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Background: Aggressive behaviors in human and experimental animals have previously been described following induced pain. Aggression in rodents has been attributed to genetic and environmental factors, such as pain. A major complication of scorpion envenomation is severe pain in animals and humans. Considering that envenomation by black scorpion (Androctonus crassicauda) induces severe pain, the present study was conducted to investigate the effects of the venom on inducing aggressive behaviors in rats due to the pain from stinging. Methods: Rats in the control (n=20) and experimental groups (n=20) were injected with 0.5ml physiological serum or 1µg/ml of black scorpion venom dissolved in 0.5ml physiological serum, respectively, in the dorsal vein near the tail. Changes in behaviors were monitored photographically among the rats in both groups. Results: Following the injection of the scorpion venom, considerable agitation and fights occurred among the experimental rats, presumably due to the severe pain induced by the venom. However, there was no such abnormal behavior observed in the control rats and in the experimental rats before the venom injection. Conclusion: The induced pain post envenomation in rats caused violent changes in their behaviors, which were highly likely associated with the venom injection.

Aniline exposure leads to neuron and spleen toxicity specifically and makes diverse neurological effects and sarcoma that is defined by splenomegaly, hyperplasia, and fibrosis and tumors formation at the end. However, the molecular mechanism(s) of aniline-induced spleen toxicity is not understood well, previous studies have represented that aniline exposure results in iron overload and initiation of oxidative/nitrosative disorder stress and oxidative damage to proteins, lipids and DNA subsequently, in the spleen. Elevated expression of cyclins, cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) and phosphorylation of pRB protein along with increases in A, B and CDK1 as a cell cycle regulatory proteins cyclins, and reduce in CDK inhibitors (p21 and p27) could be critical in cell cycle regulation, which contributes to tumorigenic response after aniline exposure. Aniline-induced splenic toxicity is correlated to oxidative DNA damage and initiation of DNA glycosylases expression (OGG1, NEIL1/2, NTH1, APE1 and PNK) for removal of oxidative DNA lesions in rat. Oxidative stress causes transcriptional up-regulation of fibrogenic/inflammatory factors (cytokines, IL- 1, IL-6 and TNF-α) via induction of nuclear factor-kappa B, AP-1 and redox-sensitive transcription factors, in aniline treated-rats. The upstream signalling events as phosphorylation of IκB kinases (IKKα and IKKβ) and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) could potentially be the causes of activation of NF-κB and AP-1. All of these events could initiate a fibrogenic and/or tumorigenic response in the spleen. The spleen toxicity of aniline is studied more and the different mechanisms are suggested. This review summarizes those events following aniline exposure that induce spleen toxicity and neurotoxicity.

Aflatoxin is a toxic metabolite produced mainly by Aspergillus spp. which may occur in dairy products because of biotransformation. In this work, a systematic and meta-analysis approach has been considered on the topic of aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) content in dairy Iranian products. Based on the literature review, AFM1 was the most common aflatoxin contamination in dairy product. Additionally, studies revealed that higher levels of AFM1 were produced during cold seasons includes winter and autumn. Although, immunochemical technique (ELISA) was the frequent and rapid test, thin-layer chromatography (TLC) and chromatographic methods (HPLC) were commonly used as confirmative techniques to determine the level of aflatoxin. Meta-analyzing of the results showed that AFM1 can be found in the dairy products with overall prevalence percentage of 63.53 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 56.28–70.78) and 54.05 (95% CI: 43.09–65.02) based on the sample type and production process, respectively. The higher prevalence percentage of AFM1 of 73.96 (95% CI: 60.27–87.66) and 69.91 (95% CI: 62.00–78.83) was found in yoghurt and industrial production type of samples, respectively. In general, 17.8% of cheese, 14% of yogurt, 12.63% of kashk, and 2.1% of doogh contained AFM1 in concentrations exceeding the permitted level of standards. Totally, results showed that 88.89% of dairy products were contaminated by AFM1 exceeding from standard limits.

Background: Flourishing is a psychological construct that refers to the type of living together with permanent happiness in human functions. Individuals with high levels of flourishing are aware of their abilities, keen on progress, and considered beneficial community members. Objectives: The present study aimed to determine the flourishing status and its association with academic achievement in the students of Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Iran. Methods: This cross-sectional, descriptive-analytical study was conducted on 295 students at Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences in 2018. The students were selected via simple random sampling with proportional probability to size. Data were collected using a self-report questionnaire. Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 16 using independent t-test, one-way ANOVA and Pearson’s correlation-coefficient at the significance of 95%. Results: The mean age of the students was 22.92 ± 2.47 years (range: 18 - 30 years). The mean score of flourishing was 39.93 ± 8.73 (score range: 8 - 56), which indicated that the participants received 71.3% of the maximum score of flourishing. In addition, the score of flourishing was significantly higher in the female students compared to the males (P = 0.046) and had a positive, significant correlation with academic achievement (r = 0.197; P = 0.002). Conclusions: Considering the more favorable status of flourishing in the female students, it is recommended that educational programs be developed and implemented for the promotion of flourishing by focusing on male students.

The German cockroach is an important household insect pest worldwide and acts as a mechanical vector and reservoir for pathogenic agents. The aim of this study was to examine the basic laboratory toxicity of Blattella germanica to spinosad. The M, T, A22, AZAR4, BOOSTAN7 and ABAN21 strains were collected from field populations of six infested kitchen student dormitories and the SAMAN strain was collected from a residential area after insecticide spraying control failure in Tehran, Iran. Technical grade spinosad was delivered in 0.5 microL acetone to the first abdominal sternum of briefly CO2-anesthetize adult male cockroaches by topical application bioassay. Treated males monitored for mortality. Mortality data from the replicates was assessed by probit analysis. The average LD50 of susceptible strain was 494.3, 148.8 and 55.1 ng per insect after 24, 48 and 72 h, respectively. The LD50 of spinosad decreased with time in the field population strains. All German cockroach strains showed a similar susceptibility or lower tolerance (1.6-folds) for spinosad compared with the susceptible laboratory strain and the steep slopes of dose-response curves indicated that the field population of these German cockroach strains was homogenous in response to spinosad. These results indicated that the spinosad was relatively slow-acting in topical application bioassay, with LD50 values decreasing until 72 h and becoming stable thereafter. The effectiveness of spinosad against susceptible and the field population German cockroach strains in laboratory condition showed that spinosad probably could be useful for the control of the German cockroach.

Background: Chlorinated pesticides have been used in pest control for several decades in the world. These compounds are still applied in many regions, and their continuous usage has resulted in their bioaccumulation and residue in the food chain. These residues could transfer to food products and accumulate in fat tissues. Undoubtedly, the breast milk could be a significant biomarker for estimation of these residues in the human body. This study was conducted to review and compile the results of the studies undertaken in the world which surveyed the organochlorine pesticides residue in breast milk. Methods: A total of 710 national and international articles and texts related to the focused subject were extracted from the virtual databases using the following key words: Chlorinated pesticides, residue and breast milk. Thirty articles published between 1980 and 2013 were selected and reviewed. Results: The majority of the reviewed articles indicated the presence of two or more organochlorine pesticides in the collected samples of breast milk. Based on the reviewed studies, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) had the highest level of concentration in the collected samples of breast milk. Moreover, there was a statistically significant positive correlation between mother’s age, her multiparty and concentration of chlorinated pesticides in breast milk. Conclusion: The organochlorine pesticides are still applied in some developing countries including some regions of Iran. Thus, it seems essential to inform the community about the adverse effects of this class of pesticides; and most importantly the governments should also ban the use of such compounds.

Background: The German cockroach, Blattella germanica is a major hygienic pest and mechanical vector for pathogenic agents in hospitals and residential areas. The development of insecticide resistance is a serious problem in controlling of this pest. Toxicity of four commonly used insecticides (permethrin, cypermethrin, malathion and chlorpyrifos) against two hospital- collected strains of the German cockroach was investigated. Methods: Topical bioassay methods were carried out for detecting insecticide susceptibility of adult male cockroaches. For each insecticide, four to six concentrations resulting in >0% and