PRIMARY EDUCATION IN TABRIZ CITY DURING THE GAJARS PERIOD

Education was of religious character with schools and madrasahs in Tabriz, as in all Muslim cities during the Middle Ages and was based on the methodology of religious tenets. This type of education system dates back to the early years of Islam and was yet ongoing during its research period. Schools provided primary spiritual education, whereas madrasahs provided high religious education. The first madrasah in Iran was established in Tabriz. Literacy was taught and basic rules and regulations were applied at schools. They operated mainly within the mosques and the classes were held in zaviya (madrasah) and cell. The mosques performed numerous functions. They were not only places of worship (practicing namaz, listening to preaching, etc.), but also the place where Sharia laws are studied and propagated; holy war and peace declared; spoils of war are distributed; letters sent to the authorities; funerals held and where the other work was done.

Antibiotic Resistance Pattern and Prevalence of blaOXA-51, blaNDM, blaVIM, blaPER, blaVEB, blaCTX, tetA and tetB Genes in Acinetobacter baumannii Isolated from Clinical Specimens of Hospitals in Tabriz city, Iran

Background: Nowadays, the resistance of pathogenic bacteria to antibiotics has become a global problem. Acinetobacter baumannii is an important opportunistic nosocomial pathogen. Acinetobacter baumannii plays a significant role in antibiotic resistance. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of the blaOXA-51, blaNDM, blaVIM, blaPER, blaVEB, blaCTX-M, tetA and tetB genes and antibiotic resistance pattern of A. baumannii isolated from hospitals in Tabriz city, Iran. Methods: This study was descriptive cross-sectional research, performed on 129 isolates of Acinetobacter from different clinical specimens. The Isolates were identified using standard laboratory methods and culture in selective mediums. The antibiotic resistance pattern of isolates was also determined by the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion susceptibility test. Phenotypic and genotypic detection of blaOXA-51, blaNDM, blaVIM, blaPER, blaVEB, blaCTX-M, tetA and tetB genes in the isolates was carried out by a combined disk test (CDT) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR), respectively. Results: The highest resistance of isolates was determined to cefotaxime (100%) and ceftazidime (100%). The results of CDT showed that 14 (12.96%) isolates could produce extended-spectrum Beta-lactamases (ESBLs). However, the PCR results blaOXA-51, blaNDM, blaVIM, blaPER, blaVEB, blaCTX-M, tetA and tetB genes showed that these genes were in 100%, 18.51%, 16.66%, 32.40%, 16.66%, 31.48%, 32.40% and 21.29% of isolates, respectively. Conclusions: Due to the high prevalence of antimicrobial resistance in strains, rapid and timely detection of antibiotic-resistant A. baumannii strains is necessary for the selection of an appropriate therapeutic approach and prevention of their prevalence.

Earthquake Vulnerability Assessment for Urban Areas Using an ANN and Hybrid SWOT-QSPM Model

Tabriz city in NW Iran is a seismic-prone province with recurring devastating earthquakes that have resulted in heavy casualties and damages. This research developed a new computational framework to investigate four main dimensions of vulnerability (environmental, social, economic and physical). An Artificial Neural Network (ANN) Model and a SWOT-Quantitative Strategic Planning Matrix (QSPM) were applied. Firstly, a literature review was performed to explore indicators with significant impact on aforementioned dimensions of vulnerability to earthquakes. Next, the twenty identified indicators were analyzed in ArcGIS, a geographic information system (GIS) software, to map earthquake vulnerability. After classification and reclassification of the layers, standardized maps were presented as input to a Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) and Self-Organizing Map (SOM) neural network. The resulting Earthquake Vulnerability Maps (EVMs) showed five categories of vulnerability ranging from very high, to high, moderate, low and very low. Accordingly, out of the nine municipality zones in Tabriz city, Zone one was rated as the most vulnerable to earthquakes while Zone seven was rated as the least vulnerable. Vulnerability to earthquakes of residential buildings was also identified. To validate the results data were compared between a Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) and a Self-Organizing Map (SOM). The scatter plots showed strong correlations between the vulnerability ratings of the different zones achieved by the SOM and MLP. Finally, the hybrid SWOT-QSPM paradigm was proposed to identify and evaluate strategies for hazard mitigation of the most vulnerable zone. For hazard mitigation in this zone we recommend to diligently account for environmental phenomena in designing and locating of sites. The findings are useful for decision makers and government authorities to reconsider current natural disaster management strategies.

Antibiotic resistance pattern and frequency of cagA and vacA genes in Helicobacter pylori strains isolated from patients in Tabriz city, Iran

Objective Helicobacter pylori is one of the most common causes of gastric infections in humans. It is estimated that approximately 50% of people around the world are infected with this bacterium. This study aimed to determine the antibiotic resistance pattern, as well as the frequency of cagA and vacA genes in H. pylori isolates obtained from patients in the clinical centers in Tabriz city, Iran. Results The culture method detected 100 (45.25%) H. pylori isolates from 221 biopsy samples during 3 years. The results showed that 63% and 81% of the isolates were positive for cagA and vacA genes, respectively. The highest resistance of isolates was seen against metronidazole (79%) and amoxicillin (36%), respectively. Also, the isolates showed the least resistance to tetracycline (8%).

Triggering of the 2012 Ahar-Varzaghan earthquake doublet (Mw6.5&6.3) by the Sahand Volcano and North Tabriz fault (NW-Iran); Implications on the seismic hazard of Tabriz city

<div><span>Seismic history of the North Tabriz fault (NTF), the main active fault of Northwestern Iran near Tabriz city, and its relation to the Sahand active Volcano (SND), the second high mountain of the NW Iran, and to the 11 August 2012 Ahar-Varzaghan earthquake doublet (Mw6.5&6.3) (AVD), is investigated. I infer that before AVD seismicity of the central segment of NTF close to SND was very low compared to its neighbor segments. Magmatic activities and thermal springs near central NTF close to Bostan-Abad city and low-velocity anomalies reported beneath SND toward NTF in tomography studies suggest that the existing heat due to SND magma chamber has increased the pore-fluid pressure that overcomes the effective normal stress on the central NTF, resulting in its creep behaviour. Two peaks of cumulative scalar seismic moments of earthquakes observed on both lobes of the creeping segment, confirming the strong difference in the deformation rate between these segments. On 2012, AVD struck in the 50 km North of NTF, in the same longitude range to SND and with the same right-lateral strike-slip mechanism to NTF, as a result of partial transfer of the right-lateral deformation of NW Iran toward the North of NTF on the Ahar-Varzaghan fault system. A cumulative aseismic slip equal to an Mw6.8 event is estimated for the creeping segment of NTF, posing half of the 7mmy-1 geodetic deformation has happened in the creep mode. This event has transferred a positive Coulomb stress field of >1 bar on the AVD and triggered them. Also, the western and eastern NTF segments received >4 bar of positive Coulomb stresses from the creeping segment and are probable nucleation locations for future earthquakes on NTF. The observed creep may be the reason for the NTF segmentation during the 1721AD M7.6 and 1780 AD M7.4 historical earthquakes.</span></div>