Inhibitory effect of Crocus sativus L. ethanol extract on adjuvant-induced arthritis

Saffron is a well-known spice produced from dried stigmas of Crocus sativus L. flowers. Apart from its wide use in food preparations, it also has a broad range of medical properties. We examined the potential anti-inflammatory effects of saffron ethanolic extract (SEE) using an animal model of arthritis. Adjuvant-induced arthritis was induced in Wistar rats by injection of Complete Freund's Adjuvant. The rats were then injected intraperitoneally every other day with 25–600 mg SEE/kg or dexamethasone (DEX, 2 mg/kg). Changes in body weight, paw oedema and arthritis indices were recorded over the subsequent 12 days of treatment. Results revealed that SEE particularly at the higher concentrations significantly reduced paw and tibiotarsal joint diameters and comparing with DEX caused no significant change in body weight. These observations suggest that SEE displays a considerable anti-inflammatory potency and could potentially be used as an anti-arthritic agent in control of inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis.     

Estimation of biophysical parameters in wheat crops in Golestan province using ultra-high resolution images

Due to various factors which impress wheat growth variability, we need short–term monitoring of biophysical parameters using ultra–high resolution images. These provide an ability to monitor crops at the individual plant level. Two flight missions were carried out at altitude of 40 m with a commercial quad copter and a commercial camera. The images were taken before and after tillage over an 8.8 ha field. The 2 cm orthoimages and surface models were generated using photogrammetric software. Then, the image variables including ratio of the blue and green band, ratio of the red and blue band,ratio of the red and green band, plant height were extracted from orthoimages and surface models. Field measurement included the leaf area index, plant height and biomass for 15 plots each of area 1 m × 1 m. Due to a linear relationship between the biophysical parameters and image variables, it was used a multivariate regression model for modelling. The model using the image variables resulted in coefficient of determination (R²) of 0.95 and the lowest error measures (RMSE = 0.24). The results show that ultra–high resolution images can be used for monitoring of biophysical parameters in wheat crops but it is limited for large area.     

HIV Prevalence and Related Behaviors Among People Who Inject Drugs in Iran from 2010 to 2020

AIDS and Behavior - Injection drug use has been the leading route of HIV transmission in Iran. We assessed HIV prevalence, risk behaviors, and uptake of prevention services among people who inject...     

Hypothalamic‐pituitary‐adrenal axis activity in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis: a controlled study using insulin hypoglycemia stress test

Aim: To study the response of cortisol to insulin‐induced hypoglycemia in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods: We measured the response of cortisol to insulin‐induced hypoglycemia (0.15 µ/kg) in 10 patients (6 female, 4 male) with active RA and 10 (6 female, 4 male) healthy controls. All patients had never received glucocorticoids before the study. The cortisol concentration was assessed by radioimmunoassay. Results: The mean age was 47.3 years (± 14.2 years) in patients and 43.5 years (± 10.6 years) in control subjects. The mean disease duration was 66.3 months (range 12–120). The basal serum levels of cortisol in patients with RA were not significantly different from those of controls. Although the mean serum cortisol levels after insulin‐induced hypoglycemia were lower in patients with RA than controls in all samples, the significant difference was seen only in the samples 60 min after insulin injection (18.59 vs. 24.28 µg/dL, P = 0.041). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that active RA is associated with dysfunction of the hypothalamic–pituitary‐adrenal axis.     

Distress tolerance and special alcohol metacognitions behave differently in the association of negative affect with alcohol-related patterns in men with problematic alcohol use in the abstinence phase

Negative affect may be related to alcohol-related patterns (e.g., craving and problematic alcohol use). Distress intolerance and positive and negative alcohol-related metacognitions may be underlying mechanisms in this link. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of negative affect including depressive, anxious, and stress symptoms on alcohol craving and problematic alcohol use via the paths of distress tolerance and both positive and negative alcohol-related metacognitions. Three hundred men with problematic alcohol use during the abstinence phase completed psychological and clinical measures. Results showed that craving and negative alcohol metacognitions mediated the relationship between negative affect and problematic alcohol use. Negative affect had a direct and positive effect on craving and indirect effect via distress intolerance and positive alcohol metacognitions. In turn, distress intolerance and positive alcohol metacognitions indirectly and positively affected problematic alcohol use via craving. The study indicates that distress tolerance and distinct alcohol metacognitions may be differently related to various patterns of alcohol-related problems, such that alcohol drinkers with high levels of negative affect, distress intolerance, and positive alcohol metacognitions show higher levels of craving, while high negative affect in relation to high negative alcohol metacognitions and alcohol craving is related to the perpetuation of alcohol use or problematic alcohol use.     

Compliance and satisfaction with deferasirox (Exjade®) compared with deferoxamine in patients with transfusion-dependent beta-thalassemia

Objective

The current standard option for iron chelation therapy (ICT) in transfusion-dependent patients with beta-thalassemia is deferoxamine (DFO). We aimed to compare the compliance with DFO vs. deferasirox (Exjade^®), a novel oral iron chelator, in patients with transfusion-dependent beta-thalassemia.

Methods

In this cross-sectional study, 220 patients from Southern Iran who were receiving DFO or Exjade^® for the last 2 years were investigated in 2012. Satisfaction, compliance, convenience, and life disturbances of the patients with ICT were evaluated. Assessments were performed at four different occasions during 1 year.

Results

According to the results, 114 patients received treatment with DFO and 106 patients were treated with Exjade^®. In comparison with the patients who were treated with DFO, those receiving Exjade^® reported a significantly higher rate of compliance and convenience (P < 0.05). However, no significant difference was observed between the two groups regarding their satisfaction (P > 0.05). In the DFO group, 44.9% of the patients reported irritation and pain at the injection site.

Conclusions

Considering higher rate of compliance and convenience with Exjade^® and the comparable efficacy of these two modalities of ICT documented in previous studies, Exjade^® can be used as a preferable choice of ICT in iron-overload patients with beta-thalassemia.     

Association of endothelial nitric oxide synthase gene variant (G894T) with coronary artery disease in Western Iran

There are conflicting reports about the association of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) gene polymorphism and the risk of coronary artery disease (CAD). To determine the frequency of eNOS G894T variant and to find the possible association between this polymorphism with CAD we studied 207 unrelated patients with total CAD (with and without diabetes) and 92 controls. The eNOS variants were detected by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). The presence of GT + TT genotype was associated with 2.1-fold (P = .006), 2.29-fold (P = .006), and 1.93-fold (P = .032) increased risk of CAD in total CAD, CAD with diabetes, and in CAD without diabetes patients, respectively. The presence of T allele of eNOS increased the risk of CAD 2.15-fold (P = .001). The levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and triglycerides (TG) tended to be higher in patients carrier for T allele compared to those with G allele. The results of present study revealed that eNOS G894T polymorphism is associated with increased risk of CAD in our population.     

Electrical Low Frequency Stimulation of the Kindling Site Preserves the Electrophysiological Properties of the Rat Hippocampal CA1 Pyramidal Neurons From the Destructive Effects of Amygdala Kindling: The Basis for a Possible Promising Epilepsy Therapy

BackgroundDeep brain stimulation (DBS) has emerged as a potential therapeutic strategy in the treatment of neurological disorders including epilepsy. However, the cellular mechanism responsible for the effects of DBS remains largely undefined. Therefore, using electrophysiological approach, we aimed to determine the antiepileptic effects and restorative potential of low frequency stimulation (LFS) on amygdala kindling-induced changes in electrophysiological properties of rat hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons.MethodsAnimals were kindled by electrical stimulation of amygdala in a rapid kindling manner (12 times per day). In one group of animals, immediately after termination of daily 12 rapid kindling stimulations, the kindling site was subjected to 4 packages of LFS at intervals of 5 min (each package contained 200 monophasic square-wave pulses, 0.1 ms pulse duration at 1 Hz). Whole cell patch clamp recording under current clamp conditions was performed on visually identified pyramidal neurons in hippocampal slice preparations obtained from amygdala-kindled rats and the rats receiving LFS.ResultsKindling of the right basolateral amygdala profoundly affected spontaneous firing behavior and repetitive discharge characteristics of pyramidal neuronal electrophysiological properties. Application of LFS at the kindling site almost completely prevented the development of epilepsy and the disruptive effects of kindling on neuronal electrical activity through restoration of the normal electrophysiological characteristics.ConclusionsThe results of this study implied that application of LFS during kindling acquisition prevents the kindling induced changes in functional electrical properties of CA1 pyramidal neurons, suggesting that this action may be involved in the antiepileptogenic mechanism of LFS.