Monitoring of Heavy Metal Concentration in Groundwater of Qorveh County, Kurdistan Province, Iran

Background & Aims of the Study: Nowadays, the quality of water is a very important concern. High levels of heavy metals in drinking water may cause some health problems such as cancer. The aim of this study is determination of some heavy metal concentrations in groundwater of some parts of Qorveh county, Kurdistan, Iran. Materials & Methods: In this study 25 water samples were analyzed, using Inductively Coupled Plasma for determining the concentrations of iron, chromium, copper and zinc. As a case study, the groundwater contamination in some parts of Qorveh county, Kurdistan, Iran, was investigated and compared to the maximum contaminant level specified by the World Health Organization (WHO) and Iranian Standard Institute (IS: 1053), using ANOVA test. Results: Obtained results showed that in some cases the concentration of heavy metals were above WHO and IS: 1053. Conclusions: Heavy metals contamination can enter the food chain and cause various health problems. Thus, according to the obtained results, it is necessary to launch water management programs in the study area

Study the Antibacterial Effects of Alcoholic Extract of Pelargonium Sp on the Growth of three Bacteria: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterococcus faecalis and Multidrug-Resistant E.coli

Introduction: According to the increasing resistance of pathogenic bacteria against antibiotics, searching to find new alternatives to chemical drugs and antibiotics has recently become popular. Therapeutic and pharmaceutical effects of medicinal plants have been considered for decades. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of alcoholic extract of Geranium plant on the growth of antibiotic resistant bacteria that are prevalent in hospitals.   Materials & methods: To investigate the antimicrobial activity of Geranium, clinical and standard strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli bacteria and standard strain of Enterococcus faecalis were treated by 25 and 50 mg/ml concentrations of alcoholic extract of Geranium. For this purpose, disk diffusion method was employed. In order to measure minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC), micro broth dilution method was applied.   Findings:  The most sensitive bacterium was Pseudomonas aeruginosa due to showing the highest diameter of the inhibition zone (24 mm). The results showed that the alcoholic extract of Geranium plant at a concentration of 50 mg/ml had a higher antimicrobial effect.   Discussion & conclusions: The results showed that the alcoholic extract of Geranium plant has anti-bacterial properties. According to being indigenous and having therapeutic effects, further are is recommended to identify the therapeutic effects

Evaluation of Correlation between the in Vitro Susceptibility of Field Isolates of Leishmania major and Clinical Outcomes of Meglumine Antimoniate Therapy in Fars Province, Iran

Background: This study was designed to detect whether there is a correlation between in vitro susceptibility of field isolates of Leishmania major and the clinical outcomes of meglumine antimoniate (Glucantime®) therapy, the main­stay of cutaneous leishmaniasis treatment in Iran. Methods: Forty-three patients infected with L. major were enrolled in this study from October 2009 to March 2010 and categorized as responsive or unresponsive to Glucantime® treatment after receiving the appropriate therapy. Then, intracellular amastigote approach was conducted on these field strains to investigate in vitro drug susceptibility as well. Results: At clinical level, out of 43 patients, 15 were clinically non-responsive and 28 were responsive to antimony therapy. All those 28 clinically sensitive strains were susceptible to antimony in the in vitro assay, whereas merely 11 isolates from 15 non-healing isolates were resistant in vitro. Finally, a good correlation (78.9%) with high sensi­tivity, specificity (100/73) between clinical outcomes and the in vitro susceptibility test was achieved.  Conclusion: The intracellular amastigote model could be an appropriate assay for evaluation of the in vivo drug sensitivity of field isolates. However, more comprehensive studies with larger sets of isolates are needed to confirm these preliminary data

The comparison of the effects of massaging and rocking on infantile colic

Introduction: Infantile colic is a painful condition in the first months of infancy. This study was carried out with the aim of testing the hypothesis that massage treatment has a clinically relevant effect on this condition. Materials and Methods: This randomized clinical trial was conducted among 100 infants of < 12 weeks of age with infantile colic. They were randomly assigned to either infant massage (n = 50) or rocking groups (n = 50). In the massage group, trained individuals taught the parents of the infants the massage technique and gave them a brochure. Rocking group parents was recommended to rock their infants three times a day for 1 week. Parents recorded the pattern of crying (numbers, length, and severity of crying). After 1 week of intervention, data were analysed using t-test, Chi square test, and repeated measurement analysis of variance (P < 0.05). Results: Significant differences were not observed in infant and mother demographic information. Before intervention, the mean of total number, length, and severity of crying were 6.12 (1.76) time/day, 4.97 (1.37) hour/day, and 6.60 (1.54) in the massage group and 6.96 (2.9) time/day, 3 (1.31) hour/day, and 5.98 (2.22) in the rocking group, respectively. After 1 week of intervention, the mean difference of total number, length, and severity of crying were 4.08 (1.83) time/day, 2.81 (1.77) hour/day, and 2.9 (2.37) in the massage group and 0.56 (2.28) time/day, 0.27 (1.09) hour/day, and 0.02 (1.64) in the rocking group, respectively. Conclusions: This trial of massage treatment for infantile colic showed statistically significant or clinically relevant effect in comparison with the rocking group

Immunoregulatory, proliferative and anti-oxidant effects of nanocurcuminoids on adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells

Curcuminoids are dietary complexes extracted from the seeds of Curcuma longa L. that contain curcumin, bisdemethoxycurcumin and desmethoxycurcumin. Curcuminoids are popular for their pleiotropic therapeutic functions, such as their anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant effects. Nonetheless, their clinical use is associated with poor systemic bioavailability and insolubility. The nano-formulation of curcuminoids eliminates these shortcomings. In the present study, we explored immunoregulatory, proliferative and anti-oxidant effects of nanocurcuminoids on adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (AT-MSCs). Flow cytometry analysis and MTT assay were employed to explore the effects of nanocurcuminoids on the apoptosis and proliferation of adipose-derived MSCs (AT-MSCs). The anti-oxidant effect of nanocurcuminoids on AT-MSCs also was examined. The immune regulatory effect of nanocurcuminoids was evaluated by the flow cytometric measurement of the T regulatory (Treg) population. The expression of inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines was quantified using real-time PCR. Our findings demonstrate that low concentrations of nanocurcuminoids are beneficial for MSC proliferation, protection of MSCs from apoptosis, reducing inflammatory cytokines and SOD activity. A high concentration of nanocurcuminoids increases the population of Tregs and elevates the expression of TGFβ and FOXP3 genes. The beneficial effects of nanocurcuminoids on AT-MSCs were mainly observed at low doses of nanocurcuminoids

Evaluation of the immune-modulatory, anti-oxidant, proliferative, and anti-apoptotic effects of nano-silymarin on mesenchymal stem cells isolated from multiple sclerosis patients' adipose tissue sources

Silymarin (SL) has a long history of use for the treatment of a variety of diseases, but several limitations, such as poor bioavailability and negligible solubility, have restricted its successful translation in a clinical setting. However, the nano-micelle delivery system is a highly reproducible method which capable of improving poor-water solubility and bioavailability of free-SL. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent cells proficient in tissue renewal and regeneration. MSCs have similar properties to SL including immunomodulatory, antioxidant, and neuroprotective effects. Here, we show that nano-SL (1 and 2.5) increased AD-MSCs proliferation and protected from apoptosis. Our findings indicated that the levels of anti-inflammatory agents including IL-10, IL-4, FOXp3 and TGF-B mRNA expression were significantly upregulated in nano-SL-treated MSCs along with downregulated mRNA expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, IL-17). We identified that nano-SL elevated the T-regulatory (Treg) population (1 and 2.5 µM) and superoxide dismutase activity (2.5 µM) while decreasing nitrite oxide content. Conclusively, combinatorial therapy by nano-SL and MSCs may be useful for MS patients who are receiving MSCs for treatment