The emergence of Q1 genotype of avian infectious bronchitis virus in Iran, 2019: the first report.

BACKGROUND: Avian infectious bronchitis (IB) is an infectious viral disease of chickens. The effective protection of chickens against many different infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) variants is not achieved unless the circulating genotypes in the region are identified and the cross-protection of the potential of vaccines in use is assessed. AIMS: In a monitoring program of IBVs, a new genotype was identified in the north of Iran, 2019. This work was conducted to isolate and characterize this new IBV genotype. METHODS: Tracheal tissues were collected from chickens showing signs of respiratory involvement. Specimens were homogenized and inoculated to the allantoic fluid of embryonated specific pathogen-free (SPF) eggs. Infectious bronchitis virus was detected using real time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The hypervariable region of the IBV S1 gene was amplified for sequencing. RESULTS: Positive samples were phylogenetically analyzed, and both positive isolates were clustered with Q1 IBV strains. CONCLUSION: This is the first report of the Q1 outbreak in Iran. More investigations are needed to find the role of Q1 IBV in the respiratory disease complex of chickens.

Radiation-induced Non-targeted Effect and Carcinogenesis; Implications in Clinical Radiotherapy.

Bystander or non-targeted effect is known to be an interesting phenomenon in radiobiology. The genetic consequences of bystander effect on non-irradiated cells have shown that this phenomenon can be considered as one of the most important factors involved in secondary cancer after exposure to ionizing radiation. Every year, millions of people around the world undergo radiotherapy in order to cure different types of cancers. The most crucial aim of radiotherapy is to improve treatment efficiency by reducing early and late effects of exposure to clinical doses of radiation. Secondary cancer induction resulted from exposure to high doses of radiation during treatment can reduce the effectiveness of this modality for cancer treatment. The perception of carcinogenesis risk of bystander effects and factors involved in this phenomenon might help reduce secondary cancer incidence years after radiotherapy. Different modalities such as radiation LET, dose and dose rate, fractionation, types of tissue, gender of patients, etc. may be involved in carcinogenesis risk of bystander effects. Therefore, selecting an appropriate treatment modality may improve cost-effectiveness of radiation therapy as well as the quality of life in survived patients. In this review, we first focus on the carcinogenesis evidence of non-targeted effects in radiotherapy and then review physical and biological factors that may influence the risk of secondary cancer induced by this phenomenon.

Molecular identification of miR-145 and miR-9 expression level as prognostic biomarkers for early-stage cervical cancer detection.

BACKGROUND: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) may act as carcinogen or tumor suppressor genes by targeting various biological molecules. Therefore, it is important to identify significant markers for prognosis, diagnosis treatment strategies of cancers. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical importance and prognostic value of miR-9 and miR-145 in cervical cancer. METHOD: miRNAs expression was detected using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction in cervical cancer specimens and adjacent normal tissues. RESULTS: MiR-9 up-regulated in cervical cancer specimens than adjacent normal tissues (9.743 ± 2.172 vs. 2.131 ± 1.083; P < 0.05). MiR-145 was decreased in cervical cancer specimens compared to corresponding normal tissues (2.189 ± 0. 724 vs. 7.173 ± 1.558 P < 0.05). In addition, increased expression of miR-9 was strongly linked to lymph node metastasis (P = 0.017) and vascular invasion (P = 0.011). On the other hand, the low expression of miR-145 was related to advanced FIGO stage (P = 0.007), lymph node metastasis (P = 0.02) and vascular invasion (0.026). Kaplan-Meier survival and log-rank analysis suggested that patients with high expression of miR-9 had shorter overall survival compared with those with low expression (log-rank test P = 0.028; P < 0.001). In addition, shorter overall survival time was remarkably linked to decreased expression of miR-145 (log-rank test P < 0.001). Multivariate Cox proportional hazards model analysis of miR-9 and miR-145 showed that FIGO stage (P = 0.011) high expression of miR-9 and low expression of miR-145 (P = 0.023; P = 0.031) were independent prognostic factors for overall survival of patients. CONCLUSIONS: miRNA-145 and 9 may be as potential prognostic marker in patients suffering from cervical cancer.

Optimal model of PDIG based microgrid and design of complementary stabilizer using ICA.

The generalized Heffron-Phillips model (GHPM) for a microgrid containing a photovoltaic (PV)-diesel machine (DM)-induction motor (IM)-governor (GV) (PDIG) has been developed at the low voltage level. A GHPM is calculated by linearization method about a loading condition. An effective Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) approach for PV network has been done using sliding mode control (SMC) to maximize output power. Additionally, to improve stability of microgrid for more penetration of renewable energy resources with nonlinear load, a complementary stabilizer has been presented. Imperialist competitive algorithm (ICA) is utilized to design of gains for the complementary stabilizer with the multiobjective function. The stability analysis of the PDIG system has been completed with eigenvalues analysis and nonlinear simulations. Robustness and validity of the proposed controllers on damping of electromechanical modes examine through time domain simulation under input mechanical torque disturbances.

Opium consumption: A potential risk factor for lung cancer and pulmonary tuberculosis.

OBJECTIVE: Lung cancer is the most common malignancy, as well as the leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Several studies have shown the causative effect of cigarettes smoking in lung cancer, however, the effect of opium consumption has not yet been well studied. This study has been designed to evaluate the risk of developing lung cancer and pulmonary tuberculosis in pure opium addicts. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We designed an analytic case-control study with 490 participants. People were divided into three groups: Group A were pure opium addicts, Group B consisted of nonsmoker patients who visited the chest medicine clinic due to complaints such as asthma, respiratory tract infections, and other signs and symptoms unrelated to smoking. Group C were chosen from nonsmoker individuals who visited the Emergency Department due to nonrespiratory problems. RESULTS: Statistical analysis showed that the three groups were similar with respect to mean age and gender. In Group A, one patient was diagnosed as having bronchoalveolar carcinoma. No other case of lung cancer was found in all three groups. Furthermore, four patients in Group A (5.3%; 95% confidence interval, 1.3-10.3) were found to have pulmonary tuberculosis, as this was significantly higher as compared with groups B and C (P = 0.009 and P< 0.001, respectively). CONCLUSION: Although, owing to limited number of cases, a robust conclusion cannot be made, this study can be considered as a base for a well-designed, larger study to further clarify the potential effect of opium abuse in developing lung cancer.

Introducing the RadBioStat Educational Software: Computer-Assisted Teaching of the Random Nature of Cell Killing.

The interaction of radiation with cells and tissues has a random nature. Therefore, understanding the random nature of cell killing that is determined by Poisson distribution statistics is an essential point in education of radiation biology. RadBioStat is a newly developed educational MATLAB-based software designed for computer-assisted learning of the target theory in radiation biology. Although its potential applications is developing rapidly, currently RadBioStat software can be a useful tool in computer-assisted education of radiobiological models such as single target single hit, multiple target single hit and multiple target multiple hit. Scholars' feedback is valuable to the producers of this software and help them continuously improve this product, add new features and increase its desirability and functionality.

Does exposure to GSM 900 MHz mobile phone radiation affect short-term memory of elementary school students?

BACKGROUND: Now-a-days, children are exposed to mobile phone radiation at a very early age. We have previously shown that a large proportion of children in the city of Shiraz, Iran use mobile phones. Furthermore, we have indicated that the visual reaction time (VRT) of university students was significantly affected by a 10 min real/sham exposure to electromagnetic fields emitted by mobile phone. We found that these exposures decreased the reaction time which might lead to a better response to different hazards. We have also revealed that occupational exposures to radar radiations decreased the reaction time in radar workers. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether short-term exposure of elementary school students to radiofrequency (RF) radiation leads to changes in their reaction time and short-term memory. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 60 elementary school children ages ranging from 8 to 10 years studying at a public elementary school in Shiraz, Iran were enrolled in this study. Standardized computer-based tests of VRT and short-term memory (modified for children) were administered. The students were asked to perform some preliminary tests for orientation with the VRT test. After orientation, to reduce the random variation of measurements, each test was repeated ten times in both real and sham exposure phases. The time interval between the two subsequent sham and real exposure phases was 30 min. RESULTS: The mean ± standard deviation reaction times after a 10 min talk period and after a 10 min sham exposure (switched off mobile) period were 249.0 ± 82.3 ms and 252.9 ± 68.2 ms (P = 0.629), respectively. On the other hand, the mean short-term memory scores after the talk and sham exposure periods were 1062.60 ± 305.39, and 1003.84 ± 339.68 (P = 0.030), respectively. CONCLUSION: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to show that short-term exposure of elementary school students to RF radiation leads to the better performance of their short-term memory.

A physical impact of organic fouling layers on bacterial adhesion during nanofiltration.

Organic conditioning films have been shown to alter properties of surfaces, such as hydrophobicity and surface free energy. Furthermore, initial bacterial adhesion has been shown to depend on the conditioning film surface properties as opposed to the properties of the virgin surface. For the particular case of nanofiltration membranes under permeate flux conditions, however, the conditioning film thickens to form a thin fouling layer. This study hence sought to determine if a thin fouling layer deposited on a nanofiltration membrane under permeate flux conditions governed bacterial adhesion in the same manner as a conditioning film on a surface. Thin fouling layers (less than 50 µm thick) of humic acid or alginic acid were formed on Dow Filmtec NF90 membranes and analysed using Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), confocal microscopy and surface energy techniques. Fluorescent microscopy was then used to quantify adhesion of Pseudomonas fluorescens bacterial cells onto virgin or fouled membranes under filtration conditions. It was found that instead of adhering on or into the organic fouling layer, the bacterial cells penetrated the thin fouling layer and adhered directly to the membrane surface underneath. Contrary to what surface energy measurements of the fouling layer would indicate, bacteria adhered to a greater extent onto clean membranes (24 ± 3% surface coverage) than onto those fouled with humic acid (9.8 ± 4%) or alginic acid (7.5 ± 4%). These results were confirmed by AFM measurements which indicated that a considerable amount of energy (10(-7) J/µm) was dissipated when attempting to penetrate the fouling layers compared to adhering onto clean NF90 membranes (10(-15) J/µm). The added resistance of this fouling layer was thusly seen to reduce the number of bacterial cells which could reach the membrane surface under permeate conditions. This research has highlighted an important difference between fouling layers for the particular case of nanofiltration membranes under permeate flux conditions and surface conditioning films which should be considered when conducting adhesion experiments under filtration conditions. It has also shown AFM to be an integral tool for such experiments.

The importance of laboratory water quality for studying initial bacterial adhesion during NF filtration processes.

Biofouling of nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO) membranes for water treatment has been the subject of increased research effort in recent years. A prerequisite for undertaking fundamental experimental investigation on NF and RO processes is a procedure called compaction. This involves an initial phase of clean water permeation at high pressures until a stable permeate flux is reached. However water quality used during the compaction process may vary from one laboratory to another. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of laboratory water quality during compaction of NF membranes. A second objective was to investigate if the water quality used during compaction influences initial bacterial adhesion. Experiments were undertaken with NF 270 membranes at 15 bar for permeate volumes of 0.5 L, 2 L, and 5 L using MilliQ, deionized or tap water. Membrane autopsies were performed at each permeation point for membrane surface characterisation by contact angle measurements, profilometry, and scanning electron microscopy. The biological content of compacted membranes was assessed by direct epi-fluorescence observation following nucleic acid staining. The compacted membranes were also employed as substrata for monitoring the initial adhesion of Ps. fluorescens under dynamic flow conditions for 30 min at 5 min intervals. Compared to MilliQ water, membrane compaction using deionized and tap water led to decreases in permeate flux, increase in surface hydrophobicity and led to significant build-up of a homogeneous fouling layer composed of both living and dead organisms (>10(6) cells cm(-2)). Subsequent measurements of bacterial adhesion resulted in cell loadings of 0.2 × 10(5), 1.0 × 10(5) cells cm(-2) and 2.6 × 10(5) cells cm(-2) for deionized, tap water and MilliQ water, respectively. These differences in initial cell adhesion rates demonstrate that choice of laboratory water can significantly impact the results of bacterial adhesion on NF membranes. Standardized protocols are therefore needed for the fundamental studies of bacterial adhesion and biofouling formation on NF and RO membrane. This can be implemented by first employing pure water during all membrane compaction procedures and for the modelled feed solutions used in the experiment.

Effect of beverages on the hardness and tensile bond strength of temporary acrylic soft liners to acrylic resin denture base.

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM: Two potential problems commonly identified with a denture base incorporating a resilient liner are failure of the bond between acrylic resin and soft liner material, and loss of resiliency of the soft liner over time. Since patients may drink different beverages, it is important to evaluate their effects on physical properties of soft lining materials. PURPOSE: The objective of this in vitro study was to evaluate the effect of different beverages on the hardness of two temporary acrylic-based soft lining materials and their bond strength to the denture base resin. MATERIALS AND METHOD: For the hardness test; a total of 80 rectangular specimens (40mm×10mm×3mm) were fabricated from a heat-polymerized polymethylmethacrylate. Two commercially auto-polymerized acrylic resin-based resilient liners; Coe-Soft and Visco-gel were prepared according to the manufacturers' instructions and applied on the specimens. For the tensile test, 160 cylindrical specimens (30mm×10mm) were prepared. The liners were added between specimens with a thickness of 3 mm. The specimens of both soft liners were divided into 4 groups (n=10) and immersed in distilled water as the control group, Coca-Cola, 8% and 50% ethanol. All groups were stored in separate containers at 37(o)C for 12 days. All beverages were changed daily. The hardness was determined using a Shore A durometer and tensile bond strength was determined in a ZwickRoell testing machine at a cross-head speed of 5mm/min. The results were analyzed using two-way ANOVA. RESULTS: There was no significant interaction between the soft liners and the drinks for both hardness (p= 0.748) and bond strength (p= 0.902). There were statistically significant differences between all drinks for both hardness (p< 0.001) and bond strength (p< 0.05). CONCLUSION: Within the limitations of this study, it seems that drinking Coca-Cola and alcoholic beverages would not be potentially causing any problems for the temporary acrylic soft liners.

Biocatalytic synthesis of polymeric nanowires by micellar templates of ionic surfactants.

Micelle-templated polyguaiacol nanowires were successfully prepared via polymerization oxidation of guaiacol (o-methoxy phenol) by peroxidase enzyme in the presence of hydrogen peroxide at mild reaction conditions. The dimensions of the prepared nanowires were controlled by tuning the size and shape of the micelle structure via changing and controlling the type, chain length and molar concentrations of the ionic surfactant. The progress of the reaction and estimation of the size of soft micellar templates were followed by UV-Vis spectroscopy and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The resulting micelle encapsulated or purified polyguaiacol nanowires were characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM).

Congenital Insensitivity to Pain with Anhidrosis (CIPA): A Case Report.

Congenital insensitivity to pain with anhidrosis (CIPA) is a rare disorder characterized by episodes of fever and the inability to sense of pain despite the fact that all other sensory modalities remain intact or minimally impaired. The patient also may exhibit the signs of self-mutilation, mental retardation and little or no perspiration. We present a 10 years old Iranian patient diagnosed with CIPA with the above-mentioned clinical characteristics. The prosthetic treatment and the subsequent six month follow-up are discussed. Follow-up of the patient revealed that, with the use of this prosthesis, the patient's oral function and esthetics were established and the mouth lesions improved. Therefore especial dental management of CIPA patients according to their mental status, age, oral and dental condition is essential for solving the specific problems each case may present and the full mouth teeth extraction should be considered as the last treatment.

Squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus and adenocarcinoma of gastroesophageal junction, a rare coincidence.

Simultaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of esophagus and gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma has rarely been reported. It is often difficult to diagnose this coexistence preoperatively due to the presence of esophageal stenosis. Herein, we report a patient with esophageal SCC whose gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma was also detected after pathologic examination of the resected specimen.

A novel RAB27A mutation in a patient with Griscelli syndrome type 2.

Griscelli syndrome type 2 is a rare autosomal recessive primary immunodeficiency disease caused by a mutation in the RAB27A gene and characterized by oculocutaneous hypopigmentation and variable cellular immunodeficiency. We report the case of a 6-month-old infant with silvery hair, eyelashes, and eyebrows who was referred to our center because of fever and hepatosplenomegaly. Bone marrow studies indicated hemophagocytosis, whilst microscopic examination of the hair showed irregular agglomerations of pigment in hair shafts. Molecular analysis revealed a novel homozygous mutation in exon 5, namely, a single-base substitution (g.42996 A>G) leading to an amino acid change (S115G) and thus confirming the diagnosis of Griscelli syndrome type 2. Griscelli syndrome could be more common than thought, especially in regions with high rates of consanguinity. As the prognosis of disease is usually poor, prompt diagnosis and appropriate treatment are vital to avoid complications.

Electrostrictive properties of nanosize PbTiO(3).

Properties of nanosize PbTiO(3) are discussed from the standpoint of the effects of crystallite size on electrostrictive behavior. Experimental results based on crystallite size-dependent primary and secondary order parameters (spontaneous polarization and strain) show that the critical crystallite size (CCS) for the stabilization of the cubic paraelectric phase at 298 K is around 15 nm. The CCS inversely scales with the cubic-tetragonal transition temperature (T(tr)). Electrostrictive coefficients exhibit an order of magnitude increase at 28 nm, which is attributed to the anharmonicity of the perovskite lattice. First order calculations indicate that the increase in the electrostrictive coefficients offsets the decrease in spontaneous polarization and results in an increase in piezoelectric moduli suggesting that piezoelectric activity could, in principle, be observed in the nanosize regime.

Design optimization of dome actuators.

This paper reports the conceptual design, analysis, and modeling of the electromechanical behavior of dome actuators. The geometric parameters of the actuator (dome thickness, width, radius, and depth), poling direction, electric field, and material properties (elastic compliance, piezoelectric constants, and dielectric permittivity) have been taken into account in the modeling work. The results of the analysis indicate that a dome actuator with a tangentially alternating poling direction and electric field (Case C) exhibits much larger displacement and force responses than dome actuators with other poling directions and electric fields. The first mode of natural frequency of the Case C dome actuator also was investigated, and its predicted performance was compared with that of moonie and rainbow actuators. The findings of this research clearly demonstrate the merit of design optimization of electromechanical devices.