A STUDY OF USING FINANCIAL AND NON-FINANCIAL CRITERIA IN EVALUATING PERFORMANCE: SOME EVIDENCE OF IRAN

The success of any organization is reflected upon by its performance which is in turn highlydependent upon its strategies. In this era of cut-throat competition, what an organization requires isnot just framing the right strategies, but also managing the same. The impact of the right strategieswill automatically be reflected in the results. This research includes analyzing balanced scorecard(BSC) is inclusively. BSC pays attention to institutions traditional criteria evaluation i.e. financialand non-financial criteria that are mostly guidance and controlling criteria. Therefore, the mainquestions of this research include: How much financial and non-financial criteria are used to evaluatethe efficiency? Do the efficiency evaluators who know well about balanced scorecard pay moreattention to non-financial criteria? The results of T-test, independence sample, multi variable singlevariance analysis test and Tokay test, the following show that.First the efficiency evaluators are mostly interested in using financial criteria rather than nonfinancialonce; and second using non-financial criteria, there was significant difference betweenthose evaluators who were familiar with BSC and the others

Amelioration of cadmium-induced changes in biochemical parameters of the muscle of Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio) by Vitamin C and Chitosan

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of administering antioxidants, including vitamin C and chitosan on oxidative stress markers in muscle as edible tissues of Cyprinus carpio exposed to cadmium chloride. In this experiment, by exposing to 0.2 mg/L cadmium chloride for 21 days, fish were fed a normal diet, diet containing chitosan (1000 mg/kg diet), vitamin C (1000 mg/kg diet) or both vitamin C and chitosan. Oxidative stress markers, including the activity of catalase, total antioxidant and malondialdehyde (MDA) as well as biochemical parameters, including the activity of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), creatine phosphokinase (CPK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) were measured. Fish exposure to cadmium chloride significantly increased AST, LDH, CPK, catalase, and MDA activity, while it significantly decreased AST and AChE activity, and levels of total antioxidant in muscle cells. Administration of chitosan or vitamin C alone or in combination with each other to fish exposed to cadmium chloride was effective in regulating ALT, CPK, and catalase activity. Although administration of vitamin C and chitosan caused a significant decrease in MDA, AST and LDH, these enzymes were still significantly higher than those in the control group. Administration of vitamin C and chitosan had no significant effects on the activity of AChE and levels of total antioxidant. Although, chitosan alone could not prevent oxidative stress damages in muscle tissues of cadmium-treated fish, administration of vitamin C combined with chitosan may increase the efficiency of antioxidant defense system and improve the detoxification system in the muscles of fish exposed to cadmium chloride

Analysis of Electromagnetic Scattering from Array of Time-Modulated Graphene Ribbons

An accurate and fast method is presented for scattering of electromagnetic waves from an array of time-modulated graphene ribbons. We derive a time-domain integral equation for induced surface currents under subwavelength approximation. Using the method of harmonic balance, this equation is solved for a sinusoidal modulation. The solution of the integral equation is then used to obtain the transmission and reflection coefficients of time-modulated graphene ribbon array. The accuracy of the method was verified through comparison with results of full-wave simulations. In contrast with previously reported analysis techniques, our method is extremely fast and can analyze structures with a much higher modulation frequency. The proposed method also provides interesting physical insights useful for designing novel applications and opens up new vistas in the fast design of time-modulated graphene-based devices

Molecular systematics of the genus Pseudocerastes (Ophidia: Viperidae) based on the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene

The false horned vipers of the genus Pseudocerastes consist of 3 species; all have been recorded in Iran. These include Pseudocerastes persicus, P. fieldi, and P. urarachnoides. Morphologically, the taxonomic border between P. fieldi and P. persicus is not as clear as that between P. urarachnoides and P. persicus or P. fieldi. Regarding the weak diagnostic characters differentiating P. fieldi from P. persicus and very robust characters separating P. urarachnoides from both, there may arise some uncertainty in the exact taxonomic status of P. urarachnoides and whether it should remain at the current specific level or be elevated to a distinct genus. Based on our sequence data from the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene, the taxonomic status of the 3 false horned vipers is confirmed. Although P. fieldi has equal genetic distance from P. persicus and P. urarachnoides, the spider-tailed viper is more closely related to P. persicus than P. fieldi. There are also some subdivisions among the populations of P. persicus in Iran

LC50 and bioaccumulation of lead nitrate (Pb(NO3)2) in Goldfish (Carassius auratus )

Lead is a metal with no known biological benefit to organisms. The present study focused on bioaccumulation of Lead in various organs of gold fish (Caracius auratus). Fishes were exposed to lead nitrate [Pb(NO3)2] at a series of concentrations 0.0 mg/L (control group), 0.09, 0.15, 0.24, 0.3, 0.36 and 0.45 mg/l, which were equivalent to approximately 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 9% of 96 h LC50 for 28 days. After 28 days of exposure, 10 fish per treatment were captured and anesthetized under aquatic solution of clove powder (200 mg/L). Fishes were euthanized and the gill, viscera and muscle tissue were sampled and weighed. Then, lead concentrations were measured in different tissues of goldfish using ICP. Viscera had the highest lead bioaccumulation potential, followed by the gill. The muscles were least preferred site for detecting the bioaccumulation of Pb. In conclusion, although lead was found in all tissues tested, Pb bioaccumulation potential is variable depending on the tissue structure

Effects of dietary supplementation of zinc oxide nanoparticles on some biochemical biomarkers in common carp (Cyprinus carpio)

If the dose and duration of zinc oxide nanoparticle (ZnO-NPs) supplementation optimize, low concentrations of Zn nanoparticles can replace conventional Zn sources in diets of different species of fish. Since evaluating the cytotoxicity of any nutritional supplement is one of the requirements for optimizing the dose for a specified time, we conducted this study to investigate the effects of oral administration of ZnO-NPs on oxidative stress and certain biochemical biomarkers in common carp, Cyprinus carpio, as an experimental model. For this purpose, ZnO-NPs were orally administered to fish for 21 days at 0 (control), 5, 10 and 15 mg kg-1 feed. Administration of ZnO-NPs (15 mg kg-1) significantly enhanced aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and lactate dehydro-genase (LDH) activities in liver, and alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and LDH activities in kidney. Dietary ZnO-NPs increased glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) activity in liver of fish. The results indicated that administration of 10 mg kg-1 and 15 mg kg-1 ZnO-NPs caused a significant increase in ALT and catalase (CAT) activities and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in liver, AST and CAT activities and MDA levels in kidney. ZnO-NPs decreased the liver ALP activity. Administration of 5 mg kg-1 ZnO-NPs significantly increased the cellular total antioxidant (TA) levels in various tissues. Therefore, we suggest that oral administration of 10 and 15 mg kg-1 ZnO NPs caused cytotoxicity and alterations in oxidative biomarkers, but 5 mg ZnO-NPs per kg feed had no side effects on oxidative stress and biochemical biomarkers in fish

Evaluation of oxidative stress induced by cadmium and comparative antioxidant effects of Shirazi thyme (Zataria multiflora Boiss) and vitamin E in common carp (Cyprinus carpio)

Shirazi thyme is an active phytobiotc contains phenolic compounds and flavonoids which have strong antioxidant properties. This study was conducted to investigate the potential protective effects of Shirazi thyme compared to that of vitamin E against cadmium toxicity. Common carp juveniles (34±3 g) were divided into four groups and fed by three different diets including commercial diet without any additive (for control and metal only group) and supplemented with either 1% ground Shirazi thyme or 100 mg/kg vitamin E. All treatments except the control were exposed to sublethal concentration of waterborne cadmium (1.5 mg/L free ion) for 15 d and liver, kidney and gill were sampled 3, 7, 10 and 15 days after the metal exposure. Results showed that treatment of the fish with cadmium for 15 days resulted in a significant reduction in glutathione reductase (GR), glutathione-S-transferase (GST) and catalase (CAT) and led to liver, kidney and gills dysfunction. On the other hand, the level of malondialdehyde (MDA) significantly increased during metal exposure. Supplementation of diets with Shirazi thyme and vitamin E led to a significant protection against metal exposure in different tissues. Moreover, Shirazi thyme was found to be as effective as vitamin E. The current finding can provide a useful reference for stress protective effects of thyme and its beneficial role in aquaculture