[Nosocomial urinary tract infections: etiology, risk factors and antimicrobial pattern in ghaem university hospital in Mashhad]

Nosocomially acquired urinary tract infections [NAUTIs] are common infections in the hospital setting. Since the bacterial spectrum of NUTIs is extensive and the antibiotic resistance is common, we decided to study the incidence of etiology, antibiotic resistance and risk factors of [NAUTIs] in Ghaem University Hospital in Mashhad, Iran from 2009 to 2012. The Present study is based on the isolation-identification and determining the antibiotic resistance pattern of [NAUTIs] from 2009 to 2012. Demographic data of patients regarding age, gender, symptoms and signs were collected by a valid questionnaire. Among 647 patients with nosocomial infection, the prevalence of NAUTI was 102 [17.2%] during this period. The most frequently isolated micro-organism was Candida spp [20.9%], followed by Escherichia coli [16.3%], Klebsiella sp [15.4%], enterococci and acinetobacter [14.5%]. Among antibiotic resistant bacteria, [53.8%] of E. coli were resistant to ampicilin and cefepim. Acinetobacter showed 66.6% resistance to ciprofloxacin, ceftriaxone and cefotaxime. Among the isolates, approximately 46% had multidrug resistance to three or more agents and effective antibiotics for treatment of UTIs were nitrofurantoin and norfloxasin in this study

Sterols and flavonoids of lomatopodium staurophyllum

The genus Lomatopodium Fisch. And amp; C.A.Mey., belongs to Apiaceae family and contains one herbaceous species growing wildly in Iran. There are only a few papers about the chemical constituents of these plants. Here, we focused on the isolation and identification of the main flavonoid glycosides and sterols from the aerial parts of L. staurophyllum, which has not been previously reported. Flowered aerial parts of the plant were dried and cut into small pieces, then extracted with ethyl acetate and methanol by percolation at room temperature. The separation process was carried out using several chromatographic methods. Structural elucidation was based on NMR and MS data, in comparison with those reported in the literature. The isolated compounds from ethyl acetate and methanol extracts of L. staurophyllum were identified as nonanal [1], stigmasterol acetate [2], beta-sitosterol [3], quercetin 3-O-glucoside [4] and quercetin 3 - O - rhamnoglucoside [5] by comparison of their NMR spectral data with those reported in the literature. Ethyl acetate and methanol extracts of L. staurophyllum contain various flavonol glycosides and sterols as the main components. Pelargonic aldehyde [nonanal], a growth promoting factor in plant cells, is found to be occurred in this species and might be a cause of anti -diarrhea activity

[Comparing psychological status of active and inactive relief workers in road accidents in Darab Township]

Due to constant experience and long-term presence in tragic scenes, active relief workers of Red Crescent society in the road bases are more exposed to psychological consequences of accidents that inactive ones. A few studies are available on this topic. This study aims to compare the psychological status of both active and inactive relief workers in the road bases of Red Crescent society in Darab Township. In this comparative study, 28 of active relief workers were selected in Darab Township road relief bases by using purposeful sampling in 2009. Also about 33 inactive relief workers were selected randomly and completed the symptom checklist [SCL-90-R]. Research data was analyzed by using SPSS [version 16], descriptive statistics indexes and multivariate analysis of variance test [MANOVA]. According to the results, active group scores were higher than inactive ones in SCL-90-R and some other factors such as physical, obsessive, aggressive, phobia and mental distress. Although, there was a meaningful difference in Alfa level [0.05 and 0.001], in some cases as interpersonal sensitivity, depression and additional questions were not meaningful. Regarding the mental vulnerability of relief workers in road accidents, a careful planning about individual and organizational protections for active group is required

Brine shrimp cytotoxicity of some medicinal plants Belongs to Lamiaceae, Asteracea, Rosaceae and Boraginaceae Families

In this report, we evaluated the cytotoxic activity of the hexane, ethyl acetate, methanol and aqueous methanol extracts of the aerial parts of some species belongs to Lamiaceae, Boraginaceae, Asteraceae and Rosaceae families. In order to examine the cytotoxicity of the plant extracts, Brine Shrimp Cytotoxicity Assay was used against Artemia salina larva. Results showed that Scutellaria Tornefortii indicated cytotoxic activity against the larva of Artemia salina. The minimum lethal concentration of its aqueous methanol extract, as the most effective extract, was 6 g/ml compared to berberine hydrochloride as the positive control [LC[50]=26 microg/ml]. EtOAc extract of Rubus hyrcanus was also a potent cytotoxic extract [LC[50]=28 microg/ml]. In addition to those mentioned plants, Echium amoenum, Onosma bulbotrichum, Stachys byzanthina and Rubus discolor could be the potential sources of cytotoxic components. Some of the medicinal plants, growing widely in north part of Iran, are effective against the larvae of A. salina, so they could be a promising source of anti-cancer and anti-tumor compounds