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Polyamidoamine dendrimer of zero generation was prepared by a divergent synthesis scheme using the reagent excess method starting from ethylenediamine by consecutive Michael addition and ester amidation reaction. In order to obtain the fluorescent dye, the amino end groups of synthesized dendrimer were reacted with 4-amino- 1,8-naphthalimide via aromatic nucleophilic substitution reaction. The chemical structures of prepared dye and its corresponding intermediates were studied by FTIR, 1HNMR, 13CNMR and UV-Visible spectroscopic techniques. Synthesized dye was applied as a disperse dye on polyester fabric by high temperature exhaustion dyeing and relevant characteristics of dyed fabrics including dye ability, build up, wash and light fastness were evaluated. Also the position of color in CIELAB coordinates (L*, a*, b*, h°, C*) was assessed.

Contains fulltext : 56522.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Open Access) In this paper, we introduce a nature-inspired multiagent system for the task domain of resource distribution in large storage facilities. The system is based on potential fields and swarm intelligence, in which straightforward path planning is integrated. We show both experimentally and theoretically that the system is adaptive, robust and scalable. Moreover, we show that the planning component helps to overcome common pitfalls for nature-inspired systems in the task assignment domain. We end this paper with a discussion of an additional requirement for multi-agent systems interacting with humans: functionality. More precisely, we argue that such systems must behave in a fair way to be functional. We illustrate how fairness can be measured and illustrate that our system behaves in a moderately fair manner.

Research in reinforcement learning has produced algo-rithms for optimal decision making under uncertainty thatfall within two main types. The first employs a Bayesianframework, where optimality improves with increased com-putational time. This is because the resulting planning tasktakes the form of a dynamic programming problem on a be-lief tree with an infinite number of states. The second typeemploys relatively simple algorithm which are shown to suf-fer small regret within a distribution-free framework. Thispaper presents a lower bound and a high probability up-per bound on the optimal value function for the nodes in theBayesian belief tree, which are analogous to similar boundsin POMDPs. The bounds are then used to create more ef-ficient strategies for exploring the tree. The resulting al-gorithms are compared with the distribution-free algorithm UCB1, as well as a simpler baseline algorithm on multi-armed bandit problems.

We propose a new method for deriving rankings from fuzzy pairwise comparisons. It is based on the observation that quantification of the uncertainty of the pairwise comparisons should be used to obtain a better crisp ranking, instead of a fuzzified version of the ranking obtained from crisp pairwise comparisons. With our method, a crisp ranking is obtained by solving a linear programming problem, when the fuzzy pairwise comparisons are fuzzy triangular numbers. Our method simplifies the recent method by Mikhailov.

Cauliflower-like DNAs are stem-loop DNAs that are fabricated periodically in inverted repetitions from deoxyribonucleic acid phosphates (dNTPs) by loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP). Cauliflower-like DNAs have ladder-shape behaviors on gel electrophoresis, and increasing the time of LAMP leads to multiplying the repetitions, stem-loops, and electrophoretic bands. Cauliflower-like DNAs were fabricated via LAMP using two loop primers, two bumper primers, dNTPs, a λ-phage DNA template, and a Bst DNA polymerase in 75- and 90-min periods. These times led to manufacturing two types of cauliflower-like DNAs with different contents of inverted repetitions and stem-loops, which were clearly indicated by two comparable electrophoresis patterns in agarose gel. LAMP-fabricated DNAs and natural dsB-DNA (salmon genomic DNA) were dialyzed in Gomori phosphate buffer (10 mM, pH 7.4) to be isolated from salts, nucleotides, and primers. Dialyzed DNAs were studied using UV spectroscopy, circular dichroism spectropolarimetry, and fluorescence spectrophotometry. Structural analyses indicated reduction of the molecular ellipticity and extinction coefficients in comparison with B-DNA. Also, cauliflower-like DNAs demonstrated less intrinsic and more extrinsic fluorescence in comparison with natural DNA. The overwinding and lengthening of the cauliflower-like configurations of LAMP DNAs led to changes in physical parameters of this type of DNA in comparison with natural DNA. The results obtained introduced new biomolecular characteristics of DNA macromolecules fabricated within a LAMP process and show the effects of more inverted repeats and stem-loops, which are manufactured by lengthening the process.

Background: Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) is a feverous and hemorrhagic disease endemic in some parts of Iran and caused by an arbovirus related to Bunyaviridae family and Nairovirusgenus. The main virus reser­voir in the nature is ticks, however small vertebrates and a wide range of domestic and wild animals are regarded as reservoir hosts. This study was conducted to determine the infection rate of CCHF virus in hard ticks of Sarpole-Zahab County, Kermanshah province, west of Iran. Methods: From total number of 851 collected ticks from 8 villages, 131 ticks were selected randomlyand investi­gated for detection of CCHF virus using RT-PCR. Results: The virus was found in 3.8% of the tested ticks. Hyalommaanatolicum, H.asiaticum and Rhipicephalus sanguineus species were found to have viral infection, with the highest infection rate (11.11%) in Rh. sanguineus. Conclusion: These findings provide epidemiological evidence for planning control strategies of the disease in the study area.

Introduction: Providing adequate coronal seal of temporary filling materials is critical for the success of root canal therapy. The aim of this in vitro study was to compare coronal seal ability of three restorative materials over different periods of time. Materials and Methods: Ninety-eight molar teeth were selected. Once access cavities were prepared, teeth were divided randomly into three time groups (1 day, 1 week, and 4 weeks). Each group was then subdivided into three groups of 10 teeth. Each subgroup was restored using one of three restorative materials including Coltosol, Cavizol and Zonalin and then incubated in distilled water at 37ºC. The samples were then immersed in 2% methylene blue dye. After rinsing and drying, teeth were sectioned longitudinally and examined for dye penetration. Kruskal-Wallis and Mann Whitney U tests were used to analyze the data. Results: All experimented materials showed increasing leakage from the 1st day to the 4th week. Zonalin showed more leakage than Coltosol and Cavizol at each time interval (P

BACKGROUND: The purpose of the present study was the analysis of the trends in case fatality rate of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in Isfahan, Iran. This analysis was performed based on gender, age groups, and type of AMI according to the International Classification of Diseases, version 10, during 2000-2009. METHODS: Disregarding the Multinational Monitoring of Trends and Determinants in Cardiovascular Disease (MONICA), this cohort study considered all AMI events registered between 2000 and 2009 in 13 hospitals in Isfahan. All patients were followed for 28 days. In order to assess the case fatality rate, the Kaplan-Meier analysis, and to compare survival rate, log-rank test were used. Using the Cox regression model, 28 days case fatality hazard ratio (HR) was calculated. RESULTS: In total, 12,900 patients with first AMI were entered into the study. Among them, 9307 (72.10%) were men and 3593 (27.90%) women. The mean age in all patients increased from 61.36 ± 12.19 in 2000-2001 to 62.15 ± 12.74 in 2008-2009, (P = 0.0070); in women, from 65.38 ± 10.95 to 67.15 ± 11.72 (P = 0.0200), and in men, from 59.75 ± 12.29 to 59.84 ± 12.54 (P = 0.0170),. In addition, the 28 days case fatality rate in 2000-2009 had a steady descending trend. Thus, it decreased from 11.20% in 2000-2001 to 07.90% in 2008-2009; in men, from 09.20% to 06.70%, and in women, from 16.10% to 10.90%. During the study, HR of case fatality rate in 2000-2001 declined; therefore, in 2002-2003, it was 0.93 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.77-1.11], in 2004-2005, 0.88 (95% CI = 0.73-1.04), in 2006-2007, 0.67 (95% CI = 0.56-0.82), and in 2008-2009, 0.69 (95% CI = 0.56-0.82). CONCLUSION: In Isfahan, a reduction was observable in the trend of case fatality rate in both genders and all age groups. Thus, there was a 29.46% reduction in case fatality rate (27.17% in men, 32.29% in women) during the study period.&nbsp

Hepatotoxicity is one of the clinically adverse effects of ecstasy (3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine; MDMA) consumption. The detoxification tissue, liver, plays a central role in maintaining circulating levels of glucose and lipid. Hypoglycemia and hypotriglyceridemia have been reported due to ecstasy abuse. Ghrelin is a 28-amino-acid peptide secreted predominantly from the stomach. It has been demonstrated that ghrelin has hepatoprotective effects and is able to increase blood glucose concentration. In the current study, we explored the effect of hepatotoxic dose of MDMA and therapeutic use of exogenous ghrelin on the serum levels of glucose and lipids in four groups of rats. MDMA caused a severe and transient reduction in circulating levels of glucose and triglyceride and increased serum LDL. However, cholesterol and HDL levels remained unchanged. Meanwhile, altered hepatic architecture was observed with intracellular vacuolation that may indicate intracellular accumulation of lipid droplets. In addition, following ghrelin administration, the blood sugar levels improved and LDL levels returned to the baseline value, and ghrelin treatment did not improve triglycerides levels. These results showed that MDMA causes hypoglycemia, hypotriglyceridemia, and hyper LDL-cholesterolemia. To our knowledge, this is the first report showing ghrelin administration could improve hypoglycemia and normalize LDL levels induced by MDMA and partially restore hepatic architecture.

A new breed of "information-based" agents aims to deliver effective negotiators to Internet commerce. They are founded on concepts from information theory, and are designed to operate with information flows of varying and questionable integrity. These agents are part of a larger project that aims to make informed automated trading in applications such as eProcurement a reality.