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Background: Lead and cadmium are toxic heavy metals found as major contaminants in food products and edible oils. The aims of this study were to investigate the lead and cadmium contaminations in seeds and extracted oils from Brassica napus L and Carthamus tinctorius grown in the vicinity of industrial sites (Isfahan Zobe Ahan) near Isfahan province/Iran. Methods: In this study, the seeds of B. napus and C. tinctorius were randomly sampled from the farms. The oils of seeds were provided by factory and extracted as well in our laboratory. The two series of washed and unwashed seeds digested with nitric acid and the amount of elements in seeds and oils were measured using GF-AA spectrometer equipped with Zeeman Effect. Results: Cadmium was found in all samples below the Method Detection Limit (MDL, 0.04 μg/L). Lead contaminations were found in all seeds and oils except washed B. napus seeds. The highest levels of lead contaminations were observed in oils of C. tinctorius and B. napus with the amount of 24.74 μg/L and 11.85 μg/L, respectively. The level of lead in unwashed seed oils were significantly higher than washed seed oils (P

Background: Nicotiana tobacco contains large amounts of alkaloid nicotine. Tobacco plant is used for smoking and causes many health problems since it is high in nicotine which is one of the widely-recognized toxic compounds with serious side effects for different body organs. Reducing nicotine content of this plant is a way to reduce its health hazards in cigarette smokers. Utilizing the new methods of genetic engineering can modify nicotine levels in the plant. In this study, through transferring the blocking gene, the pathway of nicotine biosynthesis was blocked to produce transgenic tobacco with low levels of nicotine. Methods: Transgenic plants carrying T DNA, and non-transgenic plants were grown on MS medium. Then their leaves were dried and powdered. The plants were extracted with alkali solution. Eventually, the nicotine content of the extract were analyzed using GC. Results: The analysis of extracts showed a reduction in the nicotine content of the transgenic plant (contain T-DNA) in comparison with non-transgenic plants. Conclusion: Tobacco with lower nicotine reduction can reduce the toxic effects of smoking on smokers and can facilitate withdrawal from it.