Abbas Soleimani; Aliasghar Sefidgar; Sepideh Taghizadeh; Karimollah Hajian
Volume 22, Issue 3 , May and June 2015, , Pages 256-262
Abstract
Background and purpose: The herbal tea is one of the most common hot beverages in the world. Tea poisoning as a result of saprophytic fungus contamination can cause many different diseases among human. This research was aimed at defining saprophytic fungus contamination rate of all kinds of tea which ...
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Background and purpose: The herbal tea is one of the most common hot beverages in the world. Tea poisoning as a result of saprophytic fungus contamination can cause many different diseases among human. This research was aimed at defining saprophytic fungus contamination rate of all kinds of tea which are being consumed in Babol, northern Iran.
Materials and Methods: This research was carried out on 100 samples of tea using descriptive – analytical method. The samples were gathered from different regions of the city including both homes and shops. The properties of tea are registered in a table. To define the level of the contamination, 20 pieces of each tea sample were cultivated in Sabouraud Dextrose Agar (S) fields The grown fungus around tea pieces were recognized by an ordinary laboratory method, during daily observations of plates. The rate of contamination was measured based on the total amount of colony per100 mg of dry tea leaves. (P Value ≤ 0/05).
Results: All of the 100 cultivated tea samples were contaminated. The samples were classified into three groups of packed, unpacked and bagged tea, respectively. The maximum contamination rate was seen in bagged group. Statistical differences between groups were significant. (P< 0.001 (The most identified fungus were as follow: Aspergillus Niger, penisillium A. flavus, Mucur spp. Among tea samples which were collected from homes and shops, home samples were more polluted than shop samples, but there was not any significant difference (P=0.33). The unpacked tea samples were less polluted than firm packed tea samples but the difference was not significant (P=0.27).
Conclusion: The result of this study indicates that the consuming tea in Babol is highly contaminated by saprophytic fungus which can be a serious threat because of the popularity of tea as a hot beverage. And so an accurate control over all various steps of harvesting, processing and distributing of tea is necessary and recommended.
Hashem Haghdost; Hasan Azhdar Zarmehri; Tahereh Dargahi; Mohammad Sofiabadi
Volume 21, Issue 2 , May and June 2014, , Pages 271-282
Abstract
Background: 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) and tetraethylammonium (TEA) are two potassium channel blockers which have shown that have beneficial effects in treating some neurological disorders such as ataxia, Alzheimer and multiple sclerosis. In this study the effect of acute administration of 4-AP and TEA in ...
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Background: 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) and tetraethylammonium (TEA) are two potassium channel blockers which have shown that have beneficial effects in treating some neurological disorders such as ataxia, Alzheimer and multiple sclerosis. In this study the effect of acute administration of 4-AP and TEA in the treatment of behavioral symptoms of Parkinsonism induced by the toxin 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) was studied in male rats.
Materials & Methods: 6-OHDA was injected into left medial forebrain bundle (MFB) by stereotaxic surgery using Hamilton syringe. Then, in the third week after surgery, the rats before and after drug application were tested for rotational behavior induced by apomorphine. In the fourth week, Rotarod test was performed in the presence of the blockers for six consecutive days.
Results: 4-AP at doses 200 and 500 µg/kg had no significant effect, but at dose 1000 µg/kg led to a significant improvement of behavioral symptoms of Parkinsonism in the rotation test. On the other hand, the drug decreased motor performance and motor learning in the Rotarod test. TEA at dose 1 mg/kg was ineffective, but at dose 2 mg/kg caused a significant decrease, and at dose 5 mg/kg caused a significant increase in the number of rotations of the Parkinsonian rats. TEA had no effect on the motor learning in the Rotarod test.
Conclusion: The results of this study indicate that 4-AP and TEA, in a dose-dependent manner, weaken some symptoms of Parkinsonism, but worsen some other symptoms.