Anti-influenza antibody level after vaccination in north of Iran

Objective:Influenza is a highly transmitted disease and about 10% of the world's population is affected by this disease annually. The aim of this research was to study the variation of serum antibody levels among subjects who had already been vaccinated against influenza. Methods And Materials:This descriptive-analytical study was carried out on 196 subjects who had influenza vaccination (influvac 2005/2006) and on 200 subjects who were matched with the vaccinated subjects by their ages in Gorgan which is located in the northeast of Iran. The subject's sera were prepared seven weeks after the influenza vaccination. Their serum antibody levels were determinated by the heamaglutination inhibition test. Results:The antibody titre in 81 subjects of the vaccinated group and in 175 subjects of the control group was less then 1/40. The mean antibody titre of the vaccinated subjects and the control group was 143.4±10.89 and 18.34±3.2, respectively. The difference was statistically significant (P value=0.000). Conclusion:The findings showed that the mean titre of the antibodies in the vaccinated and control groups was statistically different. This means that the influenza vaccine has good efficacy in our population

Study of zinc deficiency in pregnant women

Zinc is one of the elements necessary for growth and health in human. Some evidences indicate that the zinc deficiency is one of real difficulties for the public health in developed and developing countries. Since the pregnant women are more at risk by the zinc deficiency, and this can cause many problems, in this study we tried to find out the rate of zinc deficiency in pregnant women within the region. This research project was analytical-descriptive study which was done on the 400 pregnant women whom referred to Zahedan Ghods hospital. A questionnaire was set up for each case which contained the following items, mother age, pregnancy age, numbers of deliveries, education, and consumption of iron tablet during pregnancy. The serum zinc level in each mother in this project was determined by atomic absorption technique. Prevalence of zinc deficiency among the pregnant women was 49%. Statistical analysis indicated that zinc deficiency had correlation with mother age, term of pregnancy and iron consumption. But zinc deficiency showed no correlation with numbers of deliveries and education. © Iranian Journal of Public Health. All rights reserved

Progress in the use of genetic methods to study insect behavior outside Drosophila

In the span of a decade we have seen a rapid progress in the application of genetic tools and genome editing approaches in ‘non-model’ insects. It is now possible to target sensory receptor genes and neurons, explore their functional roles and manipulate behavioral responses in these insects. In this review, we focus on the latest examples from Diptera, Lepidoptera and Hymenoptera of how applications of genetic tools advanced our understanding of diverse behavioral phenomena. We further discuss genetic methods that could be applied to study insect behavior in the future

Epidemiology of Shigella-Associated diarrhea in Gorgan, north of Iran

Objective : Shigella is an important etiological agent for diarrhea and especially dysentery. Shigellosis is an intestinal infection that is a major public health problem in many developing countries. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of Shigella and its various species in diarrheal samples in Gorgan located in the north of Iran. Materials and Methods: Between January-December 2005, the epidemiology of Shigella- associated diarrhea was studied among 634 patients in Gorgan. The diarrheal samples accompanied with a questionnaire, which contained the demographic and main symptoms of the patients, were transported to the laboratory and inoculated in different culture media. Colonies suspected to be of Shigella were detected using differential biochemical tests and subsequently, the serotype of Shigella was defined using antisera. Results : Shigella was isolated from 56/634 diarrheal samples) (8.8%) of which S. sonnei was the predominant species (55%). Occurrence of Schigella was highest in the 2-5 years′ age group (70.9%) and highest in summer (73.2%) with the most frequent clinical manifestation being abdominal pain (67.8%). The prevalence of Shigella in males and females was 8 and 9.8% respectively, but this difference was not statistically significant. Conclusion: It has been shown that Shigella sonnei is the most common Shigella serogroup among 2-5 year-old children in Gorgan. It is therefore suggested that hygienic training be given to childcare attendants and the children themselves

Haematologic indices in pesticides factory workers

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of pesticides on blood indices of subjects which are exposed to organophosphate toxins. This research was a cohort study which was carried out during 2005 on the employee of a pesticide factory in Golestan province (North of Iran). In this study the sampling from 63 subjects was carried out for two sessions in days 1 and 90. CBC and hematologic indices performed by cell counter instrument. The mean of MCV in phase 1 was 82.8±7.1 fl and in second phase the MCV was 80.3±6.7 fl. This drop in MCV statistically was meaningful (paired t-test, mean = 2.5, 95% CI=2.0-2.9, p<0.001). Erythrocyte number, hemoglobin, HCT and MCHC increase in second phase compared to first phase statistically was meaningful. There was not any significant relation between the place of work and variation of red blood cell indices. In regard to the changes in hematologic indices in workers of pesticide factory in a three months period, it seems logical to set up a program to have a routine check on the hematologic indices in working personal engaging in such occupations. © 2007 Asian Network for Scientific Information

Mycobacterium marinum infection in Caviar fishes and fisherman's in a Caspian Sea Province in North of Iran

Mycobacterium marinum is the etiologic agent of fish tank granuloma in human. Determination of the fish tank granuloma in Fishermen and Mycobacterium marinum infection in Caviar fishes in Ashorade, in south east Caspian Sea were our objectives. Any suspected lesions in 387 subjects of Fishermen and 113 autopsy samples from gills of fish of Caviar were obtained and culture in Lowenstein Jensen media. The mycobacterial species were determined by conventional biochemical tests. No fish tank granuloma was proved in human, but 11 (9.73%) strains of Mycobacteria were isolated from Caviar fishes, that only 2 strains (1.76%) belong to M. marinum. © 2006 Asian Network for Scientific Information

Maternal serum copper concentration in premature rupture of membrane: A case-control study

Copper is an integrated parts of metal-protein required far varieties of oxide-reductive metabolic pathways in human. Copper deficiency is considered as risk factors in some pregnancies. Premature rupture of membrane is a pregnancy complication with major adverse effects and is believed maternal Copper deficiency can also be considered as interventional factors. This study was done to evaluate if there is a correlation between maternal serum Copper concentration and premature rupture of membrane in pregnancy. In this case-control study 60 pregnant women with Premature Rupture of Membrane (PROM) were selected as case group including term and pre term the control group consist of 60 pregnant women with normal delivery of term and pre term states. Both group were matched for maternal and pregnancy age. In case and control group the pregnancy at term and pre-term were grouped independently as well. In general the maternal mean serum Copper concentration were 192.4±78.2 and 201.08±82.06 in case and control groups, respectively but this differences statistically was not significant. Data in this study revealed that the absolute value of maternal serum Copper concentration of term or pre term in case groups was slightly lower than related controls. Drop in maternal Copper concentration in some disturbed pregnancies such as premature rupture of membrane is previously demonstrated and based on our data the absolute Copper serum concentration of women with premature rupture of membrane was also slightly lower compared to healthy pregnancy but it was not statistically significant. © Asian Network for Scientific Information

Aphthous ulcer and the effective factors on it's incidence among the students of Golestan Medical Sciences University in the north of Iran

The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and probable predisposing factors of Aphthous ulcer among the medical students. This project was a cross-sectional and descriptive study, which was carried out on 485 students of Golestan University of medical sciences in the north of Iran. Data was collected by filling the questionnaire. The gathered informations entered into SPSS software and were analyzed by Chi square method. The mean age of the students was 21.8 years. 36.9% (179 persons) of subjects had positive history and 8.9% (43 persons) of them had present Aphthous ulcer at the time of interview. 70.6% of students with positive personal history of Aphthous ulcer had positive family history of Aphthous ulcer too. Internal labial mucosa was the commonest site of the lesion among the subjects with present Aphthous ulcer. We found that gender, positive family history, the field of study, the form of diet and stress had a major correlation with the incidence of Aphthous ulcer. © 2007 Asian Network for Scientific Information

Global governance approaches to addressing illegal logging: Uptake and lessons learned

One of the most challenging tasks facing development agencies, trade ministries, environmental groups, social activists and forest-focused business interests seeking to ameliorate illegal logging and related timber trade is to identify and nurture promising global governance interventions capable of helping improve compliance to governmental policies and laws at national, subnational and local levels. This question is especially acute for developing countries constrained by capacity challenges and “weak states” (Risse, 2011). This chapter seeks to shed light on this task by asking four related questions: How do we understand the emergence of illegal logging as a matter of global interest? What are the types of global interventions designed to improve domestic legal compliance? How have individual states responded to these global efforts? What are the prospects for future impacts and evolution? We proceed in the following steps. Following this introduction, step two reviews how the problem of “illegal logging” emerged on the international agenda. Step three reviews leading policy interventions that resulted from this policy framing. Step four reviews developments in selected countries/regions around the world according to their place on the global forest products supply chain: consumers (United States, Europe and Australia); middle of supply chain manufacturers (China and South Korea) and producers (Russia; Indonesia; Brazil and Peru; Ghana, Cameroon and the Republic of Congo). We conclude by reflecting on key trends that emerge from this review relevant for understanding the conditions through which legality might make a difference in addressing critical challenges