Driven-Dissipative Rydberg Blockade in Optical Lattices.

While dissipative Rydberg gases exhibit unique possibilities to tune dissipation and interaction properties, very little is known about the quantum many-body physics of such long-range interacting open quantum systems. We theoretically analyze the steady state of a van der Waals interacting Rydberg gas in an optical lattice based on a variational treatment that also includes long-range correlations necessary to describe the physics of the Rydberg blockade, i.e., the inhibition of neighboring Rydberg excitations by strong interactions. In contrast to the ground state phase diagram, we find that the steady state undergoes a single first order phase transition from a blockaded Rydberg gas to a facilitation phase where the blockade is lifted. The first order line terminates in a critical point when including sufficiently strong dephasing, enabling a highly promising route to study dissipative criticality in these systems. In some regimes, we also find good quantitative agreement of the phase boundaries with previously employed short-range models, however, with the actual steady states exhibiting strikingly different behavior.

Computational and in vitro validation of cardiogenic induction of quercetin on adipose-derived mesenchymal stromal cells through the inhibition of Wnt and non-Smad-dependent TGF-ß pathways.

Exploiting human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) was proposed as a promising therapeutic approach for cardiovascular disease due to their capacity to differentiate into cardiac cells. Though modulation of the intracellular signaling pathways dominantly WNT/ß catenin and transforming growth factor-ß (TGF-ß) have been reported to promote differentiation of hMSCs into cardiomyocytes in the prevailing literature, a safe and reproducible system for their clinical application has not yet turned into reality. In the present study, the molecular docking-based strategy was first applied for evaluating the potency of some natural phenolic compounds in the modulation of Wnt and TGF-ß signaling pathways using a vital class of crystallographic protein structures of WNT signaling regulators such as Frizzled, Disheveled, GSK3-ß, ß-catenin, LRP 5/6 extracellular domain, Tankyrase and their variety of active pockets. Then, the impacts of plant-derived chemical compounds on the regulation of the relevant signals for the differentiation of hMSCs into the definitive mesoderm lineage and cardiac progenitors were assessed in vitro. Data obtained revealed the synergistic activity of Wnt and TGF-ß superfamily to direct cardiac differentiation in human cardiogenesis by comparing cardiac gene expression in the presence and absence of the TGF-ß inhibitors. We found that the inhibitory effect of canonical Wnt/ß-catenin is sufficient to cause proper cardiomyocyte differentiation, but the TGF-ß pathway plays a vital role in enhancing the expression of the cardiomyocyte-specific marker (cTnT). It was found that quercetin, a p38MAPK inhibitor with the high energy dock to the active pocket of Wnt receptors, promotes cardiac differentiation via the inhibition of both Wnt and non-Smad TGF-ß pathways. Altogether, data presented here can contribute to the development of a feasible and efficient cardiac differentiation protocol as an "off-the-shelf" therapeutic source using novel natural agents for cardiac repair or regeneration.

Quantum Many-Body Dynamics of Driven-Dissipative Rydberg Polaritons.

We study the propagation of strongly interacting Rydberg polaritons through an atomic medium in a one-dimensional optical lattice. We derive an effective single-band Hubbard model to describe the dynamics of the dark-state polaritons under realistic assumptions. Within this model, we analyze the driven-dissipative transport of polaritons through the system by considering a coherent drive on one side and by including the spontaneous emission of the metastable Rydberg state. Using a variational approach to solve the many-body problem, we find strong antibunching of the outgoing photons despite the losses from the Rydberg state decay.

Comparing the effectiveness of motivational interviewing and self-development education on type II diabetes mellitus patients' lifestyle.

BACKGROUND: Lifestyle can play an important role in controlling type II diabetes (T2D), and a high-risk lifestyle can exacerbate its effects. The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of motivational interviewing with self-development education on T2D patients' lifestyle. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a quasi-experimental study in 2017-2018. The design was pretest-posttest with an active comparison group. The population of this study was T2D patients of Firouzgar and Imam Reza Hospitals in Tehran. Using targeted sampling, 80 patients were selected and randomly assigned into experimental and comparison groups. The instrument was a tool for assessing lifestyle determinants in T2D patients (determinants of lifestyle behavior questionnaire) based on the theory of planned behavior. Intervention program was initially performed, and motivational interviewing was conducted on Firouzgar Hospital's patients for 10 sessions while self-development education was conducted on Imam Reza Hospital's patients for 10 sessions (active comparison group). To analyze the data, independent t-test and Chi-square test were used. RESULTS: The results showed that the patients who received motivational interviewing had significant improvement in their lifestyles with a 95% confidence level at P = 0.042, compared to the patients who had been trained with self-development education. CONCLUSION: Motivational interviewing improves the lifestyle of T2D patients compared to self-development education. It is recommended that motivational interviewing be used to help the rehabilitation of these patients. This method helps patients control their blood sugar while improving their lifestyle.

Alginate beads impregnated with magnetic Chitosan@Zeolite nanocomposite for cationic methylene blue dye removal from aqueous solution.

In this study, magnetic bionanocomposite of sodium alginate (an anionic polysaccharide), chitosan (a cationic polysaccharide), impregnated with natural zeolite, and cross-linked with glutaraldehyde and CaCl2 in order to improve the stability, are prepared and used to methylene blue removal from aqueous solution. The synthesized magnetic Zeolite/Chitosan/Alginate (MZ/CS/AL) bionanocomposite was analyzed and characterized by FeSEM, EDX, XRD, BET surface area analysis, VSM, TGA, and FTIR techniques. The efficiency of the MZ/CS/AL biosorbent was studied by measuring the uptake using the batch and continuous technique experiments. The effect of contact time, pH, initial concentration of dye, and amount of adsorbent on dye adsorption capacity, kinetics, isotherm, thermodynamics, regeneration, and swelling were investigated. The results showed that the adsorption of methylene blue follows the pseudo-second-order kinetic model and Freundlich isotherm model. The thermodynamic results showed that dye adsorption process with synthetic adsorbent is an exothermic spontaneous process.

Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms of FCRL3 in Iranian Patients with Behcet's Disease.

BACKGROUND: Both genetic and environmental factors influence, susceptibility to autoimmune disorders including Behcet's disease (BD). FCRL3 (Fc receptor like 3 genes), a novel immunoregulatory gene, has recently been reported as a new promising candidate gene for general autoimmunity. This study was conducted to explore the potential association of FCRL3 polymorphisms with BD. METHODS: This study was conducted from 2010 to 2015 in Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Four single-nucleotide polymorphisms of FCRL3 (rs7528684, rs11264799, rs945635, and rs3761959) were genotyped in 220 patients and 220 healthy controls. Typing of the polymorphisms in this case-control study was carried out using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis. RESULTS: Analysis of the alleles revealed a significantly lower frequency of the A allele at the -169 site (rs7528684) in BD patients compared with that in controls (P=0.000, 66.4% versus 82%, χ2= 30.23). Moreover, a significant lower frequency of AA genotype and higher frequency of GG genotype was recorded for rs7528684. There was also relationship between posterior uveitis as a clinical sign of disease and polymorphism of allele A at the -169 site (P=0.015). CONCLUSION: This study revealed a significant difference in both allele and genotype frequency at position -169 of FCRL3 gene between Iranian patients with BD and normal subjects. These data suggest FCRL3 gene polymorphisms might be the autoimmunity risk factor for BD.

Development of an indirect ELISA system to diagnosis paratuberculosis using surface antigens of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis in cattle.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) is the causative agent of paratuberculosis (PTB), also called as Johne's disease, and is considered as the cause of irreparable economic losses in livestock industry. This bacterium is excreted in large amounts through the milk and feces of infected animal. For the detection of the PTB, indirect ELISA has been highly considered as a simple method with high sensitivity and specificity. Accordingly, this study aims at designing a system of indirect ELISA for the detection of PTB. METHODS: In this study, 100 serum samples from 10 herds of dairy farms in Tehran and Alborz provinces, where PTB has been proven by culture, were selected and surveyed using the IDXX commercial kit, and the in-house ELISA system was designed. To design ELISA system, surface antigens and real positive and negative serum samples were used, and checkerboard titration was performed. To determine the cutoff point, the results of the commercial kit were used as gold standard and mean+2SD formula was also used in this regard. RESULTS: According to the commercial ELISA kit results (15 positive samples and 85 negative samples), the best concentration of antigen and antibody dilution were evaluated as 1.2µg and 1/100, respectively. Furthermore, the cutoff point was determined as 0.44. The sensitivity and specificity were evaluated as 67% and 100%, respectively. CONCLUSION: Surface antigens in MAP are sensitive to detect the infected animals, and the indirect ELISA system can be used to detect antibody in the early stages of the disease.