Saffron (Crocus sativus) is the most valuable and indigenous crop in Iran. The stigmas of flower are used as a popular natural flavouring, colouring and medicinal agent. However, the market suffers from frauds in this plant such as mixing with safflower petals due to high profit. Identification of these frauds with conventional and biochemical methods is difficult and low sensitive. Therefore, application of molecular markers such as random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) /sequence characterized amplified regions (SCAR) is being considered as an alternative. In this study, DNA was extracted from dry stigmas of 5 Saffron accessions and dry petals of 7 safflower cultivars. RAPD reactions with ten 15-mer random primers resulted in two specific monomorphic bands (500 and 700 bp) for safflower, while they were absent in saffron accessions. PCR analysis with specific SCAR primers amplified two specific bands (414 and 589 bp) for safflowers in different combinations of saffron stigmas and safflower petals. This was the case with very low rates or 1% of safflower. Therefore, this method seems to be suitable for fraud identification of safflower petals in commercial saffron samples.

Objectives: The ectopic pregnancy in the cesarean section (CS) scar (CSP) is one of the potentially dangerous and late complications of CS. The current study aimed to evaluate the therapeutic approaches in managing CS scar ectopic pregnancy. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out on 63 CSP patients. The treatment approach was considered based on the shape and nature of the gestational sac (GS) during ultrasound evolutions. Patients’ demographic data, clinical manifestations, and systemic drug treatment (methotrexate, MTX), as well as the type of surgery, hospitalization times, and treatment-related complications were evaluated, followed by comparing the treatment efficacy in different approaches based on the human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) resolution time. Results: The mean age of the subjects was 34. 2± 5. 1 years (within the range of 22-44 years) and the median of B-hCG serum levels at diagnosis was 2319 IU. The vaginal bleeding and abdominal pain (27 [42. 9%]) were the most common complaints, followed by a delayed menstrual cycle (8 [12. 7%]). The majority of patients were subjected to surgical treatment and 29 cases (46%) were treated by medical approaches. The median time to B-hCG resolution was 42 days. The Cox proportional hazards model showed the significant effect of the treatment approach on time to B-hCG resolution (χ 2=37. 78, df=4, P < 0. 0001). Finally, the MTX plus surgery was the most effective treatment approach (OR=10. 56, P < 0. 0001) in managing CSP patients. Conclusions: Our findings in line with previous studies showed the superiority of the surgical approach alone or in combination with medical treatments compared to medical approaches alone.

The prevalence of atopic disease in recent decades has been dramatically increased. It has been suggested that BCG vaccination may protect against development of allergic diseases.The purpose of this study was to identifying relation between scar of BCG vaccine and atopy. This cross-sectional study was done in 1000 children, 10-15 years of age, in Zanjan city. One thousand children (501 girls and 499 boys) were recruited in this study, 137, 121 and 141 cases of asthma, atopic dermatitis and allergic rhinitis, respectively were detected.Three hundred and three subjects had at least one of these disorders, which were diagnosed as atopy. There was reverse correlation between BCG scar and asthma (P=0.013), atopic dermatitis (P<0.01), and atopy (P<0.01). We did not find any association between the diameter of BCG scar and allergic rhinitis. Reverse correlation of asthma, atopic dermatitis and atopy with BCG scar are significant. This relied on history and symptoms of patients. Further studies with skin tests, measurements of total and specific IgE levels and spirometery are recommended.

Background: Urinary tract infection in children may cause renal scar formation, which can be prevented by early and appropriate treatment. Recent studies showed that single daily injection of gentamycin can produce best effect without increasing the side effects. The aim of this study was to evaluate the rate of renal scar formation when new regime (every other day gentamicin injection) used for treatment of urinary tract infection. Methods: Forty eight Sprague Dawley rats were infected by inoculation of 0.1 ml Uropathogenic E.coli suspension (109/ml) to their left kidneys. The rats were divided into four groups after 24 hours. Gentamicin was administrated intraperitoneally at dosages of 10mg/kg (daily), 10mg/kg every other day or 20mg/kg every other day to the first three groups. The fourth group did not receive any antibiotic. Renal scar formation was evaluated by histology and responses were evaluated by counting colony forming units (CFU)/ml of homogenized kidney tissue and percentage of sterile kidneys. Results: Evaluation of all sections showed that 0-30% of interstitial tissues had scar formation. The results showed no significant difference in scar formation between the first three groups, but showed mild to moderate scar formation in the fourth group. Conclusion: It was concluded that 10mg/kg or 20mg/kg of gentamicin usage in every other day interval dose did not increase the risk of renal scar formation while it had appropriate efficiency.