The aim of the present study was to evaluate the oxidation status of North American n-3 (omega-3) PUFA nutritional supplements commercially available in Canada and evaluate the influence of product ...formulation and delivery form on oxidative safety. A total of 171 North American over-the-counter n-3 PUFA nutritional supplements were analysed for oxidation safety. Primary and secondary oxidation and total oxidation (TOTOX) were determined using the American Oil Chemists’ Society (AOCS) procedures. Comparisons between supplements’ final forms, oil source and n-3 PUFA concentration quartiles, as measures of product formulations and delivery forms, were compared using ANOVA. Of the products successfully tested, 50 % exceeded the voluntary recommended levels for markers of oxidation. Another 18 % of products were approaching the limits with 1–3 years before expiration. Encapsulated products without flavour additives had significantly lower secondary and TOTOX levels than bulk oils and flavoured products (P < 0·05). Children's products had significantly higher primary, secondary and TOTOX levels compared with all other products (P < 0·05). Markers of oxidation did not differ between oil sources (P > 0·05), with the exception of krill oil products having higher secondary oxidation levels than plant-based products (P > 0·05). Markers of oxidation did not differ between n-3 PUFA supplement concentration quartiles. Consumers may be at risk of exposure to higher levels of oxidative products. New regulatory mandates need to be introduced to ensure that all n-3 PUFA products, used as nutritional supplements, regardless of their formulation or delivery form, can be tested for oxidative safety and compliance.
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Achillea millefolium L. is cultivated in Iran and widely used in traditional medicine for gastrointestinal disorders. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of hydroalcoholic extract of A. ...millefolium on the contraction and relaxation of isolated ileum in rat. In this experimental study, aerial parts of A. millefolium were extracted by maceration in ethanol 70% for 72 h. Terminal portion of ileum in 100 male Wistar rats was dissected and its contractions were recorded isotonically in an organ bath containing Tyrode solution (37 °C, pH 7.4) under one gram tension. Acetylcholine (1mM) and KCl (60mM) were used to create isotonic contractions. Propranolol and Nω-Nitro-L-arginine methylester hydrochloride (L-NAME) were used to investigate the mechanisms of action prior to giving the extract to the relevant groups. Data were compared by ANOVA and Turkey's post hoc test.. The results showed that the ileum contraction was induced by KCl and acetylcholine induced contraction was significantly reduced by A. millefolium extract. The cumulative concentrations of A. millefolium relaxed the KCl and acetylcholine induced contractions (n=14, p<0.001). The inhibitory effect of extract on contraction induced by KCl and acetylcholine was not significantly affected neither by propranolol (1µM) nor by L-NAME (100 µM). There was no significant difference in the rate of relaxation by propranolol and L-NAME between the two groups. In conclusion, A. millefolium can inhibit contraction of smooth muscle of ileum in rat, and it can be used for eliminating intestinal spasms. These results suggest that the relaxatory effect of A. millefolium on ileum contractions can be due to the blockade of voltage dependent calcium channels. In addition, the β-adrenoceptors, cholinergic receptors and nitric oxide production are not powerful actors in inhibitory effect of A. millefolium. So, the nitric oxide and adrenergic systems may also be involved in the antispasmodic effect of A. millefolium.
This paper presents the results of a feasibility study to demonstrate the application of ultrasound RF time series imaging to accurately differentiate ablated and nonablated tissue. For 12 ex vivo ...and two in situ tissue samples, RF ultrasound signals are acquired prior to, and following, high-intensity ultrasound ablation. Spatial and temporal features of these signals are used to characterize ablated and nonablated tissue in a supervised-learning framework. In cross-validation evaluation, a subset of four features extracted from RF time series produce a classification accuracy of 84.5%, an area under ROC curve of 0.91 for ex vivo data, and an accuracy of 85% for in situ data. Ultrasound RF time series is a promising approach for characterizing ablated tissue.
Orthodontics is a medical treatment and a rehabilitation service provided for individuals in need. Due to the high cost involved in performing this type of treatment along with the current attitude ...in communities toward it as a cosmetic service, it is essential to investigate the decision-making process to undergo orthodontic interventions among Iranian individuals and families.
To conduct this qualitative study using grounded theory, 18 participants were selected through purposive sampling method and received semi-structured interviews each lasting 50-70 minutes. Eventually, the data were saturated after the fulfillment of 19 interviews. During the interviews, simultaneous analysis was also performed according to the method proposed by Strauss and Corbin (1998) and then the data were analyzed within three stages of open, axial, and selective coding.
Analysis of the clients' statements produced 207 codes, 22 sub-categories, and 9 main categories, including distorted mental self-image, hope to look more attractive, inappropriate interactions with family and those around, family's views toward the problem, social conditions, financial constraints, challenges in the family, as well as decision making to undergo orthodontic treatment, and finally, the main factor of hope for a better future were highlighted.
The results showed that the main facilitating factor was "hope for a better future" for which families could accept numerous difficulties, such as high cost and repeated follow-ups due to the importance of beauty and meeting their children's sense of satisfaction.
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The prediction of cutting force for boring process Yussefian, N.Z.; Moetakef-Imani, B.; El-Mounayri, H.
International journal of machine tools & manufacture,
10/2008, Volume:
48, Issue:
12
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
This article presents a methodology to predict the cutting force of boring process. The cutting force is represented by tangential
F
t, thrust
F
h and lateral
F
l components. Cutting force is ...correlated to chip area and cutting edge contact length with mechanistic cutting force coefficients. B-spline parametric curves are used to model the process geometry. The chip load boundary is first modeled using analytical parametric curve intersection approach. The chip area is then segmented into elements for which feed and approach angle can be considered constant. A method to predict the effective chip flow angle on the rake face of the tool is proposed and verified over a wide range of cutting conditions. Elemental tangential and thrust components of the cutting force are evaluated using an orthogonal cutting database. These values are summed up along the cutting edge to obtain the resultant tangential and thrust components. The third component,
F
l, is determined using the predicted value of the effective chip flow angle. To verify the proposed method, experimental tests have been conducted. Comparison between the predicted results and experimental observations confirms the validity of the proposed model within ±10% deviation.
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The present study deals with the preparation and characterization of an injectable and in situ forming drug delivery system based on photocrosslinked poly(ε-caprolactone fumarate) (PCLF) networks ...loaded with tamoxifen citrate (TC). Networks were made of PCLF macromers, a photoinitiation system (comprising initiator and accelerator) and the active ingredient N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone (NVP) as a crosslinker and reactive diluent. Shrinkage behavior, equilibrium swelling and sol fraction ratios of photocrosslinked PCLF gels were determined as functions of NVP content. It was shown that the crosslinking is facilitated up to a certain concentration of NVP and most of NVP remained unreacted above this value. In vitro drug release, biocompatibility evaluation and activity against MCF-7 breast cancer cell line were also investigated. Accurate but simple bipartite expressions were also derived that enable rapid determination of effective diffusion coefficients of TC in photocrosslinked PCLF/NVP disks. Cytotoxicity assay showed that while the photocrosslinked PCLF network with optimum NVP content exhibits no significant cytotoxicity against MCF-7 and L929 cell lines, 40–60% of the MCF-7 cells were killed after incubation with TC-loaded devices.
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Advanced glycation end products (AGE), the reactive derivatives of nonenzymatic glucose-protein condensation reactions, are implicated in the multiorgan complications of diabetes and aging. An ...AGE-specific cellular receptor complex (AGE-R) mediating AGE removal as well as multiple biological responses has been identified. By screening an expression library using antibody against a previously identified component of the AGE-R complex p90, a known partial cDNA clone was isolated with homology to galectin-3, a protein of diverse identity, and member of the galectin family.
To explore this unexpected finding, the nature of the interactions between galectin-3 and AGE was studied using intact macrophage-like RAW 264.7 cells, membrane-associated and recombinant galectin-1 through -4, and model AGE-ligands (AGE-BSA, FFI-BSA).
Among the members of this family (galectin-1 through 4), recombinant rat galectin-3 was found to exhibit high-affinity 125I-AGE-BSA binding with saturable kinetics (kD 3.5 x 10(7) M-1) that was fully blocked by excess unlabeled naturally formed AGE-BSA or synthetic FFI-BSA, but only weakly inhibited by several known galectin-3 ligands, such as lactose. In addition to the p90, immunoprecipitation with anti-galectin-3, followed by 125I-AGE-BSA ligand blot analysis of RAW 264.7 cell extracts, revealed galectin-3 (28 and 32 kD), as well as galectin-3-associated proteins (40 and 50 kD) with AGE-binding activity. Interaction of galectin-3 with AGE-BSA or FFI-BSA resulted in formation of SDS-, and beta-mercaptoethanol-insoluble, but hydroxylamine-sensitive high-molecular weight complexes between AGE-ligand, galectin-3, and other membrane components.
The findings point toward a mechanism by which galectin-3 may serve in the assembly of AGE-R components and in the efficient cell surface attachment and endocytosis by macrophages of a heterogenous pool of AGE moieties with diverse affinities, thus contributing to the elimination of these pathogenic substances.
•Percentages of circulating MSCs decreased after IFNβ therapy.•IFNβ alters the expression levels of IP10 and SDF-1α in RRMS patients.•IP10 and SDF-1α elevated in sera of RRMS patients.•MSCs might ...migrate toward the damaged CNS in response to IP-10 and SDF-1.
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have the capacity to migrate into the inflammatory regions in response to chemokines such as, IP-10 and SDF-1α and function as anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory cells.
In this study we investigated the MSCs frequency in peripheral blood of Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis (RRMS) patients in clinically active and not on disease-modifying therapy (DMT) (n = 22) and clinically stable on DMT (Interferon-β (IFN-β) therapy) for at least 6 months (n = 22) in comparison to sex and age-matched healthy controls (n = 25) using flow cytometry. The serum and gene expression levels of IP-10 and SDF-1a were also measured in studied groups by ELISA and Real time- PCR.
We obtained significant high levels of circulating CD45−CD34− CD90+ and CD45−CD34− CD105+ cells in clinically active patients, not on DMT and patients under IFNβ therapy compared with control group. Furthermore, a significant increase in the percentage of circulating CD45−CD34− CD105+ CD90+ cells was found in clinically active patients and not on DMT compared with control group. Serum analysis of IP-10 and SDF-1α showed a significant increase in IP10 concentration in both clinically active not on DMT (P = 0.02) and on DMT (P = 0.005) RRMS patients in comparison with controls.
The expression level of SDF-1α mRNA significantly increased in clinically active not on DMT (P = 0.03), while decreased in patients under IFNβ therapy (P = 0.04). The mRNA expression of IP-10 only increased in patients on DMT compared with controls (P = 0.05).
Circulating MSCs, IP-10 and SDF-1α levels, increased in RRMS patients with clinically active not on DMT and IFN-β therapy reduced circulating MSCs and SDF-1α levels.
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Wake-up test can be used during posterior spinal fusion (PSF) to ensure that spinal function remains intact. This study aims at assessing the characteristics of the wake-up test during ...propofol–alfentanil (PA) vs propofol–remifentanil (PR) infusions for PSF surgery.
Sixty patients with scoliosis and candidates for PSF surgery were randomly allocated in either alfentanil (PA) or remifentanil (PR) group. After an i.v. bolus of alfentanil 30 μg kg−1 in the PA group or remifentanil 1 μg kg−1 in the PR group, anaesthesia was induced with thiopental and atracurium. During maintenance, opioid infusion consisted of alfentanil 1 μg kg−1 min−1 or remifentanil 0.2 μg kg−1 min−1, in the PA group and the PR group, respectively. All patients received propofol 50 μg kg−1 min−1. Atracurium was given to maintain the required surgical relaxation. At the surgeon's request, all infusions were discontinued. Patients were asked to move their hands and feet. Time from anaesthetic discontinuation to spontaneous ventilation (T1), and from then until movement of the hands and feet (T2), and its quality were recorded.
The average T1 and T2 were significantly shorter in the PR group 3.6 (2.5) and 4.1 (2) min than the PA group 6.1 (4) and 7.5 (4.5) min. Quality of wake-up test, however, did not show significant difference between the two groups studied.
Wake-up test can be conducted faster with remifentanil compared with alfentanil infusion during PSF surgery.
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