Evaluation of anthropometric indices and their relationship with maternal nutritional literacy and selected socio-economic and demographic variables among children under 5 years old.

BACKGROUND: Considering the destructive effects of malnutrition on the growth, development, and health of children and the importance of identifying the factors affecting it, the present study aimed to investigate the status of anthropometric indices and their relationship with maternal nutritional literacy and selected socio-economic and demographic variables among children under 5 years old. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 405 mothers with children under 5 years old in Urmia, Iran. The data collection tool consisted of two parts. The first part was the demographic and socio-economic information of mother and child and the second part was the Evaluation Instrument of Nutrition Literacy on Adults; EINLA. RESULTS: There was statistically significant relationship between maternal nutritional literacy with weight-for-age, height-for-age, and weight-for-height indices; between weight-for-age index with maternal education, gestational weight gain, and mean weight, as well as mean height of the mother; between weight-for-age and weight-for-height indices with child gender, type of milk consumed, status of starting complementary foods, and history of acute respiratory infection, as well as diarrhea; and finally between height-for-age with family income status. CONCLUSIONS: It is suggested that mothers with low nutritional literacy, mothers whose gestational weight gain was not normal, children whose family income is low, boy child, children with a history of disease, children who consume powdered milk and children who have not started complementary foods at the right time be given priority when designing and implementing educational interventions to enhance nutritional status and anthropometric indices of children.

Preparation of nanoemulsion of Cinnamomum zeylanicum oil and evaluation of its larvicidal activity against a main malaria vector Anopheles stephensi.

PURPOSE: There is a growing need to use green and efficient larvicidal as alternatives for conventional chemicals in vector control programs. Nanotechnology has provided a promising approach for research and development of new larvicides. Larvicidal potential of a nanoemulsion of Cinnamomum zeylanicum essential oil reports against Anopheles stephensi. METHODS: The nanoemulsion of was formulated in various ratios comprising of C. zeylanicum oil, tween 80, span 20 and water by stirrer. It was characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS). All components of C. zeylanicum essential oil were identified by GC-MS analysis. The larvicidal potential of the oil and its nanoformulation were evaluated against larvae of An. stephensi. The stability and durability of nanoemulsion was observed over a period of time. RESULTS: Sixty one components in the oil were identified, cinnamaldehyde (56.803%) was the main component. The LC90 and LC50 values of C. zeylanicum essential oil were calculated as 49 ppm and 37 ppm, respectively. The nanoemulsion droplets were found spherical in shape. It was able to kill 100% of larvae in up to 3 days. It was stable after dilution and increased its larvicidal activity up to 32% compared with the essential oil. CONCLUSIONS: A novel larvicide based on nanotechnology introduced. This experiment clearly showed increasing larvicidal activity and residual effect of the nanoformulation in comparison with the bulk essential oil. It could be concluded that this nanoemulsion may be considered as safe larvicide and should be subject of more research in this field.

Preparation of a Nanoemulsion of Essential Oil of Acroptilon repens Plant and Evaluation of Its Larvicidal Activity agianst Malaria Vector, Anopheles stephensi.

Background: Extensive use of chemical larvicides to control larvae, has led to resistance in vectors. More efforts have been conducted the use of natural products such as plant essential oils and their new formulations against disease vectors. Nanoformulation techniques are expected to reduce volatility and increase larvicidal efficacy of essential oils. In this study for the first time, a larvicide nanoemulsion from the essential oil of Acroptilon repens was developed and evaluated against Anopheles stephensi larvae under laboratory conditions. Methods: Fresh samples of A. repens plant were collected from Urmia, West Azarbaijan Province, Iran. A clevenger type apparatus was used for extracting oil. Components of A. repens essential oil (AEO) were identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). All larvicidal bioassay tests were performed according to the method recommended by the World Health Organization under laboratory condition. Particle size and the morphologies of all prepared nanoformulations determined by DLS and TEM analysis. Results: A total of 111 compounds were identified in plant. The LC50 and LC90 values of AEO calculated as 7 ppm and 35 ppm respectively. AEO was able to kill 100% of the larvae in 4 days. Conclusion: The nanoemulsion of AEO showed a weak effect on the larvar mortality. It may therefore be suggested that this kind of nanoemulsion is not appropriate for the formulation as a larvicide. It is important to screen native plant natural products, search for new materials and prepare new formulations to develop alternative interventions with a long-lasting impact.

Epidemiological Characteristics of Scorpionism in West Azerbaijan Province, Northwest of Iran.

BACKGROUND: There are four medically important scorpion species (Mesobuthus eupeus, Mesobuthus caucasicus, Androctonus crassicauda and Hottentotta saulcyi) in the West Azerbaijan Province, northwestern Iran. scorpionism is considered as a health problem in this region, because there is no information about scorpion envenomation, this study was designed to study epidemiological characteristics of scorpionism to optimize prevention and treatment of scorpion sting in northwest of Iran. METHODS: All the data from epidemiological surveys completed in West Azerbaijan hospitals over four years (2014-2017) for scorpion victims were collected. This information includes the number of victims, sex, age, signs and symptoms, site of sting, body parts of victims, history of previous sting, the condition of the patient in terms of recovery and death, and the time to receive anti venom, all data were analyzed by the Excel software. RESULTS: A total of 2718 cases of scorpionism were reported from March 2014 to March 2017 in the study area. The most cases occur in both sexes in the age groups of 25 to 34 years old. In urban areas 40.3% of people and in rural areas 59.7% of them have suffered. The Poldasht and Chaldoran cities, had the most and least incidence respectively. CONCLUSION: In this study, the high risk areas in the case of scorpion stings were identified. Results of this study can be used to design preventive programs to educate more people about dangerous areas to prevent scorpion sting and even death.

Identification of Novel Voltage-Gated Sodium Channel Mutations in Human Head and Body Lice (Phthiraptera: Pediculidae).

In recent years, the increase of head louse infestation in Iran (7.4%) and especially in West-Azerbaijan Province (248%) has raised the hypothesis of insecticide resistance development. There are different mechanisms of resistance to various groups of insecticides, and knockdown resistance (kdr) is a prominent mechanism of resistance to pyrethroids, an insecticide group which is used conventionally for pediculosis control. For detection of kdr-type well-known amino acid substitutions (M815I-T917I-L920F) and additional sodium channel mutations potentially associated with kdr resistance in head and body lice, louse populations were collected from West-Azerbaijan and Zanjan Provinces of Iran. Six novel mutations were found to be located in the IIS1-2 extracellular loop (H813P) and IIS5 (I927F, L928A, R929V, L930M, and L932M) of the α-subunit. Genotyping results showed that all specimens (100%) have at least one of these or the well-known mutations. Therefore, the presence of kdr-related and novel mutations in the sodium channel is likely to be the reason for the frequent use of pyrethroid insecticides due to treatment failure against lice. Further studies are now required to evaluate the prevalence of the kdr-like mutant allele for monitoring of insecticide resistance and the management of head and body lice in other provinces of the country.

Childhood physical abnormalities following paternal exposure to sulfur mustard gas in Iran: a case-control study.

BACKGROUND: Mustard gas, a known chemical weapon, was used during the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-1988. We aimed to determine if exposure to mustard gas among men was significantly associated with abnormalities and disorders among progenies. METHODS: Using a case-control design, we identified all progenies of Sardasht men (exposed group, n = 498), who were born at least nine months after the exposure, compared to age-matched controls in Rabat, a nearby city (non-exposed group, n = 689). We conducted a thorough medical history, physical examination, and appropriate paraclinical studies to detect any physical abnormality and/or disorder. Given the presence of correlated data, we applied Generalized Estimating Equation (GEE) multivariable models to determine associations. RESULTS: The overall frequency of detected physical abnormalities and disorders was significantly higher in the exposed group (19% vs. 11%, Odds Ratio [OR] 1.93, 95% Confidence Interval [CI], 1.37-2.72, P = 0.0002). This was consistent across sexes. Congenital anomalies (OR 3.54, 95% CI, 1.58-7.93, P = 0.002) and asthma (OR, 3.12, 95% CI, 1.43-6.80, P = 0.004) were most commonly associated with exposure. No single abnormality was associated with paternal exposure to mustard gas. CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrates a generational effect of exposure to mustard gas. The lasting effects of mustard gas exposure in parents effects fertility and may impact child health and development in the long-term.