Short communication: Cadmium determination in two flat fishes from two fishery regions in north of the Persian Gulf

Heavy metals are natural trace components of the aquatic environment, but their levels have increased due to industrial agriculture, mining activities, industrial activity, shipping accident. Pollution studies in the ROPME area including the Persian Gulf and the Oman Sea are extremely important because this region is shallow, semi-enclosed, and has a very high evaporation rate and poor flushing characteristics. Other Iranian scientists reported the pollution from inland water but our study was the first on evaluation of Cadmium pollution from northern coastal waters of the Persian Gulf, belonging to the Iranian coastlines. The aim of this study was to examine the quality of local seafood in terms of heavy metal contamination by examining the two commercial fish species, Euryglossa orientalis and Psettodes erumei through the determination of Cd concentration levels in the muscle and liver tissues of the fish, monitoring the ROPME region, and investigating the relationship between fish size and metal concentration in the different tissues of these two flat fishes

Histopathological effects of mercuric chloride on kidney and intestine of Persian sturgeon, Acipenser persicus fry

To study the effects of mercuric chloride on kidney and intestine tissue of Persian Sturgeon, Acipenser persicus fry, fish exposed freshwater contain 15 ppb of mercuric chloride and control group were kept in non polluted freshwater for 48 hours. Histological studies of the processed tissues showed marked histological alterations than the control group that exposed only to freshwater. The pathologic lesions of the kidney included severely epithelial cell necrosis, lesion of epithelial cells from the basement membrane in the proximal and distal tubules. Proximal tubule also showed inflammation and incorporation of brush borders. Decrease of lymphoid and hematopoietic tissue observed. Pathologic lesions of intestine tissue were showed the epithelial necrosis, shrinkages of secretory follicule, lesion of epithelial microvilli in intestine. Results showed that low concentration of mercuric chloride can pose undesirable alternation in Persian Sturgeon fry, an economic and endangered species of the Caspian Sea

Immunolocalization of Na+ K+-ATPase enzyme and gill chloride cells in fries of Persian sturgeon, Acipenser persicus

Persian sturgeon, Acipenser persicus is a valuable species in the Caspian Sea ecosystem. For gill chloride cells localization, fish specimens 2-3 g were adapted to experimental conditions for 7 days. Gill histology was observed through light microscopy using Hematoxylin Fushin staining. Immunolocalization of gill Na^+, K^+ -ATPase was observed through fluorescent microscopy using mouse monoclonal antibody (IgG5) rinsed against Na+, K+ -ATPase. Chloride cells dimensions was observed using Image Tools software. Gill chloride cells that have high density of Na+ K+ -ATPase, were found on gill arch, gill septum, filament and lamellae. No chloride cells were observed on spiracular or opercular gills epithelium. Chloride cells were spherical to egg-shaped and showed immune-fluorescent activity on their baso-lateral sides. Results showed that in each square millimeter of gill epithelia, 289 chloride cells existed and the maximum number of these cells was found on filament, lamellae, base of the lamellae and on the inter-lamellar space. We also found that the number of these cells is significantly different in all branchial states. Persian sturgeon fry weighing 2-3 g have gill chloride cells where Na+ K+ -ATPase gene and their activity occurred. Because of their cellular transporters (like Na^+, K^+ -ATPase), these cells were the main sites of the ionic and osmotic regulation between the fish and the environment

Histopathological effects and toxicity of atrazine herbicide in Caspian kutum, Rutilus frisii kutum, fry

This study aimed to investigate the toxic effects of atrazine herbicide on the fry of Caspian kutum (Rutilus frisii kutum, Kamensky, 1901). First the 96-h LC50 of the fry were exposed to atrazine at the concentration of 24.95 ppm was determined. Then the toxicity of this herbicide on Caspian kutum fry exposed to the concentration of 12.47ppm (1/2 LC50), for four days was measured and compared with a control group. Comparison of the length, weight and condition factor showed no significant differences between atrazine exposed and control group. The concentration of Na+, K+, Ca2+, Mg2+ and Cl- in the whole body of fry in control and atrazine exposure groups were as the following order: Ca2+>K+>Na+>Cl->Mg2+ and Ca2+>Na+>K+>Mg2+>Cl-, respectively. Results showed that the concentration of all these ions were higher in atrazine exposure group than control group, except for Cl-, and the only significant differences was found in Na+ concentration. Major histopathological effects of atrazine on the gills were hyperplasia and thickening of the filaments, separation of the pavement cells of the lamellae epithelium from the pillar cells and swelling of the epithelial cells. Results of the present study showed that atrazine could affect the ion composition of the body, and caused major damages in gill epithelium even at sublethal concentration and acute exposure, but had no effects on the growth parameters

Pathogenic Huntingtin Repeat Expansions in Patients with Frontotemporal Dementia and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

We examined the role of repeat expansions in the pathogenesis of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) by analyzing whole-genome sequence data from 2,442 FTD/ALS patients, 2,599 Lewy body dementia (LBD) patients, and 3,158 neurologically healthy subjects. Pathogenic expansions (range, 40-64 CAG repeats) in the huntingtin (HTT) gene were found in three (0.12%) patients diagnosed with pure FTD/ALS syndromes but were not present in the LBD or healthy cohorts. We replicated our findings in an independent collection of 3,674 FTD/ALS patients. Postmortem evaluations of two patients revealed the classical TDP-43 pathology of FTD/ALS, as well as huntingtin-positive, ubiquitin-positive aggregates in the frontal cortex. The neostriatal atrophy that pathologically defines Huntington's disease was absent in both cases. Our findings reveal an etiological relationship between HTT repeat expansions and FTD/ALS syndromes and indicate that genetic screening of FTD/ALS patients for HTT repeat expansions should be considered

Track E Implementation Science, Health Systems and Economics

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138412/1/jia218443.pd

The Relationship Between Authenticity and Death Anxiety in Cancer Patients

One of the many problems cancer patients experience is death anxiety. This descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the relationship between authenticity and death anxiety in cancer patients. The participants were 172 cancer patients who referred to medical centers in southeast Iran. The data were collected using authenticity inventory, and death and dying anxiety scale. There was a negative correlation between authenticity and death anxiety, i.e. patients who indicated higher authenticity scores showed lower levels of death anxiety. It seems that developing a comprehensive care program for increasing awareness of authenticity in patients, may be effective in reducing patient death anxiety. © The Author(s) 2021

Perceived stress among Iranian nursing students in a clinical learning environment: A cross-sectional study

Background: Nursing students experience a high level of stress in clinical settings. This study aimed to investigate the stress perceived by Iranian nursing students in the clinical learning environment and its relationship with the characteristics of students. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 430 nursing students who had passed at least 1 clinical training unit were recruited from universities in the Southeast of Iran using the census method. Data were collected by administering a demographic and researcher-made questionnaire to assess the perceived clinical stress. Demographic characteristics included age, sex, marital status, year of study, interest in the field, and previous semester average. Data were analyzed using independent t-test, ANOVA, and correlation coefficient test (α < 0.05). Results: The mean score of overall stress experienced by the participants was 92.08±16.8 (out of 160), which was at a moderate level. Based on the study results, the most stress-inducing factors for students were instructors� limited clinical competence and instructors� inappropriate conduct. Gender (p = 0.01), fathers� education (p = 0.01), mothers� education (p = 0.01), interest in the field (p = 0.01), and year of study (p = 0.01) had a significant effect on the mean score of perceived clinical stress. Conclusion: The results of this study showed a moderate level of stress among the students. Also, instructors� limited clinical competence and inappropriate conduct were 2 factors that caused the highest perceived stress among nursing students more than other factors. © 2020 Rafati et al