Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences and Health Services

About: Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences and Health Services is a education organization based out in Tehran, Iran. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Medicine. The organization has 19456 authors who have published 33659 publications receiving 365676 citations.

Mycotoxins in cereal-based products during 24 years (1983–2017): A global systematic review

Abstract: Background Cereal and cereal-based products are used as an important sources of energy and minerals as well as vitamins in all of the world. However, their contamination with mycotoxins reserved huge concerns due to adverse effects of mycotoxin on human health. Scope and approach The present research was undertaken to evaluate published studies regarding the identification of mycotoxins zearalenone (ZEN), ochratoxin A (OTA), deoxynivalenol (DON), and total aflatoxin (TAF) in the cereal-based products between 1 January 1983 and 25 December 2017. In this regard, 66 out of 2817 screened studies were used in the conducted systematic review. Key findings and conclusions The lowest and highest number of published reports was associated with DON and TAF in some of the cereal-based products, respectively. Among the countries, Germany was ranked as the first in establishing investigations. Moreover, the liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI/MS) was categorized as the most implemented technique for mycotoxin detection. The rank order of products cereal-based food based on number of studies was cereal grains > cornflake > bread > breakfast > flour > infant product > pasta > other products. The results of this study not only summarized the most frequently mycotoxin detection technique but also may provide a roadmap for future research regarding the mycotoxins detection analysis.

Health related quality of life in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus in Iran: a national survey.

Abstract: Introduction The aim of this study was to measure health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in Iranian people with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus using two different measures and examines which socio-demographic and diabetes-related characteristics are associated with better quality of life based on a nationally distributed sample. Methods A multi-stage cluster sampling method was used to select 3472 subjects as a part of Iranian surveillance of risk factors of non-communicable disease (ISRFNCD). EuroQol-5 Dimensions questionnaire (EQ-5D) and Visual Analog Scale (VAS) were employed to measure HRQoL. Binary logistic and Tobit regression models were used to investigate factors associated with EQ-5D results. Results The mean age of subjects was 59.4 years (SD = 11.7), 61.3% were female and had 8.08 years (SD = 6.7) known duration of diabetes. The patients reported “some or extreme problems” most frequently in Pain/Discomfort (69.3%) and Anxiety/Depression (56.6%) dimensions of EQ-5D. The mean EQ-5D and VAS score were 0.70 (95% CI 0.69–0.71) and 56.8 (95% CI 56.15–57.5) respectively. Female gender, lower education, unemployment, long duration of diabetes, diabetes-related hospitalization in past years and having nephropathy and lower extremity lesions were associated with higher probabilities of reporting “some or extreme problems” in most dimensions of EQ-5D in binary logistic regression models. The same factors in addition to retinopathy were significantly associated with lower levels of HRQoL in Tobit regression analysis too. Conclusions The study findings indicate that patients with diabetes in Iran suffer from relatively poor HRQoL. Therefore much more attention should be paid to main determinants of HRQoL to identify and implement appropriate policies for achieving better management of diabetes and ultimately improving the quality of life of diabetic patients in this region.

Dietary protein sources in early adulthood and breast cancer incidence: prospective cohort study

Abstract: Objective To investigate the association between dietary protein sources in early adulthood and risk of breast cancer. Design Prospective cohort study. Setting Health professionals in the United States. Participants 88 803 premenopausal women from the Nurses’ Health Study II who completed a questionnaire on diet in 1991. Main outcome measure Incident cases of invasive breast carcinoma, identified through self report and confirmed by pathology report. Results We documented 2830 cases of breast cancer during 20 years of follow-up. Higher intake of total red meat was associated with an increased risk of breast cancer overall (relative risk 1.22, 95% confidence interval 1.06 to 1.40; Ptrend=0.01, for highest fifth v lowest fifth of intake). However, higher intakes of poultry, fish, eggs, legumes, and nuts were not related to breast cancer overall. When the association was evaluated by menopausal status, higher intake of poultry was associated with a lower risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women (0.73, 0.58 to 0.91; Ptrend=0.02, for highest fifth v lowest fifth of intake) but not in premenopausal women (0.93, 0.78 to 1.11; Ptrend=0.60, for highest fifth v lowest fifth of intake). In estimating the effects of exchanging different protein sources, substituting one serving/day of legumes for one serving/day of red meat was associated with a 15% lower risk of breast cancer among all women (0.85, 0.73 to 0.98) and a 19% lower risk among premenopausal women (0.81, 0.66 to 0.99). Also, substituting one serving/day of poultry for one serving/day of red meat was associated with a 17% lower risk of breast cancer overall (0.83, 0.72 to 0.96) and a 24% lower risk of postmenopausal breast cancer (0.76, 0.59 to 0.99). Furthermore, substituting one serving/day of combined legumes, nuts, poultry, and fish for one serving/day of red meat was associated with a 14% lower risk of breast cancer overall (0.86, 0.78 to 0.94) and premenopausal breast cancer (0.86, 0.76 to 0.98). Conclusion Higher red meat intake in early adulthood may be a risk factor for breast cancer, and replacing red meat with a combination of legumes, poultry, nuts and fish may reduce the risk of breast cancer.

Niosomal carriers enhance oral bioavailability of carvedilol: effects of bile salt-enriched vesicles and carrier surface charge.

Abstract: Carvedilol (CRV) is an antihypertensive drug with both alpha and beta receptor blocking activity used to preclude angina and cardiac arrhythmias. To overcome the low, variable oral bioavailability of CRV, niosomal formulations were prepared and characterized: plain niosomes (without bile salts), bile salt-enriched niosomes (bilosomes containing various percentages of sodium cholate or sodium taurocholate), and charged niosomes (negative, containing dicetyl phosphate and positive, containing hexadecyl trimethyl ammonium bromide). All formulations were characterized in terms of encapsulation efficiency, size, zeta potential, release profile, stability, and morphology. Various formulations were administered orally to ten groups of Wistar rats (n=6 per group). The plasma levels of CRV were measured by a validated high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method and pharmacokinetic properties of different formulations were characterized. Contribution of lymphatic transport to the oral bioavailability of niosomes was also investigated using a chylomicron flow-blocking approach. Of the bile salt-enriched vesicles examined, bilosomes containing 20% sodium cholate (F2) and 30% sodium taurocholate (F5) appeared to give the greatest enhancement of intestinal absorption. The relative bioavailability of F2 and F5 formulations to the suspension was estimated to be 1.84 and 1.64, respectively. With regard to charged niosomes, the peak plasma concentrations (Cmax) of CRV for positively (F7) and negatively charged formulations (F10) were approximately 2.3- and 1.7-fold higher than after a suspension. Bioavailability studies also revealed a significant increase in extent of drug absorption from charged vesicles. Tissue histology revealed no signs of inflammation or damage. The study proved that the type and concentration of bile salts as well as carrier surface charge had great influences on oral bioavailability of niosomes. Blocking the lymphatic absorption pathway significantly reduced oral bioavailability of CRV niosomes. Overall twofold enhancement in bioavailability in comparison with drug suspension confers the potential of niosomes as suitable carriers for improved oral delivery of CRV.