Evaluation of cumulative exposures to multiple pesticide residues in three characteristic fruits in the Northwest of Iran: a risk assessment using Monte Carlo Simulation.

This study was conducted to monitor and evaluate the health risks of multiple organophosphorus pesticide residues in three characteristic fruits of Maragheh district, East Azerbaijan province. The Monte Carlo method was used to quantify the possible non-carcinogenic health risks associated with pesticide residues in adults and children. The residues of 17 pesticides in 36 samples were analysed using the QuEChERS extraction method coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS).

Evaluating Heavy Metals in Human Breast Milk: a Cross-Sectional Study from Mining and Agricultural Areas in Northwestern Iran.

This study aimed to assess the levels of heavy metals in the breast milk of women residing in the mining and agricultural areas of East Azerbaijan province in Iran. This cross-sectional study analyzed 68 lactating mothers from mining (n = 28) and agricultural (n = 40) areas of East Azerbaijan province in Iran between June 2022 and March 2023. The study used an Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) to measure the concentrations of heavy metals, including arsenic (As), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), and iron (Fe).

Advances in microbial exoenzymes bioengineering for improvement of bioplastics degradation.

Plastic pollution has become a major global concern, posing numerous challenges for the environment and wildlife. Most conventional ways of plastics degradation are inefficient and cause great damage to ecosystems. The development of biodegradable plastics offers a promising solution for waste management.

Spatial trend and probabilistic health risk assessment of heavy metals, nitrate, and fluoride in groundwater resources, West Azerbaijan province, Iran.

The quality of water resources used for drinking and their health effects is vitally important. The present study investigated the concentrations of F, NO, and metal elements like Hg, Mn, As, and Pb in the groundwater resources and their health risk assessment on the west margin of Urmia Lake, Iran. Sampling points were selected and taken from 121 groundwater resources in the summer of 2014.

Optimizing ozone dose and contact time for removal of antibiotic-resistant P. aeruginosa, A. baumannii, E. coli, and associated resistant genes in effluent of an activated sludge process in a municipal WWTP.

This study aimed to investigate the impact of ozonation on inactivation of antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) including E. coli, P. aeruginosa, and A.

Health and ecological risks assessment of heavy metals and metalloids in surface sediments of Urmia Salt Lake, Northwest of Iran.

Urmia Lake, in the northwest of Iran, is the largest body of saline water in the Middle East, which has been desiccated in recent decades. To investigate the pollution status and ecological-health risks of heavy metals and metalloids in the surface sediments of this lake, 26 sediment samples were collected along the salt marshes of the lake and were analyzed for heavy metals and metalloid concentrations. The potential ecological risk assessment was carried out using enrichment factor (EF), geo-accumulation index (I), contamination factor (CF), and potential ecological risk (E) standard indices.

Investigation of SARS-CoV-2 RNA contamination in water supply resources of Tabriz metropolitan during a peak of COVID-19 pandemic.

It is crucial to have access to clean water resources during the COVID-19 pandemic for hygiene, since virus infection through wastewater leaks in metropolitan areas can be a threat. Accurate monitoring of urban water resources during the pandemic seems to be the only way to confirm safe and infected resources. Here, in this study, the amount of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2's Ribonucleic Acid (SARS-CoV-2 RNA) in the Tabriz urban water network located in the northwest of Iran was investigated by an extensive sampling of the city's water sources at a severe peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Characterization of antibiotic resistance genes and bacteria in a municipal water resource recovery facility.

Municipal water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs) are important sources of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and genes (ARB and ARGs). In this study, antibiotic-resistant total heterotrophic bacteria (THB ) counts (CFU/ml) cultivated from influent, effluent of activated sludge process, and outflow of disinfection unit of an urban WRRF were investigated for the presence of 16, 32, 64, and 128 μg/ml of nine antibiotics. The isolates of Pseudomonas spp.

Environmental impact assessment of salt harvesting from the salt lakes.

Urmia Saline Lake, USL which is registered as an international park by the United Nations, has suffered hypersalinity and serious dryness in recent years. Increasing the dryness trend has been led to a great tendency, especially by private sectors to harvest salt from different parts of the bed sediments. During this study the four- step process was used for environmental impact assessment of such a large scale salt harvesting activities with specialized Folchi matrix and enriched by data on heavy metal concentrations in the limited number of sediment samples.

Temporospatial variation and health risk assessment of trihalomethanes (THMs) in drinking water (northwest Iran).

Trihalomethanes (THMs) are one of the most common classes of disinfection by-products. In this study, the temporospatial trends and health risks due to exposure to THMs in the Tabriz water distribution network were investigated. THM series were analyzed using gas chromatography equipped with electron capture detector.

Investigation of aerosols pollution across the eastern basin of Urmia lake using satellite remote sensing data and HYSPLIT model.

Background: Desiccation of the world's second hypersaline lake, Lake Urmia, has drawn attention toward the feasibility of particle emissions from the lakebed to downwind regions. Therefore, this research was conducted to study spatiotemporal variations of aerosols across the eastern basin of the lake during 2001 to 2016.

Methods: The Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) products of Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), extracted from Terra platform for 999 rural and urban areas and compared over adjacent (Shabestar, Osku, Azarshahr, Ajabshir, Bonab, Malekan), middle (Tabriz and Maragheh) and far (Bostanabad, Heris, and Sarab) counties.

First indoor radon mapping and assessment excess lifetime cancer risk in Iran.

Radon (222Rn) is believed to be the main contributor to lung cancer second to smoking. The first national indoor radon map derived from some scattered regional radon surveys in Iran. The arithmetic mean of indoor radon concentration was calculated to 117.

Spatial variation and quantitative screening level assessment of human risk from boron exposure in groundwater resources of western edge of the Lake Urmia, Iran.

Boron is a ubiquitous element and exposure to high concentrations of boron in drinking water may lead to health outcomes. This study aimed to analyze boron in rural drinking water resources located at the west of Urmia Lake. An innovative risk matrix was developed for faster assessment of risk status and adaptation of mitigation approaches.

Micronutrient and heavy metal concentrations in basil plant cultivated on irradiated and non-irradiated sewage sludge- treated soil and evaluation of human health risk.

Gamma irradiation is regarded as a promising alternative method for sewage sludge (SS) treatment. To evaluate the human health risk and effects of gamma irradiated and non-irradiated SS (SSGI and SSNI, respectively) on micronutrient and heavy metal concentrations in basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) as a test plant, a greenhouse experiment based on completely randomized design was conducted with control (without SS and irradiation) and 15, 30 and 60 g kg of SSNI as well as SSGI (irradiated with doses of 5, 10 and 20 kGy) with three replicates.

Carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risk assessments of arsenic contamination in drinking water of Ardabil city in the Northwest of Iran.

Based on the environmental health assessment framework of the United State Environmental Protection Agency, a quantitative health risk assessment of arsenic in contaminated drinking water in a city in the northwest of Iran has been carried out. In the exposure assessment step, arsenic concentrations in drinking water were determined during four seasons. In addition, the water ingestion rate for different age groups in this region was determined.

Predicting the capability of carboxymethyl cellulose-stabilized iron nanoparticles for the remediation of arsenite from water using the response surface methodology (RSM) model: Modeling and optimization.

This study aimed to investigate the feasibility of carboxymethyl cellulose-stabilized iron nanoparticles (C-nZVI) for the removal of arsenite ions from aqueous solutions. Iron nanoparticles and carboxymethyl cellulose-stabilized iron nanoparticles were freshly synthesized. The synthesized nanomaterials had a size of 10nm approximately.

Statistical analysis of arsenic contamination in drinking water in a city of Iran and its modeling using GIS.

In this research, probable arsenic contamination in drinking water in the city of Ardabil was studied in 163 samples during four seasons. In each season, sampling was carried out randomly in the study area. Results were analyzed statistically applying SPSS 19 software, and the data was also modeled by Arc GIS 10.

National and sub-national drinking water fluoride concentrations and prevalence of fluorosis and of decayed, missed, and filled teeth in Iran from 1990 to 2015: a systematic review.

Fluoride intake, fluorosis, and dental caries could affect quality of life and disease burden worldwide. As a part of the National and Sub-national Burden of Disease Study (NASBOD) in Iran, we conducted a systematic review to evaluate province-year-specific mean drinking water fluoride concentrations and prevalence of fluorosis and of decayed, missed, and filled teeth (DMFT) in Iran from 1990 to December 2015. We did electronic searches of all English and Persian publications on PubMed, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, and Iranian databases.

Arsenic Intake through Consumed Rice in Iran: Markets Role or Government Responsibility.

Background: the present study investigated arsenic content in Iranian, imported rice on sale in Tabriz (fourth most populous city of Iran) market, and assesses daily arsenic intake from rice.

Methods: A total of 33 locally available rice samples from different brands were collected and then wet and dry ashing digestion procedures were compared for decomposition of them before analyzing by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GFAAS).

Results: The mean arsenic concentration in Iranian rice was 0.

Effect of exposure to O₃ , NO₂, and SO₂ on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease hospitalizations in Tabriz, Iran.

Air pollution in cities is a serious environmental problem especially in the developing countries. We examined the associations between gaseous pollutants and hospitalizations for chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) among people living in Tabriz, a city in north western of Iran. We used the approach proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO) using the AirQ 2.

Quality modeling of drinking groundwater using GIS in rural communities, northwest of Iran.

Given the importance of groundwater resources in water supply, this work aimed to study quality of drinking groundwater in rural areas in Tabriz county, northwest of Iran. Thirty two groundwater samples from different areas were collected and analyzed in terms of general parameters along with 20 heavy metals (e.g.

Removal of Arsenic (III, V) from aqueous solution by nanoscale zero-valent iron stabilized with starch and carboxymethyl cellulose.

In this work, synthetic nanoscale zerovalent iron (NZVI) stabilized with two polymers, Starch and Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) were examined and compared for their ability in removing As (III) and As (V) from aqueous solutions as the most promising iron nanoparticles form for arsenic removal. Batch operations were conducted with different process parameters such as contact time, nanoparticles concentration, initial arsenic concentration and pH. Results revealed that starch stabilized particles (S-nZVI) presented an outstanding ability to remove both arsenate and arsenite and displayed ~ 36.

National and sub-national environmental burden of disease in Iran from 1990 to 2013-study profile.

Background: Development of national evidence-based public health strategies requires a deep understanding of the role of major risk factors (RFs) and the burden of disease (BOD). In this article, we explain the framework for studying the national and sub-national Environmental Burden of Disease (EBD) in Iran as a part of the National and Sub-national Burden of Disease (NASBOD) study.

Methods: The distribution of exposures to environmental RFs and their attributable effect size over 1990-2013 will be estimated through comprehensive reviews of either published or unpublished sources.

Heavy metals in the vegetables collected from production sites.

Background: Contamination of vegetable crops (as an important part of people's diet) with heavy metals is a health concern. Therefore, monitoring levels of heavy metals in vegetables can provide useful information for promoting food safety. The present study was carried out in north-west of Iran (Tabriz) on the content of heavy metals in vegetable crops.