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While lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) are a key enabling technology for RNA-based therapeutics, some outstanding challenges hinder their wider clinical translation and use, particularly in terms of RNA stability and limited shelf life. In response to these limitations, we developed silicon-stabilized hybrid lipid nanoparticles (sshLNPs) as a next-generation nanocarrier with improved physical and temperature stability, as well as the highly advantageous capacity for “post-hoc loading” of RNA. Nevertheless, previously reported sshLNP formulations were produced using lipid thin film hydration, making scale-up impractical. To realize the potential of this emerging delivery platform, a manufacturing process enabling multikilogram batch sizes was required for successful clinical translation and deployment at scale. This was achieved by developing a revised protocol based on solvent injection mixing and incorporating other process adjustments to enable in-flow extrusion of multiliter volumes, while ensuring sshLNPs with the desired characteristics. Optimized procedures for nanoparticle formation, extrusion, and tangential flow filtration (to remove residual organic solvent) currently enable production of 2 kg finished batches. Importantly, sshLNPs produced via the modified large-scale workflow show equivalent physical and functional properties to those derived from the earlier small-scale methods, paving the way for GMP manufacturing protocols to enable vital translational clinical studies.

Introduction: Although e-learning has been incorporated in higher education system, students may undergo negative emotions like anxiety using this new mode of learning which ultimatelyinterfere with their learning performance. Hence, the current study aimed to examine the role of computer anxiety in students’ online learning.Methods: This is a cross-sectional correlational study, in which a convenient sample of 330 students of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences participated. To collect the data, we used twopre-validated questionnaires. Face, content, and construct validity were used to check the validity of the questionnaires. Cronbach’s alpha and composite reliability were also used to check thereliability. Data were analyzed using SPSS 16 and AMOS 6.Results: Confirmatory factor analysis results yielded the underlying factorial structure of the scales. In addition, correlation coefficient results indicated that there was a significantly negativerelationship between students’ computer anxiety and their online learning (r=-0.59, P

Rare skeletal diseases are still in need of proper clinically available transfection agents as the major challenge for first-in-human translation relates to intrinsic difficulty in targeting bone without exacerbating any inherent toxicity due to used vector. SiSaf’s silicon stabilized hybrid lipid nanoparticles (sshLNPs) constitute next-generation non-viral vectors able to retain the integrity and stability of constructs and to accommodate considerable payloads of biologicals, without requiring cold-chain storage. sshLNP was complexed with a small interfering RNA (siRNA) specifically designed against the human CLCN7G215R mRNA. When tested via single intraperitoneal injection in pre-puberal autosomal dominant osteopetrosis type 2 (ADO2) mice, carrying a heterozygous mutation of the Clcn7 gene (Clcn7G213R), sshLNP, this significantly downregulated the Clcn7G213R related mRNA levels in femurs at 48 h. Confirmatory results were observed at 2 weeks and 4 weeks after treatments (3 intraperitoneal injections/week), with rescue of the bone phenotype and demonstrating safety. The pre-clinical results will enable advanced preclinical development of RNA-based therapy for orphan and genetic skeletal disorders by safely and effectively delivering biologicals of interest to cure human systemic conditions.

Unpredictable, undesirable, and confusing reactions in the face of psychological or medical interventions make the clinical presentation more complicated and may represent clinically unexplained symptoms and also disturbed the doctor–patients relationship and decrease patients’ benefits of treatment. It seems that negative expectations from the treatment (nocebo phenomenon) can explain such reactions. The aim of the current study is a scoping review and investigate different aspects of the nocebo phenomenon (negative expectations) in clinical interventions. This paper follows a scoping review of the existence, importance, and multidimensions of the nocebo phenomenon in medical and psychological interventions. Data sources include literature databases (ProQuest, PubMed, Google Scholar, and Scopus) reviewed from inception dates to 2023, and the terms negative expectations, nocebo effect, placebo effect, negative placebo, and clinical interventions were searched. The review of the available articles showed that negative expectations play an important role in the process and effectiveness of clinical interventions. Negative expectations (here named nocebo effect) can significantly interfere with rapport and treatment processes. Some underlying components of the nocebo effect include negative expectancies, conditioning, social learning, memory, cognitive distortions, meaning, motivation, somatic focus, negative reinforcements, personality, anxiety, and neurophysiological factors such as CCK, dopamine, and cortisol are proposed for development and presence of nocebo phenomenon in clinical practice. Negative expectations with its biopsychosocial aspects play an important and amazing role in disorganizing medical and psychological interventions. Using appropriate methods to reduce nocebo effects in therapeutic interventions may increase treatment compliance and adherence and increase the effectiveness of interventions.

Background: There is considerable information about the interrelation of functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) and psychological disorders, called gut-brain interaction. Physiological and psychological variables have been linked with the etiology and severity of IBS. The nocebo effect (the opposite of placebo) is defined as increase in pain or other symptoms after use of an inactive or inert treatment/agent purported to increase pain or unpleasant symptoms. Some psychological mechanisms of nocebo include expectancies, conditioning, learning, memory, motivation, somatic focus, reward, anxiety, and meaning. Moreover, neurobiological factors are associated with the etiology of this phenomenon. The aim of present study is a discussion of the definition, existence, prevalence, etiology, and characteristics of the nocebo effect in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Methods: This paper presents a scoping review of the existence, frequency, and importance of the nocebo effect in IBS patients. Data sources included PubMed, PsycINFO, Google Scholar, and Scopus which were searched from their inception dates to 2022. Results: The review of the obtained articles showed that psychological factors such as depression, anxiety, psychological distress, and some personality traits such as neuroticism are related to the occurrence of nocebo responses in IBS patients. Conclusion: The psychological factors associated with nocebo responses include expectancies, conditioning, learning, memory, patient’s personality. Moreover, societal factors and the quality of the patient-physician interaction, and neurobiological factors influence the process of diagnosis, course, and treatment of IBS through nocebo responses. Compared to the extensive research data related to the placebo effect, there is little information and few articles on the role of nocebo, especially in FGIDs. This paper summarizes the scope and importance of the nocebo effect and IBS and its interrelations with psychological factors like personality, anxiety, depression, and psychological distress.

Introduction: Evidence suggests that the performance of medical students is affected by the quality of teaching of clinical teachers, and the higher teachers’ teaching quality leads to better students’clinical performance. Hence, the present research aimed to investigate the association between teaching self-efficacy and quality of bedside teaching among medical teachers.Methods: This is a cross-sectional study. To this end, 242 medical teachers and 830 medical students from 6 universities in different cities were selected using convenience sampling. The medicalteachers filled out Physician Teaching Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (α=0.93), and medical students completed the quality of bedside teaching questionnaire (BST) (α=0.91). Confirmatory factoranalysis (CFA), Pearson correlation coefficient, and multiple regression were used to analyze the collected data through SPSS 23 and Smart-PLS3 software.Results: The results of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) demonstrated that all items and measurement models had adequate reliability and validity to enter the final analysis (α>0.7,CR>0.7 AND AVE>0.50). Furthermore, the results showed teaching self-efficacy (r=0.27, p

Background: Hirsutism in many cases is a beauty problem in women, which is due to hormonal disorders such as malfunctioning of the ovaries, adrenal glands, pituitary gland, and non-endocrine hereditary characteristics or drug use. Methods: This cross-sectional correlation study was done on 76 women aged 18 to 40 suffering from hirsutism who referred to laser therapy. The instrument prepared for the evaluation in this research was Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale Modified for Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD-YBOCS). Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS) and defense mechanisms were studied through the Defense Style Questionnaire (DSQ). In the descriptive statistics section, mean, frequency, and standard deviation (SD) indices were used, and multiple regression tests were used in the inferential statistical section. For statistical analysis, data were analyzed using SPSS statistical analysis software. Results: The results of the multiple regression showed that there was a positive and significant relationship (P < 0.05) between the investigated characteristics of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) (r = 0.46), psychological distresses (r = 0.33), and defense mechanisms (r = 0.46), with hirsutism and based on the results of the studied components, stress with 11%, BDD with 21%, and mature defense mechanisms with 17% were able to explain the changes related to hirsutism disease in this research samples. Conclusion: The present study showed that there was a significant relationship between hirsutism and BDD, stress, and mature defense mechanisms, which directly and indirectly indicates the importance of two-way communication between specialists in other fields and mental health specialists to improve the quality of life (QOL) as much as possible, and also to diagnose and treat the disorders associated with hirsutism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Caring for people with disabilities creates stressful conditions and may lead to mental health problems in parents and caregivers. The aim of this study was to investigate somatic symptoms, depression, and anxiety in parents and caregivers of individuals with disability in Isfahan, Iran. This study was conducted as a joint study by Isfahan University of Medical Sciences and the University of Hamburg with financial support from DAAD. Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 454 parents/caregivers of people with disabilities in Isfahan in 2019. Randomized sampling was performed and participants were selected according to the inclusion criteria. The Patient Health Questionnaire-‎9 (PHQ-9) (Depression), PHQ-7 (Anxiety), and PHQ-15 (Somatic) were used for data collection. Questionnaires were distributed among the participants and completed with the coordination and cooperation of the government and NGOs related to people with disability. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) in SPSS software. Results: The results showed that 28.4% of parents/caregivers of people with disabilities did not have any depressive symptoms and the remaining 70% experienced mild to severe levels of depressive symptoms. Regarding the level of anxiety, 30.2% showed no symptoms of anxiety and 69.8% showed mild to severe levels of anxiety ‎symptoms. In terms of somatic symptoms, 17.8% reported no somatic symptoms and 82.2% reported mild to severe levels of somatic symptoms. Parents/caregivers differed significantly in terms of depression, anxiety, and somatic symptoms according to the type of disability. Conclusion: The findings of the present study show that the rate of symptoms of depression, anxiety, and somatic symptoms in parents/caregivers of people with disabilities is higher than that in the general population. In addition, different types of disability can have different effects on the mental health of parents/caregivers.

Background: Different complications of colostomy in neonates can lead to readmission, surgery, and even death. Therefore, prevention of colostomy complications highlights the empowerments of mother to care for the neonate and reduce maternal distress. Aim: The present study aimed to determine the effect of maternal empowerment programs on neonatal colostomy complications and maternal distress tolerance. Method: This randomized clinical trial was conducted on 60 mothers of newborns aged 1-90 days with colostomy referred to two specialized pediatric centers in northeastern Iran in 2019. The control group received a training session. The intervention group, in addition to one training session, participated in two sessions of maternal empowerment program regarding the care of neonates with a colostomy. The collected data were analyzed in SPSS software (version 21) using ANOVA, Friedman, and Mann-Whitney U tests. Results: The two groups were homogeneous considering demographic variables (P

BACKGROUND: Psychological distress and perceived stress may complicate the clinical presentation, course, and treatment of patients with functional gastrointestinal disorders. The correlation between psychological distress, perceived stress, and the nocebo effect (multifood adverse reaction) in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) was the main aim of the present study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this cross-sectional correlation study, data on 4,763 Iranian adults, 748 of whom by purposive sampling were patients with IBS (65.1% female), working in 50 different health centers affiliated to the Isfahan University of Medical Sciences across Isfahan province were examined. For assessing dietary intake, a 106-item self-administered Dish-based Semi-Quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire that was specifically designed and validated for Iranian adults was used. General Heath Questionnaire 12 and Stressful Life event Questionnaire were used to assess psychological distress and perceived stress. By using a modified Persian version of the Rome III questionnaire, IBS was assessed. Based on researcher-made definition of nocebo effect (multiitem food intolerance), 164 people had the nocebo phenomenon in IBS group. RESULTS: Age, sex, education, marital status, antidepressant use, and specifically chronic underlying disease (odds ratio [OR]: 3.54, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.73-7.23) of general characteristics had a significant correlation (P

Autosomal dominant osteopetrosis type 2 (ADO2) is a rare inherited bone disorder characterised by dense but brittle bones. It displays striking phenotypic variability, with the most severe symptoms, including blindness and bone marrow failure. Disease management largely relies on symptomatic treatment since there is no safe and effective treatment. Most ADO2 cases are caused by heterozygous loss-of-function mutations in the CLCN7 gene, which encodes an essential Cl−/H+ antiporter for proper bone resorption by osteoclasts. Thus, siRNA-mediated silencing of the mutant allele is a promising therapeutic approach, but targeting bone for first-in-human translation remains challenging. Here, we demonstrate the utility of silicon-stabilised hybrid lipid nanoparticles (sshLNPs) as a next-generation nucleic acid nanocarrier capable of delivering allele-specific siRNA to bone. Using a Clcn7G213R knock-in mouse model recapitulating one of the most common human ADO2 mutations and based on the 129S genetic background (which produces the most severe disease phenotype amongst current models), we show substantial knockdown of the mutant allele in femur when siRNA targeting the pathogenic variant is delivered by sshLNPs. We observed lower areal bone mineral density in femur and reduced trabecular thickness in femur and tibia, when siRNA-loaded sshLNPs were administered subcutaneously (representing the most relevant administration route for clinical adoption and patient adherence). Importantly, sshLNPs have improved stability over conventional LNPs and enable 'post hoc loading' for point-of-care formulation. The treatment was well tolerated, suggesting that sshLNP-enabled gene therapy might allow successful clinical translation of essential new treatments for ADO2 and potentially other rare genetic bone diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The increasing rate of autism spectrum disorder highlights the need for early screening with the aim to provide early intervention. This study aimed to provide Persian version of Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (CHAT) and assess its psychometric properties such as validity and reliability. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study with psychometric design on 318 children (97 with and 221 without autism) selected from training specialized centers for autism children and psychology clinics in Isfahan City, Iran during the years 2016-2017. The subjects were chosen according to inclusion criteria using convenience sampling method. The using scale was Persian version of CHAT. To determine its reliability, Cronbach's alpha method was used; and to test the construct, concurrent, and discriminate validity, factor analysis and its correlation with Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT), Pervasive Developmental Disorders Screening Test-Second Edition (PDDST-II), and Psychiatric diagnosis were used. The data were analyzed using correlation, factor analysis, discriminant analysis, logistic regression, and linear regression. Findings: The Cronbach's alpha was 0.88, and the correlation of items with total scores ranged from 0.35 to 0.71. Concurrent validity, by correlations with M-CHAT, PDDST-II, and psychiatric diagnosis, was 0.6, 0.79, and 0.57, respectively. Factor analysis revealed 2-factor structure (social-emotional and interactive behavior), and discriminant analysis in the cutoff point 2.5, delineated the sensitivity of 67% and the specificity of 91%. Conclusion: The Persian version of CHAT, as a preliminary screening tool for 18-24-month-old children with autism, is capable of proper psychometric values. However, newborns who are at risk should be reassessed again several months after the age of 24 month.

Abstract Background Due to an increase in migration and globalization, cross-cultural encounters in health care are also becoming more frequent. As psychotherapy is grounded in a cultural context and must be congruent with the patient’s cultural beliefs of his or her illness in order to be effective, the consideration of cross-cultural differences in illness representations becomes increasingly important. Especially research on illness representations concerning mental disorders is scarce. Methods The aim of the current study was to compare illness representations between Iranian (N = 87) and German (N = 90) patient samples as well as subclinical samples (Iranian N = 264, German N = 102) using a multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA). Illness representations were measured using the Illness Perception Questionnaire Revised (IPQ-R). Initially, a factor analysis was conducted in order to ensure comparability of the IPQ-R between the Iranian and the German sample. Results The factor analysis already revealed differences in item compositions of the IPQ-R subscales indicating differences of the conception of illness representations between the samples. Further, the Iranian samples showed a significantly higher amount of supernatural causal beliefs and emotional representation of the illness than the German samples. Surprisingly, the Iranian patient sample showed the highest amount of illness coherence. Conclusion The current paper contributes to a deeper understanding of cross-cultural differences in illness representations regarding mental disorders. Nevertheless, further research is needed to confirm current findings and to further elaborate on the relationships found.

Introduction: Improving the rate of germination and crop growth at the early growing stagescan reduce weed damage via increasing crop competitiveness. Trifluralin is a pre emergence herbicide that is incorporated with soil to prevent weed emergence and seedling growth. It inhibit microtubule assembly in cells . Seed priming cause to initiate the repairing system for membrane and the metabolic preparation for germination through controlling water absorption rate of seed. As a result, the germination capability and resistance to unfavorable conditions of seed can be promoted obviously using seed priming. Ultrasound is defined as acoustic waves at frequencies greater than 20 kHz that can be an effective method to improve germination and growth characteristics of plants . There is no knowledge about the effect of ultrasonic waves and seed priming on the emergence and growth of cowpea (Vigna sinensis) under soil application of trifluralin. So the objective of this research was to study the effect of ultrasonic waves and seed priming on the emergence and growth of cowpea under soil application of trifluralin. Materials and methods: Field experiment was conducted at the research field of Shahrood University (latitude of 36° 25 'N and longitude of 54° 57' E with an elevation of 1345 m) as randomized complete block design with four replications in during the growing season of 2014-2015. The field soil was silty clay loam in texture, having pH 7.8, EC 3.9 ds m-1, 0.75% of organic carbon, 0.04% N 6.4 and 320 ppm of available P and K. Nine treatments were 1- control, 2- recommended herbicide dose (trifluralin 2 L ha-1), 3- reduced herbicide dose (trifluralin 1 L ha-1), 4- ultrasonic waves (ultrasound), 5- ultrasonic waves + reduced herbicide dose, 6- ultrasonic waves + recommended herbicide dose, 7- hydro-priming, 8- hydro-priming + reduced herbicide dose and 9- hydro-priming + recommended herbicide dose. For hydro-priming treatment, the seeds were treated with water before sowing for 7 h. About ultrasonic treatment, the seeds before sonication (for 6 minutes) treated with water for 7 h. Trifluralin (Treflan, EC48%) applied in recommended dose (2 L ha-1) and reduced herbicide dose (1 L ha-1) as immediate mixed with soil before planting. The plots were 24 m2 with 4 sowing rows and 6 m long. Seeds were placed at 3 to 5 cm depth in each row at during the second week of June in 2014. Number of emerged seedlings in two middle rows of were daily counted until seedling establishment became stable. Emergence percentage and rate of cowpea were calculated. Sampling was done at 55 days after planting. All samples were transferred to the laboratory, leaves and stem were separated,dried into oven at 70 ºC for 72 h and weighted. Chlorophyll content, relative water content, leaf and shoot dry weight and plant height of cowpea were measured for all treatment The second experiment was conducted at the greenhouse as randomized complete block design with four replications in 2014. The treatments were exactly similar to the field experiment. Germinated seeds were recorded every 24 h for 16 days. Then, the plants were removed from each pot and transferred to the laboratory. Root, leaves and stem were separated and afterwards all samples were dried into oven at 70 ºC for 48 h and weighted. Seedling vigor index, chlorophyll content, shoot and root length, weight of root, leaf and shoot, number of leaf and leaf area index were measured for all treatment. Chlorophyll content was estimated using chlorophyll meter (SPAD-502, Konika-Minolta Co). Statistical analyses of data were performed with statistical software MSTATC. Significant differences between means refer to the probability level of 0.05 by LSD test. Results and discussion: The results showed that the ultrasonic treatment increased the dry weight of stem and leaves by 25.27 and 29.58 % as compared with the control treatment respectively. Mirshekari et al. (34) reported that when seeds were primed with ultrasonic irradiation for 5 min, seedling dry weight and leaf chlorophyll content of yarrow increased by 70% and 33.6% than control respectively. Marghaeizadeh et al. (33) reported that application ultrasonic waves increased the chlorophyll content of Carum copticum (L.) C. B. Clarke in comparison to control. Our results suggested that at both experiments the combined use of ultrasonic waves + reduced herbicide dose decreased the percentage and rate of emergence significantly in comparison to herbicide application alone. The application of ultrasonic waves + reduced herbicide dose led to a reduction in the percentage and rate of emergence by 64.83 and 68.13% in comparison to reduced herbicide application alone, respectively. Also the combined use of priming + reduced herbicide dose decreased the percentage and rate of emergence by 50.4 and 53.8 % in comparison to reduced herbicide application alone respectively. The major effects of dinitroanaline herbicides are on plant root growth, which they stop by interfering with mitosis and preventing normal cell division and cell wall formation (38, 35). It seems that hydro priming technique and ultrasonic irradiation with improving seed germination and seedling early growth under soil-incorporated trifluralin herbicide can led to more and faster absorption of herbicide by seedling and more damage to them than control. Conclusion: Our results showed the ultrasonic waves and priming accelerates the seed germination and root length and ultimately resulted in improving biomass and growth of cowpea seedling. Also data presented in this research suggested that pre-treated of cowpea seeds with ultrasonic waves and hydro priming can reduce some plant parameters like percentage and emergence rate of seeds, shoots dry weight, leaf area index and etc. in soil treated with trifluralin herbicide.

Introduction Mungbean (Vigna radiata L.) is an important, environment friendly staple food legume with rich source of proteins, vitamins, and minerals for human. Drought stress is one of the most adverse factors of Mungbean growth and productivity. Proper nutrition under stress conditions could partly help the plant to tolerate different stresses. Zinc plays a key role in the synthesis of proteins, DNA, and RNA. By consumption of zinc, it is possible to improve the growth status of the plant in stress conditions. Various studies were carried out to understand the effect of nanoparticles on the growth of plants. For example, Hong et al. (2005) and Yang et al. (2006) reported that a proper concentration of nano-TiO2 was found to improve the growth of spinach by promoting photosynthesis and nitrogen metabolism. Nano-particles have high reactivity because of more specific surface area, more density of reactive areas, or increased reactivity of these areas on the particle surfaces. Thus, the objective of this research was to investigate the effect of foliar application of Zno2 in common and nanoparticles forms on growth traits and yield of mungbean (V. radiata L.) under drought stress condition. Materials & Methods Experiment was carried out as a split plot in complete randomized block design with four replications in Shahrood Agricultural Research Center during the growing season of 2011-2012. Water stress at three levels (control, cutting of irrigation in 50% flowering and 50% pod setting stages) were assigned as main plots and zinc oxide foliar application in five levels (control, 5 and 10 gl-1 nano sized zinc oxide and 5 and 10 gl-1 non-nano-scale zinc oxide) were randomized in sub-plots. According to soil analysis experiment results, the soil was loam and having pH=7.8; EC=1.5 (dS/m); 0.4% of organic carbon; 0.08% N; 10, 280 and 1.1 ppm of P, K and Zn respectively. Zinc spraying on leaves was done two times at 40 and 55 day after planting. The plots were 24 m2 with 6 sowing rows, 4 m long. Seeds were placed at 3 to 5 cm depth in each row. Irrigation operations were performed until the emergence once every 7 days. Afterwards at 50% flowering and 50% of pod formation stages, irrigation was disrupted. Intended traits were measured in the end of crop season. All data collected were subjected of analysis of variance (ANOVA) using MSTATC software procedure and the significant treatment means were separated using Duncan's multiple range test. Results & Discussion Results showed that the drought stress at flowering and podding stages decreased the height, number of branches, chlorophyll a, b, grain and biological yield in comparison to control treatment significantly, but the effect of drought stress at podding stage was more than drought stress at flowering. Water deficit in the plant disrupts many cellular and whole plant functions, having a negative impact on plant growth and reproduction. Thus, it is one of the most yield limiting factors as it affects growth and development. Seed protein and proline content increased under drought stress significantly, while there was no significant difference for carotenoid content between treatments. Foliar application of Zinc in common and nanoparticles forms increased the height, proline content, grain and biological yield in comparison to control treatment significantly. The results showed that foliar application of 10 grams per liter nano zinc oxide in normal and drought stress at flowering and podding stages increased the grain yield by 6.6, 3.6 and 5.4 percent in comparison to no spraying treatments respectively. The maximum effects of Zinc on increasing of traits was found by foliar application of 10 grams per liter nano zinc oxide, 10 grams per liter zinc oxide, 5 grams per liter nano zinc oxide and 5 grams per liter zinc oxide respectively. With the completion of Micro-Nutrients consumption through spraying, the growth state of plant can be improved in stress conditions. Liu et al. (2005) reported that nano-Fe2O3 promoted the growth and photosynthesis of peanut. Prasad et al. (2012) reported that nano-scale zinc oxide particles increased stem and root growth and pod yield of peanut as compared with ZnSO4 application. Reduction of particle size results in increased number of particles per unit of weight and specific surface area of a fertilizer that should increase contact of fertilizer with plant leading to increase in nutrient uptake. Nanoparticles have high reactivity because of more specific surface area, more density of reactive areas, or increased reactivity of these areas on the particle surfaces. These features in nano-scale simplify their absorption in plants. Conclusion Mungbean growth characteristics could positively influence by foliar application of zinc oxide as nano and micro-particles in drought stress conditions. But, the effects of nano-scale zinc oxide particles on plant growth and yield was more in comparison to micro particles zinc oxide in stress and non-stressed conditions.

Introduction The mechanism of seed priming is to initiate the repairing system for membrane and the metabolic preparation for germination through controlling water absorption rate of seed. As a result, the germination capability and resistance to unfavorable conditions of seed can be promoted obviously. Ultrasound is defined as acoustic waves at frequencies greater than 20 kHz that can be an effective method of improve germination and growth characteristics of plants. Mirshekari et al. (2013) found that treating common narrow seeds with ultrasonic irradiation increases its germination and primary growth. There is no knowledge about the effect of ultrasonic waves and seed priming on plant competition with weeds. Thus, the objective of this research was to study the effect of ultrasonic waves and seed priming on yield and yield components of cowpea (Vigna sinensis L.) in competition with weeds. Materials and Methods Experiment was conducted at the research field of Shahrood University of Technology (latitude of 36° 25 'N and longitude of 54° 57' E with an elevation of 1345 m) as randomized complete block design with four replications in during the growing season of 2013-2014. Treatments included; ultrasonic waves (ultrasound) + no weeding, ultrasonic waves + weeding (all season), ultrasonic waves + reduced herbicide dose (trifluralin 1 L.ha-1), ultrasonic waves + the recommended herbicide dose (2 L.ha-1), hydro-priming + no weeding, hydro-priming + weeding, hydro-priming + reduced herbicide dose, hydro-priming + recommended herbicide dose, no weeding, weeding (all season), recommended herbicide dose, and reduced herbicide dose. In hydro-priming treatment, seeds were treated with water before sowing for 7 hours. Also for ultrasonic treatment, the seeds before sonication (for 6 minutes) treated with water for 7 hour. Trifluralin used in recommended dose (2 L.ha-1) and reduced herbicide dose (1 L.ha-1), therefore immediate mixed with soil before planting. Statistical analyses of data were performed with statistical software MSTATC. Significant differences between means refer to the probability level of 0.05 by LSD test. Results and Discussion The results showed that all treatments decreased significantly biomass and density of weeds in comparison to control (no weeding). No significant difference was observed in density and shoot biomass of weeds between the application of hydro-priming + trifluralin 1 L.ha-1 and ultrasonic waves + trifluralin 1 L.ha-1 with trifluralin 2 L.ha-1 treatment. Hydro-priming + reduced herbicide dose and ultrasonic waves + reduced herbicide dose treatments decreased total weed biomass by 61 and 46.5% in comparison to using reduced herbicide dose treatment. In this regard Abbasdokht et al (2012) reported that density and shoot biomass of weeds was similar between reduced herbicide dose (Nicosulfuron 40 g.a.i. ha-1) + hydro priming and recommended herbicide dose (Nicosulfuron 80 g.a.i. ha-1). During priming, seeds are partially hydrated so that pre-germinative metabolic activities proceed, while radicle protrusion is prevented, then are dried back to the original moisture level (McDonald, 2000). Ghassemi-Golezani et al, (2008) suggested hydropriming as a simple and effective method for improving seed germination and seedling emergence of lentil in the field. Also the results indicated that the combined use of ultrasonic waves + weeding (all season) treatment increased grain and biological yield by 62 and 52.3 percent in comparison to control (no weeding) treatment respectively. Rajabian (2013) reported that seed pretreatment of corn by ultrasonic waves increased the grain and biologic yield in comparison to control significantly. The results indicated that no significant difference was observed in grain yield between the application of hydro-priming + trifluralin 1 L.ha-1 and ultrasonic waves + trifluralin 1 L.ha-1 in comparison to trifluralin 2 L.ha-1 and weeding (all season) treatments. Whereas, sowing pretreated seeds by ultrasonic waves and hydro-priming in soil containing recommended trifluralin dose decreased the investigated traits in comparison to application of pre-treatments alone and recommended herbicide dose. In this regard, Moradbeygi and Khara (2011) observed a significant reduction due to increased trifluralin concentrations on root and shoot length and dry weight of sunflower plants. Based on Yaldagard et al, (2008), one of the possible explanations could be that the mechanical effects of ultra-sonication produced numerous small holes in the coating and after steeping in the water a significant rise in seedling moisture resulted. It has been suggested that the sonication process accelerates the imbibition of water through the pericarp. Sonication may create or enlarge fissures in the protective coating surrounding the seed and pericarp. The superiority of sonication may be due to a higher holding capacity and higher porosity, which increase oxygen availability. Generally it seems that pre-treatment of cowpea seeds by hydro-priming and ultrasonic waves can increase competitiveness of bean plant with weeds through increasing crop growth rate. The results showed that proper combination of trifluralin herbicide along with seed priming could be used to control the weeds in the bean and obtain seed yield comparable with weed-free conditions. Conclusion Both hydro-priming and ultrasonic waves had the effects on accelerating germination and improving competitive ability of bean plant. Hydro- or ultrasonic waves priming showed better plant growth than that without priming treatment when exposed to competition conditions. Pretreated seeds in combination to low herbicide dose had the best effects on the weed suppression and increasing crop yield. Based on our results, priming and sonication of seeds in combination with reduced dose of herbicide can be an effective method of weeds control and increase crop yield and also reduce herbicide consumption.

In the present study, an ultrafine grained (UFG) 304L stainless steel with the average grain size of 300 nm was produced by a combination of cold rolling and annealing. Weldability of the UFG sample was studied by Nd: YAG laser welding under different welding conditions. Taguchi experimental design was used to optimize the effect of frequency, welding time, laser current and laser pulse duration on the resultant microstructure and mechanical properties. X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Optical Microscope (OM), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM), microhardness measurements and tension tests were conducted to characterize the sample after thermomechanical processing and laser welding. The results showed that the ultrafine grained steel had the yield strength of 1000 Mpa and the total elongation of 48%, which were almost three times higher than those of the as-received sample. The microstructure of the weld zone was shown to be a mixture of austenite and delta ferrite. The microhardness of the optimized welded sample (315 HV0.5) was found to be close to the UFG base metal (350 HV). It was also observed that the hardness of the heat affected zone (HAZ) was lower than that of the weld zone, which was related to the HAZ grain growth during laser welding. The results of optimization also showed that the welding time was the most important parameter affecting the weld strength. Overall, the study showed that laser welding could be an appropriate and alternative welding technique for the joining of UFG steels.

BACKGROUND: There is growing acknowledgment that medical education can be a stressful experience for students and may have a devastating effect on their psychological well-being. The present article, therefore, aimed at investigating students' academic resilience as a mediating variable in self-efficacy-test anxiety relation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this cross-sectional correlational study, a convenience sample of 243 medical students was selected and participated, three prevalidated questionnaires were applied, that is, general self-efficacy questionnaire, academic resilience questionnaire, and test anxiety questionnaire. To analyze the data, Pearson's correlation coefficient as well as structural equation modeling (SEM) were used. RESULTS: According to Pearson's coefficients, self-efficacy was found to be positively correlated with academic resilience (r = 0.437, P ≤ 0.01) and negatively with test anxiety (r = −0.475, P ≤ 0.01). SEM results also indicated that self-efficacy positively impacts on academic resilience (β = 0.43, P < 0.001) and negatively on test anxiety (β = −0.37, P < 0.001). In addition, results demonstrated the mediating role of academic resilience in self-efficacy-test anxiety relationship (β = −0.108, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: This study showed that academic resilience could play a mediating role in students' self-efficacy-test anxiety relationship.

Objective: Somatic symptoms are one of the most prevalent complaints in both psychiatric and general population, and validated scales are required to assess these problems. The present study was conducted to determine psychometric properties of the Persian version of Screening for Somatic Symptom Disorders-7(SOMS-7) in an Iranian population. Method: This was a multi centric comprehensive study conducted in Psychosomatic Research Center of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in collaboration with Department of Clinical Psychology of Philipp University of Marburg, Germany. This part of the study includes 100 patients with anxiety/mood disorders and 291 healthy individuals. All participants completed the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-15) and Screening for Somatic symptom disorders 7(SOMS-7). Data were analyzed by Pearson and Spearman correlation coefficient, factor analysis, independent t test, and discriminant analysis using SPSS-20 software. Results: Reliability coefficient based on Cronbach’s alpha was 0.92 and 0.94 (clinical vs. healthy sample). Validity index of the SOMS according to correlation between factor 1 and 2 with PHQ somatic subscale was. 51 and. 59, respectively. Score of 15.5 as cut-off point was accompanied with sensitivity of 77% and specificity of 66%. Factor analysis extracted 2 factors in patients and 4 factors in healthy population. Conclusion: Findings of this study indicated that the Persian version of SOMS-7 has appropriate reliability and validity for the assessment of somatic symptoms disorder and evaluation of treatment effects in these patients.

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of spiritually augmented psychotherapy (SAPT) on the dysfunctional attitudes of patients with dysthymic disorder. Methods: A mixed qualitative and quantitative method was used in the present study. SAPT model was prepared in the first phase, and in the second phase, a double-blind randomized clinical trial was performed. The study subjects consisted of 62 patients with dysthymic disorder selected from several clinical centers of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in Isfahan, Iran. The participants were randomly assigned to 3 experimental groups and 1 control group. The first group received 8 sessions of SAPT treatment, the second group also had 8 sessions of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) which was specific to dysthymic disorder, and third group were under antidepressant treatment. The Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale was used to evaluate all the participants in 4 measurement stages. The data were analyzed using repeated measures MANCOVA. Results: Findings showed that SAPT had higher efficacy on the modification of dysfunctional attitudes than CBT and medication (p < 0.05). Conclusion: These findings supported the efficacy of psychotherapy enriched with cultural structures and spiritual teachings.

Background & Objective: Blood markers and CT-scan results can be useful to the prognosis outcome of traumatic brain injury (TBI). This study aims to evaluate and compare markers and CT-scans during hospitalization regarding death and recovery as the outcomes. Materials & Methods: This longitudinal-observational retrospective study was performed on 133 patients with comatose caused by head trauma from admission to death/discharge in Shohada-E- Tajrish Hospital in Tehran during 2018-2020. The follow-up period lasted 15 days. The patients’ demographic and CT-scans were measured on admission. Blood markers were measured daily. Vital signs and GCS were collected every six hours. These variables were compared in survivor and nonsurvivor groups. Results: Death occurred for 78 patients (58.64%). Tachycardia (OR=60.1, P=0.003), SDH (OR=39.3, P<0.001), ICH (OR=9.91, P<0.001), SAH (OR=13.6, P<0.001) had a significant relationship to death on multivariate logistic regression. The mean TT, PT, INR, GCS, PR, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure at the beginning of hospitalization were significantly different in the surviving and non-surviving groups. GCS, Cr, BUN, PTT, PT, INR, FBS, and PH had separate lines with spacing without overlap in the two groups in the graphs during hospitalization. Conclusion: Based on the results, the factors such as age, tachycardia, and some CT-scan findings (SAH, ICH, and SDH), as well as high coagulation profile (INR, PTT) and low GCS on admission, were important variables to the prognosis of TBI patients. During hospitalization, high values of BUN, PR, Cr, FBS, PT, and INR and low values of GCS, RR, and PH were associated with a worthwhile outcome. In addition, high changes in BUN, GCS, RR, PR, and BP during hospitalization should be considered a worthwhile prognosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

INTRODUCTION: One of the probable risks of low birth weight (LBW) is low body growth at teenage, and most of the parents are concerned about it. This study was conducted to compare the body growth of girls at teenage in two groups. METHODOLOGY: In this descriptive-comparative research, the body growth of 350 girls (250 students having normal birth weight (NBW) and 125 students having LBW) at the ninth grade in Isfahan, Iran, was studied. These students were chosen randomly out of 13 select schools from six districts of education in Isfahan, Iran. The data were analyzed by Independent t-test, Chi-square test, and Mann–Whitney U-test. RESULTS: This study showed that there is a meaningful difference in weight, height, BMI, and the age of menarche. The highest weight, height, and BMI frequency (52.8 kg, 162.8 cm, and 3.31, respectively) belongs to girls having NBW compared with girls having LBW (50.6 kg, 159.3 cm and 3.36, respectively) and Independent t-test showed that weight and height average and body mass index (BMI) of girls having NBW are higher meaningfully (P < 0.001). In addition, the girls having NBW had reached the age of menarche at 12.36 ± 1.12 and 12.09 ± 1.01 at girls having LBW. Furthermore, there was a meaningful difference (P < 0.001) between the ages of menarche. CONCLUSION: Regarding the existence, it is recommended that the children having LBW should be kept under special care. Of course, the resulted difference is not very important and concerning for the parents, but further study is needed to reach the final conclusion.