IRANIAN JOURNAL OF TOXICOLOGY
Year:2018 | Volume:12 | Issue:2|Papers Count:8

Background: Aras River is the main source of drinking water supply in northwestern provinces of Iran. The present study aimed to determine the concentration of heavy metals in the river on the border between Iran and Armenia.Methods: Three samples were taken from the Aras river water, the river bottom sediments and the root ofPhragmites australis. In water sampling, the concentration of Hg, Mo, Cu, C o, B, Cd, Ni, Zn, Pb, Al, Mn, Cr, and Fe was noticed while in sediment sampling, to measure the concentration of Cu and Mo. In samples taken from the plant root, the concentration of Cu was only analyzed. The water sampling was performed at 11 stations along the river course during four seasons fall, winter, spring and summer 2011.Results: The highest and lowest concentrations respectively belonged to Al (2600 ppb) and Cd (0.4 ppb). Parameters including B, Cu, Mo and Al were all higher than the standard limits. The results obtained from sediment and root sampling indicated that the concentration of Cu exceeds the standard.Conclusion: Poor quality of Aras River reveals to the necessity of implementing mitigation measures to improve the water quality of the river.

Background: This study intended to assess individual and combined adsorption potentials of three adsorbents (processed bentonite as an inorganic adsorbent, and cell walls of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and of the GG strain of Lactobacillus rhamnosus as organic adsorbents) for aflatoxin B1 and ochratoxin A under in vitro conditions.Methods: This study was conducted in Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran in 2106. A pre-test with four treatments of bacteria and yeast (live or dead) with five replications was designed and conducted to study the effects of these biotic and abiotic organic adsorbents on toxin adsorption efficiency. The experiment in the main study had seven treatments including two toxins (2 ppm) and three adsorbents with five replications using the completely randomized design. Toxin quantities were measured by an HPLC instrument.Results: The various types of dead organic adsorbents were more capable of adsorbing toxins compared to the live ones. The processed bentonite was considerably more efficient in adsorbing aflatoxin B1 (93.51) compared to the other treatment groups (P<0.05). No significant differences were observed between the effects of yeast and bacterial cell walls in adsorbing aflatoxin B1. However, the bacterial cell walls (61.71) had higher adsorption efficiencies in adsorbing ochratoxin A than the processed bentonite and yeast cell walls (P<0.05).Conclusion: Processed bentonite (or montmorillonite) and bacterial cell walls are able to adsorb considerable quantities of aflatoxin B1 and ochratoxin A, and can be used in multiple mycotoxin contaminations as an effective strategy for preventing or reducing the harmful effects of these toxins.

Background: Aspergillus flavus is the most important fungus for production of Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1). This study evaluated the ability of gamma rays (GRs) and electron-beam irradiation (EBI) to counteract the deleterious effects of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) in a chicken model.Methods: Overall, 168 one-day-old male Coturnix quails were assigned to eight treatments for 42 d in Tehran, Iran, in 2010 and 2011. Two dietary inclusion rates of AFB1 (0 and 2 ppm) and toxin binders, such as 0, 27 kGy doses of GRs, 27 kGy doses of EBI, and 0.3% of commercial toxin binder-milbond-TX, were tested in a 2´4 factorial manner. Serum biochemical parameters, immune response, and dietary treatments on factors associated with kidney and lipid profiles were determined on day 42.Results: AFB1 significantly decreased the hematological parameters (Hematocrit in 21 and 42 d), immune response (White blood cell (WBC), heterophil to lymphocyte ratio (H/L) and sheep red blood cell (SRBC)), and blood chemical factors (glucose, albumin, total protein, and triglycerides) compared to the control diet (P<0.05). It also significantly increased the calcium, phosphorus, uric acid, and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels (P<0.05). The addition of toxin binders, such as GRs, EBI, and milbond-TX, in the contaminated diets significantly diminished the inhibitory effects of dietary AFB1 (P<0.05) on the hematological parameters, immune response, blood chemical factors, and factors associated with kidney and lipids profile with no differences compared to the control diet.Conclusion: The addition of these toxin binders may reduce the adverse effects produced by the presence of AFB1 in Japanese quails’ diets.

Background: The aim of this study was to use Japanese quail as an animal model to evaluate the effects of cadmium (Cd) on the ultrastructure and the activity of metallothionein (MT) in the liver and kidneys.Methods: One hundred male Japanese quails were randomly divided into two Cd and control groups in 2015. The first group received 100 ppm Cd for 60 days in their feed. The ultrastructural changes of the liver and kidneys of Japanese quails were examined by the transmission electron microscope and the concentration of MT in these organs was measured.Results: The ultrastructural alternations of the liver included distension of rough endoplasmic reticulum (RER), mitochondrial swelling and lack of cristae, nuclear chromatin compression, and margination, the increased fat vacuole and damage to intercellular bindings. The kidneys ultrastructural alterations were mitochondrial swelling and damage to the cristae, the increased number of lysosomes, nuclear chromatin compression and margination, the decreased number of microvilli, and cell death. The concentration of MT and Cd in the liver and kidneys of the Cd group was significantly higher than that of the control group (P<0.05). A positive correlation was observed between the increased concentration of Cd and MT in the liver and kidney tissues.Conclusion: The use of oral Cd caused an alternation in the ultrastructure and increased the concentration of Cd and MT in the liver and kidneys of Japanese quail.

Background: Various chemical, physical and biologic treatment methods are being used to remove nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater. Sequencing batch reactor (SBR) is a modified activated sludge process that removes phosphorus and organic material from sanitary wastewater, biologically.Methods: This study was conducted in 2016.The performance of an aerobic-anaerobic SBR pilot device, located at Ahwaz West Wastewater Treatment Plant, Ahwaz, southern Iran in phosphorus and organic material removal was evaluated to determine the effect of the aerobic-anaerobic step time on the efficiency of nitrogen and phosphorus removal, the effect of changing the sequence of steps and the effect of time ratio on phosphorus removal efficiency. A reactor of 8 L was used. Influent contained 397 and 10.7 mg/l COD and phosphorus, respectively. The pilot plant started with a 24 h cycle including four cycles of 6 h, as follows: 1- Loading (15 min), 2-Anaerobic (2 h) -Aerobic (2 h), 3- Settling (1 h), Idleness (30 min) and 5- decant (15 min).Results: After reaching steady conditions (6 months), Removal percentages of phosphorus, BOD5, COD, and TSS in The SBR over a period of 6 months was 79%, 86%, 89% and 83%, respectively.Conclusion: Result of this study can be used for designing and optimum operation of sequencing batch reactors.

Background: Tramadol is an analgesic drug being abused today a lot. Excessive ingestion will lead to hazardous complications such as convulsion and occasionally respiratory apnea. The aim of this study based on frequency respiratory apnea in patients with acute tramadol poisoning hospitalized in Farshchian Hospital of Hamadan, Iran from Jan 2014 to Dec 2015.Methods: All patients with tramadol poisoning who hospitalized and treated at poisoning ward were enrolled into the study. Their demographic data including age, gender, drug ingestion dose, and respiratory apnea leading to taking naloxone or intubation collected and analyzed statistically by SPSS software.Results: Overall, 350 patients aged between 14 to 68 yr old were investigated. About 75% of them were male and among them, 81.14% had deliberate self-poisoning.4.86% developed apnea whose average tramadol consumption was 4158.83 mg. In patients who had not apnea, the average tramadol consumption was 122.38 mg, that was statistically significant difference (P<0.001).Conclusion: Although apnea development frequency in patients with excessive tramadol ingestion is rare, it is significant as a potentially life-threatening risk, occasionally ignored.

Background: We have come across the plant secondary metabolites having pesticidal properties being used in the form of pesticides. In this study, we used one of newly available and plant metabolite used as pesticide in wide agricultural fields – Karanjin, obtained from seeds of plant Pongamia pinnata.Methods: The study was conducted during the month of March 2016 at the Department of Zoology, Osmania University. The fish common carp-Cyprinus carpio was exposed to sub-lethal concentration of karanjin i.e., 1/10th of 96 h LC50 value (0.28 ppm) for a period of 21 d. Moreover, at 24 h, 7 d, 14 d and 21 d, the peripheral blood of both control and exposed group fishes were studied for the presences of micronuclei and other nuclear abnormalities.Results: The micronuclei were completely absent, i.e., were not seen during the sub-lethal exposure period. There were seen nuclear abnormalities such as blebbed nuclei (BN), notched nuclei (NN), differently shaped nuclei (DSN), pear-shaped nuclei (PSN), circular nuclei (CN), lobed nuclei (LN) and Karyolysed nuclei (KN). The control group showed few nuclear abnormalities.Conclusion: During the sub-lethal exposure, as the days of exposure increased, the types of aberrations and their number also increased.

Background: One of the main reasons of environmental contaminations is the broad application of herbicides. Controlled release technologies such as encapsulation of herbicides are as an effective tool to reduce environmental contaminations. The aim of the present study was successful nanocapsulation of Gallant Super (GS), its characterization and compare the physiological responses of Spirodela polyrhiza L. upon exposure to GS and its encapsulated form.Methods: Nanocapsulation of GS in the poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) was performed in the Department of Nanotechnology, Faculty of Sciences and biological effects of the contaminants on S.polyrhiza was investigated in Biotechnology Research Center, both in Urmia University, Urmia, Iran in 2016. The surface morphology of PMMA/GS nanocapsules was studied by SEM and TEM and their chemical characterization was determined by FT-IR spectroscopy. For assessment of the effects of the encapsulated Gallant Super (ECGS) and GS on S. polyrhiza, some plant physiological parameters were investigated.Results: Direct treatment of GS had more and notable negative effects on the plant growth when compared with ECGS treatments. Moreover, different examined concentrations of the two contaminant groups led to the remarkable induction of the activities of the antioxidant enzymes such as SOD. Even though the enhancement of the antioxidant enzymes activities when the plant was treated with GS was notably more than the effects of ECGS.Conclusion: ECGS caused to the fewer changes in the plant physiological parameters and negative effects of the treatment of ECGs were less than when the plant had direct contact with GS.