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Background: Toxoplasmosis is a serious or life-threatening disease in immunosuppressed patients and pregnant women. This study examined the likely association between Toxoplasma gondii infection and COVID-19 patients with moderate illness. Methods: Seventy blood samples were collected from patients at the Health Reference Laboratory of Tabriz, Northwest Iran from April 2021 to September 2021. In addition, 70 healthy subjects of the same age (37 ± 15 years) and sex distribution were ethnically matched. Sera samples were examined for the detection of anti-Toxoplasma antibodies using ELISA. Nested-PCR targets were amplified based on the B1 and GRA6 genes. GRA6 amplicons were subjected to sequencing and phylogenetic analysis. Results: The seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis based on IgG titer was 35.7% in the COVID‑19 patients and 27.1% in the control group, representing not to be associated with the Toxoplasma seropositivity in COVID‑19 patients (P = 0.18) compared to healthy subjects. Anti-T. gondii IgM was not found in any of the patients and healthy individuals. According to PCR amplification of the B1 and GRA6 genes, the frequency of T. gondii in COVID-19 patients was 14.2% (10/70). However, no T. gondii infection was detected in the healthy group. The CD4+T cell count was relatively lower in toxoplasmosis-infected patients (430–450 cells/mm3) than in control group (500–1500 cells/mm3). High genetic diversity (Hd: 0.710) of the type I strain of T. gondii was characterized in the patients. Present results showed that consumption of raw vegetables and close contact with stray cats can increase the transmission of T. gondii to COVID-19 patients (P < 0.01). Conclusions: The current study revealed that T. gondii type I infection is unequivocally circulating among the COVID-19 patients in Tabriz; However, no significant association was observed between the occurrence of Toxoplasma and the severity of COVID-19. To make more accurate health decisions, multicenter investigations with a larger sample size of different ethnic groups of the Iranian population are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Air pollution data are large-scale datasets that can be analyzed in low scales by clustering to recognize the pattern of pollution and have simpler and more comprehensible interpretations. So, this study aims to cluster the days of the year 2017 according to the hourly O3 and PM10 amounts collected from four stations of Tabriz by using spatiotemporal mixture model–based clustering (STMC). Besides, mixture model–based clustering with temporal dimension (TMC) and mixture model–based clustering without considering spatiotemporal dimensions (MC) were utilized to compare with STMC. To evaluate the efficiency of these three models, and obtain the optimal number of clusters in each model, BIC and ICL criteria were used. According to BIC and ICL, STMC outperforms TMC and MC. Three clusters for O3 and four clusters for PM10 were selected as the optimal number of clusters to fit STMC models. Regarding PM10, the average concentration was the highest in cluster 4. Regarding O3, all summer days were in cluster 3, and the average concentration of this cluster was the highest. Cluster 2 had the lowest concentration with a high difference from clusters 1 and 3, and its average temperature was the lowest. Autumn days make up about 84% of this cluster. The clustering of polluted and clean days into separate groups and observing the effect of meteorological factors on the amount of concentration in each cluster clearly prove the efficiency of the model. Results of STMC showed that the efficiency of clustering in air pollution data increases by considering both spatiotemporal dimensions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is limited information about the relationship between extraversion, as a personality trait, and the modes of tobacco smoking. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships between extraversion and cigarette and water-pipe smoking among a representative sample of Iranian high school students. Methods: A sample of 2,312 tenth-grade students in Tabriz (Northwest of Iran) was selected through multistage proportional cluster sampling. Participants completed a self-administered questionnaire including information on cigarette smoking, water-pipe smoking, extraversion, socioeconomical information, as well as demographic characteristics. An ordinal logistic regression model was used for data analysis. Results: In total, 4.2% and 3.5% of the students were regular cigarette and water-pipe smokers, respectively. The adjusted odds ratios were 1.10 (95% CI: 1.04-1.15, P < 0.001) and 1.10 (95% CI: 1.06-1.15, P < 0.001) for the relationships between extraversion and the stages of cigarette smoking and water-pipe smoking status, respectively. Conclusions: It seems that extraversion is in a positive relationship with a cigarette and water-pipe smoking among adolescents. Longitudinal studies are needed to examine the effect of this personality trait on the modes of tobacco smoking and the transition in the stages of cigarette and water-pipe smoking in adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Women health volunteers are the link between people and healthcare workers. They play an important role in health education activities, following up families under coverage, and updating the demographic data to health centers. This study was performed to uncover women health volunteers' activities, reasons for joining and leaving from the program. Methods: A qualitative study design was used to conduct the study. Through purposive sampling technique, twenty -four in-depth semi-structured individual interviews and two focused group discussions with women health volunteers and their supervisors were conducted in Tabriz, Iran. Data analysis implemented thematic analysis, using MAXQDA10. Results: The findings were generally categorized into three major themes, participation in promoting health, perceived benefit, and perceptual- environmental inhibitors. Participation in promoting health consisted of the sub-themes participation in educational programs, participation in health care. The sub-themes of perceived benefit included benefits from health care services and interest in having an active role in the community. The theme perceptual- environmental inhibitors involved the subthemes participation barriers and lack of innovation and inconsistency with social changes. Conclusion: Culture-building about the role of health volunteers, the valuing on their activities in the community, and informing program supervisors about the health volunteer's duties would help to retain health volunteers and also sustain their activities at the community level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]