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Background and Aim: COVID-19 has led to a wide range of clinical symptoms, which are increasing in low- and middleincome countries. Parasitic infections are the reasons for the concomitant effect of this disease in these regions, which can reduce or increase the severity of the disease. The present study aimed to determine the clinical features, laboratory findings, and frequency of the intestinal parasites in the COVID-19 patients. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, the clinical features, laboratory findings, and frequency of the intestinal parasites in the stool specimens of 150 COVID-19patients, confirmed by PCR and hospitalized in Bandar Abbas hospitals during 2020-2021, were evaluated using direct wet methods with Lugol and physiological saline, formalin ethylacetate concentration technique (FECT), modified Ziehl-Neelsen staining, and trichrome staining. Results& Conclusion: Eighteen (12%) out of 150 patients with COVID-19 were infected with intestinal parasites, among whom the highest frequencies belonged to the intestinal Blastocystis spp. (10 %), and then Giardia lamblia (1.3%), and Trichomonas hominis(0.7%), and some cases with no intestinal helminths were observed. According to the findings, patients with COVID-19 and simultaneous parasite infections had substantially greater rates of decreased appetite (P=0.015), stomach ache (P=0.002), and flatulence (P=0.002) than those without parasitic infections. Based on the laboratory findings, no significant relationship was observed between the two groups of parasites and no parasites. More epidemiological and clinical studies are needed to better understand the status of intestinal parasitic infections (IPIs) in the hospitalized COVID19 patients in Bandar Abbas city, Iran. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People of different cultural backgrounds show different emotional reactions to different urban areas. Finding out how a constructed environment and emotional aspects are related and influence human behavior can be of a great significance in urban planning. Such studies are rooted in environmental psychology and socials sciences; there is a dearth of proper methods and techniques of evaluation with this regard. Moreover, so far there has been no academic study even a review of the relevant practical methods. Thus, there is a need for finding a valid objective evaluation procedure for emotional responses people make to urban space aiming to improve the design of urban areas and urban plan policymaking. In the present research, initially, a review of the research methodologies in environmental psychology, affect and emotions was done. Then, a qualitative content analysis of 30 of the latest projects and research was done in terms of the methodology and tools. Then, the final model was proposed in five stages based on the methods and tools of operationalizing the measurement of feelings and emotions in urban areas. The proposed model combined different research types and different methods applied in different disciplines and thus contribute greatly to solving urban problems.

Agonists of Benzodiazepine (BZD) receptor are exhaustively used in the control of muscle spasms, seizure, anxiety, and insomnia. BZDs have some unwanted effects; therefore, the development of new BZD receptor agonists with better efficacy and fewer unwanted effects is one of the subjects of interest. In this study, based on the pharmacophore/receptor model of the BZD binding site of GABAA receptors, a series of new 2-substituted-5-(4-chloro2-phenoxy)phenyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole derivatives (6a-f) were designed. Energy minima conformers of the designed compounds and diazepam were well matched in conformational analysis and showed proper interaction with the BZD-binding site of the GABAA receptor model (α1β2ϒ2) in docking studies. The designed compounds were synthesized in acceptable yield and evaluated for their in vitro affinity to the benzodiazepine receptor of rat brains by radioligand receptor binding assay. The results demonstrated that the affinities of most of the novel compounds were even higher than diazepam. The novel compound 6a with the best affinity in radioligand receptor binding assay (Ki=0.44 nM and IC50= 0.73±0.17 nM) had considerable hypnotic activity and weak anticonvulsant and anxiolytic effects with no negative effect on memory in animal models. Flumazenil as a selective benzodiazepine receptor antagonist was able to prevent hypnotic and anticonvulsant effects of 6a indicating the role of BZD receptors in these effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: Malaria is considered one of the most serious life-threatening diseases in Yazd, a central province of Iran, which hosts both domestic and foreign immigrants. This study aimed to investigate the trend of Malaria in Yazd during 2011-2020. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive retrospective study, all episodes of the disease (imported malaria) recorded at Yazd health center in Iran were carefully evaluated and reported. After preparing the peripheral blood smear and fixation with methanol, it was stained with Giemsa and examined with a light microscope by a skilled technician. Results and Conclusion: A total of 95 confirmed malaria patients were investigated from 2011 to 2020. Plasmodium falciparum was the predominant species with 81 cases (85.26%). The highest rate of infection was observed in 49 cases (51.63%) from Yazd city in the age group of 30-39 years with 29 cases (30.53%), and the working class with 69 cases (72.63%). Despite a decrease in Malaria cases through the implementation of the eradication program compared to the last two decades, its imported type is still showing up in the country, especially in the cosmopolitan city of Yazd, where domestic and foreign workers and tourists usually travel; thus it requires to be further monitored and controlled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: Toxoplasmosis is a common parasitic infection that can endanger mother's and neonates' health during pregnancy. The disease is also prevalent in Iran. This study intended to evaluate the seroepidemiology of toxoplasmosis in neonates and postpartum mothers referred to health centers of Yazd in Iran in 2020. Materials and Methods: Totally, 184 postpartum mothers and 184 neonatal umbilical cords in health centers of Yazd were evaluated for Toxoplasma infection through a specific IgM and IgG antibodies kit. The obtained data were analyzed by SPSS18. Results & Conclusion: Out of 184 samples of postpartum mothers, 8 cases (4.35%) were seropositive, and 176 (95.65%) were seronegative for IgG antibody; moreover, 7 cases (3.80%) were seropositive, and 177 (96.20%) seronegative for IgM antibody. Also, 184 neonatal umbilical cords were IgM negative, and no toxoplasmosis infection was reported. No significant correlation was found between seroprevalence of Toxoplasma infection and caring for pets, consumption of raw meat, level of education, blood type, job, living area and type of delivery (P>0.05). However, a significant correlation was identified between the number of deliveries and the prevalence of toxoplasmosis (P=0.014). This study also illustrated a low prevalence of Toxoplasma infection in postpartum mothers and no congenital transmission of the disease in diverse health centers of the province. However, there was no statistically significant relationship between risk factors and the prevalence of Toxoplasma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]