Achieving agricultural sustainability through soybean production in Iran: Potential and challenges

The utilization of soybean as a key oil crop to enhance sustainable agriculture has garnered significant attention from researchers. Its lower water requirements compared to rice, along with its reduced environmental impact, including greenhouse gas emissions, improved water quality, enhanced biodiversity, and efficient resource utilization, make it an attractive option. Unfortunately, Iran, like many other developing countries, heavily relies on soybean imports (over 90%) to meet the demand for oil and protein in human and livestock food rations. The decline in soybean production, coupled with diminishing cultivation areas, yield rates, and increasing import needs, underscores the urgent need to address the challenges faced in Iran. The decline in soybean production in the country can be attributed to various factors, including environmental stresses (both biotic and abiotic), limited variation in soybean cultivars, inadequate mechanization for cultivation, and economic policies. Hence, this review provides a comprehensive overview of the current status of soybean production in Iran and highlights its potential to enhance sustainable agriculture. Additionally, it examines the challenges and constraints associated with soybean cultivation, such as environmental changes and unbalanced marketing, and explores potential solutions and management strategies to bridge the gap between small-scale and large-scale production. Given the increasing global demand for plant-based protein and the significance of the feed industry, studying the limitations faced by countries with slower soybean production growth can shed light on the issues and present opportunities to capitalize on novel soybean advancements in the future. By addressing these challenges and unlocking the potential of soybean cultivation, Iran can contribute to sustainable agricultural practices and attain a more resilient food system

Transient lateral rectus palsy associated with acute coronary syndrome treated with percutaneous coronary intervention: a case report

Abstract Background Patients who experience angina and acute myocardial infarction often receive diagnostic coronary angiography and percutaneous coronary intervention. Case presentation A 54-year-old Persian man with acute coronary syndrome was admitted to the hospital and underwent elective percutaneous coronary intervention. Two hours after the procedure, the patient experienced ophthalmoplegia and diplopia. The diagnosis was abducens nerve palsy resulting in transient lateral rectus palsy. The cause is presumed to have been an ischemic event affecting the unilateral abducens nerve. This could have occurred owing to the microembolism during the percutaneous coronary intervention, which resulted in left lateral rectus palsy. Within 1 month, the diplopia was relieved completely, and the physical examination was normal. Conclusion The occurrence of neuro-ophthalmic complications that may arise from percutaneous coronary intervention is extremely rare. To our knowledge, this is the second reported case of unilateral rectus palsy associated with percutaneous coronary intervention

The potential application of biochar and salicylic acid to alleviate salt stress in soybean (Glycine max L.)

Salt stress has been one of the major contributor which affect soybean seed germination, its establishment, growth, and physiology stages. Utilization of strategies such as soil amendment and elicitors are of significant importance to reduce the disadvantageous effects of salt stress. In this regard, the objectives of the present study were to evaluate the effect of biochar and salicylic acid on morphological and physiological properties of soybean subjected to salinity. The first experiment was carried out based on completely randomized design with three replications including 11 soybean cultivars such as Williams, Saba, Kowsar, Tapor, Sari, Telar, Caspian, Nekador, Amir, Katol and Sahar and various levels of salinity such as 0, 2, 4, 6 dS/m of NaCl. The second experiment was performed as factorial design in a randomized complete block design with three replications consisting of treatments of biochar (0, 5 and 10 WP), salicylic acid (0, 0.5 and 1 mM), and NaCl (0, 2.5, 5, 7.5 dS/m). With respect to seed germination result, various concentrations of salt stress showed negative impact not only on all studied traits, but also varied among soybean cultivars indicating Amir cultivar as the best salt tolerant soybean genotype among others. In addition, our data exhibited that the interaction effect of biochar and salicylic acid on salt treated soybean plant were positively significant on some morphological traits such as leaf area, shoot dry/fresh weight, total dry/fresh weight and physiological attributes including chlorophyll a, flavonoid, proline contents, catalase and peroxidase activities. Moreover, the resultant data showed that the combination treatment of 5 and 10 WP of biochar and 1 mM of salicylic acid caused increase of the aforementioned parameters in order to improve their performance subjected to higher concentration of salinity. In final, it was concluded that the coupled application of biochar alongside salicylic acid was recommended as proficient strategy to mitigate the injurious influences of salt stress in soybean or other probable crops

THE HYPOGLYCEMIC EFFECT OF SAFFRON PETALS' IN DIABETIC RATS

Type 2 diabetes is one of the most important health problems around the globe and there are huge sums of money spent on its control. Various chemical and herbal substances have been applied to control blood sugar. In line with this, the present study evaluates the effect of saffron petals’ hydroalcoholic extract on the fasting blood sugar and serum insulin in diabetic rats. In the present study, male Wistar rats (180 g to 220 g) were assigned to five groups (n=5): a normal control group, streptozotocin (60 mg/kg) diabetic control group and three diabetic groups that were administered with 100 mg/kg, 200 mg/kg and 300 mg/kg body weight saffron petal hydroalcoholic extract per day. After eight weeks since the initiation of the treatment, the fasting blood samples were collected from the rats’ hearts to undergo fasting blood sugar and serum insulin measurements. The data were analyzed in SPSS, version 16. The serum level of fasting blood sugar in the diabetic groups that had been fed on 100 mg/kg and 200 mg/kg saffron petals extracts was found significantly reduced in contrast to the diabetic control group (P<0.01 and P<0.05, respectively). But, there was not found any significant difference between the diabetic group, treated with 300 mg/kg saffron petal hydroalcoholic extract, and the diabetic control group. In the case of insulin, all the three diabetic groups that had been administered with 100 mg/kg, 200 mg/kg and 300 mg/kg saffron petal hydroalcoholic extract showed significant increases in comparison to the diabetic control group (P<0.001, P<0.001 and P<0.05, respectively) . Our study indicated that saffron petal is capable of reducing the high level of fasting blood sugar and serum insulin and thus it can be prescribed as a hypoglycemic drug through performing further and more complete research

Evaluation of Antioxidant Activity and Cytotoxicity of Cumin Seed Oil Nanoemulsion Stabilized by Sodium Caseinate- Guar Gum

Background: The objective of this study was to prepare the sodium caseinate- guar gum stabilized nanoemulsion of cumin seed oil (Cumminum cyminum) using ultrasonication method. Meanwhile, the effect of nanoemulsification on the antioxidant and cytotoxicity of the cumin seed oil was evaluated. Method: The effect of concentration of sodium casienate and guar gum was investigated on droplet size, thermal and oxidative stability of cumin seed oil nanoemulsion using TBARS and z-average measurements, the antioxidant activity was evaluated by DPPH scavenging and iron reducing power measurements. The biocompatibility and the cytotoxicity of the cumin seed oil nanoemulsion were evaluated by MTT assay test and compared with cumin seed oil and cumin seed oil free-nanoemulsion. Results: GC–MS analysis indicated 15 compounds in the cumin seed oil. The nanoemulsions were stabilized by sodium caseinate-guar gum complex. The minimum and stable droplets (155 ± 8 nm) of nanoemulsion were formulated when the concentration of essential oil in oil phase was 30 % (w/w). DPPH radical scavenging ability, iron reducing power and cytotoxicity of nanoemulsified cumin seed oil were significantly higher than cumin seed oil (p<0.05) Conclusion: In this study, cumin seed oil nanoemulsion was prepared and stabilized by sodium caseinate- guar gum. The aforementioned nanoemulsion had good stability even after 60 days storage at 4ºC. Antioxidant and cytotoxicity of cumin seed oil were increased by nanoemulsification. It can be concluded that cumin seed oil nanoemulsion has the potential to use as natural preservative and anticancer product in food industry

Trivalvular nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis in a patient with colon adenocarcinoma: a case report

Abstract Background Nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis is a rare complication of prothrombotic states such as neoplasms that can cause valvular dysfunction and life-threatening complications. Nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis usually affects the left-sided valves; however, only a minority of cases involving the tricuspid valve have been reported in medical literature. Case presentation The current report describes trivalvular involvement by nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis in a 54-year-old Azeri female patient with metastatic colorectal carcinoma. This case underlines the necessity of evaluating nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis as a possible consequence in cancer patients. When thromboembolic events are found in the presence of a hypercoagulable state (such as malignancy) and no growth on blood cultures, nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis could be suspected as the cause. Conclusion It is critical to achieve early diagnosis in such a setting to initiate treatment plans and prevent further complications rapidly

Infection of tendon sheaths, joints, bursae, soft tissue, and tendon rapture by brucella: A case report

Key Clinical Message Arthritis is one of the main presentations of chronic brucellosis, but bursitis and tendon rupture are also caused by brucellosis. Therefore, brucellosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of arthritis, bursitis, and tendon rupture by physicians. In addition, early diagnosis and treatment are very important in the prevention of disability. Abstract Brucellosis is a zoonotic disease common in the Middle East. Manifestations of acute disease are fever, sweating, myalgia, and arthralgia. However, bone joint involvement occurs in 10%–85% of patients, and sacroiliac involvement occurs in up to 80% and vertebral joint involvement in up to 54%. A 57‐year‐old woman was admitted to the hospital of Islamic Azad University on February 26, 2021, with a history of one‐month pain and limited movement of the right shoulder joint with fever for surgery of the shoulder ligament. The standard agglutination titer (Wright) for brucellosis at first was 1/640 and then increased. MRI of the shoulder showed a supraspinatus tendon and anterosuperior labral of the glenoid labrum tear. Although the patient was a candidate for shoulder joint ligament surgery, with a diagnosis of brucellosis, the treatment of brucellosis was prescribed, symptoms disappeared with anti‐brucellosis antibiotic therapy without surgery, and the patient recovered. Supraspinatus tendon and antero superior labral of glenoid labrum tear of the shoulder joint in brucellosis is generally very rare. Failure or delay in the treatment of brucellosis can cause ligament rupture or joint disability. Sometimes, there are no symptoms except osteoarticular manifestations in brucellosis; therefore, brucellosis should be one of the differential diagnoses in osteoarticular diseases

Unusual presentation of transthyretin (ATTR) cardiac amyloidosis: A case report of pruritus as a possible initial symptom and challenging diagnosis

Key Clinical Message This case emphasizes the significance of cardiac amyloidosis as a potential diagnosis in individuals manifesting with lesion‐free pruritus and normal liver tests. Abstract Amyloidosis is a complex disorder in which misfolded proteins accumulate in various organs of the body. Cardiac amyloidosis (CA) can lead to heart failure, cardiac arrhythmia, sudden cardiac death, and deposition of proteins in coronary arteries. Diagnosing CA can be difficult, as the cardiac manifestations of amyloidosis can be similar to more prevalent etiologies. In addition, the accumulation of proteins in soft tissues, including the skin, can cause pruritus. In this paper, we present a 70‐year‐old man with generalized pruritus and no skin lesions, later diagnosed as CA after detecting ascites fluid. This case underscores the importance of considering amyloidosis in patients presenting with nonspecific symptoms, particularly those affecting the skin, and highlights the need for increased awareness of this disease among clinicians