[Comparison between the effects of ethanolic extract of Artemisia annua and chloroquine on Plasmodium berghei in white mice]

Considering the importance of using native and traditional herbal medicines in the treatment of malaria, we made a comparison between the effects of an ethanolic extract of Artemisia annua and chloroquine on Plasmodium berghei in Sourian mice. In this study 50 Sourian mice were divided into 10 groups, each group consisted of five mice. The evaluation was done according to the Peters test. Nine of ten groups were infected with P. berghei. The first 6 groups were given extracts of Artemisia annua at different concentrations. The seventh and eighth groups received chloroquine and placebo, respectively. The ninth group received no treatment [control group].The tenth group was not infected with Plasmodium berghei and did not receive any treatment and was used for determination of accidental mortality of the mice. In each group, the levels of parasitaemia were determined on the 4[th] and 7[th] days, and compared with those of the control group. To find the most effective concentration, the test was repeated with 55 mice divided into 11 groups using limited spectrum of drug concentrations. We used SPSS software and T-test for data analysis. The results indicated that Artemisia annua extract at the concentrations of 1100 and 1300 mg/kg significantly decreased P. berghei parasitaemia in the infected mice, but at the concentration of 1100 mg/kg Artemisia annua had less toxicity [P<0.05]. According to the results of this study Artemisia annua at the concentration of 1100 mg/kg showed considerable effect on P. berghei

Comparison between the efficiency of advanced oxidation process and coagulation for removal organophosphorus and carbamat pesticides

Water pollution by pesticides has adverse effects on the environment and human health, as well .In recent years, advanced oxidation processes, have been gone through to a very high degree for pesticides removal. Poly-Aluminum chloride [PAC] used for water treatment, can be effective on pesticides removal. The aim of this research was to study the use of UV/O3 and PAC in the removal of pesticides from drinking water. In this descriptive- analytical survey, specific concentrations of pesticides [1,5,10,15,20 ppm];namely Diazinon, Chlorpyrifos, Carbaril were prepared through addition to deionized water. Dichloromethane was used for samples extraction, samples extracted with Liquid-Liquid and Solid-phase extraction, finally entered bath reactor at pH [6,7,9] .The samples then exposed to UV/O3at contact time of [0.5,1,1.5 and 2 hours]. In the PAC pilot, the effects of various concentrations of pesticides, and PAC - ranging [12/24 and 36 ppm] were investigated for the efficacy of pesticides removal. All samples analyzed by GC/MS/MS and HPLC. It was found that in U V/O3 reactor, with the rise of pH, decrease in pesticides concentration, and rise of contact time, the efficiency of removal increased too. In the PAC pilot, increase in PAC concentration and decrease in pesticides concentration, both increased the efficiency. Besides, both of the methods showed high efficiencies in the removal of both pesticides,i-e. halogenated Organophosphorus [Chlorpyrifos], non- halogenated Organophosphorus [Diazinon] at the degree of over [%80]; In case of carbamate pesticides [e.g. Carbaril] efficiency was over [>%90]. One-Way Anova and Two -Way Anova were used to analyze the obtained data. According these results these two methods are suggested for the removal of pesticides from aqueous solutions

[Study of Tehran physician's intensity for administration of herbal drug based on their prescription in the time period between 2007-2008 in 3 university related drugstores]

It may be necessary to accomplish an investigation based on the extensive and deep studies about the situation and status of herbal medicines in different societies. Investigation of prescribed herbal medicines by physicians -as one of the high educated portion of the society and also as the eligible population for prescription of herbal medicines - and also evaluation of drug prescriptions considering the administration of herbal medicines can determine the situation and status of herbal medicines in health policy of a country. In this article the interest of the physicians for administration of herbal medicines, the effect of different variables such as age, sex and type of specialty of physicians, the effect of type of season and finally the effect of type of municipal district as the marker for determination of quality of life on amount of prescribed herbal medicines have been studied. This study, was accomplished in the time period between 1[st] Farvadin till 30[th] Esfand of the year 1386 in 3 university related drugstores - i.e. Taleghani, Abedini and Isar- the drug stores have been selected in the manner that different districts of the city is included in the study. Totally, 5040 drug prescriptions for all over the year have been statistically investigated. The interest for prescription of herbal medicines by physicians is very low. Variables include municipal district of the city with different levels of quality of life, age of physicians, type of specialty, level of education and therapeutic category of drugs have influenced on the interest of physicians for prescription of herbal medicine but sex of physician has no significant effect on this interest. Totally, there is a low interest for prescription of herbal medicines by physicians

[Determination of organophosphorous and carbamat pesticides residue in drinking water resources of Hamadan in 2007]

Water contamination by pesticides is considered as an environmental problem today. In terms of agricultural development and diversity of plant pests, the use of pesticides has been increasing. Hamedan province has a suitable agricultural condition, it has enjoyed significant development in this respect. Among all the cities of Hamedan province, Hamedan city has the highest rank in tiller crops. Therefore, yearly use of pesticides is increasing in this area which could be a serious threat to water resources of the city. The aim of this survey was determinaton of Organophosphorous and Carbamat pesticides residue in drinking water resources of Hamadan in 2007. In this survey, 126 water samples were collected from 7 drinking water resources of Hamedan during 12 consecutive months in 2007. for determination of these pesticides, two methods [solid-phase extraction and Liquid-Liquid extraction] were adopted .and samples were analyzed by means of HPLC and GC/MS applying standard methods. Final results showed that the most concentration of Chlorpyrifos and Carbaryl pesticides were found to be about 3.85 ppb [part per billion] and 1.8 ppb in spring and June respectively; the maximum concentration of Diazinon was about 36.5ppb in October [autumn].The minimum concentration of the three pesticides was detected in winter. According to the statistical test Two-Way ANOWA there were significant differences among pesticides concentrations in the water samples in different seasons [p<0.05]. However, there wasn't a significant difference in pesticides concentrations in surface and ground water samples[p>0.05]. Different studies have shown that pesticides residue concentration in water samples have a relationship with the amount of pesticides used in an area, physical and chemical refractory properties of pesticides; and environmental conditions. Thus, using resistant pollutants such as pesticides will be a serious threat to health of water consumers if they are not properly controlled

[Occurence of permanent hypothyroidism in patients with postpartum thyroiditis]

Postpartum thyroiditis is often a syndrome of transient thyroid dysfunction, but can develop to permanent hypothyroidism in some patients. The incidence of postpartum thyroiditis is variably reported, ranging from 1.1% to 16.7% with an incidence ranging between 11% to 63% for permanent hypothyroidism. This study was conducted to assess the prevalence of permanent hypothyroidism after postpartum thyroiditis in Ahwaz. All cases of postpartum thyroiditis referred to the endocrinology clinic between 1999 March and 2007 March were followed for 2 to 10 years. Levothyroxin was administered for 6 to 24 months after diagnosis, and then discontinued to evaluate the patients. Based on laboratory hormonal tests, patients were divided into 3 groups: 1] Normal thyroid function test, 2] Sub clinical hypothyroidism, and 3] clinical hypothyroidism. Fifty-eight women, were followed 6 months after discontining levothyroxin, twenty five [43.1%] of group 1, 13 [22.45%] of group 2 and 20 [34.55%] in group 3. The average T4 level was significantly higher in group 1 compared to groups 2 and 3 [p=.003]. Permanent hypothyroidism was more frequent in patients who initially [during postpartum thyroiditis] had TSH levels >10 mg/dL. Occurrence of permanent hypothyroidism was less frequent in patient who were initially hyperthyroid. [p=.006] It is concluded that a high percentage of patients with postpartum thyroiditis proceed to permanent thyroid failure. The timely recognition of mild to severe cases of postpartum thyroiditis is important for the improvement of life for mothers and infants