Mehmet Akif Ersoy University

To the best of our knowledge, no research has been conducted to test the effects of SA on ram semen freezing within the scope of natural antioxidants added to semen extenders. Therefore, this study had two main objectives. First, to test whether adding SA to ram semen freezing extender has a protective effect and contributes positively to sperm kinetic, plasma and acrosome integrity, mitochondrial membrane potential, lipid peroxidation, oxidant and antioxidant and DNA damage parameters after thawing. Secondly, it was to determine at what concentration the SA supplemented to the extender could be applied by in vitro studies by preserving the fertilization ability of frozen semen at the highest level. In the study, 6 individuals of Sönmez rams were used. The semen was collected from the rams using an artificial vagina and pooled. The pooled semen was divided into 5 different groups and extended with 0, 0.5, 1, 2, and 4mM SA (control C, SA0.5, SA1, SA2, and SA4, respectively). After dilution, the semen samples were kept at 4°C for 3 h, then loaded into 0.25 mL straws and frozen in liquid nitrogen vapor. SA1 and SA2 groups were higher plasma membrane and acrosome integrity (PMAI), high mitochondrial membrane potential (HMMP), plasma membrane integrity and motility compared to other groups (p<0.05). It was observed that SA supplemented to the Tris extender significantly reduced DNA damage, and the lowest values were obtained especially in the SA1 and SA2 treatments (p<0.05). Also, lowest MDA level was determined at the SA1 and this was statistically significant compared to SA4 and C (p<0.05). In conclusion, it was revealed that SA added to Tris semen extender at 1 and 2 mM treatment doses increased progressive and total motility and preserved PMAI, plasma membrane integrity, HMMP, and DNA integrity.

This study investigates the effect of financial development and economic growth on ecological footprint by including non-renewable energy consumption and trade openness as additional determinants. For this purpose, annual data of 10 countries with the highest ecological footprint (China, the USA, India, Japan, Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico, Korea, Turkey, and the UK) for the period 1992-2017 is used. The Westerlund and Edgerton (2007) Panel LM bootstrap test results reveal that there is cointegration between the variables. Additionally, the results obtained from the Common Correlated Effects (CCE) coefficient estimator show that financial development, economic growth, and non-renewable energy consumption negatively affect environmental quality by increasing ecological footprint. On other hand, the effect of trade openness on ecological footprint is found to be statistically insignificant. In addition, according to the panel causality test results, a unidirectional causality from financial development to ecological footprint is found while bidirectional causality between economic growth and ecological footprint exists. Therefore, it would be beneficial for policymakers in such countries to direct financial resources to green energy production and consumption and to encourage projects and practices.

Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) is often used to increase muscle strength and functionality. Muscle architecture is important for the skeletal muscle functionality. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of NMES applied at different muscle lengths on skeletal muscle architecture. Twenty-four rats were randomly assigned to four groups (two NMES groups and two control groups). NMES was applied on the extensor digitorum longus muscle at long muscle length, which is the longest and stretched position of the muscle at 170° plantar flexion, and at medium muscle length, which is the length of the muscle at 90° plantar flexion. A control group was created for each NMES group. NMES was applied for 8 weeks, 10 min/day, 3 days/week. After 8 weeks, muscle samples were removed at the NMES intervention lengths and examined macroscopically, and microscopically using a transmission electron microscope and streo-microscope. Muscle damage, and architectural properties of the muscle including pennation angle, fibre length, muscle length, muscle mass, physiological cross-sectional area, fibre length/muscle length, sarcomere length, sarcomere number were then evaluated. There was an increase in fibre length and sarcomere number, and a decrease in pennation angle at both lengths. In the long muscle length group, muscle length was increased, but widespread muscle damage was observed. These results suggest that the intervention of NMES at long muscle length can increase the muscle length but also causes muscle damage. In addition, the greater longitudinal increase in muscle length may be a result of the continuous degeneration-regeneration cycle.

In order to get more effective results from natural and synthetic drugs used in cancer treatment, studies on solutions that will increase the bioavailability of these drugs in the cancerous region are very important. Mesoporous organosilica nanoparticles are one of the prominent among these solutions. Especially if mesoporous organosilica structures are designed in accordance with the drug to be transported, they can provide very important advantages. In this study, the synthesis and characterization of pH-responsive mesoporous organosilica nanocarrier functionalized with 2-aminothiophenol (MON-B) was carried out for more efficient transport and controlled release of natural hydrophobic curcumin. Characterization of monosilyl organic compound 1 was performed ¹H and ¹³C NMR, FT-IR and MS while TGA, BET, XRD, FT-IR and SEM–EDS analyses were used to characterize mesoporous organosilica nanocarrier MON-B. The amount of curcumin loaded into the nanocarrier MON-B was calculated as 22% (EE) according to the measurements in UV–Vis spectrophotometer. In vitro drug release studies of curcumin-loaded MON-B at pH 7.4 resulted in 1% curcumin release after 368 h while the release of curcumin was recorded as 33% at pH 4.5 in the same period. These results show that MON-B can transport hydrophobic curcumin at physiological pH without leakage and provide pH-controlled and prolonged release of curcumin through its acid-labile C=N bond.

The study assessed the occurrence and distribution of microbial community and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in food waste, anaerobic digestate, and paddy soil samples, and revealed the potential hosts of ARGs and factors influencing their distribution. A total of 24 bacterial phyla were identified, of which 16 were shared by all samples, with Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, and Proteobacteria accounting for 65.9-92.3 % of the total bacterial community. Firmicutes was the most abundant bacteria in food waste and digestate samples, accounting for 33-83 % of the total microbial community. However, in paddy soil samples with digestate, Proteobacteria had the highest relative abundance of 38-60 %. Further, 22 ARGs were detected in food waste and digestate samples, with multidrug, macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin (MLS), bacitracin, aminoglycoside, tetracycline, vancomycin, sulfonamide, and rifamycin resistance genes being the most abundant and shared by all samples. The highest total relative abundance of ARGs in food waste, digestate, and soil without and with digestate was detected in samples from January 2020, May 2020, October 2019, and May 2020, respectively. The MLS, vancomycin, tetracycline, aminoglycoside, and sulfonamide resistance genes had higher relative abundance in food waste and anaerobic digestate samples, whereas multidrug, bacteriocin, quinolone, and rifampin resistance genes were more abundant in paddy soil samples. Redundancy analysis demonstrated that aminoglycoside, tetracycline, sulfonamide, and rifamycin resistance genes were positively correlated with total ammonia nitrogen and pH of food waste and digestate samples. Vancomycin, multidrug, bacitracin, and fosmidomycin resistance genes had positive correlations with potassium, moisture, and organic matter in soil samples. The co-occurrence of ARG subtypes with bacterial genera was investigated using network analysis. Actinobacteria, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Acidobacteria were identified as potential hosts of multidrug resistance genes.

Background: This study aimed to compare the sedative and cardiopulmonary effects of intranasal (IN) administration of dexmedetomidine-butorphanol (DB) and midazolam-butorphanol (MB) combinations in New Zealand white rabbits. Methods: Eight New Zealand white rabbits were sedated by IN administration of a combination of 0.1 mg/kg dexmedetomidine and 0.4 mg/kg butorphanol (DB treatment) and 2 mg/kg midazolam and 0.4 mg/kg butorphanol (MB treatment). The electrocardiogram, pulse rate (PR), respiratory frequency (fR ), arterial haemoglobin oxygen saturation (SpO2 ), fraction of expired carbon dioxide (EtCO2 ), rectal temperature (RT), noninvasive mean arterial pressure (MAP), noninvasive systolic arterial pressure (SAP) and diastolic arterial pressure (DAP) were recorded. The onset of sedation, duration of sedation and sedation score (SS) were also noted. Results: There were no significant differences in the EtCO2 , RT, MAP, SAP and DAP measurements between treatments. The PR significantly decreased in DB compared with MB over time (p = 0.001). Compared with baseline, SpO2 decreased over time in both treatments. The SS was significantly elevated over time in DB compared with MB (p = 0.002). Limitations: No pharmacokinetic information was available for either treatment, so the findings should be interpreted cautiously. Conclusions: IN DB provides more effective sedation than MB, but cardiopulmonary impairment was observed in both treatments.

Background/objectives: Thiamine plays a pivotal role in energy metabolism. The aim of the study was to determine serial whole blood TPP concentrations in critically ill patients receiving chronic diuretic treatment before ICU admission and to correlate TPP levels with clinically determined serum phosphorus concentrations. Subjects/methods: This observational study was performed in 15 medical ICUs. Serial whole blood TPP concentrations were measured by HPLC at baseline and at days 2, 5 and 10 after ICU admission. Results: A total of 221 participants were included. Of these, 18% demonstrated low TPP concentrations upon admission to the ICU, while 26% of participants demonstrated low levels at some point during the 10-day study period. Hypophosphatemia was detected in 30% of participants at some point during the 10-day period of observation. TPP levels were significantly and positively correlated with serum phosphorus levels at each time point (P < 0.05 for all). Conclusions: Our results show that 18% of these critically ill patients exhibited low whole blood TPP concentrations on ICU admission and 26% had low levels during the initial 10 ICU days, respectively. The modest correlation between TPP and phosphorus concentrations suggests a possible association due to a refeeding effect in ICU patients requiring chronic diuretic therapy.

The aim of this study was to investigate whether optimism, self-compassion, altruism, and gratitude act as mediators in the relationship between cognitive distortions and emerging adults' forgiveness of themselves, others, and situations. The sample consisted of 488 university students in their emerging adulthood, comprising 66.20% females and 33.80% males, ranging in age from 18 to 32 years (M = 20.32, SD = 2.43). The data were collected using a demographic information form and six self-report scales. In addition to descriptive statistics, Pearson Correlation Coefficient and Bootstrap Analysis were used to analyze the data. The results indicated that optimism, self-compassion, altruism, and gratitude significantly mediated the relationship between cognitive distortions and forgiveness of self (b = −.109, %95 BCA CI [−.133 to −.086]), others (b = −.096, %95 BCA CI [−.117 to −.076]), and situations (b = −.099, %95 BCA CI [−.117 to −.082]). Self-compassion (K2 = −.14) was found to be the strongest mediator in the self-forgiveness model, followed by altruism (K2 = −.19) in the forgiveness of others model, and optimism (K2 = −.27) in the forgiveness of situations model. The study highlights the potential use of positive psychology concepts such as optimism, self-compassion, altruism, and gratitude to reduce the negative effect of cognitive distortions on emerging adults' forgiveness and to enhance their forgiveness skills.

Purpose Gastrointestinal system bleeding (GIB) is a common and highly morbid condition with high mortality rates frequently observed in emergency departments. Several scoring systems have been used to predict mortality and rebleeding in these cases. Among these scoring systems, Rockall Score (RS) and Forrest classification (FS) are commonly used. In our study, we aimed to evaluate the predictive power of RS for mortality, rebleeding, and the need for blood transfusion, and to provide benefits to clinicians. Methods The study was designed as a retrospective and single-center study, conducted between January 1, 2017, and January 1, 2018. Demographic data, RS and FS scores, clinical outcomes (mortality, rebleeding, blood transfusion requirement, and final outcomes) of the cases were evaluated. Results Of the 109 patients in our study, 60.6% were male, and the mean age was 67.83 ± 16.75 years. The most common presenting complaint was black stool, and the most frequently detected finding was melena. The most common endoscopic diagnosis was erosive gastritis (24.8%). The use of acetylsalicylic acid and anticoagulants was significantly higher in cases of lower gastrointestinal bleeding. There was a negative correlation between the RS score and hemoglobin level of the patients (r=-0.537; p < 0.001), while a positive linear correlation was observed between RS and mortality (r = 0.352; p < 0.001), rebleeding (r = 0.381; p < 0.001), and blood transfusion requirement (r = 0.489; p < 0.001). Additionally, there was a positive linear correlation between the amount of blood product given to the patient and RS (r = 0.432; p < 0.001). The discriminatory power of RS for predicting mortality, rebleeding, and blood transfusion was evaluated, and our results showed an AUC of 0.802 (95% CI = 0.684–0.921; p < 0.001) for mortality, an AUC of 0.764 (95% CI = 0.641–0.886; p < 0.001) for rebleeding, and an AUC of 0.815 (95% CI = 0.731–0.899; p < 0.001) for blood transfusion requirement. Conclusions RS provides risk stratification in cases of GIB and aids in early treatment and prognosis prediction for high-risk patients. Furthermore, it has a high predictive power in determining rebleeding, mortality, and the need for blood transfusion. We believe that RS can be beneficial for clinicians in the management, prognosis, and mortality risk assessment of GIB cases, particularly in clinics such as emergency departments where a large number of patients need to be evaluated and treatment and discharge decisions are made within a short period of time.

Stress is the mood of pressure and tension that a person feels. Usually, when the pressure on an individual decrease, the body begins to stabilize the state and calm down. Hence, stress detection in real-time is a critical duty in medical systems. However, acquiring physiological data requires additional equipment and is difficult for users to carry with them at all times. Depending on this problem, it is possible to detect stress through behavioral data. Smartphones are devices that provide various behavioral data that people use constantly throughout the day. In this study, a real-time stress detection system based on soft keyboard typing behaviors was developed with the data obtained from linear acceleration, gravity, gyroscope sensors, and a touchscreen panel of the smartphone. 172 attributes were extracted from the raw sensor data. However, such a high number of dimensions could negatively affect the performance of machine learning algorithms. To address this problem, the number of features was reduced by various techniques such as filter-based methods and standard binary-code chromosome Genetic Algorithm as a contribution to this study. Then, writing behaviors were classified with the commonly used machine learning methods namely, C4.5, kNN, and Bayesian Networks. As a result of the experiments, the best classification was obtained from the kNN method using the features selected by the Genetic Algorithm with a classification accuracy of 89.61% and F-Measure of 0.9052. Another contribution of this study is that a mobile service and a relaxation application were developed for stress detection and to reduce stress levels using the selected feature vector.

The bile salt hydrolase (BSH) activity is responsible for the cholesterol-lowering effect of the probiotic strains. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between bsh gene-expression (GE) levels responsible for the BSH activity and the parameters of bile salt resistance of different Lactobacillaceae species. Accordingly, 11 Lactobacillaceae family strains with high cholesterol assimilation ratio (49.21–68.22%) determined by the o-phthalaldehyde method selected from 46 Lactobacillaceae species was evaluated for their features including acid tolerance, bile tolerance, and BSH activity. All tested strains survived at pH 2 medium and 0.3% (w/v) bile salt and showed positive BSH activity for glycocholic acid (GCA) and taurocholic acid (TCA). BSH gene expression was performed to provide clear information and to identify the key genes responsible for BSH activity. bsh3 genes were found highest GE level (P < 0.05) in Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and Lacticaseibacillus paracasei strains. The results showed that high cholesterol assimilation ratio were closely correlated with BSH activity and the parameters of bile salt resistance. The results of this study will support the development of a new approach based on phenotypic and genetic analysis to determine the bile salt parameters. The study will be useful for the selection of Lactobacillus strains with high bile salt resistance.

Parks play an important role in sustaining the urban ecosystem owing to their plant diversity. Therefore, identification of plant composition in parks has contributed to better their planning and management. In this study, woody plant species in a total of 53 parks of the selected 15 neighborhoods in Burdur were explored, plant diversity indexes were calculated and correlations of the attributes of plants and parks with the socioeconomic status of the neighborhoods were analyzed. A total of 36 family, 85 genus and 127 species were recorded. Neighborhood parks had more than 50% exotic species. Neighborhood parks with higher socioeconomic status had higher numbers of species and invasive species. The pattern from the similarity analysis supported the correlation between the number of species and socioeconomic status. Park area had a positive and strong correlation with the attributes and diversity indexes of plant. Moreover, distance from the park to the city center had negative and strong correlation with plant attributes and Shannon diversity and Margalef’s Richness Indexes. Albeit the large number of exotic species in neighborhood parks, the native species in the establishment of neighborhood parks should be actually preferred in terms of adaptation to the climate change. Furthermore, park management should consider the opinions of the people in the neighborhood instead of just making their own decisions in order to increase the park use. Further studies are needed including a broader range of socioeconomic variables to draw deeper conclusions about drivers of plant diversity of neighborhood parks.

Oral mucosal lesions are a common pathology that impact the quality of life due to pain, inappetence, weight loss, and low productivity. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of Tarantula cubensis extract on wound healing in rats with buccal mucosal lesions. A total of 40 male Wistar albino rats weighing 250-300 g were used in the study. The rats were divided into four equal groups. A 3 mm diameter mucosal defect was created in the buccal mucosa of each rat. Groups one and three (controls) assessed spontaneous healing at 3 and 6 days post trauma, respectively. Groups two and four (treatment) received 0.2 ml T. cubensis extract subcutaneously. Group two was treated for 2 days and assessed at 3 days and group four was treated for 5 days and assessed at 6 days. All rats were euthanatized prior to tissue sample collection. Tissue samples were compared between control and treatment groups using histopathology and immunohistochemistry. Tissue samples taken from the defect areas were immunohistochemically evaluated for cytokeratin and collagen expressions. In both the 3 and 6 day treatment groups, the improvements were statistically different compared to the control groups. T. cubensis extract was found to increase cytokeratin and collagen in both epithelial and connective tissue and to have a significant healing effect on mucosa on both gross and microscopic findings.

Synthesis, characterization, Pb(II) adsorption, recovery, preconcentration and reusability of different nanoadsorbents were investigated in detail. With green synthesis, silver, iron oxide and iron copper nanoparticles (AgNPs, Fe3O4NPs and Fe/CuNPs) were synthesized and modified with chitosan and alginate natural polymers to form nanocomposite beads (Fe3O4-CS, Fe3O4−AT, Fe/Cu−CS and Fe/Cu−AT). When the adsorption efficiencies of the seven synthesized nanoadsorbents from the aqueous medium were compared, it was seen that the magnetic bimetallic Fe/Cu−CS beads provided the highest adsorption with 100 % efficiency for Pb(II). The adsorption mechanism, effects of temperature, initial lead ion concentration and pH of the solution on the Pb(II) adsorption capacity of Fe/Cu−CS beads were investigated. The recovery studies have shown that Fe/Cu−CS beads have good adsorption/desorption performance around 90 % of desorption was achieved with 5 mM HNO3. These results show that Fe/Cu−CS beads have potential to be a promising material for adsorption, preconcentration and desorption of Pb(II) from aqueous solution.

Libido and sperm quality output relationship has already not clear in farm animals. The present study compared reaction time (RT) as a libido indicator and the pre-freeze and post-thaw sperm quality of AI bulls. Before the collection of ejaculates (n= 53, from 22 AI bulls (4.2 ± 1 years of age)), RTs were collected using a chronometer as the interval between the bull's arrival at the semen collection area and his first false mount (FM) on another male. The ejaculates were examined for their volume, concentration, and motility. Subsequently, all aliquots were diluted with a commercial semen extender and equilibrated for 3 h before freezing. Frozen semen samples were thawed and examined for sperm kinematics using CASA, plasma membrane, and acrosome integrity of sperm (PMAI) by flow cytometry. Additionally, the temperature humidity index (THI) values were assessed during the study. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to analyze the data. The results indicated that THI had a significant effect on libido (p<0.001). However, libido had no effect on either pre- or post-thaw sperm quality parameters except for the velocity of the average pathway (VAP) (p <0.05). Therefore, relying solely on RT -libido- as an indicator of bull sperm quality at AI stations may not be reliable, as it is a complex behavioral assessment.

Papillomaviruses, known as epitheliotropic, cause proliferation in the skin, mucosa, and different visceral organs. In this study, it was aimed to diagnose bovine papillomavirus (BPV) by using different methods in the lesion taken from twenty cattle with papillomas in different areas of the body and to reveal its molecular characterization. In our study, molecular, immunohistochemistry, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) methods were used for virus identification. Additionally, sequencing analysis was used to ascertain the phylogenetic relationship between the obtained field strains and other isolates submitted to GenBank. Histopathological analyses of the collected samples were done in addition to diagnostic procedures. Intranuclear virus particles were detected when the papillomas were investigated with TEM. In PCR analyses using degenerate and type-specific primer sets, the presence of BPV nucleic acid was determined in 70% (14/20) and 90% (18/20) of the samples, respectively. No virus could be detected in PCR applications using MY 09/11 degenerate primer sets. Twenty animals of different ages, races, and genders included in the study by random sampling method from different herds were divided into 4 groups according to the body regions where the lesions were located. Sequence analysis was performed on a sample from each group that showed strong positivity in the PCR technique using FAP 59/64 degenerate primer set and type-specific primer set. Sequence analyses were performed using FAP 59/64 degenerate primers of amplicons for phylogenetic research. In these analyses, three of the isolated strains were identified as BPV-1, which is in the Deltapapillomavirus 4 genus, and one as BPV-2. As a result of the study, it was concluded that molecular and phylogenetic studies using type-specific primers are more beneficial in order to fully reveal the etiology of papillomatosis in cattle and it would be correct to determine BPV types before prophylactic (vaccine, etc.) applications.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the influence of minor shifts in body position on the development of pressure injuries. Design: A prospective, comparative, descriptive study. Subjects and setting: The sample comprised 78 bedridden patients aged 18 years or older, free of pressure injuries, and hospitalized in the Neurology and Internal Medicine clinics and intensive care units. The study setting was a state hospital in Burdur Province, Southwest Turkey; data were collected between March and September 2018. Methods: Patients were monitored once weekly until the end of their stay or until pressure injury development. Data were collected using a researcher-designed data collection form. Patients' ability to make minor shifts in body position was categorized between 0 and 3 per movement group. Results: Twenty-one (26.9%) of 78 participants developed a pressure injury; 90.4% (n = 19) were stage 1 pressure injuries. Pressure injuries occurred in 94.1% of the patients who did not make shifts in body position versus 80% of the patients who performed shifts every 4 hours. No pressure injuries developed in those patients who moved every hour (P = .00). Conclusions: Study findings support the importance of making minor shifts in body position for prevention of pressure injury in bedridden patients.

Foreign trade is significant for open economies and has a critical place in the development of national economies in a globally competitive environment. Export has a key role as an important component in foreign trade transactions. In this study, Turkey's exports of HS-61 “Apparel and clothing accessories knitted or crocheted” and HS-62 “Apparel and clothing accessories not knitted or crocheted” products were examined. Turkey's exports of these HS codes to seven countries, which are mostly exported, EU27, OECD and the world were estimated for 2020–2025 using artificial neural networks (ANNs). The model was validated by measuring forecast errors (RMSE, MAE, and MAPE) to ensure that the model can recreate satisfactory results. The results reveal that the ANNs predicted the exports to the selected countries accurately. According to the findings from the NNAR (1,1) model, Turkey's exports of HS-61 coded products to Italy, the UK, France and EU-27 are expected to increase year-on-year from 2020 to 2025, while exports to the USA, Netherlands and Spain are expected to decrease. Exports from Turkey to Germany, the world and the OECD are projected to decrease first and then increase. In the NNAR (2,2) model, Turkey's exports to Italy, the UK and France are expected to increase year on year, while exports to other countries are generally estimated to decrease first and then increase. In the estimation made for the HS-62 product group with NNAR (1,1) model, it is predicted that TURKEY’s exports to Italy, the USA, the UK, France and Spain will increase year by year from 2020 to 2025. It is estimated that TURKEY's exports to the Netherlands, Germany, World, OECD and EU-27 will decrease year by year in the same period. In the NNAR (2,2) model, it is predicted that TURKEY's exports to UK, France and Spain will increase year by year, while exports to EU-27, OECD and World will decrease. However, TURKEY's HS-62 exports to Italy, the USA, the Netherlands and Germany are expected to follow a fluctuating course.

The increasing spread of vector‐borne diseases has resulted in severe health concerns for humans, domestic animals and wildlife, with changes in land use and the introduction of invasive species being among the main possible causes for this increase. We explored several ecological drivers potentially affecting the local prevalence and richness of avian malaria parasite lineages in native and introduced house sparrows (Passer domesticus) populations. Global. 2002–2019. Avian Plasmodium parasites in house sparrows. We analysed data from 2,220 samples from 69 localities across all continents, except Antarctica. The influence of environment (urbanization index and human density), geography (altitude, latitude, hemisphere) and time (bird breeding season and years since introduction) were analysed using generalized additive mixed models (GAMMs) and random forests. Overall, 670 sparrows (30.2%) were infected with 22 Plasmodium lineages. In native populations, parasite prevalence was positively related to urbanization index, with the highest prevalence values in areas with intermediate urbanization levels. Likewise, in introduced populations, prevalence was positively associated with urbanization index; however, higher infection occurred in areas with either extreme high or low levels of urbanization. In introduced populations, the number of parasite lineages increased with altitude and with the years elapsed since the establishment of sparrows in a new locality. Here, after a decline in the number of parasite lineages in the first 30 years, an increase from 40 years onwards was detected. Urbanization was related to parasite prevalence in both native and introduced bird populations. In invaded areas, altitude and time since bird introduction were related to the number of Plasmodium lineages found to be infecting sparrows.

Problem: The death of a parent is a traumatic experience for adolescents. Studies to ensure post-traumatic growth in adolescents are limited. The aim of this study to evaluate the effect of nursing care based on Watson's Theory of Human Caring on posttraumatic growth in parentally bereaved adolescents. Methods: This study was participatory action research. The study was carried out with four participants through online interviews. In the study, pre- and post-action data were obtained through individual interviews and scales. During the action process, nursing care based on the Theory of Human Caring was provided to the participants individually tracked through the Omaha System. Pre and post-action qualitative data were analyzed using the descriptive analysis method. In quantitative data, scale total and sub-scores were documented. Findings: During the action, it was determined via Omaha System coding that the participants mostly experienced grief and mental health problems. In the pre-action, the participants stated that they experienced various difficulties regarding grief. In the post-action, the participants stated that the meaning of parental loss,its effects on life, and their ability to cope with loss changed and they experienced positive changes. In addition, when the scale scores of the participants' pre- and post-action were compared, it was found that the Mourning Scale scores decreased, and the Post-traumatic Growth Inventory scores increased. Conclusions: The result of this study demonstrate that nursing care based on Theory of Human Caring reduces the grief symptoms and contributes to post-traumatic growth in parentally bereaved adolescents.