SUMMARYDurum wheat (Triticum durum) is one of the most important cereal crops in the Mediterranean region; however, its cultivation suffers from low yield due to environmental constrains. The main objectives of this study were to (i) assess genotype × environment (GE) interaction for grain yield in rainfed durum wheat and to (ii) analyse the relationships of GE interaction with genotypic/meteorological variables by the additive main effects and multiplicative interaction (AMMI) model. Grain yield and some related traits were evaluated in 25 durum wheat genotypes (landrace, breeding line, old and new varieties) in 12 rainfed environments differing in winter air temperature. The AMMI analysis of variance indicated that the environment had highest contribution (84.3% of total variation) to the variation in grain yield. The first interaction principal component axis (IPCA1) explained 77.5% of GE interaction sum of squares (SS), and its effect was 5.5 times greater than the genotype effect, indicating that the IPCA1 contributed remarkably to the total GE interaction. Large GE interaction for grain yield was detected, indicating specific adaptation of genotypes. While the postdictive success method indicated AMMI-4 as the best model, the predictive success one suggested AMMI-1. The AMMI biplot analysis confirmed a rank change interaction among the locations, indicating the presence of strong and unpredictable rank-change location-by-year interactions for locations. In contrast to landraces and old varieties, the breeding lines with high yield performance had high phenotypic plasticity under varying environmental conditions. Results indicated that the GE interaction was associated with the interaction of heading date, plant height, rainfall, air temperature and freezing days.

The glucosinolate (GSL) pattern of 93 resynthesized (resyn) rapeseed lines was examined over three years, and five stable genotypes with distinct GSL profiles were identified. Typically the resyn B. napus profile exhibited progoitrin as the main GSL, but contained sinigrin. The different GSL patterns of the four deviating lines are discussed with respect to the proposed biosynthetic pathway. Within the resyn and further extensive breeding materials, screening for Io'w lndolyl GSL contents resulted in finding one genotype with an extremely low 4-hydroxy-glucobrassicin and glucobrassicin content. Furthermore, other lines were identified, differing over a wide range of indolyl GSL contents. The values were stable over two years.

BackgroundOrgan transplantation is one of the most critical topics in medical ethics that is commonplace in various countries. This study aimed to evaluate the knowledge and the ethical issues surrounding organ transplantation and organ donation among healthcare personnel in Tehran, Iran.Material/MethodsIn a cross-sectional study performed on 450 healthcare personnel, self-administered questionnaires were used to derive data from individuals. Among the 450 health personnel who received the questionnaires, 377 completed their questionnaires (83.77%).ResultsThe willingness and unwillingness to donate organs among individuals were 47.48% (n=179) and 52.51% (n=198), respectively. Among the individuals who signed the organ donation card, 96.5% (n=55) were willing to donate their organs and 3.5% (n=2) were unwilling to donate their organs. Most of the individuals that were willing (48.34%; n=175) and unwilling (51.66%; n=187) to donate their organs claimed religious support for organ donation (P=0.00). Out of these people, 110 willing people (67.48%) and 53 (32.52%) unwilling people were familiar with the idea of brain death. The individuals who selected cadavers (67.64%; n=255) and brain death (24.4%; n=92) were chosen as the best candidates for organ donation. Most individuals believed that young patients (n=123; 32.62%) and people who had not already had organ transplants (n=90; 23.87%) should be the preferred recipients of organs. Most individuals had learned about organ transplantation from television (30.24%; n=114), newspapers (23.61%; n=89), and the radio (19.89%; n=75).ConclusionsIn conclusion, there is a need for more educational programs for the improvement of knowledge and ethical consideration with regard to organ transplantation and organ donation among healthcare personnel.

BackgroundInorganic antibacterial factors provide high bacterial resistance and thermal stability. Inorganic nanomaterial consists of modern formulation, biological, chemical, and physical properties produced on the basis of their function and influenced by their nano scales, the reason for which they have become very popular. The antibacterial effect of Cadmium Oxide Nanoparticles on Staphylococcus Aureus has been studied for the first time in this research because of their resistance to antibiotics.Materials and methodsDifferent concentrations consist of 10 μg/ml, 15 μg/ml, and 20 μg/ml have been provided and their effects were studied in the agar and broth against the foregoing bacteria. Needless to say, the optimization of their non-microbial effect in variable times, pH, and temperatures of exposure was analyzed.ResultsThe results represented that there is a direct association between the nanoparticles applied dosage and the restrain effect augmentation of applied dosage results in increase in restrain effect. In the study of environmental factors (pH and temperature), the results are in line with the inherent physiology of the bacteria; however, there was a significant decline in the number of analyzed bacteria cells due to the “Double Effect” of nanoparticle-pH variations as well as nanoparticle-temperature variables. In the very study, the promotion of Cadmium Oxide nanoparticles concentration leads to the elevation of antimicrobial feature and the reduction of bacteria growth rate is consistent with the other surveys about the nanoparticles effects on microorganisms to be more specific, one can come to this conclusion that the presence of nanoparticles prompts cellular destruction.ConclusionIn the recent study, by elevation in Cadmium Oxide nanoparticles concentration, the antimicrobial property augments and the bacteria growth rate declines, that are in line with other researches about the nanoparticles effect on microorganisms.

Plant diseases are considered one of the main factors reducing yield and quality of crops, which are constantly developing and creating more virulent races and cause the resistance of more genes to break. Identifying resistance sources and including them in breeding programs will improve resistant genotypes. Rhizomania is the most common, widespread, and devastating disease of sugar beet in Iran and worldwide.Breeding genotypes with disease resistance genes is one of the most important ways to deal with this destructive disease. Twenty sugar beet genotypes along with five controls were evaluated in a randomized complete block design with four replications in rhizomania-infected conditions in four regions of Mashhad, Shiraz, Miandoab, and Hamedan for 2 years. The results of genotypic reaction to rhizomania showed that the genotypes with resistance reaction were much more frequent than those with susceptibility reaction. The analysis of multiplicative effects of the AMMI model showed that the first six components were significant and explained 98.80% of the interaction variations. The biplot obtained from the mean white sugar yield and the first interaction principal component confirmed the superiority of the RM5 genotype due to its high white sugar yield and stability in infected conditions. The results obtained from the first three principal components biplot showed that the RM9 genotype with a mean white sugar yield of 11.91 t. ha −1 was a genotype with vast general stability in all disease-infected environments. Based on the results of the MTSI index, RM3, RM17, RM9, RM13, and RM15 are introduced as stable genotypes under rhizomaniainfected conditions. In conclusion, it seems that the studied genotypes have valuable and useful genes inherited from their parents to deal with rhizomania disease.Applying these genotypes in sugar beet breeding programs can effectively prevent the threat of rhizomania.

There has been a significant trend in the use of different statistical tools to analyse genotype × environment (GE) interaction for grain yield in multi-environment trials. Several statistical models including 16 univariate stability methods and four multivariate models such as the additive main effects and multiplicative interaction (AMMI), GGE biplot (G+GE biplot), and factorial regression and partial least squares regression were applied to investigate the GE interaction for grain-yield data of 18 durum wheat genotypes grown in 14 environments (location-year combinations). The main objectives were to use the different statistical models to evaluate GE interaction for grain yield in durum wheat and to investigate the effect of some climatic variables on the interactions. The main effect of environment, genotype and GE interactions were significant (p < .01), and accounted for 85.1, 0.8 and 6.8% of total variation, respectively. Using the cluster and discriminant analyses, a pattern map developed simultaneously for clustering of stability methods and genotypes, which allowed identifying seven genotypic groups for genotypes and four groups for stability methods. The different stability groups explained genotypic performance differently, with or without respect to yield. The AMMI stability value, Wricke's ecovalence (Wi), Shukla's stability variance (σ 2 ), Perkins and Jinks's (β and Dj) indices, joint regression parameters (bi and S 2 di , R 2 ) and Tai's stability (σ and λ) methods did not correlate with genotypic mean yields, while the dynamic stability GGE distance and superiority measure (Pi) showed significant positive correlations with genotypic mean yields, showing selection based on these two methods would improve yield stability and performance. Using the applied methods, the breeding lines G12, G13 and G7 showed high mean yield and stability performance. The results also showed that the GE interactions were mostly influenced by the climatic data of rainfall, freezing days, minimum temperature and relative humidity. Although the multivariate methods provided valuable information on GE interaction, the univariate methods seem to be useful alternatives to complement improving screening efficiency.

Organ transplantation is an effective process that prolongs the lives of individuals suffering from incapacitating conditions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the view point of medical students in Iran regarding ethical aspects and knowledge on organ transplantation and donation. The participants included 165 medical students from different faculties of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. They were assessed using a reliable questionnaire that examined their ethical aspects and knowledge regarding organ transplantation and donation. All data analyses were performed using Chi-square and analysis of variance tests with SPSS software. Results showed that main sources of respondents’ knowledge on organ transplantation and donation were TV, 51.52 % (n = 85) and Internet, 19.39 % (n = 32). 91.51% (n = 151) of the respondents understand and 8.48% (n =14) do not understand the concept of brain death. 49.69% (n = 82) of the respondents were willing to donate their organs. A brain death donor was selected by respondents as the best option for organs transplantation (72.12%; n = 119). The respondents selected young patients as the preferred recipients of an organ (69.69%; n = 115). There was no correlation between gender, age, educational level, marital status and attitude towards organ transplantation. From the results, there is need for an organized educational planning for medical students in ethical issue and knowledge on organ and tissue transplantation.

Organ transplantation is a new issue in medical science. It is an important achievement and a sign of the progression and ability of medical centers around the world. Governments, populations, the medical community and people involved in culture, art, and media all have a decisive role in the culture of organ donation, which is the only way to guarantee that the healthy organs of a brain-dead person can continue to work and save the lives of people in need of organ transplantation. The brain death phenomenon and its possible application in organ transplantation, while offering new hope for the salvation of a number of patients, has led to many ethical, cultural, and legal issues. Ethical issues in organ transplantation are very complicated due to many social factors such as religion, culture, and traditions of the affected communities. The ethical and legal points of removing organs from the body of a living or cadaveric source, the definition of brain death, the moral and legal conditions of the donor and the recipient, and the financial relationship between them and many others, are all critical issues in organ transplantation. While there may be no available explicit solution to these issues, they should be rigorously considered by the experts. Efforts to systematically eliminate barriers and solve problems in organ transplantation, can not only reduce the costs of maintaining brain-dead patients and encourage patients that need organ transplantation but can also prevent immoral and illegal activities. In this paper, we have reviewed the most important and current challenges in organ transplantation with a view to the ethical considerations, and we have suggested some strategies to extend it in Iran.