Author's Introduction Humans have been associated with nature and plants since the beginning of creation, and they have utilized plants as food and drug, and gradually, they gained this knowledge through trial and error, this is the basis of traditional medicine in different countries. Countries' traditional medicine especially traditional medicine of Iran, achieved a rich treasure of the ancestors' technical knowledge which its understanding and proving requires further study in various scientific fields. In Iran, because of a presence of educated and hardworking people such as the venerable engineer Hossein Hejazi who founded Barij essence pharmaceutical company and supported the researchers to revitalize this knowledge and create a bridge between the antecedents and modern sciences, todays, we are witnessed the growth of medicinal plants and herbal remedies in our country. This book that is in front of you, deals with the evaluable Saffron's plant. Most people know saffron because of its importance in food's usage and are less familiar with its therapeutic effects. In this series, after the introduction of saffron in Iran, it has been endeavored to introduce the therapeutic effects and their importance in previous researches and contemporary scientists. It is hoped that the right to know about this national heritage will be stablished and a new perspective on saffron will emerge, and it will help the interested teachers and students in the development of new ideas, and will add scientific knowledge about this plant day by day. I would like to take this opportunity to commemorate the grandees who have each assisted in the process of researching and writing of this book: to my dear Professor Dr. Monir Hosseinzadeh, who accepted the scientific editing of the work without any expectation and I completely benefited from her valuable guidance; and also, I would like to express my special gratitude to Engineer Laleh Hejazi, a managing director of Barij Essence Pharmaceutical company, who has always encouraged researchers and adherent of science and research to provide the path of this project for me. Eventually, I would like to thank engineer Sara Hejazi, an executive vice president of Barij Essence who has never spared me from her precious viewpoints in every essential occasion. I would like to show my great appreciation to my kind wife and everlasting comrade, engineer Mohsen Bazrafshan, and my dear daughter Ghazal, and my dear parents who have been my supporter and companion in all arenas. I would also like to thank Mr. Hossein Abedini, Safir Ardehal Publication's Manager who facilitated the publication of this work with his compassionate cooperation and companion. At the end of this work, I bow down before God in thankfulness that if it achieves any success, it will be from Him and reverentially I will pray to Him.

I am a team-oriented, creative, and technically-experienced Microbiology Ph.D. I have 16 years' experience in pharmaceutical industries. Over these years, I have worked on many industrial projects that they are related to the anti-infective effects of plant materials against bacteria and fungi in vitro and in animal models. Also, I'm working on cloning and expressing of bacterial gene in herbal medicine. ________________________________________________________________________ EDUCATION: Ph.D. in Microbiology 2010-2014 Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran (G.P.A: 19.90 of 20) Thesis: Recombinant protein of OipA (Outer inflammatory Protein A) for immunological purposes M.Sc. Degree in Cellular and Molecular Biology 2001-2004 (Microbiology) Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran (G.P.A: 19.75 of 20) Thesis: Evaluate the adherence of Helicobacter pylori strains to epithelial cells in relation with outer membrane proteins B.Sc. Degree: Cellular and Molecular Biology 1996-2000 Azahra University, Tehran, Iran (G.P.A: 18.97 of 20)