[Quantitative assessment of hyoscyamine and scopolamine tropane alkaloids in root and shoot of hyoscymaus spp. from iran]

Background: Different species of Hyoscymaus are rich sources of tropane alkaloids, especially hyoscyamine and scopolamine. These compounds medicinally are important tropane alkaloids that exclusively are produced by plants

Objective: Evaluation of hyoscyamine and scopolamine tropane alkalolids content in shoots and roots of Hyoscyamus species including H. kotschyanus, H. squarrosus, H. pusillus, H. kurdicus, H. scoparia, H. othocarpus

Methods: This research was done as a factorial experiment in a completely randomized design with three replications. Seeds of Hyoscyamus species were grown in growth room under 25 C° temperature and 16/8 h light/dark period conditions. Samples of dried shoot and underground organs of 6 to 7 month plants were extracted and then content of hyoscyamine and scopolamine was evaluated by HPLC

Results: Hyoscyamine and scopolamine content in H. orthocarpus were more than the other species and total of these two compounds in H. orthocarpus [15.81 mg/gr dry weight] was approximately 2 times more than H. kotschyanus [7.45 mg/gr dry weight] and manifold of the other studied species. Hyoscyamine was the main compound in H. orthocarpus. The least amount of hyoscyamine and scopolamine was in H. pusillus

Conclusion: H. orthocarpus and H. kotschyanus because of higher content of hyoscymine and scopolamine with more studies can be used as rich sources of these tropane alkaloids in pharmacy industries

Effect of eicosapentaenoic acid [EPA] and vitamin e on the blood levels of inflammatory markers, antioxidant enzymes, and lipid peroxidation in iranian basketball players

Exercise can change the release of numerous cytokines and modulate their receptor systems. Dietary w-3 lipids may decrease the levels of inflammatory cytokines and prostaglandins [PGs]. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the effects of exercise and eicosapentaenoic acid [EPA] supplementation, with or without vitamin E, on the blood levels of IL-2, TNF-alpha catalase, glutathione reductase, and MDA in male basketball players. Thirty-four well-trained male basketball players were enrolled into the study. Venous blood samples were obtained from all subjects between 5:00 and 6:00 p.m., after intensive endurance exercising for 2 hours, at the baseline and after intervention. Subjects received 2g EPA and/or 400 IU vitamin E or placebo depends on their groups for 6 weeks. There were significant fall [paired /-test] in TNF-a in groupl [P< 0.05], and in MDA in group 3 [P<0.05], whereas there were significant increase in glutathione reductase in groups 1 and 3 [P< 0.05], and in MDA in group2 [P< 0.05].There were significant differences [Tukey] in glutathione reductase between groups 2 and 3 [P< 0.05], and in IL-2 between groups 1 and other groups [P< 0.01], but there were no significant differences in MDA, CAT, and TNF-a, among groups after 6 week of intervention. Six weeks of EPA+vitamin E supplementation enhances the plasma levels of IL-2 and erythrocytes glutathione reductase, whereas it reduces TNF-alpha, and 6 weeks of EPA supplementation alone enhances only the serum level of MDA

[Non-parametric estimation of the pattern of the age at natural menopause in Garmsar]

Based on WHO, menopause is defined as the permanent cessation of menstruation resulting from the loss of ovarian follicular activity which is recognized to have occurred after 12 consecutive months of amenorrhea, for which there is no other obvious pathological or physiological cause. It is the beginning of a phase of women's' life with somatic and metabolic changes which leads to decrease in quality of life, osteoporosis and heart diseases. Because of increasing the number of women experiencing post-menopausal life, studying the pattern of age in onset of menopause seems necessary. Non-parametric method to estimation the pattern of the age at natural menopause was introduced. For applied purpuses, data from a survey in Garmsar that it is performed on 581 women aged 30 years or older. The pattern of age at menopause was estimated for them using prevalence of menopause in each age group. The mean and median of age at natural menopause were 51.9 +/- 3.6 and 52.2, respectively. Increasing of menopause was slow from age 30 to 43, but a speed-up in monopause was observed until 55 years old, and then it was decreased slowly. compared to the other regions of Iran, the mean of age at natural menopause in Garmsar seems greater

[Analyzing the methodologies to estimate age at natural menopause and its effective factors]

Menopause, cessation of menstruation, is a public event for all women that occur between the ages of 45-55 [or even sooner]. A variety of researches done in Iran and the rest of the world show age at menopause can depend on numerous factors such as race and genetics, socioeconomics, history of fertility, physical activity, nutrition, sexual behaviors, diseases and etc. However, there are inconsistencies between results from different researches which can be related to methodology and methods of analysis. Present research has been done to analyze methodologies which estimate age at natural menopause and its associated factors by considering their power and weakness points. The cohort and cross-sectional methodologies to estimate age at natural menopause are introduced as well as appropriate statistical techniques to determine effective factors. Iranian and the some foreign papers, which their main object or one of the principle objects was estimating age at menopause, are introduced and analyzed. The results show that prediction and estimation of age at menopause are more complicated than it seems. Nearly all Iranian and some foreign surveys are poor in methodology and methods of analysis which decreases the efficacy and correctness of their findings