Group psychoeducation for patients with bipolar disorder: a retrospective study on effectiveness in delaying relapse episodes and intensity.

Introduction: Group psychoeducation is effective in preventing relapse in bipolar disorder. It's indicated as an adjunctive intervention to pharmacotherapy for all outpatients. This retrospective, single center experience of group psychoeducation for bipolar disorder over a 6 years period, aims to assess severity of symptoms and comparative relapse episodes and intensity prior to and following psychoeducation as well as evaluating the decrease in hospitalizations and days of hospitalization.

MiR-494 induces metabolic changes through G6pc targeting and modulates sorafenib response in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background: Metabolic reprogramming is a well-known marker of cancer, and it represents an early event during hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development. The recent approval of several molecular targeted agents has revolutionized the management of advanced HCC patients. Nevertheless, the lack of circulating biomarkers still affects patient stratification to tailored treatments.

What happens to basophils and tryptase, LXA and CysLTs during aspirin desensitization?

Introduction: Aspirin desensitization (AD) is an effective treatment in patients with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID)-exacerbated respiratory disease (NERD) by providing inhibitory effect on symptoms and polyp recurrence. However, limited data is available on how AD works. We aimed to study comprehensively the mechanisms underlying AD by examining basophil activation (CD203c upregulation), mediator-releases of tryptase, CysLT, and LXA, and LTB receptor expression for the first 3 months of AD.

Gallium phosphide optical metasurfaces for visible light applications.

There are few materials that are broadly used for fabricating optical metasurfaces for visible light applications. Gallium phosphide (GaP) is a material that, due to its optical properties, has the potential to become a primary choice but due to the difficulties in fabrication, GaP thin films deposited on transparent substrates have never been exploited. In this article we report the design, fabrication, and characterization of three different amorphous GaP metasurfaces obtained through sputtering.

Optical metasurfaces for high angle steering at visible wavelengths.

Metasurfaces have facilitated the replacement of conventional optical elements with ultrathin and planar photonic structures. Previous designs of metasurfaces were limited to small deflection angles and small ranges of the angle of incidence. Here, we have created two types of Si-based metasurfaces to steer visible light to a large deflection angle.

Revealing Optical Properties of Reduced-Dimensionality Materials at Relevant Length Scales.

Reduced-dimensionality materials for photonic and optoelectronic applications including energy conversion, solid-state lighting, sensing, and information technology are undergoing rapid development. The search for novel materials based on reduced-dimensionality is driven by new physics. Understanding and optimizing material properties requires characterization at the relevant length scale, which is often below the diffraction limit.

Impact of colonic mucosal lipoxin A4 synthesis capacity on healing in rats with dextran sodium sulfate-induced colitis.

Ulcerative colitis is a chronic inflammatory disease of the colon. This study evaluates the role of colonic mucosal lipoxin A4 (LXA4) synthesis in an experimental rat model of dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced colitis. Wistar rats were randomly assigned to four groups: healthy controls, DSS-induced colitis with no or vehicle therapy, misoprostol or 5-aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA) therapy groups.

Antiproliferative effect of metformin on the endometrium--a clinical trial.

Background: Unopposed estrogen has a central role in development of endometrial benign, premalignant and malignant lesions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-estrogenic effect of metformin on endometrial histology in comparison with progesterone.

Materials And Methods: A total of 43 patients who were referred to our center for abnormal uterine bleeding and had a histologic diagnosis were disordered proliferative endometrium or simple endometrial hyperplasia were included and randomly distributed in two groups treated with metformin (500mg Bid) or megestrol (40mg daily), respectively, for three months.

Insights in progressive myoclonus epilepsy: HSP70 promotes cystatin B polymerization.

Cystatin B (CSTB) is an anti-protease frequently mutated in progressive myoclonus epilepsy (EPM1), a devastating degenerative disease. This work shows that rat CSTB is an unstable protein that undergoes structural changes following the interaction with a chaperone, either prokaryotic or eukaryotic. Both the prokaryotic DnaK and eukaryotic HSP70 promote CSTB polymerization.

Reaching the theoretical resonance quality factor limit in coaxial plasmonic nanoresonators fabricated by helium ion lithography.

Optical antenna structures have revolutionized the field of nano-optics by confining light to deep subwavelength dimensions for spectroscopy and sensing. In this work, we fabricated coaxial optical antennae with sub-10-nanometer critical dimensions using helium ion lithography (HIL). Wavelength dependent transmission measurements were used to determine the wavelength-dependent optical response.

Mapping local charge recombination heterogeneity by multidimensional nanospectroscopic imaging.

As materials functionality becomes more dependent on local physical and electronic properties, the importance of optically probing matter with true nanoscale spatial resolution has increased. In this work, we mapped the influence of local trap states within individual nanowires on carrier recombination with deeply subwavelength resolution. This is achieved using multidimensional nanospectroscopic imaging based on a nano-optical device.

Critical appraisal of air pouch infection model in rats.

The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and pharmacokinetic profiles of gentamicin, vancomycin, and levofloxacin in a rat air pouch model, in which Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25293) was used as the test organism. Antibiotic treatments (i.p.

Fast detection of biomolecules in diffusion-limited regime using micromechanical pillars.

We have developed a micromechanical sensor based on vertically oriented oscillating beams, in which contrary to what is normally done (for example with oscillating cantilevers) the sensitive area is located at the free end of the oscillator. In the micropillar geometry used here, analyte adsorption is confined only to the tip of the micropillar, thus reducing the volume from which the analyte molecules must diffuse to saturate the surface to a sphere of radius more than 2 orders of magnitude smaller than the corresponding linear distance valid for adsorption on a macroscopic surface. Hence the absorption rate is 3 orders of magnitude faster than on a typical 200 × 20 square micrometer cantilever.

Irritable bowel syndrome in women undergoing hysterectomy and tubular ligation.

Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the incidence of irritable bowel syndrome in women undergoing hysterectomy and tubular ligation.

Background: The results of previous studies have shown an increased incidence of irritable bowel syndrome after gynecological surgeries.

Patients And Methods: Participants were patients of Alzahra and Taleghani University hospitals in Tabriz.

Neonatal C-reactive protein value in prediction of outcome of preterm premature rupture of membranes: comparison of singleton and twin pregnancies.

Aim: The clinical importance of preterm premature rupture of the membranes (PPROM) is its relationship to maternal and neonatal mortality and morbidity, especially in twin pregnancies. The aim of this study was to determine and compare the role of inflammatory factors as predictors of the PPROM outcome between singleton and twin pregnancies.

Methods: The medical records of 22 twins delivered between 28 and 34 weeks and complicated by PPROM were reviewed at the Al-Zahra Hospital in Tabriz, Iran.

Endotoxin level in ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats: effect of glutamine pretreatment on endotoxin levels and gut morphology.

Objective: We aimed to investigate the effect of enteral glutamine (Gln) pretreatment on plasma endotoxin level and intestinal histopathologic changes during intestinal ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury in rats.

Methods: Intestinal I/R was induced by 60-min occlusion of the superior mesenteric artery followed by 60 min of reperfusion. Animals were pretreated with Gln by orogastric route for different periods and doses.

Tollip is a mediator of protein sumoylation.

Tollip is an interactor of the interleukin-1 receptor involved in its activation. The endosomal turnover of ubiquitylated IL-1RI is also controlled by Tollip. Furthermore, together with Tom1, Tollip has a general role in endosomal protein traffic.

Abnormal spinal curvature as a risk factor for pelvic organ prolapse.

To determine the relationship between pelvic organ prolapse and spinal curvature changes, a cross-sectional study was done in Gynecologic and Obstetrics educational hospitals and clinics in North West of Iran. One hundred patients were classified as cases based on the presence of abnormality at the spinal curvature and 100 patients classified as controls with no abnormality. The POP-Q (pelvic organ prolapse quantitation) staging system was used for assessment of prolapse stage and a flexi-curve malleable rod for measurement of thoracic and lumbar length and width, respectively.

Intrinsically aligned chemo-mechanical functionalization of twin cantilever structures.

Mechanical oscillators became a main focus of research in recent years for potential applications in biomolecule detectors. We recently demonstrated the feasibility of a scheme based on twin cantilevers with a sensitivity down to the single molecule. This approach is extremely promising under the condition that the two terminals of the device can be functionalized with high selectivity and nanometric accuracy by linker molecules.

HPV typing in women with cervical precancerous and cancerous lesions in northwestern Iran.

Background/aims: The role of human papillomavirus (HPV) in the etiology of cervical cancer is now well established. This investigation was designed to study the prevalence of the four most common high-risk HPVs in the archival tissues with precancerous and cancerous lesions from patients from northwestern Iran.

Methods: 133 formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue specimens were tested for HPV DNA by using GP5+/6+-based general PCR and two type-specific PCRs.

Enteral glutamine pretreatment does not decrease plasma endotoxin level induced by ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats.

Aim: To investigate whether oral glutamine pretreatment prevents impairment of intestinal mucosal integrity during ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) in rats.

Methods: The study was performed as two series with 40 rats in each. Each series of animals was divided into four groups.

Cystatin B and its EPM1 mutants are polymeric and aggregate prone in vivo.

Progressive myoclonus epilepsy type 1 (EPM1) is a neurodegenerative disease correlating with mutations of the cystatin B gene. Cystatin B is described as a monomeric protein with antiprotease function. This work shows that, in vivo, cystatin B has a polymeric structure, highly resistant to SDS, urea, boiling and sensitive to reducing agents and alkaline pH.