Yield and yield components of six canola (Brassica napus L.) cultivars affected by planting date and water deficit stress

In order to study the effect of planting dates and different irrigation regimes on yield and yield components of six canola cultivars, an experiment was conducted in two growing seasons; 2008 to 2009 and 2009 to 2010. Six canola cultivars (Zarfam, GKH1103, GKH1605, GKH2005, GKH305 and GKH3705) were cultivated in two different dates (October 7th and November 6th) with two levels of irrigation regimes (irrigation after 60 mm evaporation from Class A evaporation pan and irrigation interrupting at flowering stage). The experiments were conducted in randomized complete block design arrangement in split factorial with four replications The results demonstrated that late planting date and interrupting of irrigation at flowering stage significantly decreased growth, yield and yield components the of canola cultivars. In addition, oil yield was affected by late planting and water stress and it was dramatically decreased. Also, there was no significant difference among the cultivars with respect to oil percentage. The highest seed yield (5930.4 kg. ha-1) was obtained from GKH1103 cultivars planted on October 7th under the conditions of full irrigation. Seed yield and oil yield in the second year was more than that of the first year; this increase was related to the increase in seed weight and pod number per plant but not to number of seed per pod. In general, canola cultivation on November 6th considerably decreased seed and oil yield and it is an important point to achieve desirable yield to seed sowing not done later than October 7th. Additionally, complementary irrigation was very important to gain high yield in canola under the conditions of this study.Key words: Canola, planting date, water stress, yield and yield components

Comparison the Effect of Placenta Membrane Using Alone or With Silver Sulfadiazine in Treatment of Burns in Rats

Aims: Silver sulfadiazine is widely used for burning wound. Studies have shown that, dressing wounds with placental membrane can accelerate their healing. Our objective was to evaluate the recovery of second-degree burns in male rats that treated with topical Silver sulfadiazine-impregnated placental amniotic membrane. Materials & Methods: In this experimental study, 64 male rats were divided into 4 similar groups. In all rats, the second degree burn was induced under general anesthesia. Wound dressing in the first group (control) included simple dressing, but amniotic membrane in second group, and Silver sulfadiazine in third group and in the fourth group it was Silver sulfadiazine impregnated amniotic membrane. At the end of the 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th day, under the general anesthesia, the tissue biopsies were taken from burns and microscopic evaluation was done. Data were analyzed statistically using ANOVA and P less than 0.05 was considered as significant. Findings: In treated groups, the PMN leukocyte count was significantly lower than control (p<0.001), also the amount of granular formation and its organization, the number of fibroblasts, and the rate of wound healing were greater than control (p<0.001). There was no significant difference in measured parameters between the 3 treatment groups. Conclusion: Considering the biological effects of the ammonium membrane, it is recommended to use it as an effective dressing method to accelerate burn wound healing

Endoparasites of Rodents and Their Zoonotic Importance in Germi, Dashte–Mogan, Ardabil Province, Iran

Background: In order to verify the infectivity of rodents with endoparasites in Germi (Dashte-Mogan, Arda­bil Province) the current study was undertaken.Methods: Using live traps, 177 rodents were trapped during 2005-2007. In field laboratory, all rodents were bled prior to autopsy, frozen at -20°C, and shipped to the School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Iran. In parasitological laboratory, every rodent was dissected and its different or­gans were examined for the presence of any parasite. Blood thick and thin smears as well as impression smears of liver and spleen were stained with Geimsa and examined microscopically.Results: Two species of rodents were trapped; Meriones persicus (90.4%) and Microtus socialis (9.6%). The species of parasites found in M. persicus and their prevalences were as follows: Hymenolepis di­minuta (38.8%), Hymenolepis nana (2.5%), Trichuris sp.(40.6), Mesocestoides larva (=tetrathyridium) (3.1%), Capil­laria hepatica (6.9%), Moniliformis moniliformis (11.3%), Syphacia obvelata (2.5%), Taenia endotho­racicus larva (0.6%), Physaloptera sp. (0.6%), Dentostomella translucida (0.6%), Heligmosomum mix­tum (0.6%), Strobilocercus fasciolaris (0.6%),and Aspiculuris tetraptera (0.6%). The species of para­sites found in M. socialis and their prevalences were as follows: H. diminuta (17.6%), Trichuris sp. (5.9%), Mesocestoides larva (5.9%), S. obvelata (11.8%), S. syphacia (11.8%), H. mixtum (17.6%), and Aspiculuris tetraptera (11.8%). There were no statistical differences between male and female for infectivity with parasites in either M. persicus or M. socialis. No blood or tissue protozoan parasite was found in any of the rodents examined. Conclusion: Among different species identified, some had zoonotic importance. Therefore, the potential health hazard of these species needs to be considered to prevent infectivity of humans

Shake table test a structure retrofitted using 2-4 Direction Displacement Dependent (D3) viscous dampers

Many seismic codes are modified to represent increased hazard or performance expectations of structures. According to the new code, many structures require retrofit to meet these increase performance expectations. Fluid viscous dampers can add energy dissipation without requiring major structural modification. However, their addition can lead to substantial increases in the maximum base shear and column axial forces in non-linear structures. In practice, these increases in demand would likely require strengthening of the columns and the foundations, thus increasing cost and reducing the ease and potential impact of this approach. In contrast, the 2-4 configuration of a passive Direction and Displacement Dependent (D3) damper provides damping in only quadrants 2 and 4 of the force-displacement response plot, thus substantially reducing peak base shear loads compared to a conventional viscous damper. The paper looks at the seismic performance of a 1/2 scale, two storey steel frame building that is retrofitted with the passive 2-4 D3 damper subjected to uni-directional shake table testing. Performance in mitigating structural response and foundation demand are assessed by evaluating base shear, maximum drift and acceleration. The overall results show that simultaneous reductions in displacement, base-shear and acceleration demand are only available with the 2–4 D3 viscous device. This device is entirely passive, and provides unique retrofit opportunity that does not require strengthening of the columns and the foundations

Frequency and clinical patterns of stroke in Iran - Systematic and critical review

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cerebrovascular disease is the second commonest cause of death, and over a third of stroke deaths occur in developing countries. To fulfil the current gap on data, this systematic review is focused on the frequency of stroke, risk factors, stroke types and mortality in Iran.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Thirteen relevant articles were identified by keyword searching of PubMed, Iranmedex, Iranian University index Libraries and the official national data on burden of diseases.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The publication dates ranged from 1990 to 2008. The annual stroke incidence of various ages ranged from 23 to 103 per 100,000 population. This is comparable to the figures from Arab Countries, higher than sub-Saharan Africa, but lower than developed countries, India, the Caribbean, Latin America, and China. Similarly to other countries, ischaemic stroke was the commonest subtype. Likewise, the most common related risk factor is hypertension in adults, but cardiac causes in young stroke. The 28-day case fatality rate is reported at 19-31%.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Data on the epidemiology of stroke, its pattern and risk factors from Iran is scarce, but the available data highlights relatively low incidence of stroke. This may reflect a similarity towards the neighbouring nations, and a contrast with the West.</p

Citizen Science Reveals Unexpected Continental-Scale Evolutionary Change in a Model Organism

Organisms provide some of the most sensitive indicators of climate change and evolutionary responses are becoming apparent in species with short generation times. Large datasets on genetic polymorphism that can provide an historical benchmark against which to test for recent evolutionary responses are very rare, but an exception is found in the brown-lipped banded snail (Cepaea nemoralis). This species is sensitive to its thermal environment and exhibits several polymorphisms of shell colour and banding pattern affecting shell albedo in the majority of populations within its native range in Europe. We tested for evolutionary changes in shell albedo that might have been driven by the warming of the climate in Europe over the last half century by compiling an historical dataset for 6,515 native populations of C. nemoralis and comparing this with new data on nearly 3,000 populations. The new data were sampled mainly in 2009 through the Evolution MegaLab, a citizen science project that engaged thousands of volunteers in 15 countries throughout Europe in the biggest such exercise ever undertaken. A known geographic cline in the frequency of the colour phenotype with the highest albedo (yellow) was shown to have persisted and a difference in colour frequency between woodland and more open habitats was confirmed, but there was no general increase in the frequency of yellow shells. This may have been because snails adapted to a warming climate through behavioural thermoregulation. By contrast, we detected an unexpected decrease in the frequency of Unbanded shells and an increase in the Mid-banded morph. Neither of these evolutionary changes appears to be a direct response to climate change, indicating that the influence of other selective agents, possibly related to changing predation pressure and habitat change with effects on micro-climate

Essential omega‐3 fatty acids are depleted in sea ice and pelagic algae of the Central Arctic Ocean

Microalgae are the main source of the omega‐3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), essential for the healthy development of most marine and terrestrial fauna including humans. Inverse correlations of algal EPA and DHA proportions (% of total fatty acids) with temperature have led to suggestions of a warming‐induced decline in the global production of these biomolecules and an enhanced importance of high latitude organisms for their provision. The cold Arctic Ocean is a potential hotspot of EPA and DHA production, but consequences of global warming are unknown. Here, we combine a full‐seasonal EPA and DHA dataset from the Central Arctic Ocean (CAO), with results from 13 previous field studies and 32 cultured algal strains to examine five potential climate change effects; ice algae loss, community shifts, increase in light, nutrients, and temperature. The algal EPA and DHA proportions were lower in the ice‐covered CAO than in warmer peripheral shelf seas, which indicates that the paradigm of an inverse correlation of EPA and DHA proportions with temperature may not hold in the Arctic. We found no systematic differences in the summed EPA and DHA proportions of sea ice versus pelagic algae, and in diatoms versus non‐diatoms. Overall, the algal EPA and DHA proportions varied up to four‐fold seasonally and 10‐fold regionally, pointing to strong light and nutrient limitations in the CAO. Where these limitations ease in a warming Arctic, EPA and DHA proportions are likely to increase alongside increasing primary production, with nutritional benefits for a non‐ice‐associated food web

Effect of Network Architecture on Synchronization and Entrainment Properties of the Circadian Oscillations in the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus

In mammals, the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus constitutes the central circadian pacemaker. The SCN receives light signals from the retina and controls peripheral circadian clocks (located in the cortex, the pineal gland, the liver, the kidney, the heart, etc.). This hierarchical organization of the circadian system ensures the proper timing of physiological processes. In each SCN neuron, interconnected transcriptional and translational feedback loops enable the circadian expression of the clock genes. Although all the neurons have the same genotype, the oscillations of individual cells are highly heterogeneous in dispersed cell culture: many cells present damped oscillations and the period of the oscillations varies from cell to cell. In addition, the neurotransmitters that ensure the intercellular coupling, and thereby the synchronization of the cellular rhythms, differ between the two main regions of the SCN. In this work, a mathematical model that accounts for this heterogeneous organization of the SCN is presented and used to study the implication of the SCN network topology on synchronization and entrainment properties. The results show that oscillations with larger amplitude can be obtained with scale-free networks, in contrast to random and local connections. Networks with the small-world property such as the scale-free networks used in this work can adapt faster to a delay or advance in the light/dark cycle (jet lag). Interestingly a certain level of cellular heterogeneity is not detrimental to synchronization performances, but on the contrary helps resynchronization after jet lag. When coupling two networks with different topologies that mimic the two regions of the SCN, efficient filtering of pulse-like perturbations in the entrainment pattern is observed. These results suggest that the complex and heterogeneous architecture of the SCN decreases the sensitivity of the network to short entrainment perturbations while, at the same time, improving its adaptation abilities to long term changes