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Background and Aims: Considering the increasing use of information technology (IT) and the need of the implementation of related projects, the lack of IT specialists in the health system is one of the major challenges that require planning and foreseeing. This study was conducted with the aim of predicting the number of required IT personnel in hospitals of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences based on the modeling of identified and weighed influential factors in 2023. Method: First, Delphi method and multi‐criteria decision‐making (MCDM) using the Expository Posthaste Effective Resemblant Tool (ExPERT) were conducted to identify and weigh the components that affect IT staff's workload in hospitals. Then, the model for predicting the required number of IT personnel for the involved hospitals was developed. In all stages, the obtained information and results were checked and confirmed using experts' opinions in Focus Group Discussions. Results: Twenty‐one hospitals (57%) out of 37 hospitals are facing a shortage of IT personnel. This varies from 0.5 to 1.6 personnel in different hospitals. Thirteen hospitals (35%) were reported to have adequate IT staffing and three hospitals (8%) had excess IT staffing. Conclusion: This study provided a predictive model for required IT staff in hospitals using MCDM through ExPERT which can be used in cases where the use of workload‐based methods such as Workload Indicators of Staffing Need is complex or time‐consuming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copper ferrite nanoparticles loaded on montmorillonite (MMT−CuFe2O4) were prepared by co‐precipitation method and applied as catalyst for activation of peroxymonosulfate (PMS) in degradation of reactive black 5 (RB5). The maximum removal efficiency of RB5 completely depends on the operating parameters and the highest removal percentage was obtained at MMT−CuFe2O4 dosage of 250 mg/L, PMS concentration of 4 mM, initial RB5 concentration of 50 mg/L and time of 15 min. The presence of anions such as Cl−, NO3−, HCO3−, and SO42− showed a significant limitation in the degradation of RB5 in the MMT−CuFe2O4/PMS system. Trapping experiments showed that ⋅OH and SO4⋅− radicals were involved in the catalytic degradation of RB5, however ⋅OH is the major specie in the catalysis system. Consecutive cycles were considered for testing the reusability of MMT−CuFe2O4; its results showed the stability of five consecutive cycles. The toxicity test was evaluated using Daphnia magna and the results illustrated a substantial drop in the toxicity of the solution treated. The significant reduction of TOC during RB5 degradation and the production of SO42−, NH4+ and NO3− confirm the proper progress of pollutant mineralization. The high catalytic performance of the catalyst in a short time compared to other removal systems emphasizes that MMT−CuFe2O4 can be suggested as a promising catalyst for the degradation of RB5 from aqueous solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of microplastics in inland water bodies has been growing recently, but there is still insufficient knowledge of the status of microplastics in lacustrine ecosystems, especially saline lakes. Studies have also been conducted on sediment, water, and biological compartments of lakes. In the present study, the status of microplastics in abiotic compartments of the saline Maharloo Lake (Iran) was evaluated for the first time and included surface sediment, lake salt, sludge, lake water, and wastewater. A total of 742 microplastics, mainly clear and fibrous, ranging from 50 to 250 µm in size and composed of polypropylene and polyethylene terephthalate, were identified in 33 samples. Mean microplastic concentrations in solid samples were higher than in liquid ones, with the highest levels (51.7 microplastics kg−1) in sludge and the lowest levels in lake salt (10.4 microplastics kg−1). The highest microplastic levels were found in the northwest area of the lake, where wastewater effluents from urban, industrial, and agricultural activities discharge into the lake. Inter‐relationship assessments of microplastics with hierarchical cluster analysis suggested that differences in the distribution of microplastics with different physical properties in Maharloo Lake are greatly affected by weathering processes and proximity to contaminated hotspots. Our results reveal that the widespread occurrence of microplastics in Maharloo Lake mostly originates from potential plastic sources in urban areas of Shiraz Metropolis and its industrial zone in the vicinity of the study area; thus microplastics are dispersed into the lake via surface runoffs, especially wastewater inflows. Environ Toxicol Chem 2023;42:19–32. © 2022 SETAC [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The membrane distillation process is one of the most important membrane technologies being developed for water desalination, which has the ability to compete with expensive processes such as reverse osmosis. In this study, the performance of polycarbonate (PC) hollow fiber membranes modified with silica aerogel nanoparticles (SIA‐NPs) and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) coating solution for direct contact membrane distillation was investigated. The membranes were fabricated by dry jet‐wet spinning method. In this respect, 0.25, 0.5, and 1 wt% of SIA nanoparticles were coated over the hollow fiber surface in order to improve the performance of the membranes. The results indicated that the optimum loading of SIA was 0.5 wt% at which the contact angle of the surface shifted from 77.5° to 100° relative to the unmodified PC membrane. Although the addition of SIA nanoparticles to the membrane matrix did not alter the membrane conductivity, it increased the membrane thickness, thereby reduced the heat loss of the membrane. Accordingly, the results of performance tests for the membrane distillation (MD) showed that by adding 0.5% SIA nanoparticles to the membrane bulk and coating the surface with 0.5% SIA nanoparticles in 1.0% PDMS solution and 96% increase in energy efficiency, 33% increase in water flux, as well as higher stability of salt rejection were obtained. This study proved that the application of SIA nanoparticles have a great potential to modify and improve MD performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Experimental and clinical evidences demonstrate that common dysregulated pathways are involved in Parkinson's disease (PD) and type 2 diabetes. Recently, insulin treatment through intranasal (IN) approach has gained attention in PD, although the underlying mechanism of its potential therapeutic effects is still unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of insulin treatment in a rat model of PD with emphasis on mitochondrial function indices in striatum. Methods: Rats were treated with a daily low dose (4IU/day) of IN insulin, starting 72 h after 6‐OHDA‐induced lesion and continued for 14 days. Motor performance, dopaminergic cell survival, mitochondrial dehydrogenases activity, mitochondrial swelling, mitochondria permeability transition pore (mPTP), mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψm), reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation, and glutathione (GSH) content in mitochondria, mitochondrial adenosine triphosphate (ATP), and the gene expression of PGC‐1α, TFAM, Drp‐1, GFAP, and Iba‐1 were assessed. Results: Intranasal insulin significantly reduces 6‐OHDA‐induced motor dysfunction and dopaminergic cell death. In parallel, it improves mitochondrial function indices and modulates mitochondria biogenesis and fission as well as activation of astrocytes and microglia. Conclusion: Considering the prominent role of mitochondrial dysfunction in PD pathology, IN insulin as a disease‐modifying therapy for PD should be considered for extensive research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cancer and diabetes, the two mitochondria‐related diseases, have recently been linked to silent mating‐type information regulation 2 homolog 3 (SIRT3) activity irregularities. In this study, the effect of metformin, an antidiabetic with anticancer properties, has been evaluated on mitochondrial functionality markers, cell death pathways, and SIRT3 enzyme activity in the colon cancer cell line, HT‐29, and human embryonic kidney cells (HEK 293). HT‐29 cells were treated with metformin (5, 10, 20, 40, and 80 µM) for 24, 48, and 72 h for measuring the IC50 concentration. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, apoptosis, mitochondrial membrane potential, SIRT3 activity, and expression were evaluated against the colon cancer cell line, HT‐29. Results indicated a higher ROS production at 6 than 12 h with metformin treatment. Metformin modified the mitochondrial membrane potential, resulting in cell death induction. Results from SIRT3 activity and expression showed that metformin increased its activity and expression in cancer cells. In conclusion, metformin in HT‐29 cells disturbed the mitochondrial activity via increased ROS levels and SIRT3 activity, and these rapid modifications may play a key role in its cytotoxic property. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the leaf area was estimated by different regression models and new methods of image processing by using artificial intelligence (AI) in bread (Triticum aestivum L.) and durum wheat (Triticum durum L.) and triticale (×Tritosecale Wittm. ex A. Camus) at seedling, booting, and milk development stages. Data on leaf traits in 1,000 plants of breed wheat, triticale, and durum wheat were studied. Among regression models using general data, LA=a+bLW, LA=a+b(W), and LA=a+b(W/L) models had a R2 > 90% for all three cultivars (L and W represented length and width of leaves). For wheat bread, models W+(LW) and L×(LW) exhibited a good estimate of the leaf area at all stages of growth, whereas in triticale, the linear models that used the product of W×L and LW were more suitable to estimate leaf areas in booting and milk development. The multilayer perceptron (MLP) neural network modeling indicated that the 'trainlm,' 'trainlm,' and 'traincgb' algorithms with an optimal structure of 2‐10‐1, 2‐3‐1, and 2‐10‐1 had the least amount of the mean square error for bread wheat, triticale, and durum wheat, respectively, for each of the growth stages. Furthermore, based on the adaptive neuro‐fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) method, a very accurate estimate of the leaf area was obtained for each of the growth stages. The comparison of different models in the leaf area estimation showed that unlike estimating leaf area by regression, AI‐based methods did not depend on plant growth stages. In this study, we suggested the utilization of image processing and artificial intelligence in leaf area estimation. It will accelerate leaf area measurement in the field, by extending these methods and transferring it into smartphone applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Empirical geothermometer dealing with Ti solubility in the Fe‐Mg biotites was originally proposed for biotites in graphitic, peraluminous metapelites containing ilmenite or rutile that equilibrated roughly at 4–6 kbar. Given that biotites are abundant in the porphyry copper systems, this geothermometer has frequently been used for the determination of magmatic–hydrothermal temperatures in the porphyry copper systems. Common associations of porphyry copper deposits (PCDs), that is, low Al content of biotite, biotite chloritization (causes the biotite to become more magnesian and to lose Ti), and biotite formation by amphibole replacement, as well as disequilibrium, local equilibrium, or re‐equilibration of biotites, especially through potassic alteration, may provide significant uncertainty in the temperatures estimated a by Ti‐in‐biotite geothermometer. In addition, besides the calibration range of thermometer for pressure (400–600 MPa), the temperatures of major sulfide precipitation in PCDs (>~400°C) does not fit with the temperature range of thermometer calibration (480–800°C). Worth noting, as confirmed by fluid inclusion data in the Sarkuh PCD, regardless of presence of mineralogical requirements, obtained temperatures of sulfide mineralization using Ti in biotite thermometer could be overestimated. This may be due to the difference between general conditions of sulfide mineralization and calibration range of Ti in the biotite thermometer for pressure and temperature, as well as the metaluminous nature of biotites in PCDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Xanthene dyes, such as fluorescein and rhodamine, have played crucial rules in biological sciences especially covalent attachment of these organic compounds to biomolecules. 3‐O‐methylfluorescein and 3,6‐O‐dimethylfluorescein were synthesized and purified using a facile procedure. 3,6‐O‐dimethylfluorescein, which lacks fluorescence, was treated with sodium hydroxide and sulfuric acid solutions, giving rise to yellow and green fluorescent compounds, respectively. In both basic and acidic conditions, donor‐acceptor structures were formed. The reaction of 3,6‐O‐dimethylfluorescein with acids, in a reversible manner, emitted green fluorescence, whereas its reaction with hydroxide ion, irreversibly shifted the fluorescence to the yellow region. Using MS spectrometry, the product identity was determined as a xanthylium ion derivative. Stokes shift and quantum yield for xanthylium ion were measured. Various nucleophiles were examined for studying the mechanism of the xanthylium ion in aqueous solutions; the results confirmed that hydroxide ion was mediatory for the emission of the fluorescence. In addition, 3‐O‐methyl‐5(6)‐carboxyfluorescein and 3,6‐O‐dimethyl‐5(6)‐carboxyfluorescein were synthesized that can potentially be used in bioorthogonal reactions for labeling proteins. The synthesized products were used in covalent attachment to bovine serum albumin (BSA) and their unique fluorescences were detected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: DNAzyme and aptamer conjugations have already been used for sensitive and accurate detection of several molecules. In this study, we tested the relationship between conjugation orientation of DNAzyme and aflatoxin B1 aptamer and their subsequent peroxidase activity. Circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy and biochemical analysis were used here to differentiate between these two conjugation patterns. Results showed that DNAzyme–aptamer has more catalytic activity and efficiency than aptamer–DNAzyme. Thereby, DNAzyme–aptamer with its superior efficiency can be used for design and development of more sensitive aflatoxin B1 DNA based biosensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exposure to arsenic has been linked to the development of type 2 diabetes though its mechanism of toxicity remains unresolved. In this study berberine (BBR) effects on arsenic‐induced sirtuin 3 (Sirt3) modifications in isolated mitochondria from rat pancreas were evaluated and compared with metformin (MET). With arsenic, mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS), oxidative stress, and insulin resistance were obtained higher than control. From our results and in the presence of arsenic trioxide, insulin resistance and Sirt3 levels were found to be predominantly elevated that could be the result of compensating mechanisms. Apparently, BBR and MET recruit both direct (as an antioxidant) and indirect mechanisms (Sirt3 content) to deal with arsenic trioxide toxicity. Metformin compared with BBR exhibited a less significant effect on ROS levels and since its direct antioxidant property is minor, depressed the ROS level mainly through the Sirt3 modification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]