The phase angle (PA), expressed via bioelectrical impedance, is an indicator of cell membrane health and integrity, hydration, and nutritional status, and may have further application as a prognostic ...marker in cancer survival. However, the associations between PA and cancer survival are inconsistent and unclear. The present systematic review and meta-analysis investigated the relationship between PA and survival among adult patients diagnosed with cancer.
A systematic search of observational studies up to November 2020 was conducted through PubMed, Scopus, and ISI Web of Science. The critical appraisal of the eligible studies was performed using the Newcastle–Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale. Statistical analyses were performed using STATA 11.2 software. A P-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant.
A total of 14 studies covering 2625 participants were included in this study. There was a positive and significant correlation between PA and cancer survival (Fisher's Z: 0.30; 95% CI, 0.21–0.40; P < 0.001; I2 = 0.0%). Also, there was a significant prognostic role for PA on patients' survival (HR 0.77; 95% CI, 0.74–0.81; P < 0.001; I2 = 0.0%). In other words, patients with low values of PA were 23% less likely to survive than patients with high values of PA.
Given that predicting survival in advanced cancer patients remains a challenge, the findings of this systematic review and meta-analysis suggest that phase angle may be an important prognostic factor of survival in this population.
It is hypothesized that vitamin D deficiency could be related to ovarian reserve. This systematic review and meta-analysis was undertaken to analyze the possible association between vitamin D and ...ovarian reserve among adolescent and adult women. All eligible studies identified through the ISI Web of Science, PubMed, and Scopus were included up to May 2021. A random-effects meta-analysis model was implemented and a weighted mean difference (WMD) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated. A total of 38 papers covering 8608 individuals were enrolled in this systematic review and meta-analysis. Antral follicle count (AFC) was significantly lower among Asians (WMD - 0.65; 95% CI - 1.28 to - 0.01; P = 0.04; I
= 0.0%) and luteinizing hormone (LH) levels were higher in non-Asians (WMD 2.16 IU/L; 95% CI 0.20 to 4.12; P = 0.031; I
= 9.3%) with vitamin D insufficiency/deficiency. Also, there was a negative correlation between vitamin D and LH/FSH ratio in women with normal body mass index (BMI) (Fisher's Z: - 0.18; 95% CI - 0.37 to - 0.008; P = 0.041; I
= 51.5%). Although there were no significant associations between serum vitamin D levels and any of the intended ovarian reserve markers, subgroup analyses have found significant findings regarding AFC, LH, and LH/FSH ratio. In order to understand the underlying mechanisms of vitamin D in female reproduction, further attempts are needed.
Plant-microbe associations are thought to be beneficial for plant growth and resistance against biotic or abiotic stresses, but for natural ecosystems, the ecological analysis of microbiome function ...remains in its infancy. We used transformed wild tobacco plants (
) which constitutively express an antimicrobial peptide (Mc-AMP1) of the common ice plant, to establish an ecological tool for plant-microbe studies in the field. Transgenic plants showed in planta activity against plant-beneficial bacteria and were phenotyped within the plants´ natural habitat regarding growth, fitness and the resistance against herbivores. Multiple field experiments, conducted over 3 years, indicated no differences compared to isogenic controls. Pyrosequencing analysis of the root-associated microbial communities showed no major alterations but marginal effects at the genus level. Experimental infiltrations revealed a high heterogeneity in peptide tolerance among native isolates and suggests that the diversity of natural microbial communities can be a major obstacle for microbiome manipulations in nature.
The present article considers Heidegger's thinking about the concept of "system" in Schelling's treatise on Freedom (1809). Heidegger's thoughtful reference to Schelling's treatise is research on the ...principle of system formation and the question of the possibility of a system of freedom as a question about the essence of being. In his interpretation, the necessity of establishing freedom in the system, is raised in the framework of this basic principle of idealism, which is necessary for the establishment of a system, the search for the shaping principle of being, and the research on how it is possible to have a connection in the ground of being. Therefore, the guiding questions of this article are, why does the system become the main point of controversy and the most necessary demand in German idealism? And according to Heidegger's interpretation, to what extent was Schelling successful in establishing a system compatible with freedom?
Display omitted
•This study examined the effects of DPS supplementation on lipid peroxidation and cardiometabolic risk factors in T2DM patients.•DSP supplementation could be considered useful ...functional food to improve oxidative stress and cardiometabolic risk factors.•DPS supplementation can improve lipid profile and glycemic parameters in T2DM patients.•DPS supplementation led to a marked reduction in weight and BMI in T2DM patients.•DPS supplementation can be administered as the adjuvant therapy in T2DM patients.
We examined if the supplementation of date seed powder (DSP) could improve inflammation, oxidative stress, and cardiometabolic status in diabetic patients. Forty three patients, aged 30–50 y, were randomized to receive either 5 g/d maltodextrin (i.e., placebo) or 5 g/d DSP (i.e. intervention) for eight weeks. Total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low- and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c and HDL-c), the Castelli I Index (i.e., TC/HDL-c ratio), and Atherogenic index Log (TG/HDL-c), lipopolysaccharide (LPS), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), oxidative stress index (OSI), total oxidant status (TOS), malondialdehyde (MDA), 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), oxidized-LDL-c (ox-LDL-c), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), and glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) were measured at the baseline and end of the study. We used independent t-test and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) for between-group comparisons at the baseline and the post-intervention phase, respectively. Between-group comparisons showed that supplementation with DSP significantly decreased HbA1c (−0.30%, p = 0.002), TC (−16.18 mg/dL, p = 0.001), TG (−21.27 mg/dL, p = 0.001), LDL-c (−13.41 mg/dL, p = 0.007), TC/HDL-c (−0.52, p = 0.001), LDL-c/HDL-c (−0.38, p = 0.003), Log (TG/HDL) (−0.06, p = 0.001), LPS (−3.67 EU/mL, p = 0.001), TNF-α (−3.69 ng/mL, p = 0.001), OSI (−5.01, p = 0.001), MDA (−0.25 nmol/mL, p = 0.010), 8-OHDG (−1.58 pg/mL, p = 0.002), and ox-LDL-c (−7.48 UL−1, p = 0.001). On the other hand, DSP supplementation significantly increased total antioxidant capacity (0.50 mmol/L, p = 0.001) compared to the placebo group. The two groups, however, were comparable regarding changes in FPG, HDL-c, VLDL-c, hs-CRP, and TOS. Overall, DSP seems to be an effective functional food for improving oxidative stress and cardiometabolic risk factors in diabetic patients. (Registration ID at https://www.irct.ir: IRCT20150205020965N10)
Combined‐harmonics wireless power transfer system Marnani, Elham Karimi; Rashed‐Mohassel, Jalil; Shahabadi, Mahmoud
IET microwaves, antennas & propagation,
March 2024, 2024-03-00, 2024-03-01, Letnik:
18, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
A technique for wireless power transfer (WPT) efficiency improvement by a proper design of the excitation waveform is presented. This improvement is obtained on the one hand by a combined‐harmonics ...excitation, and on the other hand by exploiting multiple‐resonance coupled resonators. In contrast to wireless communications, there is no constraint on the linearity of the transmitter and receiver in a WPT system. Therefore, the impact of the excitation waveform on the power transfer efficiency with the help of an analytical model is investigated. An optimum excitation waveform is determined to maximise the power transfer efficiency. Thereafter, the authors concentrate on designing a multiple‐resonance coupled resonator system that is consistent with the determined excitation waveform. This work introduces a non‐uniform spiral resonator for controlling the self‐resonant frequencies, which is consistent with the required excitation waveform. The performance of the designed coupled resonators is then evaluated using a 3D finite‐element method and experiments. The numerical simulation and experimental results are in good agreement, verifying the validity of our design.
A technique based on the excitation waveform for transferring power at combined‐harmonic excitation to improve the efficiency of a wireless power transfer (WPT) system is presented. In contrast to wireless communications, there is no constraint on the linearity of the transmitter and receiver in a WPT system.
Based on a comprehensive search, we realized that the findings of the available literature are contradictory, and also limited data are available on Middle Eastern populations in terms of probiotic ...supplementation during the pregnancy. Therefore, the current double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial was carried out to investigate the effects of probiotic supplementation during pregnancy on the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus and also other maternal and neonatal outcomes.
The pregnant women were randomized to either received probiotic supplement (n = 271) or placebo (n = 271) from the first half of the second trimester (14 weeks of pregnancy) up to 24 weeks when pregnant women routinely evaluated regarding the GDM. During the 24–28 weeks of pregnancy, mothers were evaluated regarding the presence of GDM using a 75 g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). The fasting blood glucose (FBG) was also evaluated within OGTT processes. Each 500 mg probiotic capsule was a mixture of Lactobacillus acidophilus LA1 (>7.5 × 109 CFU), Bifidobacterium longum sp54 cs (>1.5 × 109 CFU), and Bifidobacterium bifidum sp9 cs (>6 × 109 CFU).
Overall, 507 pregnant women make up our study population with a mean age of 32.03 years and a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30.20 kg/m2. There was no significant difference between the intervention and the control group regarding FBG (88.68 vs. 89.61 mg/dL; P = 0.338), OGTT-1h (163.86 vs. 166.88; mg/dL; P = 0.116), and OGTT-2h (138.39 vs. 139.27; mg/dL; P = 0.599). The incidence of GDM in the intervention group was 41.9% which was not significantly different from the control group (40.2%) (P = 0.780). Likewise, no significant difference was detected in terms of other studied parameters.
It seems that probiotics supplementation of pregnant women from the first half of the second trimester up to 24 weeks of pregnancy does not reduce the risk of GDM, or improve other neonatal and maternal outcomes.
Marine sponges are early-branching, filter-feeding metazoans that usually host complex microbiomes comprised of several, currently uncultivatable symbiotic lineages. Here, we use a low-carbon based ...strategy to cultivate low-abundance bacteria from Spongia officinalis. This approach favoured the growth of Alphaproteobacteria strains in the genera Anderseniella, Erythrobacter, Labrenzia, Loktanella, Ruegeria, Sphingorhabdus, Tateyamaria and Pseudovibrio, besides two likely new genera in the Rhodobacteraceae family. Mapping of complete genomes against the metagenomes of S. officinalis, seawater, and sediments confirmed the rare status of all the above-mentioned lineages in the marine realm. Remarkably, this community of low-abundance Alphaproteobacteria possesses several genomic attributes common to dominant, presently uncultivatable sponge symbionts, potentially contributing to host fitness through detoxification mechanisms (e.g. heavy metal and metabolic waste removal, degradation of aromatic compounds), provision of essential vitamins (e.g. B6 and B12 biosynthesis), nutritional exchange (especially regarding the processing of organic sulphur and nitrogen) and chemical defence (e.g. polyketide and terpenoid biosynthesis). None of the studied taxa displayed signs of genome reduction, indicative of obligate mutualism. Instead, versatile nutrient metabolisms along with motility, chemotaxis, and tight-adherence capacities - also known to confer environmental hardiness - were inferred, underlying dual host-associated and free-living life strategies adopted by these diverse sponge-associated Alphaproteobacteria.
The Islamic revolution of 1979 and its developments have been the major reasons for the mass migration of Iranian intellectuals to the West and the main topic of the Iranian diaspora's literary ...texts. However, since the turn of the twenty-first century, especially in France, a new generation of Iranian women novelists has created a shift in traditional post-revolutionary memoir writing by focusing on more individual themes such as childhood, the body, and trauma. In this article, the author explores the various ways in which two of these novelists, Negar Djavadi and Chahdortt Djavann, have represented levels of trauma in their auto-fictional narratives of the Islamic revolution. In this regard, starting from a conceptual representation of trauma as reliving the historical past by protagonists, it is shown how both psychological and cultural definitions of the trauma are depicted in these novels. The article suggests that this multidirectional approach allows the authors to overcome the alienation caused by the Islamic revolution's contradictory nature in a postcolonial era.
PDF
