Journals
2019 EN
Zeinab Rezaei
Expansion dynamics of the Universe is one of the important subjects in moderncosmology. The dark energy equation of state determines this dynamics so thatthe Universe is in an accelerating phase. However, the dark matter can alsoaffect the accelerated expansion of the Universe through its equation of state.In the present work, we explore the expansion dynamics of the Universe in thepresence of dark matter pressure. In this regard, applying the dark matterequation of state from the observational data related to the rotational curvesof galaxies, we calculate the evolution of dark matter density. Moreover, theHubble parameter, history of scale factor, luminosity distance, anddeceleration parameter are studied while the dark matter pressure is taken intoaccount. Our results verify that the dark matter pressure leads to the highervalues of the Hubble parameter at each redshift and the expansion of theUniverse grows due to the DM pressure.
Journals
2019 EN
Omar Mustafa · Zeinab Algadhi
.The classical and quantum-mechanical correspondence for constant mass settings is used, along with some point canonical transformation, to find the position-dependent mass (PDM) classical and quantum Hamiltonians. The comparison between the resulting quantum PDM-Hamiltonian and the von Roos PDM-Hamiltonian implied that the ordering ambiguity parameters of von Roos are strictly determined. Eliminating, in effect, the ordering ambiguity associated with the von Roos PDM-Hamiltonian. This, consequently, played a vital role in the construction and identification of the PDM-momentum operator. The same recipe is followed to identify the form of the minimal coupling of electromagnetic interactions for the classical and quantum PDM-Hamiltonians. It turned out that whilst the minimal coupling may very well inherit the usual form in classical mechanics (i.e., $p_{j} (\vec{x}) \rightarrow p_{j}(\vec{x}) -e A_{j}(\vec{x})$pj(x→)→pj(x→)-eAj(x→), where $p_{j}(\vec{x})$pj(x→) is the j-th component of the classical PDM-canonical-momentum), it admits a necessarily different and vital form in quantum mechanics (i.e., $\hat{p}_{j}(\vec{x})/\sqrt{m(\vec{x})} \rightarrow (\hat{p}_{j}(\vec{x})$p̂j(x→)/m(x→)→(p̂j(x→)$ -e A_{j}(\vec{x}))/\sqrt{m(\vec{x})}$-eAj(x→))/m(x→), where $ \hat{p}_{j}(\vec{x})$p̂j(x→) is the j-th component of the quantum PDM-momentum operator). Under our point transformation settings, only one of the two commonly used vector potentials (i.e., $\vec{A} (\vec{x}) \sim (-x_{2}, x_{1}, 0)$A→(x→)∼(-x2,x1,0)) is found eligible and is considered for our Illustrative examples.
Springer Science+Business Media
Journals
2019 EN
Zeinab Algadhi · Omar Mustafa
Using cylindrical coordinates, we consider position-dependent mass (PDM)charged particles moving under the influence of magnetic, Aharonov-Bohm flux,and a pseudoharmonic or a generalized Killingbeck-type potential fields. Weimplement the PDM-minimal-coupling recipe 26, along with thePDM-momentum operator 27, and report separability under radialcylindrical and azimuthal symmetrization settings. For the radial Schr\"odingerpart, we transform it into a radial one-dimensional Schr\"odinger-type and usetwo PDM settings to report on the exact solvability of PDM charged particlesmoving in three fields: magnetic, Aharonov-Bohm flux, and pseudoharmonicpotential fields. Next, we consider the radial Schr\"odinger part as is and usethe biconfluent Heun differential forms for two PDM settings to report on theconditionally exact solvability of our PDM charged particles moving in threefields: magnetic, Aharonov-Bohm flux, and generalized Killingbeck potentialfields. Yet, we report the spectral signatures of the one-dimensionalz-dependent Schr\"odinger part on the overall eigenvalues and eigenfunctions,for all examples, using two z-dependent potential models (infinite potentialwell and Morse-type potentials).
Springer Science+Business Media
Conference Proceedings
2019 EN
Jinhang Choi · Zeinab Hakimi · Philip Wootaek Shin
+2 more
As the computing power of end-point devices grows, there has been interest in developing distributed deep neural networks specifically for hierarchical inference deployments on multi-sensor systems. However, as the existing approaches rely on latent parameters trained by machine learning, it is difficult to preemptively select front-end deep features across sensors, or understand individual feature's relative importance for systematic global inference. In this paper, we propose multi-view convolutional neural networks exploiting likelihood estimation. Proof-of-concept experiments show that our likelihood-based context selection and weighted averaging collaboration scheme can decrease an endpoint's communication and energy costs by a factor of 3×, while achieving high accuracy comparable to the original aggregation approaches.
Conference Proceedings
2019 EN
M Ashraf Siddiquee · Zeinab Akhavan · Abdullah Mueen
Unlike semi-supervised clustering, classification and rule discovery; semi-supervised motif discovery is a surprisingly unexplored area in data mining. Semi-supervised Motif Discovery finds hidden patterns in long time series when a few arbitrarily known patterns are given. A naive approach is to exploit the known patterns and perform similarity search within a radius of the patterns. However, this method would find only similar shapes and would be limited in discovering new shapes. In contrast, traditional unsupervised motif discovery algorithms detect new shapes, while missing some patterns because the given information is not utilized. We propose a semi-supervised motif discovery algorithm that forms a nearest neighbor graph to identify chains of nearest neighbors from the given events. We demonstrate that the chains are likely to identify hidden patterns in the data. We have applied the method to find novel events in several geoscientific datasets more accurately than existing methods.
Journals
2019 EN
Zeinab Hosseini · Susan J. Whiting · Hassan Vatanparast.
Background. Nutrition is an important factor that impacts health, yet in Canada, there have been only a few surveys reflecting dietary intakes. The Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS) is a national survey that includes both food intake data as targeted questions and objective health measures. The aim of this research was to determine how food group intake data reported in CHMS is related to food group intakes from Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) (2004). A secondary objective was to examine the dietary status of Canadians across sociodemographic levels. Methods. The CHMS Cycles 1 and 2 food group intake data (meat and alternatives; milk products; grains; vegetables and fruits; dietary fat consumption; and beverages) of Canadians (6–79 years, n=11,387) were descriptively compared to previously reported intake of Canadians from CCHS 2.2 in 2004. Further, Canadians’ food intakes were assessed across sociodemographic characteristics. Results. The CHMS dietary intake data from vegetables and fruits and from milk products groups were similar to the dietary intake reported from CCHS 2.2. For the other food groups, the difference in intakes suggested CHMS data by FFQ were not complete. However, similar patterns in food intakes with regards to age/sex and income were observed in both surveys. Conclusion. Not all food groups measured in CHMS provide complete dietary intake data as compared to CCHS 2.2, yet CHMS food group intakes provide valuable information when it comes to evaluating dietary intake across different population groups.
Journals
2019 EN
Zeinab A. Kasemy · Ghada M. Kamel · Gaafar M. Abdel-Rasoul
+1 more
Objectives. To study environmental exposure to benzene as well as hematological effects of benzene exposure in taxi drivers. Background. Exposure to benzene has been associated with adverse health effects, including haematopoietic disorders. Methods. A retrospective cohort study was carried out from the beginning of April 2017, through the end of June 2018, on 280 taxi drivers (the exposed group) and 120 unexposed matched individuals (controls). The tools included a predesigned self-administered questionnaire which contained questions about personal data (e.g., age, educational level, and smoking) and exposure data (e.g., duration and nature of exposure). Investigations involved complete blood count. Environmental studies for light-chain aromatic hydrocarbons (BTEX components: benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene) were done. Results. Mean values (ppm) of ambient concentrations of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (0.81 ± 0.42, 26.69 ± 0.54, 29.36 ± 2.35, and 25.11 ± 2.06, respectively) in the stations were higher than international permissible levels (P<0.001). On studying the clinical manifestations during the last two weeks, the prevalence of pallor, dizziness, headache, waist and back pain, fatigue, dry throat, and discomfort was significantly higher in taxi drivers (27.1%, 24.3%, 21.4%, 28.6%, 45.7%, 24.3%, and 25.7%, respectively) than among the controls (6.7%, 4.2%, 6.7%, 10%, 10%, 6.7%, 6.7%, and 9.2%, respectively). For chronic diseases, hypertension was the most prevalent chronic disease among the drivers (17.1%) than the controls (5.8%) (P=0.002). Regarding self-assessment of health status, 20.0% of taxi drivers reported poor health while 31.4% reported very good health (P<0.001). MCH (pg), TLC (×103/μl), and platelets (×103/μl) were significantly lower among taxi drivers (26.33 ± 2.31, 6.55 ± 1.38, and 189.07 ± 53.25, respectively) (P=0.005, <0.001, and <0.001 respectively). Conclusion. Abnormal hematological findings among taxi drivers were found on exposure to benzene. Health of taxi drivers is generally affected. Setting a clinic for periodic checkup and health education for taxi drivers is highly recommended.
Journals
2019 EN
Zeinab Dabbous · Buthaina Alowainati · Sara Darwish
+6 more
Background. Muslims all over the world fast during the month of Ramadan from dawn until dusk. There is little data regarding the best timing of levothyroxine intake during the month of Ramadan where taking it on an empty stomach represents a challenge to most patients. Our study aims to compare two-time points of levothyroxine intake during Ramadan in terms of change in thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), compliance, and convenience. Study Design and Methods. This was an open-label, randomized, prospective trial. Adult patients known to have primary hypothyroidism with stable TSH for the last 6 months who intended to fast during the month of Ramadan were invited to participate in this prospective study. The study took place during Ramadan of H1438 (May-June 2017). All patients were randomly assigned to two groups. In group A (n= 50) patients took levothyroxine 30 minutes before breaking the fast at sunset (iftar), and in group B (n= 46) patients took it 30 minutes before an early morning meal before sunrise (suhour). Results. TSH levels increased in both group A (from 1.99 to 3.28 mIU/L) and group B (from 1.54 to 3.28 mIU/L) after Ramadan fasting. There was no difference between the two groups. Compliance with intake instructions, all of the time, was reported in 41.6% of group A and 35.7% of group B patients. In both the groups, 95% of patients said it was convenient for them to take the medication at the assigned time. Conclusion. Choosing an optimal time for levothyroxine intake during the month of Ramadan remains a challenge. The current study did not provide any evidence on ideal time and dose of levothyroxine administration during fasting to manage hypothyroidism. Studies with a larger number of patients need to be done to further explore this issue.
Journals
2019 EN
Zeinab Sharifi · Bassam Abdulkarim · Brian Meehan
+10 more
Glioblastoma (GBM) is a fatal primary malignant brain tumor. GBM stem cells (GSC) contribute to resistance to the DNA-damaging chemotherapy, temozolomide. The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) displays genomic alterations enabling DNA repair mechanisms in half of GBMs. We aimed to investigate EGFR/DNA combi-targeting in GBM.
American Association for Cancer Research
Journals
2019 EN
Abbasalizad Farhangi Mahdieh · Vajdi Mahdi · Nikniaz Leila
+1 more
Background: The vascular endothelial growth factor-A ( VEGFA ) family of cytokines regulates proliferation, angiogenesis, and migration of endothelial cells, increases vascular permeability, and controls thrombogenicity. Recent studies have suggested that the VEGFA gene plays an important role in the pathogenesis of metabolic syndrome and its related disorders. Dietary diversity score (DDS) has also been shown to have potential favorable effects against features of metabolic syndrome. This study examined the interactions between +405 VEGFA C/G (rs2010963) polymorphism and DDS on the metabolic and biochemical profile of metabolic syndrome. Therefore, in the current study, we aimed to evaluate the interaction between DDS and VEGFA rs2010963 gene polymorphisms in modification of metabolic risk factors including serum lipids, blood pressure, serum adiponectin, and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-3 concentrations in patients with metabolic syndrome. Methods and Materials: In the current cross-sectional study, 254 patients with metabolic syndrome were recruited. Measurements of blood pressure, anthropometric parameters, and dietary intakes were performed and the DDS was calculated. Biochemical variables including serum adiponectin concentrations, lipid profile, serum glucose, and MMP-3 concentrations were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method (ELISA) and enzymatic colorimetric methods. Determination of +405 C/G VEGFA gene polymorphisms was performed using the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) technique. Results: Patients in the lowest DDS quartile had higher insulin and homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), while patients in the highest DDS quartile had higher quantitative insulin check index (QUICKI; p < 0.05). Higher serum triglyceride and systolic blood pressure (SBP) values and lower serum adiponectin concentrations were also observed in lower DDS quartiles ( p < 0.05). Patients with the CC genotype in the VEGFA rs2010963 polymorphism had significantly higher body mass index (BMI), fasting blood glucose, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT; p < 0.05) compared to patients with the other 2 genotypes. In lower quartiles of DDS, 30% of patients with metabolic syndrome had the GG genotype, while 30.4 and 30.8% of patients with metabolic syndrome in higher DDS quartiles had GC and CC genotypes, respectively ( p = 0.04). Conclusion: Our study found lower insulin resistance, serum triglyceride, and SBP and higher adiponectin concentrations among patients with metabolic syndrome in highest quartiles of DDS. Moreover, patients with the CC genotype were more likely to have higher BMI, fasting blood glucose, AST, and ALT. This significant interaction gives a possible evidence of a VEGFA -DDS association that may be relevant to metabolic syndrome. Further studies are warranted to clarify the underlying mechanisms of these interactions.