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Introduction: Diazinon is a moderately toxic broad-spectrum organophosphate, with a LD50 of 350 to 400 mg/kg for humans. Diazinon is absorbed through the skin and gastrointestinal tract and is rapidly metabolized within a few hours. Diazinon residues in melons and cucumbers have recently became a major health concern in Iran. Thus we decided to investigate Diazinon levels in melon and cucumbers. Method and Materials: Twenty cucumbers and 30 melons were randomly purchased from the market in Mashhad. The extraction procedure was in HR-P columns precondition with methanol and water. The subsequent elution of diazinon was accomplished by a mixture of hexane-ethyl acetate (1:1, v/v) prior to determination by GC-NPD and GC-MS/MS. Standards were prepared spiking blank juice samples to contract the observed matrix effect.
Results: Mean recovery rate for diazinon was 95.4% with relative standard deviation lower than %9 in a concentration range of 5-200ng/ml. Mean and SD of diazinon in melons was 107.64±38.5 ng/kg. Diazinon was not detected in cucumber samples. It was later confirmed that diazinon was not used for the crops of these cucumbers.
Conclutions: GC-NPD and MS/MS was developed to determine residues of diazinon in melons and cucumbers. The GC-MS/MS analytical method showed a high efficacy for determination of dizinon residues in the fruits.

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Since alcohol is a general central nervous system depressant, it affects the motor and cognitive performance. Alcohol abuse is a major cause of medical and social problems. Additionally, to determine cause of death in legal medicine centers, alcohol analysis is the most frequently performed test in forensic toxicology laboratories. Accurate interpretation of ethanol concentration at the time of death is a difficult task since the origin of detected ethanol in postmortem samples may vary. Interpretation of postmortem ethanol findings are often confounded by postmortem ethanol production and/or consumption. Many species of bacteria, yeast and molds are capable of producing ethanol from a variety of substrates in blood therefore, Vitreous humor and urine is important biological specimen in forensic toxicology. This review presents a discussion of criteria for the identification of postmortem ethanol synthesis and factors to consider during interpretation of postmortem ethanol findings. The criteria include case history, condition of the specimen, type of bacteria present, atypical fluid and tissue distribution of ethanol and detection of other alcohols and volatiles. With careful consideration of all the information available, valid interpretation of the source of ethanol, whether it is from antemortem ingestion or postmortem production can be made.

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Introduction: Pyrethroids are important insecticides because of their high activity and low mammalian toxicity. Some studies have demonstrated that these insecticides, especially compounds with an -cyano group, produce toxic effects on various biological systems. Deltamethrin (DTM) is a Type II synthetic pyrethroid insecticide containing -cyano group and is used worldwide in agriculture, home pest control, protection of foodstuff, and disease vector control. In this study, the toxic effects of DTM were evaluated in adult male albino rats.
Material & methods: Treated groups were given DTM orally at various dose levels (7.5, 17.5 and 27.5mg/kg b. wt./day for 45 days) with a positive control group-receiving vehicle (olive oil) only and their fertility rate and male sex organs were evaluated.
Results: Signs of toxicity and reduction in the weight of testes and accessory sex organs were observed in a dose-dependent manner. DTM brought about marked reduction in epididymal and testicular sperm counts and fertility in insecticide-exposed males. A significant decrease in the sialic acid content of testes, epididymis, ventral prostate, seminal vesicle and testicular glycogen was noticed. However, the cholesterol and protein content of testes and accessory sex organs was raised significantly in all treated groups. A significant reduction in seminal vesicle fructose and serum testosterone was also observed after DTM administration. Histopathological examination revealed severe degenerative changes in seminiferous tubules while these effects were milder at the lowest dose level.
Conclusion: These results provide first hand information that DTM adversely affects the reproductive system of male rats.

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Introduction: The impact of chromium exposure was studied on liver, kidney, testis, spleen, cerebrum and cerebellum of male Wistar rats (80-100 g body weight).
Material & Method: It was observed that treatments of rats with chromium (i.p. at a dose of 0.8 mg / 100 g body weight per day) for a period of 28 days caused significant increase in chromium content while declining the body weight along with the organ weight, except liver.
Results: Decreased acid phosphatase (ACP) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activities were observed in most of the organs. Significant increases in the cholesterol contents of all the organs were associated with the significant decreases in the level of phospholipids. Lipid peroxidation decreased in liver and kidney while it increased in testis, cerebrum and cerebellum. Reduced glutathione (GSH) level was found to be increased in liver, spleen and cerebrum, and decreased in kidney and testis. Catalase activity became elevated in liver, kidney, spleen and cerebellum while it decreased in testis.
Conclusion: It is suggested that chromium treatment at the present dose and duration induces general tissue toxicity by causing membrane damage due to changes in the relative proportion of cholesterol and phospholipids in the membrane structure. In addition, tissue specific toxicity is affected by lipid peroxidation in testis, cerebrum and cerebellum, and in other tissues increased GSH level or enhanced catalase activity prevents lipid peroxidation to occur due to reactive oxygen species produced from chromium transformation.

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Background: Atrazine (ATR) is used as an agriculture herbicide worldwide. It has been shown that ATR adversely affect the reproductive system in rodents. In this study we aimed to evaluate the impact of chronic exposure to Atrazine (ATR) on male testicular tissue, sperm parameters, serum level of total thiol molecules (TTM) and malodialdehyde (MDA) content of testes.
Methods: To follow-up this study, 72 adult and mature male rats were divided into test and control-sham groups. The animals in test group received the compound at dose levels of 100, 200 and 300 mg/kg, b.w., orally representing the low, medium and high doses of ATR respectively for 12, 24, 48 days. Control-sham group received the corn oil (0.2 ml/day) in the same manner as test groups.
Results: Light microscopic analyses revealed increased thickness of tunica albuginea, atrophied seminiferous tubules, arrested spermatogenesis, decreased leydig cells/ mm2 of interstitial tissue (2.0±0.7/mm2 in high dose received rats), vasodilatation and thrombosis. Sperm parameters assays showed that the sperm count (26.50±2.16×106 vs control 70.25±1.25), viability (21.26±2.58% vs control 90.75±6.23) and motility (12.00±1.58% vs control 90.41±2.12) decreased in ATR-exposed animals in a dose-dependent fashion. Biochemical analyses for TTM and MDA demonstrated that in ATR-exposed animals the serum level of TTM (0.100±0.005 Mol/ml vs control 0.321± 0.002) decreased significantly (P<0.05) and by contrast the testicular MDA level (4.053±2.28 nMol/mg vs control 1.75±0.34) elevated in testicular tissues.
Conclusion: the current data provide inclusive histological feature of chronic exposure against ATR in testicular tissue. Moreover, other reproductive-related disorders including abnormalities in spermatogenesis, sperm viability, volume and motility, may attribute to the ATR-induced oxidative stress, which reflected by remarkable alteration in TTM and MDA levels.

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ABSTRACT
 Background: Herbal distillates have been used for many centuries as drinks, flavors, and herbal medicine in Iran, especially in the city of Urmia. Recently, some studies claimed the presence of methanol in different types of herbal distillates. Methanol is a highly toxic compound which can cause acute or chronic toxicity in humans. Acute poisoning with methanol can cause different complications and even death while chronic methanol exposure has a wide range of nonspecific and misleading findings. The main purpose of this study was to determine methanol content in the commonly-used industrial herbal distillates produced in Urmia.
Methods: Five samples of six types of most commonly used herbal distillates (peppermint, musk willow, lemon balm, pennyroyal, dill, and rose water) were purchased from five active herbal distillates manufacturers in Urmia. All samples were transferred to the laboratory and methanol content of each sample was measured two times according to the standard method of analysis using spectrophotometer.
Results: The lowest and highest concentration of methanol were found in rose water (mean=72.4±32.1 ppm) and musk willow (mean=278.3±106 ppm) samples, respectively. One-way ANOVA showed statistically significant differences among methanol concentrations in the studied herbal distillates (F=60.9, P <0.001).
 Discussion: Different amounts of methanol were found in herbal distillates and it seems that there are statistically significant differences in methanol concentrations of various types of herbal distillates. Therefore, considering the harmful effects of methanol on human health, further studies are required for determining permitted levels of methanol in herbal distillates.

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Background:The use of herbal or medicinal plants in various forms has been popular for thousands of years. It is estimated that about 70–80% of the world’s population relies on alternative medicine, mainly of herbal origin. However, due to the nature and sources of these plants, they are sometimes contaminated with toxic heavy metals, which pose serious health risks to consumers. Herbal formulations, especially those used in the treatment of diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, and weight loss may require long-term usage and the patient might be at risk of heavy metal poisoning. In this study, the levels of toxic heavy metals (Pb, Cd) were evaluated in 11 Iranian common herbal drugs for their health implications.
Methods: In this investigation, concentrations of lead and cadmium were quantitatively determined in Iranian herbal drugs sampled from pharmacies in Tehran, Iran, using atomic absorption spectrophotometry (wet digestion).
Results: The results indicated that lead and cadmium were present in all investigated herbal drugs. The concentrations of metals in drugs ranged from 0.19 to 1.75 µg/g for Cd and 9.61 to 52.74 µg/g for Pb.
Conclusion:The concentrations of lead and cadmium were higher than the maximum permissible daily levels in the majority of these herbal drugs, whereas the quantities of Pb and Cd were well below provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI). Daily total intake of these metals is considered in accord with the recommended daily intake of their corresponding formulations.

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Background: Analysis of pesticide residues in food and other environmental commodities have become an essential requirement for consumers, producers, food inspectors and authorities. This study is focused on validation of an accurate, rapid and reliable method for multi-residual analysis of pesticides in pistachio as a strategic crop for export and one of the main nuts in Iranian food basket.
Methods: We developed a "Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, and Safe (QuEChERS) method based on spiking blank samples and used the data for drawing calibration curves instead of standard solutions. Sample preparations were developed for determination of 12 pesticide residues in pistachio by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS).
Results: Recovery of pesticides at 5 concentration levels (n=3) was in the range of 81.40% - 93.08 %. The method proved to be repeatable in the majority of samples with relative standard deviation (RSD) of lower than 20%. The limits of detection and quantification for all pesticides were 2 ppb and 10 ppb, respectively.
Conclusion: The calibration curves of pesticides were linear in the range of 10-500 (ng/g) and correlation coefficient of entire pesticides was higher than 0.994. The recovery of pesticides at 5 concentration levels (n=3) was in range of 81.41- 91.80 %. The method was proved to be repeatable with the majority of RSDs being lower than 20%. The limits of detection and quantification for all pesticides were 2 and 10 ppb, respectively. The recoveries and repeatabilities were in accordance with the criteria set by SANCO Guideline (Commission of the European Communities, 2006).

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Background: Heavy metals, even at low concentrations, are harmful to human health and environment. Cadmium as a heavy metal is highly toxic and can cause serious threat to living organisms. This research was designed to evaluate the adsorption potential of modified magnetic iron nanoparticles by 2-(5-bromo-2-pyridylazo)-5-diethylaminophenol ligand for the removal of cadmium ions from water solutions.

Methods: This study was conducted in Ilam Branch, Islamic Azad University, Iran, in 2014. Modified magnetic iron nanoparticle was used as adsorbent for the removal of cadmium from aqueous solution. In batch extraction, the effects of parameters like pH of sample solution (3.0-11.0), initial metal concentrations (50-300) mgL^-1), contact time (1.0-10 min) and adsorbent dose (10.0-60.0 mg) were studied on the adsorption process. Modified magnetite nanoparticle was presented as the adsorbent for the removal of cadmium ions from aqueous samples and later was confirmed by flame atomic absorption spectrometry.

Results: The adsorption of cadmium ions on modified magnetite nanoparticles strongly depends on pH. The experimental isothermal data were analyzed using the Langmuir and Freundlich equations. The removal process followed the Langmuir isotherm. Maximum adsorption capacity for the adsorption of cadmium ions by the sorbent was 24.09 mgg^-1.

Conclusion: The method was successfully applied to adsorption of cadmium in water samples with satisfactory results. Other advantages include high capacity, good stability and fast adsorption kinetics. High pre-concentration factor was obtained easily by this method (120) and low analysis cost.

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Background: This study aimed to investigate the biosorption of pentachlorophenol on Aspergillus niger biomass as a method for removal of pentachlorophenol from aqueous solutions.

Methods: Modified A. niger biomass with NaOH was used to absorb the pentachlorophenol. The impacts of various experimental parameters like primary pentachlorophenol concentration, pH of the solution, contact time, and biomass dosage on the biosorption of pentachlorophenol were investigated.

Results: The correlation of contact time, pH and initial concentration with the biosorption of pentachlorophenol by A. niger biomass was statistically significant (P<0.001). Pentachlorophenol removal increased with decreasing pH of the solution and the maximum efficiency was obtained at pH=3. The equilibrium adsorption capacity was increased from 4.23 to 11.65 mg/g by increasing initial pentachlorophenol concentration from 10 to 40 mg/L, while pentachlorophenol removal efficiency decreased from 87 to 55%. Both Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms efficiently described adsorption equilibrium of pentachlorophenol on A. niger biomass. Correlation coefficients for the second order kinetic model were almost equal to one.

Conclusion: A. niger biomass can be used to reduce the toxicity of aqueous solutions containing pentachlorophenol in acidic pH conditions.

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Background: Lack of farmers’ knowledge, illegal production and import, and economical situation are the main reasons for non-authorized usage. In this study, one of the major center of cucumber cultivation at south west of Iran, Darreh shahr City in Ilam Province were studied for non-authorized pesticides usage, which health authorities and national standard organization do not recommend.

Methods: A reliable, rapid and accurate method based on spiked calibration curves and modified QuEChERS sample preparation was developed for determination of 7 non-authorized pesticides. During 2014 fifty cucumber samples were collected and analyzed by gas chromatography Electron Capture Detector (GC/ECD). For overcoming matrix effects, calibration curve was prepared by spiked samples.

Results: Method was validated with related parameters. The recovery of pesticides at five concentration levels (n=3) was in the range of 81.02-91.66%. The method was proved repeatable with RSD lower than 20%. The limits of quantification for all pesticides were 10 ng/g.

Conclusion: There are some pesticides which are legally used with identified MRL in cucumber, but for better protection farmers used another pesticides which are not permitted by health authorities, consequently are harmful for consumers. Related fields inspections showed that some specific pesticides were applied for this purpose, such as α-endosulfan, β-endosulfan, endosulfan sulfate, α-HCH, β-HCH, γ-HCH and phosalone that was found in three cucumber samples (6%).

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Background: The potential toxicity of human exposure was investigated to heavy metals from diverse sources but few or none was on Iranian soaps. Hence, we aimed to determine the presence of lead and mercury in selected soaps commonly used in Mashhad, northeastern Iran.

Methods: Different common brands of cosmetic, hygiene and contraband soaps were purchased from retail market of Mashhad in 2016. Levels of these metals were determined using atomic absorption spectroscopy technique.

Results: All samples had the mercury and lead levels but did not exceed the maximum acceptable level (1 µg/g for mercury and 20 µg/g for lead) recommended by FDA. The mean levels of mercury were 0.02, 0.08 and 0.23 µg/g, respectively in cosmetic, hygiene and contraband soaps. These levels for lead were 0.10, 0.19 and 0.13 µg/g. The highest mercury and lead levels were detected in Halazoon contraband and P hygiene brands, respectively.

Conclusion: The content of mercury and lead in common soaps is currently not a concern in this city. However, as human body may be exposed to several toxic metals from different care products simultaneously, cumulative toxic effects of these metals must be considered important.

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Background: The heavy metal pollutions were accumulated in aquatic animals such as fish. Whereas consumption of canned fish is increased in many countries, contaminated fish meat would make a hazard to food security and public health. In this study, the levels ofiron and chromium were measured in canned fish products in in Khuzestan, Iran, in 2015.
Methods: Forty-six of canned fish composite samples were analyzed for levels of iron and chromium after dry digestion and then determined by atomic absorption spectrometry.
Results: The mean concentrations of A and B canned brandsfor iron were 4.6504348 and 0.1908696 and for chromium were 1.36030435 and 0.67629565, respectively. There were significant differences in the iron and chromium levels between two brands of canned fishes (P<0.05).Varieties of canned fishes were within FAO/WHO, U.S. FDA, U.S. EPA and U.K for iron and chromium.
Conclusion: According to US EPA health criteria for carcinogens, there was no health risk to chromium in canned fish.

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Background: Contamination of fruit juices with heavy metals presents a risk for human health. Concentrations of lead, and arsenic in fruit juices of market in Mashhad, Iran, were measured using atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS).
Methods: Fifty varieties of commercial fruit juices (grape, apple, orange, pomegranate, and multi-fruit) from 5 popular brands (A, B, C, D and E) were purchased from local markets of Mashhad during spring and winter 2016. Five samples of each brand were analyzed by AAS.
Results: The mean concentrations of lead and arsenic were 39.4 and 1.9 ng/mL, with a range of 18.5–54.6 and 1.52-2.35 ng/mL, respectively. The orange A and multi-fruit A samples had a higher lead level than the others, whilst multi-fruit E contained the lowest. The lowest arsenic content was found in grape B, while the highest was found in multi-fruit C.
Conclusion: Eighty-three percent of the samples had lead levels exceeding the maximum level   (30 ng/mL) accepted by the Codex Alimentarius Commission, while arsenic levels were below the maximal permissible value (10 ng/mL). Due to the fact that fruit juices are used by all age groups including infants and children, it is necessary to minimize the health risk from heavy metal contamination in fruit juices. For this reason, the amount of heavy metals contaminants in fruit juice samples should be regularly checked and controlled by the local health authorities.

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Background: Iron oxide nanoparticles are commonly used for various purposes, such as biomedical, medical, and cosmetic services and research. However, there is a little information about the effects of the nanoparticles on human health. The current investigation was conducted to evaluate the adverse effects of iron oxide nanoparticles (FeNP) on the reproductive organs of mice, such as the testicular tissue and sperm cells.
Methods: Twenty-eight male NMRI mice were randomly divided in four groups (N=7). The control group received only a regular diet. The experimental groups were administered FeNP in doses of 50, 150 and 300 mg/Kg intraperitoneally (IP), over four days. Epididymal sperm parameters, such as sperm number and motility were assessed by computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA). Stereological analysis was also conducted on the histological sections.
Results: The results demonstrated that FeNP (300 mg/Kg/day) caused a significant decrease in the sperm parameters, such as motility, spermatogonia, primary spermatocytes, spermatid, Sertoli, Leydig cells, total length of seminiferous tubules, and testicular interstitial tissue volumes.
Conclusion: In summary, FeNP affected several reproductive tissue and cellular parameters at the administered dosage. Further research is required to examine the mechanism of action of FeNP the mice reproductive system.

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Background: Tranylcypromine is a monoamine oxidase inhibitor. It inhibits the breakdown of dopamine, serotonin, epinephrine and other monoamines. The aim of this study was to investigate the adverse effects of trarylcypromine on the spermatogenesis in adult male rats.

Methods: In this study, 50 adults male Wistar rats, weighing 200-250g, were used and divided into 5 groups of 10. Control group that was not given the treatment; the sham group received normal saline as a solvent and the experimental groups 1, 2 and 3 received 10, 20 and 40 mg/kg of trarylcypromine orally for 21 days. At the end of the trial period, the testes of rats were removed, tissue sections were prepared, stained with hematoxylin and eosin, and the histological features were examined under light microscopy. The statistical analyses performed were ANOVA and Tukey tests, using SPSS software, version 19.

Results: The results demonstrated that the number of spermatogonials, primary spermatocytes, spermatids and Leydig cells in the experimental groups 2 and 3 receiving tranylcypromine significantly decreased compared to those in the control group. However, the number of Sertoli cells in the experimental groups did not change significantly at any dose of the drug compared to those in the control group (P≤0.05).

Conclusion: Tranylcypromine reduced spermatogenesis and the respective indices in rat testicular tissues.

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Background: Heavy metal containing wastes reaches to the food chain either directly or indirectly. These ingested toxic elements manifest direct impact on the gut ecosystem and its overall functioning. The present study explores the alteration in mice gut bacteria on exposure to mixture of toxic heavy metals through drinking water. 
Methods: Twelve experimental groups of Swiss albino male and female mice were exposed to the metal mixture of varying concentrations. Profiling of gut bacterial flora was done by periodical collection of fecal samples via culture-based technique. Redox status of all experimental animals was analyzed in blood samples collected on the day 30.
Results: In comparison to the controls, nearly a 10-fold decline in colony forming units/ml was observed at higher modal concentrations (50× & 100×) at the end of 15 days, but 100-fold reduced bacterial count was recorded following 30 days of dosing. Sex specific significant alteration in the bacteria count and diversity was also observed. Overall experimental results showed a heavy metal dose-dependent decline in bacterial count and loss in diversity. Disturbance in the oxidative stress markers was recorded in response to high dose of metal mixture. In group receiving 100× dose, malondialdehyde levels were increased in the erythrocytes (P<0.05), and all of the other antioxidant parameters were decreased (P<0.05), except for reduced glutathione in both male and female mice. 
Conclusion: The present work is the first report on the multiple heavy metals induced gut microbiota alterations and its correlation to oxidative stress.

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Background: Trevo is a nutritional supplement with numerous bioactive natural products, with detoxifying and antioxidant properties. The purpose of this study was to investigate the ability of Trévo to protect against oxidative stress induced by lead in the kidneys of male Wistar rats. 
Methods: Thirty-five healthy male Wistar rats were divided into five groups of seven rats each, using a randomized design. I=control; II=15 mg/kg of lead acetate (PbA); III=2 ml/kg of trevo+PbA; IV=5 ml/kg of trevo+PbA; V=5 ml/kg of trevo. Animals were treated with trevo for five days before co-administration with lead intraperitoneally for 10 consecutive days. Animals were sacrificed 24hr after the last administration, blood samples were collected via cardiac puncture, and processed for assessment of urea, creatinine, and uric acid (UA), while the kidney samples were excised and processed for the following biochemical assays: Malondialdehyde (MDA), Glutathione-S-Transferase (GST), Catalase (CAT), Superoxide Dismutase (SOD), and Reduced Glutathione (GSH). 
Results: Injection of PbA caused a significant increase in the serum levels of urea, creatinine, and uric acid, and a significant increase (P<0.001) in the MDA concentration, and decreases in GSH concentration, CAT, SOD, and GST activities (P<0.05) as compared to the controls. Pretreatment with trevo prevented the oxidative stress induced by lead acetate in the kidney tissue samples and improve the renal function. The protective effect was evident at 5 ml/kg of trevo. 
Conclusion: The results showed that trevo was nephroprotective against lead toxicity and the activity might be linked to the presence of numerous antioxidant phytochemicals present in trevo.