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Drought is a major abiotic stress affecting plant growth and productivity worldwide. Henna (Lawsonia inermis L.) is an economically important plant species that is widely cultivated due to its natural dye properties and medicinal uses, and it is highly susceptible to drought stress, which limits its growth and development. This study was conducted with the aim of investigating the effect of foliar spraying of sodium nitroprusside (SNP) on the yield of henna ecotypes (Lawsonia inermis L.) under drought stress conditions in Shahdad-Iran. The experiment was conducted in the form of a split factorial design based on randomized complete block design (RCBD) in three replications. Three ecotypes of henna (Rudbar-e-Jonub, Shahdad, and Bam) were used as plant material. The findings showed that with the onset of drought, photosynthetic pigments, growth indices, net photosynthesis, and yield of dry matter of henna plant leaves decrease. However, when SNP spray treatment was applied, it significantly improved things like leaf area index, crop growth rate, net photosynthesis and leaf dry matter yield, especially when drought levels were at 25 and 50%. The natural water content of Shahdad genotype in henna plants showed the highest percentage increase in these measurements compared with other henna plant species. It can be concluded that SNP spray can increase the yield of henna plant under drought stress conditions.

Rationale: Rabies is a zoonotic disease with a high mortality, primarily transmitted through the bite of infected mammals, particularly dogs and cats. Despite being a well-known disease since ancient times, it continues to cause a significant number of human deaths worldwide, with approximately 65 000 fatalities reported annually. Patient concerns: We present two fatal cases of rabies in a 12-year- old immigrant boy and a 7-year-old boy. The first case was subject to a 24-hour delay in receiving appropriate medical attention and rabies preventive measures due to the lack of awareness among emergency hospital staff, leading to the administration of wound dressing only. The second case received timely rabies immunoglobulin administration; however, there was a 4-day delay in administering the fourth dose of the rabies vaccine, despite presenting evident symptoms of rabies. Diagnosis: Postmortem examination of brain samples from both patients confirmed the presence of rabies virus. Interventions: Post-exposure prophylaxis for rabies. Outcomes: Both patients were admitted to the hospital after the manifestation of rabies-related symptoms, with the 12-year-old child seeking medical care 47 days after the animal bite and the 7-year-old child seeking medical care 58 days after the exposure. Finally, the first patient died after 27 days and the second patient died after 40 days of hospitalization. Lessons: There is an urgent need for heightened awareness and education among both healthcare professionals and the public regarding the urgency of seeking immediate medical attention after potential rabies exposure. Timely recognition and initiation of post-exposure prophylaxis are pivotal in preventing the progression of the disease. Strengthening surveillance and reporting systems, coupled with continuous training for healthcare professionals, can contribute to early detection and management of rabies cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The lack of an integrated national system prevents the Islamic Republic of Iran from registering and reporting all cases of cutaneous leishmaniasis. Aim: To establish a laboratory network for the improvement of diagnosis and surveillance of cutaneous leishmaniasis in endemic areas of the Islamic Republic of Iran using parasitological and molecular methods. Methods: This descriptive, cross-sectional, pilot study examined 49 laboratories in the 2 endemic areas for cutaneous leishmaniasis in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Samples were taken for identification of the dominant Leishmania species from individuals with cutaneous leishmaniasis referred to the laboratories and had not travelled to other endemic regions. Statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS version 25.0. Using the primary healthcare laboratory network, we established a 3-level surveillance system. We compared misdiagnosis, new cases, clinical relapses, treatment resistance, and treatment failure before and after establishment of the network. Results: Network implementation reduced relapse of cutaneous leishmaniasis. After the laboratory training, the average misdiagnosis rate decreased from 49.3% to 4.2% for positive microscopic slides and from 31.6% to 12% for negative slides. Correct diagnosis was significantly higher in the study areas after the intervention. Conclusion: Implementation of a cutaneous leishmaniasis laboratory network can enhance diagnosis, unify diagnostic methods and improve patient care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL) is an important vector-borne disease with an incidence of 15.8 cases per 100,000 people in Iran in 2019. Despite all efforts to control the disease, ZCL has expanded into new areas during the last decades. The aim of this study was to predict the best ecological niches for both vectors and reservoirs of ZCL under climate change scenarios in Iran. Several online scientific databases were searched. In this study, various scientific sources (Google Scholar, PubMed, SID, Ovid Medline, Web of Science, Irandoc, Magiran) were searched. The inclusion criteria for this study included all records with spatial information about vectors and reservoirs of ZCL which were published between 1980 and 2019. The bioclimatic data were downloaded from online databases. MaxEnt model was used to predict the ecological niches for each species under two climate change scenarios in two periods: the 2030s and 2050s. The results obtained from the model were analysed in ArcMap to find the vulnerability of different provinces for the establishment of ZCL foci. The area under the curve (AUC) for all models was >0.8, which suggests the models are able to make an accurate prediction. The distribution of all studied species in different climatic conditions showed changes. The variables affecting each of the studied species are introduced in the article. The predicted maps show that by 2050 there will be more suitable areas for the co-occurrence of vector and reservoir(s) of ZCL in Iran compared to the current climate condition and RCP2.6 scenario. An area in the northwest of Iran is predicted to have suitable environmental conditions for both vectors and reservoirs of ZCL, although the disease has not yet been reported in this area. These areas should be considered for field studies to confirm these results and to prevent the establishment of new ZCL foci in Iran. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]