The continuous increase in Acanthamoeba keratitis, a severe corneal infection, worldwide is mainly due to the increase in the number of soft contact lens users. In the present study, which involves a 5-year study, a total of 138 corneal scraps and contact lenses together with their paraphernalias were obtained from suspected amoebic keratitis patients. All samples were cultured using culture-enrichment method. Pathogenic assay, using thermotolerance and osmotolerance tests were also performed on the positive strains. Sequencing of the isolated strains was done by targeting the DF3 region of 18s rRNA gene. The results revealed that 18 (13 %) of patients were infected with Acanthamoeba spp. As expected, T4 genotype was the most common genotype among the clinical samples; however, in three cases, Acanthamoeba belonging to T11 and T9 were detected. Interestingly, T9 genotype, commonly classified as non-pathogenic amoebae, was identified as a causal agent of a patient with amoebic keratitis. From the pathogenic assay, four strains belonging to T4 genotypes were highly pathogenic. This is the first report of Acanthamoeba T9 genotypes isolated in Iran and the first report of T9 type occurring in amoebic keratitis patients worldwide. Due to the increasing trend of amoebic keratitis (AK) and the identification of new genotypes, such as T9 as the causative agent of AK, more researches in this field are necessary in the region and the world at large.

Five municipal and domestic wastewater treatment plants, most of which had secondary treatment systems formed by activated sludge, were studied during 2013-2014 in Tehran. The study was done in order to evaluate their efficiency in terms of removal of Cryptosporidium and Giardia by (oo)cyst recovery in effluent samples using immunofluorescence with monoclonal antibodies. Results showed that mean concentrations of cysts in the influent samples always outnumbered mean concentrations of oocysts (883.3 ± 4,16.7-3,191.7 ± 1,067.2 versus 4.8 ± 6.2-83.8 ± 77.3 (oo)cysts/L), and that lower concentrations of (oo)cysts were recorded in summer, and higher levels in autumn, and that the difference was statistically significant (t-test, P < 0.05) only in wastewater from slaughterhouses. Results for removal percentages of all the plants ranged from 76.7 to 92.1% for cysts and from 48.9 to 90.8% for oocysts. There was more reduction of (oo)cysts at the urban treatment plant by activated sludge-A2O-sand filtration than at plants with conventional activated sludge and activated sludge-trickling filter, however, this difference was not statistically significant for cysts and oocysts (ANOVA, P > 0.05). Infections in mice inoculated with cysts obtained from urban wastewater effluent demonstrated presence of infectious Giardia cysts. Results demonstrate limited efficiency of conventional wastewater treatment processes at physico-chemical removal of (oo)cysts.

Considering the importance of perceived level of temptation on treatment programs in substance users and the role of cognitive aspects, this study was conducted to investigate the effect of sense of failure and alexithymia on perceived temptation. Materials and Methods: In this study, the effect of sense of failure and alexithymia on the perceived temptation in substance users in Saravan [south of IR. Iran] was investigated. In this cross-sectional descriptive study, 270 addicts living in addiction treatment centers in Saravan in the first four months of 2018 were selected by convenience sampling method. The Defeat Scale, the Alexithymia Scale, and the Drug Perceived Temptation Questionnaire-20 were used to assess variables. SPSS software version 22, Pearson correlation test and multiple regression were used to analyze the data. Results: The results showed that there is a relationship between inactivity, sense of loser and satisfaction with temptation [r = 0.32, 0.51, - 0.46]. There is also a significant relationship between alexithymia, difficulty in identifying emotions, difficulty in describing emotions and objective thinking with temptation [r = 0.60, 0.51, 0.48, 0.30]. Based on regression analysis, alexithymia [R2 = 0.37] and sense of failure [R2 = 0.32] can negatively predict temptation. Based on the results of the study, considering the sense of failure, alexithymia, and receiving appropriate care can play an important role in reducing perceived temptation.