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Besat is a natural gas-fired steam-turbine power plant in Tehran, Iran’s only power station equipped with a monoethanolamine-based post-combustion CO2 capture unit (PCCU). The PCCU operates at a low recovery rate of 4.7% and produces 58 t-CO2/day. Captured CO2 is encapsulated and sold to beverage companies for carbonated soft drink production. Before developing this CO2 capture and utilization (CCU) route, a beverage company like ZamZam produced CO2 on-site, capturing CO2 from flue gas of diesel-fired boilers using a 95%-efficient absorption-refrigeration unit. This paper conducts an attributional, comparative life-cycle assessment/costing of applying the CCU technology to supply the beverage industry with CO2. ReCiPe, cumulative energy demand, and AWARE impact assessment methods are adopted to assess changes in the life-cycle economic, energy, and environmental impacts of electricity, liquid CO2, and carbonated water supply chains with the CCU route. As per findings, the CCU route significantly improves the sustainability profile of liquid CO2 supply for carbonated water production. Compared to on-site production, the CCU route reduces the average economic, energy, and environmental impacts of liquid CO2 supply by 55, 44, and 62%, respectively. However, the figures for carbonated-water production are reduced by only 10.1, 0.85, and 0.77%, respectively, since associated impacts primarily result from citric acid and polyethylene terephthalate value chains rather than liquid CO2. The CCU route, in comparison, increases most environmental burdens of electricity generation. With an efficiency of 4.7%, the PCCU reduces the global warming potential of electricity generation by 6.22% while increasing average toxicity- and eutrophication-related impacts by 55 and 30%, respectively, and production costs by 8%.

Industrial air pollution, particularly cement dust, affects the leaf water status and resource utilisation and finally decreases primary production. Evaluating the relative water content (RWC), leaf mass per unit area (LMA), specific leaf area (SLA), and leaf water per unit area (LWA) helps selecting more tolerant species for dusty polluted areas. In this study, we compare two species of Quercus castaneifolia C.A.Mey and Carpinus betulus L. in a polluted site (PL) around a cement factory, and a unpolluted site (UPL) in Mazandaran province, Northern Iran. Ten individual trees of each species were tagged at each site, and twenty fully developed leaves were collected for further analysis and calculation. Based on the results, RWC and LWA were significantly lower in the PL site (61.0% and 0.0075 g.cm-2, respectively) compared to the UPL site (71.1% and 0.0114 g.cm-2, respectively) for Q. castaneifolia. However, no significant differences were observed in selected variables between PL and UPL sites for C. betulus. Among the studied variables, SLA was significantly higher in C. betulus (259.1 cm2.g-1) compared to Q. castaneifolia (189.8 cm2.g-1). Our results indicated that C. betulus responds better to dust pollution in terms of leaf water variables.

Abstract Viscum album L. (mistletoe) is a semiparasitic plant of the Santalaceae family. A valuable group of bioactive compounds in mistletoe are triterpene acids (TTAs), which possess anti-inflammatory and anticancer properties. Parrotia persica and Carpinus betulus are the most common hosts of mistletoe in the Hyrcanian forests of Iran. This study was performed to compare the content of oleanolic acid (OA), betulinic acid (BA), and ursolic acid (UA) in the mistletoe foliage (stems and leaves) from P. persica and C. betulus in various seasons for the first time. The results showed that OA was the prevailing TTA in all samples, while UA was found in none of them. The maximum amount of OA (12.38 mg/g dry weight [DW]) and BA (1.68 mg/g DW) was detected in V. album from P. persica in summer. The minimum amount of OA (5.58 mg/g DW) and BA (0.72 mg/g DW) was observed in that growing on C. betulus in winter. However, the mistletoe from C. betulus showed the greatest level of OA in spring (9.06 mg/g DW) and BA in summer and autumn (0.92 and 0.97 mg/g DW, respectively). The data collected in this study complement existing research on this subject from around the world.

Abstract Mistletoe (Viscum album L.) is a hemiparasitic plant that absorbs water and nutrients from the host tree. Mistletoe contains two groups of cytotoxic, immunomodulatory and antitumor proteins, viscotoxins and lectins. This study evaluated the quantity and quality of viscotoxins and total lectins in the stems with leaves (foliage) and fruit of mistletoe on Parrotia persica and Carpinus betulus in September with immature green berries and in December with mature white berries. Viscum album L. plants were harvested from host species located in the Hyrcanian forests of Iran in 2019. The highest level of viscotoxins was detected in the December foliage of V. album settled on C. betulus (9.25 mg/g dry weight [DW]), and the highest content of lectins was found in the December foliage of V. album settled on P. persica (0.79 mg/g DW) and C. betulus (0.73 mg/g DW) respectively. The immature green berries of V. album from both host species contained much higher concentrations of viscotoxins and lectins than the mature white berries. Four isoforms of viscotoxins, viscotoxin A1, A2, A3 and B could be identified in all samples of both host species. Viscotoxin A3 was the predominant viscotoxin isoform followed by viscotoxin A1.

The wood industry is a basic industry supplying primary materials to produce a wide range of products. The wood processing in sawmills bridges the transformation flow of raw materials to final products using machinery. Over the last decade, the global market for wood products has become highly competitive. As a result, sawmills are continually striving to improve their efficiency throughout their production process. Recent advances in automation systems and manufacturing technologies provide traditional sawmills with an unprecedented opportunity to be transformed into automated manufacturing plants to increase their efficiency. This opportunity motivates sawmill planners to adopt decision optimization technologies for enhancing their production yields. This transformation will support sawmills to remain resilient in current and future competitive markets. Although there is a vast amount of literature on decision-making in wood manufacturing in sawmills, a comprehensive overview of related approaches and findings with a special focus on optimization of decision processes is still lacking. The review firstly focuses on exploring opportunities provided by optimizing decision-making processes in the wood manufacturing along with associated roadblocks and challenges. Then, we explore methodologies adopted in the literature when aiming for the design and implementation of optimal decision-making systems. Finally, we provide references and guidelines for researchers and manufacturers interested in the topic, as well as formulate research gaps and recommendations for future research directions.

Background: Caring for people with disabilities creates stressful conditions and may lead to mental health problems in parents and caregivers. The aim of this study was to investigate somatic symptoms, depression, and anxiety in parents and caregivers of individuals with disability in Isfahan, Iran. This study was conducted as a joint study by Isfahan University of Medical Sciences and the University of Hamburg with financial support from DAAD. Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 454 parents/caregivers of people with disabilities in Isfahan in 2019. Randomized sampling was performed and participants were selected according to the inclusion criteria. The Patient Health Questionnaire-‎9 (PHQ-9) (Depression), PHQ-7 (Anxiety), and PHQ-15 (Somatic) were used for data collection. Questionnaires were distributed among the participants and completed with the coordination and cooperation of the government and NGOs related to people with disability. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) in SPSS software. Results: The results showed that 28.4% of parents/caregivers of people with disabilities did not have any depressive symptoms and the remaining 70% experienced mild to severe levels of depressive symptoms. Regarding the level of anxiety, 30.2% showed no symptoms of anxiety and 69.8% showed mild to severe levels of anxiety ‎symptoms. In terms of somatic symptoms, 17.8% reported no somatic symptoms and 82.2% reported mild to severe levels of somatic symptoms. Parents/caregivers differed significantly in terms of depression, anxiety, and somatic symptoms according to the type of disability. Conclusion: The findings of the present study show that the rate of symptoms of depression, anxiety, and somatic symptoms in parents/caregivers of people with disabilities is higher than that in the general population. In addition, different types of disability can have different effects on the mental health of parents/caregivers.

This study was conducted in greenhouse condition to investigate the growth, morphological and physiological changes and some antioxidant enzyme activities of one-year-old seedlings of Alnus subcordata C. A. Mey. inoculated with Rhizophagus irregularis mycorrhizal fungi under water deficit stress in a period of 70 days. The experiment was carried out at two inoculation levels (control or non-inoculated seedlings and inoculated with R. irregularismycorrhizal fungi) and with two levels of irrigation including irrigation at field capacity (control treatment) and irrigation at 30% of field capacity (water deficit treatment) in a completely randomized design with four treatments and 10 replications. Results revealed that morphological and physiological characteristics of A. subcordata seedlings significantly decreased under water deficit stress at 99% level while all enzymatic activities significantly increased. Although the morphological characteristics such as height and diameter growth, root length, leaf area, and leaf, stem, root, and total biomass significantly increased by 20-30% in R. irregularis mycorrhiza treatment of the irrigation control plants, these features increased by 55, 40, 46, 47, 37, 35, 50 and 37%, respectively when the plants under water deficit treatment were added R. irregularis mycorrhiza compared to non-mycorrhiza water deficit treatment. The meancomparisonresults indicated that the photosynthesis rate, stomatal conductance, transpiration, and leaf water potential reduced by 57, 54, 53, and 65%, respectively under water deficit regime whereas addition of R. irregularis mycorrhizal fungi in soil alleviated the effects of water deficit. Also, under water deficit condition, activities of catalase, peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, and ascorbate peroxidase significantly increased in comparison with field capacity irrigated seedlings while treatment of soil with mycorrhiza mitigated the destructive effects of water deficit. In general, the present study showed that inoculation of R. irregularis mycorrhizal fungi can alleviate physiological indexes and antioxidant enzyme and consequently leading to an increased tolerance of A. subcordata seedlings during the first year.

Taxus baccata is an indigenous and valuable species of Hyrcanian Forests. According to recent studies, the presence of this species in the areas where distribution is declining; therefore, preserving and restoring this valuable species is essential. One of the most strategies for conservation and rehabilitation of valuable species is identification of its potential distribution and prioritization of areas with potential of presence of species using species distribution models. The purpose of this study was to prioritize desirable habitats for preservation and restoration of yew in Hyrcanian forest. In this study, the Boosted Regression Tree (BRT) algorithm was used to model the distribution of yew species in relation to climatic, edaphic, and topographic variables and identification of the most important variables affecting the distribution of yew. The results showed that the model constructed with climate variables in terms of model evaluation criteria by average of TSS (0.83) and AUC (0.97), has better performance in comparison to edaphic and topographic models. Also, among the climate variables, mean temperature of driest quarter and precipitation of warmest quarter has the most effect on the distribution of yew species. Soil organic carbon, sand percent, cation exchange capacity, altitude, and slope percent were also other important factors affecting the distribution of yew species. Finally, by combining the suitability maps of climatic, topographic, and edaphic models, a map of the priority of conservation and restoration of yew species was prepared, which is very valuable in planning for restoration of this species in Hyrcanian Forests.

Background: Gutta-percha has been the predominant root canal filling material which is developed with different taper. Canal obturation fixed with nickel–titanium (NiTi) instruments and tapered gutta-percha master cone and lateral condensation is advantageous because it is clinically effectual and appears to result in a radiographically acceptable outcome. The aim of this in vitro study was to determine the effect of tapered master gutta-percha cone on apical seal of straight and curved root canals using NiTi rotary files. Materials and Methods: In this in vitro study total of 130 mandibular molars were selected and divided into six experimental groups (n = 20) based on the degree of root canal curvatures (0°–20°and 20°–40°) and the taper of master cones (0.02, 0.04, and 0.06). The roots were immersed in the bacterial leakage model and monitored daily for a period of 70 days. Data were analyzed using Kaplan–Meier approach, log-rank test, and Chi-square tests. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The microleakage in the 0°–20° canal curvature using 0.02- and 0.04-tapered master cones was similar and considerably 0.05). Conclusion: The lateral condensation filling technique using 0.02- and 0.04-tapered master cones is more effective in minimizing microbial leakage in straight canals than 0.06-tapered master cone.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the impacts of dust on the morpho-physiologial traits of Fraxinus rotundifolia Mill. seedling, a useful species in urban green space. In a greenhouse, a dust stress was applied using dust simulator with concentrations of 0, 750 and 1500 μg m-3. Experiment was conducted by a completely randomized design with 5 replicates (9 seedlings in each replicate) within 45 days with one-week interval.) . Dust deposition with 1500 µg m-3 concentration caused the appearance of symptoms of chlorosis and necrosis on leaves. This concentration decreased the amount of survival (29%), increment diameter (38%) and height (33%), average leaf area (19%), photosynthesis rate (45%), transpiration (60%), stomatal conductance (46%), mesophyll conductance (55%), spad index (23%), Fm (22%), Fv/Fm (22%), T1/2 (14%)increased intercellular CO2 concentration (22%), water use efficiency (40%), leaf temperature (2.34 oC) and Fo (30%). For afforestation and tree planting initiatives in dust-polluted areas of urban and suburban regions of Iran, F. rotundifolia seedling can be usefully used in areas where dust concentration is less than 750 μg m-3.

Iran has become one of the most CO2 emitting countries during the last decades. The country ranks after Japan and Germany in terms of CO2 emissions. However, from an economic viewpoint, the gross domestic product (GDP) of Iran is lower than the summation of Berlin and Tokyo GDP. Moreover, a large proportion of Iran’s revenue comes from the crude oil export; therefore, this level of CO2 emission cannot be economically driven and is as a result of high energy intensity in this country. This is while the government also has not a clear program in this regard. The Sixth Five-year Development Plan of Iran, in addition, sets a number of ambitious targets mostly regarding the energy intensity, GDP growth, and renewable energies, but does not mention to CO2 emission issue. Therefore, prospects for an early settlement of the dispute are seemingly dim. Our aim is to predict Iran’s CO2 emissions in 2030 under assumptions of two scenarios, i.e. business as usual (BAU) and the Sixth Development Plan (SDP), using multiple linear regression (MLR) and multiple polynomial regression (MPR) analysis. Findings suggest that Iran most likely will not meet its commitment to the Paris Agreement under the BAU’s assumptions; however, full implementation of the ambitiously shaped SDP could have met the target by end 2018. Keywords: Regression, Paris agreement, CO2emission, Energy, Scenario

Draught stress is the most important abiotic stress significantly affecting plants’ growth, development, and performance. This study was carried out to determine the effect of perlite, as a modifying element of soil, on growth and physiological responses of Queues castanifolia seedlings under water deficit stress. A factorial experiment was conducted as randomized complete block design under greenhouse condition of the Agricultural and Natural Resources Research Center in Gorgan, 2015. Perlite treatments at 4 levels (0, 15, , and 35% (V/V)) were added in soil and water stress at 3 levels (40, 70, and 100% irrigation at field capacity) were applied in the pot experiment for 5 months. Some parameters including gas exchange (photosynthesis, stomatal conduction, and transpiration), leaf water potential of seedlings, diameter and height growth, and dry weight of root, stem, leaf, and seedlings were measured in different treatments at the end of the experiment period. Results showed that all parameters were affected by different levels of irrigation and perlite. Water deficit by 40% FC reduced 51% and 68% of photosynthesis and stomatal conductance, respectively. The highest diameter and height growth and dry weight of the seedlings were observed in 25% and 35% (V/V) perlite application under normal and stress conditions, respectively. The use of perlite alleviated the negative effects of water deficit and ameliorated seedling growth. The findings suggest that perlite application in soil is suitable for the production of desirable seedlings under water deficit condition.

Investigating a tree’s biomass can provide basic information about forest carbon stock. The Biomass Expansion Factor (BEF) is a variable for estimating carbon stock of forests. The aim of this study was to analyse the Above Ground Biomass (AGB) allocation, developing the BEF and carbon stock for two vegetation forms of Brant’s Oak (Quercus brantii Lindl.) based on forest inventory data. BEF is defined as the ratio of AGB to crown volume variables. The study data were taken from 30 trees that include 16 individual trees with single stem and 14 coppice shoots located in West-Iran. The trees selected were felled and separated into different components including: bole, main branches, lateral branches, twigs and leaves. The fresh weight of the trees was obtained with a portable hanging scale and several samples were taken from each tree component. The results of this study showed significant differences between component biomass proportions of the two vegetation forms of Brant’s Oak trees and determined average biomass and carbon content of the forms studied. We also conclude that BEF of Brant’s Oak could be improved by applying crown variables. According to the results, BEFs are tree-size dependent variables. Finally, this study indicates that age-dependent BEFs cannot be applied to conditions where stand development deviates from the conditions that in which the BEFs were developed.

Objective We hypothesized that silage additives may alter the undigested neutral detergent fiber (uNDF) content through ensiling. Therefore, urea and formic acid were applied to corn, whole barley crop (WBC) and alfalfa to change uNDF content of the ensiled forages. Methods Six experimental diets at two groups of high uNDF (untreated corn and alfalfa silages [CSAS] and untreated whole barley and alfalfa silages [BSAS]) and low uNDF (urea-treated corn silage+untreated alfalfa silage [CSUAS], urea-treated whole barley silage+untreated alfalfa silage [BSUAS], untreated corn silage+formic acid-treated alfalfa silage [CSASF], and untreated whole barley silage+formic acid-treated alfalfa silage [BSASF]), were allocated to thirty-six multiparous lactating Holstein dairy cows. Results The untreated silages were higher in uNDF than additive treated silages, but the uNDF concentrations among silages were variable (corn silage0.05). Milk yield tended to increase in the cows fed high uNDF diets than those fed low uNDF (p = 0.10). The cows fed diet based on urea-treated corn silage had higher milk yield than those fed other silages (p = 0.05). The substitution of corn silage with the WBC silage tended to decrease milk production (p = 0.07). Changing the physical source of NDF supply and the uNDF content from the corn silage to the WBC silage caused a significant increase in ruminal NH3-N concentration, milk urea-N and fat yield (p< 0.05). The cows fed diets based on WBC silage experienced greater rumination time than the cows fed corn silage (p

Investigating the relationship between distribution of plant species and environmental factors is one of the main issues in plant ecology. Habitat suitability or species distribution models, are defined as statistical analysis algorithms which relates species data to the environmental predictor variables. This study aims at predicting the habitat suitability of Wych elm species in Kheyroud forest using Maxent model. Wych elm is one of the most invaluable native species in Hyrcanian forest. However, due to the outbreak of Dutch elm disease in recent decades and illegal cutting of this species, its dominance has been significantly decreased. Therefore, the primary and secondary topographic attributes derived from digital elevation model with 12.5 m resolution along with soil characteristics, soil fertility, and geology maps, were extracted at each Wych elm location. Using selective sampling and inventory data, 873 Wych elm individuals were recorded. The results showed that Maxent model has a high potential to predict the suitable habitats for Wych elm based on AUC criterion. Altitude and valley depth were the most important variables in determining the habitat suitability for Wych elm species. Moreover, 32.57% of the study area has an acceptable potential for the presence of this species. Due to the optimal moisture, thermal, and topographic conditions in mid-lands, this area is the best habitat for this species in Kheyrod forest. The generated model can be used as a tool for the forest experts and managers to help conservation and rehabilitation of Wych elm in this forest.

Down syndrome is caused by a trisomy on chromosome 21 of humans. Children with this disease often have varying degrees of physical-mental problems such as mental retardation, communication skills problems, congenital heart disease, and thyroid disease. Early and accurate genetic disorders detection can lead to corrective action and prevent irreversible events. Therefore, accurate and low-risk diagnostic methods to detect these diseases in the fetal period are essential. In this study, a combined artificial neural network (ANN) and genetic algorithm (GA) were used to predict Down syndrome through the first-trimester screening test. In order to examine the proposed model, sample data were collected on 381 pregnant women referred to a private screening reference laboratory for the first-trimester screening test and NT ultrasound between 11 and 13 weeks of gestation. The proposed model in this study was a feedforward neural network for which its structure and input parameters were determined by (GA). The performance of the created model was also evaluated by utilizing the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy indicators. The average of 10 times experiments showed that the developed model could accurately identify cases of Down syndrome with a specificity of 99.72%, sensitivity of 90.91%, and a mean square error (MSE) of 0.61%. This study showed that the use of GA in optimizing the structure of the neural network technique could increase the accuracy in diagnosing Down syndrome through the information of first-trimester screening tests. Most importantly, this study contributes to clinical knowledge by helping clinicians to early identify the risk of Down syndrome with a non-invasive and low-cost method.

Objective. Vitiligo is a common, autoimmune disease that results in the destruction of the melanocytes and manifests as depigmented macules on various areas of the skin. Numerous treatment options have been proposed for vitiligo. The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy of microneedling plus topical pimecrolimus 1% versus the sole use of topical pimecrolimus 1% for the treatment of vitiligo. Methods. This clinical trial was conducted on 30 skin lesions on 15 Al-Zahra hospital patients. Each patient had two similar lesions in the limb area, and each lesion was considered a separate treatment group. The left or right side of the patient’s lesion was randomly assigned to receive microneedling plus topical pimecrolimus for three months, while the other side received only topical pimecrolimus 1%. As part of the follow-up, digital photography was taken at the baseline and biweekly for three months after treatment and six months’ follow-up. The following methods were used to evaluate the results: DLQI questionnaires, patient satisfaction questionnaires, and two independent dermatologists comparing the improvement rate for each group. Results. Topical pimecrolimus 1% treatment led to unsatisfactory results, whereas the combination of microneedling and topical pimecrolimus1% treatment produced a more favorable overall outcome (P

Background: Recently, chronic renal failure (CRF) has increased worldwide. CRF is a major risk factor to end-stage renal diseases. The incidence of metabolic syndrome (MS) and its cardiovascular complications is common in patients CRF, too. In this study, we compared renal function in patients with CRF and with or without metabolic syndrome. Methods: This study was conducted in 2017 among 100 patient with CRF with glomerular filtration rate (GFR) of 15-60 ml/min/1.73m2, 50 patients with and 50 without metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome criteria, as well as serum creatinine were measured in all the patients each 3 months till 1 year. Findings: 42 patients were women and 58 were men. The mean GFR was not significantly different among the patients with or without metabolic syndrome (P = 0.322) in 1-year follow up. In 3-month follow ups, only there was a significant association between systolic blood pressure and GFR with metabolic syndrome (P = 0.028, P = 0.030, P = 0.020, and P = 0.15 in 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th 3-month follow up). In 1-year follow up, there was no significant association between other metabolic syndrome criteria and GFR in patients with metabolic syndrome [P = 0.214, P = 0.061, P = 0.409, P = 0.315, and P = 0.284 for abdominal obesity, diastolic blood pressure, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and fasting blood sugar (FBS)]. Conclusion: Metabolic syndrome does not any effect on renal function in patients with CRF. We recommend further studies with longer follow-up period.

Background: Recently, renal transplantation has increased worldwide. The incidence of metabolic syndrome is common after renal transplantation that might reduce renal function and increase cardiovascular complications. In this study, we compared renal function after renal transplantation in patients with or without metabolic syndrome. Methods: This cohort prospective study was conducted in 2017 among patients with renal transplantation aged more than 20 years in Isfahan City, Iran. Metabolic syndrome criteria including blood pressure, fasting blood sugar, high- and low-density lipoprotein, triglyceride, and waist circumference, as well as serum creatinine were measured in 30 patients with metabolic syndrome and 30 without metabolic syndrome in one-year follow-up period. Findings: 17 patients were women and 43 were men. The mean serum creatinine changes were not significantly different among the patients with or without metabolic syndrome (P = 0.227) in 1-year follow up. There was no significant association between serum creatinine level with metabolic syndrome criteria such as waist circumference (P = 0.214), diastolic blood pressure (P = 0.061), triglyceride (P = 0.409), high-density lipoprotein (P = 0.315), and fasting blood sugar (P = 0.284) in patients with metabolic syndrome, and only the association between serum creatinine level and systolic blood pressure was significant (P = 0.008). Conclusion: Serum creatinine did not increase significantly in patients with metabolic syndrome. We recommend to consider longer follow-up periods in future studies.

Due to global climate change, climate change in Iran is inevitable and the results of the climate studies clearly show that the Hyrcanian climate has been warmer over the past 50 years. In this research, the current and future distribution of oriental beech (Fagus orientalis Lipsky) was studied using an ensemble method including five different species distribution models. We used five general circulation models under four existing reprehensive concentration pathway (RCPs) to project the impact of climate change on the distribution of oriental beech by 2070. Also, the stable, gained and lost suitable habitat of oriental beech were determined using range size change analyses under climate change. The results showed that the area of suitable habitats with high certainty would be decreased by 72.79% and 89.88% under RCP 2.6 and RCP 8.5, respectively, by 2070. The results of the range size analyses of oriental beech showed only 24.84% of suitable habitat would remain in the most optimistic condition (RCP 2.6) and stable the suitable habitat would decrease by 7.13% under RCP 8.5 by 2070. Also the lowest and highest rate of suitable habitats lost will be by 72.79% and 89.85% under RCP2.6 and RCP 8.5, respectively, by 2070. It is suggested that the climate change impacts should be considered in the management decisions and conservation plans related to the oriental beech in the Hyrcanian forests.

The unavoidable requirement to avoid the undesirable consequences of tourism and to achieve optimal pattern of tourism development is land planning and ecological capability assessment. The purpose of this study was to identify and locate the appropriate ecotourism zones on the route of the Gheshlagh tourism in Sanandaj, Kurdistan, Iran. The research method was descriptive-analytic, library and field studies, as well as the use of GIS geographic information system. For this purpose, required layers of information including altitude, gradient, slope, vegetation and water resources were prepared. In the next step, variables were evaluated using the AHP model and experts’ opnion. Then, using spatial analyzers in the GIS environment, the outputs were derived from the reference maps, and the overlay of these maps in the GIS environment using the algebraic aggregation operator was the final output of the tourism spatial zonation.The results were calculated in five classes of utility and showed that about 20% of the region is suitable for development of tourism and about 20% of the region has the ability to develop moderately with ecological aspects. About 33% of the total area showed prohibited tourism development. The results of this research can be used as an indicator for the development of appropriate and optimal applications within the framework of economic projects in the region.

Forest fires are a major environmental problem that led to the economic and environmental damages. Forest fires are one of the environmental hazards in Iran. Naturally, it is impossible to control the forest fires. By the use of forest fire risk maps, we can identify the areas with high risk of fire and reduce the fires as well as possible. Preparing the map of forest fire risk areas as a strategy is necessary for protecting the forests against fire. In this paper, in order to prepare the forest fire risk zoning, at first the effective criteria’s and indices are identified by Delphi technique, and all of the criteria’s and the indexes were normalized by Fuzzy logic. And also the weights of criteria prepared with Analytical Network Process, then by using GIS system and integrating it with Weighted Linear Combination methods (WLC) the map of zonation of the forest fire risk in the study area was carried out. To assess the accuracy of the evaluation, the results obtained from the study were compared with the past year's fire history data of studied area. This was done using the Kappa coefficient test. The results of the comparison indicated that the prepared map has 90% accuracy for Kappa coefficient test.This result showed that the prepared map had high accuracy and efficacy.

Forest resources mapping is a prerequisite for sustainable forest management. Site productivity is a key indicator of forest ecosystem services like wood production, carbon sequestration, etc. Due to the extent of Hyrcanian forests and mountainous areas in these forests that are sometimes difficult to access, it seems necessary to find suitable methods for mapping the quantitative parameters in these forests. In this study, site form index which is the most reliable criterion for evaluating site productivity of mixed and uneven stands was used. This study aims at mapping beech forest site productivity by using regression kriging in research forest of Tarbiat Modares University. For this purpose, 123 0.1 ha circular sample plots were laid out in beech dominated stands. The height and diameter of beech trees with DBH ≥ 7.5 cm within each plot was recorded. Some primary and secondary variables were also extracted from DEM in sample plots to be used in regression kriging. We investigated the differences between two predictive approaches: random forests and linear regression as the base model for regression kriging technique. Results of 10-fold cross-validation demonstrate that by using criteria such as mean error, mean absolute error, root mean square error, relative mean error, relative root mean square error, the random forests algorithm outperforms the linear regression and kriging techniques, with average decreases of ca. 70% in Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE). Hence, the regression kriging technique with random forest as the base model is recommended in order to better understand the more complex environment-beech forest site productivity relationships.

Abstract We introduce topological non-trivial colorful regions around intersection points of two perpendicular vortex pairs and investigate their influence on topological charge density and eigenmodes of the Dirac operator. With increasing distance between the vortices the eigenvalues of the lowest modes decrease. We show that the maxima and minima of the chiral densities of the low modes follow mainly the distributions of the topological charge densities. The topological non-trivial color structures lead in some low modes to distinct peaks in the chiral densities. The other low modes reflect the topological charge densities of the intersection points.

We study the correlations between center vortices and Abelian monopoles for SU(3) gauge group. Combining fractional fluxes of monopoles, center vortex fluxes are constructed in the thick center vortex model. Calculating the potentials induced by fractional fluxes constructing the center vortex flux in a thick center vortex-like model and comparing with the potential induced by center vortices, we observe an attraction between fractional fluxes of monopoles constructing the center vortex flux. We conclude that the center vortex flux is stable, as expected. In addition, we show that adding a contribution of the monopole-antimonopole pairs in the potentials induced by center vortices ruins the Casimir scaling at intermediate regime.

Background: Acne vulgaris is self-limiting, multifactorial disease involving sebaceous glands. Omeprazole is a proton pump inhibitor with in vitro antibacterial effects against staphylococcus aureus and anti-androgen that can be potential treatment of acne vulgaris. This study was designed to evaluate the efficacy of oral omeprazole and erythromycin 4% compared to doxycycline combination therapy in the treatment of acne vulgaris. Methods: In this clinical trial study, patients with moderate acne were referred to Skin Diseases and Leishmaniasis Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Science, Iran, during August 2014 until November 2015 and were randomized into two groups receiving topical erythromycin 4% plus omeprazole (34 patients) or doxycycline (35 patients) for 3 months. Moderate acne, lack of sensitivity to proton pump inhibitors, lack of warfarin, phenytoin, diazepam consumption, lack of active liver or kidney disease, being older than 12 years, were considered as inclusion criteria. Pregnant or lactating patients, patients with drug allergy history, patients taking oral contraceptives, acne topical medications (including retinoids) or systemic treatment within 30 days of study, patients with oligomenorrhea, hirsutism, acne conglobata, acne fulminant or body acne alone were excluded from the study. All patients were tested for Helicobacter pylori test at the beginning of the study. Results: Both inflammatory and non-inflammatory lesions decreased in both groups with negative correlation with age (P< 0.05). There was no significant correlation between positive Helicobacter pylori test and inflammatory or non-inflammatory lesion reduction (P= 0.794, P= 0.514). Also, patient satisfaction and rate of total drug side effects was not different between two treatment groups. Rate of skin reactions was 20.58% in omeprazole treated group and 11.42% in doxycycline group. For side effects, other than skin it was 2.94% versus 14.28% respectively. Conclusion: Omeprazole could be suggested as an alternative for doxycycline in the treatment of patients with moderate acne vulgaris especially in non-inflammatory lesions.

مقدمه: بیماری مرحله‌ی انتهایی کلیه (End stage renal disease یا ESRD) یک بیماری در حال افزایش و پيوند كليه، بهترين درمان آن است. بیماران قبل از پیوند کلیه، تحت درمان جایگزین همودیالیز و دیالیز صفاقی قرار می‌گیرند. وجود یکی از مشکلات گوارشی نظیر زخم پپتیک، کله‌سیستیت، بیماری‌های کولون و بدخیمی‌های دستگاه گوارش، خطر مشکلات بعد از پیوند را افزایش می‌دهد. هدف از انجام این مطالعه، بررسی ارتباط بین یافته‌های آندوسکوپی و نوع دیالیز در بیماران کاندیدای پیوند كليه بود. روش‌ها: در این مطالعه، 334 بیمار کاندیدای پیوند کلیه در سال‌های 90-1385 به صورت سرشماری و با مطالعه‌ی پرونده‌های این بیماران با تکمیل پرسش‌نامه در دو بیمارستان الزهرا (س) و نور و حضرت علی اصغر (ع) اصفهان مورد بررسی قرار گرفت. یافته‌ها: بیشترین یافته‌ی آندوسکوپی در بیماران، هیاتال هرنیا با شیوع 29 درصد بود. بعد از آن، به ترتیب Erosion معده (1/17 درصد)، Erosion دوازدهه (9/15 درصد)، Erosion آنتر 6(/15 درصد) شایع‌تر بودند و هیچ مورد آنژیودیسپلازی دیده نشد. با مقایسه‌ی میزان شیوع یافته‌های آندوسکوپی در دو درمان متفاوت جایگزین قبل از پیوند، تفاوت معنی‌داری بین دو گروه همودیالیز و دیالیز صفاقی مشاهده نشد. در مطالعه‌ی حاضر، میانگین هموگلوبین در بیماران همودیالیز 8/10 و در بیماران دیالیز صفاقی 5/10 گرم بر دسی‌لیتر به دست آمد که تفاوت آن‌ها معنی‌دار نبود. نتیجه‌گیری: به نظر می‌رسد، بین نوع درمان جایگزینی پیوند و شیوع یافته‌های آندوسکوپی و همچنین، غلظت هموگلوبین با نوع درمان جایگزین قبل از پیوند، ارتباط معنی‌داری وجود ندارد، اما انجام مطالعات تکمیلی جهت روشن‌تر شدن این موضوع توصیه می‌گردد.

This study intends to assess the application of Cocktail method in the classification of large vegetation databases. For this purpose, Buxus hyrcana dataset consisted of 442 relevés with 89 species were used and by the modified TWINSPAN. For running the Cocktail method, first primarily classification was done by modified TWINSPAN, and by performing phi analysis in the groups resulted five species were selected which had the highest fidelity value. Then sociological species groups were formed by examining co-occurrence of these 5 species with other species in the database. 21 plant communities belongs to 6 variant, 17 sub associations, 11 associations, 4 alliance, 1 order and 1 class were recognized by assigning 379 releves to the sociological species groups by using logical formulas. Also, 63 releves by the logical formula were not assigned to any sociological species groups, by FPFI index were assigned to the sociological species groups which had the most index value. According to 91% classification agreement with Brown-Blanquet classification and Cocktail classification, we suggest Cocktail method to vegetation scientists as an efficient alternative of Braun-Blanquet method to classify large vegetation databases.

مقدمه: گلومرولونفریت کرسنتیک، وضعیتی پاتولوژیک است که به صورت درگیری وسیع گلومرول‌ها بیش از 50 درصد همراه با کرسنت مشخص می‌شود که به سه دسته‌ی کلی Anti-Glomerular basement membrane (Anti-GBM)، ایمیون کمپلکس و واسکولیت‌های ANCA associated (Antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody) تقسیم می‌شود و استاندارد طلایی تشخیص آن بیوپسی کلیه می‌باشد. روش‌ها: این مطالعه، یک مطالعه‌ی توصیفی- تحلیلی- مقطعی بود که روی بیوپسی کلیه‌ی بیماران مراجعه کننده به یک مرکز از سال 1390 تا شهریور 1394 انجام شد. از میان 1108 نمونه‌ی بیوپسی، 87 بیمار کرسنتیک وارد مطالعه شدند. بیماران در 6 گروه کلی نفریت لوپوسی، نفروپاتی Immunoglobulin A (IgA) و هنوخ شوئن لاین (Henoch shoen line)، واسکولیت‌های ANCA associated و وگنر، گودپاسچر، کرایوگلوبولینمی و Post streptococcal glomerulonephritis (PSGN) دسته‌بندی شدند. یافته‌ها: متوسط سن بیماران در این بررسی، به طور کلی در تمام گروه‌ها 17 ± 36 سال (با کمینه‌ی 3، بیشینه‌ی 81 و متوسط 32 سال) بود. 54 بیمار (1/62 درصد) مرد بودند. از نظر توزیع فراوانی در میان گروه‌ها 36 بیمار (3/41 درصد) IgA نفروپاتی وهنوخ شوئن لاین، 32 بیمار (7/36 درصد) نفریت لوپوسی، 14 بیمار (0/16 درصد) ANCA associated vasculitis، 2 بیمار گودپاسچر، 2 بیمار کرایوگلوبولینمی و 1 بیمار PSGN بودند. در بررسی حاضر، میانگین کراتینین سرم و پروتئین ادرار 24 ساعته در بیماران به ترتیب 1 ± 2 میلی‌گرم بر دسی‌لیتر (متوسط 1 میلی‌گرم) و 830 ± 1930 میلی‌گرم روزانه (متوسط 2000 میلی‌گرم روزانه) بود. در این مطالعه، میان سن و تعداد کرسنت رابطه‌ی مثبت وجود داشت (001/0 > P). همچنین، میان تعداد کرسنت و کراتینین سرم نیز رابطه‌ی واضح و مثبتی وجود داشت (007/0 = P)، اما میان تعداد کرسنت و پروتئین ادرار 24 ساعته، ارتباط معنی‌دار وجود نداشت. نتیجه‌گیری: این مطالعه، اهمیت ارتباط کرسنت با کراتینین سرم و سن رانشان داد. بنا بر این، تعداد کرسنت‌ها و نوع آن‌ها می‌تواند در پیش‌آگهی بیماران دخیل باشد. این مطالعه، نشان داد که IgA نفروپاتی، شایع‌ترین علت کرسنتیک گلومرولونفریت در میان گروه‌ها بوده است؛ به طور کلی، کرسنتیک گلومرولونفریت در تمام گروه‌ها به جز لوپوس در آقایان بیشتر بود. مطالعه‌ی حاضر، در یک مرکز انجام شد؛ پیشنهاد می‌شود که این مطالعه به صورت چند مرکزی انجام شود. همچنین، این مطالعه نقش انجام بیوپسی کلیه برای تشخیص زودهنگام کرسنت را نشان می‌دهد؛ چرا که کرسنت‌، ارتباط مثبتی با میزان کراتینین سرم داشت.

AbstractKhaghani is one of the preeminent Persian poets. He is a stylist poet. Creating exquisite, dramatic and enigmatic imaginations in the era that most of the poets tried to imitate, integrate and repeat the themes of predecessors makes his position in the poetry more clear. His poems inspired by his rich talent and his proficiency in various sciences such as medicine, astronomy, philosophy, theology, history and math are one of the most exquisite and beautiful Persian poetries.Understanding his poems seems to be difficult due to his heavy use of these sciences, as well as using specialized and strange wordings and creating out of the mind imaginations.This Shervani poet not only has created so beautiful and exquisite dramatic themes and imaginations on the horizontal axis, but also he has done same in several cases on the vertical axis of the poem. In cases the themes are felt repeated, he has uttered them masterfully and skillfully with so novel and exquisite imaginations that they are not seem repeated and keep their value. One of the most outstanding characteristics of Khaghani's personal style is imagination persistence on vertical axis of the odes.Imagination on two horizontal and vertical axes of the poet usually includes the terms such as congestion, interference and persistence. The congestion of imagination mostly takes place on the horizontal axis of the poem and resulted by involving several independence imaginations in a verse of the poem and usually leads to compression of imaginations and their interference and disparity.Poets often use congestion to demonstrate their talent and power in Poetry, while in most of the cases it has no result except for imaginations' interference and that it causes some problems for reader to reach what poet means. But, persistence means to bring several imaginations about an object, a word or a motive in several verses which indicate the talent and imagining power of the poet and his emotional and thought attachment to that object, word or motive, in a way that he does not stop to get imagination in a single verse and continue to get imagination.Imagination persistence on the vertical axis is one of the coherence factors of whole of the poetry, especially in odes which has accounted a large amount of Persian poets' work to itself after Masnavi and has more capabilities to be investigated about imagination persistence in the term of odes' number comparing with other forms of poem. Imagination persistence on the vertical axis of odes is because of two main reasons: a) the emotional and thought attachment of poet to the imagination and b) showing poetry grace and power related to making diverse imaginations about a word or motive that the matter is so significant in Khaghani's poem which it can be considered as a characteristic of his personal style. Because he wants to show that his poetry talent and power is so high that he is able to make several successive imaginations about a word or motive and it is obvious that this characteristic has distinguished Khaghani and Azerbaijani style from Khorasani style.In present study, different types of imagination are four traditional and imaginary forms i.e. two types of simile, allusion and metaphor and the imagination persistence at least should be represented in three consecutive verses and it has three different kinds. These three kinds include:1)     Imagination persistence in verses, continuously and immediately2)     Imagination persistence with a verse away 3)     Imagination persistence with two verses awayIn present study, the imagination persistence has been investigated in 15 odes of Khaghani's odes. The odes totally include 703 verses; among them 269 verses have the imagination persistence on the vertical axis of the ode. In the other words, it can be said that more than one third of these odes contain imagination persistence on the vertical axis and this significant statistic indicates that imagination persistence in Khaghani's odes can be considered as his personal style's characteristic.The statistics of verses with imagination persistence in the study which their number is1406 verses have been separated in following kinds and groups:1) Imagination persistence in verses, continuously and immediately: 161 verses2) Imagination persistence with a verse away: 73 verses3) Imagination persistence with two verses away: 15 versesReferences1.     Dashti, Ali (March of 1961). The late familiar poet, Tehran: Amir Kabir.2.     Khagani, Shervani, Afzal ad-Din Badil (2008). Poetry collection, 6th ed., Zia od-Din Sajadi (ed.), Tehran: Zavvar.3.     Shafiâee Kadkani, M. (2011). Imagery in Persian poetry, 14th ed., Tehran: Agah.4.     Shafiâee Kadkani, M. (1974). [A short introduction to the long discussion of rhetoric], Wisdom and Efforts magazine, No. 15, (Pp. 47 - 78).5.     Fotoohi, Mahmoud (2006). Imagination rhetoric, Tehran: Sohkan.Forouzanfar, Badiâ oz-Zaman (1934). Speech and rhetoric, Tehran: book publishing company.

Background: There is always a necessity for newer acne treatments. Intense pulsed light (IPL) technology has been used for this purpose but there are limited studies in this field. As macular and erythematous remnants of acne inflammatory lesions are very common, resistant, and long-lasting, we decided to evaluate the efficacy of IPL (as a tool for diminishing erythematous reactions in the tissues) for the treatment of residual erythematous macules following facial acne. Methods: Thirty five patients were registered in the study. Patient recruitment occurred between January 2010 and June 2011, and the study was completed in October 2011. Every patient received three IPL sessions, with a 2 week interval, on the right side of his/her face. Also, we recommended the patients to apply topical erythromycin solution 2% twice daily on their entire face from start to end of the study (i.e. until 3 months after the third IPL session). An independent physician counted the number of erythematous macules before every IPL session and 1 and 3 months after the last session. Findings: Thirty three patients completed the study and were enrolled in analysis. Results of the study showed that IPL therapy decreased the number of erythematous macules along the time. Conclusions: IPL can accelerate the improvement rate of the persistent erythematous macules remained after inflammatory acne subsides. More studies are needed to explain the exact role of it.

Background: Fractionated carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) can treat hypopigmented scars. Latanoprost is a prostaglandin analog used to treat glaucoma. It can cause adverse effects, such as periocular hyperpigmentation. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and safety of latanoprost plus CO 2 laser on the repigmentation of hypopigmented scars. Patients and Methods: 28 patients with hypopigmented scars were divided randomly into two groups. The patients in group A were treated in six sessions (1-month intervals) with 10600-nm fractional CO 2 laser plus latanoprost 0.005% and those of group B fractionated CO 2 laser plus placebo (distilled water). Digital photographs were taken at baseline and 3 months after the last treatment session. The blinded dermatologist compared the photographs and evaluated the efficacy of treatment in the hypopigmented scars using a 4-scale point (grade 1-4). Patient satisfaction was scored from 0 to 10 on a visual analog scale. Results: Follow-up results 12 weeks after the last treatment session demonstrated that 11 of the 14 patients in group A had more than 50% improvement in hypopigmentation The difference in improvement of the two groups was statistically significant (P = 0.027). The mean of the VAS scores of patients in group A was 6.50 ± 1.45 and in group B 4.57 ± 1.6. The difference in mean satisfaction of the two groups was statistically significant (P = 0.003). Side effects were mild and resolved within 1 to 5 days. Conclusion: The fractional CO 2 laser resurfacing plus topical latanoprost can be used as a safe and efficacious method to treat hypopigmented scars.

Leaf area (LA) and leaf biomass (LB) are important variables for most physiological, horticultural and agronomic studies involving plant growth, development rate, radiation use efficiency, and water or nutrient use. Measuring these variables need destructive and aggressive sampling. Fortunately, evolving allometric equations can help for low cost and non-destructive estimation of such variables. The aims of this study are Estimate, compare and develop allometric models of LA and LB per tree and per stand for Alnus subcordata (AS), Populus deltoides (PD) and Taxodium distichum (TD) plantations. We selected 12 sample trees in each stand. Leaf Fresh weight of randomly selected branches was weighted in the field. Branch-level LA was modeled as a function of branch diameter (R2 > 0.8) and total fresh weight of LB has been calculated for each sampled tree. For each species, 100 leaves from all canopy directions of trees were randomly selected and transported to the laboratory. At the lab, leaf area has been measured using leaf area meter. Allometric equations were derived using regression analysis. For all species, derived equations showed high accuracy (R2 ranged from 0.837 to 0.947). However, with respect to mean square error, power regression equations (individual leaf area = a(L×W)b and LA or LB = a DBHb) are best models to estimate Individual Leaf Area, LA, and LB of AS, PD, and PD. The highest LAI was in the order of 16.9 > 5.5 > 4.5 for AS, PD, and TD, respectively. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.267914

Introduction In order to treat uveal Melanoma , first, radioactive seeds are laid on a silicone- made substance which is called Silastic after that they are inserted in the plaque, and finally, this plaque containing silicone-made substance is stitched to the sclera surface. The dose gradient within the tumor and healthy tissues can be varied due to changing the Silastic thickness between sclera surface and radioactive seeds. In turn, this leads to difference in the amount of absorbed dose of tumor and healthy tissues. Present study is to investigate the optimum Silastic thickness in uveal Melanoma brachytherapy. Materials and Methods To measure changes of depth dose of the plaque in a sphere with a radius of 12 mm, MCNP4C code was applied. Exact specifications of a 20-mm Collaborative Ocular Melanoma Study (COMS) plaque, Silastic and three I-125 seed sources, 6711 model were integrated in simulation. Dose calculations were performed using F6 tally in spheres with a radius of 0.2 mm. Results By measuring the changes of dose rate of plaque in distances of 0.2 to 18 mm from the sclera surface and having the prescribed dose for the absolute treatment of eye melanoma, final absorbed doses by tumor and healthy tissues for each different Silastic thicknesses of 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, and 2 were calculated. Conclusion Considering the results and sclera tolerance, it was concluded that the thickness of Silastic must not exceed 0.5 mm, because increasing the Silastic thickness from this area, increases absorbed dose by healthy tissues and also the treatment time.

مقدمه : Alopecia areata یک بیماری ایدیوپاتیک است که در آن ریزش موی ناحیه‌ای وجود دارد. روش‌های درمانی زیادی برای ریزش موی سکه‌ای (ریزش موی کمتر از 50 درصد) پیشنهاد شده است که تزریق کورتیکواسترویید، مینوکسیدیل موضعی 5% و پماد یا کرم آنترالین در قسمت‌های بدون موی پوست از آن جمله است. از آن جایی که در مطالعات اخیر نقش خودایمنی و اتوآنتی‌بادی‌ها را در بیماری Alopecia areata مطرح شده و از داروهای تنظیم کننده‌ی سیستم ایمنی در درمان آن بهره گرفته شده است، این مطالعه به منظور مقایسه‌ی اثربخشی استفاده‌ی توأم از تاکرولیموس و مینوکسیدیل با مینوکسیدیل به تنهایی در درمان Alopecia areata به انجام رسید. روش‌ها: این مطالعه از نوع کارآزمایی بالینی تصادفی و دوسو کور بود که در بیمارستان الزهرا (س) و مرکز پوست و سالک صدیقه‌ی طاهره (س) وابسته به دانشگاه علوم پزشکی اصفهان از مهر ماه 1391 لغایت 1392 به انجام رسید. در این مطالعه، 96 ضایعه در 54 بیمار مبتلا به Alopecia areata با مساحت و تعداد ضایعات متفاوت در دو گروه درمانی مورد مطالعه و بررسی قرار گرفتند. یک گروه با محلول مینوکسیدیل 5 درصد و کرم تاکرولیموس 1/0 درصد و گروه دیگر با محلول مینوکسیدیل 5 درصد و کرم دارونما درمان شدند. میانگین مساحت ضایعات در شروع درمان، یک و دو ماه پس از شروع و یک و سه ماه پس از اتمام درمان اندازه‌گیری شد و در دو گروه درمانی و در جنس و سنین مختلف با هم مقایسه گردید. یافته‌ها: سطح ضایعات در گروه تحت درمان با محلول مینوکسیدیل و کرم تاکرولیموس بعد از شروع و قطع درمان بیشتر و در گروه تحت درمان با محلول مینوکسیدیل وکرم دارونما کمتر شد. نتیجه‌گیری: در مطالعه‌ی ما، محلول مینوکسیدیل به تنهایی نسبت به مصرف توأم محلول مینوکسیدیل 5 درصد و کرم تاکرولیموس 1/0 درصد، اثر بهتری در درمان Alopecia areata داشت.

This research was carried out to compare two oak (Quercus brantii) stands (healthy and affected by oak decline) in respect to characteristics of competitive environments in Shalam Forest, located at north of Ilam province of Iran. The study area was divided into 20 topographical homogeneous units, using GIS method. Considering the dieback rate at the units, five homogeneous units with different dieback rates were selected. After that, six transects (100 m. length) were allocated at each of the units and five points were laid on them at 25 m. intervals, using the systematic random statistical method. The two closest dead and alive trees to the points were identified. Finally, some characteristics of the focal trees around the two selected trees were measured and recorded, including their distance to the focal trees, species, crown diameter and total height. Competitive condition of the focal alive and dead trees in the stands was computed by Hegyi index. The data were analyzed, using ANOVA and t-test statistical methods. Results showed that there was significant difference between the homogeneous units in respect to the tree's competition rate. According to the t-test results, competition rate of the dry and almost dry trees was greater than that of the healthy or less dried trees. The lowest and the greatest tree competition rates were found in the homogenous units with lowest and greatest crown dieback rate, respectively. The focal dieback trees had lower crown diameter, total height and distance to the neighboring trees in comparison to the focal healthy trees, whereas the neighboring trees to the focal dieback trees had greater crown diameter, total height and density. It might be concluded that tree's competition rate has direct correlation with stand or tree groups density which varies, depends on available soil moisture content and competitive stress at different parts of the stand. The results of this research can highlight importance of tree competition, dependant on stand density as a predisposing factor of oak trees mortality at drought conditions, occurred at recent years and can be useful for rehabilitation management of the oak forests under dieback condition.

Background: Leishmaniasis is an infection caused by leishmania protozoa. Knowledge about health effects associated with environment situation and human behavior in national and local levels seems to be very necessary. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional case-control study was carried out in three adjacent counties of Isfahan province in Iran. Data were collected by face-to-face interviewing and recorded structured questionnaire. Statistical analysis was performed using Chi-square test and logistic. P < 0.05 was considered as significant. Results: The economic level had significant association with cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) transmission (P < 0.05). However, there was no significant association between existence of food storage and transmission of CL. We, however, found significant reduction of CL transmission following use of insect control measures (P < 0.05). The odds ratio for peridomestic transmission was 0.420 for houses that weren′t round with any old or ruined houses. Conclusion: We conclude that among aforementioned risk factors, the impact of peridomestic factors is stronger in CL transmission when compared with domestic and behavioral factors.

Background: There are some evidences that control the blood sugar decreasing the risk of diabetes complications, and even fatal. There are so many studies, but they are mostly cross-sectional and ignore the trend and hence it is necessary to implement a longitudinal study. The aim of this prospective study is to find the trend of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) over time and the associative factors on it. Methods: Participants of this longitudinal study were 3440 eligible diabetes patients referred to Isfahan Endocrine and Metabolism Research Center during 2000-2012 who are measured 2-40 times. A linear mixed model was applied to determine the association between HbA1c and variables, including lipids, systolic, diastolic blood pressure and complications such as nephropathy, and retinopathy. Furthermore, the effect of mentioned variables on trend of HbA1c was determined. Results: The fitted model showed total cholesterol, retinopathy, and the method of therapy including oral antidiabetic drugs (OADs) plus insulin and insulin therapy decreased the trend of HbA1c and high-density lipoprotein, weight, hyperlipidemia and the method of therapy including diet, and OADs increased the trend of HbA1c. Conclusions: The present study shows that regular visits of diabetic patients as well as controlling blood pressure, lipid profile, and weight loss can improve the trend of HbA1c levels during the time.

Background: Leishmaniasis is an infectious disease caused by an intracellular parasite of Leishmania and is transmitted through the female sandflies bite and may lead to severe skin lesions. Although drugs such as antimony compounds are available, their side effects such as toxicity, low efficacy, and emergence of resistance have raised the importance of effective replacement. Imatinib, as an inhibitor of tyrosine kinase (TK) of Leishmania, stops abnormal function of TK such as Bcr-Abl through assembling into transmembrane pores in a sterol-dependent manner. Hence, the evaluation of killing effects of different concentrations of imatinib against Leishmania major amastigotes and promastigotes in vitro were the objectives of the present study.Materials and Methods: The killing effects of different concentrations of imatinib (25, 50, and 100 μg) and 25 μg amphotericin B (as positive control) were evaluated against RPMI 1640-cultured promastigotes and the amastigote/macrophage model by MTS cell proliferation assay kit (ab197010) and Giemsa staining method during 24, 48, and 72 h. Results: The results showed anti-Leishmania effect of imatinib in concentration and time-dependent manner. The lowest number of live promastigotes and amastigotes were obtained due to treat with 100 μ/ml imatinib at 72 h. Furthermore, 100 μg concentration of imatinib had the same effect as 25 μg amphotericin B on both L. major promastigotes and amastigotes (P < 0.001). Conclusion: The anti-Leishmania effect of imatinib was confirmed by MTS and direct microscopy. Further study is recommended for evaluating possible therapeutic effects of imatinib on leishmaniasis in vivo.

Introduction Interaluminal brachytherapy is one of the important methods of esophageal cancer treatment. The effect of applicator attenuation is not considered in dose calculation method released by AAPM-TG43. In this study, the effect of High-Dose Rate (HDR) brachytherapy esophageal applicator on dose distribution was surveyed in HDR brachytherapy. Materials and Methods A cylindrical PMMA phantom was built in order to be inserted by various sizes of esophageal applicators. EDR2 films were placed at 33 mm from Ir-192 source and irradiated with 1.5 Gy after planning using treatment planning system for all applicators. Results The results of film dosimetry in reference point for 6, 8, 10, and 20 mm applicators were 1.54, 1.53, 1.48, and 1.50 Gy, respectively. The difference between practical and treatment planning system results was 0.023 Gy (

Objective: Anti-tumor immunity and cytokine profiles have important roles in the developmentof cancer. Norepinephrine (NE) release due to sympathetic activation leads toa Th2 deviation via the beta-2 adrenergic receptor (β-2AR) and could increase cancerprogression. This study intends to determine the effects of isoproterenol (ISO; betaagonist)and propranolol (PRO; beta-antagonist) on the production of IFN-γ, IL-4, andIL-17. Cytokine levels have been examined in tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) andperipheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of patients with colorectal cancer (CRC).The β-2AR expression on lymphocyte subsets was also assessed.Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, TILs were isolated from freshCRC tissue and patient PBMCs were obtained just prior to surgery. The cells werecultured in medium for 72 hours. Concomitantly, cells were stimulated with 10 μg/ml phytohemagglutinin (PHA) alone or in the presence of either 1 μmol/L of PRO or1 μmol/L ISO. The concentration of cytokines in the supernatants was measured byELISA. Three-color flow cytometry was used to determine the expression of β-2AR onthe lymphocyte subsets. Statistical analyses were performed via paired or independentt-test.Results: Levels of IFN-γ, IL-4 and IL-17 were elevated after PHA-stimulation of PBMCsand TILs. However, the elevation of IFN-γ and IL-17 production by TILs in response to PHAwas significantly lower than PBMCs. In the presence of ISO, the IFN-γ/IL-4 ratio reducedin all groups, but this reduction was very low in TILs. Interestingly, the effects of PRO oncytokine production were, at least partially, comparable to those of ISO. Depressed levelsof β-2AR expression were demonstrated on CD4+IFN-γ+ and CD4+IL-17+ lymphocytesin patients’ PBMCs and TILs.Conclusion: This study has demonstrated the effects of ISO and PRO on cytokine productionby TILs and determined β-2AR expression on these cells. ISO failed to induce ashift toward the expected Th2 cytokine profile in CRC patients’ TILs, which might be due tothe downregulation of β-2AR expression on TILs. Additionally, in this study, PRO induceda shift to a Th2 profile in PBMCs.

Polypropylene/wood flour composites having different nanoclay and glass fiber contents were fabricated by melt compounding and then injection molding. The physical and mechanical properties were evaluated. The results showed that the tensile modulus and tensile strength of the PP/wood flour composites increased with increasing glass fiber content. However, the impact strength of the PP/wood flour composites progressively decreased with increasing glass fiber content. Dimensional stability of the composites could be improved by increasing the glass fiber content. Also, results indicated that the tensile modulus and tensile strength of composites increased with increase of nanoclay up to 4phc and then decreased. However the impact strength and water absorption of the composites decreased with increasing the nanoclay loading. The morphology of the nanocomposites was examined by using X-ray diffraction (XRD). Morphological findings revealed an intercalated form in the sample with 4 per hundred compounds (phc) concentration of nanoclay, which implies the formation of an intercalated morphology and better dispersion than 6phc, and the d-spacing of clay layers were improved in the composite in the presence of compatibilizer. This project has shown that the composites treated with glass fiber and nanoclay will be desirable as building materials due to their improved stability and strength properties.

Background: This study is aimed to examine the appropriacy of school furniture to Iranian pupils′ anthropometric features. Methods: The participants in this cross-sectional study were 493 boys and 489 girls with the age-range of 7 to 12 years who were selected through a multistage random cluster sampling procedure. Age, weight, height, and anthropometric dimensions were determined. Results: This study indicates that there is a significant difference between the minimum and maximum acceptable dimensions and those of the available furniture (p < 0.001). Conclusions: In designing suitable furniture for pupils the anthropometric differences of age and gender must be tak-en into account.

BACKGROUND: Vitamin D is essential for the maintenance of good health, and vitamin D deficiency has been reported from many countries including sunny ones. Due to the importance of vitamin D deficiency and its effects on children life quality, this study was conducted to evaluate the vitamin D status in healthy 6-year-old children in Isfahan city (2006). METHODS: 513 healthy children were studied in this cross-sectional research. Blood was drawn for measuring biochemical parameters (serum PTH and 25-hydroxy vitamin D) and dietary vitamin D intake, duration of daily sunlight exposure, and percentage of body surface area exposed were measured using questionnaires. Data was analyzed, using SPSS software, V13 (SPSS. Inc, Chicago IL.). The vitamin D serum levels less than 20 ng/ml and 10 ng/ml were defined as mild and severe vitamin D deficiency. ROC curve was utilized to obtain a cut-off point of vitamin D serum level in this study. FINDINGS: Using ROC curves, we defined the cut-off point of vitamin D deficiency in our population as 25-OHD level of 33 ng/ml .as the cut-off point of vitamin D deficiency in our population. Vitamin D serum level was < 20 ng/ml in 3% and < 33 ng/ml in 26% of cases. Duration of sunlight exposure (p

Background: Leishmaniasis is a major health problem in some endemic areas of tropical and subtropical areas of the world. Interleukin-12 (IL-12) and interferon gamma (IFN-γ) are essential cytokines associated with initiation of Th1 response. The main objective of this study was to evaluate of the type of immune response to L. major isolates from patients with no clinical response to antimonite (Glucantime). Materials and Methods: This experimental study was carried out during 2013–2014. In the current study Leishmania major were isolated from 10 CL patients with a history of at least one course of treatment with Meglumine antimonate (Sb5). The isolates were used to evaluatein vitro andin vivo response to Sb5. J774 murine macrophage cell line was used forin vitro tests and Balb/c mice was used forin vivo studies. IL-12 gene expression was evaluated using Real-time PCR and IFN-γ serum level was quantified using ELISA technique. SPSS (version: 20), analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used for statistical analysis. Results: PCR results confirmed that all 10 isolates were L. major. The mean of IL-12 gene expression in vitro,in vivo and IFN-γ serum levels (pg/ml) after 2 and 3 weeks treatment in vivo, increased significantly following the treatment with Glucantime in the two groups of Balb/c mice infected either with patients' isolates or standard L. major. No significant difference was seen between the patients' isolates and standard species. Conclusions: Although the L. major were isolated from patients with active lesion and no clinical response to Glucantime after at least one courses of Glucantime treatment butin vivo andin vitro immune response of L. major isolates showed no difference between the patients' isolates and standard L. major.

Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a parasitic disease in most parts of Iran, especially in the province of Isfahan. Due to phenotypic similarities of most species of Leishmania, reservoir variety, and different clinical manifestations of the disease, identification of species is necessary. In this study, the isolates which caused human CL in Isfahan region were characterized using internal transcribed spacer (ITS) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique. Methods: Among 60 CL suspected cases which referred to Skin Diseases and Leishmaniasis Research Center, Isfahan, Iran, the DNA isolates of patients with positive direct cutaneous microscopy were selected. Cultures were then extracted and the species of the etiologic agents of the disease were determined by ITS-PCR. Findings: Leishmania major was found as the predominant species (100%) which caused CL in Isfahan region. Conclusion: Due to phenotypic similarities among different species of Leishmania, species identification is not possible by direct microscopy and culture. Considering the endemicity of CL in Isfahan region, 3 substantial factors including reservoir combating, treatment of patients and species characterization are of importance for disease control. Keywords: Cutaneous leishmaniasis, Leishmania major.

Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is still considered as a health problem in the world. Several methods of control in different regions together with obtaining integrated information on its natural foci are needed to decrease its prevalence. This study was designed to evaluate the effects of simultaneous interventions on CL control. Methods: A standard questionnaire was used to identify patients among pilgrims of Emamzadeh Agha Ali Abbas (Isfahan Province, Iran). Afterward, three methods of controlling the disease including spraying residential buildings with Baygon, baiting with anticoagulant poisons, changing the vegetative cover of the region, improving the environment, and mounting mesh on all doors and windows of buildings in residential parts. The control measures were then evaluated by comparing the numbers of pilgrims affected by CL after and before the interventions. Findings: While 23 pilgrims (1.4%) were affected with CL before the intervention (pretest), 5 (0.3%) persons were found to have CL after taking control measures. Chi-square test did not indicate any significant difference in relative frequency of CL (P = 0.731). Conclusion: The only scientific way for preventing and controlling zoonotic CL is a combination of control methods (improving environment, fighting off the disease districts and vectors) together with changing the vegetative cover of the region. Any measure for controlling disease must be taken and programmed in accordance with the relevant experts' views, in coordination with other organizations, and with the society's participation.

Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is still considered as a health problem in the world. Several methods of control in different regions, together with obtaining integrated information on its natural foci, are needed to decrease its prevalence. This study was designed to evaluate the effects of simultaneous interventions on CL control. Materials and Methods: A standard questionnaire was used to identify patients among pilgrims to Emamzadeh Agha Ali Abbas (Isfahan Province, Iran). Subsequently, three methods of controlling the disease, including, spraying residential buildings with Baygon, baiting with zinc phosphide poisons, changing the vegetative cover of the region, improving the environment, and mounting a mesh on all doors and windows of buildings in residential areas were used. The control measures were then evaluated by comparing the number of pilgrims affected by CL after and before the interventions. Results: While 23 pilgrims (1.4%) were affected with CL before the intervention (pretest), five (0.3%) persons were found to have CL after taking control measures. The Chi-square test did not indicate any significant difference in the relative frequency of CL (P = 0.731). Conclusion: The only scientific method for preventing and controlling zoonotic CL (ZCL) is a combination of the control methods (improving the environment and fighting off the disease districts and vectors) together with changing the vegetative cover of the region. Any measure for controlling this disease must be taken and programmed in accordance with the relevant experts′ views, in coordination with the participation of other organizations and the society.