مجله مطالعات علوم پزشکی
سال سی و یکم شماره 2 (اردیبهشت 1399)

Plants contain high antioxidant activities due to their redox and the chemical properties are affluent in secondary metabolites such as phenols, flavonoids, and other components. Rheum turkestanicum Janisch is a plant from polygonaceae that is widely used for diabetes. At this project that is a part of national thesis, relative levels of antioxidant activity, total phenols, total flavonoid, total anthocyanin, soluble and non-soluble sugar content of Rheum turkestanicum were measured.

The shoots of Rheum turkestanicum were collected and verified from Dargaz region in north-east of Iran and then they were dried at room temperature. The aerial portion of the plant was powdered by grinding, and five grams of the herbal powder were mixed with 300 mL of deionized water and after 24 h, the resulting mixture was filtered using Whatman No. 1 filter paper. Determination of total phenol, total flavonoid, anthocyanin, soluble sugars and antioxidant properties of aqueous extract was performed by standard Folin chicaletto, aluminum chloride colorimeter, Wagner, phenolic sulfuric acid, DPPH methods using a spectrophotometer.

The results of this project showed that the amount of total phenolic and flavonoid acids in Rheum turkestanicum extract was high at 123.8 and 116 mg/g dry weight, respectively. DPPH scavenging activity was observed to be 6.42 mg/g dry weight of ascorbic acid. The results of this project showed that DPPH scavenging activity was observed to be 6.42 mg/g ascorbic acid dry weight. Total phenolic acid and total flavonoid content of the investigated Rheum turkestanicum were higher in comparison to other components.

This fact indicates that phenolic acids and flavonoids play a major role in the antioxidant and anti-diabetic properties of Rheum turkestanicum. The results also indicate that Rheum turkestanicum can be used as an important source of antioxidants in the food and pharmaceutical industries due to its high levels of secondary metabolites such as phenols and flavonoids.

Biocompatibility does not mean the absolute lack of cytotoxicity.  If the implant material performs its function in the body and keeps the interaction between the material and the cell in the body and the organ maintains its normal function, in a way that the general reaction of the body is normal, then we can say the material is biocompatible.  The aim of this study was to evaluate the histological, immunological, and biochemical effects of collagen + PCL-PEG-PCL, gelatin + PCL-PEG-PCL, and alginate + PCL-PEG-PCL in mice after 30 days of subcutaneous injection.

The scaffolds were prepared by freeze-thinning and characterized using FTIR methods. A 500 μl hydrogel scaffold was injected into the dorsal flank region of a Swiss CD1 mouse. Animals were divided into control, collagen + PCL-PEG-PCL, gelatin + PCL-PEG-PCL, and alginate + PCL-PEG-PCL groups. The mice were euthanized after 30 days to investigate the biocompatibility of the scaffold with the use of antidiabetic drugs. Skin, liver, and kidney were sampled for histopathological investigation, gene expression, and enzyme expression.

In this study, a hybrid hydrogel scaffold was well-constructed and characterized. The ratio of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) to alanine aminotransferase (ALT) can distinguish liver damage from other possibilities. In the enzymatic study, the ratio of AST to ALT in the alginate + PCL-PEG-PCL group was higher than the others (2.9 times more than that of the control group). Despite the differences between the groups (blood biochemical analysis), no significant differences were observed in the enzymatic study between the groups. In the present study, in the control and collagen + PCL-PEG-PCL groups, the expression level of interleukin 10 gene was four times lower than the alginate + PCL-PEG-PCL and gelatin + PCL-PEG-PCL groups, and the findings showed significant differences (p <0.001). SOD, CAT, and CD31 genes in the PCL-PEG-PCL + alginate group showed 10.8, 3.3, and 3.5 times more expression than the beta-actin gene, respectively, and demonstrated significant differences compared to the other groups (p <0.001). In histopathological examination of external examination and macroscopic examination of organs, there was no indication of systemic complications such as shock, septicemia, toxemia, or extensive inflammatory reactions in any of the groups.

According to the results of this study, it can be concluded that the combination scaffold of collagen + PCL-PEG-PCL has fewer complications than other groups. The scaffold (collagen + PCL-PEG-PCL) is likely to be biocompatible and has the potential for future studies to transfer the drug, cell and growth factors and it can be used as a suitable scaffold for tissue engineering (skin and bone).

Impairment in executive functions such as attention is a common symptom of depression. The purpose of this investigation was to study the effect of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on attention in patients with depression.

Thirty subjects diagnosed with depressive disorder who were referred to the Counseling Center of Azerbaijan Shahid Madani University were selected using convenience sampling. Then, the subjects were randomly divided into experimental and sham groups (n=15 per group). In order to investigate the effect of electrical stimulation on attention, the experimental group was exposed to anodal tDCS stimulation. The anode electrode was placed over the left DLPFC and the cathode electrode was placed over the right orbitofrontal cortex. The experimental group received tDCS stimulation with a current intensity of 2 mA, 20 min per session for 10 sessions. All subjects were evaluated before and after the tDCS intervention using classic stroop task. The obtained data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of covariance.

The results showed that anodal tDCS stimulation resulted in a significant decrease in interference score in the experimental group.

According to the findings of the present research, application of anodal tDCS over the left DLPFC improves attention by reducing the interference effect in people with depression. Therefore, tDCS can be used as a safe and non-pharmacological intervention to improve attention in patients with depression.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), one of the costliest chronic diseases of our time, is a multifactorial and heterogenic disease with a complex etiology. Among all the T2DM related genes, the SNPs of the transcription factor 7-like 2 (TCF7L2) gene have been recognized as the strongest genetic risk factors for T2DM in different ethnic groups by several studies. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible association between TCF7L2 gene polymorphisms (rs290487, rs11196205, rs7903146, and rs12255372) and the risk of T2DM in a population from Khuzestan province, South-West of Iran.

In this case-control association study, we studied 146 patients with T2DM and 146 healthy subjects. Genotyping for rs290487 and rs11196205 were done by Tetra-Primer ARMS-PCR and genotyping for rs7903146 and rs12255372 were carried out using PCR-RFLP. Statistical analyses were carried out using SPSS v.25.

For rs290487 polymorphism, TT and TC genotypes were not observed in patients and controls, and all of the subjects showed only CC genotype. The C allele of rs11196205 polymorphism was associated with T2DM (OR = 1.393, 95% CI = 1.005-1.932, p-value = 0.046). Two other studied polymorphisms, rs7903146 and rs12255372, had no significant differences in the genotype and allele frequencies between the two groups. Three-variant haplotypes of TCF7L2 gene were analyzed using the PHASE software. There was no significant difference between control group and case group for haplotype distribution.

Our results suggest that there is a significant association between rs11196205 polymorphism and T2DM, but no association is observed between the three other polymorphisms (rs290487, rs7903146, and rs12255372) with T2DM in the studied population. Moreover, no risk haplotype is reported in our population.

Trauma is a major challenge for public health. The prevalence of hypothermia in trauma patients is high and rapid recognition is important to prevent further harmful outcomes. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of rewarming on injury outcome, injury severity, and arterial blood gases of trauma patients.

In this randomized clinical trial, the total sample size consisted of 96 patients with trauma referred to the emergency department of Ayatollah Mousavi Hospital in Zanjan (n= 50 in control group and n= 46 in intervention group). After approval of the study and approval of the Ethics Committee (code: ZUMS.REC.1396.163), patients were randomly divided into intervention and control groups (received routine care) after applying entry and exit criteria. The intervention is in the form of the temperature-control package that includes several rewarming strategies as full coverage of the trauma patient with a hat, blanket and warmed intravenous fluids (between 38 and 41 ° C).  The primary outcome measure included demographic and clinical characteristics, vital signs, and arterial blood gas and the change from the baseline at the end of the procedure. These parameters were recorded every 15 minutes for the first hour, then 6 hours later until the patient was transferred from the emergency department. The outcome (survived, dead) after rewarming in trauma patients was determined.

Data analysis showed that the mean temperature of the intervention and control group before intervention was 36/04 ± 0/26 and 36/04 ± 0/31, respectively, which was not statistically significant (p =0/250).The mean of the mean temperature of the intervention and control group six hours after the intervention was 36/83 ± 0/26 and 36/53 ±0/26, respectively, which was statistically significant (p <0/001). Considering the measurement of physiological parameters (HR, SBP, and RR) at intervals determined by repeated measures methods, the results were statistically significant and the trend in the intervention group showed a better result. The severity of anatomical injury (ISS) in the intervention group was lower than the control group (p =0/040). Two groups of intervention and control in terms of parameters of arterial blood gases (pH, PaCo2 and BE) before intervention (p =0/097) compared to intervention after 6 hours (p =0/093) and 12 hours (p =0/421) were different. There were no statistically significant differences between the two groups, but before the intervention, significant differences were observed between PaO2 and SaO2 (p =0/005).

The two modes of temperature protection equally maintained body temperature in trauma patients during uncomplicated hospitalization. The evidence from our study suggests that rewarming can be effective in creating balance in some arterial blood gases and physiological parameters in the trauma patient. However, this issue should be separately investigated in further studies.

Coronary artery ectasia is known as the cause of chest pain and dyspnea. Because of its variable presentations according to the genetic and environmental differences, we studied patients with pure coronary artery ectasia in north-west of Iran.

Exclusion criteria were established ectasia in one or more coronary arteries without any significant coronary artery stenosis defined as stenosis > 70%. Coronary artery angiography and demographic data of patients were evaluated.

The mean age of patients according to the type of ectasia were 54.57±8.65 in type 1, 59.95±9.62 in type 2, 58.91±12.33 in type 3, and 57.46±10.74 in type 4. Type 3 ectasia was the most common type of ectasia (30.7%). Type 1 ectasia was more common in men and type 3 ectasia was more common in women (p=0.04). There wasn’t any significant association between the type of ectasia and the prevalence of dyspnea or chest pain. Coronary artery ectasia was frequently observed in the left anterior descending artery (LAD).

The prevalence of coronary ectasia according to its types is different between men and women. There was no association between the extent of ectasia according to Markis classification and the prevalence of dyspnea and chest pain.

Fatigue is one of the most common problems in MS patients that has many negative effects on their lives. The current investigation scrutinized the effectiveness of mindfulness-based stress reduction intervention on fatigue severity in patients with multiple sclerosis.  

The study performed in experimental design with control group and pretest, posttest and follow up. Statistical population was all the men and women suffering from multiple sclerosis with a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis who referred to MS Society of Neyshabur in the spring of 2016. The sample consisted of 47 patients. The sampling method was convenience, and then was randomly divided into two experimental groups (n = 22) and the control (n = 25). Fatigue severity questionnaire was used as the instrument. Repeated measures analysis of variance with mixed-design was used to analyze the data. The sampling formula based on G-POWER included the size of the effect and the statistical power of the test.

The results of the univariate test on the effect of time indicated that the effect of time on fatigue was significant (F=59.82, P<0.001). Considering the interactive effect of time and group, it was also found that the interactive effect of time and group on fatigue was significant (F = 35.58, P<0.001).

The obtained results revealed that mindfulness significantly improved fatigue in patients suffering from multiple sclerosis. These findings were consistent in the follow-up.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common endocrine disruptions. As a result, treatments with little or no side effects such as herbal medicines and exercise have received special attention. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of 12-week Pilates training and Ginger supplementation on polycystic ovary syndrome in women.

In this quasi-experimental study with pre-test and post-test design, 40 women with polycystic ovary syndrome participated in the study voluntarily and they were randomly divided into 4 groups including control, Pilates exercise, combined (Exercise + Ginger supplement), and Ginger supplementation. The exercise intervention groups performed Pilates exercises for 12 weeks and the supplementation group consumed 1 g of ginger capsules three times per day. Plasma levels of LH, FSH, SHBG, testosterone, and insulin were measured before and 12 weeks after intervention. Data were analyzed by SPSS software using covariance analysis and Tukey post hoc test at 5% significance level.

The results showed that LH (p<0.05), testosterone (p<0.05), and insulin (p<0.05) levels decreased in the intervention groups compared to the control group. The FSH (p<0.05) and SHBG (p<0.05) indices in the intervention groups were significantly higher than the control group. Also, the findings indicated the effect of treatments on the indices studied (p<0.05). While the combined treatment had the greatest effect, there was no significant difference between the exercise group and ginger supplementation group (p>0.05), except in the weight index that the superiority was observed with the exercise group (p<0.05).

The results of this study showed that Pilates training and ginger supplementation can have beneficial effects on ovarian function and it is suggested as a therapeutic method to improve the status of patients with polycystic ovary syndrome.