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The physiological functions of natural killer (NK) cells in human immunity and reproduction depend upon diverse interactions between killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIRs) and their HLA class I ligands: HLA-A, HLA-B, and HLA-C. The genomic regions containing the KIR and HLA class I genes are unlinked, structurally complex, and highly polymorphic. They are also strongly associated with a wide spectrum of diseases, including infections, autoimmune disorders, cancers, and pregnancy disorders, as well as the efficacy of transplantation and other immunotherapies. To facilitate study of these extraordinary genes, we developed a method that captures, sequences, and analyzes the 13 KIR genes and HLA-A, HLA-B, and HLA-C from genomic DNA. We also devised a bioinformatics pipeline that attributes sequencing reads to specific KIR genes, determines copy number by read depth, and calls high-resolution genotypes for each KIR gene. We validated this method by using DNA from well-characterized cell lines, comparing it to established methods of HLA and KIR genotyping, and determining KIR genotypes from 1000 Genomes sequence data. This identified 116 previously uncharacterized KIR alleles, which were all demonstrated to be authentic by sequencing from source DNA via standard methods. Analysis of just two KIR genes showed that 22% of the 1000 Genomes individuals have a previously uncharacterized allele or a structural variant. The method we describe is suited to the large-scale analyses that are needed for characterizing human populations and defining the precise HLA and KIR factors associated with disease. The methods are applicable to other highly polymorphic genes.

This study evaluates the performance of NASA's Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA) precipitation product in reproducing the trend and distribution of extreme precipitation events. Utilizing the extreme value theory, time-invariant and time-variant extreme value distributions are developed to model the trends and changes in the patterns of extreme precipitation events over the contiguous United States during 1979-2010. The Climate Prediction Center (CPC)U.S.Unified gridded observation data are used as the observational dataset. The CPC analysis shows that the eastern and western parts of the United States are experiencing positive and negative trends in annual maxima, respectively. The continental-scale patterns of change found in MERRA seem to reasonably mirror the observed patterns of change found in CPC. This is not previously expected, given the difficulty in constraining precipitation in reanalysis products. MERRA tends to overestimate the frequency at which the 99th percentile of precipitation is exceeded because this threshold tends to be lower in MERRA, making it easier to be exceeded. This feature is dominant during the summer months. MERRAtends to reproduce spatial patterns of the scale and location parameters of the generalized extreme value and generalized Pareto distributions. However, MERRA underestimates these parameters, particularly over the Gulf Coast states, leading to lower magnitudes in extreme precipitation events. Two issues in MERRA are identified: 1)MERRAshows a spurious negative trend in Nebraska andKansas, which ismost likely related to the changes in the satellite observing system over time that has apparently affected the water cycle in the central United States, and 2) the patterns of positive trend over theGulf Coast states and along the East Coast seem to be correlated with the tropical cyclones in these regions. The analysis of the trends in the seasonal precipitation extremes indicates that the hurricane and winter seasons are contributing the most to these trend patterns in the southeastern United States. In addition, the increasing annual trend simulated by MERRA in the Gulf Coast region is due to an incorrect trend in winter precipitation extremes.

Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) and natural killer (NK) cells are killer lymphocytes that provide defense against viral infections and tumor transformation. Analogous to that of CTL, interactions of killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIR) with specific human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I ligands calibrate NK cell education and response. Gene families encoding KIRs and HLA ligands are located on different chromosomes, and feature variation in the number and type of genes. The independent segregation of KIR and HLA genes results in variable KIR-HLA interactions in individuals, which may impact disease susceptibility. We tested whether KIR-HLA combinations are associated with Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) disease, a bilateral granulomatous panuveitis that has strong association with HLA-DR4. We present a case control study of 196 VKH patients and 209 controls from a highly homogeneous native population of Japan. KIR and HLA class I genes were typed using oligonucleotide hybridization method and analyzed using two-tailed Fisher's exact probabilities. The incidence of Bx-KIR genotypes was decreased in VKH patients (odds ratio [OR] 0.58, P = 0.007), due primarily to a decrease in centromeric B-KIR motif and its associated KIRs 2DS2, 2DL2, 2DS3, and 2DL5B. HLA-B22, implicated in poor immune response, was increased in VKH (OR = 4.25, P = 0.0001). HLA-Bw4, the ligand for KIR3DL1, was decreased in VKH (OR = 0.59, P = 0.01). The KIR-HLA combinations 2DL2+C1/C2 and 3DL1+Bw4, which function in NK education, were also decreased in VKH (OR = 0.49, P = 0.012; OR = 0.59, P = 0.013). Genotypes missing these two inhibitory KIR-HLA combinations in addition to missing activating KIRs 2DS2 and 2DS3 were more common in VKH (OR = 1.90, P = 0.002). These results suggest that synergistic hyporesponsiveness of NK cells (due to poor NK education along with missing of activating KIRs) and CTL (due to HLA-B22 restriction) fail to mount an effective immune response against viral-infection that may trigger VKH pathogenesis in genetically susceptible individuals, such as HLA-DR4 carriers.

BACKGROUND: Depression is closely related to coronary artery disease (CAD). However, the association of depression before angiography with major adverse cardiovascular event (MACE) is still unknown.METHODS: In a prospective cohort study, 410 patients underwent angiography for the first time between 2016 and 2017 in Dr. Heshmat Hospital, Rasht, Iran. Demographic and medical information were collected and depressive symptoms were assessed using Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II). The patients were followed for one year after angiography. Chi-square test and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were performed to compare demographic and clinical characteristics of patients between different levels of depressive symptoms. Multiple Cox regression analysis was performed to assess the association between depression symptoms before angiography and MACE rate controlled for the effect of confounders.RESULTS: Of 410 patients, follow-up data were available for 380 (95%) patients. the MACE occurred in 134 (35%) patients. Depressive symptoms were observed in 42% of patients. Based on multivariable Cox regression analysis, adjusted for CAD severity, the risk of one-year MACE occurrence in patients with mild, moderate, and severe depressive symptoms was 1.96 [95% confidence interval (CI) for hazard ratio (HR): 1.30-2.94], 1.88 (95% CI for HR: 1.15-3.09), and 2.81 (95% CI for HR: 1.56-5.06) times that of patients without depressive symptoms, respectively. Depression in patients before angiography increased the risk of MACE up to 2.045 times.CONCLUSION: The results showed that MACE in patients with depression was more than patients without depression. MACE in different levels of depression (mild, moderate, severe) was not significantly different.

Background: Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting (PONV) is a multifactorial surgical complication with an unclear underlying cause. Anesthetic methods, patients' characteristics and the type of surgery are considered as factors affecting PONV. This study was designed to compare the effect of inhalational and intravenous anesthesia in abdominal surgery on the incidence and severity of PONV. Methods: A single-blinded prospective randomized clinical trial on 105 patients aged 18 − 65 years was carried out. Patients were divided into two groups of Total Intravenous Anesthesia (TIVA) and inhalational anesthesia. The incidence and the severity of PONV were examined at 0, 2, 6, 12 and 24 hours after the surgery. The use of a rescue antiemetic was also evaluated. Results: 50.9% of the patients in the inhalation group and 17.3% of the patients in the intravenous group developed PONV (p

Mediterranean flour moth, Ephestia kuehniella Zeller, is important for mass rearing of parasitoid insects such as Bracon wasps and it's feeding on cereals leads to economic losses in flour mills. In current research, the effects of four different diets: wheat, barley, oat, and maize flours, on protein content of larval and pupal whole-body, gut and fat bodies of the last instars and the digestive α-amylase activity were evaluated. In addition, their protein patterns were compared using polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The protein contents of fifth instars whole-body, fat bodies, gut, and also pupa varied in different diets. On the whole, the lowest protein levels were found in all experiments in oat and the highest in barley and wheat. Other biological parameters such as insect weight and digestive α-amylase activity were also significantly affected by the decrease in protein content. The results obtained from the estimation of protein content by a colorimetric method and SDS-PAGE were consistent with each other; the low or high protein contents were also clearly visible in the gels. According to the results of enzyme activity and protein contents of insects reared on different diets, barley and wheat are reported to be appropriate diets for this pest, while oat and maize are not suitable diets.

Diarylamines were synthesized using p-toluene sulfonamides with benzhydrol derivatives in the presence of a copper/bisphosphine complex by Borrowing Hydrogen (BH) mechanism, yielding ${

Background: Physical activity reduces the risk of Coronary Heart Disease (CHD). The precise mechanism for reducing CHD risk after physical activity has not been determined. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between physical activity and some biochemical parameters in patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS). Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on patients with ACS referring to Heshmat Medical Center in 2016. Convenient sampling method was used and 280 eligible patients with ACS were included in the study. For data gathering the checklist was used for demographic characteristics of patients and biochemical parameters and the Baecke Questionnaire was used to assess the patients’ physical activity. The data were analyzed in PASW Statistics for Windows, Version 18.0. Chicago: SPSS Inc. using Spearman correlation and multiple regression analyses. The significance level was set at P>0.05. Results: The results showed that 67% of the patients were male and the mean age of the patients was 62.38±12.01 years. The BUN blood urea nitrogen (r=-.121 and -.177) and blood creatinine level (r=-.259 and -.185) had a significant correlation with physical activity in general and at the work hours, (P

Death penalty is disputed retribution between the chain of retributions with different execution styles has accompanied humans throughout history with numerous followers and opponents. In the last decades disputes between the followers and opponents between the followers and opponents of this retribution has continued more extensively. The result of these fundamental disputes of the opponents and elimination of this retribution from the criminal law or in some cases, despite keeping it in texts. The execution is eliminated. This article focuses on the death penalty while looking for attaining the philosophy of death penalty by utilizing the two major views of retributivism and utilitarianism in philosophy of retribution and it’s reconciliation with each of the two views mentioned before. The results indicate the although death penalty is mostly accordant to the objectives of utilitarianism like incapacitation and relative compatibility with preventing through intimidation, it is corresponding more with the opponent view that is retributivism. Revocation or undermining the routine futuristic justifications of life deprivation punishment, can help legislator remove or at least limit the punishment.

Fire affects vegetation and changes plant succession. In this paper, the vegetation of Sirachal Research Station, which burned in the summer of 2014, was studied and compared with the unburnt areas, based on biodiversity indices. The research was implemented as a factorial experiment in a completely randomized design. First, on the basis of physiognomy, the area was divided into three parts: shrubland, shrubland-rangeland, and rangeland. Each part was, then, divided into two sections, including a burnt area and an adjacent unburnt area (control area). In each area (burnt and unburnt), three sampling units were randomly assigned using PNP method, and vegetation measurements were subsequently performed. Based on data analysis, a total of 141 taxa were identified, belonging to 28 families and 95 genera, including one species of Gymnosperm, 19 monocotyledons and 121 dicotyledons in two burnt and unburnt areas of Sirachal Station. Based on the statistical analysis, using Past3 and SPSS softwares, there was no significant difference in the number of taxa between the vegetation of the burnt and unburnt areas. Of the indicators analyzed in Past3, the number of individual, the index of Menhinick's richness and the Shannon diversity index were significantly different in the treatments sampled from the burnt and unburnt areas. According to the Duncan test average, the number of individuals in the unburnt area, with a canopy cover below 25%, was greater than that in the burnt area, with the same canopy cover, however, no significant difference was observed between the individuals in the burnt area and unburnt area, with the same canopy cover of more than 25%. Also, the richness of the burnt area with a canopy of less than 5% is significantly higher than that in the unburnt area with the same canopy cover.

Abstract In this research, Ordovician conodonts obtained from the sedimentary succession of the informal Katkoyeh formation is studied in a stratigraphic section at the south of Kuh-e-Bonorg, eastern flank of Kalmard Anticline in the west of Tabas (Central Iran). The formation which is partly equivalent to the succession of the Shirgesht Formation in Tabas Block is unconformably overlaid the Kalmard Formation (attributed to the Neoproterozoic) and disconformably overlain by the Carboniferous Gachal formation. The Katkoyeh formation with 214.8 meter thickness is divided into three lithostratigraphic members including the Lower Sandstone (mostly quartzarenite to litharenite), Middle Shale (red to green shales interbedded with some dolomitic and calcareous sandstones, in laminated wavy stromatolite structure at the base) and Upper Carbonate (limestones, dolostones and marls). The section was sampled bed by bed for conodont studies so that 80 samples have been selected, however only seven of them were productive. Within the selected samples, six genera and 14 species of coniform and ramiform conodont elements are determined, a few of them are reporting for the first time from Iran. The obtained conodonts demonstrate the faunal assemblages equal to the proteus, elegans-evae and diprion Zones which confirm the age of Early Ordovician (late Tremadocian–Floian) for the studied section. The whole conodont material display a faunal affinity with the Baltoscandic and Argentina paleobiogeographic provinces. Keywords: Conodont, Floian, Katkoyeh formation, Ordovician, Tremadocian. Introduction In spite of the moderately -exposed outcrops of the Ordovician successions throughout the country, most of the stratigraphical studies in Iran are focused on Alborz Range (e.g.; Gansser and Huber 1962, Muller 1973, Ghavidel-Syooki 2006, Ghobadi Pour et al. 2007, 2011; Jahangir et al. 2016) and the appropriate data from the other regions are restricted to a few published reports (e.g.; Ruttner et al. 1968, Aghanabati 1977, Hamedi 1995, Ghaderi et al. 2008). Especially our knowledge is very little about the conodont contents of the Ordovician rocks in Iran. The Ordovician sedimentary succession in the north of Tabas in central Iran have been introduced as the Shirgesht Formation by Ruttner et al. (1968). The rock sequences of this formation composed of brown, cream, and green to red limestones, shales and partly sandstones with hardly more than 800 m in thickness (Ghobadi Pour et al. 2006). Lithostratigraphically, the Ordovician sedimentary interval in adjacent Kalmard Block (Aghanabati 2010) is different, includes more siliciclastic rocks somewhat carbonate beds in upper part. These succession has been considered as the Katkoyeh formation by Hamedi and Wright (1992). The less known Katkoyeh formation as an informal stratigraphic rock unit in central Iran has been regarded to Arenigian to Ashgillian in the type area in Kerman region, but the age of the formation in the Kalmard type region is dissimilar in different studies. In the current research we have looked for the succession Katkoyeh formation in a section at the south of Kuh-e-Bonorg, eastern flank of the Kalmard anticline, from the age dating view, based on the conodont contents. Material & Methods In the Kuh-e-Bonorg section, 80 rock samples were collected bed by bed for conodont content while only seven of them were productive. For this purpose, sandy limestones, dolomitic limestones and pure limestones with about 3–5 kg were dissolved by 10% formic acid and 20% acetic acid following the standard procedure for conodont extraction (e.g., Jeppsson & Anehus, 1995). Residue washed on appropriate clean 18 and 230 mesh sieve-stack (0.85 to 0.063 mm). The extracted conodont collections stored in the Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran under the collection name with the FUM#MC prefix. Discussion of Results & Conclusions The Katkoyeh formation in the south of Kuh-e-Bonorg section is unconformably overlaid the Neoproterozoic rocks attributed to the Kalmard Formation and disconformably overlain by the Carboniferous Gachal formation. The Katkoyeh formation of 214.8 meter thickness in the studied area is divided into three members such as the Lower Sandstone (mostly quartzarenite to litharenite), Middle Shale (red to green shale interbedded with some dolomitic and calcareous sandstone, in laminated wavy stromatolite structure at the base) and Upper Carbonate (limestones, dolostones and marls). Among the seven fossiliferous beds, we obtained the index conodonts of Lower Ordovician which belong to six genera and 14 species of coniform and ramiform elements. The assemblage is correlative with the same collections from the Baltoscandic and Argentina paleobiogeographic provinces (e.g.; Mannik and Virra 2012; Voldman ‌‌‌‌‌‌et al. 2017). The distribution of taxa in the stratigraphic succession is variable, in abundance of elements as well as in the number of taxa. The oldest conodonts in the section, Drepanodus arcuatus and Drepanoistodus costatus, come from the dolostones and dolomitic limestones of uppermost Tremadocian-early Floian proteus Zone (equivalent to Acodus apex Zone in NW Argentina Province) the sample MC208B. The next fossiliferous bed, MC232, comprises Acodus triangularis, Acodus cf. deltatus, Drepanoistodus cf. nowlani, Drepanoistodus cf. bassiovalis, Drepanoistodus bassiovalis and Gothodus costalatus which confirm Floian elegans - evae Zones (equivalent to Gothodus vetus–Gothodus andinus Zones in NW Argentina Province). The last productive beds, MC263–MC265, contain Trapezognathus diprion as the index taxon for upper evae Zone (equivalent to Trapezognathus diprion Zone in NW Argentina Province). This species confirm the age of late Floian for the uppermost part of the Katkoyeh formation in the Kuh-e-Bonorg section.

Purpose. The COVID-19 pandemic has overwhelmed many healthcare systems. Seasonality is a feature of several infectious diseases. Studies regarding the association of seasonal variations and COVID-19 have shown controversial results. Therefore, we aimed to compare COVID-19 characteristics and survival outcomes between the fourth and fifth waves in Iran, which corresponded to spring and summer, respectively. Methods. This is a retrospective study on the fourth and fifth COVID-19 waves in Iran. One hundred patients from the fourth and 90 patients from the fifth wave were included. Data from the baseline and demographic characteristics, clinical, radiological, and laboratory findings, and hospital outcomes were compared between the fourth and fifth COVID-19 waves in hospitalized patients in Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex, Tehran, Iran. Results. The fifth wave patients were more likely to present with gastrointestinal symptoms than the patients from the fourth wave. Moreover, patients in the fifth wave had lower arterial oxygen saturation on admission (88% vs. 90%; P=0.026), lower levels of WBCs (neutrophils and lymphocytes) (6300.00 vs. 8000.00; P=0.004), and higher percentages of pulmonary involvement in the chest CT scans (50% vs. 40%; P

The COVID-19 data analysis is essential for policymakers to analyze the outbreak and manage the containment. Many approaches based on traditional time series clustering and forecasting methods, such as hierarchical clustering and exponential smoothing, have been proposed to cluster and forecast the COVID-19 data. However, most of these methods do not scale up with the high volume of cases. Moreover, the interactive nature of the application demands further critically complex yet compelling clustering and forecasting techniques. In this paper, we propose a web-based interactive tool to cluster and forecast the available data of Taiwan COVID-19 confirmed infection cases. We apply the Model-based (MOB) tree and domain-relevant attributes to cluster the dataset and display forecasting results using the Ordinary Least Square (OLS) method. In this OLS model, we apply a model produced by the MOB tree to forecast all series in each cluster. Our user-friendly parametric forecasting method is computationally cheap. A web app based on R's Shiny App makes it easier for practitioners to find clustering and forecasting results while choosing different parameters such as domain-relevant attributes. These results could help in determining the spread pattern and be utilized by medical researchers.

Data on COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) safety and efficacy in children and young adults are limited. This single-center prospective, open-label trial evaluates CCP safety, neutralizing antibody kinetics, and outcomes in children and young adults with moderate/severe COVID-19 (April 2020–March 2021). A total of 46 subjects received CCP; 43 were included in the safety analysis (SAS); 7.0% < 2 years old, 2.3% 2– 19 years old; 28 were included in the antibody kinetic analysis (AbKS); 10.7% < 2 years old, 10.7% 6– 19 years old. No adverse events occurred. The median COVID-19 severity score improved (5.0 pre-CCP to 1.0 by day 7; p < 0.001). A rapid increase in the median percentage of inhibition was observed in AbKS (22.5% (13.0%, 41.5%) pre-infusion to 52% (23.7%, 72%) 24 h post-infusion); a similar increase was observed in nine immune-competent subjects (28% (23%, 35%) to 63% (53%, 72%)). The inhibition percentage increased until day 7 and persisted at 21 and 90 days. CCP is well tolerated in children and young adults, providing rapid and robust increased antibodies. CCP should remain a therapeutic option for this population for whom vaccines are not fully available and given that the safety and efficacy of existing monoclonal antibodies and antiviral agents have not been established.

Background: Considering the importance of psychological interventions for adults who stutter (AWS), the present study compared the effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Group Therapy (CBGT) and Mindfulness and Acceptance Group Therapy (MAGT), in combination with Speech Therapy (ST) in AWS. Materials and Methods: A randomized clinical trial was conducted with 36 AWS in Tehran and Alborz provinces in Iran from September-2019 to September-2020. Participants were assigned to CBGT + ST and MAGT + ST groups. Outcomes variables, the fear of negative evaluation scale (FNE) and the social avoidance and distress scale (SAD), were measured at four stages: (1) pretest, (2) after MAGT/CBGT, (3) after ST, and (4) at 6-month follow-up. Results: The results of repetitive measure-analysis on variance showed that CBGT + ST and MAGT + ST were significantly effective (P = 0.001 and P = 0.003) on SAD. The same analysis showed that CBGT + ST was significantly effective (P = 0.001) on FNE. The results of Analysis of Covariance showed that there was no significant difference between CBGT + ST and MAGT + ST on SAD but CBGT + ST was more effective than MAGT + ST at stage 3 (P < 0.05) on FNE. Conclusion: Data indicated that CBGT + ST and MAGT + ST were both effective for SAD of AWS. Regarding FNE, unlike MAGT + ST, CBGT was effective either alone or in combination with ST for AWS. Further studies are needed to confirm the results of this study.

Background and Aims: This study aimed to compare levels of anxiety and quality of life in patients with severe and mild depression. Material and Methods: In a causal-comparative design, 271 patients with Major Depressive Disorder were selected using convenience sampling method and based on the Structured Clinical Interview and then, they were asked to complete New Multidimensional Depression Assessment Scale, Short Form Health Survey, and Beck Anxiety Inventory. In the next phase, 92 patients whose scores on the New Multidimensional Depression Assessment Scale were two standard deviations above and below the mean were selected as severe (n= 40) and mild depressed patients (n= 52). Results: Currents findings indicated a significant difference between two groups in the levels of anxiety and quality of life in that compared to mild depressed patients, patients with severe depression reported more anxiety (F= 16/74) and lower levels of quality of life in both physical (F= 15/01) and psychological (F= 20/96) dimensions. Conclusion: Given the findings of this study, in the treatment of depression, addressing anxiety problems and helping severe depressed patients to improve their quality of life is of great importance.

The present research aims to study the personality profile of adolescents in different identity statuses using 'Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory- Adolescent' (MMPI-A); it then attempts to answer the question whether there are any significant differences between these profiles at different identity statuses. To this end, 506 adolescents (273 male and 233 female), who aged 15 to 18 years old, answered MMPI-A and Ego Identity Process Questionnaires. The obtained results indicated that adolescents' personality profile was within the normal range for identity statuses of foreclosure, moratorium, and diffusion. Also, the score of adolescents who were in any of these statuses did not reveal any significant difference. This study shows that MMPI-A can assess adolescents' psychopathology through their various identity statuses., Author(s): Marzieh Norozpour [sup.1], Banafsheh Gharraee [sup.1] [sup.2], Mojtaba Habibi [sup.3], Ahmad Ashouri [sup.1], Nasim Mousavi [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.411746.1, 0000 0004 4911 7066, Faculty of Behavioral Sciences and [...]