Toxicity and LC50 determination of phenol and 1-Naphtol in Caspian Kutum and bream fingerlings

In this investigation acute toxicity of phenol and 1-naphthol were determined based on OECD guideline in the laboratory. Experimental fishes were Caspian kutum (Rutilus frisii kutum) and bream (Abramis brama orientalis). Static bioassays were used for acute toxicity tests during the period of 96 hours and all of important physicochemical parameters of water including pH, dissolved oxygen, hardness, temperature and conductivity were monitored continuously and maintained at a constant value. Five treatments were used and three replicates run for each treatment. The 96h LCSO values of phenol and 1-naphthol for Caspian kutum and bream were 21.5928 and 2.1544 mg/lit and 25.1880 and 2.8490 mg/lit, respectively. The Maximum Allowable Concentration (MAC) of phenol in Caspian kutum and bream were 2.1593 and 2.5188 mg/lit, respectively. The MAC value of 1-naphthol in Caspian kutum and bream were 0.2154 and 0.2849 mg/lit, respectively. It is evident from the results of the present study that Caspian kutum is more sensitive comparing to bream and the toxicity of I-naphthol is higher than phenol

Isolation of OmpA gene from Salmonella typhimurium and transformation into alfalfa in order to develop an edible plant based vaccine

The outer membrane protein A (OmpA) of Salmonella typhimurium may contribute to immunity and virulence in livestock animals. Introduction of this gene in forage crops like alfalfa may be an alternative and effective way to produce animal edible vaccine. In the present study, the OmpA gene was obtained after polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification and sequencing. We successfully identified the complete ORF encoding this protein. In order to express OmpA protein in alfalfa, the gene was insertedinto a plant expression vector PBI121.The recombinant OmpA was  expressed in Escherichia coli TG1. The new construct was used to transform the Agrobacterium tumefaciens Strain LBA4404 before plant transformation. Transgenic alfalfa plants were then developed by introducing OmpA gene in the plant genome under the control of Camv35s promoter and for the first time we expressed this protein in alfalfa. Releasing this one new transgenic variety may be a considerable progress towards release varieties which enables the production of edible vaccine.Key words: Outer membrane protein A (OmpA), sub cloning, plantibodies, transgenic alfalfa, bioreactor, edible vaccine

Effect of fertilizer in controlling weeds under intercropping of pearl millet and red bean in Sistan region, Iran

This experiment was conducted at the Agriculture Research Center of Zabol University during 2007 cropping season. The experimental design was split plot, using randomized complete block design with three replications. The factors included were, main factors: unfertilized (F1), 100% fertilizer (F2), 100% manure (F3), 50% fertilizer + 50% manure (F4) and five sub factors: sole crop of millet (I1), 75% millet + 25% bean (I2), 50% millet + 50% bean (I3), 25% millet + 75% bean (I4) and sole crop of bean (I5). The plants were planted as replacement method. The results showed that the lowest dry matter for crops and total dry matter of weeds was achieved from 50% fertilizer + 50% manure treatment. Also, the highest total dry matter of millet and bean was obtained from this treatment. The highest dry matter of millet and bean was obtained from the sole crop of millet and bean. Further, the highest total dry matter of millet and bean was achieved from the intercropping treatments. The land equivalent ratio (LER) for most of the intercropping treatments was greater than one which indicated that intercropping had advantage over sole crop. Comparing the performance of sole crop and intercrop treatments, the results indicated that intercropping combinations were more advantageous in terms of weed control.Key words: Intercropping, pearl millet, red bean, weeds, land equivalent ratio, yield

The determination of LC50 of diazinon and it's sub-lettal effect on haematological indices of beluga (Huso huso)

The acute toxicity and effects of diazinon on some hematological indices of Beluga (Huso huso) juveniles weighting 4.1±0.12 grams was assessed following the 0.E.C.D. direction in a static temperature in the range 20.27±2.05°C. The 96h LC50 value of diazinon for beluga juveniles was 5.821. Also, the maximum allowable concentration of diazinon in natural waters for beluga was determined to be 0.5821mg/L. Based on the toxicity table of insecticides, diazinon was listed as toxic for beluga .The clinical symptoms that were observed in this study consisted of lordosis and neural paralytic syndrome in fish exposed to the pesticide. Some abnormal reactions such as losing the balance when swimming and swimming in a half circle; expressive pigmentation mainly on the dorsal part were seen in the juveniles. Examination of hematological indices was performed on control and experimental specimens of beluga weighting 16.08 grams on average that were treated with 96h exposure to diazinon in a concentration lower than LC50 96h. The experimental group of beluga showed significantly lower value (P<0.05) of ,erythrocyte (RBC) and leukocyte count, hemoglobin content (Hb), and haematocrite (PCV), MCV, MCH and relative lymphocyte and eosinophil counts compared to the control group In comparison, the relative heterophil count in the juveniles of the experimental group was significantly higher than the control group. By observing a decrease in the amount of leukocyte profile specially lymphocytes which are important in non-specific immunity of the fish, it can be said that diazinon may cause a decrease in the non-specific immunity of beluga

Effect of irrigation frequency and application levels of sulphur fertilizer on water use efficiency and yield of Indian mustard (Brassica juncea)

A field experiment was conducted at Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi during the crop season of 2007 to 2008 and 2008 to 2009 to study the effect of irrigation and sulphur on yield and water use efficiency of Indian mustard (Brassica juncea var. PusaJagannath). The experiment was carried out in split plot design with three replications. The treatments consisted of three levels of irrigation in the main plots [no irrigation, one irrigation at 45 days after sowing (DAS), and two irrigations at 45 DAS and 90 DAS] and four levels of sulphur in sub-plots (0, 15, 30, and 45 kg S/ha). The results showed that in both years of experimentation, application of two irrigations significantly increased the India mustard yield as indicated by dry matter accumulation, seed production, biological/biomass yield, and harvest index, in comparison to no irrigation. Also, the application of two irrigations, been on par with one irrigation, significantly enhanced seed and biological yield to 20.6 and 78.0 q/ha respectively in the first year, and 22.9 and 86.7 q/ha respectively in the second year, and the highest harvest index was obtained from the application of two irrigations in both years of the study. Water use efficiency as indicated by seasonal consumptive water use increased progressively with the increasing number of irrigations. Also, the amount of soil moisture extraction by the crop from upper layers increased and those from lower depth decreased with increase in the level of irrigation (from no irrigation to two irrigations) in both years of the study. Application of two irrigations to mustard gave higher net (yield) return and benefit-cost (B: C ratio) over one irrigation, which in turn, gave higher net benefit-cost return and B: C ratio than no irrigation. The increasing levels of sulphur application increased Indian mustard dry matter accumulation, seed and biological yield and harvest index. Seasonal consumptive water use by the crop and water use efficiency increased progressively with the increase level of sulphur application up to 45 kg S/ha . Quantity of soil moisture extraction from deeper layer increased with increase in the levels of sulphur application.Key words: Indian mustard, Irrigation, Sulphur, Water use efficiency, Economic evaluation

Pengaruh Kesehatan, Pelatihan Dan Penggunaan Alat Pelindung Diri Terhadap Kecelakaan Kerja Pada Pekerja Konstruksi Di Kota Tomohon

Faktor sumber daya manusia memegang peranan penting dan menentukan sukses atau tidaknya suatu pekerjaan konstruksi. Masalah keselamatan kerja pada pekerja konstruksi masih kurang diperhatikan, masih banyak pekerjaan konstruksi yang mengabaikan faktor keselamatan kerja seperti tidak menggunakan alat pelindung diri. Tujuan dilaksanakannya penelitian ini adalah untuk menganalisa pengaruh kesehatan, pelatihan dan penggunaan alat pelindung diri terhadap kecelakaan kerja pada pekerja konstruksi di kota Tomohon.Metode survey digunakan untuk mendapatkan data utama, dengan cara menyebarkan kuesioner untuk diisi oleh para pekerja konstruksi di kota Tomohon. Populasi penelitian ini sebanyak 3314 pekerja konstruksi, dengan sampel 370 pekerja. Data dianalisa dengan menggunakan uji korelasi dan analisis regresi linier berganda.Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa faktor kesehatan, pelatihan dan penggunaan alat pelindung diri memiliki hubungan negatif dengan kecelakaan kerja, dimana semakin meningkatnya nilai ketiga faktor ini akan menurunkan potensi terjadinya kecelakaan kerja pada pekerja konstruksi di kota Tomohon

Stock assessment of the bony fishes of Golestan province

Total catches of bony fishes in the coastal of south Caspian Sea have been ended to 1554 ton in 1382. The catch of common carp Cyprinus carpio as a one of important commercial species has been lower than others species such as mahisephid, kolmeie and kafal. From commercial catch point of view, the catch of kolmeie is not very important, so that its catch was included only 2% of total bony fish catch in three provinces which are located in south of Caspian sea . In spite of lower common carp catch, in comparison with total bony fish catch in Golestan province more thanb70% catch was belong to Common carp. The higher catch kolmeie among three provinces was related to Guilan with 46% of total catches. Seasonal changes of common carp catch showed maximum and minimum catch were in April 83 and December 82 respectively. The most of (CPUE) was in April 83 and September, October 82. The trend of kolmeie catch showed low fluctuation. Three age groups were specified in kolmeie age composition high and low percent observed in 2 and 3 age groups respectively. Result of biometric information common carp showed most of catch was under standard fisheries catch

Common carotid segmentation in 18F-sodium fluoride PET/CT scans: Head-to-head comparison of artificial intelligence-based and manual method

Background: Carotid atherosclerosis is a major cause of stroke, traditionally diagnosed late. Positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) with 18F-sodium fluoride (NaF) detects arterial wall micro-calcification long before macro-calcification becomes detectable by ultrasound, CT or magnetic resonance imaging. However, manual PET/CT processing is time-consuming and requires experience. We compared a convolutional neural network (CNN) approach with manual segmentation of the common carotids. Methods: Segmentation in NaF-PET/CT scans of 29 healthy volunteers and 20 angina pectoris patients were compared for segmented volume (Vol) and mean, maximal, and total standardized uptake values (SUVmean, SUVmax, and\ua0SUVtotal). SUVmean was the average of SUVmeans within the VOI, SUVmax the highest SUV in all voxels in the VOI, and SUVtotal the SUVmean multiplied by the Vol of the VOI. Intra\ua0and Interobserver variability with manual segmentation was examined in 25 randomly selected scans. Results: Bias for Vol, SUVmean, SUVmax, and SUVtotal were 1.33 \ub1 2.06, −0.01 \ub1 0.05, 0.09 \ub1 0.48, and 1.18 \ub1 1.99 in the left and 1.89 \ub1 1.5, −0.07 \ub1 0.12, 0.05 \ub1 0.47, and 1.61 \ub1 1.47, respectively, in the right common carotid artery. Manual segmentation lasted typically 20 min versus 1 min with the CNN-based approach. Mean Vol deviation at repeat manual segmentation was 14% and 27% in left and right common carotids. Conclusions: CNN-based segmentation was much faster and provided SUVmean values virtually identical to manually obtained ones, suggesting CNN-based analysis as a promising substitute of slow and cumbersome manual processing

Complications and carcinogenic effects of mustard gas - A systematic review and meta-analysis in Iran

Background: Catastrophic effects of mustard gas as a chemical warfare agent have always been a major problem for those exposed to this agent. In this meta-analysis it was tried to evaluate carcinogenesis, ocular, cutaneous and respiratory complications of mustard gas exposure among Iranians who had been exposed to this agent during the Iran-Iraq war. Materials and Methods: In this meta-analysis, the required data were collected using keywords "mustard gas", "sulfur mustard", "cancer", "neoplasm", "respiratory complications", "ocular complications", "lung disease", "chronic complication", "eye", "skin", "cutaneous complication", "carcinogenesis" and their combination with keywords "Iran", "Iranian", "prevalence", "mortality" and their Farsi equivalent terms from the databases of SID, Iranmedex, Magiran, Pubmed, Science Direct, Google Search engine, Gray Literature and Reference of References. To determine the prevalence of each complication and perform meta-analysis, CMA: 2 (Comprehensive Meta-Analysis) software with a randomized model was used. Results: Of the 542 articles found, 7 national articles, consistent with the aims of this study were selected. Metaanalysis of seven papers revealed that cancer risk, especially cancer of the respiratory system was elevated, so that the relative risk (RR) of cancer role of mustard gas was inconsistent from 2/1 to 4 in this survey. Also prevalence of delayed skin disorders due to sulfur mustard was 94.6, pulmonary complications 94.5 and ocular complications 89.9. The incidence of various cancers in victims exposed to mustard gas was 1.7 worldwide where the rate was 2.2 in Iranian victims of the Iraq-Iran war. Conclusions: Based on present study the prevalence of delayed mustard gas related cutaneous, pulmonary and ocular complications is above 90 and risk of carcinogenesis is higher in comparison to worldwide statistics. This may suggest need for long-term and persistent follow-up and rehabilitation procedures es for populations exposed to this agent