Blood glucose sensing by back gated transistor strips sensitized by CuO hollow spheres and rGO.

In this work, a highly sensitive flexible glucose sensor based on a field effect transistor (FET) has been fabricated. It is shown that the proposed flexible transistor can be used as new non-enzymatic blood glucose test strips. CuO hollow-spheres decorated with reduced graphene oxide have been synthesized using the hydrothermal method. The shells of the hollow micro-spheres are formed by nanostructures. The synthesized nanostructured hollow micro-spheres (rGO/CuO-NHS) are deposited on a flexible PET substrate between interdigitated electrodes as the channel of a back gate transistor. The channel concentration and the FET bias are optimized so that the sensor exhibits extremely low limit of detection and high sensitivity. The combination of selective porous CuO hollow spheres and the high surface to volume ratio of their nanostructured shells with the high mobility and high conductivity rGO led to faster and higher charge-transfer capability and superior electro-catalyst activity for glucose oxidation. The glucose-dependent electrical responses of the sensor is measured in both resistive and transistor action modes. The amplification of the current by the induced electric field of the gate in the proposed FET-based biosensor provides advantages such as higher sensitivity and lower limit of detection compared to the resistive sensor. The flexible glucose sensor has a sensitivity of 600 µA µM-1 and a limit of detection of 1 nM with high reproducibility, good stability, and highly selectivity. The high accuracy response of the biosensor towards the real blood serum samples showed that it can be used as a test strip for glucose detection in real blood samples.

National Guidelines for Cognitive Assessment and Rehabilitation of Iranian Traumatic Brain Injury Patients.

BACKGROUND: Individuals with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) often have prolonged cognitive impairments, resulting in long-term problems with their real-life activities. Given the urgent need for evidence-based recommendations for neuropsychological management of Iranian TBI patients, the current work aimed to adapt eligible international guidelines for cognitive assessment and rehabilitation of the TBI patients in Iran. METHODS: The project was led by an executive committee, under the supervision of the Iranian Ministry of Health and Medical Education (MOHME). Following a systematic literature search and selection process, four guidelines were included for adaptation. Clinical recommendations of the source guidelines were tabulated as possible clinical scenarios for 90 PICO clinical questions covering all relevant phases of care. After summing up the scenarios, our initial list of recommendations was drafted according to the Iranian patients' conditions. The final decision-making, with the contribution of a national interdisciplinary panel of 37 experts from across the country, was conducted in two rounds using online and offline survey forms (Round 1), and face-to-face and telephone meetings (Round 2). RESULTS: A total of 63 recommendations in six sections were included in the final list of recommendations, among which 24 were considered as key recommendations. In addition, some of the recommendations were identified as fundamental, meaning that proper implementation of the other recommendations is largely dependent on their implementation. CONCLUSION: Iranian health policy makers and rehabilitation program managers are recommended to address some fundamental issues to provide the necessary infrastructure to set up an efficient cognitive rehabilitation service system.

Shiraz Verbal Learning Test (SVLT): Normative Data for Neurologically Intact Speakers of Persian.

OBJECTIVE: Memory assessment plays an important role in the diagnosis of neurodegenerative disorders. Several tests, such as the California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT), have been developed for this purpose, yet a variety of different factors can affect one's performance on such tests, the most important of which are demographic and cultural variables. The present study examined the norming process performed on the CVLT-revised and aimed to devise a new test, the Shiraz Verbal Learning Test (SVLT), to better meet the needs of speakers of Persian. METHOD: In order to collect normative data, a group of 1275 Persian-speaking individuals consisting of both sexes (676 women and 599 men) aged 20-89 years old were selected for this study. RESULTS: The results of Pearson's Correlation analysis indicated that there was a significant negative correlation between age and SVLT performance and a positive one between education and SVLT performance (p < .001) among the whole sample. Moreover, between-group analyses showed that the female participants performed significantly better than their male counterparts on nearly all subtests (Total Trails 1-5, Short-Delay Free Recall, Short-Delay Cued Recall, Long-Delay Free Recall, Long-Delay Cued Recall, and Total Learning Slope), with the only exception being Long-Delay Yes/No Recognition. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that the SVLT has the potential to be further developed among different culture and language groups. This test can also be used for clinical and research purposes for patients with neuropsychiatric disorders who need further neuropsychological assessment.