Pan-cancer analysis and the oncogenic role of Glypican 1 in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Recent studies indicate that Glypican 1 (GPC-1) is aberrantly expressed and plays a key role in certain cancers, but little is known in the hepatocellular carcinoma. Raw data from TCGA, GTEx and TIMER databases were utilized to comprehensively analyze GPC-1 expression landscape in pan-cancer, and the biological function of GPC-1 was investigated in liver cancer cells. The results revealed that GPC-1 is highly expressed in HCC, negatively correlated with survival, and also positively correlated with immune infiltration and clinical stage. Furthermore, GPC-1 promoted cell proliferation and inhibited apoptosis in the HCC cell lines. WGCNA analysis and HCCDB database revealed that Akt acted as a key molecule related to GPC-1, influencing biological functions and regulating cell malignant behaviors via the AKT signaling pathway. In conclusion, our findings provide a relatively comprehensive understanding of the oncogenic role of GPC-1 in HCC, implying that GPC-1 could serve as an innovative therapeutic target.

Modified Time-Frequency Marginal Features for Detection of Seizures in Newborns.

The timely detection of seizure activity in the case of newborns can help save lives. Clinical signs of seizures in newborns are difficult to observe, so, in this study, we propose an automated method of detecting seizures in newborns using multi-channel electroencephalogram (EEG) recording acquired from 36 newborns admitted to Royal Women's Hospital, Brisbane, Australia. A novel set of time-frequency marginal features are defined to detect seizure activity in newborns. The proposed set is based on the observation that EEG seizure signals appear either as a train of spikes or as a summation of frequency-modulated chirps with slow variation in the instantaneous frequency curve. The proposed set of features is obtained by extracting the time-frequency (TF) signature of seizure spikes and frequency-modulated chirps by exploiting the direction of ridges in the TF plane. Based on extracted TF signature of spikes, the modified time-marginal is computed whereas based on the extracted TF signature of frequency-modulated chirps, the modified frequency-marginal is computed. It is demonstrated that features extracted from the modified time-domain marginal and frequency-domain marginal in combination with TF statistical and frequency-related features lead to better accuracy than the existing TF signal classification method, i.e., the proposed method achieves an F1 score of 70.93% which is 5% greater than the existing method.

An Efficient and Accurate Multi-Sensor IF Estimator Based on DOA Information and Order of Fractional Fourier Transform.

Instantaneous frequency in multi-sensor recordings is an important parameter for estimation of direction of arrival estimation, source separation, and sparse reconstruction. The instantaneous frequency estimation problem becomes challenging when signal components have close or overlapping signatures and the number of sensors is less than the number of sources. In this study, we develop a computationally efficient method that exploits the direction of the IF curve in addition to the angle of arrival as additional features for the accurate tracking of IF curves. Experimental results show that the proposed scheme achieves better accuracy compared to the-state-of-art method in terms of mean square error (MSE) with a slight increase in the computational cost, i.e., the proposed method achieves MSE of -50 dB at the signal to noise ratio of 0 dB whereas the existing method achieves the MSE of -38 dB.

Exclusively Breastfed Infant Microbiota Develops over Time and Is Associated with Human Milk Oligosaccharide Intakes.

Temporal development of maternal and infant microbiomes during early life impacts short- and long-term infant health. This study aimed to characterize bacterial dynamics within maternal faecal, human milk (HM), infant oral, and infant faecal samples during the exclusive breastfeeding period and to document associations between human milk oligosaccharide (HMO) intakes and infant oral and faecal bacterial profiles. Maternal and infant samples (n = 10) were collected at 2−5, 30, 60, 90 and 120 days postpartum and the full-length 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene was sequenced. Nineteen HMOs were quantitated using high-performance liquid chromatography. Bacterial profiles were unique to each sample type and changed significantly over time, with a large degree of intra- and inter-individual variation in all sample types. Beta diversity was stable over time within infant faecal, maternal faecal and HM samples, however, the infant oral microbiota at day 2−5 significantly differed from all other time points (all p < 0.02). HMO concentrations and intakes significantly differed over time, and HMO intakes showed differential associations with taxa observed in infant oral and faecal samples. The direct clinical relevance of this, however, is unknown. Regardless, future studies should account for intakes of HMOs when modelling the impact of HM on infant growth, as it may have implications for infant microbiota development.

A novel method development and validation for determination of 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene and its metabolites on LC-MS/MS.

LC-MS/MS has recently emerged as the best practice for simultaneous analysis of 2, 4, 6 Trinitrotoluene (TNT) and its metabolites. We have developed and validated an LC-MS/MS method for simultaneous quantification of 2, 4, 6 Trinitrotoluene (TNT) and its metabolites 4-ADNT, 2-ADNT, 2,4-DNT, and 2,6-DNT in urine samples. These four metabolites were acid hydrolyzed using 1 mL of urine followed by extraction using n-Hexane and ethyl acetate as an extracting solvent. Separation was achieved by centrifugation, and the supernatant was dried under nitrogen, reconstituted with water and acetonitrile, and then filtered. Chromatographic separation was achieved on Agilent Poroshel 120 EC-C18 column (2.1 mm × 75 mm × 2.7 µm) utilizing two mobile phases 0.1% formic acid in water and 0.1% formic acid in acetonitrile in gradient flow. The validated AMR of TNT and its metabolites was 7.8-1000 ng/mL. The method showed an excellent correlation (>0.99) for TNT and its metabolites. Accuracy and within/between day precision of TNT and its metabolites were within ±15%. The integrity of diluted samples was maintained for each dilution factor. The method was found stable after storage and freeze-thaw cycle. The presented method can be used for TNT screening in occupationally exposed ordnance factory workers.

Reducing the mechanical wear of elbows and pipes due to solid particles flow by using nano coating technique.

This work investigated reasons and factors that cause the failure due to mechanical wear (Erosion) for the inside surface of elbows and pipes used in cement transportation which manufactures from low carbon steel and finds out a method for reducing this failure. The technique of Nano-coating layers is used to coat the surface of samples with layers of nanoparticles of tungsten carbides of different thicknesses of (30, 40, and 50 µm). The test was done for these samples by placing them inside the elbow under the same operating conditions, pin on disc test. The results of the test under the same operation condition showed a decrease in erosion rate by 71% for the sample coated with 50 µm of layer, while the results of the pin on disc test showed a decrease in erosion rate by 97% for the thickness of 50 µm as this test is done under ideal testing conditions. The decrease in wear rate for elbow and pipes will increase their life work two times at least and that reduces the cost of maintenance by about 75%. The numerical simulation was also implemented to simulate the erosion profile inside the elbow, and the agreement with experimental results was 90%.

Association study of six candidate genes with major depressive disorder in the North-Western population of Pakistan.

People around the world are currently affected by Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). Despite its many aspects, symptoms, manifestations and impacts, efforts have been made to identify the root causes of the disorder. In particular, genetic studies have concentrated on identifying candidate genes for MDD and exploring associations between these genes and some specific group of individuals. The aim of this research was to find out the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms in 6 candidate genes linked to the neurobiology of major depressive disorder in the North-Western population of Pakistan. We performed a case-control analysis, with 400 MDD and 232 controls. A trained psychiatrist or clinical psychologists evaluated the patients. Six polymorphisms were genotyped and tested for allele and genotype association with MDD. There were no statistical variations between MDD patients and healthy controls for genotypic and allelic distribution of all the polymorphisms observed. Thus, our analysis does not support the major role of these polymorphisms in contributing to MDD susceptibility, although it does not preclude minor impact. The statistically significant correlation between six polymorphisms and major depressive disorder in the studied population was not observed. There are inconsistencies in investigations around the world. Future research, including GWAS and association analysis on larger scale should be addressed for further validation and replication of the present findings.

Trace metal profiling in patients with depression in Pakistani population.

OBJECTIVE: To determine level of trace metals in patients with depression in order to explore any association between the two. METHODS: The case-control study was conducted at the Department of Chemical Pathology and Endocrinology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology and Armed Forces Institute of Mental Health, Rawalpindi, Pakistan, from January to December 2017, and comprised diagnosed cases of depression with equal number of age- and gender-matched controls. Depression was diagnosed by a consultant psychiatrist as per the International Classification of Diseases version 10 / Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders -IV criteria and a self-reported depression screening through Siddiqui-Shah Depression Scale. Blood samples were collected from each subject for the measurement of metals like zinc, chromium and copper. Data was analysed using SPSS 24. RESULTS: Of the 370 subjects, there were 185(50%) in each of the two groups. There were 82(44.3%) males and 103(55.7%) females among the cases with an overall mean age of 37.75±11.49 years, and 65(35.1%) males and 120(64.9%) females with an overall mean age of 39.38±12.56 years among the controls. Mean levels of zinc and copper were significantly different between the groups (p<0.05), while the difference was non-significant for chromium (p>0.05). Equivocal prevalence of depression was present between males and females (p=0.04) without any significant age group association (p=1.92). CONCLUSIONS: Blood level of serum zinc and copper were found to be associated with depression.

Evaluation of blood lead levels by atomic absorption spectrometry in school going children of northern areas of Pakistan.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate blood lead levels and assess their correlation with academic performance in school children. METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted at the Department of Chemical Pathology and Endocrinology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Rawalpindi, Pakistan, from January to December, 2017, and comprised school children in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, and Hajira, Azad Jammu and Kashmir. About 5 ml of venous blood was collected in potassium-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid tubes for lead levels, haemoglobin and plasma ferritin. The preceding three years' academic performance, rated as excellent, good, fair and poor, of the subjects was categorised on a specifically-designed proforma. Data was analysed using SPSS 24. RESULTS: Of the 400 subjects, 205 (50.25%) were females. The overall mean age was 9.15±2.8 years. Mean level of lead was 4.3±2.6 µg/dL, and difference in values was significant between children of Hajira and Rawalpindi (p<0.05). Mean haemoglobin was 12.9±0.919g/dL and mean ferritin was 49.17±16.0ng/ml. Of the total, 85(21.3%) showed excellent school performance, 162(40.5%) good, 113(28.3%) fair and 40(10%) showed poor performance. Significant negative association was found between school performance and mean blood lead level (p>0.05). No significant difference was found in terms of gender and age with school performance of both regions. CONCLUSIONS: Majority of school going children in northern Pakistan were found to have lead levels ≤ 5µg/dL which is a level of concern as it is inversely related to academic performance.

Impact of Family Medicine Training on the Quality of Care for patients of diabetes in Saudi Arabia.

INTRODUCTION: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the challenging health problems worldwide. Primary care centers manage and treat most of DM cases. Diabetes requires ongoing, and evidence-based health care which should be provided by highly qualified physicians. AIM: This study aims at evaluating the Family Medicine training efficacy on the quality of care for diabetic patients. METHODOLOGY: This is a cross-sectional study conducted among patients with DM at the AlJafer training center situated in AlAhssa, Saudi Arabia. The data of diabetic patients who were followed up initially with general practitioners (GPs) and later with family physicians (FPs) collected from the patients' electronic files. Clinical parameters including HbA1c, blood pressure, total cholesterol, LDL, and statin, aspirin initiation measured during initial visits and follow-ups to compare the quality of diabetic care between the two groups (FPs vs. GPs). All statistical analyses carried using SPSS version 21. RESULTS: Eighty-three patients were included in the study. Regarding the measurement process, FPs more likely to measure HbA1c twice a year than GPs (P:<0.001). The number of patients with HbA1c level >8% decreased significantly during the period of follow-up with FPs (P:<0.001). Furthermore, a significant number of patients meet the BP target ≤130/85 during the follow-up period with FPs. The statin initiation is substantially achieved more by FPs (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Family medicine training has a significant influence on the clinical outcomes of patients with DM. This study's findings suggest that FPs ensure a better quality of care in terms of clinical and process measures.

Impact of Training of Primary Health Care Centers' Vaccinators on Immunization Session Practices in Wasit Governorate, Iraq: Interventional Study.

BACKGROUND: Immunization averts more than 2.5 million deaths of children annually. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children's Fund estimates of immunization coverage in Iraq in 2015 revealed a 58% coverage for the third dose of the diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccine and a 57% coverage for the measles vaccine. High-quality immunization session practices (ISPs) can ensure safer, more effective vaccination and higher coverage rates. OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to assess the impact of training of primary health care centers' (PHCs) vaccinators on the quality of ISPs. METHODS: This was an interventional study conducted on 10 (18%) PHCs in Wasit Governorate. Two PHCs were randomly selected from each health district. ISPs were assessed by direct on-job observation, using modified WHO immunization session checklists. Findings were grouped into seven domains: vaccine and diluent management, cold chain management, session equipment, registration, communication, vaccine preparation and administration, and waste management. The vaccinators were enrolled in a one-day training session using the WHO module, "Managing an Immunization Session", and one month later a second assessment was conducted using the same tools and techniques. We then calculated the median differences of the domains' scores. RESULTS: A total of 42 vaccinators were trained, with 25 (60%) of them having graduated from technical health institutes, but only 15 (36%) having had previous training on standard ISPs. Following training, a significant improvement was noticed in three domains: vaccines and diluents management (P=.01), cold chain management (P=.01) and vaccine preparation and administration (P=.02). CONCLUSIONS: The training of the PHCs' vaccinators for a single day was effective in improving some ISPs. We would recommend using this training module, or a more in-depth one, for other PHCs to improve utilization of immunization services.

A new feature for the classification of non-stationary signals based on the direction of signal energy in the time-frequency domain.

The detection of seizure activity in electroencephalogram (EEG) segments is very important for the classification and localization of epileptic seizures. The evolution of a seizure in an EEG usually appears as a train of non-uniformly spaced spikes and/or as piecewise linear frequency modulated signals. If a seizure is present, then the energy of the EEG is concentrated along the time axis and the frequency axis in the time-frequency plane. However, in the absence of a seizure, the energy of the EEG signal is uniformly distributed along all directions in the time-frequency plane. Based on this observation, we propose a new approach for the detection of a seizure. In this paper, we develop a new feature that exploits the direction of the energy of the signal in the time-frequency domain to distinguish between seizures and non-seizures in an EEG. Our experimental results indicate the superiority of the proposed approach over other conventional time-frequency approaches; for example, the proposed feature set achieves a classification accuracy of 98.25% by only using five features.

Vitamin E and telmisartan attenuates doxorubicin induced cardiac injury in rat through down regulation of inflammatory response.

BACKGROUND: The importance of doxorubicin (Dox), as a potent antitumor antibiotic, is limited by the development of life-threatening cardiomyopathy. It has been shown that free radicals are involved in acute doxorubicin-induced toxicity. The aim of this study was to determine the protective effect of vitamin E and telmisartan in acute doxorubicin induced cardiotoxicity. METHODS: Thirty two male Sprague - Dawley rats were involved in this study and were randomly separated into 4 groups, eight rats in each group, one group received normal saline I.P as control and second group received doxorubicin 20 mg/kg I.P, the other two groups also received doxorubicin 20 mg/kg I.P as single dose after seven cumulative doses (for seven days) of vitamin E (100 mg/kg) and telmisartan (1 mg/kg) respectively. Immunofluorescent staining for monocytes infiltration and analyses of plasma by (ELISAs) for MCP-1and troponin I. Western immunoblotting assay for ICAM-1, while left ventricular function was analyzed by microcatheter, also estimated the level of oxidative stress parameters (MDA and Catalase) and cardiac enzymes activities (CK-MB and LDH) before starting drugs treatment and after treatment period by 48 hours. RESULTS: The immunofluorescent staining showed that administration of vitamin E and telmisartan are attenuated of mononuclear cell infiltration; (p < 0.05 vs. Dox group), also reduced the level of chemokines MCP-1 and ICAM-1 expression compared with Dox group only, and there is marked reduction of myocardial troponin-I levels with improved LV function in vitamin E and telmisartan treated group. Doxorubicin treatment increased MDA, LDH, CK-MB levels significantly (P < 0.01), and were counteracted by administration of vitamin E and telmisartan, but did not significantly affect serum catalase activity. CONCLUSIONS: Antioxidant effect (vitamin E and telmisartan) have been shown to decrease doxorubicininduced cardiotoxicity.

Socioeconomic status, labour market connection, and self-rated psychological health: the role of social capital and economic stress.

AIMS: To investigate the association between socioeconomic status, unemployment and self-rated psychological health, taking economic stress and horizontal trust into account. DESIGN/SETTING/PARTICIPANTS/MEASUREMENTS: The 2008 public health survey in Skåne is a cross-sectional postal questionnaire study with a 55% participation rate. A random sample was invited and 28,198 persons aged 18-80 participated. Logistic regression models were used to investigate associations between socioeconomic status by occupation (SES), labour market connection and self-rated psychological health (GHQ12). The multiple regression analyses included age, country of birth, education, economic stress and generalized (horizontal) trust. RESULTS: 13.8% of the men and 18.2% of the women had poor psychological health. Poor psychological health was more common among the young, among those born abroad, among those with lower education, with economic stress, and low horizontal trust. There were no significant differences between the employed and self-employed groups. However, the people who had retired early, the unemployed and those on long-term sick leave had significantly higher odds ratios of poor psychological health than higher non-manual employees throughout the analyses. CONCLUSIONS: There were no differences in psychological health between non-manual employees in higher positions and other employed and self-employed SES groups among men or women. In contrast, the early retired, the unemployed and the category on long-term sick leave had significantly higher odds ratios of poor psychological health among both men and women throughout the multiple analyses. Both economic stress and trust affected this association (i.e., lowered the odds ratios of poor psychological health), but affected by economic stress to a somewhat higher extent.

Gender differences in daily smoking prevalence in different age strata: a population-based study in southern Sweden.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate gender differences in daily smoking prevalence in different age groups in southern Sweden. METHODS: The 2004 public-health survey in Skane is a cross-sectional study. A total of 27,757 persons aged 18-80 years answered a postal questionnaire, which represents 59% of the random sample. A logistic regression model was used to investigate the associations between gender and daily smoking according to age. The multivariate analysis was performed to investigate the importance of possible confounders (country of origin, education, snus use, alcohol consumption, leisure-time physical activity, and BMI) on the gender differences in daily smoking in different age groups. RESULTS: 14.9% of the men and 18.1% of the women were daily smokers. Middle-aged respondents were daily smokers to a significantly higher extent than young and old respondents. The prevalence of daily smoking also varied according to other demographic, socioeconomic, health related behaviour, and BMI characteristics. The crude odds ratios of daily smoking were 1.79 (1.42-2.26) among women compared to men in the 18-24 years age group, and 0.95 (0.80-1.12) in the 65-80 years age group. These odds ratios changed to 2.00 (1.49-2.67) and 0.95 (0.76-1.18), respectively, when all confounders were included. CONCLUSIONS: For the first time in Sweden women have a higher prevalence of daily smoking than men. The odds ratios of daily smoking are highest among women compared to men in the youngest age group of 18-24 years and the odds ratios decrease with increasing age. The findings point to a serious public health problem. Strategic interventions targeting young women's tobacco smoking are needed.

Social capital, the miniaturisation of community, traditionalism and first time acute myocardial infarction: a prospective cohort study in southern Sweden.

This longitudinal study investigates the impact of social participation, trust and the combinations of social participation and trust on the incidence of first time acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in the population of Scania, southern Sweden. It is based on the cross-sectional 2000 public-health survey in Scania with a 59% participation rate and 13,604 participants, and prospective morbidity/mortality data collected for three years (January 2000-December 2002). The study cohort was followed prospectively to examine first ever AMI. Hazard rate ratios (HRR) for first time AMI in the social participation, trust and social participation/trust combinations were calculated in a Cox regression model with adjustments for age, sex, education, economic stress, daily smoking, leisure time physical activity, body mass index (BMI), and self-reported health. The prevalence of low social participation was 32.8% among men and 31.5% among women. The prevalence of low trust was 40.0% among men and 44.2% among women. The three-year first time AMI rate was significantly higher among people with higher age, low education, daily smoking, poor self-reported health (among men), low social participation, and the combinations of low social participation/high trust and low social participation/low trust. The results show that low social participation but not trust was significantly associated with first time AMI after adjustment for age and sex. The positive association between low social participation and myocardial infarction remained significant after further adjustments for education, economic stress, daily smoking, physical activity and BMI, and became not significant only after additional adjustment for self-reported health, HRR 1.3 (0.9-2.0). High trust in combination with low social participation as well as low social capital (low trust/low social participation) were significantly associated with AMI, but after multiple adjustments only the low social participation/high trust category remained significant, HRR 1.6 (1.0-2.6).

Psychosocial work conditions, unemployment, and leisure-time physical activity: a population-based study.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between psychosocial work conditions and unemployment, and low leisure-time physical activity. DESIGN/SETTING/PARTICIPANTS/MEASUREMENTS: The 2000 public health survey in Scania is a cross-sectional postal questionnaire study with a 59% participation rate. A total of 5,180 persons aged 18-64 years who belonged to the workforce and the unemployed were included in this study. Logistic regression models were used to investigate the associations between psychosocial factors at work and unemployment, and low leisure-time physical activity. Psychosocial conditions at work were defined according to the Karasek-Theorell demand-control/decision latitudes into relaxed, active, passive, and job strain categories. The multivariate analyses included age, country of birth, education, economic stress, and social participation. RESULTS: In total, 16.1% of men and 14.8% of women had low leisure-time physical activity. The job strain (high demands/low control) and unemployed categories had significantly higher odds ratios of low leisure-time physical activity among both men and women compared with the relaxed (low demands/high control) reference category. However, the significant differences between the job strain, the unemployed, and the relaxed categories disappeared in the multivariate models. CONCLUSIONS: Respondents with job strain or unemployment have significantly higher odds ratios of low leisure-time physical activity than the relaxed category. However, after adjustments for education in particular the differences disappear. Nevertheless, the results suggest that the association between psychosocial work conditions, which are often dependent on education, and leisure-time physical activity may be interesting to study in more detail.

Socioeconomic, psychosocial, behavioural, and psychological determinants of BMI among young women: differing patterns for underweight and overweight/obesity.

OBJECTIVES: Underweight, overweight, and obese women aged 18-34 years were compared with normal weight women of the corresponding age according to socioeconomic, psychosocial, health behaviour, self reported global and psychological health, and locus of control characteristics. METHODS: The 2000 public health survey in Scania is a cross-sectional study. A total 13,715 persons aged 18-80 years, of which 1967 were females of 18-34 years of age, were included in this study. They answered a postal questionnaire, which represents 59% of the random sample. A logistic regression model adjusted for age was used to investigate the association between socioeconomic, psychosocial, health behaviour, self reported global and psychological health, locus of control, and the BMI categories. RESULTS: A 17.5% proportion of the women, aged 18-34 years, were underweight (BMI < 20.0), 18.4% were overweight, and 7.0% obese. The prevalence of underweight according to the BMI < 18.5 definition was 5.8% among women aged 18-34 years. Women who were underweight had significantly higher odds ratios for overtime work, being students, low emotional support, and poor self reported global as well as poor psychological health than normal weight women. Women who were overweight/obese were unemployed, had low education, low social participation, low emotional and instrumental support, were daily smokers, had a sedentary lifestyle, had poor self reported global health, and had lack of internal locus of control compared with normal weight women. CONCLUSIONS: Underweight women are more likely to have poorer psychological health than normal weight women. In contrast, overweight and obese women are more likely to have poor health related behaviours and lack of internal locus of control compared with normal weight women. These differing patterns suggest both different etiology and different preventive strategies to deal with the health risks of people who are underweight as opposed to those who are overweight/obese.