فهرست مطالب منوچهر نصری

This work aimed to investigate the morphological diversity of five species of the genus  Ponticola viz. P. syrian, P. group, P. ironic, P. primary, and P. hircaniaensis (Gobiidae). For this purpose, the specimens of the studied species were sampled from different stations in the rivers of the southern basin of the Caspian Sea in the provinces of Guilan, Golestan, and Mazandaran, and a total of 20 morphometric characteristics were measured. Then, the morphological characteristics after standardization were compared using PCA, Kruskal-Wallis, and CVA analyses. Based on the results, all characteristics showed significant differences. The studied species, except P. iranicus and P. hircaniaensis, were discriminated from each other, and the most important discriminative characters were the height of the second dorsal fin, preanal length, the length of the pectoral fin, the length of the caudal peduncle, the pre dorsal length, ventral fin length, and head length. The members of the genus Ponticola are similar in terms of morphological traits; hence, it is suggested that the whole traditional morphometric characters in a PCA analysis and molecular data be used to discriminate the species in this genus.

This work aimed to compare hybrid and non-hybrid populations of Hircanian goby (Ponticola hircaniaensis) from two rivers, Kabudval and Shirabad, Golestan Province, respectively. For this purpose, 20 morphometric characteristics were measured. To reveal the morphological differences between the studied populations, the morphological characteristics after standardization were analyzed using Discriminant Function Analysis (DFA) and Non-parametric Multivariate Analysis of Variance (NPMNOVA) based on the P-value obtained from the permutation test with 1000 repetitions. The results of Kruskal-Wallis's test showed that out of 20 morphometric characteristics, 11 traits significantly differ between the two populations. Also, the results of DFA analysis based on the permutation test with 1000 repetitions showed a significant difference in morphology between the two populations of Kabudval and Shirabad rivers (P = 0.048). Since the habitat conditions of the two rivers, Kabudval and Shirabad, both forest streams, are almost identical, the morphological difference between these two populations of Hircanian goby can probably be due to the genetic difference due to hybridization.

To determine the biological diversity of the fishes of the Eyvashan River, between the Eyvashan Dam and the connection to the Kahman River branch, sampling operations were carried out during autumn and winter. In this study, 872 pieces of fish belonging to 5 families, 17 genera, and 20 species were caught using castanet, and electrofishing. 8 species were exotic that entered this river mainly due to aquaculture activities, and 12 species were native. There is no statistical information on warm-water exotic fishes. According to the descriptive statistics of fishing, the highest relative frequency belongs to the Alburnus caeruleus (21.58%), Cyprinion macrostomum (14.12%), Alburnoides nicolausi (14.12%), and Capoeta aculeata  (12.74%), and the lowest frequency The ratio was related to Pseudorasbora parva (0.11%), Oncorhynchus mykiss (0.11%), Carassius auratus  (0.22%) and Mastacembelus mastacembelus (0.22%). Ten species were evaluated with economic value, 8 species with sport fishing value, and 7 species with ornamental value.

The relationships between sagittal otolith dimensions and fish sizes are estimated for Silver Sillago (Sillago sihama) from the Persian Gulf. Three dimensions of the otolith (length, width and weight) were shown to be suitable factors for prediction of the length and weight of fish in this species based on calculated coefficients of determination values in linear and exponential regression relationships (r2>0.76). There were no significant variations observed between the sizes of the left and right otoliths. The provided data will be useful for estimating fish size based on remnant otoliths in related studies in the Persian Gulf.

In the present study, interspecific morphological diversity and sexual dimorphism of Iranocichla spp. and their distinctness were investigated using the geometric morphometrics method in the water bodies of the Hormozgan Province, Iran. In this regard, 286 specimens of Iranian cichlids were collected from the Mehran, Rasoul, Shoor, and Khoor-e-Goor hot stream and transported to the laboratory. The geometric shapes of the fish were digitized using 17 landmark points and the data were analyzed after removing non-shape data. According to the results, the fishes of Mehran River showed deeper caudal peduncle, higher caudal-fine base, and longer body expressing their adaptation to lentic conditions. Fishes living in pool environments in Khoor-e-Goor have a shorter snout and deeper body showing adaptive phenotypic plasticity to lotic conditions. On the other hand, the fishes of Rasoul and Shoor rivers revealed common traits with other groups showing some morphological adaptations to lotic conditions during rainfall seasons and lentic conditions in dray seasons with rigid selective pressures. Sexual dimorphism of Khoor-e-Goor and Rasoul taxa in head traits may be related to mouth-breeding function in females that need a bigger buccal cavity. Finally, the observed differences between the studied groups can be related to ongoing adaptive phenotypic plasticity to the selective environmental pressures.

Human activities are the main cause of river pollution that continuously affect the water quality of the rivers. In this study, the population structure of macroinvertebrates was investigated as a biological indicator for water quality in the Khorram-rud River. For this purpose, a number of 4 stations were selected and some physicochemical parameters along with macroinvertebrates sampling were done monthly for 12 months (December 2018- November 2019) in each station. Totally 26 families in 14 orders of macroinvertebrates with the domination of families Chironomidae, Baetidae, and Tricorythidae, respectively were found. The results of physicochemical factors showed that the lowest and highest water temperatures recorded were 8.66 ± 0.57 in December and 23.66 ± 0.57 in July, respectively, the maximum average dissolved oxygen in March 5.83 ± 0.28 mg/l  in the station (1), and the minimum was 0/00 mg/l in a station(4). pH value recorded with a minimum of 6 ± 0.86 in January and a maximum of 8 ± 0/00 in June. The average change of nitrite in different stations showed a slight fluctuation but was higher than the allowable limit in all stations. The highest amount of nitrate in a station (3) in June was 36.66 ± 5.77 and the lowest in a station (1) in December recorded as 2 ± 0/00 mg/l. The seasonal variations in density of macroinvertebrates indicate the maximum density in autumn and the minimum density in winter. The results based on (BMWP, ASPT) and richness and diversity indices (Shannon-Weiner, Margalef) indicated that the Khorram-rud river water is in the contaminated water class.

In an investigation of the effects of the effluent of fish farms on the water quality of the Marbor River in Isfahan province based on biological indicators, some cases of infection of macrobenthos with horsehair worms (Nematomorpha: Gordiidae) were observed. About 76% of the observed worms were observed to leave their hosts. the horsehair worms were identified in only three families of aquatic insects, including Hydropsychidae, Limoniidae, and Chironomidae. About 24% of the observations were free living worms in the sediments. The highest and the lowest frequencies of observations were recorded in spring (47.7%) and autumn (0.92%), respectively. The seasonal abundance of free-living mature and fertile worms was a coincidence with increasing the reproductive activities of aquatic insects. Aaccordingly, it can be concluded that the ecological rules enforced such a simultaneous phenomenon to ensure that the worm larvae can find a proper host.

Due to the presence of taxonomic ambiguity regarding Petroleuciscus ulanus and Alburnus atropatenae and the tendency to treat them as synonyms of each other, this study was conducted to validate these two species by comparing their morphometric and meristic characters in the Mahabad-Chai River, Urmia Lake basin. A total of 64 specimens of P. ulanus and 68 specimens of A. atropatenae were sampled and were then investigated for 17 morphometric and 7 meristic characters. Measurements were standardized to eliminate the effects of size due to allometric growth pattern, then their normality and abnormality were examined. Standardized data were analyzed using t-test, Mann-Whitney, principal component analysis (PCA) and discriminative function analysis based on P-value of Hotelling's t-test (DFA/Hotelling's T-test) methods. The results showed that the two species were significantly different in 11 morphometric and 2 meristic traits (P<0.05). DFA analysis also showed significance differences between the two studied species. Our results refute the synonymy hypothesis of Petroleuciscus ulanus and Alburnus atropatenae on the basis of morphometric and meristic traits. Therefore, based on the results of this study, the taxonomic identities of these two species are valid.

In order to investigate phenotypic abnormality in Khorram-rud River in Lorestan province in Iran, 1982 specimens including 13 species were caught. For this purpose, 8 sites were chosen on Khorram-rud River in Khorramabad city from 10 Km upstream to 10 km downstream of the city. Fish were caught using a cast net. Most of the sampled fish were returned to the river if there were no phenotypic abnormalities. A total of 21 cases of phenotypic abnormalities were observed among Capoeta aculeata, while no cases of phenotypic abnormalities were observed among other species. The observed phenotypic abnormalities in this study can be classified into three general categories including Caudal Deformity Syndrome, semi-operculum, and unidentified tissue lesions. Finally, due to the entrance of various urban, industrial, and agricultural pollutants into the Khorram-rud River and the high frequency of phenotypical abnormalities in C. aculeata, this fish can be proposed as a biological indicator for water pollution monitoring in the Khorram-rud River.

Dinor River is one of the tributaries leading to Gamasiab River in Tigris river drainage and one of the habitat of Kermanshah stone loach (Sasanidus kermanshahensis). The river has been affected by human activities such as agriculture. In this study, a total of 168 specimens were collected from 21 stations of Dinor River for the study of Kermanshah stone loach’s habitat suability index. For this purpose, the river characteristics, including water velocity (m/s), water depth (cm), altitude (m), river width (m), bedrock index, and average bedrock diameter (cm) were recorded at each station. The habitat suitability index was examined according to the relationship between environmental variables and species abundance. The results showed that river width and water velocity are directly related and altitude, water depth, and bed index were inversely related to the abundance of S. kermanshahensis. The HSI index with a value of 0.497 showed that this river has moderate suitability for this species. Also, the results indicated that the selected habitat of S. kermanshahensis includes areas with high water velocity due to the need for adequate oxygen, sand-mud bed, high width, low altitude, and shallow depth. The findings can be used to manage and protect the reserves of this species, which is part of the country's natural heritage..

This study was conducted to investigate the morphological variation of Planiliza abu in the Tireh (Tigris Basin), Kor (Kor River Basin) and Jegin (Hormozgan Basin) rivers using traditional (TM) and geometric morphometric (GM) methods. For this purpose, a total of 62 specimens were collected using electrofishing device and Salik net. In the Lab, 21 morphometric traits were measured. Then, to extract the morphological data in the geometric method, 16 landmark-points were defined and digitized on the photographs taken from the left side of fish using tpsDig2 software. The results showed that the studied populations had significant differences in 7 morphometric traits (P<0.05). The differences in the geometric method were those of the head size, body depth, pectoral fin position and caudal peduncle length. Based on the results, GM method showed higher accuracy to reveal the morphological variations in the generalist species of Planiliza abu, which can inhabit a wide range of habitats.

To study the morphological variation of Capoeta saadii, 15 specimens from Maharlu River (Maharlu lake basin), 15 from Shapour River (Persis basin) and 15 from Kor River (Kor river basin) were collected. In the Lab, a total of 20 morphometric traits were measured using a digital caliper. Then, standardized data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA analysis, Duncan grouping, principal component analysis (PCA), and canonical variate analysis (CVA) with p-value obtained from NPMANOVA and cluster analysis (CA). The results showed that the studied populations were significantly different in 8 morphometric traits (P<0.05). Body depth was the most effective character to discriminate the studied populations. Cluster analysis also separated the Shapour population from others.

This study was conducted to understand the morphological variation of four populations of Schizothorax pelzami from Iranian inland waters. For this purpose, a total of 81 specimens were collected from the Bidvaz, Cheshmeh-Ali, Kalat and Aal rivers. After anesthesia, all specimens were fixed into buffered formalin and transferred to the laboratory. Then, the left sides of all individuals were photographed. To extract the body shape data, 14 landmarks-points were defined and digitized on 2D image using TpsDig2 software. To eliminate size, direction and position from data, the Generalized Procrustes Analysis (GPA) was performed. Then, PCA, MANOVA/CVA and cluster analysis were used for further investigation. The results showed that there was no significant difference but some overlapping among the studied populations on the basis of PCA analysis was observed. The CVA graph separated the studied populations from on another. The main differences in body shape of the studied populations were related to the position of the snout, the depth of head and body, and the length of caudal peduncle. The observed changes can be considered to be an adaptation to their habitat, which has been influenced by different environmental parameters.

Soil salinity and shallow and saline groundwater have been made subsurface drainage and drainage effluents to be inevitable in irrigated lands of south of Khuzestan. Due to the development of irrigation and drainage networks (IDN) in the southwest of Khuzestan (with an area of 340,000 hectares), it is necessary to study integrated agricultural drainage management in all area. Drainage management is depending on its quality and quantity (Q & Q), which are changing continuously. Therefore, a model for predicting drainage water Q & Q in the operation period of IDNs was developed and validated using 25 hectares' research field. Predicted drainage water salinity of the IDNs was used to make the decision for reusing or disposing options. Based on the predictions made by this model, the quality of drainage water from the plans of the southern Karkheh basin and western Karoon, with the exception of sugarcane cultivations, is not suitable for at least 10 years to cultivate salt-tolerant plants and their disposal is inevitable. In case of drainage water with better quality, it could be reused for irrigation of salt-tolerant crops and forestation to prevent dust storms. Drainage transportation to the Persian Gulf is proposed to have the least hazard to the environment. In the present study, the content of phosphorus and nitrogen in drainage water was measured to be 0.043-0.70 and 2.2-22 mg/L respectively, which showed a much higher amount of nitrogen than Mahshahr bay (discharge point). Although drainage disposal into the Persian Gulf seems to release high levels of nitrogen, however, due to low phosphorus content in these drainage waters, additional nitrogen cannot be entered in the production cycle and does not result utrification.

Soil salinity and shallow and saline groundwater have been made subsurface drainage and drainage effluents to be inevitable in irrigated lands of south of Khuzestan. Due to the development of irrigation and drainage networks (IDN) in the southwest of Khuzestan (with an area of 340,000 hectares), it is necessary to study integrated agricultural drainage management in all area. Drainage management is depending on its quality and quantity (Q & Q), which are changing continuously. Therefore, a model for predicting drainage water Q & Q in the operation period of IDNs was developed and validated using 25 hectares' research field. Predicted drainage water salinity of the IDNs was used to make the decision for reusing or disposing options. Based on the predictions made by this model, the quality of drainage water from the plans of the southern Karkheh basin and western Karoon, with the exception of sugarcane cultivations, is not suitable for at least 10 years to cultivate salt-tolerant plants and their disposal is inevitable. In case of drainage water with better quality, it could be reused for irrigation of salt-tolerant crops and forestation to prevent dust storms. Drainage transportation to the Persian Gulf is proposed to have the least hazard to the environment. In the present study, the content of phosphorus and nitrogen in drainage water was measured to be 0.043-0.70 and 2.2-22 mg/L respectively, which showed a much higher amount of nitrogen than Mahshahr bay (discharge point). Although drainage disposal into the Persian Gulf seems to release high levels of nitrogen, however, due to low phosphorus content in these drainage waters, additional nitrogen cannot be entered in the production cycle and does not result utrification.

In order to investigate the differences in the shape of the big-head and two morphotypes of Phytophagous fish by geometric morphometric technique, 30 samples of each group, with a mean standard length of 25 ± 3 cm, were prepared. After fish were anesthetized by 1% Clove powder extract and stabilized in formalin buffer 4%, 6-megapixel digital images of the left profile of the specimens were prepared. A total of 17 morphological landmarks were digitized by tpsDig2 software and the tps files were prepared. All non-shaped data were removed from landmark coordinates by generalized procrustes analysis. After the approval of regression between shape space and tangent space, data were analyzed using Principal Component (PCA), Canonical Variation (CVA) and Cluster Analyzes (CA) methods in PAST and TPS series. According to the results, the head length and height, the size of dorsal fin, the length of pre ventral distance, the height of caudal peduncle and the degree of posterior position of the pectoral fin in bighead carp, are some of the distinctive morphological features among species, mainly related to their ecological niche (specially feeding strategies). In the case of silver carp variants, the posterior position of pectoral fin base in silver carp-R that is close to bighead carp, may be due to hybridization between bighead carp and silver carps.

The positive effects of garlic on diabetes and its complications are known. Zinc also has beneficial therapeutic effects on diabetes in diabetic animals and humans. The aim of this study was to evaluate the therapeutic effect of combination of garlic flower extract and zinc sulfate on hematocrit in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. Twenty-one adult male Wistar rats were divided into 3 groups (n=7). Which include: Sham group that received usual water and food for 45 days and were injected normal saline on first day of beginning of this time period Positive control group (diabetic) which they received usual food and water during 45 days and they were injected streptozotocin (STZ) at a dose 40mg/kg (intraperitoneal injection) on first day of beginning of this time period. The treated group with garlic flower extract + zinc sulfate, immediately after receiving STZ and ensuring of their diabetes they were treated with garlic extract of 360 mg/Lit and zinc sulfate at a concentration of 36 mg/Lit in drinking water during 45-day period. The hematocrits were measured automatically, using Diatron device, model ABACUS-c (Austria). Hematocrit in the treated group, which received the hydroalcoholic extract of garlic flower and zinc sulfate in combination, showed a significant increase compared to control (p<0.001). The results indicated that the combination of garlic flower extract and zinc sulfate in drinkable water were could increase hematocrit in rats with induced diabetes.

Morphological variation among Cyprinion species in Iran was studied using landmark-based geometric morphometrics. A total of 848 specimens were caught from five basins throughout Iran during 2013-2015. A total number of 15 landmark-points were defined and digitized on 2D pictures. Despite of intraspecific differences among Cyprinion fishes, CVA divided all populations into three major groups viz. C. macrostomum, C. kais and C. tenuiradius (group X), C. watsoni and C. microphthalmum (group Y) and C. milesi (group Z). According to the results, C. macrostomum group can be distinguished from other groups by having deeper body, least head length and depth, the longest dorsal-fin base and least caudal peduncle length. Cyprinion milesi has the longest anal-fin base, least body depth, deepest caudal peduncle and longest head. Cyprinion watsoni has the longest caudal peduncle and least dorsal-fin base and C. microphthalmum is distinguished by having the least caudal peduncle length and depth. The main reasons of observed intraspecies morphological diversity among the fishes is proposed to be some phenotypic plasticity related to climatic and zoogeographical factors. The results suggest that the most possible factor influencing morphological variations among Iranian Cyprinion species is habitat related differences.

The morphological comparison of five populations of Mosul bleak (Alburnus mossulensis Heckel, 1843) was done using Elliptic Fourier analysis. For this porpose a total of 219 specimens were caught from Tigris basin (Gamasiab, Karoon, Kashkan, Khersan and Sepidbarg Rivers) using electrofishing. The fish were photographed from left sides using a digital camera and the outline curve was digitized using TpsDig2 software and resampled to 150 equal distanced landmarks. The outline curveswere converted to a readable file format for EPA analysis using EFAWIN software and EFA analysis was done opting 17 shape harmonics with 2 constants and four coefficients per harmonic and non-shapeddata were removed usin general Procrustes analysis. The principal component analysis (PCA) and Manova/CVA were used for morphological comparison in PAST software. The results showed significant shape differences between populations but Sepidbarg population (p

The sexual dimorphism of Rikoo goby (Glossogobius giuris) were investigated on 60 specimens (30 males and 30 females) sampled from Bahoo-Kalat River in Sistan and Baluchestan Province using electrofishing during summer 2014. The specimens were transported to the ichthyological laboratory of Tehran University. For morphological analysis, 22 morphometric and 5 meristic characters were investigated. The statistical analysis revealed morphological variation among specimens (specially: numbers of the first dorsal fin unbranched rays, numbers of the second dorsal fin branched rays and anal fin branched rays) were more than that of previous reports. The observed results can be a sign of the intraspecific polymorphism. The results of the discriminate function analyzed (DFA) and Permutation test (PT) for morphometric characters and Correspondence Analysis (CA) for meristic characters revealed that there are a wide morphological overlap among sexes and there is no reveal sexual dimorphism among our specimens at least based on our used characters.

The phylogenetic analysis of the members of the genus Rutilus from the southern Caspian Sea was analyzed based on the osteological characteristics. For this purpose, three population of Roach from Bandar-e Turkman, Shalmanrood River and Aras River (each 10 specimens) as in-group and 10 specimens of Kutum fish (Rutilus kutum) were used as out-group. The fish were stained and cleaned according to standard methods for osteological examination based on direct observation. Phylogenetic analysis was performed based on 24 osteological character states and the phylogenetic tree was constructed based on maximum parsimony algorithm using TNT software. The results showed the monophyly of the three Roach populations. The Turkman population with 7 automorphic characters was the plesiomorphic (65% bootstrap number) and the other two Roach groups formed sister taxa. The osteological differences of the Aras population compared to other populations of the Caspian Sea maybe due Phenotype plasticity corresponding to their environmental factors. Based on similarities observed between R. rutilus and R. caspicus from the Kura, it can be proposed that they belong to same species. Also it can be proposed that the R. caspicus from Turkman may be a distinct taxon.

In order to estimate the length- weight relationships and variations in the morphological straits of Aphanius vladykovi¡ 60 samples were caught from Madar-Dokhtar (mean standard Length: 32.71±4.01) and Ordoval springs (mean standard length: 30.72±3.92)¡ during the fall season (30 specimens for each location). The growth pattern in Gandoman was negative allometric for both males (b=2.06) and females (b=2.53)¡ while in Naghneh the growth pattern was Isometric and positive allometric for males (b=3.20) and females (b=3.46)¡ respectively. The condition factor value (CF) indicated the better nutritional conditions in Gandoman compared to Naghneh (P

To evaluate the feasibility of using the shape of neurocranium in identifying the species of the genus Cyprinion by geometric morphometric technique, 30 specimens of five Iranian species were caught. For this purpose, 17 homologues landmark points were defined and digitized on 2D pictures taken from the dorsal view of their neurocranium. The data (coordinates of the landmarks) were analyzed according to Principal Component Analysis (PCA), Canonical Variate Analysis (CVA) and Cluster Analysis (CA) using MorphoJ and PAST soft wares. The statistical analyses could discriminate five species according to the shape of neurocranium. The key characters that can be used to describe species are the following: C. kais bears the least cranial width at lateral ethmoid region, the least narrowing at mediolateral neurocranium and the least distance between anterior to posterior connection point of palatines. C. macrostomum possesses the least supraethmoid width and there is a notch in its anterior most border and also has the most distance between the anterior to posterior connection points of the palatines. C. milesi has the narrowest and more elongated neurocranium among Iranian Cyprinion genera, and has the narrowest neurocranium in the mediolateral of the neurocranium. In C. tenuiradius, the neurocranium is wide at pterotic region, decreases in mediolateral regions and then increases at lateral ethmoid region. Finally C. watsoni has the widest and shortest supraethmoid among Iranian Cyprinion fishes.

The body shape of fishes is influenced by environmental parameters and the habitat condition. The present study investigated morphological characteristics phenotypic plasticity of Barbus lacerata in the Zarrineh River and the role of environmentalfactors influencing the phenotypic plasticity. Three hundred specimens were caught using electric fishing, anaesthetized with clove powder, fixed in 10% formalin and transferred to the laboratory. The left side of the specimens was photographed using a digital camera with a resolution of 6 megapixels. Twelve landmarks were put of the pictures using the software TPSDig2. The Procrustes superimposition was used to transform landmark data and subjected to Canonical Variate Analysis (CVA) using PAST software. Thin-plate spline was used to detect morphometric changes inferred form translation of the landmarks. Based on the movement of landmarks, a significant difference was found between the morph of the specimens from the up- and downstream of River. The morphological differences recognized in body height and caudal peduncle height. Two-block PLS and correlation matrix showed that the velocity of water flow and river discharge are the main factors causing morphological changes. This research recommends the further study on other environmental factors affecting the morphology