Journal title

Pollen morphology study of Salvia sect. Plethiosphace and S. sect. Hemisphace in Iran

In this research, plant morphology and pollen morphology of 14 populations of 3 species belonging to two sections Plethiosphace and Hemisphace of Salvia genus in Iran were studied. In morphological study 25 quantitative and qualitative characters were investigated and results of this study clearly separated species into two groups. The pollen grains from the herbarium specimens were prepared by acetolysis method and then 4 quantitative characters were examined by light microscopy. Data analysis was carried out by principal component analysis method. Results of the study showed that although the pollen grains in the section are comparatively homogenous and all of them are 6-colpate with reticulate ornamentation, but show a considerable variation in studied quantitative characters. However among the studied characters, equatorial and polar diameters of pollen grains are the most significant characters and based of these characters the members of these sections can be divided into two groups based on these characters that confirmed the results of morphology.

Numerical taxonomy and morphology of the stigma of the genus Pedicularis (Orobanchaceae) in Iran

The genus Pedicularis with 600-800 species is a semiparasitic plant distributed mostly in cold and mountainous regions of the northern hemisphere . In this study, nine species of this genus in the flora of Iran has been studied by electron microscopy . The surface of stigma of P. pycnantha and P. wilhelmsiana are flat. It is hemispherical in P. cabulica , P. caucasica , P. rechingeri, P. sibthorpii, P. condensate, P. strausii and conical only in P. rhinanthoides . In order to determine relationships between species, numerical analysis was carried out using 44 quantitative and qualitative of morphological, anatomical and palynological traits. The diagrams obtained from UPGMA and PCA methods were used to establish the relationship between the studied specie. Based on the results of the analysis, traits such as fruit pericarp thickness , spongy parenchyma thickness of leaf , stem height , stem thickness , total thickness of the stem and midrib length with high variability can be useful for species determination and evaluation of the similarities between them.

Comparison effect of magnetic field and salicylic acid on Melisa officinalis under UV-B stress

Latifeh Pourakbar

Effects of decreased ozone and increased UV radiation have been studied by many researchers. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of UV-B radiation on Melissa officinalis L. and to study the impact of salicylic acid and magnetic fields in reducing the harmful effects of radiation on plants. The Melissa officinalis L. plants were treated with 28_+2 Celsius temperature for about 60 days. The light intensity was 150 µ E mˉ² Sˉ¹ and the lightness-darkness condition was8-16 hours. UV treatment was applied after the six-leaf stage and UV-B radiation was applied for a period of 15 days, the time for each application was 20 minutes. Salicylic acid was sprayed on the plants after the six-leaf stage with a concentration of 1 mmol. Magnetic field treatment was applied for an hour with intensities of 0, 40 and 85 mT. The results indicated that the UV-B radiation led to reduction in dry and fresh weight, root elongation and shoots. The radiations also reduced the photosynthetic pigments (chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b and carotenoid) and sugar rate and soluble proteins amount. The phenylalanine ammonia-lyase compounds rate and UV-absorbing compounds were increased under the effect of UV-B radiation. The results showed that treatment with salicylic acid and magnetic fields caused a reduced damage to the plant which had been created due to UV-B radiation and were able compensate for changed factors that had been changed because of UV radiation.

Identification of Essential Oil Components of Salvia leriifolia Benth. and Evaluation of its Antioxidant Activity

parvaneh abrishamchi

Free radicals especially various kind of active oxygens, with destruction of biomolecules such as DNA and proteins, are believed to be the cause of many cancers. In search for antioxidative reagents, it seems that use of natural antioxidants especially those from plants, are of special interest. Salvia leriifolia Benth, from Lamiaceae (syn. Labiatae) family, is a native plant of Iran ( North of Khorasan) and Afghanestan with significant applications in medicine, pharmacology, and food industry. The aim of current investigation, was to recognize the composition of essential oil of S. leriifolia and perform a comparative study on the antioxidant properties of the extracted essence from plants grown in two regions of Khorasan (Neyshabour and Bajestan). According to Gas Chromatography – Mass spectrophotometric analysis, 1,8 Cineole, &alpha-Pinene and &beta-Pinene, were main components of the essential oilAntioxidant activity of essential oil were measured by three different methods, TBARS and BCB (two lipid systems) and DPPH (aqueous system). Antioxidative properties of the essence in both former methods were higher than DPPH assay. It was found that the total essential oil and its pure constituents have a significant antioxidant effect when tested by each method, respectively. BCB assay was the most appropriate method for measurement of antioxidant activity. The antioxidant concentrations influenced its antioxidant power, too. The essence of plants collected from Neyshabour showed stronger antioxidative effect compared to those from Bajestan.

The study of saponin contents in the aerial parts and roots of three Silene L. species

Roya Karamian

Saponins are secondary metabolites that are found in many plants and some animals. These compounds are high molecular weight glycosides, consisting of a sugar moiety linked to a triterpene or steroid aglycone. Many saponins have detergency properties and give stable foam in water. The genus Silene L. with more than 700 species is one of the largest genera of the family Caryophyllaceae mainly distributed in north hemisphere. Saponins are one of important secondary metabolites in members of the genus. Quantitative and qualitative study of the saponins in the aerial parts and roots of three Silene species, namely S. ginodioca, S. spergulifolia and S. swertiifolia were carried out by spectrophotometry and TLC methods. In this study, 5 fractions were obtained from each plant part and in both parts of three species, fraction 1 contain the highest amounts of saponins. On the other hands, root extracts have a high amount of saponins. In addition, thin layer chromatography (TLC) of the extracts evaluated some saponins spots with different Rf.

Effects of poly-β-hydroxybutyrate on metabolic diversity of Siberian sturgeon (Acipenser baerii) fingerlings hindgut anaerobic bacterial by using community level physiological profile

Ebrahim Najdegerami

Recently, concern over environmental and health effects of massive use of the antibiotics has let to growth of the bio-control agents application. Poly-&beta-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) is a natural polymer that can be depolymerized into water-soluble short-chain fatty acid monomers and acts as a microbial control agent. In this study, the effects of partially replacing the diet of Siberian sturgeon fingerlings with 2% and 5% PHB were investigated. Community level physiological profile (CLPP) was used to analyze anaerobic bacterial metabolic diversity in Siberian sturgeon fingerlings hindgut by using Biolog™ Ecoplate microplates. The results indicated that PHB increased metabolic activity in anaerobic bacteria in sturgeon hindgut. Also Lorenz curve and the Shannon index of Biolog™ Ecoplate data revealed that anaerobic metabolic potential of the bacterial community was different in the PHB-treated fishes as compared with the control situation.

Detection of Escherichia coli and Enteroccocus faecalis Indices in Groundwater Sources by Membrane Filter and MPN Techniques

Parisa Mohammadi

Microbial analysis of ground water, as a solely supplying water sources must be evaluated in many areas. Because of the treatment of water always cannot remove all pathogenic bacteria which are leaked from domestic wastewater, bacterial survey of Bojnourd groundwater sources were carried out in this study. For this reason, membrane filter (MF) technique and Most Probably Number (MPN) methods were used to evaluate the quality of the water. Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Enteroccocus faecalis (E. faecalis) were traced as excremental indices. E. coli was detected from three out of six stations and E. faecalis was only isolated from one of stations. Although molecular techniques are very rapid and exact technique for detection of microbial community and are able to identify Viable But Not Cultivable bacteria (VBNC) but are unable to distinct live and dead microorganisms. By using standard technique it is possible to study live microorganisms. It can be concluded that both E.coli and E.feacalis was detected in some stations. The sanitization of groundwater must be revised to less the microbial population in this groundwater.