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The effect of solution-focused counseling on violence rate and quality of life of pregnant women at risk of domestic violence: a randomized controlled trial
Get PDFBackground: Domestic violence during pregnancy as one of the most common social problems and major challenges of health systems can affect the health of the mother and fetus. The study aimed to compare the two groups of intervention based on solution-focused counseling and control in terms of violence and quality of life amounts in women who had experienced domestic violence. Methods: A randomized controlled trial on 90 pregnant women was blocked into two intervention groups (n = 45) and a control (n = 45). The intervention group received six counseling sessions with a solution-focused approach. Study tool included conflict tactics scale (CTS- 2) and short form health survey (SF-36). The tools were completed once before the intervention and again 6 weeks after the end of the counseling sessions by the participants of both groups. The P-value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: A total of 82/90 pregnant women were analyzed. The results showed that median and interquartile range (IQR) of physical, psychological and sexual violence significantly decreased in the intervention group than the control group (Ps = 0.001). Moreover, quality of life scores significantly improved in the intervention group compared to the control group (P = 0.001). Conclusion: Solution-focused counseling could be an effective approach to reduce the amount of violence and increase the quality of life in women exposed to domestic violence. Trial registration: Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials IRCT2017040628352N4. Date of registration: August 20th 2017. © 2021, The Author(s)
Cost analysis of breast cancer: a comparison between private and public hospitals in Iran
Get PDFBackgrounds: Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer among women. Breast cancer imposes a considerable economic burden on the health system. This study aimed to compare the cost of breast cancer among patients who referred to private and public hospitals in Iran (2017). Methods: This was a prevalence-based cost of illness study. A total of 179 patients were selected from private and public hospitals using the census method. The researcher-constructed checklist was used for data collection. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 22. Results: The estimated total mean (SD) direct cost of patients who referred to the private hospital and the public hospital was 10,050 (19,480) and 3960 (6780), respectively. Further, the total mean indirect cost of patients who referred to the private hospital was lower than those referring to the public hospital at 1870 (15 of total costs) and 22,350 (85 of total costs), respectively. These differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Breast cancer imposes a substantial cost on patients, health insurance organizations and the whole society in Iran. Therefore, the adoption of effective measures for the prevention and early diagnosis of breast cancer is urgently needed. © 2021, The Author(s)
Evaluation of Toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) signaling pathway genes and its genetic polymorphisms in ectopic and eutopic endometrium of women with endometriosis
No full textObjective: Toll-like receptors (TLRs, as members of the innate immune system) are expressed in the human endometrium and their aberrant regulation and expression are involved in the pathogenesis of endometrial diseases. This study is aimed at evaluation of TLR3 signaling pathway genes and its genetic changes in endometriosis patients. Materials and methods: Blood samples were collected from 83 endometriosis patients and 93 healthy fertile women and PCR was performed in blood-derived DNA for detection of SNP of TLR3. Also, ectopic (EC) and eutopic (EU) endometrial biopsies were obtained from endometriosis patients (n = 20), as well as endometrium from healthy women (n = 16, CE). Q-PCR was performed for determination of mRNA expression level of TLR3 signaling pathway genes (TLR3, TICAM, NF-kB1A, CXCL10, IRF3, IFN-B1, IL-6 and IL-8). Also, serum protein levels of TLR3, IFN-β, IL-6 and IL-8 were determined using ELISA. Results: The mRNA expression levels of TLR3, NF-kB1A, IFN-B1, IRF3, TICAM1, IL-6 and IL-8 were significantly higher in EU compared to ectopic ones and also compared to CE. SNPs frequency (rs3775291 and rs3775290) was not significantly different between patients and controls. Serum protein levels of TLR3, IFN-β, IL-6 and IL-8 were significantly increased in endometriosis patients. Conclusion: Significant changes were observed in the expression of IL-6 and IL-8 cytokines and other genes in TLR3 cascade in diseased EU, demonstrating that EU similarly to EC is in an intensive inflammatory state. These fundamental alterations in the concept of immune response in EU may lead to its activation, escapes from apoptosis, and displaced implantation of the endometrium. © 2021 Elsevier Masson SA
Prenatal exposure to traffic-related air pollution and glucose homeostasis: A cross-sectional study
No full textAir pollution exposure has been linked with glucose dysregulation in pregnant women; however, evidence on these associations with fetal glucose homeostasis is unclear yet. We therefore aimed to evaluate the association of prenatal exposure to particulate matter (PM) and traffic indicators with fetal glucose homeostasis in cord blood samples. A total of 169 mother-infant pairs recruited from Mobini hospital of Sabzevar, Iran, were included in this cross-sectional study. Maternal exposure to PMs was estimated using land use regression models. Moreover, traffic indicators (i.e., total street length in 100, 300 and 500 m buffers and distance from residential home to the nearest major roads) were calculated based on the street map of Sabzevar. Cord blood glucose and insulin concentrations, HOMA-�, HOMA-S and HOMA-IR were used as glucose homeostasis markers. Higher maternal exposure to PM2.5 and PM10 were associated with higher cord blood glucose and insulin concentrations and HOMA-IR. Moreover, total streets length in 300 m buffer was positively associated with cord blood glucose and insulin concentrations and HOMA-IR. An increase in distance to major roads was associated with higher HOMA-� and HOMA-S and lower cord blood glucose and insulin concentrations as well as HOMA-IR. Overall, we found prenatal exposure to PMs and traffic indicators was associated with a higher risk of glucose homeostasis dysregulation in the fetus. © 2021 Elsevier Inc
Dual role of microRNA-1297 in the suppression and progression of human malignancies
Get PDFMicroRNAs (miRNAs) are endogenous, non-coding, single-stranded and tiny RNAs that modulate several biological functions, more importantly, the pathophysiology of numerous human cancers. They are bound with target mRNAs and thereby regulate gene expression at post-transcriptional levels. MiRNAs can either trigger cancer progression as an oncogene or alleviate it as a tumor suppressor. Abnormal expression of microRNA-1297 (miR-1297) has been noticed in several human cancers suggesting a distinct role for the miRNA in tumorigenesis. More specifically, it is both up-regulated and down-regulated in various cancers suggesting that it can act as both tumor suppressor and oncogene. This review systematically highlights the different roles of miR-1297 in the pathophysiology of human cancers, explains the mechanisms underlying miR-1297-mediated tumorigenesis, and discusses its potential prognostic, diagnostic, and therapeutic importance. © 202
Interesting probiotic traits of mother's milk Lactobacillus isolates; from bacteriocin to inflammatory bowel disease improvement
No full textAims and background: Lactobacillus spp. are an important element in breast milk. This component has a beneficial effect on the composition of the intestinal microflora and the intestinal immune system. The aim of this study was to isolate and identify Lactobacillus strains in breast milk and evaluate some of their probiotic properties, such as presence of bacteriocin genes, adhesion to HT-29 cell line, competition with enteropathogens in cell culture, and effect on serum level of lipids and digestive enzymes, and mice model of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Materials and methods: A total of 323 lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were isolated from breast milk samples of healthy mothers with the age ranges from 21 to 45 years old. These isolates were subjected to phenotypic and molecular experiments. The frequency of bacteriocin genes was determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Adhesion of Lactobacillus isolates to HT-29 cells was measured based on the number of attached bacterial cells in 20 fields of the light microscopy. Competition test was done by colony count and real-time PCR procedures. Five strongly adhesive Lactobacillus strains were selected and administered orally to the treatment groups. After 8 days, the serum level of digestive enzymes and improvement in induced IBD, and after 14 days, the serum level of lipids (triglycerides, total cholesterol, HDL, and LDL) in treated mice were surveyed compared to the control groups. Results: Based on the phenotypic and molecular experiments, L. casei, L. plantarum, L. rhamnosus, and L. acidophilus strains were isolated and identified in the breast milk samples. The highest frequency of bacteriocin genes belonged to Plantaricin B (100), followed by Plantaricin D (84.7), Plantaricin G (84.7), and Plantaricin EF (54.3). Also, 71.8 of the isolates were strongly adhesive, 21.8 were non-adhesive, and 6.4 were adhesive. Lactobacillus strains had a significant effect on the displacement of enteropathogens. The in vitro cholesterol-removing ability of L. casei (L1), L. casei (L2), L. casei (L3), L. plantarum (L4), and L. rhamnosus (L5) was 3.5, 31.5, 21.3, 18.7, and 27.3, respectively. The serum level of total cholesterol in the L. plantarum (L4) group as well as LDL in the L. casei (L3) (p =.0108) and L. rhamnosus (L5) (p =.0206) groups decreased significantly compared to the control group. The serum level of lipase increased in all the treatment groups compared to the control group, which was significant in the L. plantarum (L4) group (p =.0390). Disease activity index (DAI) scores were improved significantly in L. casei (L3) group compared to the IBD control group (p <.0001). Conclusion: It could be concluded that lactobacilli strains isolated from the breast milk samples had good probiotic properties, such as presence of bacteriocin genes, attaching to enterocyte-like HT-29 cells, competing with intestinal pathogens, lowering cholesterol, and improving IBD. Thus, after further studies, they could be considered as probiotic strains. © 2021 Elsevier Lt
Molecular characterization and antibiotic resistance pattern of isolated Acinetobacter baumannii in Iran
No full textIn this study, the prevalence of efflux pump genes (AdeABC) and genetic association of MDR A. baumanii isolated from intensive care units were investigated. Detection of A. baumanii was performed using species-specific PCR. Disc-diffusion antibiotic susceptibility tests of isolated strains and amplification of AdeABC genes (adeA, adeB, adeC, and adeM) were performed. Isolates were also subjected to the Repetitive Extragenic Palindromic-PCR (rep-PCR) to identify isolates clonality. The highest number of resistant A. baumanii isolates was observed in response to cephalexin, tetracycline, and cefixime (over 80 of isolates). A. baumanii isolates had the highest sensitivity in response to imipenem and amikacin (~ 50 of isolates). The distribution of adeA, adeB, adeM, and adeC in isolates were as follow; 186, 165, 172, and 117 isolates. A. baumanii was observed at an alarming level in this study (183, 93.84). Based on rep-PCR, remarkable interspecific diversity was observed among isolates. © 2021 Elsevier Inc
Xanthogranulomatous cystitis mimicking bladder tumor: A case report
Get PDFXanthogranulomatous inflammation, as a type of chronic granulomatous inflammation, typically occurs in the gall bladder and kidneys. In this paper, we present a 56-year-old man with Xanthogranulomatous cystitis mimicking bladder malignancy. He was referred to our clinic with the chief complaint of a one-year history of urgency and frequency. CT scan showed a solid lesion in the bladder. The patient underwent complete transurethral resection of the bladder tumor. Microscopic histopathology revealed xanthogranulomatous cystitis. The patient received a course of antibiotic therapy. Follow-up Cystourethroscopy showed normal bladder. © 202
Contribution of environment polarity effects on the nonlinear hyperpolarizability and linear optical characteristics of some phenothiazines
No full textSolvents as complex environments can induce considerable effects on the physical, chemical, and biological properties of solute molecules. In this work, solvent polarity sensitive characteristics of phenothiazines were studied by using spectroscopic technique. In this case, the interactional behavior of selected samples was investigated by Kamlet-Abboud-Taft and Catalan models. Moreover, the results from the spectroscopic technique provide a proper condition for providing a new method for investigation of environment polarity effects on the molecular first and second order hyperpolarizability. According to the results, solute�solvent specific and nonspecific interactions with different contributions tend to modify the value of molecular hyperpolarizability. In this case, the studies on the contribution of various molecular interactions can indicate some advantages such as decreasing the complexity of investigations on the environment polarity effects on the molecular hyperpolarizability and provide an effective method for controlling molecular first and second order hyperpolarizability. Therefore, the results can give useful information about the capability of selected samples for various applications in optics. © 2021 Elsevier B.V
Cu immobilized on chitosan-modified iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles: Preparation, characterization and investigation of its anti-lung cancer effects
Get PDFChitosan is a linear polysaccharide and non-toxic bioactive polymer with a wide variety of applications due to its functional properties such as ease of modification, and biodegradability. In this study, a green protocol for supporting of Cu(II) on chitosan-encapsulated magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles is described. The morphological and physicochemical features of the material were determined using several advanced techniques like fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), inductively coupled plasma (ICP), vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The average diameter of the NPs was approximately 15�25 nm. In addition, the Fe3O/CS/Cu(II) nanocomposite was engaged in biological assays like study of anti-oxidant properties by DPPH mediated free radical scavenging test using BHT as a reference molecule. Thereafter, on having a significant IC50 value in radical scavenging assay, we extended the bio-application of the desired nanocomposite in anticancer study of lung well-differentiated bronchogenic adenocarcinoma, lung moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma, and lung poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma of human lung in-vitro conditions. In the cytotoxicity and anti-human lung studies, the nanocomposite was treated to lung cancer lung well-differentiated bronchogenic adenocarcinoma (HLC-1), lung moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma (LC-2/ad), and lung poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma (PC-14) cell line following MTT assay. The cell viability of malignant lung cell line reduced dose-dependently in the presence of Fe3O/CS/Cu(II) nanocomposite. The recent results suggest that Fe3O/CS/Cu(II) nanocomposite have a suitable anticancer activity against lung cell lines. © 202