Cohort profile: the PERSIAN Dena Cohort Study (PDCS) of non-communicable diseases in Southwest Iran.

PURPOSE: This study conducted in Dena County is a population-based cohort study as part of the Prospective Epidemiological Research Studies in Iran (PERSIAN). The specific objectives of this study were to estimate the prevalence of region-specific modifiable risk factors and their associations with the incidence of major non-communicable diseases (NCDs). PARTICIPANTS: This PERSIAN Dena Cohort Study (PDCS) was conducted on 1561 men and 2069 women aged 35-70 years from October 2016 in Dena County, Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province, Southwest Iran. The overall participation rate was 82.7%. FINDINGS TO DATE: Out of 3630 participants, the mean age was 50.16 years, 2069 (56.9%) were women and 2092 (57.6%) were rural residents. Females exhibited higher prevalence rates of diabetes, hypertension, fatty liver, psychiatric disorders, thyroiditis, kidney stones, gallstones, rheumatic disease, chronic lung disease, depression and osteoporosis compared with males (p<0.05). Furthermore, the urban population showed elevated rates of diabetes, thyroiditis, kidney stones and epilepsy, whereas psychiatric disorders and lupus were more prevalent in rural areas (p<0.05). According to laboratory findings, 418 (13.0%), 1536 (48.1%) and 626 (19.3%) of the participants had fasting blood sugar >126 mg/dL, low-density lipoprotein >100 mg/dL and haematuria, respectively; most of them were female and urban people (p<0.05). FUTURE PLANS: PDCS will be planned to re-evaluate NCD-related incidence, all-cause and cause-specific mortality every 5 years, along with annual follow-up for 15 years. Some examples of additional planned studies are evaluation of genetic, environmental risk, spirometry and ECG tests.

Association Between the Risk of Multiple Sclerosis and Dietary Proinflammatory/Anti-Inflammatory Food Intake and Dietary Diversity: A Case-Control Study.

A diet rich in proinflammatory components and inflammation are suggested to be significant risk factors for multiple sclerosis (MS). This study aimed to investigate the association between the risk of MS and the inflammatory potential of an individual's diet and dietary diversity through pro-inflammatory/anti-inflammatory food intake score (PAIFIS) and dietary diversity score (DDS). In a hospital-based case-control study, 397 participants, including 197 patients with MS and 200 healthy participants aged over 18 years, were evaluated. The history of smoking, dietary intake, and anthropometric characteristics, including body mass index, waist circumference, total body fat, and fat-free mass were assessed. A validated 160-item semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire was used to calculate the PAIFIS and DDS scores. The mean age of the participants was 32.45 ± 8.66 years, and most were females (274, 79.4%). The PAIFIS score was significantly higher among MS patients than healthy participants (p = 0.001). Between PAIFIS and DDS, only PAFIS was significantly related to MS risk (odds ratio, 1.002; 95% confidence interval, 1.001-1.004; p = 0.001). PAIFIS, as an index of dietary inflammation, can predict MS. Further studies are needed to document these findings.

Estimating the whole-body effective dose and health risks as well as introducing a new easy method for eye lens dosimetry in interventional cardiology procedures.

This study aimed to introduce a new method for eye lens thermo-luminescent dosimetry and also estimate the dose associated with induced cancer risk due to the ionizing radiation exposure received by physicians and other staff cooperating in interventional cardiology (IC) procedures. The measurements were performed with six TLDs (thermoluminescent dosimeters): four TLDs for eye lens dosimetry (2 positioned on respiratory/surgical mask under the eye region as the new method; and 2 near the outside border of the eye as the common method) and two TLDs for whole-body dosimetry. Whole-body doses were used to calculate the cancer risks induced by IC procedures. The results of the new proposed method for eye lens dosimetry were similar to common TLD positioning (mean differences <5%) and mask displacement had no significant effect on eye dose measurement in our new method. Our proposed method for eye lens dosimetry is simpler and more comfortable compared to the common method and it can be used as an alternative method without using TLD holders to monitor lens dose for IC workers wearing masks during the procedure. The estimated excess cancer incidence risk induced by IC procedures was 29.58 ± 5.71 and 46.68 ± 7.77 (per 100000 individuals) for men and women, respectively.

Evaluation of the thermal stability of a novel strain of live-attenuated mumps vaccine (RS-12 strain) lyophilized in different stabilizers.

The stability of live-attenuated viral vaccines is important for immunization efficacy. Here, the thermostabilities of lyophilized live-attenuated mumps vaccine formulations in two different stabilizers, a trehalose dihydrate-based stabilizer and a stabilizer containing sucrose, human serum albumin and sorbitol were investigated using accelerated stability tests at 4°C, 25°C and 37°C at time points between 4h (every 4h for the first 24h) and 1 week. Even under the harshest storage conditions of 37°C for 1 week, the 50% cell culture infective dose (CCID50) determined from titrations in Vero cells dropped by less than 10-fold using each stabilizer formulation and thus complied with the World Health Organization's requirements for the potency of live-attenuated mumps vaccines. However, as the half-life of the RS-12 strain mumps virus infectivity was lengthened substantially at elevated temperatures using the trehalose dihydrate (TD)-based stabilizer, this stabilizer is recommended for vaccine use.

UPLC and HPLC of caffeoyl esters in wild and cultivated Arctium lappa L.

Analytical methods including ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with photodiode array (PDA) detector were developed for the analysis of caffeoylquinic acid derivatives in seeds, leaves and roots of Arctium lappa L. Separation was performed on C(18) column utilising 5% (v/v) acetic acid in water and acetonitrile at 330 nm. Both methodologies were validated in terms of linearity, precision, and recovery. The results showed that the major advantages of UPLC, over HPLC were the fast analysis, narrow peaks, high sensitivity, and reduction of solvent consumption. Subsequently the methods were applied for the identification and quantification of chlorogenic acid (5-CQA) and 1,5-dicaffeoylquinic acid (1,5-DCQA) as main compounds in samples. The total phenolic content of samples ranged from 3.93 to 14.13 g of 5-CQA equivalent/100g dry weight (DW). There was a significant variability from 89 to 571 mg/100g for 5-CQA and 48 to 486 mg/100g for 1,5-DCQA in dry material.

Seroprevalence of bovine leukemia virus (BLV) infection in dairy cattle in Isfahan Province, Iran.

Bovine leukemia virus (BLV), the causative agent of enzootic bovine leukosis (EBL) is an exogenous C-type oncovirus in the Retroviridae family. It causes significant economic losses associated with the costs of control and eradication programs due to carcass condemnation at slaughter and restrictions of export of cattle and semen to importing countries. The main objective of this research was to determine the seroprevalence of BLV infection in cattle herds in central region of Iran (Isfahan province) using a commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to detect serum antibodies against BLV. Samples of blood serum were collected from 403 female dairy cattle (Holstein-Friesian) from 21 livestock farms and 303 animals (81.9%) were BLV seropositive. A significant association was found between age as a potential risk factor and BVL seroprevalence with animals ≥ 4 years (86.6%) having a significantly (χ(2) = 35.6, p < 0.001) higher seroprevalence compared to those < 4 years (54.2%). We found no significant statistical association between seroprevalence and pregnancy, lactation status and farming systems as potential risk factors in this study (p > 0.1). It is concluded that BLV infection is a very common problem in the study area. Hence, control measures should be instituted to combat the disease and further studies are required to investigate the impact of this disease on dairy production in the country.

Seroepidemiological study of bovine respiratory viruses (BRSV, BoHV-1, PI-3V, BVDV, and BAV-3) in dairy cattle in central region of Iran (Esfahan province).

Respiratory diseases in calves are responsible for major economic losses in both beef and dairy production. Several viruses, such as bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV), bovine herpes virus-1 (BoHV-1), bovine parainfluenza virus-3 (BPI-3V), bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV), and bovine adenoviruses (BAV), are detected in most clinical cases with respiratory signs. The aim of this study is to define seroprevalences of five major viral causes of bovine respiratory infections in cattle in central region of Iran (Esfahan province). The population targeted was 642 dairy cows (Holstein-Friesian) from 25 farms. Samples of blood serum from female cattle were examined. Sera were tested by commercial ELISA kits to detect antibody against BRSV, BoHV-1, BPI-3V, BVDV, and BAV-3. The results were analyzed by Chi-square test. In the present study, seroprevalences of BRSV, BoHV-1, PI3V, BVDV, and BAV-3 were 51.1%, 72%, 84.4%, 49.2%, and 55.6%, respectively. The present study shows that infections of bovine respiratory viruses are very common in cattle in Esfahan.

Simultaneous quantification of flavonoids and phenolic acids in plant materials by a newly developed isocratic high-performance liquid chromatography approach.

A simple reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic (RP-HPLC) method based on isocratic elution has been developed and validated for the simultaneous quantitation of flavonols (myricetin, quercetin, kaempferol, and isorhamnetin), flavones (luteolin and apigenin), and phenolic acids (chlorogenic, caffeic, ellagic, and rosmarinic acids) as important constituents in fruits, vegetables, and medicinal plants. Analysis was achieved on a C18 column at ambient temperature. The wavelengths used for the detection of flavonols, flavones, and phenolic acids were 370, 350, and 325 nm, respectively. After acid hydrolysis, the flavonoid aglycones were quantified straightforwardly in 20 dry herbal samples. The plants with the highest flavonoids were Rosa damascena, Solidago virgaurea, Ginkgo biloba, and Camellia sinensis. The contents of flavonoids aglycons ranged from 0.54 to 11.10 mg/g, from 0.03 to 14.80 mg/g, from 0.19 to 2.76 mg/g, from 0.15 to 2.36 mg/g, from 0.27 to 2.05 mg/g, and from 0.42 to 1.82 mg/g for quercetin, kaempferol, isorhamnetin, luteolin, apigenin, and myricetin in dry plant samples, respectively.