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Aims: This study aimed to assess the impact of Benson's Relaxation Technique on psychological distress and sleep quality among older people during COVID 19 pandemic.
Methods: A quasi-experimental research design was used. To achieve the aim of this study, 95 elders were recruited randomly as follows; 50 from the Geriatric social club in Zagazig City, 20 from El-Resala geriatric house in Zagazig City, and 25 from geriatric home in Met Ghamr City. Three tools were utilized for data collection, namely, the Interview questionnaire sheet, Depression Anxiety Stress Scales for measuring depression, anxiety as well as stress, and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index for measuring sleep quality. By SPSS 20.0 and using Wilcoxon signed-rank test, Chi-square test, and Spearman correlation coefficient all data were analyzed.
Findings: More than three-quarters of the participants had chronic diseases. The majority had unsatisfactory knowledge about Benson's Relaxation Technique during the pre-intervention phase. Two-thirds of elders had severe depression levels; slightly less than two-thirds had severe anxiety, and about three-quarters had severe stress in the pre-intervention phase with a statistically significant reduction post-intervention phase. The majority had poor sleep quality (97.9%) in the pre-intervention phase, which decreased in the post-intervention phase to 50.5%.
Conclusion: This study concluded that Benson's Relaxation Technique has a great effect on psychological distress and sleep quality of elderly people. Gero-psychiatric nurses should encourage elderly people to apply BRT to the enhancement of their psychological well-being.
 

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Because of the importance of osmoregulation in success of the juvenile Caspian Roach (Rutilus caspicus) release, maintenance and their restoration, this study was performed with the aim of the evaluation of these fish (average weight of 1.4 g± 0.018 g) to the salinity tolerance of the Caspian Sea by abrupt and gradual transfer methods on two different occasions of short-term (24 hours) and long-term (21 days). For this reason, 360 juvenile roaches were distributed to 9 different experimental treatments (each of them with 3 replicates) with 1) increased abrupt salinity (direct transfer to the Caspian Sea water), 2) increased gradual salinity (3 ppt for every 24 hrs) and 3) the Control group (freshwater). In order to evaluate the ion regulation, osmolality, Na⁺, K⁺ and Cl^- were measured in fish. Some immune responses related to the increased salinity (immunoglobulin and lysozyme) and stress indices (cortisol and glucose) were also measured. Based on the obtained results, the fish in both treatments of increased salinity showed high percentage of survival. All parameters related to ion regulation were decreased after a primary increase. Furthermore, the trend of cortisol and immunoglobulin changes were negatively correlated showing decreased stress response and increased immune system for both salinity transfer methods. Thus, the roach juveniles (1-2 g) are able to be transferred into the Caspian Sea directly.

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Production of drought tolerant crop is an important strategy for avoiding water scarce crisis. Improvement of the root structure leading to the higher yield and seed quality. In this study, three genes affecting root structure, drought tolerance and phosphorous absorbance are used in producing hybrid constructs used for the rice transformation. Three genes: a serine/threonine protein kinase (PSTOL1), a gene from the cytokinin oxidase/dehydrogenase family (OsCKX4) and a transcription factor induced under stress from the NAM-ATAF-CUC family (OsNAC5) isolated from the rice wild cultivars are cloned under  separate regulatory elements in the T-DNA region of the Agrobacterium binary vector. OsNAC5 gene was cloned under RCc3 root specific promoter and PSTOL1 gene under ubiquitin promoter. Also, OsCKX4 gene was cloned once under ubiquitin promoter and once under RCc3 promoter. Two hybrid multi-gene constructs named pUhrN5CkPstol and pUhrCkPstol harboring multiple genes are synthetized and used for the gene transformation into the Hashemi cultivar. Gene transfer was done to callus obtained from mature rice seeds. Transgenic plants were confirmed using PCR analysis. From the number of 107 regenerated plants in which the presence of transgenes was proved, 14 transgenic events were finally obtained. Root structure of the T0 plants showed drastic phenotypic difference in comparison to the non-transgenic ones. By now, one transgenic event harboring CKX4 and PSTOL1 is confirmed to have a homozygous line in T2 generation. It is hoped that genetic engineering of rice for enhanced root structure lead to drought tolerance, reduce water consumption and improve yield under stress conditions.
 

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In the present study, the effects of different cadmium (Cd) levels of irrigation water (0, 5, 10 and 20 mg L^-1) on corn plants (foliage) under different irrigation intervals (1, 3, and 7 days) were investigated. Clear Cd toxicity symptoms appeared on the plants at the end of the experiment. The results showed that stem dry weight (DW) followed by transpiration (T) and plant height were the measured plant parameters most sensitive to increasing Cd levels of irrigation water. In addition, Cd reduced water uptake by corn and led to more soil moisture. The results also demonstrated that corn might produce more shoot biomass with Cd application, which should be taken into consideration if no visible symptoms of Cd toxicity and considerable amounts of the metal uptake are present. Cadmium application through irrigation did not show a marked impairment in the nutrient status of the plants. Moreover, accumulation of Cd in the leaves was more than the stems by 24, 56, and 27% at 1, 3, and 7-day irrigation frequencies, respectively. Also, corn stem was found to be more sensitive to Cd than leaf. The results showed that corn might be used for phytoremediation of Cd under optimum moisture conditions and light contamination of the soil. Furthermore, shoot Cd concentration followed an asymptote pattern as a function of soil Cd, which was expressed by a plateau-type model under each irrigation interval.

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Geological hazard and the lack of appropriate survey, design and construction instruments, have always made the design and construction of underground works a risky affair, which could not therefore be faced with the same degree of accuracy as other civil engineering works. As a consequence a larger safety factor should always be considered for underground works compared to similar surface constructions. During excavation of a tunnel and by the opening a cavity the flow lines of stress field in a rock mass are deviated and are channelled around it to create a zone of increased stress around the walls of the excavation. The channelling of the flow stresses around the cavity is termed an arch effect. The arch effect ensures that the cavity is stable and will last over time. Depending on the size of stresses created and the strength and deformation properties of the ground, channelling can be produced in three states: 1- close to the profile of excavation, when the ground around the cavity withstands the deviated stress flow around the cavity well, responding elastically in terms of strength and deformation. 2- far from the profile of the excavation, when the ground around the cavity is unable to withstand the deviated stress flow and responds an elastically-plasticising and arch effect formes far from walls of the excavation. 3- channelling doesn’t produce at all, when the ground around the cavity is unable to withstand the deviated stress flow and responds in the failure range producing the collapse of the cavity. That’s how arch effect determines that the cavity is stable for short or long time or it is not stable at all. Therefore tunneling, especially in soft ground, should always be observed since it is always at risk of falling during excavation and the ground geotechnical properties must be studied beforehand. The gradual reduction of horizontal stress from the tunnel face during the excavation process leads to the formation of deformities on the ground surrounded tunnel. Face Extrusion is the first response of environment to the excavation process. This phenomenon depends on the resistance and properties of the advance core, as well as the main stress area exposed to it. Extrusion appears on tunnel face and along the longitudinal axis of the tunnel and it’s geometry could be symmetric or unsymmetric. In the present study with the help of 3D modeling a part of the Tehran Metro Line 7 tunnel (the selected part for modeling locates in (0 + 900 to 0 + 1000 meters from the beginning of the southeast of line 7), the relationship between the stresses of the tunnel face and its extrusions are investigated and the results are presented in the form of confinement stress-extrusion curve or “tunnel characteristic curve”. In the following, the characteristic curve is plotted under unidimensional axes and it is observed that these non-dimensional curves are placed on each other under special conditions for different tunnels. These conditions are also given at the end. All modellings are done in Flac 3D software.

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This study was conducted in field conditions to determine the response of cabbage to four different irrigation levels, from 2015 to 2016. The experiment was laid out in randomized block design. Plots were irrigated using a drip irrigation system and the irrigation interval was fixed as 4 days for all treatments. Evaporation was determined by Class-A pan. Six organic acids (ascorbic, tartaric, lactic, citric, malic and oxalic) were identified and quantified by HPLC-UV. White cabbage yields were significantly increased by water applications, but deficit irrigation produced negative results. Maximum amounts of ascorbic, lactic, tartaric and malic acids were found in the low water content treatment, while reducing sugar and total sugar increased in the full irrigation treatment. In the study, supplying different amounts of irrigation water caused changes in the growth and quality of white cabbage (Brassica oleracea L.cv. Capitata). When water stress in cabbage production exceeded more than 30%, the yield and, especially, the quality of cabbage decreased significantly. The results revealed evidence that different soil moisture content in the root depth affected the yield, organic acids, and sugar content.
 

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The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the immunostimulant Immunobeta^® on egg production and oxidative stress parameters, influenced by the environmental conditions in free range laying hens. A total of 81 laying hens and 9 cocks (Tetra Super Harco) were divided into three groups: group 1 (control) without supplementation; group 2 with 0.2%, and group 3 with 0.4% Immunobeta^® as a dietary supplement. The laying period (19-55 weeks of age) was divided into three sub-periods depending on the ambient temperature – cold (from November to March 2015, from 19 to 37 weeks of age), thermoneutral (April and May 2016, from 38 to 46 weeks of age) and hot period (June and July 2016, from 47 to 55 weeks of age). Immunobeta^® supplementation dose dependently improved the average egg production and mean egg weight, and in 0.4% dose treatment significantly reduced the feed conversion ratio for the entire laying period. Immunobeta® supplementation influenced the blood oxidative stress parameters, decreasing significantly the lipid peroxidation level during the cold period, increasing the glutathione level in hens supplemented with 0.4% dose in all periods, regulating the catalase activity during the hot period, and increasing glutathione peroxidase activity during the thermoneutral and hot periods. In conclusion, addition of Immunobeta^® to the diet reduced the oxidative stress induced by thermal stress and enhanced the performance of free range laying hens.
 

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This experiment was conducted in order to determine the hydrodynamic performance of a Triangular Winged Bandal-Like (TWBL) structure, which is a combination of the Bandal-Like (BL) structure and Triangular Vane (TV). For the purposes of this study, the JFE ALEC magnetic velocity meter was used to measure the three components of flow velocity under non-submerged hydraulic conditions at a Froude number of 0.24. The three considered cases for this measurement were the non-structured case and the BL and TWBLs. The results showed that the flow deviation occurred through the impermeable upper part of both structures towards the middle of the channel. At downstream of both structures, bubbling flows were caused by the collision of upward flows with the near-surface flow, causing disturbances in the latter. Both the BL and the TWBL structure reduced the secondary flow strength along the bend within the structure range. Compared to the BL structure, the TWBL structure reduced the secondary flow strength by about 20%, which indicates the weaker inclination of the secondary flow toward the outer bank in the TWBL structure. The relative maximum shear stress in the TWBL structure is on average 17% lower than that of the BL structure.

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To study salinity tolerance of 15 basil accessions widely distributed across Iran, they were grown under two salt levels including control (no NaCl) and 40 mM NaCl (Hoagland nutrient solutions with EC of 1.1 and 5.5 dS m^-1, respectively). The studied parameters included morphological characteristics and chlorophyll a fluorescence transient (OJIP) measurements. According to the results, the accessions were categorized into three clusters under the salt stress. Salinity had significant effects on morphological and growth parameters in all basil plants. Compared to the control, NaCl decreased plant height. The number of leaves in Khash, Zabol, and Orumiyeh accessions was more than the others. Both salt and accession caused a decrease up to 43% in leaf fresh weight, emphasizing the major role of accession when salinity was applied. Salinity influenced negatively the biomass yield in basil plants. These decreases varied from 19 to 45% depending on the accessions. Salt treatment of basil plants decreased photosystem II activity, as evaluated from chlorophyll fluorescence data. The parameters that were most affected by salt treatment were maximal quantum yield of PSII photochemistry (F_V/F_M) and calculated Performance Index (PI_ABS). Overall, among the studied basil accessions, genotype Ardabil had superior tolerance to salt stress. Furthermore, the most of accessions can be used for studying the mechanism of salinity tolerance in basil plant.  

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Salt stress, as the most important abiotic stress, limits growth of plants and causes extensive damage to agricultural production worldwide. Therefore, it is necessary to identify genes that play a key role in tolerance to salt stress in plants through the analysis of transcriptome data such as microarray and High-Throughput Sequencing (HTS or NGS). In the present research, the combined analysis of microarray data by R packages for Hordeum vulgare L. under salinity stress identified 685 upregulated meta-DEGs (differentially expressed genes) and 766 downregulated meta-DEGs. The upregulated genes mostly belong to abiotic stress tolerance and hormone biosynthesis, and the downregulated genes pertain to late embryogenesis abundant protein and salinity stress response. GO terms in the upregulated genes are mostly associated with response to external and internal stresses; and in the downregulated genes, they are mostly associated with cellular metabolism. In the up and down meta-DEGs by KEGG, most of the genes connected to salinity stress included PP2C, ABF, AGT, and ChiB and F-box connected to the downregulated genes. Moreover, Transcription Factors (TFs) in the up and downregulated meta-DEGs with high frequency included AP2, ERF, bZIP, and bHLH. Most of the hub upregulated genes acquired from this research were metabolite biosynthesis and photosynthesis-related; and the hub downregulated genes were mainly the tricarboxylic acid cycle and glycolysis processes-related. Finally, a comparison was made between this meta-analysis and data obtained from other investigations. The findings validated their up and down expression. Our results give a new understanding about the molecular mechanism and present many TFs and candidate genes for salt stress tolerance in barley breeding programs.