Iran in transition.

Being the second-largest country in the Middle East, Iran has a long history of civilisation during which several dynasties have been overthrown and established and health-related structures have been reorganised. Iran has had the replacement of traditional practices with modern medical treatments, emergence of multiple pioneer scientists and physicians with great contributions to the advancement of science, environmental and ecological changes in addition to large-scale natural disasters, epidemics of multiple communicable diseases, and the shift towards non-communicable diseases in recent decades. Given the lessons learnt from political instabilities in the past centuries and the approaches undertaken to overcome health challenges at the time, Iran has emerged as it is today.

Gondeshapur Revisited; What Historical Evidence?

In recent years, in European academic circles, there has been a trend to dismiss Gondeshapur as a myth perpetrated by the Bokhtishu family in early Islamic era, despite many historiographical attestations. The writings of Islamic historians such as Al-Qifti and Ibn Abi Usaibia have been discounted as exaggerations by non-contemporary historians, and the lack of primary Pahlavi sources blamed for historical hyperbole. In this essay, I have attempted to show through primary Syriac Christian texts, that there was both a medical school and a bimarestan in Gondeshapur in pre-Islamic Sassanid era, and that Galenic medical texts had been translated and taught in that institution.

The History of the Foundation of the Iranian National Blood Transfusion Service in 1974 and the Biography of its Founder; Professor Fereydoun Ala.

The history of early attempts of blood transfusion in Iran traces back to the 1940s; however, around three decades later in 1974, the Iranian National Blood Transfusion Service (Sazeman-e Melli-e Enteqal-e Khun-e Iran) was founded by the outstanding hematologist, Professor Fereydoun Ala. The main goals of this centralized organization were to collect blood from healthy voluntary donors, to screen the donated blood and to provide various safe blood products based on scientific and ethical standards. In due course, a new era of blood transfusion service in Iran had begun to such a degree that after more than four decades of its activity, it is now considered the best-developed blood service in the eastern Mediterranean region.

Functional interaction between morphine and central amygdala cannabinoid CB1 receptors in the acquisition and expression of conditioned place preference.

The present study was done to determine whether cannabinoid CB1 receptors of the central amygdala (CeA) are implicated in morphine-induced place preference. Using a 3-day schedule of conditioning, it was found that subcutaneous (s.c.

Inhibitory avoidance memory deficit induced by scopolamine: interaction with glutamatergic system in the nucleus accumbens.

The possible involvement of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors of the nucleus accumbens (NAc) in amnesia induced by scopolamine was investigated. An inhibitory (passive) avoidance task was used for memory assessment in male Wistar rats. The results revealed that intra-NAc administration of a nonselective muscarinic acetylcholine antagonist, scopolamine (1 and 2 g/rat) impaired memory consolidation in the animals when tested 24 h later.

Role of ventral hippocampal NMDA receptors in anxiolytic-like effect of morphine.

The possible role of ventral hippocampal N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors on morphine-induced anxiolytic-like behavior in an elevated plus maze (EPM) task was investigated in the present study. Adult male mice (7 per group) with cannulas aimed at the ventral hippocampus (VH) received NMDA or a competitive NMDA receptor antagonist D-AP5 with or without morphine and 30min later were subjected to an EPM task. Intraperitoneal injection (i.

Asclepius, Caduceus, and Simurgh as medical symbols; part II. Simurgh.

In part one of this article I reviewed the history of Asclepius and the Caduceus of Hermes as medical symbols and made a tentative suggestion of using the mythical bird Simurgh as an Iranian symbol of medicine. In this, the second part, I shall describe the evolution of the myth of the Simurgh and discuss the medical relevance of this bird in Iranian history.

Involvement of dopamine D1/D2 receptors on harmane-induced amnesia in the step-down passive avoidance test.

Ingestion of harmane and other alkaloids derived from plant Peganum harmala has been shown to elicit profound behavioural and toxic effects in humans, including hallucinations, excitation, feelings of elation, and euphoria. These alkaloids in the high doses can cause a toxic syndrome characterized by tremors and convulsions. Harmane has also been shown to act on a variety of receptor systems in the mammalian brain, including those for serotonin, dopamine and benzodiazepines.

Asclepius, Caduceus, and Simurgh as medical symbols, part I.

This is the first of two articles reviewing the history of medical symbols. In this first article I have briefly reviewed the evolution of the Greek god, Asclepius, (and his Roman counterpart Aesculapius) with the single serpent entwined around a wooden rod as a symbol of western medicine and have alluded to the misplaced adoption of the Caduceus of the Greek god Hermes (and his Roman counterpart Mercury) with its double entwined serpents as an alternative symbol. In the second part of this article (to be published later), I have made a tentative suggestion of why the Simorgh might be adopted as an Eastern or an Asian symbol for medicine.

Nicotine improves ethanol-induced memory impairment: the role of dorsal hippocampal NMDA receptors.

Aims: The current study was undertaken to determine the role of dorsal hippocampal N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors in nicotine's effect on impairment of memory by ethanol.

Main Methods: Adult male mice were cannulated in the CA1 regions of dorsal hippocampi and trained on a passive avoidance learning task for memory assessment.

Key Findings: We found that pre-training intraperitoneal (i.