The Anarak, Jandaq and Posht-e-Badam metamorphic complexes in central Iran: New geological data, relationships and tectonic implications

The Anarak, Jandaq and Posht-e-Badam metamorphic complexes occupy the NW part of the Central-East Iranian Microcontinent and are juxtaposed with the Great Kavir block and Sanandaj-Sirjan zone. Our recent findings redefine the origin of these complexes, so far attributed to the Precambrian–Early Paleozoic orogenic episodes, and now directly related to the tectonic evolution of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean. This tectonic evolution was initiated by Late Ordovician–Early Devonian rifting events and terminated in the Triassic by the Eocimmerian collision event due to the docking of the Cimmerian blocks with the Asiatic Turan block.

The “Variscan accretionary complex” is a new name we proposed for the most widely distributed metamorphic rocks connected to the Anarak and Jandaq complexes. This accretionary complex exposed from SW of Jandaq to the Anarak and Kabudan areas is a thick and fine grain siliciclastic sequence accompanied by marginal-sea ophiolitic remnants, including gabbro-basalts with a supra-subduction-geochemical signature. New ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar ages are obtained as 333–320 Ma for the metamorphism of this sequence under greenschist to amphibolite facies. Moreover, the limy intercalations in the volcano-sedimentary part of this complex in Godar-e-Siah yielded Upper Devonian–Tournaisian conodonts. The northeastern part of this complex in the Jandaq area was intruded by 215 ± 15 Ma arc to collisional granite and pegmatites dated by ID-TIMS and its metamorphic rocks are characterized by some ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar radiometric ages of 163–156 Ma.

The “Variscan” accretionary complex was northwardly accreted to the Airekan granitic terrane dated at 549 ± 15 Ma. Later, from the Late Carboniferous to Triassic, huge amounts of oceanic material were accreted to its southern side and penetrated by several seamounts such as the Anarak and Kabudan. This new period of accretion is supported by the 280–230 Ma ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar ages for the Anarak mild high-pressure metamorphic rocks and a 262 Ma U–Pb age for the trondhjemite–rhyolite association of that area. The Triassic Bayazeh flysch filled the foreland basin during the final closure of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean and was partly deposited and/or thrusted onto the Cimmerian Yazd block.

The Paleo-Tethys magmatic arc products have been well-preserved in the Late Devonian–Carboniferous Godar-e-Siah intra-arc deposits and the Triassic Nakhlak fore-arc succession. On the passive margin of the Cimmerian block, in the Yazd region, the nearly continuous Upper Paleozoic platform-type deposition was totally interrupted during the Middle to Late Triassic. Local erosion, down to Lower Paleozoic levels, may be related to flexural bulge erosion. The platform was finally unconformably covered by Liassic continental molassic deposits of the Shemshak.

One of the extensional periods related to Neo-Tethyan back-arc rifting in Late Cretaceous time finally separated parts of the Eocimmerian collisional domain from the Eurasian Turan domain. The opening and closing of this new ocean, characterized by the Nain and Sabzevar ophiolitic mélanges, finally transported the Anarak–Jandaq composite terrane to Central Iran, accompanied by large scale rotation of the Central-East Iranian Microcontinent (CEIM). Due to many similarities between the Posht-e-Badam metamorphic complex and the Anarak–Jandaq composite terrane, the former could be part of the latter, if it was transported further south during Tertiary time.     

Chemical characteristics of groundwater in parts of mountainous region, Alvand, Hamadan, Iran

Eighty-seven groundwater samples have been collected from a mountainous region (Alvand, Iran) for hydrochemical investigations to understand the sources of dissolved ions and assess the chemical quality of the groundwater. Most water quality parameters are within World Health Organization acceptable limits set for drinking water. The least mineralized water is found closest to the main recharge zones and the salinity of water increased towards the north of the basin. The most prevalent water type is Ca–HCO₃ followed by water types Ca–NO₃, Ca–Cl, Ca–SO₄ and Mg–HCO₃. The Ca–NO₃ water type is associated with high nitrate pollution. Agricultural and industrial activities were associated with elevated level of NO₃⁻. Mineral dissolution/weathering of evaporites dominates the major element hydrochemistry of the area. Chemical properties of groundwater in Alvand region are controlled both by natural geochemical processes and anthropogenic activities.     

Isolation, distribution and evaluation of cytotoxic and antioxidant activity of cultivable actinobacteria from the Oman Sea sediments

Screening bioactive natural products from bacteria is a determinative step in the drug discovery programs. The present study aim to isolate actinobacteria from the Oman Sea sediments for determining the effects of different culture media and treatments on the yield of the isolation process, and measure the DPPH radical scavenging and Artemia cytotoxic activity of culture extracts of the actinobacterial isolates. A total of 290 actinobacterial isolates were collected from 14 sediment samples. Heat treatment(40.68%) and M_4 medium(29.31%) exhibited the maximum isolation rates of actinobacteria. Streptomyces isolates were dominantly distributed in all of the investigated stations according to 16 S rRNA gene sequencing. The distribution pattern of Streptomyces followed a depth-dependent frequency trend, whereas the members of rare genera including Micromonospora, Nocardia Actinoplanes, Nocardiopsis, Saccharopolyspora and Crossiella were distributed in deeper stations. Approximately,25% of the examined isolates could scavenge 90% of 10~(–4) mol/L DPPH solutions at 1 250 μg/mL final concentration of their ethyl acetate culture extracts. Furthermore, the most potent extracts could scavenge DPPH radicals with IC50 ranges from 356.8 to 566.4 μg/mL. Brine shrimp cytotoxicity tests showed that 38.88% of the examined culture extracts exhibited LC_(50) lower than 1 000 μg/mL against the Artemia cells. Moreover, the most potent culture extracts exhibited LC_(50) range from 335.4 to 534.4 μg/mL. Phylogenetic analysis by 16 S rRNA gene sequence revealed that the OS 005, OS 263 and OS 157 closely related to Streptomyces djakartensis, Streptomyces olivaceus and Nocardiopsis dassonvillei respectively. These results suggested the widespread distribution of the antioxidant and cytotoxic producing actinobacteria in the Oman Sea sediments, which could be considered as promising candidates for the discovery of microbial bioactive compounds.     

Investigation of rangeland indicator species using parametric and non-parametric methods in hilly landscapes of central Iran

This study aimed to identify indicator species and explore the most important environmental and management variables contributing to vegetation distribution in a hilly upper dam landscape in Zagros Mountain chain, Iran. A stratified random sampling method was used to collect topographic, edaphic, management and vegetation data. The density and cover percentage of perennial species were measured quantitatively. Indicator species were identified using the two-way indicator species analysis. Besides calculating physiognomic factors in sample sites, 24 soil samples were collected from 0 to 30 cm of soil depth and analyzed in terms of gravel percentage, texture, saturation moisture, organic matter, pH and electrical conductivity in saturation extract, lime percentage, soluble calcium and magnesium, available phosphorus, Cation Exchange Capacity(CEC) and soluble sodium and potassium. Multivariate techniques including Canonical Correspondence Analysis and Multi-Dimensional Scaling were used to explore the relationships of species with environmental and management variables. Seven plants were identified as indicator species due to being significantly correlated with management(grazing or non-grazing) and edaphic variables such as CEC, soil texture, pH, CaCO_3 percentage and physiographic variable including slope, elevation, and convex and concave formations(p 0.05). Overall, overgrazing and its subsequent effects on soil characteristics, loss of vegetation cover and trampling were found as the major causes of deterioration. Sustainable and integrated management practices such as the implementation of appropriate grazing systems were suggested to enhance soil quality and reduce the accelerated erosion in upper dam zones.     

Integrating cellular automata,artificial neural network,and fuzzy set theory to simulate threatened orchards: application to Maragheh,Iran

Urbanization processes challenge the growth of orchards in many cities in Iran. In Maragheh, orchards are crucial ecological, economical, and tourist sources. To explore orchards threatened by urban expansion, this study first aims to develop a new model by coupling cellular automata (CA) and artificial neural network with fuzzy set theory (CA–ANN–Fuzzy). While fuzzy set theory captures the uncertainty associated with transition rules, the ANN considers spatial and temporal nonlinearities of the driving forces underlying the urban growth processes. Second, the CA–ANN–Fuzzy model is compared with two existing approaches, namely a basic CA and a CA coupled with an ANN (CA–ANN). Third, we quantify the amount of orchard loss during the last three decades as well as for the upcoming years up to 2025. Results show that CA–ANN–Fuzzy with 83% kappa coefficient performs significantly better than conventional CA (with 51% kappa coefficient) and CA–ANN (with 79% kappa coefficient) models in simulating orchard loss. The historical data shows a considerable loss of 26% during the last three decades, while the CA–ANN–Fuzzy simulation reveals a considerable future loss of 7% of Maragheh’s orchards in 2025 due to urbanization. These areas require special attention and must be protected by the local government and decision-makers.     

Histopathological effects of waterborne silver nanoparticles and silver salt on the gills and liver of goldfish <Emphasis Type="Italic">Carassius</Emphasis><Emphasis Type="Italic">auratus</Emphasis>

This study aimed to compare histopathological effect of waterborne silver nanoparticles and silver salt (AgNO₃) on the gills and liver of Carassius auratus. Therefore, one hundred and five live specimens of goldfish were obtained and treated in five aquariums with 0, 0.01, 0.025, 0.05, and 0.1 ppm of AgNO₃ and 0, 0.1, 0.5, 1, and 5 ppm of Ag nanoparticles (mean particle size of 5 nm). Fish were sampled after 14 days of exposure. Results showed that the kinds of pathologies observed with Ag NPs were broadly of the same type as AgNO₃ including hyperplasia, edema and lifting of the gill epithelium, and lamellar fusion of the gills, and hemosiderosis, hemorrhage, hydropic swelling, and pyknotic nuclei of the liver. Overall, the data showed that although Ag nanoparticles and AgNO₃ pathology were similar, but Ag nanoparticles caused less injury than AgNO₃ in the gills and liver of goldfish. Therefore, it is more proper to use nanoform of Ag in industrials.     

Prediction of water inflow to mechanized tunnels during tunnel-boring-machine advance using numerical simulation

An accurate estimate of the groundwater inflow to a tunnel is one of the most challenging but essential tasks in tunnel design and construction. Most of the numerical or analytical solutions that have been developed ignore tunnel seepage conditions, material properties and hydraulic-head changes along the tunnel route during the excavation process, leading to inaccurate prediction of inflow rates. A method is introduced that uses MODFLOW code of GMS software to predict inflow rate as the tunnel boring machine (TBM) gradually advances. In this method, the tunnel boundary condition is conceptualized and defined using Drain package, which is simulated by dividing the drilling process into a series of successive intervals based on the tunnel excavation rates. In addition, the drain elevations are specified as the respective tunnel elevations, and the conductance parameters are assigned to intervals, depending on the TBM type and the tunnel seepage condition. The Qomroud water conveyance tunnel, located in Lorestan province of Iran, is 36 km in length. Since the Qomroud tunnel involved groundwater inrush during excavating, it is considered as a good case study to evaluate the presented method. The groundwater inflow to this tunnel during the TBM advance is simulated using the proposed method and the predicted rates are compared with observed rates. The results show that the presented method can satisfactorily predict the inflow rates as the TBM advances.