majid ghasemi

Stroke is one of the most common causes of disability. Spasticity is a common clinical impairment that occurs after a stroke. This study investigates the effect of Nintendo Wii games on the outcomes of spasticity, functional mobility, and quality of life in patients with stroke.

In this single-blind clinical trial study, 30 patients with stroke were randomly assigned to one of the experimental and control groups. Subjects of both groups received conventional physiotherapy. In addition, the experimental group also received Nintendo Wii games for 30 min, three times a week for a total of 12 sessions. The primary outcomes spasticity and functional mobility that respectively evaluated using the modified modified Ashworth scale (MMAS) and the timed up-and-go test before and after the treatment. The assessor was blind about group assignment. Meanwhile, the secondary outcome included quality of life. All statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS software, version 20.

The intragroup results showed that in the experimental group, spasticity was significantly reduced (P=0.001), functional mobility improved (P=0.001), and the quality of life increased significantly (P<0.001); however, in the control group, only a significant improvement in functional mobility (P=0.04) was observed. The comparison between the two groups showed that there is no statistically significant difference in the results between the experimental and control groups (P>0.05).

Considering these results, the use of Nintendo Wii can be suggested as a treatment modality alongside the usual treatments to achieve more and faster effectiveness in patients with stroke.

In this study, we intend to evaluate the occurrence of small fiber neuropathy in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Small fiber neuropathy (SFN) is a sensory neuropathy that results from the degeneration of small Aδ and unmyelinated C fibers. SFN manifests positive symptoms, such as tingling, burning, prickling, and aching, and negative symptoms, including numbness, tightness, and coldness. The SFN coexistence with other comorbidities (e.g., fibromyalgia, inflammatory bowel disease, celiac disease) has been reported in previous studies.

We conducted a cross-sectional study to assess the coexistence of SFN and IBS. Forty-two IBS patients and forty-three healthy individuals were asked to complete the Michigan Neuropathy Screening Instrument (MNSI) questionnaire. Results greater than three (>3) were considered positive. Participants with positive MNSI questionnaire results were examined for any neuropathy signs according to the Utah Early Neuropathy Scale (UENS) examination. The participants with positive results for the questionnaire and examination were checked for the sural and the superficial peroneal nerve conduction study (NCS). Normal NCS represented intact large fibers and the diagnosis of SFN.

Ten participants, 7 (16.7 %) in the IBS group and 3 (6.9 %) in the healthy group, had positive results for the questionnaire. Four participants were positive for the examination, with normal NCS, and were classified as SFN-positive. All four SFN diagnoses were from the IBS group. No one in the healthy group was diagnosed with SFN. We could find a significant statistical difference (p<0.05) between the IBS and healthy groups regarding the prevalence of SFN diagnosis.

The co-occurrence of SFN and IBS suggests the possibility of a generalized neuropathy syndrome characterized by widespread neuronal impairment. Thus, any peripheral neuropathy symptom in IBS patients (and potentially other chronic pain disorders) should be evaluated for SFN since timely diagnosis and proper treatment result in a better quality of life for the patients.

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD) are inherited X-linked disorders resulting from alterations in the dystrophin gene. Genotype-phenotype matching studies have revealed a link between disease severity, the amount of muscle dystrophin, and the extent of mutation/deletion on the dystrophin gene. This study aimed to assess the relationship between genetic alterations in the dystrophin gene and the clinical status of patients with dystrophinopathies among the Iranian population. This cross-sectional study examined 54 patients with muscle weakness caused by abnormalities in the dystrophin gene at a hospital affiliated to Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran, in 2021. The participants’ demographic information, including age, family history of muscle dystrophies, and family history of other medical diseases as well as the type of muscular dystrophy were recorded. Furthermore, the number and region of deleted exons based on dystrophy types were also evaluated using multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA). The patients’ gaits were also assessed as using a wheelchair, the presence of waddling gaits, or toe gaits. The patients’ clinical status and the coexistence of pulmonary, bulbar, and mental conditions were also examined and compared between the two groups of dystrophinopathies. In this study, 54 patients with dystrophinopathy with the mean age of 16.63 ± 12.10 years were evaluated, of whom 22 (40.7%) and 30 (55.6%) patients were classified as BMD and DMD, respectively. The most affected regions with deleted exons were exons 45-47 (n = 5) and 45-48 (n = 4) in patients with BMD, while exons 45, 48-52, 51-55, and 53 (2 cases per exon) were the most common affected exons in patients with DMD. Further analyses revealed that deletions in exons 45-47 and 51-55 were significantly associated with older and younger ages at the onset of becoming wheelchair-bound in patients with dystrophy, respectively. The hotspot range in both BMD and DMD was within exons 45-55 (n = 15 for each group); 63% of the patients had alterations on the dystrophin gene within this range [30 patients (68.18%) in the BMD group, 15 patients (53.57%) in the DMD group]. Exon deletion was the most common genetic alteration in patients with dystrophinopathies. No significant difference was observed between DMD and BMD regarding the number of deleted exons. Deletions in exons 45-47 and 51-55 were linked to later and earlier onset of becoming wheelchair-bound, respectively.

 Cervicogenic headaches that stem from musculoskeletal disorders of the upper cervical spine are among the most common types of chronic headaches. In recent years, physiotherapy has emerged as a potential treatment for this type of headache.

 Given the emphasis on educational methods such as pain neurophysiology education (PNE) for musculoskeletal pain, the aim of this study is to investigate the effect of PNE in treating cervicogenic headaches.

 This study was a single-blind clinical trial. A sample of 30 participants with cervicogenic headache was divided into two groups using the block

An experimental group of 15 participants and a control group of 15 participants. Experienced physiotherapists provided conventional physiotherapy for 10 sessions, and the experimental group also received pain neurophysiology education for four additional sessions. Pain severity, disability, and pain catastrophizing information were collected using the visual analog scale, headache disability index, and pain catastrophizing scale, respectively, at the beginning of the study, after the study, and at the one-month follow-up. Statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS software version 22, and the significance level was set at 0.05.

 A significant difference was observed in pain intensity assessment at different times (P < 0.001), headache disability index (P = 0.003), and pain catastrophizing (P < 0.001). The time-by-group interaction was significant for pain intensity (F = 49.051; P < 0.001; 2=0.637) and pain catastrophizing (F = 25.528; P < 0.001; 2=0.477); however, there was no significant difference in disability (F = 1.781; P = 0.178; 2=0.060).

 Pain neurophysiology education can have a positive effect on pain reduction, as well as the attitude and knowledge of individuals who experience pain in the short term.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, inflammatory, demyelinating, immune‑mediated disease of the central nervous system. It is still unestablished whether heredity correlates with the disease’s progression and severity.

This study includes the patients with MS seen in the MS clinic of Kashani Hospital, affiliated with Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, from January 2019 to January 2020. We gathered data regarding the demographic and clinical characteristics, such as type of disease and family history of MS. Patients were grouped based on having relatives with MS. We compared demographic and clinical characteristics between those with a family history of MS (familial MS: FMS) and those without a family history of MS (sporadic MS: SMS).

We included 2,929 MS patients, 523 (17.2%) with FMS and 2,406 (82.8%) with SMS. Patients with FMS were found to have active lesions in the thoracic spine more frequently than those with SMS (P = 0.022). We also found differences in the distribution of gender (P = 0.036) and the frequency of having active brain lesions (P = .024) among patients with FMS and SMS. No difference was found between the demographic/clinical characteristics and the number of affected relatives in the family.

Significant differences were found among different groups of patients in terms of demographical and clinical characteristics.

We aimed to assess the diagnostic utility of abductor pollicis brevis/abductor digiti minimi compound muscle action potentials (APB/ADM CMAP) ratio as an indicator of split hand phenomenon in the differentiation of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients from healthy controls.

To assess diagnostic utility of APB/ADM CMAP ratio as an indicator split hand phenomenon in differentiation of ALS patients from healthy controls.

This cross-sectional retrospective study was conducted at Alzahra and Kashani hospitals of Isfahan, Iran, in 2021. The study population consisted of all patients with definite diagnoses of ALS who had undergone electrophysiological studies within the previous 5 years. APB/ ADM CMAP ratio was calculated in both groups based on right/left hand and below/over 50 years of age. The statistical analysis also evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of the APB/ADM amplitude ratio.

A total of 200 ALS patients and 200 healthy controls were evaluated. APB/ADM ratios of the right hand in the controls and patients were 1.27±0.71 and 1.27±1.69 (P=0.961), while in the left hand, these figures were 1.30±0.54 and 1.11±0.97, respectively (P=0.018). Analysis based on age group revealed a significant difference in the APB/ADM amplitude ratio in the left hand of individuals younger than 50. The cut-off points of 0.81 (sensitivity=86.2% and specificity=58.7%) and 1.03 (sensitivity=72.5% and specificity=58.5%) were calculated for right and left hands, respectively.

APB/ADM CMAP ratio is a relatively highly sensitive but moderately specific diagnostic marker for differentiating ALS patients from healthy controls with higher diagnostic utility in patients younger than 50.

Subsequent to spasticity, which is a positive impairment of stroke,neural and mechanical changes often occur in paretic muscles, affecting muscle function. The aim of this study was to find more accurate indices, which could affect decisions about spasticity treatment by investigating the relationships among neural, mechanical, functional outcomes, and clinical parameters in spastic chronic stroke patients. This cross-sectional study investigated 45 spastic chronic stroke patients. Clinical assessments were conducted using the Modified Modified Ashworth Scale (MMAS). Neural properties including H-reflex latency and Hmax/Mmax ratio were acquired. Mechanical properties including fascicle length,pennation angle, and thickness of spastic medial gastrocnemius muscle were evaluated. Functional outcomes were evaluated by the Timed Up and Go (TUG) test and Timed 10-Meter Walk Test (10-m WTT). Spearman’s rank correlation analysis in SPSS version 22.0 was used to find correlations between parameters.A low negative correlation was determined between MMAS and H-reflex latency (r=-0.320, P=0.032). MMAS score had a low significant relationship with pennation angle (r=0.296, P=0.049) and thickness of muscles (r=0.389,P=0.008). However, no significant correlation was found between MMAS and functional outcomes.Based on these findings, it is clear MMAS can partly identify changes in neural and mechanical properties of spastic muscles.

rapid population growth will increase the need for renewable energy resources. On the other hand, the extent of pollution from fossil fuels has made life on Earth difficult. However, the need to choose a suitable, cheap and clean alternative to fossil fuels is obvious. One of the proposed energy sources is electrical energy generated by fuel cells, which are currently a suitable solution due to high efficiency, non-pollution of the environment and the use of hydrogen as fuel. In this research, a solid oxide fuel cell with two different geometries is simulated in three dimensions. The equations governing the performance of the fuel cell, including electrochemical, momentum, mass transfer, and energy, are coupled using a finite element code defined, solved, and investigated. The results showed that the tubular geometry with the same dimensions and mechanical characteristics has a better performance than the planar type. It was shown that solving the energy equation and non-uniform temperature distribution reduces the power density of the fuel cell by about 7%. It was also found that cathodic pressure changes have a greater effect on fuel cell performance than anodic pressure changes. In the end, the results showed that increasing the thickness of the anode has a significant effect on increasing its performance compared to increasing the thickness of other fuel cell components.

Previous studies have shown that people with a family history are more likely to develop multiple sclerosis (MS). The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between positive familial history and disability rates based on the Extended Disability Status Scale (EDSS) among the patients with MS.

This cross-sectional study was performed on 320 patients with MS referred to MS Clinic in Kashani hospital, Isfahan, ran, who were randomly selected and divided into two groups with and without familial history. Data related to patients' demographic characteristics and data related to age of onset, number of attacks per year, and EDSS were supplemented by face-to-face interviews and examinations performed by a physician. The EDSS ranking criterion was determined based on neurological function and functional systems (cerebral, pyramidal, brainstem, etc.).

There was no significant difference between the average number of attacks per year in both groups of with or without positive family history. In addition, there was no significant difference in the mean of primary and secondary EDSS between two study groups.

Our study showed that the age of patients with familial type of MS was significantly lower than the age of patients with non-familial type. However, there was no significant difference in the degree of disability between the group of patients with or without familial history.

Cardiovascular diseases have been one of the main causes of death throughout the world in recent decades.One of the most common heart diseases is stenotic arteries, which usually appears with middle age. This disease, called atherosclerosis, causes an abnormal reduction in the inside diameter of blood vessels. In this study, the effect of a uniform magnetic field on blood flow and artery walls is investigated. The geometry of the problem is simulated in three dimensions. The governing equations, which include continuity, momentum, ohm’s law, stress-strain of linear elastic material, and fluid-solid interaction with moving mesh method, are defined, coupled, and solved with a finite element code in the Comsol software.The results indicate that the magnetic field has a significant effect on the behavior of blood flow and artery walls. For example, the Hartmann number is inversely related to the blood flow velocity and is directly related to the wall shear stress, the von Mises stress, and the artery wall displacement. It is also observed that the trend of changes with non-Newtonian viscosity model is greater than the Newtonian model.

One of the most common cardiovascular deseases is stenotic arteries. In this study, blood flow with different models of viscosity in a stenotic artery with the assumption of a wall has been investigated. Stenosis geometry is modeled by cosine relation. for The problem equations including continuity, momentum, energy, Hooke's law for linear elastic material, and the method (ALE) for fluid-solid interaction are defined and solved as finite element code. The results showed that the vessel wall had the most displacement near the stenosis region. Assuming the fluid-solid interaction reduces the wall shear stres. For example, the maximum wall shear stress in the stenotic region decreases from 2.32 to 2.23 with Carreau viscosity and from 2.1 to 2 with Newtonian viscosity. It was also observed that applying heat flux on the outer surface of the vessel wall causes a significant increase in blood flow and the wall temperature in the stenotic region.

Peripheral nerve ultrasound(US) has been used as a promising diagnosing technique for peripheral nerve disorders. This study aimed to compare the US findings of Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) with chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP). This case-control study was done on 25 patients with GBS at 3 weeks after onset of disease and 25 patients with CIDP. Demographic information and US results of median nerve at 2 points, ulnar nerve at 3 points, and tibial and peroneal nerves were collected. Left median nerve diameter in patients with CIDP with the mean of 0.141 ± 0.047 was more than GBS group with the mean of 0.095 ± 0.034 (P < 0.001). Both sides of median nerve diameter in patients with CIDP were higher than patients with GBS (P < 0.05), but in the left side, it was more in patients with CIDP (P = 0.003). The diameter and circumference of median, ulnar, and tibial nerves in forearm and elbow of patients with CIDP are more than patients with GBS; therefore, it may be possible to use US findings based on these differences in diagnosis and differentiation of the two diseases.

The direct impact of bitumen properties on the performance of asphalt mixtures has made bitumen behavior modification one of the key issues for researchers. Studies in this area have shown that waste Crumb Rubber have positive and acceptable effects on classical behavior of bitumen, but the rheological behavior of bitumen has been less studied. In this study, 8, 12 and 16 percent of Waste Crumb Rubber (#80 sieve size) by the weight of bitumen were used and then SHRP tests including Rotational Viscometer (RV), Dynamic Shear Rheometer (DSR), Bending Beam Rheometer (BBR), Rolling Thin-Film Oven (RTFO) and Pressure Aging Vessel (PAV) and SHRP Plus test including Multiple Stress Creep Recovery (MSCR) were performed on the samples .finally the Performance Grade (PG) of bitumens was evaluated by standard method and also by the results of MSCR test. The results showed that with increasing CR percentage, viscosity and high temperature PG increased so that the sample containing 16 percent CR had the highest temperature grade. also aging after RTFO had no effect on high temperature of PG.Increasing the CR had a positive effect on Jnr and increased the elastic behavior and consequently the bitumen's rutting resistance, especially the specimen containing 16 percent CR achieved the H traffic level which included heavy traffic load (10 to 30 ESALs) or slow moving. It also improved the low-temperature performance of bitumen for samples containing 8 and 16 percent of CR. review of the PG map of Iran showed that bitumen containing waste Crumb rubber is usable in most parts of the country

A fuel cell is an electro-chemical tool capable of converting chemical energy into electrical energy. The high operating temperature of the solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC), (between 700oC to 1000oC), causes thermal stress which is the origin of crack initiation and propagation. Thermal stress causes gas escape, structure variability and SOFC operation cessation before its lifetime. The purpose of the current paper is to present a method that predicts the thermal stress distribution and forecasts the beginning of fissure or crack occurrences in an anisotropic porous electrode of the planar SOFC. The governing coupled non-linear differential equations of heat transfer, fluid flow, mass transfer, mass continuity, and momentum are solved numerically. A code based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD), computational structural mechanics and finite element method (FEM) is developed and utilized. The results show that the highest thermal stress occurs at the lower corners of anode and the upper corners of cathode. The cathode’s thickness at the left side increases by 1.5% and the concentrated temperature and thus the fissure occurs between the top and bottom left corners of the cathode.

For conquering the crisis of the diminution of fossil fuels resources and environmental problems owing to their excessive consumption, some alternative technologies have been introduced. Among these possible choices, the fuel cell technology is a prominent candidate for a large scale and long term energy source. Between different types of fuel cells, the Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC) attracts greatest interest for its noticeable advantages and more over for being a “Green Energy” as it simply generates electricity by combining Oxygen and Hydrogen and producing merely water. However, the most important hindrances in the way of commercializing this technology are those associated with water and heat management in PEM fuel cells. In the present work the dynamic and droplet motion mechanisms is simulated by Volume of Fluid (VOF) two phase technique and implementing of Hoffman function as hysteresis model. In this study, the dynamic contact angle of the droplet motion is considered and the dynamic motion of the droplet is investigated in an application geometry that includes the manifolds of the gas flow distributor in the PEMFC. The effect of the manifold slopes on the discharge of liquid water droplets compare to straight manifold has also been studied. By changing the geometry of the inlet and outlet manifolds, the problem created in conventional geometry, which causes the obstruction of the channel caused by liquid water, is overcome, thus improving geometry improves water management in the channels.

One of the main concerns for structures and infrastructures is to evaluate their reliability and functionality as they can suffer long-term damage due to gradual deterioration over time, or they can be imposed to natural or manmade hazards and overloading during their lifetime. Thus, Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) has been a hot research topic in order to introduce efficient methods and feasible techniques for evaluating, monitoring and improving structural reliability and life cycle management. The SHM process typically includes three stages: a) data acquisition: measurement of the structural responses using an array of sensors; b) extraction of damage-sensitive features; and c) analysis of extracted features to develop statistical models and estimate structure health condition. During the last decades, vibration-based damage detection methods have been greatly developed. The purpose of these methods is to determine the resulting changes in structural properties including stiffness, natural frequency, mode shape and damping ratio of the structure. For example, the basis of the Fourier Transform (FT) method is to determine the structural modal parameters from the random vibration data in the frequency range. Since local damages mostly impact higher frequency modes which are hard to excite and detect, most of FT based methods are unable to detect local or light damages accurately. Therefore, time-frequency analysis is introduced to overcome the limitations of the Fourier method, the most important of which is not providing a frequency-time range of a signal. The first case of frequency-time analysis was the short-time Fourier transform method based on the Fourier transform of the data divided by the time window function. According to this method, the interaction between time and frequency is difficult due to the existence of the time window function. If the windows are smaller in the time segment, its accuracy increases and in the frequency domain it becomes less accurate. The signal processing techniques such as wavelet transform and the Hilbert-Huang transform are playing an increasingly important role in structural health monitoring. Hilbert-Huang transform (HHT) is a novel signal-processing technique for analysing nonstationary and nonlinear signals. HHT method consists of empirical mode decomposition (EMD) and Hilbert transform (HT). According to this theory, the primary signals can be decomposed into different basic time-dependent intrinsic mode functions (IMFs) through the empirical mode decomposition (EMD). Afterward, instantaneous frequency and amplitude of each IMF can be obtained as Hilbert–Huang spectrum. The application of HHT based approaches in structural health monitoring has been widely studied through the numerical and experimental researches. This paper proposes a damage detection method based on the amplitude coefficient correlation of responses of damaged and undamaged structures using Hilbert–Huang transform (HHT). Structural responses have been decomposed to intrinsic mode functions (IMFs) through the empirical mode decomposition (EMD) method and the changes appear in the first IMF. Therefore, every change on the original signal can be revealed on IMFs, since the original signal depends on IMFs. Also, these changes have an effect on the analytical signal and the Hilbert transform. The instantaneous amplitude in measured joints on the structure is calculated using the Hilbert transform of the first IMF of response. The coefficient correlation matrix of the damaged and undamaged elements is demonstrated by graphical diagram in order to estimate the location of the damage. In this research, the accuracy of proposed damage detection method has been verified by applying the method on a finite element model of two-span continuous concrete beam structure. The concrete beam is 80 m long with two equal 40 m span bays covered by a concrete deck with 0.5 m thickness. The dynamic responses of the beam at all sensors have been obtained by numerical analysis of finite element model under triangular pulse loading. The responses were also contaminated with 2% random noise to consider measurement uncertainties. The damage has been modelled as stiffness reduction in a 1.25 m long segment of finite element model of beam. To evaluate the efficiency of the proposed method, different damage scenarios are studied. IMFs of all responses at sensor locations were obtained by combination of EMD and HT, and the instantaneous frequency and amplitude of Hilbert were derived. Auto correlation of instantaneous amplitude of undamaged and damaged structures were calculated and introduced as Damage Index Correlation. According to the results, this method is able to trace the location of the damage by the comparison of the correlation coefficients. Therefore, the locations of damages in different scenarios were located with a variety of coefficients correlation in sensors. The results show that the proposed method can determine the location of the damage with an acceptable accuracy for low and moderate damage intensities in all damage scenarios.

 With advances of technology and the rapid flow of global developments, universities have been located more interaction with their surrounding environment and this has created numerous challenges for higher education in various fields. Therefore, identifying them and adopting rational and realistic strategies against them will make the higher education system more effective. For this purpose, the present research, intends to identify emerging challenges in the development of higher education and provide a conceptual model in this regard.

 The present study was a type of qualitative research where using a grounded theory approach, identified emerging challenges in higher education. Data collection was carried out with a deep interviewing tool that theoretical saturation of the findings was achieved at the 16th interview. Data analysis was carried out using grounded theory method and using open, axial and selective coding. Research field in this study was experts and specialists and managers of higher education in different universities of the country. The participants were selected through a purposeful sampling (snowball type). In order to observe the qualitative characteristics of the research, three criteria of acceptability, validity and reliability were used. The outcomes of this study were presented to the university teachers participating in the study, and the results of the study were confirmed.

 According to the findings, four categories of serious and emerging challenges in higher education include: Internationalization challenges; Interdisciplinary challenges; Challenges of relation with industry; Challenges in the new fields of science were identified. If these challenges are seen from the perspective of opportunity, it will certainly provide an appropriate platform for the development of higher education. Finally, the strategies were proposed and the final model was presented.

The purpose of this study is the numerical analysis of hyperthermia on the damage of cancerous tissue in the presence of magnetic nanoparticles under the influence of external magnetic field. For this purpose the governing equations continuity, momentum, energy and arrhenius damage equation are coupled and solved by COMSOL, a finite element based code. The blood flow in capillary is assumed as non-newtonian fluid with the Carreau viscosity model. A three dimensional geometric model includes the capillary and surrounding tissue. The results indicated that the temperature of the blood stream increases with the application of the magnetic field, and the surrounding tissue is damaged over time as a result of this heat. The effect of field strength and concentration was also investigated, which was found to correlate with the amount of damaged tissue. In general, this method can be used to degrade the tissues by placing the nearby magnetic field and injecting nanoparticles at low scales.

Caffeine is one of most important ligand of adenosine deaminase (ADA). In the present study, changes in adenosine deaminase activity were measured in Tris-HCl buffer 50mM, pH 7.3 at 37oC in the presence and absence of caffeine in increasing concentrations of adenosine as a substrate (0-50µM) and in various incubation times with caffeine. Regarding the analysis of the saturation curves, for the first time, their sigmoidal shape shows considerable differences with previous reports which can be referred to differences in concentration range of substrate and incubation time with caffeine. Based on the sigmoidal shape of saturation curve, mechanism of caffeine effect is explainable.  Moreover, based on finding of this study, the effect of caffeine on ADA activity is a function of incubation time and will be stable after 6 hours incubation of enzyme with caffeine. This is noteworthy when interpreting the results of the studies on ADA and its ligands.

The formation and expansion of the activities of the well-known institutes to the production of articles and thesis have put Iran's higher education system at faced with questions and serious challenges that has been consequences at individual, organizational and social levels. The Present study aimed to analyze intra-organizational factors in the tendency to use the articles and thesis production institutions. The study was conducted using a qualitative method and phenomenological approach. Sampling was done purposefully and with using criterion sampling. The sample size to the theoretical saturation of data was dependent that based on this, the lived experience of 22 experts in the realm of the subject was deeply investigated. The data are collected via semi-structured interviews, and was analyzed using Colaizzi strategy. Data analysis has led to the identification and categorization of five categories of effective intera-organization factors in the tendency to use the articles and thesis production institutions, including management, cultural, regulatory, educational and individual factors. The results show that developing essay writing institutions, can accompany the vitality and dynamism of scientific and academic centers with serious challenges from their inside and could be faced them with double problems in fulfilling their mission for the creating value and welfare and preparing sustainable development of society.

Migraine is a common disease with throbbing and unilateral quality, which is accompanied by aura symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and photophobia. The level of procalcitonin is increased in migraine, which is due to the inflammation caused by a low level of serum serotonin. This study aims to investigate the level of serum procalcitonin in patient with migraine by prescribing serotonin agonist drugs. In this case-control study, 40 migraine patients in the center of migraine patients of al-zahra university hospital in Isfahan were selected, among which 26 patients received serotonin as a treatment while the other 14 ones were treated by drugs other than sumatriptan agonist. Then, the level of procalcitonin in these patients was calculated and analyzed. Findings: The results of the study showed that there was a difference between of the case and control groups in the level of procalcitonin in the serum of their sample blood tests. It seems that the case group patients have a lower level of procalcitonin compared to the control group. Totally, the current study indicates the effect of serotonin in reducing the level of serum procalcitonin.

Converting chemical energy into electricity is done by an electro-chemical device known as a fuel cell. Thermal stress is caused at high operating temperature between 700 oC to 1000 oC of SOFC. Thermal stress causes gas escape, structure variability, crack initiation, crack propagation, and cease operation of the SOFC before its lifetime. The aim of this study is to present a method that predicts the initiation of cracks in an anisotropic porous planar SOFC. The temperature and stress distribution are calculated. The code uses the generated data, stress intensity factor, and the J-integral of the materials to predict the initiation of the crack inside the porous anode and cathode. The results show that the highest thermal stress occurs at the upper corners of cathode and at the lower corners of the anode. In addition, the thickness of cathode electrode on the left side is increased by 1.5 %. Finally, the crack initiation occurs on the left side between the upper and lower corners of the cathode.

The main aim of this research was to identify effective components on policymaking based on the market-place in Iran's higher education. The research methodology was qualitative and Grounded Theory, and the data gathering tool was a semi-structured interview. The sampling method was purposive and 40 researchers and specialists of  technology, research and sciences ministry and universities of Hamedan, Kurdistan, and Sistan and Baluchestan provinces were selected for interviews. The data was analyzed by using themes analysis in the forms of Open, Axial and Selective coding. Policymaking based on market-place in higher education at two dimensions of horizontal and vertical was the central hypothesis of the research. The vertical policymaking based on market-place includes: labor culture-making, modifying the structure of universities and market, need-assessment based on market- place, modifying educational roles (educational, research, faculty) based on market-place, government supporting of internal knowledge-producing and productions, advertising of universities' ideas regarding market- place, macro and micro policy making regarding market-place. The horizontal policymaking based on market-place includes: changing the curricula based on economical approaches, relationship between industry and university, training entrepreneurship students in market-place, policies of training and learning skills, using information technologies in market-place and universities, considering educational issues based on economy, turning Human resources to Human Capital, changing evaluation system. At last, the policymaking based on market-place model was presented by using the research findings.

Stroke is the most important cause of disability in adult people. Spasticity is a common motor disorder that develops secondary to upper motor neuron lesions such as stroke. Spasticity can cause changes in skeletal muscle, and affects both the neural and mechanical properties of skeletal muscles. The aim of this study was to compare neural and mechanical properties of spastic muscle between two groups of patients with stroke based on the duration of disease. In this study, 45 patients with stroke were divided into two groups of less and more than twelve months of stroke onset. Clinical assessment including muscle tone, achilles deep tendon reflex, and range of motion of ankle joint were measured using Modified Ashworth Scale, hammer, and goniometer, respectively. Neural properties, including H-reflex latency and Hmax/Mmax ratio, were acquired with electromyography (EMG) machine, and mechanical properties, including fascicle length, pennation angle, and muscle thickness in the spastic medial gastrocnemius muscle, were evaluated using ultrasonography instrument. To compare between two groups, we used t-test. Except for the duration of the disease (P < 0.001), there were not any significant differences in others parameters between the two groups. The results of this study showed that there was no significant difference in neural and mechanical parameters between the patients with stroke before and after 12 months of onset.

In this study, numerically investigated effect of magnetic heat sources (residual and hysteresis) that can be useful in hyperthermia and their effects on cancerous tissue. The governing equations of continuty, momentum, concentration, energy and Arrhenius tissue destruction equation in the form of couplings are defined, solved and investigated in the finite-element COMSOL software. For blood flow inside the cancerous capillary, non-newtonian and temperature dependent model is used. The geometric model is simulated in three dimensions, including the capillary and cancerous tissue. Thermophysical properties of blood and tissue are also temperature dependent. Results indicated that the residual heat source plays a major role in increasing the temperature of the blood and tissue and can be ignored the effect of hysteresis heat source. The residual heat source has an inverse relation to the particle size and is ineffective in the particle size above 100 nm but hysteresis heat source is directly related to the size of the nanoparticles, and for particles with a size of 150 nm, it will result in a 1 degree increase in temperature for the tissue. The increase in blood temperature for 25 nm magnetic nanoparticles with the residual heat source can lead to the most destruction in cancerous tissue. Also, the viscosity of blood has an inverse relation with the concentration of magnetic nanoparticles in the capillary wall and blood temperature.