12014 research outputs found
Sort by
Decomposition of gendered socioeconomic-related inequality in outpatient health care utilization: A cross-sectional study from Iran
No full textIntroduction: Unequal access to required health care services could deteriorate inequality in health outcomes and increase mortality and morbidity, especially among disadvantaged groups. One of the most debated factors in shaping health care inequalities is gender. This study aimed to measure and explains gendered socioeconomic-related inequality in outpatient health care utilization in Iran. Methods: This is a cross-sectional research conducted at a national level in Iran. The required data was obtained from an Iranian health care utilization household survey conducted in 2015. Erreygers Concentration Index (ECI) was used to measure the socioeconomic inequality in outpatient health care utilization. A regression-based decomposition analysis was also used to explain socioeconomic-related inequalities. Results: There was a significant pro-rich inequality in outpatient health care utilization between males (ECI = 0.115, SE = 0.014) and females (ECI = 0.083 SE = 0.011) indicating that utilization of these services was concentrated on the better-offs. The decomposition analysis revealed that economic status (males = 50.58, females = 37.42) was the main contributor to the observed inequality. Location of residence, health insurance and education were other main driver of these inequalities. Conclusions: Different factors have different contribution to socioeconomic-related inequality in utilization of outpatient health care services and these could be diversified considering gender. Hence, it seems that policy makers could be able to address these inequalities effectively through gender-oriented policies. © 2021 John Wiley & Sons Ltd
Expression and function of c1orf132 long-noncoding rna in breast cancer cell lines and tissues
Full text linkmiR-29b2 and miR-29c play a suppressive role in breast cancer progression. C1orf132 (also named MIR29B2CHG) is the host gene for generating both microRNAs. However, the region also expresses longer transcripts with unknown functions. We employed bioinformatics and experimental approaches to decipher C1orf132 expression and function in breast cancer tissues. We also used the CRISPR/Cas9 technique to excise a predicted C1orf132 distal promoter and followed the behavior of the edited cells by real-time PCR, flow cytometry, migration assay, and RNA-seq techniques. We observed that C1orf132 long transcript is significantly downregulated in triple-negative breast cancer. We also identified a promoter for the longer transcripts of C1orf132 whose functionality was demonstrated by transfecting MCF7 cells with a C1orf132 promoter-GFP construct. Knocking-out the promoter by means of CRISPR/Cas9 revealed no alterations in the expression of the neighboring genes CD46 and CD34, while the expression of miR-29c was reduced by half. Furthermore, the promoter knockout elevated the migration ability of the edited cells. RNA sequencing revealed many up-and downregulated genes involved in various cellular pathways, including epithelial to mesenchymal transition and mammary gland development pathways. Altogether, we are reporting here the existence of an additional/distal promoter with an enhancer effect on miR-29 generation and an inhibitory effect on cell migration. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland
Exome sequencing reveals novel rare variants in Iranian familial multiple sclerosis: The importance of POLD2 in the disease pathogenesis
No full textThe prevalence of familial multiple sclerosis (FMS) is increasing worldwide which endorses the heritability of the disease. Given that many genome variations are ethnicity-specific and consanguineous marriage could affect genetic diseases, hereditary disease gene analysis among FMS patients from Iran, a country with high rates of parental consanguinity, could be highly effective in finding mutations underlying disease pathogenesis. To examine rare genetic mutations, we selected three Iranian FMS cases with �3 MS patients in more than one generation and performed whole exome sequencing. We identified a homozygous rare missense variant in POLD2 (p. Arg141Cys; rs372336011). Molecular dynamics analysis showed reduced polar dehydration energy and conformational changes in POLD2 mutant. Further, we found a heterozygote rare missense variant in NBFP1 (p. Gly487Asp; rs778806175). Our study revealed the possible role of novel rare variants in FMS. Molecular dynamic simulation provided the initial evidence of the structural changes behind POLD2 mutant. © 2021 Elsevier Inc
Synthesis, characterization and performance enhancement of dry polyaniline-coated neuroelectrodes for electroencephalography measurement
No full textOriginating from a combination of neuroscience and biomedical engineering strategies, neuroprosthetics are developed as substitutes for sensory or cognitive modality damages caused by an injury or a disease. Dry electrodes are essential devices for monitoring of the biopotential such as electroencephalography (EEG) and electrocardiography (ECG). In this paper, polyaniline (PANI) coated stainless steel (SS) electrodes have been fabricated using in-situ electrochemical polymerization on the SS surface. The SEM images showed the formation of a nanoporous PANI-coating on the SS electrodes. EIS measurements on a skin model demonstrated a significantly lower contact impedance for the PANI-coated electrodes compared to bare SS electrodes. Furthermore, increasing the thickness of the nanoporous coating resulted in a higher contact impedance reduction. The comparison of the EEG measurements for the manufactured electrodes with conventional wet Ag/AgCl electrodes showed that the electrodes could successfully monitor alpha rhythms and muscle artifacts, as well. The prepared electrode can be used in various applications such as biopotential monitoring. © 2021 Korean Physical Societ
Anthropometric and Biochemical Measures in Bariatric Surgery Candidates: What Is the Role of Inflammatory Potential of Diet?
No full textBackground: The present study aimed to assess dietary total antioxidant capacity (TAC), dietary phytochemical intake (PI), and dietary inflammatory index (DII) in patients with morbid obesity who are candidates of bariatric surgery and their association with anthropometric and biochemical parameters. Methods and Materials: One hundred seventy patients with morbid obesity who were referred to surgery clinic of Firoozgar Hospital were enrolled in the study. Ideal body weight and adjusted ideal body weight were calculated. The dietary data were collected using a food frequency questionnaire. Anthropometrics and biochemical parameters were assessed. A p-value of <0.05 was considered significant. Results: The strongest correlations of DII with dietary intakes and anthropometric and biochemical biomarkers were found for iron (p<0.0001). Significant association was also observed for ferritin (p=0.02) and transferrin (p=0.02). In terms of PI, The strongest associations were also found for iron (p<0.0001). Additionally, the value of body mass index (BMI) showed significant correlation with PI (p=0.04). The correlations of dietary total antioxidant indices with dietary intakes and anthropometric and biochemical biomarkers were assessed. Non-significant correlation was found between fasting blood sugar (FBS), hemoglobin A1C (HbA1C), vitamin B12, and vitamin D3 with ORAC index. Significant strong correlation showed for the value of iron in both ferric reducing ability of plasma (FRAP) and Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) indices (p<0.0001). Conclusion: We find statistical significance correlation for dietary PI and BMI. The inflammatory and antioxidant properties of diet were not related to biochemical markers associated with obesity. Figure not available: see fulltext. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature
A rare case of cardiac metastasis from uterine cervical adenocarcinoma
Full text linkMetastatic cardiac tumors are rare and are usually from lung, breast, and esophageal cancers. Although uterine cervical cancer is relatively common, its metastasis to the heart is extremely rare. Herein, we report an unusual case of metastatic cervical adenocarcinoma to the heart presenting with a huge right atrial mass and tamponade. The cardiac mass was surgically resected and pathologic study with immunohistochemistry staining confirmed the diagnosis. © 202
The role of PGC-1α and metabolic signaling pathway in kidney injury following chronic administration with 3-MCPD as a food processing contaminant
No full text3-Monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD) as a byproduct of food processing and a carcinogenic agent has attracted much attention in the last decades. Kidney is the main target organ that is sensitive to the toxicity of 3-MCPD. Due to limited evidence about possible 3-MCPD toxicity, we design an investigation to determine the role of mitochondrial biogenesis following chronic oral administration of 3-MCPD (2, 4, 8 and 32 mg/kg) for 2 months in male C57 mice. The present study evaluated the affects of 3-MCPD in modulating metabolic signalling which is associated with Il-18, PGC-1α, Nrf-2 and Sir3 which are the major transcription factors. Our data confirms controversial behaviors after chronic exposure with 3-MCPD. Over expression of the PGC-1α and Sir3 and IL-18 were observed after exposure with 2,4 & 8 mg kg�1 day�1 of 3-MCPD. In front, PGC-1α down-regulation occurs at the highest dose (32 mg/kg) resulted in kidney injury. Based on the findings, PGC-1α plays an important role in the restoration of the mitochondrial function during the recovery from chronic kidney injury. We suggest that the PGC-1α can be consider as a therapeutic target in prevention and treatment of kidney injury after chronic exposure of 3-MCPD. Practical applications: 3-Monochloropropane-1, 2-diol (3-MCPD) existed in several foods, can induce nephrotoxicity, progressive nephropathy and renal tubule dilation following acute and chronic exposure. It revealed that 3-MCPD toxicity is related to metabolites which can cause oxidative stress and activation of cell death signaling. It seems that cytotoxicity of 3-MCPD has disruptive effect on kidney cells due to rise in ROS production and decrease in mitochondrial membrane permeability. These effects can lead to MPT pore opening, cytochrome c release and activation of programed cell death signaling pathway. Therefore, present study was investigated the role of PGC-1a and the metabolic signaling involved in 3-MCPD-induced nephrotoxicity for the first time. Our data revealed that up-regulation of mitochondrial biogenesis following chronic exposure with 3-MCPD accelerates recovery of mitochondrial and cellular function in kidney by deacetylation of histones, overexpression of transcription factors (PGC-1α, Nrf-2, and Sir3) and maintaining cellular homeostasis. © 2021 Wiley Periodicals LLC
More is better, not always true: Misdiagnosis tamponade in postoperative patient due to thick hemostatic tissue
No full textPotential therapeutic agents to COVID-19: An update review on antiviral therapy, immunotherapy, and cell therapy
Full text linkSevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in Wuhan, China, in December 2020 and coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) was later announced as pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO). Since then, several studies have been conducted on the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 by potential vaccines and drugs. Although, the governments and global population have been attracted by some vaccine production projects, the presence of SARS-CoV-2-specific antiviral drugs would be an urge necessity in parallel with the efficient preventive vaccines. Various nonspecific drugs produced previously against other bacterial, viral, and parasite infections were recently evaluated for treating patients with COVID-19. In addition to therapeutic properties of these anti-COVID-19 compounds, some adverse effects were observed in different human organs as well. Not only several attentions were paid to antiviral therapy and treatment of COVID-19, but also nanomedicine, immunotherapy, and cell therapy were conducted against this viral infection. In this review study, we planned to introduce the present and potential future treatment strategies against COVID-19 and define the advantages and disadvantages of each treatment strategy. © 2021 The Author
Spatial patterns and temporal variations of traffic-related air pollutants and estimating its health effects in Isfahan city, Iran
No full textIsfahan as an important industrial city has faced with air pollution recently. Thus, we assessed the spatial and temporal trends of ambient PM2.5, CO, SO2, and O3 and for estimating their health effect on Isfahan citizens between March 2018 and March 2019 through the AirQ+ software. Our results showed that citizens of Isfahan in almost 240, 167, and 134 of the days in the year has exposure to PM2.5, SO2, and O3 higher than the WHO daily guideline, respectively. Daily variations of PM2.5, CO, and SO2 concentration showed the increasing trend of pollutants in the morning to evening. The maximum concentrations of O3 were observed in the noonday. Also, the concentrations of these pollutants on Friday due to the holiday effect were higher than the weekdays. Except for O3, the PM2.5, CO, and SO2 concentrations in the cold months and cold seasons was higher compared with the hot months and hot seasons. The total number of deaths because of lung cancer, natural mortality, ischemic heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, stroke associated with ambient PM2.5 with the attributable proportion (AP) 11.43, 11.63, 15.96, 15.15, and 13.1 (95 CI) were 683, 19, 2, 202, and 55 cases, respectively. Therefore, the present study provides additional data for the provincial managers and politicians useful in planning proper strategies of air pollution control to decrease exposure and attributable mortalities. © 2021, Springer Nature Switzerland AG