• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• 제32권1호
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• pp.23-30
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• 2014

Purpose: The goal of this study is to determine whether the magnitude of overlap between planning target volume (PTV) and rectum ($Rectum_{overlap}$) or PTV and bladder ($Bladder_{overlap}$) in prostate cancer volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) is predictive of the dose-volume relationships achieved after optimization, and to identify predictive equations and cutoff values using these overlap volumes beyond which the Quantitative Analyses of Normal Tissue Effects in the Clinic (QUANTEC) dose-volume constraints are unlikely to be met. Materials and Methods: Fifty-seven patients with prostate cancer underwent VMAT planning using identical optimization conditions and normalization. The PTV (for the 50.4 Gy primary plan and 30.6 Gy boost plan) included 5 to 10 mm margins around the prostate and seminal vesicles. Pearson correlations, linear regression analyses, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to correlate the percentage overlap with dose-volume parameters. Results: The percentage $Rectum_{overlap}$ and $Bladder_{overlap}$ correlated with sparing of that organ but minimally impacted other dose-volume parameters, predicted the primary plan rectum $V_{45}$ and bladder $V_{50}$ with $R^2$ = 0.78 and $R^2$ = 0.83, respectively, and predicted the boost plan rectum $V_{30}$ and bladder $V_{30}$ with $R^2$ = 0.53 and $R^2$ = 0.81, respectively. The optimal cutoff value of boost $Rectum_{overlap}$ to predict rectum $V_{75}$ >15% was 3.5% (sensitivity 100%, specificity 94%, p < 0.01), and the optimal cutoff value of boost $Bladder_{overlap}$ to predict bladder $V_{80}$ >10% was 5.0% (sensitivity 83%, specificity 100%, p < 0.01). Conclusion: The degree of overlap between PTV and bladder or rectum can be used to accurately guide physicians on the use of interventions to limit the extent of the overlap region prior to optimization.

• 전자공학회논문지
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• 제54권8호
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• pp.26-33
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• 2017

차량통신은 도로 위 차량들 간의 효율적인 조정을 가능하게 할 수 있을 뿐만 아니라, 더 나아가 미래 차량의 어플리케이션으로 차량 안전, 인포테인먼트 그리고 자율 주행까지도 다룰 수 있다. 3GPP(3rd Generation Partnership Project)에서는 LTE(Long Term Evolution) 기반 차량 통신에 대한 표준화 연구가 활발히 진행되고 있다. 차량 통신은 안전과 밀접한 관련이 있기 때문에, 낮은 지연과 높은 신뢰성을 필요로 한다. 하지만 차량의 빠른 이동성으로 인해 V2V(Vehicle-to-Vehicle) 환경은 채널 왜곡이 매우 심하며, 높은 신뢰성의 차량 통신을 위해서 채널 추정이 매우 중요한 요소임을 알 수 있다. 이를 위해 본 논문에서는 LTE 기반 V2V 환경에서 채널 추정 기법을 제안한다. LTE 기반 업링크 시스템에서 채널 추정은 파일럿 심볼인 DMRS(DeModulation Reference Signal)를 이용한다. 기존 채널 추정 기법으로는 LS(Least Square), DDCE(Decision Directed Channel Estimation), STA(Spectral Temporal Averaging), 그리고 Smoothing이 있다. 본 논문에서는 기존의 채널 추정 기법들과 달리 파일럿 심볼에서 QS(Quadratic Smoothing)를 이용해 보다도 정확한 채널을 추정하며, 데이터 심볼에서 적응적으로 채널을 추정하는 ASCE(Adaptive Smoothing Channel Estimation) 기법을 제안한다. 모의실험 결과, 제안한 ASCE 기법이 NMSE(Normalized Mean Square Error)와 BER(Bit Error Rate) 측면에서 전체적으로 성능이 향상 된 것을 볼 수 있다.

• 전자공학회논문지
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• 제54권8호
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• pp.34-41
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• 2017

V2I(Vehicle to Infrastructure) 통신은 ITS(Intelligent Transportation Systems)와 텔레매틱스 서비스를 제공하기 위한 차량과 노변 기지국간 통신 기술을 말한다. 차량은 Probe data를 기지국을 통하여 수집하며, 기지국은 도로 상태나 교통 정보를 차량에 제공한다. 이러한 V2I 통신 서비스를 제공하기 위해서는 신뢰성 있으며 높은 전송률을 달성할 수 있는 링크 적응 기법이 필요하다. 수신단은 추정한 CSI(Channel State Information)를 송신단으로 피드백하며 송신단은 이 정보를 이용하여 링크 적응을 한다. 그러나 차량 속도에 의한 채널의 빠른 변화와 계층 간 처리 지연 시간으로 인해 추정한 CSI는 outdated되게 된다. 이를 위해, V2I 통신 시스템에서 링크 적응을 위한 채널 보간과 예측 기법이 필요하다. 본 논문에서는 ADPSS(Advanced Discrete Prolate Spheroidal Sequence) 채널 보간과 예측 기법을 제안한다. 제안한 기법은 정규 직교 기저를 만들고 상관 행렬을 이용하여 채널 보간과 예측을 한다. 또한, 주파수 도메인에서 잡음 제거를 위해 스무딩을 한다. 모의실험 결과, 기존 기법과 비교했을 때 제안한 기법이 차량의 높은 속도와 낮은 속도를 가지는 고속도로와 도심지에서 성능이 향상된 것을 볼 수 있다.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• 제32권3호
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• pp.201-208
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• 2016

The main areas for field-grown vegetable production in Iran were surveyed during the years of 2012-2014 to determine the occurrence of begomoviruses infecting these crops. A total of 787 leaf samples were collected from vegetables and some other host plants showing virus-like symptoms and tested by an enzymelinked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using polyclonal antibodies produced against Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV). According to the ELISA results, 81 samples (10.3%) positively reacted with the virus antibodies. Begomovirus infections were confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using previously described TYLCV-specific primer pair TYLCV-Sar/TYLCV-Isr or universal primer pair Begomo-F/Begomo-R. The PCR tests using the primer pair TYLCV-Sar/TYLCV-Isr resulted in the amplification of the expected fragments of ca. 0.67-kb in size for ELISA-positive samples tested from alfalfa, pepper, spinach and tomato plants, confirming the presence of TYLCV. For one melon sample, having a week reaction in ELISA and no reaction in PCR using TYLCV-specific primers, the PCR reaction using the primer pair Begomo-F/Begomo-R resulted in the amplification fragments of the expected size of ca. 2.8 kb. The nucleotide sequences of the DNA amplicons derived from the isolate, Kz-Me198, were determined and compared with other sequences available in GenBank. BLASTN analysis confirmed the begomovirus infection of the sample and showed 99% identities with Tomato leaf curl New Delhi virus (ToLCNDV); phylogenetic analysis supported the results of the database searches. This study reports the natural occurrence of TYLCV in different hosts in Iran. Our results also reveal the emergence of ToLCNDV in Iranian cucurbit crops.

• 전자공학회논문지
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• 제53권10호
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• pp.15-23
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• 2016

V2X(Vehicle-to-Everything) 통신은 다양한 텔레매틱스(telematics)와 인포테인먼트(infotainment) 서비스를 제공하기 위해 신뢰성이 있으며 견고한 네트워크가 요구된다. 이를 위해, 현재 3GPP(3rd Generation Partnership Project)에서는 V2X 통신에 대한 표준화를 진행하고 있다. 신뢰성 있는 통신을 위해서는, 정확한 채널 추정이 우선적으로 이루어져야 한다. 그러나 차량은 속도가 매우 빠르기 때문에 시간에 따라 무선 채널이 빠르게 변하므로 채널을 정확히 추정하기 힘들다. 본 논문에서는 V2V(Vehicle-to-Vehicle) 환경에서 LTE(Long Term Evolution) 기반 사이드링크 시스템의 새로운 LMMSE(Linear Minimum Mean Square Error) 채널 보간 기법을 제안한다. 제안한 기법인 RDE(Reduced Decision Error)는 파일럿 심볼에서 LMMSE를 이용하여 채널 추정을 하고, 데이터 심볼에서 Smoothing 후 LMMSE 채널 보간 기법을 적용한다. 이후 시간영역과 주파수영역에서 평균을 취하여 전체 채널 주파수 응답을 얻어낼 수 있다. 이때, 수신단의 등화기로 LMMSE를 이용하여 결정 오차에 의한 오차 전파를 줄일 수 있다. 그러므로, 신뢰성 있는 데이터 검출이 가능하다. 모의실험 결과, 제안한 기법이 NMSE(Normalized Mean Square Error)와 BER(Bit Error Rate) 측면에서 기존 기법보다 전체적으로 성능이 향상된 것을 볼 수 있다.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제13권7호
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• pp.3373-3378
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• 2012

Background: Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is the 8th most common cancer worldwide. Although older age, male gender, smoking and alcohol consumption are known risk factors, an increasing number of HNSCC patients are without typical risk factors. Our aim was to define demographics of HNSCC in Iran and the potential risk factors related to Iranian ethnicity and lifestyle. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional analytical study on 262 patients with primary SCC of the larynx, hypopharynx or tongue referred to our pathology department during 1995-2010. Patients' demographics, tumor characteristics and risk factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption and anemia were analyzed and compared in two groups of patients: over 40 years (older group) and 40 years or less (young group); Chi-square and Mann-Whitney analytical tests were employed. Results: 5.7% of patients were young adults. The male to female ratio was 1.5 in the younger group and 5.6 in the older group. In young adults, 40% of tumors were located in larynx and 40% in the tongue. Age >40 was significantly associated with laryngeal location (P<0.001). History of smoking and drinking was significantly associated with age >40 and SCC of larynx in both age groups. Cervical lymph node involvement was significantly correlated with SCC of tongue (P<0.001), however, considering young adults only, SCC of hypopharynx was most frequently accompanied by lymph node involvement (60%). The most prevalent tumor among men was SCC of larynx whereas SCC of hypopharynx was the most prevalent tumor among women (61%), of whom 18.2% were ${\leq}40$. Conclusions: The incidence of HNSCC among young adults seems to be higher in Iran compared to other countries. Reduction in exposure to known risk factors, especially tobacco smoking in forms of cigarettes and bubble pipes, and search for other causative agents of HNSCC in young population is recommended.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제14권8호
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• pp.4559-4565
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• 2013

Background: Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) is involved in DNA synthesis and repair. We here aimed to investigate two common polymorphisms, C677T and A1298C, with genotype and haplotype frequencies in colorectal cancer (CRC) cases among Jordanian. Materials and Methods: 131 CRC cases were studied for MTHFR C677T and A1298C polymorphisms, compared to 117 controls taken from the general population, employing the PCR-RFLP technique. Results: We found the frequency of the three different genotypes of MTHFR C677T among Jordanians to be CC: 61.7%, CT: 35.2%, and TT 3.1% among CRC cases and 50.9%, 38.8% and 10.3% among controls. Carriers of the TT genotype were less likely to have CRC (OR=0.25; 95%CI: 0.076-0.811; p=0.021) as compared to those with the CC genotype. Genotype analysis of MTHFR A12987C revealed AA: 38.9%, AC: 45%, and CC 16% among CRC cases and 37.4%, 50.4% and 12.2% among controls. There was no significant association between genetic polymorphism at this site and CRC. Haplotype analysis of MTHFR polymorphism at the two loci showed differential distribution of the TA haplotype (677T-1298A) between cases and controls. The TA haplotype was associated with a decreased risk for colorectal cancer (OR=0.6; 95% CI: 0.4-0.9, p=0.03). Conclusions: The genetic polymorphism of MTHFR at 677 and the TA haplotype may modulate the risk for CRC development among the Jordanian population. Our findings may reflect an importance of genes involved in folate metabolism in cancer risk.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제17권sup3호
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• pp.81-85
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• 2016

Globally, the burden of breast cancer (BC) continues to increase. BC related lymphedema (BCRL) is currently non curable and as a life time risk it affects at least 25% of BC patients. Knowing more about BCRL and appropriate control of its modifiable risk factors can improve quality of life (QOL) of the affected patients. In this case control study to detect factors, 400 women with BCRL (as the case group) and 283 patients with BC without lymphedema (as the control group) that were referred to Shiraz University of Medical Sciences affiliated BC clinic center were assessed. The data were analyzed in SPSS. The mean age of the case group was $52.3{\pm}11.0years$ and of the control group was $50.1{\pm}10.9years$. In patients with BCRL, 203(50.7%) had left (Lt) side BC and in non- lymphedema group 151 (53.3%) had Lt side BC. Out of all BCRL patients, 204 (51%) had lymphedema in all parts of their affected upper extremities, 100 (25%) had swelling in the arm and forearm and 23 (5.7%) had edema in both the upper extremity and trunk. Edema, heaviness, concern about changing body image, pain and paresthesia were the most common signs/symptoms among patients with BCRL. In BCRL patients, the difference of circumference between the affected upper limb and non-affected limb was $4.4{\pm}2.5cm$ and the difference in volume displacement was $528.7{\pm}374.4milliliters$. Multiple variable analysis showed that moderate to severe activity (OR; odds ratio =14, 95% CI :2.6-73.3), invasiveness of BC (OR =13.7, 95% CI :7.3-25.6), modified radical mastectomy (OR=4.3, 95% CI :2.3-7.9), BMI =>25 (OR=4.2, 95% CI :2-8.7), radiotherapy (OR=3.9, 95% CI :1.8-8.2), past history of limb damage (OR=1.7, 95% CI :0.9-3.1) and the number of excised lymph nodes (OR=1.06, 95% CI :1.02-1.09) were the significant predictors of lymphedema in women with BC. Modifiable risk factors of BCRL such as non-guided moderate to severe physical activity, high BMI and trauma to the limb should be controlled as early as possible in BC patients to prevent development of BCRL and improve QOL of these patients.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제15권2호
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• pp.691-694
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• 2014

Background: Tumor length in patients with esophageal cancer (EC) has recently received great attention. However, its prognostic role for EC is controversial. The purpose of our study was to characterize the prognostic value of tumor length in EC patients and offer the optimum cut-off point of tumor length by reliable statistical methods. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 71 consecutive patients with EC who underwent surgery. ROC curve analysis was used to determine the optimal cut-off point for tumor length, measured with a handheld ruler after formalin fixation. Correlations between tumor length and other factors were surveyed, and overall survival (OS) rates were compared between the two groups. Potential prognostic factors were evaluated by univariate Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. A P value less than 0.05 was considered significant. Results: There were a total of 71 patients, with a male/female divide of 43/28 and a median age of 59. Characteristics were as follows: squamous/adenocarcinoma, 65/6; median tumor length, 4 (0.9-10); cut-off point for tumor length, 4cm. Univariate analysis prognostic factors were tumor length and modality of therapy. One, three and five year OS rates were 84, 43 and 43% for tumors with ${\leq}4cm$ length, whereas the rates were 75, 9 and 0% for tumors >4 cm. There was a significant association between tumor length and age, sex, weight loss, tumor site, histology, T and N scores, differentiation, stage, modality of therapy and longitudinal margin involvement. Conclusions: Future studies for modification of the EC staging system might consider tumor length too as it is an important prognostic factor. Further assessment with larger prospective datasets and practical methods (such as endoscopy) is needed to establish an optimal cut-off point for tumor length.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제58권1호
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• pp.93-97
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• 2020

The cestode Taenia hydatigena uses canids, primarily dogs, as definitive hosts, while the metacestode larval stage cysticercus infects a range of intermediate hosts, including domestic animals such as goats, sheep, and pigs. Cysticercosis due to T. hydatigena has large veterinary and economic drawbacks. Like other taeniids, e.g., Echinococcus, intraspecific variation is found among the members of the genus Taenia. In Africa, few studies are available on the epidemiology and distribution of T. hydatigena, and even fewer studies are available on its genetic variation. In this study, we molecularly identified 11 cysticerci from sheep in Sudan and demonstrated the genetic variation based on the NADH dehydrogenase subunit 1 (nad1) and cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) mitochondrial genes. The isolates were correctly identified as T. hydatigena with more than 99% similarity to those in the GenBank database. Low diversity indices and insignificant neutrality indices were observed, with 3 and 2 haplotypes for the nad1 and cox1 genes, respectively. The results suggest the presence of unique T. hydatigena haplotypes in Sudan, as haplotypes with 100% similarity were not found in the GenBank database. With few available studies on the genetic variation of T. hydatigena in Africa, this report represents the first insights into the genetic variation of T. hydatigena in Sudan and constitutes useful data.