Because of increasing saline lands and decline the desirable agricultural lands for cultivation, the identification of salt-resistant medicinal plants is in high priority. For this purpose, an experiment was conducted to identify sustainable ecotypes of fennel at three levels of salinity stress in the greenhouse of the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Birjand, Iran, during the years 2014-15. The experiment was performed as factorial based on a randomized complete block design with two factors. A) 10 ecotypes as: Sardasht, Saghez, Kerman, Tabriz, Sabzevar, Rum, Khousf, Bojnord, Mashhad and Shabesta and B) three salinity levels: 3, 6 and 9 ds/m of Nacl with three replications. The results showed that, the salinity levels of 3, 6, 9 ds/m explained 72. 0, 69. 1 and 65. 2% of the total variation using GT (Genotype × Trait) Biplot, respectively. Similarly, for total of salinity stress GT-Biplot explained 65. 2% of total variation. Using polygonal diagram of genotype × trait, in stress 3 ds/m, the highest variation explained by ascorbate peroxidase, chlorophyll a and total chlorophyll, in stress 6 ds/m explained by superoxide dismutase, in stress 9 ds/m explained by chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll and superoxide dismutase and in the total salinity stress levels explained by chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll and superoxide dismutase, respectively. For all of stress levels, Tabriz ecotype for catalase, proline and malondialdehyde content, Mashhad ecotype for chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll and ascorbate peroxidase and Rum ecotype for superoxide dismutase were superior to other ecotypes, respectively. Based on all traits and in all environments, Mashhad ecotype was better and more stable than other ecotypes.

In order to compare 25 genotypes of bread wheat in terms of morpho-physiological and biochemical traits, an experiment was conducted in a randomized complete blocks design with three replications in the rainfed and irrigated conditions at Razi University, Iran, in 2016-2017. GT-Biplot was used to evaluate genetic diversity and to identify stable genotypes with high yield and drought tolerance. Combined variance analysis showed that there was high variability among genotypes for the most of traits. Examining the correlation of traits in two environmental conditions showed that morpho-physiological traits; especially yield components, were the most related to yield. The results of the GT-Biplot method showed that the first and second principal components explain 41.7% and 40.1% of the total changes in rainfed and irrigated conditions, respectively. Based on the GT-Biplot analysis diagrams of genotypes 10, 15, 6, 13, 2, 14, and the Pishtaz cultivar in terms of physiological traits, yield and its components and the traits related to stem and spike in irrigated conditions, and genotypes 10, 15, 6, 18, and 17 in terms of biochemical traits, yield and its components, and traits related to stem and spike in rainfed conditions were recognized as superior genotypes. The genotypes 2 and 6 in irrigated conditions and the genotype 6 in rainfed conditions had the lowest genotype×trait interaction. Finally, the genotypes 10, 15, and 6 were superior in two environmental conditions and the genotype 6 had the least interaction effect in both conditions. Therefore, these genotypes can be used in breeding programs.

Considering the speed of environmental changes and the extent of the data obtained from breeding evaluations, there is a need to employ fast and reliable data analysis methods. Biplot graphical methods greatly contribute to the advancement of breeding programs by offering the possibility of quick, comprehensive, and accurate analysis of information, along with easy interpretation of the results. A number of 100 oilseed sunflower genotypes were evaluated in terms of plant height, number of leaves, leaf length, leaf width, petiole length, stem diameter, chlorophyll content, days to flowering, days to maturity, head diameter, relative water content, seed oil percentage, and seed yield in the form of simple 10 x 10 lattice design under normal and limited irrigation conditions during 2012 and 2013. To identify the superior genotypes in each irrigation conditions, the genotype-trait Biplot analysis method was used. Under both irrigation conditions, a high correlation was observed between the traits including leaf length, leaf width, stem diameter, head diameter, seed oil percentage, and petiole length with seed yield. In terms of all studied traits under both irrigation conditions, genotype with code number of 8 was the best and genotypes with code numbers of 59, 42, and 72 and genotypes with code numbers of 19, 59, and 17 were the worst genotypes under normal and drought stress conditions, respectively. Based on the results, the traits including stem diameter and head diameter can be used as indirect selection criteria for seed yield improvement under normal and drought stress conditions, respectively.

Introduction and Objectives: Chickpea is one of the most important grain legumes, which plays significant roles in food security of developing countries and became more important with climate change in recent years. Germplasm characterization for desired traits will help to create efficient breeding populations that are important to achieve particular objectives. Therefore, this research was carried out to (i) investigate the genetic diversity of breeding lines and varieties of Kabuli chickpea under autumn sowing condition, (2) investigate the relationships between morpho-agronomic traits and (3) identify superior genotypes based on multi-traits. Material and methods: In this research, genetic diversity of 150 chickpea genotypes including 12 Iranian varieties, 4 foreign varieties and 132 breeding lines were investigated for important agronomic traits including phenological traits, plant height and seed yield and its components in the experimental farm of Dryland Agricultural Research Institute (Kermanshah) during two consecutive crop seasons (2019-2020 and 2020-2021). Trials conducted using an Alpha Lattice design with two replications under autumn sowing conditions. Results: According to the results of combined analysis of variance, there were significant difference between the studied genotypes for all the traits except the seed filling period and seed weight. Results of genotype × trait Biplot and genetic correlation analyses showed that number of pod per plant had a positive and significant correlation with seed yield in both cropping seasons. Based on the results of the cluster analysis, the investigated varieties and breeding lines were classified into three and two groups in first and second cropping seasons, respectively. Simultaneous selection of superior genotypes was done for high yield, high seed weight, higher plant height, higher number of pod per plant, early flowering, early maturity and short seed filling period using MGIDI. Genotypes 25, 143, 74, 66, 35 (Azad), 97, 133, 19, 4, 52, 15, 80, 36 (Adel), 40 (Saeed), 108, 22, 86, 106, 141, 99, 98 and 21 were recognized as superior genotypes in the first cropping season, while, genotypes 35 (Azad), 13, 34 (Nosrat), 70, 136, 46, 99, 20, 120, 36 (Adel), 30, 73, 51, 116, 59, 23, 19, 55, 41 (Samin) and 11 were recognized as superior genotypes in the second cropping season. Azad, Adel and genotypes 99 and 19 were identified as superior genotypes in both cropping seasons. Conclusion: There was significant genetic diversity for traits related to seed yield in the studied germplasm, which allows the selection of superior genotypes. According to the results of this research, the number of pods per plant had an important role in the formation of seed yield in the autumn sowing condition. The superior genotypes identified in this research could be considered as parents of breeding populations in Kabuli chickpea breeding programs for autumn sowing condition of moderate regions.

Background and Objectives: Cultivation and development of rapeseed to produce oil and livestock food and as a second crop after rice harvest to prevent loss of land productivity is of great importance. Therefore, the selection and identification of cultivars and lines with a short period of maturity with desirable agronomic characteristics and high yield add to its importance. In this regard, the present study was conducted to identify the superior and most adaptive canola lines in terms of various agronomic and phonological traits. Materials and Methods: In the present study, 20 rapeseed lines along with Saffar and Dalgan cultivars were studied in a randomized complete blocks design with three replications in the research station of the Rice Research Institute of Iran in Rasht during the crop year of 2019-2020. The measured traits included stem diameter, number of branches, the lowest height of branches with pods, plant height, days to ripening, days to pods, days to flowering, days to emergence, grain yield, harvest index, biomass, one thousand seed weight, number of seeds per pod, number of pods per plant, and pod length. The Arunachalam ranking and GT-Biplot analysis were performed to compare genotypes and identify the best genotypes in terms of all traits. Results: According to the results of ANOVA, different lines had significant differences in terms of all traits, which indicates the diversity of lines for these traits. In terms of the ripening period, the range of genotype variation was three days and ranged from 195 (in Saffar cultivar and SRL9820 line) to about 198 days (in SRL-98-15 line). In total, the highest amount of grain yield and biological yield (3773. 30 and 12143. 3 kg ha-1, respectively) and the highest number of pods per plant (209. 1) were observed in the line SRL-98-17, and considering this line showed a short ripening period processing (196. 67 days). Therefore, it could be introduced as the best line. All lines in terms of yield and other agronomic and morphological traits, were superior to the control cultivar Saffar (with a yield of 1621. 67 kg ha-1). Also Delgan cultivar in terms of yield appeared superior to Saffar cultivar (290. 2903 kg ha-1). Conclusion: Based on the results of Arunachalam ranking and GT-Biplot analysis, lines SRL-98-17, SRL-98-14, SRL-98-9, SRL-98-1, SRL-98-15, and SRL-98-12 had the highest ranks, respectively. They achieved to the highest position in terms of all phenological, morphological, and yield-related traits. Therefore, based on the results of the present study, they can be introduced as the most adaptive lines under mild and humid climate of northern of Iran.

In this research, a method for producing gum tragacanth (GT) fibers is presented. Ribbon type GT of Astragalus Gummifer species were obtained from local production lands. The gum was treated with alkali to increase its process ability, and allowed to stand for a period of time to reach the proper viscosity and/or to “ripen”. Samples with different ripening times were prepared and their viscosities were measured to determine the effect of ageing time on viscosity. They were injected into a coagulation bath. Calcium chloride with different concentrations was applied as the coagulant agent. The consolidated samples were washed under different pH conditions. Finally, the mechanical properties of the fibers were measured and their scanning electron micrographs were taken. The results show that chemically modified GT can be processed into fibers with different qualities.

Background: Urolithiasis is the most prevalent uronephrologic disorder caused by genetic, environmental factors, and metabolic defects.Objectives: The present study aimed to find a possible association between the vitamin D receptor (VDR) TaqI and the BsmI gene polymorphisms in relation to the serum levels of calcium (Ca) and vitamin D and the risk of urolithiasis. Methods: This case-control study was conducted on 68 children with urolithiasis and 67 healthy controls for the VDR gene polymorphisms using the polymerase chain reaction-restriction length polymorphism method. Results: The frequency of TaqI C allele was 36% in patients compared to 32.1% in controls (P = 0.49). A significantly higher frequency of the TaqI CC genotype was found among patients in the age group > 5 to 10 years. No significant difference was detected in the frequency of the BsmI A allele between patients (41.9%) and controls (42.5%, P = 0.91). However, a significantly lower frequency of the BsmI AA genotype was detected compared to those patients with Ca levels of > 10.8 mg/dL among patients with Ca levels of ≤ 10.8 mg/dL. Conclusions: Based on the results, a lack of an association between the VDR TaqI and BsmI polymorphisms with the risk of urolithiasis among children from Western Iran. However, a higher frequency of the TaqI CC genotype was found in the age group > 5 to 10 years. In addition, lower levels of Ca in patients were related to a significantly lower frequency of the BsmI AA genotype. The VDR gene BsmI polymorphism might affect the calcium level and the calcium metabolism in urolithiasis.

We give an alternate proof of the result due to Haydon, Odell and Schlumprecht that subspaces of Lp, p > 2, which are isomorphic to L2 contain subspaces which are well isomorphic to L2 and well complemented.

This study shows the design of a new hybrid power generation system, photovoltaic panel (PV)-coupled solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) and gas turbine (GT)-electrolyser. Three objectives (cost, pollutant emissions, and reliability), which are usually in conflict, are considered simultaneously. The design of a hybrid system, considering the three mentioned objectives, poses a very complex problem of optimization. A multi-objective optimization method (PESA) is considered to obtain the best combinations for the hybrid system. In this work, the effect of panel's angle change and SOFC-GT fuel type are considered too. In order to study the effect of fuel price, this study is done about two fuel prices: Iran fuel price and international fuel price.