• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.10
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• pp.5053-5056
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• 2012

Background: Bladder cancer is one the most common malignancies of the genitourinary tract. The present study aimed to assess the epidemiology, of bladder cancer in Mazandaran, a large province in northern Iran as high-incidence cancer area, during a 2-year period. Methods: The data for this study were obtained from the population-based cancer registry of the Vice-Chancellory for Health Affairs of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences and Mazandaran hospitals between March 1, 2010 and March 1, 2011. Demographic data, including sex, age, residency and symptoms were investigated through careful review of medical records. Using a questionnaire protocol, several variables were assessed for these cases such as smoking, history of opium, vegetable consumption habits, and history of other cancers. Results: A total of 112 cases were analyzed, 98 (87.5%) in men and 14 (12.5%) in women (mean age of $68.0{\pm}14.6$ years). Urban and rural residence were 60.7% and 39.3%. Tobacco and opium use were found in 45.5% and 21.4% of patients, respectively. Approximately 60% consumed vegetables an average of fewer than one time per day. Hematuria was the first symptom in these cases which were mainly diagnosed as having bladder cancer by ultrasonography. Conclusion: The results showed that bladder cancer tends to be found in the elderly and the male to female ratio is high. Macroscopic hematuria is a very important symptom for indicating probably urothelial tumor that should be followed up patients with transabdominal ultrasonography as a routine modality.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.307-310
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• 2007

A survey was carried out to investigate the prevalence of hard tick species (Acari: Ixodidae) on cattle in Mazandaran province, Iran. A total of 953 ticks were collected from 86 infested cattle during activating seasons of ticks during 2004-2005. Nine species were identified: Boophilus annulatus (51.3%), Rhipicephalus bursa (16.8%), Haemaphysalis punctata (6.3%), Ixodes ricinus (6.8%), Hyalomma marginatum (12.5%), Hyalomma anatolicum excavatum (5.2%), Hyalomma asiaticum (0.6%), Hyalomma detritum (0.2 %), and Dermacentor spp. (0.1%). The results show that Boophilus annulatus, Rhipicephalus bursa, and Hyalomma species are dominant tick species in the surveyed area.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.403-410
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• 2018

The choice of attenuation relationships is one of the most important parts of seismic hazard analysis as using a different attenuation relationship will cause significant differences in the final result, particularly in near distances. This problem is responsible for huge sensibilities of attenuation relationships which are used in seismic hazard analysis. For achieving this goal, attenuation relationships require a good compatibility with the target region. Many researchers have put substantial efforts in their studies of strong ground motion predictions, and each of them had an influence on the progress of attenuation relationships. In this study, two attenuation relationships are presented using seismic data of Mazandaran province in the north of Iran by Genetic Expression Programming (GEP) algorithm. Two site classifications of soil and rock were considered regarding the shear wave velocity of top 30 meters of site. The quantity of primary data was 93 records; 63 of them were recorded on rock and 30 of them recorded on soil. Due to the shortage of records, a regression technique had been used for increasing them. Through using this technique, 693 data had been created; 178 data for soil and 515 data for rock conditions. The Results of this study show the observed PGA values in the region have high correlation coefficients with the predicted values and can be used in seismic hazard analysis studies in the region.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.31-47
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• 2009

The rapid growth of information and communication technologies prompted the need for developing the strategic implementation framework of IT/ICT programs in universities. Here, we propose a strategic framework for the development of the IT/ICT programs in the universities of the province of Mazandaran in Iran. We use the SWOT analysis to assist the formulation of the strategy, where the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is applied to weigh the SWOT factors and the fuzzy TOPSIS is used to evaluate the strategic plans. Based on Iran and Mazandaran Digital Indices (DI) and considering the SWOT matrix, four strategies are identified. Finally, an analytical concept, namely the strategy shooting, is considered to show the role of SWOT factors and strategic plans on the performance of the system.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.54 no.4
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• pp.447-453
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• 2016

Acanthamoeba, a free-living amoeba, is widely distributed in the environment, water sources, soil, dust, and air. It can cause keratitis in contact lens wearers with poor hygiene and also fatal granulomatous amebic encephalitis (GAE) in immunocompromised hosts. The aim of this study was to gain some insights into the distribution and genotypes of the potentially pathogenic species of Acanthamoeba present in water sources in north of Iran. Total 43 Acanthamoeba species were isolated from 77 water samples taken from different water sources within the Mazandaran province in Northern Iran (Sari city and suburbs). Isolates were identified based on cyst and trophozoite morphological characteristics as well genetics. PCR fragments corresponding to the small-subunit 18S rRNA gene were sequenced for 20 of 43 positive isolates. The results revealed that 83.3% of sequenced isolates belonged to the T4 genotype and the rest belonged to the T2 genotype. Our results indicated that Acanthamoeba is widely distributed in Sari city. As the incidence in Iran of amoebic keratitis has increased in recent years, the exact estimation of the prevalence of this amoeba and its predominant genotype may play a crucial role in prevention of the disease. Sari city has several rivers, seashores, and natural recreational amenities, which attract visitors during the year. This is the first report of Acanthamoeba genotypes from water sources in Sari city, Mazandaran province of Iran, and the results suggest that more attention is needed to protect the visiting population and immunocompromised individuals.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.1053-1056
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• 2013

Background: Leukemia and lymphoma demonstrate significantly incidence rates throughout the world and particularly in Iran they cause serious mortality and diagnosis and treatment expenditures for both families and the health system. Combined they account for about 11 percent of cancers in Mazandaran province, ranking number 2 in prevalent cancers. The purpose of this study was to provide a first general and specific description of leukemia and lymphoma in Mazandaran province. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive retrospective study, entire patient's data were reviewed which had confirmed diagnosis of leukemia and lymphoma with valid laboratory or pathology reports in the period 2001-2008. The data were collected by Babol health research site related to Tehran University of Medical Science. Incidence rates based on age groups, gender, city of residence and type of malignancy were calculated and analyzed. Results: In Mazandaran province, 1,146 cases of leukemia and lymphoma were encountered, 5.9 in 100,000 persons on average annually. The highest incidence rates were obtained at age of 70 or above (26.4) and the lowest at age of 0-9 (2.3).The incidence rates in males and females were 7.1 and 4.8 respectively with a ratio of 1.5. The highest incidence rate was in Babol (7.3) and the lowest was calculated in Neka and Tonekabon equally (1.5). According to the type of malignancy, non Hodgkin lymphoma, with 2.5/100,000 have the most incidence rate and myeloid leukemia with 1.8 had the lowest. Conclusions: The obtained findings indicate clear differences in incidence rates based on age, gender, residence, and type of malignancy. Therefore it's suggested that in addition to promote data collecting programs, research projects should be programmed to define leukemia and lymphoma risk factors in this province.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.279-285
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• 2017

The present study was performed to analyze molecularly the phylogenetic positions of human-infecting Trichostrongylus species in Mazandaran Province, Iran, which is an endemic area for trichostrongyliasis. DNA from 7 Trichostrongylus infected stool samples were extracted by using in-house (IH) method. PCR amplification of ITS2-rDNA region was performed, and products were sequenced. Phylogenetic analysis of the nucleotide sequence data was performed using MEGA 5.0 software. Six out of 7 isolates had high similarity with Trichostrongylus colubriformis, while the other one showed high homology with Trichostrongylus axei registered in GenBank reference sequences. Intra-specific variations within isolates of T. colubriformis and T. axei amounted to 0-1.8% and 0-0.6%, respectively. Trichostrongylus species obtained in the present study were in a cluster with the relevant reference sequences from previous studies. BLAST analysis indicated that there was 100% homology among all 6 ITS2 sequences of T. colubriformis in the present study and most previously registered sequences of T. colubriformis from human, sheep, and goat isolates from Iran and also human isolates from Laos, Thailand, and France. The ITS2 sequence of T. axei exhibited 99.4% homology with the human isolate of T. axei from Thailand, sheep isolates from New Zealand and Iran, and cattle isolate from USA.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.14
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• pp.6067-6071
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• 2015

Background: Gastric cancer accounts for about 8% of the total cancer cases and 10% of total cancer deaths worldwide. It is the second lethal cancer after esophageal cancer and is considered the fourth most common cancer in north and northwest Iran. The bcl2 family has a key role in the regulation of apoptosis and change in its expression can contribute to cancer. This study initially scheduled to determine the expression of bcl2 gene in tissue samples of adenocarcinoma cancer patients. Materials and Methods: A total of 10 samples of gastric adenocarcinoma and 10 of normal tissues from Sari hospital were selected and after DNA extraction from tissues, bcl2 gene expression assayed by real-time PCR. Results: Our results demonstrated higher expression of the bcl2 gene in control compared with cancer and marginal cancer tissues. Conclusions: On one hand BCL2 plays an important role as an oncogene to inhibit apoptosis; on the other hand, it can initiate cell cycle arrest at G0 stage. Our observed association between its expression and patient survival is quite conflicting and may be tissue-specific. The data suggest expression both tumoural and non-tumoral(marginal) groups have lowered expression than controls (P>0.05). Due to the low number of samples we could not examine the relationship with clinicopathological features. However, bcl-2 expression may be important for prognostic outcome or a useful target for therapeutic intervention.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.23
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• pp.10335-10337
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• 2015

Background: Gastric cancer is considered as the second most prevalent cancer in Iran. The present research sought to identify high risk clusters of gastric cancer with mapping using space-time scan statistics. Materials and Methods: The present research is of descriptive type. The required data were gathered from the registered cancer reports of Cancer Control Office in the Center for Non Communicable Disease of the Ministry of Health (MOH). The data were extracted at province level in the time span of 2004-9. Sat-Scan software was used to analyse the data and to identify high risk clusters. ArcGIS10 was utilized to map the distribution of gastric cancer and to demonstrate high risk clusters. Results: The most likely clusters were found in Ardabil, Gilan, Zanjan, East-Azerbaijan, Qazvin, West-Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, Hamadan, Tehran and Mazandaran between 2007 and 2009. It was statistically significant at the p-value below 0.05. Conclusions: High risk regions included Northern, West-North and central provinces, particularly Ardabil, Kurdistan, Mazandaran and Gilan. More screening tests are suggested to be conducted in high risk regions along with more frequent epidemiological studies to enact gastric cancer prevention programs.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.1261-1266
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• 2012

Introduction: HPV has been found repeatedly in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) tissues. However, reported detection rates of HPV DNA in these tumors have varied markedly. Differences in detection methods, sample types, and geographic regions of sample origin have been suggested as potential causes of variation. We have reported that infection of HPV DNA in ESCC tumors depends on anatomical sites of esophagus of the patients from Mazandaran, north of Iran. Materials and Methods: HPV DNA was examined in 46 upper, 69 middle and 62 lower third anatomical sites of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma specimens collected from Mazandaran province in north Iran, near the Caspian Littoral as a region with high incidence of ESCC. HPV L1 DNA was detected using Qualitative Real time PCR and MY09/MY11 primers. Results: 28.3% of upper, 29% of middle and 25.8% of lower third of ESCC samples were positive for HPV DNA. 13.6% for males and 14.1% for females were HPV positive in all samples. Conclusions: HPV infection is about one third of ESCC in this area. Findings in this study increase the possibility that HPV is involved in esophageal carcinogenesis. Further investigation with a larger sample size is necessary.