Basil (Ocimum basilicum), a member of a Lamiaceae family, is used in traditional Iranian medicine. Essential oils of basil leaves are composed of phenylpropanoids which are important in treatment of headaches, diarrhea, coughs, warts, worms and kidney malfunctions. Eugenol O-methyl transferase (EOMT) is a key enzyme in phenylpropanoid pathway. It catalyzes the methylation of eugenol, to produce methyleugenol which is original phenylpropanoid compounds in basil. In this research, the level of phenylpropanoid compounds and the expression level of EOMT gene was investigated at different growth stages. The plants cultivated and harvested by hand at 5 growth steps including seedling, with 10 and 50 leaves plants, preflowring and flowering stages. Phenylpropanoid compounds were identified by Gas chromatography/Mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and the level of gene expression was monitored by SEMI QUANTITATIVE RT-PCR. Our results showed that plant growth and maturity both affecte on EOMT gene experession and phenolic contents. The changes observed in phenylpropanoids compound can be as a result of different levels of EOMT gene expression at different growth stage.

Background and Objective: Agouti-related protein (AGRP) is an orexigenic peptide and found to be secreted from hypothalamic arcuate nucleus (ARC) and has important role in appetite and food intake. It has been shown that AGRP has an important role in weight control and plasma levels of this peptide increases in fatness and starvation. The aim of this study was to study the effect of 8-weeks circuit training on lymphocyte AGRP gene expression in well-trained wrestlers. Materials and Methods: Ten well-trained wrestlers volunteered to this research and conducted 8-weeks wrestling-based circuit training according to researchers recommended protocol. Blood samples were taken 48 hours before the first and after the last sessions of training. After lymphocyte separation, lymphocyte AGRP gene expression was evaluated with SEMI QUANTITATIVE RT-PCR method.Results: Circuit training significantly increased AGRP mRNA lymphocyte expression (P, 0.001).Conclusion: It seems that increase in lymphocyte AGRP expression is accordant with increase in its expression in hypothalamus in response to negative energy balance induced by training to increase appetite and compensation of body energy sources.

Background and Objective: One of the air pollutants is volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Benzene, as a part of petrol, is a VOC, known to be carcinogenic to human beings (Group 1) and it has widespread application in various industries and professions. Hence, the aim of the present study was SEMI-QUANTITATIVE and QUANTITATIVE health risk assessment of petrol bank workers exposure to benzene via inhalation in the Tehran, Iran.Material and method: For these purpose, this descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in three stages. First stage consisted of measurement of benzene in two groups of participants: (1) petrol bank workers and (2) non-exposed people as control group. The second stage included the evaluation of worker’s exposure to benzene and SEMI-QUANTITATIVE risk assessment, and the third stage was estimating the lifetime cancer risk caused by exposure to benzene.Results: Benzene mean concentration was near the threshold limit value (1600 mg/m3) and the mean benzene personal air level was 1527±246.4 mg/m3 in the petrol bank areas. With regard to SEMI-QUANTITATIVE risk assessment method, benzene introduced as the most hazardous chemical with risk ratio of 4.5 has 5th rank in risk levels (Extremely dangerous). Lifetime cancer risk estimation showed that in petrol bank workers the excess lifetime cancer risk was 27.5 times higher than unexposed group and the chance of cancer was one in a 1000 petrol bank workers.Conclusion: This study indicates that petrol bank workers in Tehran have a potentially high cancer risk through inhalation exposure. Thus, preventative actions regarding to this hazardous and carcinogenic chemical must be started as soon as possible.

The safety of hydrogen generation facilities is the main concern in their process operation. This study was conducted to identify the hazards and evaluate the risks of a hydrogen generation plant. For this purpose, PrHA (Process Hazard Analysis) was applied for hazard identification while LOPA (Layer of Protection Analysis) was used for risk assessment. The study was conducted in the hydrogen production unit of Behshahr Industrial Complex, Iran in 2011 and 2012. In the process of risk assessment, the records of the accidents and plant flow diagrams were studied. Then, the knowledge of the experts and operators were used through brainstorming prior to the application of LOPA technique. LOPA standard template was applied using PHA-Pro6 software. The initiating events, consequences, independent protection layers and probability of failure were determined for 16 scenarios in 7 nodes. The results showed that without the application of IPLs, the risks of 2 scenarios needed immediate action, 9 scenarios required action at next opportunity and 5 scenarios were operational. The application of IPLs would significantly decrease the risks. The study concluded that LOPA has sufficient credibility for SEMI QUANTITATIVE risk as sessment of high potentially hazardous plants.

Introduction: In the present study, the impotency of galanin receptors 2 (GalR2) in the inhibitory effect of LFS on perforant path kindling acquisition was investigated. Methods: Animals were kindled by perforant path stimulation in a rapid kindling manner (6 stimulations per day). LFS (0.1 ms pulses at 1 Hz, 600 pulses, and 50-150 µA) was applied immediately after termination each kindling stimulation. M871 (1.0 mM per site) a selective galanin receptor type 2 receptor (GalR2) antagonist, were daily microinjected into the dentate gyrus before starting the stimulation protocol and behavioral seizure stages and afterdischarge durations were recorded. The expression of GalR2 in the dentate gyrus of different groups of animals was also compared using SEMI-QUANTITATIVE RT-PCR. Results: Intra-dentate gyrus microinjection of M871 significantly prevents the inhibitory effect of LFS on kindling acquisition. SEMI-QUANTITATIVE RT-PCR showed that after kindling acquisition, the GalR2 mRNA level decreased in the dentate gyrus but application of LFS prevented this decrease. Conclusion: According to these data it may be suggested that activation of galanin receptors by endogenous galanin has an important role in mediating part of the inhibitory effects of LFS on perforant path kindled seizures. This role is mainly exerted through GalR1 during focal- and through GalR2 during generalized-kindled seizures.

In this paper, the risk of chemicals existing in one of the automobile tire manufacturing industries has been investigated using a SEMI-QUANTITATIVE risk assessment method. This research is based on the pattern which is provided by the Singapore professional health department to assess the risk of chemicals in the factory. The results showed that the tested employees in this study are in contact with 28 different chemicals. Among these chemicals, benzene, vinyl chloride and solvent 410 are at very high risk. Vinyl chloride is used in units of banbury, extruder and semenzeni. Benzene is used in extruder unit and solvent 410 is used in extruder, baking and inspection units. Due to the high-level risk of these chemicals, safety measures should be taken into account in targeted factory as soon as possible to safeguard employees.

Sustainability assessment has received numerous attentions in the mining industry. Mining sustainability includes the environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and a sustainable development is achieved when all these dimensions improve in a balanced manner. Therefore, to measure the sustainability score of a mine, we require an approach that evaluates all these three dimensions of mining sustainability. Some frameworks have been developed to compute the sustainability score of mining activities; however, some of them are very complicated and the others do not cover all the environmental, economic, and social aspects of sustainability. In order to fill this gap, this work was designed to introduce a practical approach to determine the score of mining sustainability. In order to develop this approach, initially, 14 negative and positive influential macro factors in the sustainability of open-pit mines were identified. Then the important levels of the factors were estimated based on the comments and scores of some experts. Two checklists were constructed for the negative and positive factors. The sustainability score was computed using these checklists and the importance levels of the factors. The score range was between-100 and +100. In order to implement the proposed approach, the Angouran lead and zinc mine was selected. The sustainability score of the Angouran mine was +47. 91, which indicated that the mine had a sustainable condition. This score could increase through modification of some factors.

Identification of areas susceptible to landslide occurrence is one of the basic measures taken to reduce the possible risk, and hazard management. In this paper, compared applicability weighted (AHP) bivariate statistical model and weighted linear combination (WLC), two SEMI-QUANTITATIVE hazard analysis methods, and stepwise and logistic multivariate regression, two QUANTITATIVE hazard analysis methods, were compared in order to determine suitable model for landslide hazard management in the watershed. First, landslide was mapped through field observation, using local data and watershed management agency information and GPS devices. The nine factors including elevation, slope, aspect, lithology, distance from fault, stream and road, land use, and precipitation amount were chosen as effective factors on landsliding through studying conditions of Chehel-chay watershed, and relative hazard map was prepared via 4 above models. Quality sum (Qs) index was used for evaluation of models accuracy. Results show that weighted (AHP) bivariate statistical model is suitable for chehel_chay watershed with Qs equal to 3.625. and weighted linear combination (WLC) with Qs equal to 2.2019, logistic multivariate regression with Qs equal to 1.703 and stepwise multivariate regression with Qs equal to 1.627, were the next in order of priority.