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The aim of this study was to optimize the conditions of the Basic Blue 41 (BB41) adsorption on NaOH-modified rice husk (NaOH–RH) using response surface methodology based on Box–Behnken design. The three-level factors considered were pH (4, 7, and 10), initial concentration of BB41 (50, 75, and 100 mg L−1), and adsorbent dose (0.025, 0.0875, and 0.15g L−1). Statistical analysis of result has shown that the predicted values for BB41 adsorption were close to the experimental values and were in a good agreement, on the other hand, the F-value (40.48), p-value (0.0004), and R2(0.9865) indicated that the regression is able to give a good prediction of response for the adsorption process in the range studied. According to the results, when the response was set in maximize and all the three factors were set in a range, the optimized values for BB41 adsorption were predicted as follows: pH value of 8.47, and BB41 initial concentration of 67.9 mg L−1and adsorbent dose of 0.12g L−1for removal efficiency of 97.65%.

Background: This study aimed to evaluate chronic pain and fatigue in COVID-19 patients after 12 months of hospitalization. Methods: We studied the COVID-19 patients discharged from Hospital, between March 10 to April 20, 2020. Results: A total of 157 patients were included in this study. Forty-three patients (27.4%) complained of chronic fatigue and muscle weakness in the last six months. The visual analog fatigue scale (VAFS) score of 3.84 ± 1.48 was obtained. Forty patients (25.5%) were suspected of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS). Twenty-four patients (15.3%) had severe chronic pain or exacerbation of previous chronic pain, most of which were reported in the lower back (70.8%) and lower extremities (66.7%). Pain intensity had a mean score of 2.33 ± 0.87 and was mainly described as “muscle cramps,” “persistent dull pain,” and “boring and numbing.” In women, chronic pain and fatigue, extended hospital stays, ICU admission, and depressed mood were common than in men. For these pain and fatigue, 37% used nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and 16.3% used antidepressants. Only one person had applied for physiotherapy, and none of the patients had received psychotherapy Conclusions: Fatigue and chronic pain in patients recovering from COVID-19 are common complications, even after 12 months of illness.

Abstract: Contamination of heavy metals represents one of the most pressing threats to water and soil resources, as well as human health. Phytoremediation can be potentially used to remediate metal contaminated sites. In this study, concentrations of copper, zinc, iron, and magnesium accumulated by native plant species were determined in field conditions of Hame Kasi iron and copper mine in the central part of Iran in Hamadan province. The results showed that metal accumulation by plants differed among species and tissue bodies. Species grown in substrata with elevated metals contained significantly higher metals in plants. Metals accumulated by plants were mostly distributed in root tissues, suggesting that an exclusion strategy for metal tolerance exists widely amongst them. The mentioned species could accumulate relatively higher metal concentrations far above the toxic concentration in the plant shoots. With high translocation factor, metal concentration ratio of plant shoots to roots indicates internal detoxification metal tolerance mechanism; thus, they have potential for phytoextraction. The factors affecting metal accumulation by plant species including metal concentrations, pH, electrical conductivity, and nutrient status in substrata were measured. Mostly, concentrations of zinc and copper in both aboveground and underground tissues of the plants were significantly, positively related to their total in substrata, while iron, zinc, and copper were negatively correlated to soil phosphorus.