علی میرزازاده

The role of free radicals in causing many diseases has been well proven. These particles can destroy biomolecules. Antioxidants can prevent these harmful effects. Considering that plants are a source of natural antioxidants, research in this field is increasing. Hypoxia means the reduction of oxygen in the body tissues, which can lead to dysfunction of the body. Hypoxia causes a significant increase in reactive oxygen species, thus, antioxidants are considered anti-hypoxia. Melissa officinalis L. is a well-known medicinal plant of Lamiaceae. Leaves of this plant have been widely used for the treatment of cardiovascular and respiratory problems and as a memory enhancer. This investigation was carried out to examine the impact of extraction on total phenolic contents and antioxidant activities of M. officinalis aerial parts. In addition, the Antihypoxic activities of all extracts were evaluated in three models in mice.

In this experimental study, dried aerial parts were extracted by three different methods, i.e. maceration method, ultrasonic-assisted, and soxhlet-assisted extraction. Antioxidative capacity was assessed by utilizing DPPH free radicals scavenging and reducing power. The total phenolic and flavonoid contents were also determined. The protective effects of extract in the initial dose of 62.5-250 mg/kg were evaluated against hypoxia-induced lethality in mice by three experimental models of hypoxia, i.e. asphyctic, haemic, and circulatory. The latencies for death for mice in minutes were recorded. The Institutional Animal Ethical Committee of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences approved the experimental protocol. In the asphyctic hypoxic model, phenytoin (50 mg/kg, i.p.) and in the next two tests, propranolol (20 and 30 mg/kg, i.p.) were used as the positive control. In all tests, Normal saline (0.5 ml, i.p.) was used as the negative control. Analysis of variance was performed followed by Newman-Keuls multiple comparisons (by GraphPad Prism 8) were used to determine the differences in means.

Meceration method and ultrasonic(P<0.0001) assisted extraction were the best methods for extraction of polyphenols. In DPPH radical scavenging activity, soxhlet-assisted extraction and extraction by the meceration method were more efficient than ultrasonic-assisted extraction(P>0.05). In the hemic model, none of the extracts showed any activity. Even the soxhlet-assisted extract at the dose of 250 mg/kg, even though it increased the death time by about one minute, could not cause a significant effect(P>0.05). In the circulatory model, none of the extracts showed any effect at the lowest tested dose i.e. 62.5 mg/kg but all the extracts showed a very potent activity at higher doses. All the extracts at a dose of 250 mg/kg showed a much stronger effect than propranolol 30 mg/kg. In the asphyctic model, all the extracts showed very good effects so we had to reduce the dosage many times. The extract obtained from the maceration method at a dose of 1.95 mg/kg and ultrasonic-assisted and soxhlet assisted extracts at the dose of 7.81 mg/kg showed the same activity as phenytoin(P>0.05).

The findings of the current study indicated that extraction methods significantly affect antioxidant capacities and total phenolic contents. The ultrasonic-assisted extraction and maceration method were the most suitable methods for extracting phenolic and flavonoid compounds from this plant. All extracts showed high antioxidant activities. All extracts showed very strong effects in the asphyctic model.

Nectarine is a plant that is cultivated as an important commercial product in some countries and is known as an important source of sugar and vitamins in the human diet. Due to the increase in expectations for food products with high quality and safety standards, accurate, fast and targeted determination of the characteristics of food products is necessary. In the nectarine product, quality evaluation after the harvesting stage is necessary to provide a reliable and uniform product to the market. The purpose of this study is to identify and classify nectarines by extracting characteristics from the response patterns of the spectrometer and using chemometrics methods. A near-infrared spectrometer can detect the spectrum of reflected light by estimating its concentration or determining some of its inherent properties. The quality assessment of agricultural products includes two main methods, quality grading systems based on the external characteristics of agricultural products and quality grading systems based on internal quality assessment, which has gained outstanding points in recent years. In the meantime, several methods have been invented for the qualitative grading of agricultural products based on the assessment of their internal properties in a non-destructive manner, and only some of them have been able to meet the above conditions and have been justified in terms of technical and industrial aspects. To be meanwhile, spectrometry can be highly efficient in determining the quality of cultivars. Spectroscopy is a type of system that has a different structure and approach from other methods (image processing, neural network, etc.) and can perform classification and determination of digit quality. With increasing expectations for food products with high quality and safety standards, the need for accurate, fast and targeted determination of the characteristics of food products is now essential. Because manual methods do not have automatic control, they are very tiring, difficult and expensive, and they are easily affected by environmental factors. Today, spectroscopic systems are non-destructive and cost-effective and are ideally used for routine inspections and quality assurance in the food industry and related products. This technology allows inspection works to be carried out using wavelength data analysis techniques and is a non-destructive method for measuring quality parameters. In this research, using spectrometry and chemometrics methods, the variety of nectarine fruit was identified.

For this study, 5 different nectarine cultivars were prepared from the gardens of Moghan city (Ardebil province) and were tested and data collected. A spectroradiometer model PS-100 (Apogee Instruments, INC., Logan, UT, USA) was used to acquire the spectrum of the samples. This spectroradiometer is very small, light, and portable, has a single-wavelength sputtering type with a resolution of 1 nm and a linear silicon CCD array detector with 2048 pixels that covers the spectral range of 250-1150 nm (Vis/NIR) well. Also, there is the ability to connect the optical fibre to the PS-100 spectroradiometer and transfer the data to the computer with the purpose of displaying and storing the acquired spectra in the Spectra Wiz software through the USB port. With the aim of creating optimal light in contrast mode measurements, an OPTC (Halogen Light Source) model halogen-tungsten light source, which can be connected to an optical fibre, was used. This light source has three output powers of 10, 20, and 30 watts, which were used in this research. Also, a two-branch optical fibre probe model (Apogee Instruments, INC., Logan, Utah, USA), which includes 7 parallel optical fibres with a diameter of 400 micrometres, was used in counter-mode measurements. After providing the necessary equipment, the optimal spectroscopic arrangement was designed and implemented in order to facilitate the experiments and minimize the effect of environmental factors during the spectroscopic process. The data obtained from spectral imaging may be affected by the scattering of light by the detector with sample change, sample size change, surface roughness in the sample, the noise created due to the increase in temperature of the device and many other factors, and unwanted information affect the accuracy of calibration models. Therefore, to achieve stable, accurate and reliable calibration models, data pre-processing is needed (Rossel, 2008). In this research, Savitzky-Golay smoothing, first and second derivatives, baseline, standard normal distribution, and incremental scatter correction were applied to the data. The use of non-destructive methods based on spectroscopy in the full range of wavelengths requires spending time and very high costs, which makes the practical application of this method almost impossible; therefore, one should look for a way to find the optimal wavelengths and limit the wavelengths to the minimum possible value. Chemometrics uses multivariate statistics to extract useful information from complex analytical data. The chemometrics used in this study started with principal component analysis (PCA) to explore the output response of the sensors and reduce the dimensionality of the data. In the next step, linear diagnostic analysis (LDA) was also used to classify 5 varieties of Shail. (PCA) is one of the most common statistical data reduction methods. This method is an unsupervised technique used to explore and reduce the dimensionality of a dataset. The analysis itself involves the determination of variable components, which are linear combinations of many investigated characteristics. In this research, in order to construct the LDA model, the data were randomly divided into two parts: 70% of the samples were used for training and cross-validation, and the rest of the data were used for independent validation.

Based on the results of the PCA analysis presented in Figure 2, the first principal component (PC-1) describes 72% and the second principal component (PC-2) 13% of the variance of the tested samples. As a result, the first two principal components together express 85% of the data. Considering that it is possible that the degree of correlation between the properties of different samples during the tests, due to various reasons such as technical problems of the equipment, data collection, incorrect sampling, etc., in some samples, inappropriate or socalled outliers The LDA method is a supervised method that is used to find the most distinct eigenvectors and maximizes the between-class and intra-class variance ratios and is capable of classifying two or more groups of samples. The LDA method was used to identify the nectarine cultivars based on the output response of the spectrometer. Unlike the PCA method, the LDA method can extract the resulting information to optimize the resolution between classes. Therefore, this method was used to detect 5 nectarine cultivars based on the output response of the spectrometer. The results of the identification of figures equal to 100% were obtained.

In this study, while measuring some important indicators such as net income, number of mechanized operations, fuel consumption, water efficiency, pesticides and chemical fertilizers used, energy ratio, energy intensity and its strategic level in sustainable production of agricultural products in Moghan plain For the first time, using a new method, the best cultivation pattern that is most compatible with sustainable agriculture was introduced. The results showed that among the cultivation patterns, garlic cultivation had the highest net income, the least number of mechanized operations, the least fuel consumption, the highest number of workers per hectare, the lowest chemical fertilizer consumption, the lowest ratio and energy intensity. It has the least amount of strategy. Peanut cultivation requires the least amount of pesticide and wheat-silage corn cultivation pattern with Maximum water efficiency requires the most fuel and chemical fertilizer. Also, most of the chemical fertilizers used are allocated to the wheat-corn pattern. The highest and lowest energy ratios are related to canola-corn and garlic patterns, respectively, and the highest and lowest specific energy are related to canola-corn and garlic patterns, respectively. The results also showed that the wheat-silage corn cultivation pattern with CL* = 0.78 had the highest correlation with the sustainable agriculture pattern among the common patterns in the Moghan region. And despite the fact that garlic cultivation brings the highest net income to the farmer, but due to the need for more labor and the lowest energy ratio (ER = 1.44) is in the lower ranks of sustainable agriculture.

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.), which is also called ground pistachio in Iran, is one of the most important and economical oilseeds in tropical and subtropical regions, which is rich in minerals, vitamins, fatty acids, fiber and compounds. It is phenolic. Peanut production is important for consumption, income generation and improving the food security of smallholder farmers and due to its high quality of oil and protein, it is cultivated in at least 109 countries of the world. In recent years, due to changes in the price of dried fruits, this product has also attracted the attention of the farmers of Maghan Plain (North of Ardabil Province, Iran) and in the crop year of 2019-1400, with the cultivation of more than 10,000 hectares, the amount of production reached 30,000 tons of peanut products in Mughan has been harvested. Previously, Gilan province was in the first place of this product with the cultivation of 2,500 hectares. Despite the fact that about a century has passed since the cultivation of peanuts in Iran, not much research has been done on its sustainable production. One of the critical stages of production of this product is the harvest stage. This stage, while having its own difficulties, is associated with significant losses, which are considered by experts due to its high economic value and direct and indirect adverse environmental effects. In recent years, this product has also been considered by farmers in the Moghan Plain due to the special conditions of the Iranian economy. Peanut harvesting in Moghan is done manually and three machine methods including semi-mechanized, pull type mechanized and self-propeller. Each of these methods has unique features. Therefore, in this study, while evaluating important harvest indicators such as quantitative loss, quality loss, actual field capacity, number of labor required, cost of harvest operations and price of machines required, the best harvesting system using the Multiple Criteria Decision Making Matrix (TOPSIS model) was introduced.

The present research was carried out in Pars Abad, Moghan, in the crop year of 2018-2019, which was cultivated with Astana flower variety and mechanized. The final product was harvested on the 10th of October 2019 with approximately 19% soil moisture. Harvesting options were done randomly and with three repetitions as follows:1- Manual method (A1): Using a V-shaped chisel, the root of the crop was loosened and harvested by human labor. Separation of Almond kernels from Materials Other than Grain (MOG) and cleaning of the final product was done using manual methods using a special sieve.2- Semi-mechanized (A2): In this method, the peanut thresher behind the tractor manufactured by Dezful Machine Company, model PPH70 was used. This device does not have a pick-up platform. Therefore, feeding the device was done by two humanlabours at the same time as the tractor moved forward.3- Pull type mechanized harvesting system (A3): In this method, the peanut harvesting pull type combine machine behind the tractor made by Bacanaklar Company in Turkey was used. This device is equipped with a pick-up platform and does not require human labors.4- Self-propeller system (A4): In this method, a self-propeller combineharvester (special peanut harvesting combine) made in China (Henan Longfei 4HZJ-2500) was used. Due to its self-driving nature, it does not need a tractor.The parameters considered in this research are:1- Quantitative losses (%C1): These losses include the pods dropped on the ground and the pods left on the plant, which were not collected due to the improper operation of the machine harvesting system and the improper operation of the worker in manual harvesting, and are considered among the crop losses.Where: B (kg/m^2) is the weight of the sample (loss) collected inside the fram with dimention 1×1 m^2 and P is the estimated yield of the product (kg/ha).2- Quality loss (%C2): Quality loss is an estimate of the percentage of non-grain material among the pods of the product in the grain tank.Where: Ws is the mass of the sample taken from inside the tank and WMOG is the mass of Material Other than Grain (MOG) in the sample.3- Field capacity (C3) (ha/h): The actual capacity (taking into account the time intervals caused by the operation of the machine and the operator from the moment the machine entered the farm) was calculated as the amount of machine operation basedon the area (A) per time unit (T).4- Number of human labours (C4) (person days per hectare): This index was also calculated by considering the amount of work done by one worker in 8 hours of working day. 5- The final cost of harvesting operations (C5) (million Tomans per hectare): The price index was calculated based on the regional rate of peanut harvesting operations.6- The amount of initial fixed investment including the purchase of related tools and machines (million Tomans) (C6) In order to choose the best harvesting and ranking system, the multi-criteria decision matrix method and TOPSIS model were used.

The results showed that the lowest quantitative loss with C1=10.5% was for the manual method and the highest value C1=20.4% was for the semi-mechanized method. Manual and semi-mechanized harvesting systems had the highest harvest quality index and the lowest non-grain material (approximately 11.5%). Also, self-propeller system with Ca=0.7 ha/h and manual harvesting with Ca=0.0033 ha/h had the highest and lowest actual field capacity, respectively. The manual harvesting method required more labors than other methods and had the highest cost of harvesting operations. The results of using the TOPSIS method also showed that considering all indicators, the pull type mechanized harvesting system with a value of CL* = 0.79 is in the first place of options and manual harvesting is in the last option of this study. Semi-mechanized and self-propeller systems were also ranked second and third, respectively. Despite the fact that the pull type mechanized harvesting system with a value of CL* = 0.79 was ranked first in harvesting systems, but its difference of 0.21 with the ideal option, indicates that to improve this system, a lot of work is needed, including quantitative and qualitative decline should be reduced, which needs to be seriously considered by researchers in this field.

Life cycle assessment (LCA) quantifies and interprets environmental impacts across a wide range of products or processes used throughout the system. Despite the need to understand regional differences in the life cycle assessment of agricultural systems, the LCA method is poorly defined due to regional heterogeneity modeling in agricultural production and transportation. Therefore, there is an opportunity to help develop LCA protocols by adapting methods commensurate with crop production and supply chain changes. The annual balance in soil organic carbon is a function of three main processes: stabilization in plant biomass, plant, soil, rooting, and long-term storage in soil. According to Kozyakov, a comprehensive review of the carbon cycle, approximately half of the total carbon dioxide absorbed from the atmosphere by the wheat plant is converted to biomass. This study aims to evaluate the impact of using wheat waste for biogas production on the environment and greenhouse gas emissions. This research's life cycle inventory includes the production of wheat waste and its use in biogas production. Many studies have been devoted to discovering the effects of these various variables, particularly in terms of global warming and nitrogen fertilizer leaching, and based on such comprehensive information, a Life Cycle Assessment has been proposed to assess the cumulative environmental impacts of agriculture. The challenge for these tools is to be relevant both on a global scale, ie for global impact categories such as climate change, and on a smaller scale, i.e. for regional impact categories such as water eutrophication. The International Organization for Standardization and the Society for Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry provided an overview of the LCA method. However, the main issues under discussion are life cycle assessment methods, aggregation methods for different impact groups, and the final calculation of a summary environmental indicator. Next, inventory analysis continues with impact assessment.

This case study examines regional changes in field straw production and crop transportation for wheat using life cycle assessments and compares the results with carbon cycle estimates. Wheat is used as an agricultural product because it is the third-largest crop in terms of volume and value and grows in almost many parts of Iran. Life cycle assessment is different from previous studies and emphasizes the use of fuel, fertilizer, yield, and transportation throughout the country in the emission of greenhouse gases in agricultural methods and tries to spatially and different types of production. Wheat is independent. This case study can be partially supported and pursued by research centers for life cycle assessment, which are interested in conducting environmental studies in wheat production. Many of the wheat's share is imported, influencing domestic food systems policy.The study area is Iran, with a share of about 2.2 percent of world wheat production, is ranked 14th among twenty wheat-producing countries. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), China ranks first in 2019 with 131 million tons of wheat production. India follows it with 99.7 million tons, Russia with 72.1 million tons, the United States with 51.3 million tons, and France with 38.5 million tons. It is noteworthy that among the countries in the region, Pakistan, with a production of 25.1 million tons (1.8 times more than Iran), in the seventh place in the world, and Turkey with a production of 20 million tons of wheat (1.5 times more than Iran) in the eleventh place in the world are located. Figure 2 shows the complete map of wheat production in Iran. According to statistics, the highest wheat production (rainfed and irrigated) is related to the cities of Shousha, Marvdasht, and Ahvaz, with an approximate share of 2.3% of the total 84% of wheat production. Bilesvar city in Ardabil province is ranked eighth in the country with a share of 1.5 percent of total wheat production.This study aims to determine the amount of biogas production from wheat waste. Due to climatic conditions, the study area can produce biogas from wheat waste (as carbon waste). The amount of wheat waste used in biogas production varies. For biogas production, the combined presence of nitrogen and carbon is necessary to regulate C / N, which is an essential parameter in biogas production. Various studies have been conducted in the field of biogas production. In a study conducted by Jafari et al. (2019), in the conventional biogas production method, the share of wheat waste in the total amount of substrate was considered to be about 45% of the total material. According to the findings, the highest impact is related to the Aquatic ecotoxicity index with 24.63. The lowest level is related to the Ozone layer depletion index with a value of 0.0000000264. Table 3 presents the damage caused by consuming one kilogram of wheat straw for biogas production on the final indicators. According to the final indicators, it can be concluded that the lowest impact on the final indicators for the consumption of wheat straw as a substrate for biogas production is related to the Human health index with an approximate value of 0.000000342. The highest impact is related to the index related to Resources with The value is approximately equal to 3.26.

In this study, the effects of fermentation of wheat waste for biogas production were investigated in a comparative format for environmental indicators. In general, it can be claimed that the lowest impact on the final indicators for the consumption of wheat straw as a substrate for biogas production is related to the Human health index with an approximate value of 0.000000342, and the highest effect is related to the Resources index with an approximately equal value. In general, the environmental effects of wheat consumption as a substrate for biogas production are higher than the impact of wheat straw and grain production on some intermediate indicators. Another scenario could be proposed to prevent methane from entering the atmosphere directly. This procedure is also accurate in the final indicators. The release of methane into the air increases the environmental impact because, according to various sources, the impact of methane on global warming is several times greater than the impact of carbon dioxide on global warming. Therefore, there is a need for a consumption scenario after biogas production to prevent methane from entering the atmosphere.

Livestock waste is the most suitable material for biogas production, but it is not always the best material. If cows are kept on a farm with a burial system, collecting their feces for biogas is very easy. While usually, in Iran, farms are traditional and even live in rangeland in some months of the year. As a result, it is likely to have to be collected from the ground to obtain fertilizer, which increases the workload for biogas production. Otherwise, the substrate remains in the new range. Other parts of the plant can also be used, such as wheat straw, unless they have a high lignin content. Development in rural areas has suffered from armed conflict for the past 100 years, and people have fled to neighboring cities or countries. In some villages in northwestern Iran, the gas pipeline network is not extensive. Liquefied natural gas transportation is a solution for transferring energy to remote villages. Extensive use of firewood for energy purposes also severely impacts local forests. This phenomenon is one of the main reasons for increasing greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation, and land degradation. It is estimated that replacing these heat generation methods with biogas digesters can significantly contribute to the production of pollutants, land and forest degradation, and the prevention of environmental pollution. The situation is similar in arid and semi-arid regions of Asia. There are many benefits to using biogas as an energy source. Efficient, reliable, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly. In most rural areas, home cooking is cooked on a conventional stove or traditional stove, where the biomass is burned directly, leading to further emissions of carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons. Indoor air pollution primarily affects women and children because they are usually responsible for cooking and spend much time in a smoke-contaminated environment, leading to serious health problems such as lung cancer, pneumonia, or other lung diseases. Be. This study aims to set up three different possible scenarios for a small-scale biogas digester in different regions of northwestern Iran with low technology. The use of ubiquitous biomass such as cow manure as a base, kitchen waste (medium fat), potato peel, or wheat straw helps obtain a constant gas throughout the year without the need for ample storage as substrates. These resources are provided daily and are available for a long time. In addition, greenhouse gas emissions are calculated for each scenario to show the difference in carbon footprint compared to using firewood or liquefied petroleum gas for cooking instead of biogas. Finally, the usefulness of the by-product, fermented litter, is also an important point to check its usability as a plant fertilizer. This study helps to map out the future of small-scale biogas digesters in rural, mountainous areas.

In order to calculate the specific emissions of biogas emissions, the standard method of life cycle assessment (LCA) was used using the SIMA PRO tool. This study aims to provide special effects on global warming/greenhouse gas reduction in production and the use of biogas as an energy source. Therefore, helpful energy was used as the functional unit of one megajoule. The system boundaries are shown in Figure 1. For biogas systems, life cycle inventory (LCI) is collected from the LfL biogas database.The selected beds represent the typical waste of rural households in northwestern Iran. Most farmers in these areas have dairy cows, so choosing cow manure as the primary substrate is a logical consequence. This substrate can be removed directly from the farm or must be collected from the pasture ground and then mixed with water 50:50 to obtain a homogeneous liquid to feed the biogas digester. Where people cook, waste is generated; here, we look at medium-fat kitchen waste as an input option for the fermenter. A unique waste product of daily cooking is potato skin because potatoes are considered the leading food in northwestern Iran and other parts of Iran. The common substrate for the third scenario is wheat straw after harvest and wheat processing. Instead of not using it or using it poorly, a more efficient way is to extract the biogas by cutting it into small pieces and fermenting it. In short, all materials are available all year round, and if they are not used to produce biogas, they have no or little use.

According to the presented results, significant differences in the gas output of the three modes are detectable and are shown in Figure 2. The second scenario with 70% cow manure and 30% potato skin shows the lowest biogas production per year with 69.6 square meters. With an annual biogas production of 76.3 square meters, the first scenario is currently more productive than Scenario II, but the third scenario has the highest biogas output. This modulation, including 60% cow manure and 40% wheat straw, produces 94.2 square meters of biogas per year and is the most efficient of the three scenarios. The first scenario emits the lowest CO2 equivalent with 0.236 kg, and the third scenario emits the highest CO2 equivalent with 0.333 kg CO2 equivalent. Because biogas emissions are pretty similar (0.151-0.182 kg equivalent to CO2), the value of machinery and equipment varies between 0.070-0.155 kg equivalent to CO2 in three scenarios. However, unlike the fossil fuel source, which often uses LPG and NG, biogas scenarios do much less damage to the climate than this fuel. Greenhouse gas emissions are 1.59 kg, equivalent to CO2. Which is much larger than biogas; Figure 2 shows the total gas production, while the critical part is the methane content because methane represents the energy content of the gas. Most digesters must be built for direct gas use and direct gas combustion in northwestern Iran for cooking purposes. Therefore, methane analysis is a significant concern in this area. The blue bars in the diagram (Figure 2) show the total biogas production of each scenario. Therefore, the direct use of methane produced by the fermentation process and biogas production (rather than releasing it into the air) will be an essential factor in reducing the environmental impact of the biogas produced.Biogas has already proven its potential to become a successful model for sustainable energy production in other countries. Its environmental, social, and economic benefits are visible to users and all countries. In northwestern Iran, employment in rural communities can be created by establishing local cooperatives to install and maintain biogas production systems. Women become empowered because they no longer suffer from air pollution. Because fuel and fertilizer costs are reduced entirely or at least in large part, biogas means financial support for families in the long run.However, budget is a significant constraint on progress in implementing biogas in rural areas. In most countries, installing a digester for subsistence farmers without subsidies is neither cost-effective nor sustainable. More solutions and options to reduce the cost of digestive systems must be developed for each country to reach the goal of 2030, namely green energy for all. Evaluating carbon emissions trading or other sustainable subsidy mechanisms can help make biogas more cost-effective. Asset costs prevent the spread of biogas systems and the lack of knowledge. Therefore, investing in education is very important to increase the interest in biogas among the people. Rural communities need to be more involved with this technology to understand it as a good energy source for their families. More research needs to be done because there is almost no biogas database in Iran.

This qualitative study was conducted to identify reasons for not using condoms by people who inject drugs (PWID) in Iran.
 

Purposeful sampling was applied to recruit four groups [male PWID (n = 14), female PWID (n=6), service providers (n=8), and HIV/Addiction experts (n = 9)] into a qualitative study. Data were collected through focus group discussions (FGDs) or individual in-depth interviews. Data were analyzed using conventional content analysis.
 

The mean age was 44.0 years for male and 38.2 for female PWID. Qualitative analysis showed 16 themes for not using a condom, which were grouped in three main categories, including knowledge (3 themes), accessibility (4 themes), and individual barriers to use condoms (9 themes). Poor knowledge included low perceived level of risk, insufficient training, and misconceptions. Lack of access to condoms resulted from the country's new policy for population growth control and decrease in the number of pharmacies and harm reduction centers and prisons where condoms were previously distributed free of charge. Common reported individual barriers to condom use were poverty, homelessness, depression, low self-care, and low self-esteem, less pleasure, having sex under the influence of drugs, and stigma.
 

Both structural and individual factors may play a role as barriers to condom use among PWID.

 Soybean is mostly harvesteds by conventional grain combine harvesters. Harvesting losses is one of the major issues in this way. Harvesting losses cannot be reduced to zero, but using the correct methods and proper equipments could reduce it to an acceptable level. Estimate of the losses rate in harvesting stage and recognition of effective factors in essentioal to decrease the losses. For reaching to a minimum loss, each one of harvesting processes (cutting, threshing, separation and …) must be optimized in operation. In this study the influence of forward speed, moisture content and plant density factors were used to make a mathematical model for John Deere 955 combine harvester rear losses. The experiments were conducted in soybean farms in Moghan plain, which is one of the major soybean prodcution areas in Ardabil province, Iran. For statistics a 3×3×3 factorial pattern based on randomized complete block design with 3 replications (in total 81 tests) was used. The effects of forward speed (in three levels of 1.8, 2.5 & 3.2 km h-1), moisture content (15, 19 & 23%) and soybean plant density  (40, 50 and 60 plant m-2) were tested again combine harvester rear losses (%). ANOVA results showed that the effects of all three factors with the double and triple interactions were significant at 1% probability level on rear losses. The losses were increased with increasing forward speed, plant density and moisture content. Linear regression was used to determine the relationship between dependent and independent parameters. The results of regression analysis of the model showed that 77% of the combine harvester rear losses is justified by the three variables studied in this study. The higher standardized coefficient of combine forward speed in the model make it the greatest effect on the rate of combine harvester rear losses.

Soybean is mostly harvesteds by conventional grain combine harvesters. Harvesting losses is one of the major issues in this way. Harvesting losses cannot be reduced to zero, but using the correct methods and proper equipments could reduce it to an acceptable level. Estimate of the losses rate in harvesting stage and recognition of effective factors in essentioal to decrease the losses. For reaching to a minimum loss, each one of harvesting processes (cutting, threshing, separation and …) must be optimized in operation. In this study the influence of forward speed, moisture content and plant density factors were used to make a mathematical model for John Deere 955 combine harvester rear losses. The experiments were conducted in soybean farms in Moghan plain, which is one of the major soybean prodcution areas in Ardabil province, Iran. For statistics a 3×3×3 factorial pattern based on randomized complete block design with 3 replications (in total 81 tests) was used. The effects of forward speed (in three levels of 1.8, 2.5 & 3.2 km h-1), moisture content (15, 19 & 23%) and soybean plant density  (40, 50 and 60 plant m-2) were tested again combine harvester rear losses (%). ANOVA results showed that the effects of all three factors with the double and triple interactions were significant at 1% probability level on rear losses. The losses were increased with increasing forward speed, plant density and moisture content. Linear regression was used to determine the relationship between dependent and independent parameters. The results of regression analysis of the model showed that 77% of the combine harvester rear losses is justified by the three variables studied in this study. The higher standardized coefficient of combine forward speed in the model make it the greatest effect on the rate of combine harvester rear losses.

Depression and anxiety affect the outcomes of diabetes treatment, but, it is not yet completely understood how this happens. We used a structural model to assess the relationship between depression and anxiety considering the mediating role of physical activity on treatment adherence and diabetes control.

The present study was conducted using the data of a cohort study in Kerman, Iran. Data was collected using Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, and Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ). Fasting blood sugar level and HbA1c levels were also measured. Diabetes was diagnosed based on medical history. Treatment outcomes included adherence to treatment and diabetes control (measured by HbA1c). Data analysis was carried out in Stata V15 applying structural analysis model.

Non-adherence to diabetes treatment was seen in 5.7% of the patients and treatment failure occurred in 67.9%. Anxiety and depression levels in the past had a significant positive correlation with HbA1c levels (β= 0.156, P= 0.032); 61% through direct effect (β= 0.096) and 39% through indirect effect via physical activity (β= 0.060). Also, the findings showed a significant positive correlation between non-adherence to treatment and current anxiety and depression levels (β= 0.093, P = 0.001); 96% through direct effect (β= 0.089) and 4% through indirect effect via physical activity (β= 0.003).

Despite optimal self-reports of adherence to treatment, about two thirds of people studied had uncontrolled diabetes. Interventions aiming at increasing physical activity can reduce the adverse effects of anxiety and depression on poor glycemic control.

This qualitative study was undertaken with the aim to identify the reasons for sharing syringes or needles among people who inject drugs (PWID) in Iran.

We used purposive sampling to recruit 4 groups of participants, male PWID (n = 14), female PWID (n = 6), service providers (n = 8), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/addiction experts (n = 9). Data were collected through 2 focus group discussions (FGDs) among male PWID, and semi-structured interviews with female PWID, service providers, and HIV/addiction experts. Using conventional content analysis, themes were extracted for reasons for sharing needles to inject drugs.

We found 13 themes for barriers such as low perceived risk of HIV, high stigma around drug injection and use, low access to harm reduction education and prevention services due to their limited working hours as a well as uneven geographical distribution of services, some structural barriers like incarceration, poverty, and homelessness, and several competing survival needs beyond the injection-related safe behaviors.

Our study was able to provide the perspectives of both PWID and health care authorities and providers towards several barriers to accessing HIV prevention services that lead to needle sharing among PWID in Iran. These barriers need to be addressed to achieve the target of HIV epidemic contro

Conventional tillage increases soil compaction and 25% water and wind erosion. It also causes decrease soil porosity and water capacity. In order to prevent this situation; conservational tillage is considered as an effective strategy. Conservational tillage have important role in soil erosion and improve its quality. Every year Moghan Agro-Industrial & Livestock (MAIL) Company costs a lot to do conventional tillage. In order to achieve the objectives of this study, an experiment was conducted in factorial pattern with completely randomized design with two factors, tillage method (Conventional tillage & No-tillage) and irrigation method (traditional irrigation & Sprinkler irrigation). Results showed that yield, average fuel consumption, traffic, water consumption and fuel consumption productivity index in No-tillage method is better than conventional tillage. Also, the results of the MCDM Engine software showed the Combination of No-tillage system with Sprinkler irrigation with CL*=0.98 (The relative proximity of the option to the ideal solution) is best method for minimum cost of production and maximum yield in silage corn. Therefore, No-tillage system with Sprinkler irrigation can be suitable method for sustainable production of Silage Corn in Moghan region.

Vulnerability assessment and seismic retrofit of bridges as lifelines is of great importance. In recent years, performance based procedures in bridges is taken into consideration by researchers. In this paper after evaluating proposed methods for seismic performance assessment of bridges, first a laboratory model of box-shaped steel bridge piers was analyzed for verification and results were compared with laboratory data. Then based on the properties of a real bridge, several bridges were designed for parametric studies. The mentioned bridge is continuous and consists of steel moment frames in longitudinal direction. Further, after evaluating performance levels of the bridges, obtained results were compared with damage indices and difference between structural specifications and mentioned indices was indicated. The nonlinear static analysis procedure was used to analyze models. For evaluating damages, energy, effective stiffness and, Park-Ang damage indices were used. Independence of indices from geometric changes of structures, high adaptation of Park- Ang index with energy index due to use of energy as a common concept and more accurate results of energy damage index in each performance level are some of results.

Children who work or live on the street are one of key populations at risk for HIV and hard to reach for study or providing services. Here, as a methodological paper, we present the methods and steps of a rapid assessment and response (RARE) project conducted among street children in Tehran. We applied a mixture of qualitative (literature review, focus group discussion, in-depth interview) and quantitative (structure interview) methods to collect data from key informants in non-governmental and governmental agencies as well as street children. We applied targeted sampling to recruit key informants and time location sampling to recruit street children. The study was conducted in eight steps to recognize the involved stakeholders, define target population (street children) and to guide on how to approach them (steps 1 to 2: Initial Consultation, Study Area Profile), to map the venues and gathering spots and ethnographic findings crucial for further recruitment into surveys (steps 3 to 5: Contextual Assessment, Population and Setting Assessment, Health Issues Assessment), assess the risk behaviors (step 6: Assessment Behavior Risk and Health), evaluate the response (step 7: Intervention Assessment), and develop an operational plan for improving the services (step 8: Developing an Action Plan). RARE is a participatory mix research method with sufficient flexibility to study complex health problems such as stigmatized HIV risk behaviors among high risk and hard to reach populations and also to assess the health sector response.

Wheat is the most important crop in Iran and plays main role in the food supply chain. But, its production is associated with high losses. Hence, efforts to increase the production yield by reducing wastes are concerned. Unfortunately, according to some researchers in this field, the combine harvesting loss in Iran is about 20% or higher. One of the ways concerning to loss reduction is separation of harvesting processes and providing a desired mathematical model for them by investing and measuring of important parameters in losses. Cleaning process is one of these processes which has more effect on combine harvester performance. The performance of a cleaning shoe is expressed in terms of (1) grain loss or cleaning efficiency, (2) grain dockage, and (3) cleaning capacity. Material feed rate, fan speed and degree of sieve opening are operation parameters which were used in combine design and evaluating of its performance. In order to evaluate the effect of these parameters on cleaning efficiency, an experiment was conducted in 3×3×3 factorial pattern with randomized blocks design. The independent variables in the experiment were material feed rate, degree of sieve opening and cleaning fan speed. The first two variables and B×C interaction effect had significant effect on cleaning efficiency (P<0.01). But, fan speed and other interaction effects of these variables were not significant. Grain loss increased when feed rate was increased and it decreased when degree of sieve opening was decreased. Multiple regressions were used to express the relation between the dependent and independent parameters. The most compatible model (in the scope of this study) for grain loss (y2) was: which x1, x2 and x3 determined the material feed rate, fan speed and degree of sieve opening, respectively and a0, a1, a2 and a3 were constants.

Soybean is mostly harvesteds by conventional grain combine harvesters. Harvesting losses is one of the major issues in this way. Harvesting losses cannot be reduced to zero, but using the correct methods and proper equipments could reduce it to an acceptable level. Estimate of the losses rate in harvesting stage and recognition of effective factors in essentioal to decrease the losses. For reaching to a minimum loss, each one of harvesting processes (cutting, threshing, separation and …) must be optimized in operation. In this study the influence of forward speed, moisture content and plant density factors were used to make a mathematical model for John Deere 955 combine harvester rear losses. The experiments were conducted in soybean farms in Moghan plain, which is one of the major soybean prodcution areas in Ardabil province, Iran. For statistics a 3×3×3 factorial pattern based on randomized complete block design with 3 replications (in total 81 tests) was used. The effects of forward speed (in three levels of 1.8, 2.5 & 3.2 km h-1), moisture content (15, 19 & 23%) and soybean plant density  (40, 50 and 60 plant m-2) were tested again combine harvester rear losses (%). ANOVA results showed that the effects of all three factors with the double and triple interactions were significant at 1% probability level on rear losses. The losses were increased with increasing forward speed, plant density and moisture content. Linear regression was used to determine the relationship between dependent and independent parameters. The results of regression analysis of the model showed that 77% of the combine harvester rear losses is justified by the three variables studied in this study. The higher standardized coefficient of combine forward speed in the model make it the greatest effect on the rate of combine harvester rear losses.

Although the mean of combine losses is about 4-5% in advanced countries, unfortunately in Iran is about 20% and higher. In order to obtain little loss it is necessary that product processes such as cutting, transporting, threshing, separation, etc. would be optimized. Expressing the equation of different parts of harvesting is the first step. Threshing is one of these processes which has more effect on combine performance. Reduction of MOG passing from concave could reduce the load on shoes that would increase cleaning system efficiency and decrease foreign materials in bin. Cutting height, feed rate, threshing clearance rate and cylinder speed are parameters which were used in combine design and its performance evaluating too. In order to evaluating of these parameters effect on threshing performance, experiment was conducted in 4×3×3 factorial pattern with Randomized Blocks design. Independent variables in this experiment were cutting height, feed rate, threshing clearance ratio and rotational velocity of threshing cylinder. MOG passing from concave was considered as dependent variable. Results showed that the effects of treatments on dependent variable were significant but interaction effects of them were not significant (P<0.01). As cutting height, feed rate and threshing clearance decreased, MOG passing increased. Also it (dependent parameter) was proportional with cylinder speed. Multiple regression was used to express relation between dependent and independent parameters. The most compatible model for MOG passing (y3) was as follows: y3 =exp(c1x1+ c2x2+ c3x3+ c4x4) Which x1, x2, x3 and x4 were cutting height, feed rate, threshing clearance rate and speed of threshing cylinder respectively and c0, c1, c2, c3 and c4 were constants.

The prevalence and complications of type2 diabetes showed that traditional educations are not effective. In this trial, we evaluated the effect of electronic self-care education and continue case in compare to the traditional training methods on the practice and fasting blood sugar of diabetic patients. 170 type 2 diabetic patients were randomly allocated into two groups and followed for three months. The control group received routine follow up and the intervention group received electronic education plus routine follow up. The baseline and post-follow-up FBS, BMI and Practice score were collected and analyzed based on intention to treat protocol. The baseline and post-intervention practice score was 24.1 ± 7.1 vs. 32.2 ± 6.5 for the intervention and 24.5±11.6 vs. 25.4±6.3 for the control group. The mean FBS before and after education was 223.8± 77/2 vs. 167/5 ± 55/2 mg/dl in intervention and 175.2±76.5 vs. 208.3±76.5 mg/dl in control group. BMI decreased 1.23 kg/m2 in intervention group while its increased 0.55 kg/m2 in the control group (P

Although the mean of combine losses is about 4-5% in advanced countries, unfortunately in Iran is about 20% and higher. In order to obtain little loss it is necessary that product processes such as cutting, transporting, threshing, separation, … would be optimized expressing the equation of different parts of harvesting is the first step. Threshing is one of these processes which has more effect on combine performance. It is desire to maximize the separation of grain from concave meshes. Because of increasing the separation of grains from concave meshes, because it will decrease load of separation and cleaning mechanisms which lead to reduction of separation system’s losses. Therefore, efficiency of separation and cleaning mechanisms would have been increased when separation efficiency of threshing mechanism was increased. Stem height, feed rate, threshing clearance rate and cylinder speed are parameters which were used in combine design and evaluating of its performance. In order to evaluating of these parameters effect on separation efficiency of threshing cylinder, an experiment was conducted in 4×3×3 factorial pattern with Randomized Blocks design. Independent variables in these experiments were stem height, feed rate, threshing clearance ratio and rotational velocity of threshing cylinder as dependent variables had significant effect on separation efficiency but interaction effects of them were not significant(P<0.01). Separation of grains from concave opening was increased when stem height, feed rate and threshing clearance decreased. As rotational speed of threshing cylinder increased separation of grains in threshing mechanism increased. Multiple regression was used to express relation between dependent and independent parameters. The most compatible model for threshing of materials (y1), separation (y2) and MOG passing (y3) were. Which x1, x2, x3 and x4 were stem height, feed rate, threshing clearance rate and speed of threshing cylinder respectively and b0, b1, b2, b3 and b4 were constants.

Performance of grain harvesters is estimated by Threshing Power, losses fuel consumption. Grain loss is the most important of them. Total grain losses of combine harvesters in Iran is about 20% of production and sometimes higher. One of ways concern to loss reduction is separation of harvesting processes and providing a desire Mathematical Model for them by investing and measuring of important parameters in losses. Threshing is one of these processes which has more effect on combine performance. Threshing efficiency varies in reverse with threshing loss. It is desire to maximize threshing efficiency in threshing mechanism, because it will decrease the threshing losses and the load of separation mechanisms. Height of stem, feed rate, space between threshing drum and concave and rotational speed of threshing drum are operating factors which not only effect threshing efficiency but also combine loss. In order investigate the effect of mentioned parameters on threshing efficiency an experiment was conducted In 4×3×3 factorial pattern with completely randomize blocks design. Independent variables in these experiments were stem height, feed rate, clearance ratio and rotational speed of threshing cylinder. Threshing efficiency was considered as dependent variable. Analysis of variance showed that all variables had significant effect on threshing efficiency but interaction effects of them were not significant (P<0.01).Threshing efficiency increase when stem height, feed rate, and threshing clearance decreased. Also as rotational speed of cylinder increased, threshing efficiency increased. Multiple regression was used to express relation between dependent and independent parameters. The most compatible model for threshing of materials (y1) was as follow: y1=a0 e (a1x1+ a2x2+ a3x3+ a4x4) Which x1, x2, x3 and x4 were stem height, feed rate, threshing clearance rate and speed of threshing cylinder respectively and a0, a1, a2, a3 and a4 were constants.

Recent reports indicated an increase in cutaneous Leishmaniosis (CL) cases. We designed the study in the context of community assessment process to identify and address the major public health related issues by explore the risk map of CL and assessing the environmental risk factors in Kerman. All the registered CL in the only referral center for CL from 2002 to 2006, localized on Kerman digital map. The level of data dissemination was townships. Based on data from the national statistics organization, we determined the population and calculated the incidence of CL of each township. Secondly, the highest endemic townships were observed deeply with a specific checklist to determine the environmental risk factors. 771 cases were included. All the high endemic areas were located in the east part of Kerman. The eastern township, Sarasiyab, with 123 (15.9%) cases was the most infected region. The highest endemic townships were Sarasiyab, Emam and Sarbaz with 54.9, 52.8 and 51.2 cases per 10,000, respectively. Some minor endemic areas such as Shahab, Abouzar and Shahzadeh Mohammad (South and central regions) were going to be disappeared while Shariati, Naseriyeh-Seyedi (North and North-East regions) were the new high-risk townships (P<0.01). the east and central part of Kerman, were always the high endemic regions. Some other new high-risk areas were also detected. The most environmental factors were the bare lands between the houses, ground passages and the timeworn architecture on the buildings.

To propose a model to estimate the incidence of acute cardiac disease and its complications in Iran. The Markov Chain Model used to consider all probable outcomes of acute cardiac events in individuals over 40 years old in Iran. We estimated the model parameters using systematic reviews and experts opinions. The conceptual framework was validated and finalized by the expert panel. Annual ischemic heart disease mortality in population over 40 years old is 14 per 1000 and the ischemic patients who need outpatient care are around 2,935,000 individuals. The number of beds estimated to be necessary in emergency wards and intensive cardiac care units for whole country are estimated 23520 and 14280 respectively. The estimation number of beds needed to service patients who have undergone a surgical intervention is 8540. The number of cardiac specialist for only outpatient's services is 2240 for whole country. This model may help health policy makers to make evidence based decisions for improving medical education and better treatment as well as estimating the trend of cardiovascular diseases in Iran.

The rate of using new information services such as Internet is an important criterion for the assessment of development. This study was designed to determine the rate of using internet and biomedical databases by academic staffs of Kerman Medical University (KMU), and their attitude towards the available services. In this cross-sectional study, 120 individuals referring to the KMU Information Center during a period of three months (the first semester of 2006) were selected by convenience sampling and examined by a self-reported questionnaire consisted of 4 sections related to the demographic features, subjects’ opinions about the availability of soft/hardware and subjects’ attitude and practice in regard to using Internet. The response rate was 74%. About 64% of the subjects had personal computers at home of whom only 53.5% had internet connection. Only 35% of male respondents and 20% of female respondents had access to KMU Internet connection (P=0.12). Among 97% of subjects who had active e-mail addresses, only 21.3% used KMU e-mail service. About 73% of the subjects were using the subscribed full-text databases of KMU. Science direct, Ovid, Blackwell, Image MD and MD Consult were respectively the most used sources. According to the subjects, Internet connection at home had a significant positive effect on their professional communications and use of e-mail services (P<0.03). More than 95% of the subjects accepted the important role of Internet on improving their professional activities. According to the respondents, the main obstacles for optimal use of Internet in this center were slow-speed Internet and lack of access to the center at their favored times. In spite of positive attitude toward Internet advantages, the rate of using Internet (especially at homes) and Full-texts databases is low among KMU academic members and these facilities are available only for one fourth of the target population of KMU staffs and students.

For evidence based decision-making and designing more accurate health system planes for effective prevention on drug dependency, incidence rate and time trend of number of new cases are necessary. This survey was conducted based on data of Kerman drug detoxification agencies in order to determine the time trend of incidence rate of opioid dependency and the effects of various factors on lag time (the time between onset of substance use and first treatment request). In this retrospective cohort study, 4309 opioid users visiting Kerman Welfare Organization between 1997 and 2004 were analyzed. Subgroups were shaped according to the first year of consumption. Estimated incidence of addiction was determined by using backward calculation method. The Effect of various factors on lag time was calculated by multivariable regression method. Relative incidence of addiction between 1997 and 1999 was increased by 70% annually, followed by a slightly decrease to 540 persons in 2000. The minimum estimated number was seen in 2003 (400 cases) and it peaked to the maximum in the next year (1145 cases). The average of lag time was 7.98±6.47 years with median 6 years. The lag time of opium users was 7.81±6.48 and for opium syrup – a liquid prepared from the ashes of smoked opium – users was 8.32±6.17 years (p=0.001). Individuals who have consumed both opium and opium syrup simultaneously, had a more lag (p=0.0001). Men with lag time of 8.1±6.41 years, had a significant longer lag time than women (7.05± 6.78 years).In compare with cases with 20-30 ages (7.86±6.38 years) and cases older than 30 years (7.7±6.44 years), the lag time for persons less than 20 years old (8.62± 6.68 years) was significantly more (p=0.0001). The lag time for illiterates (10.73±7.59 years) was more than cases with academic education (7.87±7.27 years). The lag time for married persons (8.87±6.8 years) was significantly more than singles (4.9±3.76 years). Time trend of addiction can be divided into two parts in recent years. First part is from 1997 to 1999; in this period the number of new cases of addiction increased but from 2000 to 2002 it is fairly constant. Some factors such as being women, younger, more literate, single and simply opium users have a negative correlation with lag time.