Lighting Assessment and Effects on Visual Fatigue and Psychological Status of Employees in Damghan Velayat Hospital Wards

Introduction and Aims Insufficient lighting as a physical stressor in work environment may impact on work performance and cause work&ndash;related accidents. This study assessed the illumination and the probable effects on visual fatigue and mental states in Velaiat hospital&rsquo;s personnel of Damghan. Materials and Methods A case study design performed in indoor hospital working areas. Layout and type of luminaires were examined and interior illuminations were measured as proposed by IESNA (Illuminating Engineering Society of North America). A questionnaire was used to collect data and descriptive and analytical statistical analyses were conducted. Results Interior lighting measurements showed unacceptable levels of local illumination in 82.3 percent of sections during day light hours and all sections during night hours. General levels of illumination were unacceptable for 83.3 percent of section in day light and all sections in night hours. Uniformity ratios were unacceptable during day and night hours for 91 percent and 83 percent of sections, respectively. There is a significant relation between age and perceived favorable light, visual fatigue and mental states (P < 0.05). We found significant relationships between the lighting type and illumination with visual fatigue and mental states (P < 0.05). Conclusion Insufficient illumination and excessive artificial light may lead to visual fatigue and mental strain. Lighting design should account for acceptable quantity and similarity to daylight. * Corresponding Author: Research Center for Social Determinants of health, Semnan University of Medical Sciences. Email: [email protected]

Identifying Hazardous Points in Foundry Industry Using a Hybrid Safety Approach

Background: In recent years, the foundry industry has had a significant impact on Iran's economy. However, the health and safety conditions of this industry are in an unfavorable status, and these conditions have caused a lot of accidents. In this regards, one of the most important ways to prevent accidents in this industry can be identifying hazardous points and adopting appropriate control measures. The aim of the study was to identify hazardous points in foundry industry using a hybrid safety approach. Methods: This descriptive-analytic study was conducted in the foundry industry of Iran, in 2016. The study method consisted of two parts. First, the accidents of foundry were analyzed. Second, the Energy Trace and Barrier Analysis (ETBA) technique was used to identify hazards and assess the risks. The collected and obtained data of accidents and risk assessment were entered into the statistical SPSS software, version 22, and descriptive statistics (mean, percent) were used for analyzing. Also, Microsoft Excel was used to plot the graphs. Results: A total of 128 risks is identified, including 17 unacceptable risks, 93 undesirable risks, 13 acceptable risks with revision and five acceptable risks without revision. The mechanical and physical energies had the highest percentage of hazards. The results of accidents analysis showed that the cause of most accidents (40%) was mechanical, while 23% of them was the potential type. The study results indicated that accidents analysis along with risks identification can be useful in identifying all the dangerous locations (points). Conclusion: In addition to validating the results of risk assessment through the analysis of accidents, other causes affecting the occurrence of accidents can also be covered by accident analysis, including unsafe behaviors and organizational causes that are not seen in the risk assessment

Endophytic Fungi as Potential Biocontrol Agents against Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc.&mdash;The Causal Agent of Peanut White Stem Rot Disease

Peanut stem white rot caused by Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc. is a soil-borne disease that is widely prevailing across peanut farms, leading to serious economic losses. Screening for biocontrol agents against this pathogen is urgent. In this research, 166 fungal isolates including 136 isolates of S. rolfsii and 30 isolates of antagonistic endophytic fungi were obtained from a total of 220 samples collected from peanut farms in Guilan province, Iran. After morphological and molecular identification, six superior endophytic isolates were finally selected for the in vitro and greenhouse trials, including four isolates from Trichoderma viride, Trichoderma virens, Penicillium decaturense, and Aspergillus flavus and two isolates from Penicillium rubens. Four methods of biocontrol were used during the in vitro phase, i.e., dual culture, volatile metabolites assay, non-volatile metabolites assay (culture extract), and slide culture. It was found that T. virens had the highest capability of suppressing the mycelial growth of S. rolfsii in the dual culture method (90.98%). As for the volatile metabolites assay, the most effective isolates in inhibiting the pathogen&rsquo;s mycelial growth were P. rubens (MN395854.1) and A. flavus (84.30% and 73.50% inhibition, respectively). In the non-volatile metabolites method, the isolates that performed the best in suppressing the mycelial growth of S. rolfsii were T. viride and P. rubens (MN395854.1) with 91.80% and 90.20% inhibitory effects, respectively. On the other hand, in the slide culture method, all isolates, except for T. virens and T. viride, successfully controlled the development of S. rolfsii hyphae. The greenhouse trials also supported the effectiveness of endophytic fungi in controlling the pathogen on the host plants. According to the results, T. viride, A. flavus, and P. rubens (MN395854.1) were 44%, 42%, and 38% effective in alleviating the disease incidence and severity. Moreover, the application of these antagonistic fungi in the greenhouse conditions increased the height, fresh weight, and dry weight of the Arachis hypogaea plants infected with the disease causal agent compared to the plants treated only with the pathogen. The results of the in vitro and greenhouse experiments revealed that the endophytic fungi occurring in the natural microbiota of peanut are capable of bio-controlling S. rolfsii, the causal agent of peanut stem white rot disease. These findings shed new insights into the possible resistance induction in A. hypogaea plants through biological protection

Potential in the diagnosis of oxidative stress biomarkers in noninvasive samples of urine and saliva and comparison with serum of persons exposed to crystalline silica

Background: Prolonged exposure to crystalline silica (CS) (SiO2) dust enhances the production of reactive oxygen species. In many studies, oxidative stress has been measured in the serum of workers exposed to SiO2dust. Aims: We investigated the body fluids such as urine, saliva, and serum, which can provide very good results for assessing the health status of workers' exposures to SiO2dust. Materials and Methods: The oxidative stress biomarkers were evaluated in serum, urine, and saliva of 21 workers who were exposed to SiO2silica crushing factories in the Hamadan city at the west of Iran as a case group and 28 controls. Results: The level of malondialdehyde in serum, urine, and saliva was significantly higher than that in case group compared to controls (22.19 ± 8.70, 9.86 ± 5.43, and 9.41 ± 7.31 nmol/L vs. 7.30 ± 2.22, 6.79 ± 3.21, and 3.93 ± 3.73 nmol/L, respectively). In addition, the total antioxidant capacity in urine (0.23 ± 0.06 vs. 0.29 ± 0.08 mmol/L), as well as catalase in the serum and saliva of case group was lower than that compared to control group (5.46 ± 1.56 and 1.32 ± 0.55 IU/L vs. 12.55 ± 5.72 and 2.32 ± 1.53 IU/L, respectively). Conclusions: The current study indicated that chronic exposure to SiO2affects significantly on the oxidative stress biomarker levels in serum, urine, and saliva in persons exposed. Furthermore, SiO2leads to the induction of oxidative stress and decreases the activity of the antioxidant enzyme

Impact of titanium dioxide particles on adsorption properties of HZSM-5 zeolite for toluene treatment

Introduction: Today, a variety of catalysts were used for the removal of the volatile organic compound in work environments. Zeolites are frequently used as catalyst and catalyst base because of their desirable characteristics. HZSM-5 attracts the attention of air pollution researchers in recent years. The aim of this study is to investigate the adsorption properties of HZSM-5/titanium dioxide (TiO2) catalyst. Materials and Methods: A dynamic system was used for producing 42 ppm of toluene in 250C, 5% humidity, and environment pressure. For determination of adsorption capacity, 42 ppm of toluene with the flow of 0.5 L/min passed through the reactor containing 1 g of the HZSM-5/TiO2catalyst which was coated within 3%, 5%, and 8% of TiO2using impregnation method. For determination of the catalyst characteristics, different analyses of X-ray diffraction, Brunauer Emmett Teller (BET), Fourier transform infrared, and scanning electron microscope were used. Results: Adsorption capacity was 22.3, 23.81, 38.06, and 28.88 mg/g for HZSM-5, HZSM-5/Tio23%, HZSM-5/Tio25% and HZSM-5/Tio28%, respectively. The specific surface was 298.8 m2/g for HZSM-5 and 212.8, 189.3, and 185.1 m2/g for 3%, 5%, and 8% HZSM-5/TiO2catalyst, respectively. Results indicated that the breakthrough time increases by increasing in weight percent of TiO2. Adsorption isotherm was identified as type I, based on International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) classification. Conclusion: The integration of TiO2particles with HZSM-5 created a photocatalyst with desirable properties that include high adsorption capacity and long breakthrough time to maintain a high amount of toluene vapors, which lead to better removal efficiency