Effect of melatonin on male offspring testis and sperm parameters in BALB/c mice after exposing their mother to METHamphetamine during pregnancy and lactation

Objective(s): Methamphetamine (METH) is a psychostimulant that has harmful effects on all organs,  the nervous system, cardiovascular system, and reproductive system. Since many METH consumers are young people of reproductive age, it poses a risk to the next generation of METH consumers. METH can pass through the placenta and is also secreted into breast milk. Melatonin (MLT) is the primary hormone of the pineal gland that regulates the circadian cycle, and it is also an antioxidant that can mitigate the effects of toxic substances. This study aims to investigate the protective effect of melatonin against the detrimental effects that METH has on the reproductive system of male newborns, whose mothers consumed METH during pregnancy and lactation.Materials and Methods: In the current study, 30 female adult balb/c mice were divided into three groups: control group, vehicle group that received normal saline, and the experimental group that received 5 mg/kg METH intraperitoneally during gestation and lactation. After lactation, the male offspring of each group were randomly divided into two subgroups, one of which received 10 mg/kg melatonin intragastrically for 21 days (corresponding to the lactation period of the mice) (METH-MLT) and the other did not (METH -D.W). After treatment, the mice were sacrificed and testicular tissue and epididymis were obtained for the following tests.Results: The diameter of seminiferous tubules, SOD activity, total Thiol groups concentration, catalase activity, sperm count, and PCNA and CCND gene expression were significantly increased in the METH-MLT group compared with the METH-DW. Apoptotic cells and MDA level ameliorated in the METH-MLT group compared with METH-D.W, and testicular weight had no notable change.Conclusion: The current study represents that consumption of METH during pregnancy and lactation can have adverse effects on the histological and biochemical factors of testis and sperm parameters of male newborns,  which can be mitigated by taking melatonin after the end of the breastfeeding period

The efficacy of acceptance and commitment training and positive psychotherapy in enhancing mental health and resilience among women with breast cancer

Background & Aim: Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer in the world, imposing significant physical problems and psychological burdens on sufferers. Education is one of the ways to reduce the psychological problems of these patients. Therefore, the current study was conducted to compare the efficacy of Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT) and Positive Psychology (PP) in enhancing the mental health and resilience among women with breast cancer. Methods & Materials: This study employed a two-group quasi-experimental design with a pretest-posttest design, involving 60 women with breast cancer at Khatamolanbia cancer center in Jahrom during 2020-2021. Participants were selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned to either the Acceptance and Commitment Training group (focused on accepting uncontrollable factors and committing to enriching life) or the Positive Psychology group (emphasizing individual abilities and positive emotions). Prior to and one week following the sessions, participants completed questionnaires evaluating resilience and mental health. Data analysis was performed using MANCOVA with a significance level set at 0.05. Results: Based on the MANCOVA findings, there was no statistically significant difference in resilience and mental health scores (F=2.318, P=0.110) between the two intervention groups after adjusting for pretest scores. However, clinically significant improvements were observed in mental health and resilience for 75% and 42% of the ACT group, and 65% and 46% of the Positive Psychology group, respectively. Conclusion: According to the findings, both group therapies, ACT and Positive Psychology, are effective in enhancing resilience and mental health in breast cancer patients. These findings provide more opportunities for healthcare providers to tailor interventions to the characteristics of caregivers and the personality characteristics of the patients

Mapping Spatial Distribution of Forest Fire using MCDM and GIS (Case Study: Three Forest Zones in Guilan Province)

Fire in forests and rangelands degrades vast part of natural resources. Although predicting the exact time and location of fire occurrence is a difficult task due to various parameters affecting wildfires, but application of Geographical Information System enables us to identify and control areas with high fire potential. The purpose of this study was to achieve a fire hazard map, developed by integrating several data layers such as topography, climate, vegetation cover and socio- economical factors. Some forest sites of Guilan province of I.R. Iran were selected for the study project due to their high cover density and their frequent fire occurrence history. Because the fire influencing parameters do not affect fie occurrence and distribution equally, a multi criteria method was used to grade them. The Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process (FAHP) was used to consider uncertainties and to weight the criteria within 0 and 1 values. After calculating the Fuzzy weights and allocating them to the raster maps of the influencing parameters, finally the weighted informational layers were integrated and overlaid in the GIS. To assess accuracy of the applied method, the final fire hazard map was compared to further layer consisting of areas with high fire frequency during the last five years. Results showed that 66% of the hazard fire points were completely overlaid on sites with high and vey high fire risk, which reveals the capability of the study method in predicting forest fire potential. Furthermore, short distance between forests, roads and residential areas, identified as the main factors affecting fire occurrence and forest degradation more than the topographical parameters

Letrozole and misoprostol versus misoprostol alone for termination of pregnancy: a randomized clinical trial

Background: To compare the success rate and side effects of letrozole and misoprostol versus misoprostol alone for medical termination of early pregnancy. Methods: The patients requesting termination of pregnancy up to 63 days of gestation were randomized into two groups. The letrozole group received letrozole 10 mg daily for 3 days followed by 800 micrograms of vaginal misoprostol, while the placebo group received placebo for 3 days followed by the same dosage of misoprostol. The complete abortion rate and the side effects profiles of the two groups were compared. The primary outcome measure was the abortion rate. Results: A total of 214 women were recruited. Overal complete abortion rate was 81.3%, complete abortion rate in the letrozole group was not significantly higher than that of the placebo group (84.1% compared 78.5%). After receiving 800 mcg misoprostol, 37 case (17.3%) had complete abortion that 13 cases (12%) of the misoprostol group and 24 patients (22.5%) of the cominabtion group and after receiving 1600 mcg, misoprostol, in 137 cases (77.4%) had complete abortion that 71 patients (75.5%) of the misoprostol group and 66 cases (79.5%) was obtained for the combination group. This difference was not statistically significant (P> 0.05). D & C in 40 cases (18.7%) reported that was not significantly different in the two groups, 17 cases (15.9 %) in the combination group versus 23 (21.5%) in the misoprostol group. Side effects such as fever, tachycardia, diarrhea and pain were similar in the two groups there were not significantly fewer women complaining of side effects in the letrozole group than those in the placebo group (P> 0.05). Conclusion: Combination of letrozole and misoprostol is as effective as misoprostol alone in complete abortion rate. Based on these results, the use of misoprostol in combination with letrozole is safe and not expensive