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Background and Objectives: In December 2010 four, lions and one tiger died at the Tehran zoo. Out of all samples, Burkholderia mallei (causative agent of Glanders) was isolated just from ulcer sample of the tiger which was imported to Iran from Russia.Materials and Methods: One nasal swab from a tiger and fifteen blood samples with anticoagulant belonging to one tiger and fourteen lions (four dead lions and eleven live lions) were collected and were inoculated directly onto the selective media. The isolate was identified by morphological and biochemical and API BBL tests and PCR using specific primers (Bma-IS407-flip). The standard (Razi Type Culture Collection RTCC: 2375) and tiger isolates were inoculated into 2 guinea pigs. All residue solipeds and carnivores were checked by Malleination test and Complement Fixation (CF) Test respectively.Results: One isolate of B. mallei was isolated from tiger's nasal swab. Both of B.mallei strains were recovered from inoculated animals. All of solipeds were negative by malleination test, however, 11 lions including 4 dead and 7 live lions out of 14 lions were positive in CF test for Glanders and all were put down by the authorities. Conclusion: Active surveillance of Glanders is essential for solipeds, especially it's more important while being used to feed valuable carnivores like lions and tigers. Therefore, a reliable test like malleination must be carried out twice (first before transferring and one month after quarantine). Both test results should be negative for use for feeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Value engineering (VE) has been effectively applied in many different areas. The results have been very encouraging, and many companies accept VE not only as a tool to reduce costs, but also to improve the quality of their produce and streamline their systems. This paper attempts to highlight the application of VE in agriculture, as in pistachio tree farms in Iran. It is found that by implementing VE, unnecessary cultivation costs are lowered. Many of the other factors that lead to the inefficient use of resources could be resolved. In this study, the province of Yazd Iran was studied. Unfortunately there are cases of mismanagement and problems in agriculture management; and the problems must be resolved to make the system of pistachio growing more efficient. The prime objective of this paper is to introduce the concept of value engineering and highlight its application in pistachio farms. The results suggest that it is essential to use Indian Neem pesticide, because it is economically feasible and environmentally friendly to pistachio trees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]