Maturation of Oocytes

This research was conducted in order to determine the effects of omega-3 on oocyte in vitro maturation and the level of expression of tribbles (TRIB1, TRIB2 and TRIB3 genes) in cumulus cells. Eight-ten weeks old NMRI mice were super-ovulated using 7.5 IU pregnant mare’s serum gonadotropin (PMSG, Intraperitoneal) and they were killed after 44 hours and their ovaries were removed. The oocytes were used for in vitro maturation and the cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) were released. Cumulus cells and oocytes were assigned into control, ethanol-treated and groups exposed to 10 and 100 μg/ml of omega-3. The cells were prepared to assess the maturation stage in order to evaluate the gene expression level. The data were statistically analyzed. Exposing oocytes to low dose (10 μg/ml) and high dose (100 μg/ml) of omega-3 resulted in a reduced rate of GV-stage oocytes, decreased MI-oocytes and increased MII-oocytes. The enhanced maturity of COCs was also detected in response to a high dose of omega-3 (100 μg/ml). Exposure of cumulus cells to omega-3 (10 and 100 μg/ml) induced TRIB2 and inhibited TRIB3 gene expression level; however, TRIB1 gene expression level increased and decreased in response to low (10 μg/ml) and high (100 μg/ml) concentrations of omega-3, respectively. The addition of omega-3 to the environment of oocytes or cumulus cells affected the maturation of oocytes and cumulus cells, which was followed by the differential expression of TRIB genes, suggesting that there was a role of fatty acid metabolism in the differentiation and maturation of cumulus cells

Determining the prevalence of Vibrio species in fish and shrimp caught in Qeshm City, Iran

Fish and shrimp are very good sources of nutrients such as omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin D, and protein, so they form an important part of people's diet; However, seafood can bring risks for consumers, so the purpose of this study is to investigate the prevalence of Vibrio types in fish and shrimps caught in Qeshm city, Iran. In this study, 250 samples, 50 of each sample, including salted fish, Halvasfid, milkfish, shoe fish, and shrimp, were randomly taken from the beach of Qeshm City and transferred to the food hygiene laboratory of Shahrekord Azad University. The samples were tested according to the standard method of searching for Vibrio species. SPSS version 23 statistical software and chi-square statistical test were used for data analysis. The limit of significance in this study was considered (P<0.05). The results showed that the highest level of contamination among Vibrio was related to parahaemolyticus with 74% of contamination and the lowest level of contamination was related to alginolyticus with 14% of contamination. The contamination rate of salted fish, Halvasfid, milkfish, shoe fish, and shrimp were 30, 16, 6, 24, and 23% respectively. In this study, the risk of consuming raw, half-cooked, or undercooked products is clear. Therefore, it is important to pay attention to the hygiene principles after catching, i.e., freezing until the time of consumption and adequate cooking of the product

The Use of Nanomaterials in Tissue Engineering for Cartilage Regeneration; Current Approaches and Future Perspectives

The repair and regeneration of articular cartilage represent important challenges for orthopedic investigators and surgeons worldwide due to its avascular, aneural structure, cellular arrangement, and dense extracellular structure. Although abundant efforts have been paid to provide tissue-engineered grafts, the use of therapeutically cell-based options for repairing cartilage remains unsolved in the clinic. Merging a clinical perspective with recent progress in nanotechnology can be helpful for developing efficient cartilage replacements. Nanomaterials, < 100 nm structural elements, can control different properties of materials by collecting them at nanometric sizes. The integration of nanomaterials holds promise in developing scaffolds that better simulate the extracellular matrix (ECM) environment of cartilage to enhance the interaction of scaffold with the cells and improve the functionality of the engineered-tissue construct. This technology not only can be used for the healing of focal defects but can also be used for extensive osteoarthritic degenerative alterations in the joint. In this review paper, we will emphasize the recent investigations of articular cartilage repair/regeneration via biomaterials. Also, the application of novel technologies and materials is discussed

A Comprehensive Review of Detection Methods for SARS-CoV-2

Recently, the outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the SARSCoV-2 virus, in China and its subsequent spread across the world has caused numerous infections and deaths and disrupted normal social activity. Presently, various techniques are used for the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection, with various advantages and weaknesses to each. In this paper, we summarize promising methods, such as reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), serological testing, point-of-care testing, smartphone surveillance of infectious diseases, nanotechnology-based approaches, biosensors, amplicon-based metagenomic sequencing, smartphone, and wastewaterbased epidemiology (WBE) that can also be utilized for the detection of SARS-CoV-2. In addition, we discuss principles, advantages, and disadvantages of these detection methods, and highlight the potential methods for the development of additional techniques and products for early and fast detection of SARS-CoV-2

Design criteria of subway tunnels

This paper is dedicated to present criteria and rules for design of metro path including tunnel geometrical sections and choosing parameters, loads applied to tunnels, fundamentals of static and seismic analysis, and primaries of structural design, structural joints, and control criteria, behavior measuring and sensitive devices. Design criteria of shallow and semi-deep tunnels are presented in this paper

T-Ridership: A web tool for reprogramming public transportation fleets to minimize COVID-19 transmission

As the outbreak of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues to spread throughout the world, steps are being taken to limit the impact on public health. In the realm of infectious diseases like COVID-19, social distancing is one of the effective measures to avoid exposure to the virus and reduce its spread.Traveling on public transport can meaningfully facilitate the propagation of the transmission of infectious diseases. Accordingly, responsive actions taken by public transit agencies against risk factors can effectively limit the risk and make transit systems safe. Among the multitude of risk factors that can affect infection spread on public transport, the likelihood of exposure is a major factor that depends on the number of people riding the public transport and can be reduced by socially distanced settings. Considering that many individuals may not act in the socially optimal manner, the necessity of public transit agencies to implement measures and restrictions is vital.In this study, we present a novel web-based application, T-Ridership, based on a hybrid optimized dynamic programming inspired by neural networks algorithm to optimize public transit for safety with respect to COVID-19. Two main steps are taken in the analysis through Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA): detecting high-density stations by input data normalization, and then, using these results, the T-Ridership tool automatically determines optimal station order to avoid overcrowded transit vehicles. Effectively our proposed web tool helps public transit to be safe to ride under risk of infections by reducing the density of riders on public transit vehicles as well as trip duration. These results can be used in expanding on and improving policy in public transit, to better plan the scheduled time of trains and buses in a way that prevents high-volume human contact, increases social distance, and reduces the possibility of disease transmission (available at:http://t-ridership.com and GitHub at: https://github.com/Imani-Saba/TRidership)

Experimental characterization, black-box modeling, and optimization of the fused deposition modelled Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene

Additive manufacturing (AM) is becoming a mainstream manufacturing process in different engineering applications, owing to its capability to build 3-dimensional parts with complex geometries, while maintaining high production speed, low cost and a minimal material waste. Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM), as one of the AM techniques, is frequently used in industries and research laboratories to print parts from different thermoplastic filaments. The properties and quality of the FDM processed thermoplastic parts, however, is highly restricted by the proper selection of process parameters, and it remains as a challenging task for producing defect-free 3D printed parts. On the other hand, owing to the large number of FDM process parameters with highly nonlinear and interacting effects, the experimental optimization of FDM is costly and requires mathematical predictive models. This thesis presents an integrated experimental-black box modeling and optimization framework to study the viscoelastic and tensile properties of FDM processed Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS). The effect of selected process parameters (including nozzle temperature, layer height, raster orientation and deposition speed) as well as their interaction effects are studied. Specifically, in the first step, a Taguchi orthogonal array was employed to design the experiments with a minimal number of runs, while considering different working conditions (temperatures) for the final prints. The Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) as well as tensile testing were carried out to investigate the significance of the process parameters, measured by statistical hypothesis testing methods. Due to the observed complex nature of the interacting effects of the FDM parameters, a series of artificial neural networks were developed and employed to predict the propeorites of the 3D printed samples, and consequently the process parameters were optimized via a particle swarm optimization (PSO). The percent contribution and ranking of the process parameters were identified and linked to the underlying meso/micro level mechanisms, through visual inspections of the samples and a Raman spectroscopy analysis.Applied Science, Faculty ofEngineering, School of (Okanagan)Graduat

FIG. 8.

Charts depicted of percentages of intermolecular polar and non-polar interaction area (Å2 ) maps. (a) CHS6-CHS5, (b) Bach1- CHS5, (c) CHS6-GVEGF, (d) Bach1-GVEGF

TABLE I.

Bonding free energy (kcal/mol) of CHS5-CHS6, Bach1-CHS6, GVEGF-CHS6, and GVEGF-Bach1 obtained from the molecular docking

The frequency of clinical manifestations of hypophosphatemic rickets in patients with therapeutic strategies

The aim of this study was to evaluate the frequency of clinical manifestations of various types of rickets in patients could be effective in therapeutic strategies. A total of eleven child patients (7 females and 4 males) were included in the present study. The patients were admitted to the hospital with hypophosphatemic rickets. In our study, the age at the time of diagnosis ranged from 1 to15 years. Mean age of first presentations at final diagnosis was determined to be 5.5 an 2 years, respectively. Five patients out of 11 patients had showed significant history of vitamin D3 resistance. Family history of similar skeletal problems was reported to be positive in six patients. Furthermore, there were seven relative marriages in parents. Mean value of Gomez index has been revealed as 64%. Mean serum phosphate level was detected as 2.9 mg/dL, that this level in males (2.2 mg/dL) was significantly less than females (3.4 mg/dL) (P=0.5). Mean serum alkaline phosphatase activity was reached 913 IU/L. Alkaline phosphatase activity in women (1075 IU/L) was significantly lower than that of men (750 IU/L), (P=0.5). Definitive treatment with oral phosphate and vitamin D3 can prevent complications of the disease and the side effects of unconventional treatments