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Introduction: There are very few studies demonstrating the seroprevalence of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) in patients with cirrhosis worldwide and in Turkey. This study aimed to investigate the seroprevalence of COVID-19 in patients with cirrhosis and its effect on liver cirrhosis by clinical form in the postinfectious period. Methods: The study included 174 patients with cirrhosis. Patients with COVID-19 were identified using anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2-immunoglobulin G (SARS-CoV-2-IgG) and COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction assays and were divided into symptomatic and asymptomatic groups. The last polyclinic records of the patients before infection or testing were determined as 1st examination and the date of blood collection for anti-SARS-CoV-2-IgG was determined as the 2nd examination. Examination findings and liver tests of the patients in both periods were recorded; Child-Pugh Score (CPS) and Model for End Stage Liver Disease (MELD)-Na scores were calculated. Additionally, patients were evaluated for newly developed hepatic decompensation. Results: The seropositivity of anti-SARS-CoV-2-IgG was detected in 35.6% of our patients, and the rate of those who had symptomatic COVID-19 infection was 23.6%, whereas the rate of those who had asymptomatic infection was 12%. There was no significant difference in liver tests, CPS, and MELD-Na scores before and after COVID-19 infection between symptomatic and asymptomatic patients, and new decompensation was found in 9.6% of patients with COVID-19 infection. Conclusion: The incidence of COVID-19 among patients with liver cirrhosis is notably high. Although high decompensation rates were reported in the acute phase of the disease, such rates were not observed in the postinfectious period. Ultimately, our results indicated no significant difference in the course of existing liver disease according to clinical form.

Growth retardation and decreased vivid coloration are significant issues in the ornamental fish market, particularly among cichlids. This study investigates the effects of Schizochytrium sp. microalgae supplementation on the growth and skin coloration of the Jack Dempsey cichlid (Rocio octofasciata). Three experimental groups were established: a control group (C) with no supplementation, and two microalgae-supplemented groups with 0.5% (S05) and 1% (S10). The control group was fed a commercial diet, while the S05 and S10 groups received the microalgae mixed with the commercial feed via spraying. A total of 135 Jack Dempsey fish (mean initial weight: 1.17 ± 0.14 g) were stocked into nine glass tanks (100 L each), with three replicates per group. After a 60-day feeding trial, growth indices revealed significant differences (p

Background and Study Aim. Static and dynamic balance performance are fundamental skills that can exhibit significant differences between genders and are critically important in motor skills and sports science. The aim of this study was to compare the static and dynamic balance performance of sports science students by gender. Material and Methods. Ten male students (age: 22.70 ± 1.33 years) and ten female students (age: 23.00 ± 1.05 years) studying in the sports science faculty voluntarily participated in the study. The Biodex Balance System (BBS, Biodex Medical Systems Inc., Shirley, NY) was utilized to assess balance performance. Independent samples t-test and paired t-test were conducted for analysis using SPSS. Results. In intergroup comparisons, static and dynamic balance performances were similar between genders, with a significant difference found only in the S-APSI parameter (p = 0.021). Among male participants, a significant difference was observed in the S-MLSI parameter (p = 0.015), while no significant differences were found in the other parameters. For female participants, dynamic balance performance significantly outperformed static performance (OSI p = 0.018, APSI p = 0.035, MLSI p = 0.046). Apart from anterior-posterior balance outcomes, no significant differences were observed between males and females in the other parameters. It was also evident that female participants exhibited significantly superior dynamic balance performance compared to static performance. Conclusions. Understanding gender differences in balance performance is crucial for creating effective training programs in sports education. By recognizing these differences, trainers can develop strategies that better meet the specific needs of male and female athletes. This approach can help enhance overall athletic performance.

Geç dönem Osmanlı dünyasında hem genel kültür sahasının içeriği sayılan bilgi çerçevesindeki paradigma değişimi hem de pek çok konu hakkındaki aslî referans kaynaklarının Avrupa’da üretilen yeni eserlerle ikame edilmesi devrin müelliflerini o güne değin hakkında kalem oynatılmayan çeşitli konularda metin üretmeye teşvik etmiştir. Ek olarak, dinler tarihinin ayrı bir bilimsel disiplin olarak ortaya çıkışı da Osmanlı dünyasında bu alanda bir literatürün vücuda getirilmesinde önemli rol oynamıştır. Bu makalede de aynı yüzyılı tecrübe etmiş ve dinler tarihi disiplinine ait sayılabilecek eserler üretmiş iki Osmanlı müellifinin, Şemseddin Sâmî ile Ahmed Midhat Efendi’nin, Budizm’i anlama ve yorumlama çabaları ele alınmaktadır. Sözü geçen yazarların konu hakkında kendilerinden önce yazılmış eserlerden devraldıkları bilgiler incelendiği gibi hem Sâmi hem de Midhat’ın düşünüş biçimlerini etkilemesi son derece muhtemel olan biyografilerine de değinilmiştir. Çalışma esas olarak Sâmî’nin Esâtîr adlı eseri ile Ahmed Midhat’ın Tedrîsî Târih-i Edyân adlı çalışmasının Budizm bağlamında karşılaştırmalı bir tahlilini içermektedir. Bu iki metin 19. yüzyılda yaşamış iki entelektüelin Osmanlı dünyasında doğrudan temas kurma imkânları bulunmayan bir dini anlamak noktasında geliştirdikleri stratejileri ortaya koymaları bakımından önemli veriler sunmaktadır.

Aims: Health indicators provide up-to-date information on the health status of a population. This study aimed to classify the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries according to health indicators and assess their status. Methods: The dataset was obtained from the OECD and World Bank databases. The most recent data from 2018 to 2022 were used. The dataset included the number of hospital beds, computed tomography scanners, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) units, mammography machines, and radiotherapy machines as indicators of health equipment and the number of doctors, nurses, medical graduates, and nursing graduates as indicators of healthcare workers. The classification was performed using latent profile analysis (LPA). Estimated classes were compared using ANOVA or the Kruskal-Wallis test. Results: Three distinct classes were obtained from the models constructed with LPA (Akaike information criteria: 1674.91, Bayesian information criteria: 1726.87, Lo-Mendell-Rubin adjusted likelihood ratio test: p

Objective: Abnormal localization of the placenta with complete or partial closure of the cervix is called placenta previa. Placenta previa occurs in approximately 0.3-0.5% of pregnancies. In this study, we aimed to determine the risk factors and adverse fetal outcomes by comparing the neonatal outcomes of patients who underwent cesarean section for placenta previa with those of patients who underwent cesarean section for other indications. Method: Patients with singleton pregnancies diagnosed with placenta previa were retrospectively analyzed. Placenta previa, risk factors, and adverse neonatal outcomes were estimated using multivariate logistic regression models. Results: A total of 61,110 deliveries were analyzed, and 632 deliveries (288 patients, 344 controls) were included in the study. The prevalence of placenta previa was 0.47%. Advanced maternal age [odds ratio (OR)=3.03], multigravida (≥5) (OR=2.31), previous abortion (OR=1.58) and curettage (OR=2.32) were significant risk factors for placenta previa. However, these patients had an increased risk of 1st minute Apgar score 37 weeks gestational age group with placenta previa were more likely to have a lower birth weight (OR=4.21) and an Apgar score

From samples for the phytoplankton collected from the sea surface water of 67 stations along the entire Turkish Mediterranean coast during June-July 2019, three juvenile gelatinous organisms were recorded. Two cnidarian-hydrozoan species (Podocorynoides minima and Gastroblasta raffaelei) and one ctenophore (Bolinopsis cf. vitrea) occurred near Mersin Bay. The specimens were determined at the juvenile or eumedusoid stages. Referring to the literature, Gastroblasta raffaelei was presumably about 4-5-day old (1.05 x 1.56 mm in elliptical diameter), and Podocorynoides minima about a stage of liberated eumedusoid (0.327 x 0.316 mm in bell diameter x height). The specimen of Bolinopsis cf. vitrea was measured to be 11 mm in lobate (total) length and 8.6 mm in body width. Interestingly, all species were found at different locations close to each other on the set of the water rim current speeding easterly up to about 0.5 m s-1. Gastroblasta raffaelei and Podocorynoides minima were first recorded on the Turkish Mediterranean coast. Early-staged specimens of these three species were described and discussed for their diagnostic structures with their occurrence in the Turkish Mediterranean Sea after the hydrozoans were reported in the Sea of Marmara, the ctenophore in the Black Sea, and other seas of the Mediterranean basin. The present study also discussed possible and presumable pathways of recent increased Turkish Mediterranean records of specimens that have been observed in the West Mediterranean Sea and the Adriatic Sea.

Düşey elektrik sondajı (DES) verilerinin ters çözümü doğrusal olmayan bir problem olması nedeniyle zor bir işlemdir. Bu çalışmada, genelleştirilmiş regresyon sinir ağlarının özdirenç problemine uygulanabilirliği araştırılmıştır. Genelleştirilmiş regresyon sinir ağları (GRNN) ile düşey elektrik sondajı verilerinin ters çözümü test edilmiştir. Sinir ağı düz çözüm ile oluşturulan yapay verilerle eğitilmiştir. Ağ hem eğitim seti içinde bulunmayan diğer yapay veriler ile hem de arazi verisi ile test edilmiştir. Ayrıca GRNN parametresi olan yayılım parametresi de farklı değerler kullanılarak karşılaştırılmıştır. En düşük hata oranını veren yayılım parametresi kullanılmıştır. Yapay veriler 3 tabakalı modellerdir. Arazi verisi ise 4 tabakalı olarak değerlendirilmiştir. GRNN çıktısı yapay verilerde 3 tabakalı model için 3 özdirenç ve 2 tabaka kalınlığı olmak üzere 5 parametredir. Arazi verisinde ise 4 tabakalı bir model için 4 özdirenç ve 3 tabaka kalınlığı olmak üzere 7 parametredir. GRNN ile ters çözüm sonuçları çok düşük hata oranları ile başarılı olmuştur. DES verilerinin kalınlık ve özdirenç kestirimleri için GRNN yöntemi performansı yüksek bir oranda başarılı olmuştur.

Culture consists of material and spiritual values and tools that a nation has accumulated in the historical process. In addition to the most basic contexts such as language and religion, contexts such as sporting activities, art, public medicine, and the public calendar are also important environments that reveal their own cultural elements. Among these contexts, religion is very effective in shaping the daily life of the individual and, thus, society through the rules it enjoins. Religion does not dominate only the world of belief of the individual. Through the world of belief, it also directs their relations with the social institutions they are involved in. Sport is one of the most important activities and social institutions that stand out with various functions in daily life, with wrestling being one of the branches of sports that have emerged as a result of the imitation of the struggle of human beings with nature and other creatures with which they share nature. In particular, those involved in the nomadic way of life had to hunt in order not to starve and fight in order to survive. Wrestling, which emerged as a result of these obligations, held an important place among all Turks in the world for a period of time, especially in the transition periods of life, such as birth, marriage, and death. One of the conditions set forth by women as a condition of marriage was that their suitor defeated them in wrestling. Examples of this condition are also observed in literary texts belonging to different periods when Turks were not yet acquainted with Islam and the concepts of halal and haram, which entered their lives together with Islam. According to the provisions of the Holy Qur’an, right/unprohibited thoughts and actions are associated with the words good and halal, while wrong/prohibited thoughts and actions are associated with the words sin and haram. In this study, the social and cultural phases of wrestling as a sports branch among Turks in the historical process will be evaluated on the basis of the history of religions and religious references, in addition to the literary texts belonging to historical periods when Turks were members of different religions, in the context of two events that have been experienced and reported in the news. The study was carried out using the method of document analysis, a method of qualitative research, and the data obtained by this method were evaluated using content analysis. The narratives of Alıp Manaş, Alpamış, Alpamıs, Alıpmenşen, and Bamsı Beyrek, which are evaluated in this context, belong to the periods when the Turks had not been introduced to Islam or had only recently been introduced to it. Alıp Manaş was collated from different Turkic tribes such as the Altais, Alpamış from the Uzbeks, Alpamıs the Kazakhs/Karakalpaks, Alıpmenşen the Bashkirs/Tatars, and Bamsı Beyrek the Oghuz Turks. The narratives of Kirmanshah, Köse Kenan-Dânâ Hanım, Bey Böyrek, Shah Ismail, and Yaralı Mahmut, which are evaluated in the study, belong to the periods when the Turks became Muslim en masse, and are related only among the Oghuz Turks. These narratives are included in the study because they are similar to Alıp Manaş, Alpamış, Alpamıs, Alıpmenşen, and Bamsı Beyrek and they belong to the period when Islam was largely established among the Turkish masses in Anatolia. The effect of the new religion on wrestling, which is a branch of sport, will be revealed through these narratives belonging to different tribes and religious periods. Once more, an event that occurred in recent history, and was the subject of the news, was subjected to document analysis, and content analysis was carried out through the text of the news and evaluated in the context of the study. This study aims to explain the effect of religious rules on sports branches with theological, folkloric, and sociological references based on ancient literary texts belonging to the Turks and two incidents which were experienced.

Natural disasters are rather unpredictable and can interrupt human life, cause economic damage and even take lives. Even though they are mostly unpredictable, there are methods for assessing the risks of natural disasters, one of which is the Fine-Kinney, which was originally used for assessing industrial accident risks. Even though the method has been applied to natural disasters, the results are not very rational and precise because of the dissimilarity between both phenomena. Here we adapt the Fine-Kinney method by fuzzification to produce fast and reliable results in the building environment for natural disasters, even in situations where there is limited data. Both standard and fuzzy Fine-Kinney methods are applied to the Mustafakemalpaşa district in Bursa, Turkey, as a case study. The results of this case study are compared with the risk maps provided by the local government, to prove the accuracy and reliability of the method. While both methods produced similar and reliable results when compared to the risk maps, the Fuzzy Fine-Kinney results were more realistic because of the nature of fuzzy logic.

Harsh debates on the restructuring of public administration and the failures of states have continued for decades, Public Private Partnership (PPP) suggests a different function to the state as an application of the "New Public Management" approach, for solving some of these debates. Although PPP can be briefly defined as the provision of public services by the private sector, its complex relationship structure and risks behind this definition do likely make the model unsuccessful. In pursuit of the best model, international organizations and mechanisms, including the OECD, the UN, and the European Commission, have attempted to apply some models of successful examples, procedures, and laws. Some studies learning from faulty designs and experiences have focused on what should not be. As a result, the critical success factors seem to be the most proper tool to improve the PPP method. This study focuses on providing support information for countries trying to design and develop a PPP model. Afterward, it deals with the performance-measured PPP applications in the world in the context of transparency and accountability and reveals the significance of the principles of transparency and accountability in the success of the PPP model.

Classifiers in machine learning work on the principle that the observations are evenly distributed across the classes. However, real-world datasets frequently exhibit skewed distributions of classes, which is called imbalanced, causing the classifiers make highly biased predictions. One of the several method groups that deal with imbalance data problem is class balancing methods. We aimed to compare some class balancing methods during the classification of pacing horses according to their origins. Data set contains morphological traits of horses and four origin classes with different sample sizes that leads a multi-class imbalanced data problem. Training data set was modified with different balancing methods. Each balanced data set was trained with C5.0, Random Forest and Extreme Gradient Boosting Machine classifiers. Method comparisons were made based on comparison metrics using the original test set. The best prediction result was obtained on the data set balanced with random undersampling method regarding both G-mean and Matthews Correlation Coefficient; however, the best result according to F1 score was observed on the data set balanced with Adaptive Synthetic Sampling Approach (ADASYN). Primary important variables of the best models were body length, withers height, chest circumference and rump height. The Bulgarian origin was the most accurately predicted class despite having the smallest sample size. Class balancing methods clearly improved the performance of classifiers for predicting origins of pacing horses.

Usnic acid (UA) is a common lichenic secondary metabolite with therapeutic potential. Anticancer, antimicrobial, and antioxidant effects have been demonstrated and UA-enriched extracts are often used to treat various diseases in traditional medicine. First, we performed a viability assay of UA in human uterine leiomyosarcoma (SK-UT-1) since no in vitro cytotoxicity data have been reported so far. For this purpose, the cytotoxicity of UA on SK-UT-1 and embryonic kidney (HEK293) cells was studied at 24 and 48 hours. The toxicity of UA was investigated by the MTT test. In addition, we assessed UA colony formation and migration properties against SK-UT-1 cells in 6-well plates. Our results showed a significant cytotoxic effect of UA at the 5.34 µM; UA was also effective against colony formation ability and wound healing assay. In conclusion, our study suggests that UA exerts anti-proliferative effects on SK-UT-1 cells by inducing cell death. Moreover, our results suggest that the potential anticancer activities of UA should be further studied by additional molecular biological approaches.

Abstract Adolescent individuals exhibit great variability in cortical dynamics and behavioral outcomes. The developing adolescent brain is highly sensitive to social experiences and environmental insults, influencing how personality traits emerge. A distinct pattern of mitochondrial gene expression in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) during adolescence underscores the essential role of mitochondria in brain maturation and the development of mental illnesses. Mitochondrial features in certain brain regions account for behavioral differences in adulthood. However, it remains unclear whether distinct adolescent behavioral phenotypes and the behavioral consequences of early adolescent stress exposure in rats are accompanied by changes in PFC mitochondria-related genes and mitochondria respiratory chain capacity. We performed a behavioral characterization during late adolescence (postnatal day, PND 47–50), including naïve animals and a group exposed to stress from PND 31–40 (10 days of footshock and 3 restraint sessions) by z-normalized data from three behavioral domains: anxiety (light–dark box tests), sociability (social interaction test) and cognition (novel-object recognition test). Employing principal component analysis, we identified three clusters: naïve with higher-behavioral z-score (HBZ), naïve with lower-behavioral z-score (LBZ), and stressed animals. Genome-wide transcriptional profiling unveiled differences in the expression of mitochondria-related genes in both naïve LBZ and stressed animals compared to naïve HBZ. Genes encoding subunits of oxidative phosphorylation complexes were significantly down-regulated in both naïve LBZ and stressed animals and positively correlated with behavioral z-score of phenotypes. Our network topology analysis of mitochondria-associated genes found Ndufa10 and Cox6a1 genes as central identifiers for naïve LBZ and stressed animals, respectively. Through high-resolution respirometry analysis, we found that both naïve LBZ and stressed animals exhibited a reduced prefrontal phosphorylation capacity and redox dysregulation. Our findings identify an association between mitochondrial features and distinct adolescent behavioral phenotypes while also underscoring the detrimental functional consequences of adolescent stress on the PFC.

The intravenous lipid emulsion (ILE) therapy is known to alleviate clinical symptoms in cases of bupivacaine-induced cardiac toxicity. However, there is insufficient information regarding histopathological damage. This study aimed to investigate whether the use of ILE therapy in rats with experimentally induced bupivacaine-related cardiac toxicity can ameliorate histopathological damage. 28 Wistar albino rats were divided into four groups: control (A), lipid (B), bupivacaine (C), and bupivacaine + lipid (D). After providing monitoring in all groups, group B received 1.5 mL ILE + 0.25 μg/kg/min ILE infusion, group C received 3 μg/kg/min bupivacaine infusion, and group D received 3 μg/kg/min bupivacaine infusion followed by 1.5 mL ILE + 0.25 μg/kg/min ILE infusion after observing cardiac toxicity. Heart rate and respiratory rate were recorded. Blood samples were collected post-procedure to measure LDH, CK-MB, and troponin levels. Cardiac tissue samples were obtained for histopathological examination. There was no significant difference in baseline heart rate and respiratory rate among the groups (P>0.05). However, in the second measurements, heart rate and respiratory rate were higher in group D compared to group C (P

Abstract Objective The availability of reliable and inexpensive markers that can be used to determine the risk of rupture during methotrexate (MTX) treatment in ectopic pregnancies (EPs) is considerable. The aim of the present study is to investigate the role of systemic inflammatory markers such as leukocytes (or white blood cells, WBCs), the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet distribution width (PDW), which are among the parameters of the complete blood count (CBC), in the prediction of rupture of EPs under MTX treatment. Materials and Methods A total of 161 patients with tubal EP who underwent a single-dose methotrexate (MTX) protocol were retrospectively analyzed, and the control group (n = 83) included patients cured by MTX, while the ruptured group (n = 78) included patients who were operated on for tubal rupture during the MTX treatment. The features of EP, beta-human chorionic gonadotropin (β-hCG) levels, sonographic findings, and CBC-derived markers such as WBC, NLR, and PDW, were investigated by comparing both groups. Results The NLR was found to be higher in the ruptured group, of 2.92 ± 0.86%, and significantly lower in the control group, of 2.09 ± 0.6%. Similarly, the PDW was higher (51 ± 9%) in the ruptured group, and it was significantly lower a (47 ± 13%) in the control group (p < 0.05). Other CBC parameters were similar in both groups (p > 0.05). Conclusion Systemic inflammation markers derived from CBC can be easily applied to predict the risk of tubal rupture in Eps, since the CBC is an inexpensive and easy-to-apply test, which is first requested from each patient during hospitalization.

Aim: The aim of this study is to measure the diameter of the cystic artery using computed tomography in patients undergoing emergency surgery for the diagnosis of acute cholecystitis, as well as to understand the role of cystic artery diameter in the diagnosis of acute cholecystitis, and to investigate its association with clinical data, laboratory data, and computed tomography findings. Methods: A total of 187 patients admitted to the general surgery clinic between 2019 and 2023, comprising 123 individuals as the patient group and 64 individuals as the control group, were reviewed in terms of their radiological images, demographic data, and laboratory parameters. The patients' surgical records, laboratory parameters, and computed tomography scans taken during the diagnosis were investigated. Results: The diameter of the cystic artery was measured, and a cut-off value of cystic artery diameter >1.9 mm was found to be sensitive and specific for the diagnosis of acute cholecystitis (AUC: 0.852, 94% sensitivity, 75% specificity, p 1.9 mm was found to be highly specific for the diagnosis of acute cholecystitis. This study suggests that the measurement of cystic artery diameter can be used as an additional criterion in the evaluation of computed tomography for the diagnosis of acute cholecystitis.

Objective:Cisplatin is a chemotherapeutic agent with an ototoxic effect that is frequently used in head and neck cancers. There are studies in the literature conducted with various antioxidant substances to protect and/or prevent ototoxicity. This study aims to investigate whether platelet-rich plasma (PRP) has a protective and therapeutic effect on cisplatin ototoxicity.Methods:A total of 40 Sprague Dawley albino rats were divided into six groups as control group (n=6), PRP-only group (n=6), cisplatin group (n=6), cisplatin + PRP group (n=6), PRP + cisplatin group (n=6), and donor group (n=10). At the beginning of the study and the 8th day, they were tested with distortion product otoacoustic emission (DPOAE). Assessment of DPOAE results was based on the signal-to-noise ratio in 2000, 3000, 4000, 6000, and 8000 Hz frequency bands. On the 8th day, the rats were sacrificed. For histological examinations, the temporal bones were dissected and fixed. After hematoxylin and eosin staining, the tissues were evaluated by light microscopy.Results:In the DPOAE tests performed on the 0th and 8th days of the cisplatin group, it was observed that cisplatin caused hearing loss in the rat ears. It was determined that the cisplatin group at 2000 Hz, 3000 Hz and 4000 Hz had a significant decrease in hearing compared to all groups (p