Background: Because of expanding presence of nanomaterials, there has been an increase in the exposure of humans to nanoparticles that is why nanotoxicology studies are important. A number of studies on the effects of nanomatrials in in vitro and in vivo systems have been published. Currently cytotoxicity of different nanoparticles is assessed using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay on different cell lines to determine cell viability, a tedious and expensive method. The aim of this study was to evaluate the Artemia salina test in comparison with the MTT assay in the assessment of cytotoxicity of nanostructures because the former method is more rapid and convenient and less expensive. Methods: At the first stage, toxicity of different nanoparticles with different concentrations (1.56–400 μg/mL) was measured by means of the brine shrimp lethality test. At the second stage, the effect of nanoparticles on the viability of the L929 cell line was assessed using the MTT assay. Experiments were conducted with each concentration in triplicate. Results: The results obtained from both tests (A. salina test and MTT assay) did not have statistically significant differences (P > 0.05). Conclusions: These findings suggest that the A. salina test may expedite toxicity experiments and decrease costs, and therefore, may be considered an alternative to the in vitro cell culture assay.

Background: Soil and effluent of lead and zinc industries contain high concentration of cadmium. The present study was conducted to isolate tolerant fungal strains from cadmium -polluted sites in Zanjan province, Iran. Methods: Cadmium tolerance and bioremediation capacity of seven isolates including Aspergilus versicolor, Aspergillus fumigatus, Paecilomyces sp.9, Paecilomyces sp.G, Terichoderma sp, Microsporum sp,Cladosporium sp were determined. Results: Minimum inhibitory concentration values among 1,000-4,000 mg lˉ¹proved great ability of isolated strains to survive in cadmium polluted environments. The most tolerant fungi, Aspergilus versicolor, showed tolerance index of 0.8 in 100 mg lˉ¹ cadmium agar media. Fungal resistance against cadmium is depended directly on strain’s biological function. A. versicolor was found to bioaccumulate over7 mg of cadmium per 1 g of mycelium, followed by 5.878, 5.243, and 5.075, 4.557 by Paecilomyces sp, Aspergilus fumigatus, Microsporum sp and Terichoderma sp, respectively. Conclusion: It can be noted that tolerance of the strains appears to be independent from bioaccumulation capacity. Finally, the results indicated that A. versicolor could be a prospective candidate for bioremediation processes.

Background: There is an urgent need to identify new anti-malarial drug targets for both prophylaxis and chemotherapy, due to the increasing problem of drug resistance to malaria parasites. In the present study, the aim was to discover novel, effective plant-based extracts for the activity against malaria. Methods: Ten plants found in Iran were selected by ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants. The crude ethanolic extracts were tested for in vitro anti-plasmodial activity against two strains of Plasmodium falciparum: K1 (chloroquine-resistant strain) and CY27 (chloroquine-sensitive strain), using the parasite lactate dehydrogenase (pLDH) assay. The anti-plasmodial activity of the extracts was also assessed in the 4-day suppressive anti-malarial assay in mice inoculated with Plasmodium berghei (ANKA strain). Crude ethanolic extracts showed good anti-plasmodial activity were further fractionated by partitioning in water and dichloromethane. Results: Of 10 plant species assayed, three species: Boerhavia elegans (Choisy), Solanum surattense (Burm.f.) and Prosopis juliflora (Sw.) showed promising anti-plasmodial activity in vitro (IC₅₀ ≤ 50 μg/ml) and in vivo with no toxicity. The dichloromethane fraction of three extracts revealed stronger anti-plasmodial activity than the total extracts. Conclusion: Anti-plasmodial activities of extracts of B. elegans and S. surattense are reported for the first time.