Inhibitory effect of plant essential oils on Malassezia strains from Iranian dermatitis patients

Introduction: The genus Malassezia is an important skin resident of human. The present study aimed to analyze in vitro activity of the essential oils of Lavandula stoechas, Cuminum cyminum and Artemisia sieberi against clinical strains of Malassezia species. Methods: A total of 47 Malassezia strains, including Malassezia furfur, Malassezia globosa and Malassezia obtuse, were used in this study. A disk diffusion technique was selected for testing the susceptibility of Malassezia strains to the essential oils. Results: All the essential oils showed in vitro activity against Malassezia strains, with M. furfur and M. obtusa being the highest and lowest susceptible of the strains, respectively. The highest antifungal activity was associated with the essential oil of C. cyminum (mean ± SD: 50.0 ± 0.0 mm), followed by L. stoechas (mean ± SD: 46.8 ± 3.1 mm) and A. sieberi (mean ± SD: 36.9 ± 5.7 mm). The inhibition zone ranges were 12.5 to 15.6 mm (mean ± SD: 14.4 ± 1.6 mm) for ketoconazole and 11.6 to 13.3 mm (mean ± SD: 12.4 ± 0.9 mm) for fluconazole. Although all the antifungal drugs were found to possess good antifungal activities against Malassezia strains, their effects were lower than the activities shown by the essential oils tested (P < 0.05). Conclusion: These results indicated that the essential oils tested, especially the one from C. cyminum, inhibited the growth of clinical strains of Malassezia, implying its potential use in the treatment of Malassezia infections. This indicates that this plant may be useful in preparation of new drugs

Effect of Nepeta Menthoides on Cognitive Disorders in Alzheimer’s Disease: A Clinical Trial

Nowadays, given the outbreak of Alzheimer disease (AD) as a global phenomenon, it is absolutely essential to take efficacious measures against it. Heating up the brain is a recommended approach to decrease the symptoms of AD. Furthermore, using hot herb is an effective method to enhance the temperature of the brain. One of the hot herbs is Nepeta menthoides which is known as Ostokhodus and has neuroprotective effects. In the present paper, the effect of Nepeta on the treatment of Alzheimer was studied. A trial was carried out on two groups of AD patients. While the first group was prescribed the capsules of Nepeta extraction, the second group was given the placebo capsules. The results of the taken MMSE inventories from both of the tested groups as the comparison criteria revealed that Nepeta had positive influence on the treatment of AD

Effect of Nepeta Menthoides on Cognitive Disorders in Alzheimer’s Disease: A Clinical Trial

Nowadays, given the outbreak of Alzheimer disease (AD) as a global phenomenon, it is absolutely essential to take efficacious measures against it. Heating up the brain is a recommended approach to decrease the symptoms of AD. Furthermore, using hot herb is an effective method to enhance the temperature of the brain. One of the hot herbs is Nepeta menthoides which is known as Ostokhodus and has neuroprotective effects. In the present paper, the effect of Nepeta on the treatment of Alzheimer was studied. A trial was carried out on two groups of AD patients. While the first group was prescribed the capsules of Nepeta extraction, the second group was given the placebo capsules. The results of the taken MMSE inventories from both of the tested groups as the comparison criteria revealed that Nepeta had positive influence on the treatment of AD

Toward Human-Like Social Robot Navigation: A Large-Scale, Multi-Modal, Social Human Navigation Dataset

Humans are well-adept at navigating public spaces shared with others, where current autonomous mobile robots still struggle: while safely and efficiently reaching their goals, humans communicate their intentions and conform to unwritten social norms on a daily basis; conversely, robots become clumsy in those daily social scenarios, getting stuck in dense crowds, surprising nearby pedestrians, or even causing collisions. While recent research on robot learning has shown promises in data-driven social robot navigation, good-quality training data is still difficult to acquire through either trial and error or expert demonstrations. In this work, we propose to utilize the body of rich, widely available, social human navigation data in many natural human-inhabited public spaces for robots to learn similar, human-like, socially compliant navigation behaviors. To be specific, we design an open-source egocentric data collection sensor suite wearable by walking humans to provide multi-modal robot perception data; we collect a large-scale (~50 km, 10 hours, 150 trials, 7 humans) dataset in a variety of public spaces which contain numerous natural social navigation interactions; we analyze our dataset, demonstrate its usability, and point out future research directions and use cases

The need for national diagnostic reference levels: Entrance surface dose measurement in intraoral radiography

Background: Intraoral radiographies are the most frequent X-ray examinations in humans. According to International Commission on Radiation Protection (ICRP) recommendations, the selection of a diagnostic reference level (DRL) should be specific to a country or region. Critical organs such as thyroid gland are exposed to X-rays in intraoral radiography and these exposures should be kept as low as reasonably achievable. To assist the development of DRLs for intraoral radiography, a National Radiation Protection Department-sponsored pilot study was carried out. Materials and Methods: Thermoluminescent dosimetry (TLD) is widely acknowledged to be the recommended method for measuring entrance surface doses (ESD). In this study, ESD was measured using LiF thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLD-100) on the skin (either mandibular or maxillary arcs) of 40 patients. Three TLD chips were placed on the skin of each patient. The doses were averaged for each radiography and mean ESD of all patients calculated. Results: The mean ± SD entrance surface dose at the center of the beam on the patients' skin in intraoral radiography was 1.173 ± 0.606 mGy (ranged from 0.01 to 0.40 mGy). The mean ESD for male and female patients were 1.380 ± 0.823, and 1.004 ± 0.258 respectively. No statistically significant difference was found between these means. Despite its necessity, in national level, there is no published data on the diagnostic reference levels for intraoral radiography. However, the results obtained in this study are lower than those reported by investigators in other countries. Conclusion: In IR Iran, due to lack of large scale studies, no diagnostic reference levels have been set for X-ray diagnostic procedures. Due to lack of national diagnostic reference levels, it is not possible to clarify whether in intraoral radiographies any dose reduction techniques are needed. We intend to perform similar nationwide studies to set the diagnostic reference level for intraoal radio graphy

Inhibitory effect of plant essential oils on Malassezia strains from Iranian dermatitis patients

Introduction: The genus Malassezia is an important skin resident of human. The present study aimed to analyze in vitro activity of the essential oils of Lavandula stoechas, Cuminum cyminum and Artemisia sieberi against clinical strains of Malassezia species. Methods: A total of 47 Malassezia strains, including Malassezia furfur, Malassezia globosa and Malassezia obtuse, were used in this study. A disk diffusion technique was selected for testing the susceptibility of Malassezia strains to the essential oils. Results: All the essential oils showed in vitro activity against Malassezia strains, with M. furfur and M. obtusa being the highest and lowest susceptible of the strains, respectively. The highest antifungal activity was associated with the essential oil of C. cyminum (mean ± SD: 50.0 ± 0.0 mm), followed by L. stoechas (mean ± SD: 46.8 ± 3.1 mm) and A. sieberi (mean ± SD: 36.9 ± 5.7 mm). The inhibition zone ranges were 12.5 to 15.6 mm (mean ± SD: 14.4 ± 1.6 mm) for ketoconazole and 11.6 to 13.3 mm (mean ± SD: 12.4 ± 0.9 mm) for fluconazole. Although all the antifungal drugs were found to possess good antifungal activities against Malassezia strains, their effects were lower than the activities shown by the essential oils tested (P < 0.05). Conclusion: These results indicated that the essential oils tested, especially the one from C. cyminum, inhibited the growth of clinical strains of Malassezia, implying its potential use in the treatment of Malassezia infections. This indicates that this plant may be useful in preparation of new drugs

Mycobiota and aflatoxin B1 contamination of rainbow trout (Oncorhinchus mykiss) feed with emphasis to Aspergillus section Flavi

In the present study, mycobiota and natural occurrence of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) in pellet feed and feed ingredients used in a feed manufacturing plant for rainbow trout nutrition was investigated. The samples were cultured on the standard isolation media for 2 weeks at 28 ºC. Identification of fungal isolates was implemented based on the macro- and microscopic morphological criteria. AFB1 was detected using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Based on the results obtained, a total of 109 fungal isolates were identified of which Aspergillus was the prominent genus (57.0%), followed by Penicillium (12.84%), Absidia (11.01%) and Pseudallscheria (10.10%). The most frequent Aspergillus species was A. flavus (60.66%) isolated from all feed ingredients as well as pellet feed. Among 37 A. flavus isolates, 19 (51.35%) were able to produce AFB1 on YES broth in the range of 10.2 to 612.8 µg/g fungal dry weight. HPLC analysis of trout feed showed that pellet feed and all feed ingredients tested except gluten were contaminated with different levels of AFB1 in the range of 1.83 to 67.35 µg/kg. Unacceptable levels of AFB1 were reported for feed including soybean, fish meal and wheat. These results indicate the importance of AF contamination of trout feed in amounts higher than the acceptable level as a risk factor for fish farming production

Evaluation of Yield and Quality of Peach Fruit (Prunus persica var Red Top) Cultivated under Split Roots System, Inoculated with Fungi and Irrigated with different Levels

Introduction Water scarcity is one of the most important limiting factors threatening the production of horticultural crops. Approximately, 45% of the world's arable land is subject to permanent or intermittent water shortages, and approximately 50% of the world's annual yield is lost due to drought. Due to climate changes, especially the increase temperature and decrease rainfall in recent years in Iran, most of the gardens are facing limited water resources. In order to reduce water stress, increasing water use efficiency by naval technics seems to be crucial. Peach fruit growth mainly depends on adequate water supply. Therefore, water stress reduces the growth of the fleshy part and the quality of the peach fruits. Split root means placing a part of the root in different conditions compared to the remains of the root. Studies on split root culture were done in the laboratory for the first time. Increasing water holding capacity by split root system may improve soil- plant water availability. Furthermore, many studies indicated that Mycorrhiza and Trichoderma fungi improve the absorption of water and nutrients by plant. Increasing the absorption of water and nutrients leads to increasing growth and yield. The aim of this research was to improve the water efficiency and the use of low-yielding lands by placing a bag containing pumice and inoculating the roots with fungi. Materials and Methods This experiment was performed as a factorial experiment based on randomized complete blocks design with three replications for two years. Treatments included placing the bag close to the trunk of peach trees in three levels (without bag, one bag and two bags), different levels of irrigation (50, 75 and 100% of field capacity) and root inoculation treatments with mycorrhiza, Trichoderma fungi and control without fungus. Redtop peaches grafted on GF677 rootstock were planted in May 2018. The bags were placed at a depth of 60 cm and at a distance of 40 and 60 cm from the tree trunk. The bags size was 40 liters filled with pumice. At 20 cm from the top of the bag, three holes were made to remove excess water from that part and as a signal to cause the root to move towards the bag. For plants treated with mycorrhiza, 250 g of Mycorrhiza glomus was mixed and for plants treated with Trichoderma, 4.5 g of Trichoderma harizanium was mixed with pumice in the bag. In treatments with no bag placement, the plant roots were inoculated with fungi. Characteristics such as relative water content (RWC), yield, total soluble solids (TSS), titratable acidity (TA), TSS/TA, total phenol and fruit anthocyanin were measured at the end of growing season. Fruit skin color characteristics including L*, a*, b*, Chroma and Hue were measured with a colorimeter. Statistical analysis was performed by SAS software version 9.1. Mean data were compared using Duncan's multiple range test. drawing diagrams done by Excel software.   Results and Discussion The results showed that bag placement increased RWC. The highest RWC of leaf was measured in the treatment of placing two bags, 75% irrigation and root inoculation with Trichoderma fungus. In the main effect of bag placement, irrigation levels and root inoculation, the highest RWC of leaf was observed in placing a bag, 100% irrigation and root inoculation with Trichoderma fungus, respectively. The treatment one bag, 100% irrigation and root inoculation with mycorrhiza improved vegetative growth and produced the largest trunk diameter.  Yield in terms of fresh weight of fruit in two-bag placement, 100% irrigation and root inoculation with mycorrhiza was increased by 1.8 compared to the control. The highest TA was measured in the treatment of placing a bag, 50% irrigation and root inoculation with mycorrhizal fungus. Treatment without bag placement, 75% irrigation and without fungus inoculation had the highest total soluble solids and TSS/TA of fruit. The index ratio of TSS/TA is used to determine the taste of the fruit. The highest total phenol and anthocyanin of fruit was observed in treatments without bag under 50% irrigation levels. One bag placement, 75% irrigation without fungal inoculation treatment and no bag placement treatment, 50% irrigation, mycorrhiza inoculation caused the a* and L* of the fruit skin increased. The interaction effect of the three factors of bag placement, irrigation levels and root inoculation with fungus had no significant effect on Hue and b*. Conclusion The results of this experiment showed that water consumption can be reduced by placing a bag. The finding of the experiment led to the conclusion that a bag placement treatment, 75% irrigation and inoculation with mycorrhizal fungus improve fruit yield and quality of peach trees

Data visualization of temporal ozone pollution between urban and sub-urban locations in Selangor Malaysia

In Malaysian environment, ground level zone has been reported as one of the most important pollutants that contribute to air quality degradation. The odourless and invisible nature of the pollutant has caused problems for individuals to realize and notice the existence of Ozone pollution in the environment. Thus, this study was conducted with the aim to assess and visualize the occurrence of potential Ozone pollution severity of two chosen locations in Selangor, Malaysia: Shah Alam (urban) and Banting (sub-urban). Data visualization analytics were employed using Ozone exceedances and Principal Component Analysis (PCA). The study results have shown an increasing pattern of Ozone pollution occurrence with several modes of distinct diurnal variations at the locations. The study also provides strong insights that Banting might experience a higher potential for Ozone pollution severity compared to Shah Alam.Keywords: ozone pollution; air quality; data visualization; data analytics; principalcomponent analysis

Soil Moisture Data for the Validation of Permafrost Models Using Direct and Indirect Measurement Approaches at Three Alpine Sites

To date, there has been no comprehensive review of the epidemiology, risk factors, species distribution, and outcomes of candidemia in Iran. This study aimed to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of all reported candidemia cases in Iran until December 2015. The review process occurred in three steps, namely a literature search, data extraction and statistical analyses. After a comprehensive literature search, we identified 55 cases. The mean age of patients was 46.80±24.30 years (range 1–81 years). The main risk factors for candidemia were surgery and burns (23.6%), followed by malignancies (20%), use of broad-spectrum antibiotics (18.2%), and diabetes (7.3%). Candida parapsilosis (n=17, 30.8%) was the leading agent, followed by Candida albicans (n=15, 27.3%), Candida glabrata (n=10, 18.2%), and Candida tropicalis (n=8, 14.5%). The frequencies of candidemia cases due to C. glabrata, C. parapsilosis, and C. albicans were significantly higher among patients aged>60, 21–40, and 41–60 years, respectively. Comparison of risk factors for candidemia by multiple logistic regression showed that one of the most important risk factors was surgery (OR: 4.245; 95% CI: 1.141–15.789; P=0.031). The outcome was recorded in only 19 cases and 13 of those patients (68.4%) expired. This study confirms that knowledge of the local epidemiology is important when conducting surveillance studies to prevent and control candidemia and will be of interest for antifungal stewardship