Personalized and Precision Medicine Journal

Abstract Introduction: In this context, the use of medicinal plants as a natural and effective remedy for relieving Menstrual pain has been acknowledged in the western border region of Iran, serving as an alternative or complementary therapeutic approach. The aim of this study is to identify the medicinal plants employed in this region of Iran for the treatment of menstrual pain.
Methodology: This review study employed keywords such as medicinal plants, Iran, menstrual pain, and the provinces of West Azerbaijan, East Azerbaijan, Ardabil, Kurdistan, Kermanshah, Ilam, Khuzestan, and their cities, along with ethnobotany terms. Databases such as Google Scholar, SID, MegaIran, PubMed, and Scopus were utilized for article searches. Ethnobotanical articles related to the topic were selected for text review.
Results: Based on the ethnobotanical review, it was identified that in the cities and provinces of the western border region of Iran, medicinal plants such as fennel, wild parsley, shepherd's purse, black cumin, thyme, dandelion, rue, safflower, myrtle, European hornbeam, Kurdistan pistachio, mint, marshmallow root, male orchid, yarrow, agrimony, nettle, bitter herb, verbena, horsetail, periwinkle, marigold, saffron, wild thyme, savory, rhubarb, and eastern chamomile are commonly used for managing, controlling, and treating menstrual pain. Notably, the highest diversity of plant species was observed in the regions of Behbahan, Khuzestan, and Zrewar, Kurdistan. Leaves were the most commonly used plant part, and the Asteraceae and Lamiaceae families presented the highest number of species, indicating the rich diversity of medicinal and traditional plant applications.
Conclusion: The findings of this study demonstrate that the local communities in the western border region of Iran possess extensive knowledge regarding the use of medicinal plants for alleviating menstrual pain. Documenting and scientifically exploring this knowledge could lay the groundwork for the development of effective and natural herbal medicines in the domain of women’s health.

Abstract Background: The ASPN gene encodes a cartilage extracellular protein (Asporin) that is known to be involved in the pathological paths of osteoarthritis (OA). Many research efforts have explored the link between aspartic acid D-repeat polymorphism in the asporin (ASPN) gene and the risk of OA susceptibility, yet the findings are inconsistent. Our study involved a case-control analysis to examine the relationship between D allele polymorphism in asporin and primary hip osteoarthritis (HOA) among the Iranian population.
Methods: The asporin D repeat polymorphism was genotyped in primary HOA patients (N=70) and healthy controls (N=70). Each group consisted of 28 women and 42 men. Patients were classified into three subgroups based on the radiographic severity of osteoarthritis. Statistical analysis was performed on gender, severity, and primary HOA position.
Odds ratios (ORs) along with 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were utilized to assess the association between D-repeats in the ASPN gene and primary hip osteoarthritis.
Results: Three common D-repeat variants (D13, D14, and D15) of the ASPN gene were obtained. The most frequent allele in the patient group was observed at D13, while it was D15 among controls. In both cohorts, the least frequent allele was D14. Our findings indicate no statistically significant association between any D-repeats with primary HOA according to the sex of patients or the severity of the disease.
Conclusion: Our findings indicate that polymorphisms in the ASPN D-repeat are not linked to a higher risk of primary hip osteoarthritis (HOA) in the Iranian population.  However, future large studies are needed to validate these findings.