This study tries to focusing on applying information communication technology for economic importance of Mid Oil Company (MDOC), which is among contemporary oil companies in Iraq. Since ICT forms a significant aspect of achieving organizational economic objectives, most of public and private bodies seek to utilize ICT tool and techniques to improve work efficiencies. The emerging growth in ICT has made it process and service automation possible in managing organizational activities. To determine this effect of ICT on organizations, this study formulated statistical research model at MDOC through using fifteen questionnaires, which were distributed on three axes. The outcome of the questionnaire analysis revealed that there is inadequate comprehensive infrastructure to suitably support ICT within the selected organization management. In addition, it revealed that there are no ideal standards to maintain and sustain internet networks. Based on these revelations, the study presents recommendation for the adoption of ICT with the aim of minimizing cost, enhancing communication and managing infrastructure. Also recommends the need to support IT department within an organization, with essential equipment, in terms of man and machine, for better efficiency to employ the key of ICT Impact in Iraqi governmental oil companies.

There is now evidence that major depression is accompanied by lowered serum zinc, an immune-inflammatory biomarker. However, the effect of anti-inflammatory drugs as adjuvant to antidepressants on serum zinc and copper in relation to pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines are not studied. The aim of the present work is to examine the effects of treatment with sertraline with and without ketoprofen on serum levels of zinc and copper in association with immune-inflammatory biomarkers in drug-naïve major depressed patients. We measured serum zinc and copper, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-4, IL-6, IL-18, interferon (IFN)-γ, and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 in 40 controls and 133 depressed patients. The clinical efficacy of the treatment was measured using the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) at baseline and 8 weeks later. In drug-naïve major depressed patients we found significantly reduced baseline levels of serum zinc and copper in association with upregulation of all cytokines, indicating activation of the immune-inflammatory responses system (IRS) as well as the compensatory immune regulatory system (CIRS). Treatment with sertraline significantly increased zinc and decreased copper levels, while ketoprofen did not have a significant add-on effect on zinc but attenuated the suppressant effects of sertraline on copper levels. During treatment, there was a significant inverse association between serum zinc and activation of the IRS/CIRS. The improvement in the BDI-II during treatment was significantly associated with increments in serum zinc coupled with attenuation of the IRS/CIRS. In conclusion, lower serum zinc is a hallmark of depression, while increments in serum zinc and attenuation of the immune-inflammatory response during treatment appear to play a role in the clinical efficacy of sertraline. Intertwined changes in zinc levels and the immune response play a role in the pathophysiology of major depression and participate in the mechanisms underpinning the clinical efficacy of antidepressants.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with changes in the levels of the cations calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) as well as circulating pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines. The immune-inflammatory nature of MDD has encouraged researchers to use anti-inflammatory drugs as an adjuvant treatment for MDD. However, the effect of this treatment on cation levels has not been studied. The present study examined a) differences in both cations between drug-naïve MDD patients and controls, and b) the effects of a combination of sertraline and ketoprofen, an anti-inflammatory drug, on Ca and Mg (both total and ionized). In the same patients we also examined the associations between both cations and IL-1β, IL-4, IL-6, IL-18, IFN-γ, TGF-β1, zinc and indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO). Clinical improvement was estimated using the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) at baseline and after follow up for two months. Serum Ca and Mg (total and ionized) were significantly lower in MDD patients as compared with controls, while treatment significantly increased calcium but decreased magnesium levels. There were significant and inverse correlations between the BDI-II scores from baseline to endpoint and Ca (both total and ionized), but not Mg, levels. The effects of calcium on the BDI-II score remained significant after considering the effects of zinc, IDO and an immune activation z unit weighted composite score based on the sum of all cytokines. There was a significant and inverse association between this immune activation index and calcium levels from baseline to endpoint. In conclusion, reduced levels of both cations play a role in the pathophysiology of major depression. Increased calcium levels are coupled to the clinical efficacy of antidepressants and attenuation of immune activation. The suppressant effect of antidepressants on Mg levels may be a side effect of those drugs. New antidepressant treatments should be developed that increase the levels both Ca and Mg.

Major Depression Disorder (MDD) is accompanied by an immune response characterized by increased levels of pro-inflammatory and immune-regulatory cytokines and cytokine-induced stimulation of indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase (IDO). There is also some evidence that anti-inflammatory drugs may have a clinical efficacy in MDD.The aim of this study is to examine the clinical effects of an eight-week combinatorial treatment of ketoprofen (a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug) combined or not with sertraline, on serum levels of IDO, interferon (IFN)-γ, interleukin (IL)-4 and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 in association with changes in the Beck-Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II). The study included 140 MDD patients and 40 normal controls. The pre-treatment serum levels of IDO, IFN-γ, TGF-β1 and IL-4 were significantly higher in MDD patients compared with the control group. Treatment with sertraline with or without ketoprofen significantly reduced the increased baseline production of all 4 biomarkers to levels which were similar as those of normal controls. Ketoprofen add-on had a significantly greater effect on IDO and BDI-II as compared with placebo. The reductions in IDO, IL-4 and TGF-β1 during treatment were significantly associated with those in the BDI-II.In conclusion, the clinical efficacy of both sertraline + ketoprofen may be ascribed at least in part to attenuated IDO levels and immune-inflammatory responses in MDD. Moreover, add-on treatment with ketoprofen may augment the efficacy of sertraline by attenuating IDO. However, these treatments may also significantly reduce the more beneficial properties of T helper-2 and T regulatory (Treg) immune subsets. Future research should develop immune treatments that target the immune-inflammatory response in MDD, while enhancing the compensatory immune-regulatory system (CIRS).

This study explores the dynamics of liquid holdup in a lab-scale co-current two-phase upflow moving packed bed reactor, specifically examining how superficial gas velocity influences the line average external liquid holdup at a fixed superficial liquid velocity. Utilizing Gamma-ray Densitometry (GRD) for precise measurements, this research extends to determining line average internal porosity within catalyst particles and the overall external bed porosity. Conducted with an air-water system within a bed packed with 3 mm extrudate porous particles, the study presents a novel methodology to calculate liquid holdup, grounded in Beer–Lambert's law. Findings reveal a decrease in liquid holdup corresponding with increased superficial gas velocity across axial and radial locations, with a notable transition from bubbly to pulse flow regime at a critical velocity of 3.8 cm/sec. Additionally, the lower sections of the packed bed exhibited higher external liquid holdup compared to the middle sections at varied gas velocities. The liquid holdup distribution appeared uniform at lower flow rates, whereas higher flow rates favored the middle sections.

Background: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is associated with increased atherogenicity and inflammatory responses, which may be related to increased levels of high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) and Dickkopf-related protein 1 (DKK1). Objective: The role of HMGB1 and DKK1 in T2DM is examined in association with lipid and insulin profiles. Methods: Serum HMGB1 and DKK1 were measured in T2DM with and without hypertension and compared with controls. Results: HMGB1 and DKK1 are significantly higher in T2DM irrespective of hypertension. T2DM was also accompanied by increased atherogenicity indices. HMGB1 and DKK1 are significantly correlated with HbA1c, glucose, indices of insulin resistance, β-cell function, and glucose toxicity, and different atherogenic indices. A large part of the variance in the β-cell index (30.5%) and glucose toxicity (34.8%) was explained by the combined effects of HMGB1 and DKK1 and hypertension. We found that 18.3% of the variance of the atherogenic index of plasma was explained by HMGB1 and DKK1 levels and that 31.2% was explained by glucose toxicity, HMGB1 and body weight. Conclusion: The higher serum HMGB1 and DKK1 levels in T2DM patients and the associations with atherogenicity indicate that low grade inflammation and disorders in the Wnt pathways are associated with T2DM and that both HMGB1 and DKK1 may contribute to increased atherogenicity in T2DM. Moreover, both biomarkers may cause more deficits in β-cell function and increase glucose toxicity leading to the development of more inflammation and diabetic complications. HMGB1 and the Wnt pathways are new drug targets in the treatment of T2DM.

The laser sintering process and modification of electrophoretic deposition (EPD) YSZ coatings on YSZ air plasma sprayed thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) were investigated. Ni-based superalloy was plasma sprayed using yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) to perform thermal barrier coating with 400 μm thickness. The electrophoretic deposition (EPD) technique was used for depositing nanopowder of YSZ on the surface of YSZ TBCs. In this study, a technology of direct sintering the green EPD layer by laser beam was carried out. The best conditions of deposition YSZ overlay coating using DC current were obtained with applied voltage 40 V, deposition time 5 min, and suspension concentration 10 g/l. Iodine was added to the solutions as the stabilizing agent. To overcome the disadvantages of high sintering temperatures, laser sintering was taken as a new approach. Microstructures for all specimens were studied using Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM) with EDS analysis. Surface roughness was investigated using AFM analysis and central line average (CLA). The results indicated that the morphology after the direct laser sintering of the EPD layer has a fine and controllable grain size, high hardness, and low roughness. Which is better than the direct laser on plasma-sprayed coatings.

From the hospital wastewater, a novel bacteriophage was isolated and characterized. According to characterization properties, this bacteriophage belongs to the Siphoviridae family, the maximum bacteriophage titer was recorded at 37°C and a pH of 7.2, had a 44,789 bp linear double-strand DNA genome, and within the genome sequence, there are 61 genes, all of which are encoded into proteins. Although this bacteriophage does not have any virulence factors or antimicrobial resistance genes and had specific lytic activity against some antimicrobial resistance S. aureus clinical isolates.

Necrotizing pneumonia due to Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) is devastating and difficult to treat in preterm infants. We report a case of severe MRSA necrotizing pneumonia in a preterm infant. As an add-on rescue therapy to vancomycin, linezolid rapidly cured this case after the failure of vancomycin plus rifampicin. This rapid cure suggests that adjunctive rather than rescue linezolid may be considered in such cases.

Background. The aim of this study is to examine whether biomarkers of the immune-inflammatory response (IRS) and endogenous opioid (EOS) systems are associated with affective symptoms in schizophrenia. Methods. We recruited 115 schizophrenia patients and 43 healthy controls and assessed the Hamilton Depression (HDRS) and Anxiety (HAM-A) rating Scale scores as well as serum levels of interleukin (IL)-6, IL-10, eotaxin (CCL11), high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1), Dickkopf-related protein 1 (DKK1), and mu (MOR) and kappa (KOR) opioid receptors.Results. The HDRS and HAM-A scores are significantly and positively correlated with a) psychosis, hostility, excitation, mannerism, negative symptoms, psychomotor retardation, and formal thought disorders; and b) lowered scores on semantic and episodic memory, executive functions, and attention tests as measured with the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Psychiatry. Both HDRS and HAM-A are significantly increased in non-responders to treatment as compared with partial responders. Both affective scores are strongly associated with latent vectors extracted from all symptoms, reflecting overall severity of psychosis (OSOS), and neurocognitive test scores, reflecting a generalized cognitive decline (G-CoDe). The HDRS score was strongly and positively associated with IL-6, HMGB1, KOR, and MOR levels, and the HAM-A score with IL-6, IL-10, CCL11, HMGB1, KOR, and MOR levels. A single latent trait may be extracted from OSOS, G-CoDe, and the HDRS and HAMA scores, and this latent vector score is strongly predicted by HMGB1, MOR, and DKK1.Conclusion. Immune-inflammatory and EOS pathways contribute to the phenome of schizophrenia, which comprises OSOS, affective, and physiosomatic symptoms, and G-CoDe.

Background: The biofilm-forming bacteria Porphyromonas gingivalis (P. gingivalis) is primarily responsible for periodontal disorders, which continue to be a global health issue. Despite the widespread use of antibiotics like metronidazole, other potent therapeutic a crucial quorum sensing molecule implicated in the formation of P. gingivalis biofilm. Approaches are now being explored due to the growing challenge of antibiotic resistance. Objective: In particular, chemicals from Symphytum Officinale (S) and Panax Ginseng (G) plants will be examined in this study to assess if they have the ability to inhibit biofilm and to prevent the development of acylated homoserine lactones (AHLs), a quorum sensing molecule. Materials and Methods: With Metronidazole serving as a control, the antibacterial effects of these substances (Symphytum Officinale and Panax Ginseng) were examined against a standard strain and a clinical isolate of P. gingivalis. Dilutions of these plant extracts were used either alone (G+S) or in conjunction with metronidazole (G+S+F), to assess their antibacterial activity using antibacterial susceptibility test (inhibition zone), biofilm inhibition and disruption assay (optical density) and quorum sensing inhibition assay (AHL). Results: The combinations of Symphytum officinale, Panax Ginseng and metronidazole (S+G+F) showed the maximum effectiveness with highest zone of inhibition (25.000±0.001 mm) and biofilm inhibition (98.46%), and were comparable to G+S (inhibition zone of 24.341±0.593 mm and biofilm inhibition of 97.76%), and significantly different in the degree of biofilm inhibition with different treatment scenarios. Additionally, the plant's extracts and combinations are specific concentrations had a significant effect on the suppression of the generation of AHL (p < 0.05). Conclusion: According to preliminary research, these plant-derived substances, especially when paired with metronidazole, significantly inhibited the growth of P. gingivalis biofilm providing valuable information for the development of innovative therapeutic approaches for periodontitis and other biofilm-associated illnesses.

Schizophrenia comprises various symptom domains, including positive and negative symptoms. Machine learning showed that a) negative symptoms are significantly interrelated with PHEM (psychosis, hostility, excitation, and mannerism) symptoms, formal thought disorders (FTD) and psychomotor retardation (PMR); and b) stable phase schizophrenia comprises two distinct classes, namely Major Neuro-Cognitive Psychosis (MNP, largely overlapping with deficit schizophrenia) and Simple NP (SNP). In this study, we recruited 120 MNP patients and 54 healthy subjects and measured the above-mentioned symptom domains. In MNP, there were significant associations between negative and PHEM symptoms, FTD and PMR. A single latent trait, which is essentially unidimensional, underlies these key domains of schizophrenia and MNP and additionally shows excellent internal consistency reliability, convergent validity, and predictive relevance. Confirmatory Tedrad Analysis indicates that this latent vector fits a reflective model. The lack of discriminant validity shows that PHEM and negative symptoms greatly overlap and probably measure the same construct. Soft Independent Modeling of Class Analogy (SIMCA) shows that MNP (diagnosis based on negative symptoms) is better modeled using PHEM symptoms, FTD, and PMR than negative symptoms. In conclusion, in stable phase MNP, a restricted sample of the schizophrenia population, negative and PHEM symptoms, FTD and PMR belong to one underlying latent vector reflecting overall severity of schizophrenia (OSOS). The bi-dimensional concept of “positive” and “negative” symptoms cannot be validated and, therefore, future research in stable phase schizophrenia should consider that the latent phenomenon OSOS as well as its 8 reflective manifestations are the key factors of schizophrenia phenomenology.

In this study, the olive pomace was considered because of its importance in the environment. So, this study carried out to estimate the total nitrogen content and the fatty acids profile of olive pomace. The olive pomace samples were collected from Irbid, Jarash, Ajloun and Mafraq during the harvesting season 2014 to study the biochemical characteristics of fatty acid composition and the total nitrogen (TN) content. The total nitrogen content was determined by standard Kjeldahl method and the fatty acid profile was detected by gas chromatography (GC). The results show that the total nitrogen content ranged from (0.39 ± 0.0) to (0.62 ± 0.02) with statistically significant difference suggesting that the composition of matrices and their percentage may be responsible for composition of amendments. The calculated total protein percentage ranged between (2.43 ± 0.00) to (3.87 ± 0.17). Also, 13 different fatty acids were quantitatively profiled and quantitated. Oleic acid (C 18:1) was found to be the highest percentage of all other fatty acids and ranged between (59.03%) and (63.81%), moreover the C 18:1/C 18:2 (oil quality) was calculated and C.V% showed variation meaning that nutritional implication could affect the oxidative stability of oils. In conclusion, OP by-product could give a sustainable and alternative-cheap source for fertilizers, pharmaceutical industries, cosmetics and other industries.

Utilization of medicine derived from plants has been documented in various traditional systems of medicines throughout the world for different diseases. Therefore, the current research work was carried out to evaluate the phytochemical and biological potential of Ficus carica L ethanolic leaf extract. For this purpose, physicochemical and phytochemical analysis, total phenolic and flavonoids contents was performed. Antioxidant potential was determined by FRAP, DPPH and H2O2 assay. Proteinase inhibition, heat induced hemolysis and BSA denaturation assay was carried out for inflammation. Antiglycation potential was assessed by fructosamine assay, Congo-red assay and estimation of free carbonyl groups. In-vivo antidiabetic, anti-obesity, effect on liver and kidney were investigated by high fat high sugar diet model. FTIR, HPLC and LCMS/MS analysis was performed to find out the compounds. Tablet based formulation was developed using wet granulation method and tested for physicochemical parameters. Results shows that total phenolic and flavonoids content was (333 mg GAE/g) and (123 mg RE/g) respectively, H2O2 assay shows 35.6% free radical inhibition potential, DPPH assay shows (IC50) inhibitory concentration at 0.58 mg/mL, and 88.769 µg/g Fe2SO4 solution FRAP values. Proteinase inhibition assay, Heat induced hemolysis and BSA-denaturation assay shows percentage inhibition of 28 ± 0.01, 55 ± 0.03 and 51.2 ± 0.05 respectively. In Antiglycation activity β-amyloid formation assay shows absorption of 0.017, Fructosamine assay shows inhibition of 19.4±0.06 and free carbonyl group estimation shows inhibition of 17.0±0.03. In in-vivo study FLE at (500 mg/kg) significantly decreased total bilirubin (p ≤ 0.001), decreased (p ≤ 0.05) alanine transferase, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, decreased blood glucose, triglycerides and total cholesterol (p ≤ 0.01) while HDL (p ≤ 0.01) was significantly increased in comparison to obesity and diabetic-obesity groups. Different functional groups presence was confirmed by FTIR spectrum. HPLC analysis revealed the existence of ferulic acid, rutin, chlorogenic acid, coumarin and thymoquinone and these results are corelated by LC-MS/MS. Pre-compression characterization showed angle of repose (33.04°), bulk density (0.54 g/cm3), tapped density (0.73 g/cm3), compressibility index (35.179 %) and Hausner’s ratio (1.35), while the post-compression characterization showed weight variation 826±4.17 mg, thickness 10.50±0.25 kg/cm2, friability 0.57 %, and disintegration time 8.19 min. From the above results it is concluded that F. carica L. leaves extract has strong antioxidant, antidiabetic and hypolipidemic potential and can be used for an obesity and diabetes treatment.

Blood perfusion quantification is important vital parameters in different diagnostic procedure, using infrared thermography imaging; it is reliable to use this technique as non-contact, non-invasive blood flow measurement method. Therefore, we developed a measurement protocol for blood flow over the arm's anterior surface. By using the superficial brachial and radial veins to be monitored under the impact of cold-excitation of (2 °C to 5 °C), the blood perfusion signal was detected using thermal imager of long-wave infrared spectral range (LWIR, 7μm - 14 μm). The simulation of Penne's bioheat transfer equation was performed to be compared with results obtained from the infrared thermography. Furthermore, the proposed blood flow monitoring using external adjusting of the excitation temperature, by using (cold-compress, or cold air-stream) applied to the region under testing. The signal detected resembles to the hemodynamic pulse of the superficial veins, in the definition of systolic and diastolic phases of the cardiac cycle. Moreover, statistical analysis applied to the BFIRT signals from 24 subjects to estimate the skin's mean temperature after recovery from the thermal excitation.

BACKGROUND G6PD deficiency is an inherited an X-linked recessive condition leading to insufficient levels of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, thus causing hemolytic anaemia under certain conditions. METHODS Our study is explorative for cases admitted to Jordan University Hospital. The studied parameters include demographics, clinical manifestations, biochemical markers including Hb level, WBC count, liver enzymes, and blood grouping. RESULTS Most of the patients were admitted to the emergency unit (53.13%). Individuals who were Rh-positive represented 57.81%, while patients of AB blood group accounted for 75%. The mean values were 4.81 years (age), 29.06 hours (time-to-hospital admission), 38.10 degree Celsius (temperature), 6.11 gm/dl (Hb), 13242.19 (WBC count), 343.20 U/L (S. ALP), and 50.98 IU/L (S. ALT). There was no significant difference between males and females or between favism-induced versus drug-induced hemolytic episodes. AB and Rh positive blood groups are of protective effect in relation to liver enzymes. Patients who were admitted to the hospital within 24 hours from having clinical manifestations had a better prognosis. CONCLUSION This study is the first inferential research on G6PD deficiency from the Middle East to explore cases from one of the largest healthcare centres in Jordan. The role of blood grouping should be investigated prospectively.

Recently several papers have been published on the Liénard equation x'' +L x+m x^3+n x^5=0, where the authors studied their explicit solutions and their applications. Here we describe the complete dynamics of these differential equations in the Poincar\'e disc. The Poincar\'e disc is the closed disc centered at the origin of coordinates of radius one, the whole plane R^2 is identified with the interior of this disc, and its boundary, the circle $\sss^1$ is identified with the infinity of R^2.

A crucial role is played by personal biomedical data when it comes to maintaining proficient access to health records by patients as well as health professionals. However, it is difficult to get a unified view pertaining to health data that have been scattered across various health center/hospital sections. To be specific, health records are distributed across many places and cannot be found integrated easily. In recent years, blockchain is regarded as a promising explanation that helps to achieve individual biomedical information sharing in a secured way along with privacy preservation, because of its benefit of immutability. This research work put forwards a blockchain-based managing scheme that helps to establish interpretation improvements pertaining to electronic biomedical systems. In this scheme, two blockchain were employed to construct the base of it, where the second blockchain algorithm is used to generate a secure sequence for the hash key that generated in first blockchain algorithm. The adaptively feature enable the algorithm to use multiple data types and combine between various biomedical images and text records as well. All the data, including keywords, digital records as well as the identity of patients are private key encrypted along with keyword searching capability so as to maintain data privacy preservation, access control and protected search. The obtained results which show the low latency (less than 750 ms) at 400 requests / second indicate the ability to use it within several health care units such as hospitals and clinics.

No studies have examined the immune fingerprint of major neuro-cognitive psychosis (MNP) or deficit schizophrenia using M1 macrophage cytokines in combination with chemokines such as CCL-2 and CCL-11. The present study delineated the neuro-immune fingerprint of MNP/deficit schizophrenia by analyzing plasma levels of IL-1β, sIL-1RA, TNF-α, sTNFR1, sTNFR2, CCL-2 and CCL-11 in MNP (n=120) versus healthy controls (n=54) in association with neurocognitive deficits (as assessed with the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia) and PHEMN (psychotic, hostility, excitation, mannerism and negative) symptoms. All immune biomarkers were significantly higher in MNP than in normal controls. MNP was best predicted by a combination of CCL-11, TNF-α, IL-1β and sIL-1RA which yielded a bootstrapped (n=2000) area under the Receiver Operating Curve of 0.985. Composite scores reflecting M1 macrophage activity and neurotoxic potential including combined effects of CCL-11 plus CCL-2 were significantly increased in MNP. Nevertheless, the effects of increased IL-1β and TNF-α in MNP were attenuated (statistically) by increased sIL-1RA and sTNFR2, two negative immune-regulatory markers. A large part of the variance in PHEM (38.4%-52.6%) and negative (65.8-7439%) symptoms was explained by combinations of immune markers whereby CCL-11 was consistently the most important. The immune markers also explained a large part of the variance in the Mini Mental State examination, list learning, digit sequencing task, category instances, controlled word association, symbol coding and Tower of London. Soft Independent Modeling of Class Analogy performed on the biomarkers showed that the inter-class distance between the models constructed around MNP and controls was 19.3 indicating a good separation. Partial Least Squares analysis showed that 72.7% of the variance in overall phenomenology was explained by the regression on IL-1β, sIL-1RA, CCL-11, TNF-α (all positively) and education (inversely). It is concluded that the combination of the above-mentioned markers defines MNP as a distinct neuro-immune disorder and that those markers in combination explain a large part of the variance in memory and executivive impairments and PHEMN symptoms.

In Schizophrenia, pathway-genotypes may be constructed by combining interrelated immune biomarkers with changes in specific neurocognitive functions that represent aberrations in brain neuronal circuits. These constructs provide insight on the phenome of schizophrenia and show how pathway-phenotypes mediate the effects of genome X environmentome interactions on the symptomatology/phenomenology of schizophrenia. Nevertheless, there is a lack of knowledge how to construct pathway-phenotypes using Partial Least Squares (PLS) path modeling and Soft Independent Modeling of Class Analogy (SIMCA). This paper aims to provide a step-by-step utilization guide for the construction of pathway-phenotypes that reflect aberrations in the neuroimmune - brain circuit axis (NIBCA) in deficit schizophrenia. This NIBCA index is constructed using immune biomarkers (CCL-2, CCL-11, IL-1β, sIL-1RA, TNF-α, sTNFR1, sTNFR2) and neurocognitive tests (Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia) predicting overall severity of schizophrenia (OSOS) in 120 deficit SCZ and 54 healthy participants. Using SmartPLS path analysis, a latent vector is extracted from those biomarkers and cognitive tests, which shows a good construct reliability (Cronbach alpha and composite reliability) and replicability and which is reflectively measured through its NIBCA manifestations. This NIBCA pathway-phenotype explains 75.0% of the variance in PHEMN (psychotic, hostility, excitation, mannerism and negative) symptoms. Using SIMCA, we constructed a NIBCA pathway-class that defines deficit schizophrenia as a qualitatively distinct nosological entity and which allows patients with deficit schizophrenia to be authenticated as belonging to the deficit schizophrenia class. In conclusion, our nomothetic approach to develop a nomological network combining neuro-immune and neurocognitive phenome markers to predict OSOS and cross-validate a diagnostic class generated replicable models reflecting the key phenome of the illness, which may mediate the effects of genome X environmentome interactions on the final outcome phenome features, namely symptomatology and phenomenology.

Objective: A previous study showed that schizophrenia is accompanied by lowered levels of trace/metal elements including cesium. There are no data whether changes in cesium, rubidium and rhenium are associated with activated immune-inflammatory pathways, cognitive impairments, and the symptomatology of schizophrenia. Methods: This study measured cesium, rubidium, and rhenium, cognitive impairments (using the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia) and the cytokines/chemokines interleukin (IL)-1β, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and CCL11 (eotaxin) in 120 schizophrenia patients and 54 healthy controls. Severity of illness was assessed using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS), the Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Rating (FF) Scale and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D). Results: Serum cesium was significantly lower in schizophrenia patients as compared with controls. Serum cesium was significantly and inversely associated with CCL11 and TNF-α, but not IL-1β. Moreover, there were significant inverse associations between serum cesium levels and the BPRS, FF, HAM-D and SANS scores and positive correlations between cesium and neurocognitive probe results including the Tower of London, Symbol Coding, Controlled Word Association, Category Instances, Digit Sequencing Task, and List Learning tests. Conclusion: The results suggest that lowered serum cesium levels may play a role in the pathophysiology of SCZ, specific symptom domains including negative, depressive and fatigue symptoms, neurocognitive impairments (spatial working, episodic and semantic memory and executive functions) and neuro-immune pathways as well.

Background: Bacterial conjunctivitis is one of the most commonly encountered eye complications in medicine, particularly in developing nations. In Hadhramout Governorate-Yemen, there is no data about bacterial conjunctivitis among patients. Aim: The present study aimed to determine the prevalence rate of bacterial conjunctivitis among patients seeking hospitals in Hadhramout Governorate, Yemen. Methods: A total of 1722 eye swabs were collected from patients attending different Hadhramout hospitals over a period of April to December 2018. The isolation and identification of bacteria are performed using standard bacteriological procedures. In addition, structured questionnaires were used to gather data from patients. Results: Out of 1722 eye swabs, 198 (11.49%) were positive for bacterial conjunctivitis, while 1524 (88.5%) were negative. The high prevalence rate of infection was among female participants and the age group between 31 and 40 years, at 15.25% and 29.29%, respectively. In addition, the prevalence of gram-positive bacteria was significantly greater among study patients than gram-negative bacteria (58.59% vs. 41.41%). The most predominant Gram-positive bacteria were Staphylococcus aureus (26.26%), followed by Streptococci pneumoniae (17.18%), Alpha-hemolytic Streptococci (8.08%), and Staphylococcus epidermidis (7.07%). Whereas the gram-negative bacteria were Pseudomonas aeruginosa (12.1%), followed by Moraxella catarrhalis (10.1%), Haemophilus influenza (7.07%), Klebsiella sp. (6.06%), Enterobacter agglomerans (4.04%), and Neisseria gonorrhoeae (2.02%). Additionally, the majority of study patients suffered from red eyes (100%), tearing eyes (93.93%), itching (90.9%), painful eyes (87.87%), purulent eyes (56.56%), and eye discharge (38.38%). Conclusion: The prevalence rate of bacterial conjunctivitis among patients in Hadhramout, Yemen, is relatively low compared with international investigations. Further investigation is required to assess and identify the antibiotic resistance to these agents that cause conjunctivitis.

Background: Despite their generally favorable prognosis, hepatic fibrosis remains a possible complication for hepatitis B virus (HBV) inactive carriers. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of significant fibrosis and associated risk factors among Omani HBV inactive carriers. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted of 200 Omani HBV inactive carriers visiting a tertiary hospital in Muscat, Oman, between January 2017 and December 2018. Significant fibrosis (stage F2 or higher) was identified using two-dimensional shear-wave elastography. Baseline clinical, laboratory, and radiological data were analyzed to determine associations. Results: Of the total sample, 106 patients (53%) were male, and the mean age was 44.6 ± 9.3 years. The prevalence of significant fibrosis was 20% (n = 40). Male gender (p = 0.007), age ≥60 years (p = 0.024), and fatty changes in liver ultrasound (p = 0.044) were found to be independent factors for significant fibrosis. Conclusion: the prevalence of significant fibrosis was relatively high among a sample of Omani HBV inactive carriers, with several sociodemographic and clinical risk factors identified. Periodic assessment of liver function is needed for patients with these risk factors; moreover, routine biochemical parameters could be useful predictors of disease prognosis. Further research is recommended to substantiate these findings.

New corrosion inhibitor derived from coumarin-3-amine namely 3-((2-chlorobenzylidene)amino)coumarin was synthesized and characterized by CHN elemental analysis in addition to Fourier transform infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance techniques. The anti-corrosion ability of 3-((2-chlorobenzylidene)amino)coumarin to inhibit the impacts of corrosion has been demonstrated and damage reduction of the mild steel also. 3-((2-chlorobenzylidene)amino)coumarin, has been employed as a good corrosion inhibitor for mild steel in HCL solution. The efficiency of the inhibition was figured according to weight loss method and it was 74.6%.

Corrosion inhibitors are the natural or synthetic compounds that have the ability to inhibit the average of corrosion and reduce the damage of the mild steel. Enormous organic inhibitors nowadays employed in the corrosion domain but excluded due to costly. Comparatively cheap, and stable organic compound, namely 3-((4-nitrobenzylidene)amino)coumarin, have been utilized as an excellent corrosion inhibitor in hydrochloric acid for mild steel. The inhibition efficiency has been figured regarding to weight loss method. The corrosion inhibitor was identified according to spectroscopic techniques namely Fourier transform infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance in addition to micro-elemental analysis. Inhibition efficiency for the studied inhibitor was 71.4% that, at the highest studied concentration.

The inhibition impacts of 1,10-Phenanthroline-5,6-diamine (PTDA) on mild steel in 1 M HCl solution were investigated through weight loss method. The inhibition efficiencies of PTDA increase with increase in PTDA concentration at the temperature 303. Weight loss method indicate that PTDA is an excellent inhibitor the inhibition efficiency of 81.5% at the maximum PTDA concentration of 0.5 g/L at the temperature 303K.

A subset of patients with schizophrenia experience physio-somatic symptoms reminiscent of chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia. In schizophrenia, these symptoms contribute to impaired quality of life, and are strongly related to neuro-cognitive deficits, and increased IgA responses to tryptophan catabolites. Negative and PHEM (psychosis, hostility, excitation, mannerism) symptoms, psychomotor retardation (PMR) and formal thought disorders, appear to be manifestations of a single trait reflecting overall severity of schizophrenia (OSOS). In this study, 120 patients with deficit schizophrenia (DEFSCZ) and 54 healthy subjects were assessed with the FibroFatigue (FF) rating scale, and the above-mentioned symptom domains as well as neuro-cognitive tests and biomarkers were measured. In DEFSCZ, there were robust associations between the FF score and all above-mentioned symptom domains, and impairments in semantic and episodic memory and executive functions. Furthermore, the FF score loaded highly on an OSOS latent vector (LV), which showed adequate convergent validity, internal consistency reliability and predictive relevance and fitted a reflective model. Soft Independent Modelling of Class Analogy (SIMCA) showed that the FF items discriminated DEFSCZ from controls with an overall accuracy of 100%. Interleukin IL-1β, IL-1 receptor antagonist (sIL-1RA), tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α and CCL-11 (eotaxin) explained 66.8% of the variance in the FF score and 59.4% of the variance in OSOS. In conclusion, these data show that physio-somatic symptoms are a core component of the phenomenology of DEFSCZ and are largely mediated by neurotoxic effects of activated immune pathways, including aberrations in CCL-11, IL-1β and TNF-α signalling.

The global increase of road infrastructure and its impact on the environment requires serious attention to develop sustainable and environmentally friendly road materials. One group of those materials is produced by using bitumen emulsion. However, there are still scientific and technical obstacles standing against its regular application. The bitumen emulsion formulation process and compositional optimization are subjected to a high number of degrees of freedom. Consequently, obtaining the desired product is mostly based on a series of random and tedious trials because of the enormous number of tests to be carried out. The current review of the physicochemical formulation may indeed be extensively used in helping to reduce the number of unnecessary experimentations as well as discuss the vital aspects in the bitumen emulsion production process. Among these, emulsion stability, viscosity, droplet size (and distribution), bitumen emulsion chemistry, the function of the emulsion components, surfactant type, acids or alkalis, and additives are all discussed and used to define the emulsion's physical properties and reactivity. Besides, current developments in the mechanisms of breaking and setting processes are also summarized. It is discussed how emulsions are graded based on their reactivity, particle charge, and physical features. Two emulsification techniques are outlined namely the colloid mill method and the High Internal Phase Ratio (HIPR) method. Furthermore, some emulsion formulation tools/theories were identified and are explained. In that way, optimized formulations can be used to offer a practical guide for bitumen emulsion manufacturers when trying to formulate a well-defined bitumen emulsion for its use in pavement infrastructure rather than simply to meet standard specifications. This review paper aims to enable the ultimate potential of the bitumen emulsion in the field of cold recycling technology by further following up the research progress of bitumen emulsion manufacturing, therefore, this paper reviews and discusses the literature available up to now on this topic, in road engineering and emulsion chemistry.

Keywords: Wall-like RC columns; Strengthening; FRP; NSM rebars; Steel plates; Testing; FE modeling; Preloading.

Self-driving vehicles demand efficient and reliable depth sensing technologies. Lidar, with its capacity for long-distance, high-precision measurement, is a crucial component in this pursuit. However, conventional mechanical scanning implementations suffer from reliability, cost, and frame rate limitations. Solid-state lidar solutions have emerged as a promising alternative, but the vast amount of photon data processed and stored using conventional direct time-of-flight (dToF) prevents long-distance sensing unless power-intensive partial histogram approaches are used. In this paper, we introduce a groundbreaking ‘guided’ dToF approach, harnessing external guidance from other onboard sensors to narrow down the depth search space for a power and data-efficient solution. This approach centers around a dToF sensor in-which the exposed time widow of independent pixels can be dynamically adjusted. We utilize a 64-by-32 macropixel dToF sensor and a pair of vision cameras to provide the guiding depth estimates. Our demonstrator captures a dynamic outdoor scene at 3 fps with distances up 75 m. Compared to a conventional full histogram approach, on-chip data is reduced by over 25 times, while the total laser cycles in each frame are reduced by at least 6 times compared to any partial histogram approach. The capability of guided dToF to mitigate multipath reflections is also demonstrated. For self-driving vehicles where a wealth of sensor data is already available, guided dToF opens new possibilities for efficient solid-state lidar.

Annually, more than 1.5 million preventable new hepatitis B (HBV) infections continue to occur, with an estimated global burden of 296 million individuals living with chronic hepatitis B infection. This substantial health challenge results in over 820,000 annual deaths attributed to complications such as liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). HBV vaccination remains the cornerstone of public health policy to prevent chronic hepatitis B and its related complications. It serves as a crucial element in the global effort to eliminate HBV, as established by the World Health Organization (WHO), with an ambitious 90% vaccination target by 2030. However, reports on global birth dose coverage reveal substantial variability, with an overall coverage rate of only 46%. This comprehensive review thoroughly examines global trends in HBV vaccination coverage, investigating the profound impact of vaccination on HBV prevalence and its consequences across diverse populations, including both high-risk and general demographics. Additionally, the review addresses the formidable challenges and facilitating factors essential for achieving WHO's HBV vaccination coverage objectives and elimination strategies in the coming decade and beyond.

Background: Physical activity (PA) has paramount importance for achieving good health and an active lifestyle among university students. Quality physical education (QPE) program ensures the attainment of sustainability in PA. Motivation can be considered a critical factor in promoting PA in students. However, motivation alone cannot bring inclusivity unless quality aspects are not being incorporated thoughtfully into physical education (PE) programs. Aims: As such this study aimed at examining three research questions: i) do the motive of PA participation can be enhanced through the quality provision of PE programs in university settings ii) does the quality provision of PE help promote sustainable PA among adolescents? and iii) whether or not this carry-over process is influenced by gender. Methods: This cross-sectional study recruited N = 610 (male = 467) & female = 143) university students. Students who studied PE as one of their course subjects were only included in this study. They participated in > 27 different sports and had a mean age of 20.76 (SD = 3.47) years and a mean of 4.70 (SD = 4.93) years of athletic experience. Descriptive (mean, SD) statistics, Pearson’s correlation, and regression analysis were used to meet the objectives. To examine the variables’ differences in gender, data were then computed using a 2 (Gender) by 2 (Type of Sport: Individual vs. Team) MANCOVA, with the covariate being age. Results: The factors provided sound reliability scores and highlighted positive correlations between QPE and exercise needs satisfaction. However, the factors lacked establishing correlations with PA. The perceived competence for exercise needs satisfaction reported differences in sexes, with the male being scored higher. Furthermore, QPE did not show any significant differences in gender. In comparison to females, males showed higher mean scores in the PA. Conclusion: The provision of QPE is identified as a pivotal factor in determining the competence of exercise satisfaction among students. QPE provision was adequate in the university, however, it could not promote PA among females as expected.

Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized using Rosmarinus officinalis leaf extract at 80 ° C (ZnO-80) and 180 ° C (ZnO-180). The biosynthesized ZnO NPs were characterized and their photocatalytic activity was evaluated for the degradation of methylene blue (MB) and crystal violet (CV) under sunlight irradiation. The results of the characterizations by XRD, TEM and SEM showed that the size of the NPs of ZnO-80 was smaller than that of ZnO-180 which exhibited flakier agglomerated spherical structures. Photocatalytic tests showed ZnO-80 which was prepared by a cheap and easy procedure compared to ZnO-180 effectively degrades MB and CV dyes under sunlight. The superior performance of ZnO-80 over ZnO-180 can be explained by the differences in their textural properties. This is because ZnO-80 has a smaller crystallite size, a specific surface area and a higher pore volume than ZnO-180. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analyzes revealed that both samples contained an adsorbed carboxylate group (COO-), and accordingly a mechanism was proposed for the formation of ZnO NPs that include the carboxyl group.

Yemen is a water-scarce country with inadequate fresh water and considerable groundwater depletion, as well as a lack of adequate surface water. The study region is considered an arid region, and there is insufficient water to meet the needs of the region's yearly population growth rate of 4 %. This study aims to assess the water resources in the Sana'a region and to identify the current water situation and forecast for the future. Rainfall changes spatial and temporal in very few quantities and an annual average of 267 mm. Water harvesting facilities are entirely filled by 75% of the total water facilities in the rainy seasons. The groundwater level in Sana’a Basin decreases about 6-8 meters annually due to the increase in the number of wells, the abundance of abstraction, and the lack of recharge. The amount of abstraction exceeds 400% of the recharge in the Sana'a basin. The water per capita is 70 - 85 m³ annually. It is an abstraction from the aquifers by private wells. The crop cultivated area decreased from 184217 hectares in 2007 to 122583 hectares in 2018 due to lack of water. The sewage treatment plant treats 18.25 Mm³ annually, with less than 70 % efficiency. The water deficit is about 500 to 723 Mm³ annually; it is an abstraction from the aquifers by private wells. The current water situation in the Sana'a region is catastrophic, and the planning and management must ensure a water balance in the future.

Glucose-6-phosphatase (G6Pase), an enzyme found mostly in the kidneys and the liver, acting significant role of supplying glucose through starvation. This study includes (84) subjects, their age ranged from (40 to 54) years. (20) subjects were healthy chosen as control group and (64) patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus were divided into three groups according to their type of anti diabetic therapy : (23) newly diagnosed group without therapy (Group1), (20) with metformin therapy (Group2) and (21) with metformin plus glibenclamide therapies( Group3). The study found that G-6-Pase activity is increased, thereby leading to an increase in endogenous glucose production (EGP) in patients with type 2 diabetes and, therefore FPG will increase. The result found that increasing G-6-Pase activity will increase the concentration of glucose in the blood and that will increase the long-term glycemic control (HbA1c%).

The Chiltan Formation is a potential hydrocarbon-producing reservoir in the Indus Basin, Pakistan. However, its diagenetic alterations and heterogeneous behavior lead to significant challenges in accurately characterizing the reservoir and production performance. This manuscript aims to utilize Chiltan Limestone core samples to conduct a detailed analysis of the diagenetic impacts on reservoir quality. The formation evaluation was carried out through thin section analysis, SEM-EDS and FTIR investigation, as well as plug porosity and permeability measurements under different stress conditions. In results, Petrography revealed three microfacies with distinct diagenetic features and micro-nano fossil assemblages, including intraclasts, pelloids, bioclasts, and stylolites. Diagenesis has a significant impact on petrophysical properties, leading to increased reservoir heterogeneity. The specified depositional environment exposed the alteration of the Chiltan formation during distinct diagenetic phases in marine, meteoric, and burial settings. Pore morphology and mineralogy reveals complex micro-pore structure with various carbonate mineral phases and cement types in the formation samples. The average porosity and permeability of the core samples were found to be 3.4% and 0.449 mD respectively, indicating poor reservoir quality. Stress sensitivity was determined using Klinkenberg corrected permeability, which indicated a reduction in measured and absolute permeability due to increasing confining stress, further reducing the pore throat structure of the formation. In conclusion, the Chiltan formation possesses intricate reservoir heterogeneity and varied micro-pore structure caused by diagenesis and depositional settings. The formation is classified as a low-quality reservoir due to its non-uniform pore geometry, which exhibits low petrophysical properties resulting from overburden stress. The results of this study provide solid foundation in reservoir characterization and quality assessment which has implications for exploring and exploitation of indigenous resources.

Due to the increase in the emission of greenhouse gases, the hydrologic cycle is being altered on the daily basis. This has affected the variations in relations of intensity, duration, and frequency of rainfall events. Intensity Duration Frequency (IDF) curves describe the relationship between rainfall intensity, rainfall duration and return period. IDF curves are one of the most often applied implements in water resource engineering, in areas such as for operating, planning and designing of water resource projects, or for numerous engineering projects aimed at controlling floods. In particular, IDF curves for precipitation answer problems of improper drainage systems or conditions and extreme characters of precipitation which are the main cause of floods in Nyabugogo catchment. This study aims to establish Rainfall IDF empirical equations, curves and hydrological discharge (predicted peak rate of runoff (Qlogy)) equations for eight Districts that will be used for designing an appropriate and sustainable hydraulic structures for controlling flood to reduce potential loss of human and aquatic life, degradation of water, air and soil quality and property damage and economic lessen caused by flood in Nyabugogo catchment. However Goodness of Fit tests revealed that Gumbel’s Extreme-Value Distribution method appears to have the most appropriate fit compared with Pearson type III distribution for validating the Intensity-Duration-Frequency curves and equations through the use of daily annual for each meteorological station. The findings of the study show that the intensity of rainfall increases with a decrease in rainfall duration. Additionally, a rainfall of every known duration will have a higher intensity if its return period is high, while the predicted peak rate of runoff (Qlogy) increases also with an increase in the intensity of rainfall.

Keywords: Innovation ecosystems, Economic sustainability, Hydrocarbon-based economies, Economic diversification, Qualitative approach

BACKGROUND Epidemiological sciences have been evolving at an exponential rate paralleled only by the comparable growth within the discipline of data science. Digital epidemiological studies are playing a vital role in medical science analytics for the past few decades. To date, there are no published attempts at deploying the use of real-time analytics in connection with the disciplines of Dentistry or Medicine. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES We deployed a real-time statistical analysis in connection with topics in Dental Anatomy and Dental Pathology represented by the maxillary sinus, posterior maxillary teeth, related oral pathology. The purpose is to infer the digital epidemiology based on a continuous stream of raw data retrieved from Google Trends database. MATERIALS AND METHODS Statistical analysis was carried out via Microsoft Excel 2016 and SPSS version 24. Google Trends database was used to retrieve data for digital epidemiology. Real-time analytics and the statistical inference were based on encoding a programming script using Python high-level programming language. A systematic review of the literature was carried out via PubMed-NCBI, the Cochrane Library, and Elsevier databases. RESULTS The comprehensive review of databases of the literature, based on specific keywords search, yielded 491813 published studies. These were distributed as 488884 (PubMed-NCBI), 1611 (the Cochrane Library), and 1318 (Elsevier). However, there was no single study attempting real-time analytics. Nevertheless, we succeeded in achieving an automated real-time stream of data accompanied by a statistical inference based on data extrapolated from Google Trends. CONCLUSION Real-time analytics are of considerable impact when implemented in biological and life sciences as they will tremendously reduce the required resources for research. Predictive analytics, based on artificial neural networks and machine learning algorithms, can be the next step to be deployed in continuation of the real-time systems to prognosticate changes in the temporal trends and the digital epidemiology of phenomena of interest.

Background: Aberrations in endothelial cells, immune and oxidative pathways are associated with atherosclerosis (ATS) and unstable angina (UA). The role of trace elements, minerals, and the endogenous opioid system (EOS) in UA are less well established. Methods: We measured lipid, insulin resistance (IR), and immune, trace element (copper and zinc), mineral (magnesium, calcium), EOS (β-endorphin and mu-opioid receptor (MOR)) and antioxidant (vitamin D3) biomarkers in patients with ATS (n=60) and UA (n=60) and healthy controls (n=58). Results: ATS patients showed increased atherogenic and IR indices, IL-6, IL-10, β-endorphin, copper and magnesium, and lower zinc than healthy controls. Logistic regression showed that UA was significantly discriminated from ATS without UA with an accuracy of 85.5% using calcium, IL-10, β-endorphin, MOR, triglycerides, IR (all positively), and copper and vitamin D3 (inversely). Neural networks showed that UA was discriminated from ATS without UA with an area under the ROC curve of 0.942 using MOR, β-endorphin, calcium, insulin resistance, vitamin D3 and copper as input variables. We found that 50.0% of the variance in IR was explained by the regression on copper, IL-10, IL-6 (all positively), and zinc (inversely), while 32.9% of the variance in the atherogenic index of plasma was explained by copper, IL-10 (both positively), and magnesium (inversely). Conclusion: UA is not only mediated by insulin resistance, atherogenicity, and immune disorders, but also by aberrations in the endogenous opioid system and trace elements as well as lowered antioxidant levels. Copper appears to play a key role in IR and atherogenicity.

Recently Cold Bitumen Emulsion (CBE) mixture technologies have been developed to lower the pavement construction temperatures to reduce the environmental costs and control the gas emissions. Due to its poor early mechanical strength, active fillers (i.e. cement) have been used to obtain high early stiffness in order to have the potential for timely construction of the next layer. There is, however, a lack of understanding about the impact of active fillers nature on viscoelastic behaviour and fatigue damage resistance of CBE mastics. This study, therefore, aims to identify the influence of active fillers on the rheological properties and the resulted fatigue behaviour of CBE mastic, supported by chemical analysis for the filler-bitumen emulsion. For this aim, bitumen emulsion was mixed separately with seven fillers/blended fillers to prepare the CBE mastics. Various experiments include continuous pH monitoring tests (chemical reactivity of filler-bitumen emulsion), Strain sweep (SS) tests, Temperature-Frequency Sweep (TFS) tests, Time Sweep (TS) tests, and Linear Amplitude Sweep (LAS) tests were conducted on the CBE binder and the prepared mastics. Results show that the rheological performance and the fatigue damage resistance is not only dependent on the filler inclusions, but it significantly relies on filler type and chemistry. Based on that, the raise in complex shear modulus and the decrease in viscous components were associated with a significant enhancement in fatigue performance for specific filler.

Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR) is one of the major transboundary animal diseases that severely impact livestock production and trade worldwide. An investigation was carried into the seroprevalence and risk factors of PPR in small ruminants, camels, and wild ruminants in Bahrain. A total of 1240 serum samples were collected from 119 sheep flocks and 1224 serum samples from 125 goat herds. In addition, 100 sera from camels and 38 sera from wild ruminants, were collected. Serum samples were tested for the presence of PPR specific antibodies using a competitive ELISA. Flock management and health information of the flocks and herds were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire. The individual prevalence of PPR in sheep and goats was 26% and 25.5%, respectively. The flock or herd level prevalence of PPR was 22.7% and 29.6% in sheep and goats, respectively. None of the tested camels or wild ruminants were positive for PPR-specific antibodies. Sheep and goats from the Northern governorate were more likely to be seropositive to PPR than in other governorates. On the individual animal level, the univariate analysis suggested; age (<12 months), sex (male), and health status (weak animals) as risk factors for PPR seropositivity. On the flock/herd level, the multivariable logistic regression analysis identified large flock/herd size and semi-intensive farming as risk factors for PPR seropositivity.

Quality of Experience (QoE) metrics can be used to assess user perception and satisfaction in data services applications delivered over the Internet. End-to-end metrics are formed because QoE is dependent on both the users’ perception and the service used. Traditionally, network optimization has focused on improving network properties such as the QoS. In this paper we examine the Adaptive streaming over a software defined network environment. We aimed to evaluate and study the media streams, aspects affecting the stream, and network. This was done to eventually reach a stage of analysing the network’s features and their direct relationship with the perceived QoE. We then use machine learning to build a prediction model based on subjective user experiments. This will help to eliminate future physical experiments and automate the process of predicting QoE.

Load variations in any power system result in losses escalation and voltage drops. With the sensible and optimal allocation of distributed generators (DGs), these problems could be considerably mitigated. It has been seen in the priorly existing methods that ideally allocation of DGs has been carried out during fixed loads and constant power requirements. However, in real scenarios the loads are always variable and allocation of DGs must be done in accordance to the variations of the connected load. Therefore, the current paper addressed the aforementioned problem by distinctive optimal allocation of DGs for each variability of 24hour load horizon. However, the single exclusive solution is considered among all allocations of 24 hours. The min-max regret concept has been utilized in order to deal with such methodology. Altogether, 24 scenarios are analyzed wherein each scenario corresponds to a specific hour of the respective day. The optimal allocation of DGs in terms of their optimal sizing and placement has been carried out by using three algorithms including battle royal optimization (BRO), accelerated particle swarm optimization (APSO) and genetic algorithm (GA). The multi-objective optimization problem is evaluated on the basis of minimum value criterion of the multi-objective index (MO). MO comprises of active and reactive power losses and voltage deviation. Hence, in order to find robustness of proposed technique, Conseil international des grands réseaux electriques (CIGRE’s) MV benchmark model incorporating 14 buses has been considerably used as a test network. In the end the results of three proposed algorithms have been compared.

The research presented in this paper examines a new proposed approach for identifying safety improvement sites on rural highways. Unlike conventional approaches, the proposed approach does not require crash history, but rather utilizes classified variables for traffic volume, geometric features, and roadside characteristics that do not require access to exact data or extensive technical expertise. The research validates the performance of the proposed approach using field data from a large sample of rural two-lane highway segments in the state of Oregon including traffic, roadway, and crash data. Using observed crash history as a reference, the performance of the proposed ap-proach was compared to two of the well-established methods in practice, namely: the Empirical Bayes (EB) and the Potential for Safety Improvement (PSI) methods. The study results suggest that, using crash density for highway segments, the performance of the proposed method was lower than that of the EB and PSI methods. This is despite the high R-square value of the predictive model used in the proposed method. However, when using crash frequencies for highway segments, the per-formance of the proposed method was found comparable to the well-established EB and PSI methods.

This paper aims to study and analyze the effect of the flow rate and amplitude of walling waves on the peristaltic flow of Jeffrey’s fluid through an irregular channel. In addition, it analyses streamlined patterns and their local and global bifurcation flow. The theory of dynamical systems is used to explore the position of critical points and their bifurcation. Numerical and analytical methods are presented to display effective changes in amplitude and rate of the flow on the transport of fluid. Three types of streamline patterns occur backward, trapping and augmented flow in the channel through movement due to changes in the value rate parameters.

The hydrocarbon generation potential of Chia Gara strata and their genetic link with produced oils from the Zagros basin are still not comprehensively investigated. Forty-seven rock samples from the Tithonian–Berriasian interval were subjected to geochemical analyses to infer organic matter enrichment, hydrocarbon potential, thermal maturity, and timing for hydrocarbon generation/expulsion and their implications regarding upcoming petroleum explorations in the Zagros basin. The results showed that the Chia Gara rock samples have fair to very-good generation potential, as confirmed by higher total organic carbon (TOC=0.68–3.95 wt%) and Rock-Eval (S1+S2=3.37–8.52 mg HC/g rock). The hydrogen index (HI=171–462) and Rock-Eval Tmax over 430 °C support the presence of Types II and mixed Types II/III kerogen. These results confirm the high generation potential of the Chia Gara Formation in the study region. 1D basin models of the KK–109 well show that over 55% of kerogens were converted into oil in the Cretaceous (77–67 Ma). Expulsion started from the Miocene until now (22–0 Ma), consistent with 0.71–0.80 of modeled Easy%Ro and 55–80 %TR. Consequently, this project confirms the potential oil expulsion from the Chia Gara Formation, which can be a resource for upcoming hydrocarbon investigation in the Zagros basin, Iraq.

This paper proposes a new method for network screening on rural low-volume roads. These roads are important as they provide critical access to agricultural land and tourist attractions. Most low-volume roads belong to the lowest functional class (local rural roads) and thus are built to lower design standards. The conventional hot spot network screening techniques may not be appropriate for low-volume roads due to the sporadic nature of crashes occurring on these roads. Contrarily sophisticated network screening approaches require extensive roadway and traffic data that are often unavailable to local agencies for lack of resources, and/or lack of technical expertise. This research attempts to address these obstacles in low-volume roads network screening which aims to identify candidate sites for safety improvements. The research used an extensive low-volume road sample from the state of Oregon and the Empirical Bayes expected number of crashes in developing the proposed models for network screening. The proposed models do not require exact measurement of roadway geometric features as all geometric variables were classified into categories that are easy to compile by local agencies. Further, the method could be used with and without traffic data, without compromising the effectiveness of the network screening process.

(1) Background: Work creativity, manifested in innovative workplace behaviour (IWB) and employee work engagement, is fundamental to maintain firms’ sustainability and competitiveness. In this regard, this study aims at investigating the supporting effect of innovative leadership on IWB and employee engagement through maximising employee vigour, dedication and absorption. (2) Methods: The study data were collected from questionnaires administered to 150 respondents working in mobile phone companies in southern and central Iraq. The statistical analyses were conducted through the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and Smart PLS. In analysing the measurement model and testing the proposed hypotheses, the study results revealed that inclusive leadership and work engagement were intimately connected to IWB; (3) Results: Work engagement played a mediating role between inclusive leadership and IWB. The questionnaire data indicated that inclusive leadership behaviours, such as openness, accessibility and availability, motivated the subordinates to be engaged in IWB.; and (4) Conclusions: To promote IWB, company leaders then need to effectively engage their followers by taking pride and satisfaction in employee output, which might aid employee workplace and IWB engagement.

Background: Papillomaviruses (PVs) are double-stranded DNA viruses and are more common in skin of ruminants in Iraq. A P53 (tumor suppressor protein) reveals an essential role in cell cycle control. This study aimed to describe the clinical, histopathological and immunohistochemical aspects of naturally occurring cutaneous ruminant’s papillomatosis. Methods: Samples were collected from totally, 10 animals (3 cattle, 3 goats and 4 sheep) with multiple papillomatosis lesions. Results: Clinically, exophytic multiple, cauliflower-like growths (warts) of varying sizes (0.5-11 cm) were found in different areas of the animal’s bodies. Histopathological features were various degrees of koilocytosis, ortho and parakeratotic, hyperkeratosis, hypergranulosis in granular layer and acanthosis. Immunohistochemical (IHC) investigations revealed some nuclei in the granular and basal layers of the epidermis with intense positivity for papillomavirus antigen. All tumor samples were positive for p53 expression that appeared as a strong cytoplasmic and perinuclear staining mainly in the basal and parabasal layers. Conclusion: this study described the papillomavirus lesions in bovine, ovine and caprine, that located in different anatomical areas with minor variations in histopathological features. The tumor samples showed positive results for PV antigen and P53 expression that considered as the useful markers in the diagnosis of cutaneous papilloma.

The term "code smell" refers to an indication of a problem with the quality of source code. Numerous studies have been conducted to identify problematic features in source code. Initially, the focus was on utilizing metric-based and heuristic-based approaches. In recent years, however, there has been a shift towards using machine learning and deep learning (DL) techniques for smell detection. Nevertheless, the current algorithms are still considered to be in the early stages of development. Recognizing the challenges associated with identifying smells using DL methods, both academics and software developers have made efforts to address these obstacles. This work involves constructing and evaluating new DL models for code smell detection. Two models are built upon stacked autoencoders, employing a hybrid architecture that combines bidirectional long short-term memory and convolutional neural network components.

Innovation is rapidly growing and affecting various industries, including hydrocarbon processing. This study aims to conduct a comprehensive and organized review of the literature on innovation ecosystems and their performance. It will examine existing definitions of innovation ecosystems and related concepts and identify metrics and indicators for measuring innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems. The term "innovation ecosystem" has gained considerable attention from scholars and practitioners over the past fifteen years. Despite the proliferation of research in this area, there are concerns about its fragmented knowledge base. While previous reviews have highlighted the theoretical connections between innovation ecosystems and related concepts, there is still a need for a more comprehensive understanding of the current state of innovation ecosystem research. The study used a systematic literature review approach that combines bibliographic coupling and content analysis methods, drawing on over 100 studies to identify five streams of current innovation ecosystem research: technology innovation, platform innovation ecosystems, regional development, innovation ecosystem conceptualization and theorization, and entrepreneurship and innovation. The study's contribution lies in decoding the intellectual structure of current innovation ecosystem research and providing targeted recommendations for future research.

Background: We aimed to study the frequency, management, and outcomes of patients with blunt pancreatic trauma. Methods: We reviewed the medical records for all patients admitted with pancreatic injuries between 2011 and 2017 at the only level 1 trauma center in the country. Results: There were 71 patients admitted with pancreatic trauma (0.6% of trauma admissions and 3.4% of abdominal injury admissions) with a mean age of 31 years. Sixty-two patients had pancreatic injury grade I-II and 9 had grade III-IV. Thirty-eight percent had GCS <9 and 73% had ISS >16. The level of pancreatic enzymes was significantly proportional to the grade of injury. Over half of patients required a laparotomy, of them 12 patients had an intervention on the pancreas. Eight patients developed complications related to pancreatic injuries ranging from pancreatitis to pancreatico-cutaneous fistula while 35% developed hemorrhagic shock. Mortality was 31% and regardless of the grade of injury, the mortality was associated with high ISS, low GCS and presence of hemorrhagic shock. Conclusion: Pancreatic injuries following blunt trauma are rare and the injured subjects are usually young male. However, most injuries are of low-grade severity. This study shows that shock, higher ISS and lower GCS are associated with worse in-hospital out-comes. Non-operative management may suffice in patients with lower grade injuries, which may not be the case in patients with higher grade injuries unless carefully selected

Soybean (Glycine max L.) is a vital leguminous crop known for its rich nutritional profile, includ-ing high protein and oil content, making it a valuable resource in global agriculture and human nutrition. In Pakistan due to regulatory issues non-GMO soybean is grown therefore, the universal herbicide control method is not applicable. Similarly, for other crops, specific herbicides are avail-able but for soybean no crop specific herbicide is present. A comprehensive study was conducted over two growing seasons, in 2022 and 2023, at Agronomic Research Farm University of Agri-culture Faisalabad. The research involved 16 different treatments, including both six pre-emergence and eight post-emergence herbicides as well as a control group and weedy check. Findings of this study showed that critical importance of weed management in soybean cultiva-tion, as unchecked weed infestation can lead to substantial yield losses. Among the pre-emergence herbicide S-Metolachlor + Pendimethalin performed best and showed higher plant height (54.33 cm & 53.67 cm), 100 grain weight (11.57 g & 12 g), seed yield plant-1 (13.07 g and 12.87 g), lower Susceptibility Index (10%), higher weed control percentage (91.21% & 95.65%) higher weed con-trol efficiency (92.02% & 93.43%), herbicide efficiency index (27.54% & 32.48%) and lower weed index (18.16% & 21.70%) during 2022 and 2023 respectively. However, in post emergence herbi-cide the Fluizefop-p-butyl is most effective herbicide due to less crop injury 10% Susceptibility In-dex, higher plant height (42.67 cm & 44 cm), whole plant weight (93.33 g & 95 g), 100-grain weight (11.40 g & 11.77 g), seed yield plant-1 (12.87 g & 13.13 g), higher weed control percentage (91.12% & 91.03%) higher weed control efficiency (89.73% & 92.36%, herbicide efficiency index (21.18% & 30.41%) and lower weed index (19.42% & 20.08%) in both 2022 and 2023 respectively. Notably, herbicides such as S-Metolachlor + Atrazine + Mesotrione, Topramezone, Mesosulfu-ron-methyl + Iodosulfuron-methyl sodium and Mesotrione + Atrazine led to complete plant mor-tality, resulting lethal to soybean. The findings of this study support the hypothesis that screened the best suitable herbicides with less plant injury, and higher efficiency index. So, it is recom-mended that the application of S-Metolachlor + Pendimethalin as PRE and Fluizefop-p-butyl as POST showed the least injury and best weed control results with higher grain yield.

The emergence of decentralized finance (DeFi) signifies a fundamental change in the financial sector, utilizing blockchain technology to revolutionize conventional financial structures. This study aims to investigate the development, underlying principles, and practical applications of DeFi while analyzing the regulatory factors, upcoming patterns, and policy consequences. This study employs a thorough research methodology encompassing a literature review and case studies to examine the fundamental elements, uses, and instances of success in DeFi. It emphasizes the potential for transformation and the obstacles it faces. The study identified legal ambiguity, difficulties in achieving scale, and constraints related to compliance as primary concerns for policymakers. The fundamental discoveries encompass the pivotal function of blockchain technology in facilitating DeFi platforms, the tangible implementations of DeFi in lending, borrowing, and trading, and the necessity for clear regulations and global cooperation. The policy implications encompass the significance of maintaining a balance between innovation and compliance, promoting international collaboration, and prioritizing consumer protection measures. In summary, this study enhances our comprehension of the emergence of DeFi and its consequences for conventional finance. It offers valuable insights for policymakers, industry participants, and scholars in effectively navigating the changing realm of decentralized finance.

This paper presents the design and implementation of a multichannel bio-impedance spectroscopy system on field programmable gate arrays (FPGA). The proposed system is capable of acquiring multiple signals from multiple bio-impedance sensors, process the data on the FPGA and store the final data in the on-board Memory. The system employs the Digital Automatic Balance Bridge (DABB) method to acquire data from biosensors. The DABB measures initial data of a known impedance to extrapolate the value of the impedance for the device under test. This method offers a simpler design because the balancing of the circuit is done digitally in the FPGA rather than using an external circuit. Calculations of the impedance values for the device under test were done in the processor. The final data is sent to an onboard Flash Memory to be stored for later access. The control unit handles the interfacing and the scheduling between these different modules (Processor, Flash Memory) as well as interfacing to multiple Balance Bridge and multiple biosensors. The system has been simulated successfully and has comparable performance to other FPGA based solutions. The system has a robust design that is capable of handling and interfacing input from multiple biosensors. Data processing and storage is also performed with minimal resources on the FPGA.

The simultaneous evaluation of heat/mass transference procures momentous significance in the polymer industry and engineering activities. Extensive utilization of such aspects includes propylene flares, heat exchangers, energy transfiguration in chilling towers, and amputation of post fortuitous heat in nuclear reactors. Owing to such prospective demands, we interpreted the Jeffrey liquid reactive flow under non-linear convection. We scrutinized the transference of heat/mass under generalized Fourier-Fick relations. Thermal conductivity depends on temperature while mass diffusivity is dependent on concentration. Besides, heat source along with first-order chemical reaction aspects are accounted for. Relevant transformations are exerted to achieve non-linear differential systems that are solved through the homotopy scheme. Influences of divers factors are exhibited via graphical benchmark.

The aim of this paper is to analyze the five grand parks in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and provide a geoprocessing approach to different aspects such as sport, health, leisure, recreation, and public wellbeing. The study uses a hybrid of qualitative and quantitative approach as methodology. Sustainability offerings, accessibility for people of determination and special needs, typology and the geolocations of the grand parks plays crucial role in residents’ wellbeing. The paper concludes with recommendations for Dubai government to design new and innovative approaches to manage wellbeing of urban public places into the leisure environment for residents.

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy and survival rates of same session ab interno trabeculectomy with the trabectome and Ahmed glaucoma valve implant (AT) in comparison to the Ahmed glaucoma valve alone (A). Method: A total of 107 eyes undergoing primary glaucoma surgery were enrolled in this retrospective comparative case series, including 48 eyes which underwent AT and 59 eyes which received A alone. Participants were identified using the procedural terminology codes, and their medical records were reviewed. The primary outcome measure was surgical success, defined as intraocular pressure (IOP) > 5 mmHg, ≤ 21 mmHg, and IOP reduction ≥ 20% from baseline at two consecutive visits after three months, no reoperation for glaucoma. Secondary outcome measures were IOP, the number of glaucoma medications, incidence of a hypertensive phase, and best corrected visual acuity (BCVA). Results: The cumulative probability of success at one year was 70% in AT, and 65% in A (p=0.85). IOP decreased significantly from 26.6 ± 10.1 mmHg at baseline to 14.7 ± 3.3 mmHg at the final follow-up in AT (p= 0.001). The corresponding numbers for A were 28.8 ± 10.2 and 16.7 ± 4.9, respectively (p= 0.001). The final IOP was significantly lower in AT (p= 0.022). The number of medications at baseline was comparable in both groups (2.6 ± 1.2 in AT and 2.5 ± 1.3 in A, p=0.851). Corresponding number at 1 year visit was 1.2±2 in AT and 2.8±1.8 in A (p=0.001). The incidence of a hypertensive phase was 18.7% in AT and 35.5% in A (p=0.05). HP resolved in only 30% of eyes. The criteria for HP resolution were fulfilled in 9 eyes (30%). There was no difference in the rate of resolution of the hypertensive phase between AT and A (33.3% and 28.5%, respectively, p=0.67). Conclusion: Ahmed glaucoma valve implant with same session trabectome surgery significantly decreased the rate of the hypertensive phase and postoperative IOP as well as the number of glaucoma medications.

This study investigated dry reforming of methane with combined catalysts supported on γ-Al2O3 support doped with 3.0 wt. % TiO2. The physicochemical properties of all the catalysts were determined by inductively-coupled plasma/mass spectrometry metal analysis, nitrogen physisorption, X-ray diffraction, temperature programmed reduction/desorption, thermogravimetric analysis, and scanning electron microscopy. The addition of CeO2 and MgO to Ni strengthened the interaction between the Ni and the support. The catalytic activity results indicated that the CeO2 and MgO addition to Ni did not do much in retarding carbon deposition, but they improved the activity of the catalysts. Among the tested catalysts, it was found that the catalyst with the composition of 5.0 wt % NiO-10.0 wt % CeO2/3.0 wt %TiO2-γ-Al2O3 resulted in the highest CH4 and CO2 conversion with H2/CO mole ratio close to unity. The optimum reaction conditions in terms of reactant conversion and H2/CO mole ratio were achieved by varying space velocity and CO2/CH4 mole ratio.

Transportation contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions, with electrification offering a promising solution. This study evaluates the degradation of State of Health (SOH) over 2.5 years for electrified buses under different charging protocols: DC Fast charging and Flash charging. The vehicles’ models, charging protocols, and financial implications are discussed. High-level simulations reveal that after 2.5 years, the Flash charging vehicle’s SOH reaches 88.93%, while the DC fast charging vehicle reaches 89.46%, showing a 0.47% difference. This slight variance is attributed to Flash charging vehicles avoiding full charge/discharge cycles, reducing battery aging impact. Considering this minimal SOH degradation difference, the choice between DC Fast charging and Flash charging primarily hinges on capital expenditure disparities. Flash charging, with its lower initial battery capacity and reduced capital costs, presents a compelling alternative for city busoperators seeking to electrify their fleets.

In this study, we surveyed over 600 participants to determine: a) major causes to mental stress during the pandemic and its future impacts, and b) diversity in public perception and acceptance (specifically for children) of Covid-19 vaccination. Statistical results and intelligent clustering outcomes indicate significant relationships between sociodemographic diversity, mental stress causes, vaccination perception, and Covid-19 infections. For instance, statistical results indicate significant dependence between mental stress due to Covid-19 and gender (p = 1.7e-05). Over 25% of males indicated work related stress comparing 35% in females however, females indicated more stressed (17%) due to relationships comparing to males (12%). Around 30% of Asian/Arabic participants don’t feel vaccination being safe as compared to 8% of white-British and 22% of white-European indicating significant dependence (p = 1.8e-08) with ethnicity. More specifically, vaccination acceptance for children is significantly dependent to ethnicity (p = 3.7e-05) where only 47% participants show willingness towards children’s vaccination. Primary dataset in this study along with experimental outcomes identifying sociodemographic information diversity with respect to public perception and acceptance of vaccination to children and potential stress factors might be useful for public and policy makers to be better prepared for future epidemics as well as working globally to combat mental health issues and running more effective vaccination campaigns.

Background Eating disorders are complex illnesses with serious long-term consequences. They are linked to negative outcomes such as miscarriage, low birth weight, and other obstetric and postpartum difficulties. Our study in Muscat, Oman, examines the eating habits of pregnant women who consult primary care physicians. We aim to understand how eating disorders affect pregnant women and inform more effective interventions. Method We used the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire to assess the potential for the presence of eating disorders. Chi-Square and Fisher's Exact tests were used to analyze relationships between improper eating behavior and independent variables. Results The study showed that 1.6% of participants had a potential diagnosis of an eating disorder, with the most common inappropriate behavior being binge-eating at a prevalence of 18.8%. A pre- gestational low Body Mass Index (BMI) was associated with a higher prevalence of binge eating during pregnancy. Additionally, we found that pregnant women who were working were more prone to self-induced vomiting. High BMI before pregnancy was significantly associated with various inappropriate eating behaviors such as restraint behavior (p = 0.000), shape concern (p = 0.000), weight concern (p = 0.040), eating (p = 0.045), laxative use (p = 0.020), and excessive exercise (p = 0.043). Conclusion The study reveals a high prevalence of eating disorders in pregnancy. Less educated women exhibit higher laxative use, while working women show more instances of binge eating and self-induced vomiting. These findings emphasize the critical need to prioritize targeted interventions and support for vulnerable pregnant women.

Vaccination is the most promising approach for ending or containing the SARS-CoV2 pandemic. However, serious post-COVID vaccine reactions including immunocytopenia (ITP) syndrome has been increasingly reported. Several factors cause increased risks including multiple doses, age-dependent heterogeneity in immune-responses, platelet cross-reactions with microbial components, and Long-COVID syndrome. Thus, in the absence of a widely available specific therapeutics, vigilance is important while more studies are imperative. Using a structured questionnaire sent to different regions in Saudi Arabia, we conducted a comprehensive investigation on the frequency, rates, disease patterns, and patient demographics of post-COVID-19 side effects on febrile patients after three major vaccines. Results indicated the majority administered Pfizer BioNtech vaccine (81%, n=809); followed by AstraZeneca (16%, n=155); and Moderna (3%, n=34). In overall 998 participants, 74% (n=737) had no serious symptoms; however, 26.2% (n=261) revealed typical syndrome. In a focused group of 722, shortness of breath (20%), bruises or bleeding (18%), inattention (18%), GIT symptoms (17.6%), skin irritation (8.6%), and anosmia and ageusia (8%) were the most prominent. The onset time was mostly in 1-3 days in 49% (n=128), followed by 4-7 days in 21.8% (n=57), 8-14 days in 16.5% (n=43), and more than a month in 12.6% (n=33). The onsets occurred mostly after the first, second, or both doses 9%, 10%, and 7%, respectively. The frequency of symptoms was significantly higher among after Moderna ® vaccine (P-value = 0.00006) and it was significantly lower in participants who received Pfizer (P-value 0.00231). We did not find significant difference in symptoms related to differences in regions. Similarly, the region, age, gender, education, and nationality had no influence in the dose and onset timings. The findings of this study have significant clinical implications in disease management strategies, preventive measures, and vaccine development. Future vertical studies would reveal more insights into the mechanisms of post-COVID vaccine syndrome.

This article's goal is to investigate the structural model that explains how awareness of consequences, subjective norms, attitude and behavior control variables influence plastic wastes behavioral intention in Jeddah's beaches, Saudi Arabia. A quantitative approach was employed. For data analysis, structural equation modeling was used. Based on the literature analysis, the study used a structured questionnaire. Multiple statistical analyses were used to examine the hypotheses. This study conducts a survey on a sample of 390 local tourists to investigate their intention to reduce plastic wastes. To increase the explaining power for behavioral intention, this study extended the TPB by adding awareness of consequences. The study's participants were selected randomly. 340 of them agreed and answered the questionnaire, yielding a percentage response rate 87%. This produced 271 valid questionnaires for data analysis after closely examining the survey. The results demonstrate a positive influence of subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and consequences awareness on environmental behavioral intention. On the other hand, attitude does not significantly contribute to predict EBI. Governments, legislators, and researchers may use the work's findings to create and execute efficient waste management programs.

Objective: The aim of the study was to characterize varieties of Moringa alfileria honey (unfloral and polyfloral) from Saudi Arabia based on antibacterial, antioxidant activities, physicochemical, melissopalynological analysis, total phenolic and flavonoid contents. Material and Methods: The fresh 376 honey samples (3 kg of each) were kindly provided by Alnahal aljwal Company, 2021 flowering season. The honey samples collected in sterile universal glass containers and kept at 2– 8°C until tested. Antibacterial, antioxidant activities and physiochemical analysis were done. Determination of sediment content, total grains, moisture content, water-soluble solids, acidity, electrical conductivity, total sugars content, inverted sugars, glucose (g/100 g), fructose (g/100 g), total glucose + fructose, fructose/ glucose ratio, sucrose (g/100 g), diastase enzyme activity and HMF were calculated. As well as total phenolic and flavonoid contents Results: Antibacterial activity and physiochemical analysis of honey samples w varied. All parameters studied were significantly different (P < 0.05) among all honey varieties. The results of the physiochemical analysis were compared with Saudi National Standard, Codex standard, as well as published data in the literature. Conclusion: It was obvious that the honey quality was varied based on the botanical origins

Forty-five of intact three sheep breeds (Awassi, Harri, and Najdi) were used in this study (15 animals of each breed), with weight ranged from 23.40 to 25.87 kg. Five animals from each group at the end of growth trial were used for digestibility and nitrogen balance trials. The three groups of sheep had effect (p > 0.05) in the final live weight (FLW). Average daily feed intake (ADI), average daily gain (ADG) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were significantly (p < 0.05) different among the three groups. For digestibility coefficients, the three breeds of sheep had no effect (p > 0.05) in dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP), crude fiber (CF), nitrogen free extract (NFE), neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF). In the similar approach, no significant differences were founds among three breeds of sheep in digestible organic matter, digestible of crude protein, total digestible nutrients and nitrogen retention. The current study concluded that the sheep breeds affected average daily feed intake, average daily gain and feed conversion ratio (FCR). Awassi breed showed the best of average daily gain and feed conversion ratio followed by Najdi then Harri breeds. The breed of sheep had no effect on digestibility coefficients and nitrogen retention.

The access to agricultural information in Sudan continues to be challenging to farmers due to use of inadequate sources and traditional extension approaches. The rapid growth of smart-mobile phones usage in developing countries resulted in several advantages compared to other alternatives in term of costs, geographic coverage and ease of use. This research was conducted in North Kordofan Sate to explore the role of smart-mobile phone in accessing agricultural information. Primary data were obtained by structured questionnaires and focus group discussion through participatory rural appraisal and observation while secondary data were collected from scientific journals, books and authenticated web sources. A number of 230 respondents (10% from total farmers) were interviewed and five focus group discussions were done. Statistical Packages for Social Science (SPSS) version 22 was used to analyze the data with aid of descriptive statistics and Chi-squire Test. The result indicated that most of the respondents fall in age group between 21-40 years, and they depend on farm activity. There was 90% of farmers processed mobile phone since more than three years ago, 90.8%continuedto use smart mobile phone to access agricultural information and showed positive contribution towards income generation. The results also revealed that there was positive perception towards using mobile phones which showed more efficient in use than radio and TVs. The results showed great advantages of using smart mobile phone where 75.2 % of respondents preferred to get agricultural information, logistics and other needs through successful communication in the mid of agricultural season. Results of Chi-squire test showed significant differences between the parameters tested. The study recommended that farmers should be connected with mobile phones to admit ease communication with agricultural extension offices and quick access to their needs and logistics.

This study was conducted in the Dhanu River and adjacent waters at Mithamain upazila (sub-district) under Kishoreganj district of Bangladesh to prepare a check list of available native fishes with their availability status, conservation perspectives, habitat preferences, population trends and intimidations. Data were collected monthly by direct field survey, focus group discussions, and personal interviews with fishers by using a semi-structured questionnaire and a pictorial check list of fish species. A total of 91 indigenous fish species of 59 genera belonging to 29 families under 11 orders were documented where 17.58% species was abundantly available, 27.47% was commonly available, 31.87% was moderately available and 23.08% was rarely available. Cypriniformes was found as the dominant order, consisting 37.36% of the fish species aggregation and Cyprinidae was the most dominant family with 32.97% of the entire species assemblage. Twenty four piscine species (26.37%) were under threatened category in Bangladesh which subsumed 3 critically endangered (3.29%), 11 endangered (12.08%), and 10 vulnerable species (10.99%). Notably globally threatened Cirrhinus cirrhosus, Channa orientalis, and Wallago attu were available there. Fish population trends of 24.18% and 59.34% of the entire fish species was found in decreasing trends in global and national level, respectively. Leading intimidation to the fish diversity was indiscriminately overfishing, followed by fishing by dewatering of wetlands, katha fishing method, use of deprecated fishing gears, climate change, etc. Minimization of anthropogenic impacts, assuring the flux of water round the year, enactments of fish laws, installation and management of fish sanctuaries, and raising public awareness can be effective for the conservation of existing fisheries resources.

The current rapidly changing and highly competitive market has put companies under a great pressure not only to be successful, but also to sustain their success into the future. In addition, in recent years, companies have become more aware of the fact that it is no longer enough to take care of economic aspects, being crucial to also take care of environmental and social aspects in order to actually succeed and lead in the current and future markets. In this context, companies are urged to move towards more innovative manufacturing practices that maintain a healthy balance among economic, environmental and social performances, which are the three pillars of the sustainability performance. To give some insight into this issue, a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) is conducted in this paper regarding the current trends in the field, doing special focus on the link between lean-green manufacturing and the different sustainability aspects. The SLR concluded that lean and green implementations as stand-alone systems are usually not enough to ensure the required balance between the three pillars of sustainability, suggesting further combining them into a single approach. Researchers expect to achieve further improvements in the sustainability performance moving towards the next level of sustainability.

Although carbon (C) efflux from soils treated with organic wastes was widely covered in temperate and cold regions, still such data is not sufficient from arid and semi-arid regions. Saudi Arabia produces more than 335,000 tons/year of cow manure (CM), this CM either left as raw manure or being composted. The application of high C/N amendments is expected to increase soil organic carbon and reduce CO₂ fluxes. A 90-day incubation experiment was conducted to study CO₂ efflux, organic C microbial biomass C, available NH₄+and NO₃-when added to agricultural soil. Six manure types were added: cow manure, cow manure compost, cow manure biochar, cow manure stripped ammonia at pH 12 with a temperature of 95oC, cow manure stripped ammonia at pH 9 with a temperature of 95oC and control. The application of CM resulted in a considerable increase in soil available nitrogen, CO₂ efflux compared to other treatments. Cow manure biochar showed the lowest CO₂ efflux. Cumulative CO₂ effluxes of cow manure effluents were lower than CM this possibly due to the relatively high C:N ratio of manure effluent. The content of, P, Fe, Cu, Zn and Mn were decreased as incubation time increased. microbial biomass C of cow manure stripped ammonia at pH 12 with a temperature of 95oC were increased at 7 and 60 days illustrating to temperature effect on the decomposing of manure materials.

Automotive aerodynamics comprises of the study of aerodynamics of road vehicles. Its main goals are reducing drag, minimizing noise emission, improving fuel economy, preventing undesired lift forces and minimizing other causes of aerodynamic instability at high speeds. The Ahmed body has the form of a highly simplified car, consisting of a blunt nose with rounded edges fixed onto a box-like middle section and a rear end that has an upper slanted surface, the angle of which can be varied. It retains vital features of real vehicles in order to study the flow fields around it and the related turbulence models which characterizes the actual flow at elevated Reynolds number. In the present study, the aerodynamic behavior of this body is investigated numerically by the aid of commercial CFD tool: Ansys Fluent. The results of the simulation are validated with available experimental data and results of the simulations from other literatures. The numerical data were obtained for a fixed free stream velocity of 25 m/s at the inlet. The simulations were performed at a fixed slant angle of 25 degree and zero yaw angle. The present study focuses on how local refinement of mesh inside the concerned body and the outside, helps affect the results and for which grid dependency test is the primary objective of this paper. The present study also helps demonstrate how the drag of the body behaves, which is mainly the effect of pressure drag force generated at the rear portion of the body. The study also focuses on important properties like the velocity magnitude at different locations for different meshing cases, and to capture the flow pattern in the front or near the wake region. The study can be further helpful to future researchers in determining resistance, fuel efficiency etc. helping designers to optimize in specialized areas for better efficiency.

The tryptophan catabolite (TRYCAT) pathway is implicated in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia (SCZ) since the rate-limiting enzyme indoleamine-dioxygenase (IDO) may be induced by inflammatory and oxidative stress mediators. This systematic review searched PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar for papers published from inception until August 2021 and meta-analyzed the association between SCZ and TRYCATs in the central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral blood. We included 61 studies comprising 2813 patients and 2948 healthy controls. In the CNS we found a significant (p<0.001) increase in the kynurenine/tryptophan (KYN/TRP) (standardized mean difference, SMD=0.769, 95% confidence interval, CI: 0.456; 1.082) and kynurenic acid (KA)/KYN+TRP (SMD=0.697, CI:0.478-0.917) ratios, KA (SMD=0.646, CI: 0.422; 0.909) and KYN (SMD=1.238; CI: 0.590; 1.886), while the 3OH-kynurenine (3HK) + KYN-3-monooxygenase (KMO)/KYN ratio was significantly reduced (SMD=-1.089, CI: -1.682; -0.496). There were significant differences between KYN/TRP, (KYN+KA)/TRP, (3HK+KMO)/KYN, KA, and KYN levels among the CNS and peripheral blood, and among serum and plasma KYN. The only useful peripheral marker of CNS TRYCATs findings was the increased KYN/TRP ratio in serum (SMD=0.211, CI: 0.056; 0.366, p=0.007), but not in plasma. There was no significant increase in a neurotoxic composite score based on KYN, 3HK, and picolinic, xanthurenic, and quinolinic acid. SCZ is accompanied by increased IDO activity in the CNS and serum, and reduced KMO activity and a shift towards KA production in the CNS. This CNS TRYCATs profile indicates neuroprotective, negative immunoregulatory and anti-inflammatory effects. Peripheral blood levels of TRYCATs are dissociated from CNS findings except for a modest increase in serum IDO activity.

Mining can impact the environment, biodiversity and human health through direct and indirect practices. This study investigated the effects of gold mining on Gerbillus nanus, pointing to organ dysfunction and redox imbalance. Soil samples, Lycium shawii and G. nanus were collected from a site near a mining planet and a control site. Soil and L. shawii samples from the mining site showed a significant increase cadmium (Cd), cupper (Cu), mercury (Hg), arsenic (As), zinc (Zn), lead (Pb) and vanadium (V). Hepatic, renal and pulmonary Cd, Pb, Hg, Zn, Cu, Fe, As and V concentrations were increased significantly in G. nanus at the mining site. Markers of liver and kidney function were elevated in serum, and several histological manifestations were demonstrated in liver, kidney and lung of G. nanus at the mining site. Malondialdehyde and nitric oxide were increased, and glutathione and antioxidant enzyme were declined in the liver and kidney of G. nanus. In conclusion, mining practices triggered tissue damage and oxidative stress in G. nanus living close to the mining site. These findings can represent the scientific basis for evaluating the environmental and health impact of mining in the on the nearby communities.

Background: Reminiscence studies and life reviews have a number of proven advantages. Future generations gain by learning from elders' life experiences, as do older adults themselves who share their memories. Despite Oman's sizable geriatric population, research on older individuals' life experiences is scarce. Therefore, this study aims to explore the life experiences of older Omani individuals across their many life stages, from childhood to the present. Methods: This was a qualitative study design. A total of 13 Omani older adults (9 females and 4 males) with an average age of 68 years were recruited for this study. Socio-demographic and life review information was gathered according to a set of semi-structured guiding questions. The responses were then captured on audio recordings, which underwent transcription and translation. Thematic analysis techniques were applied to the extracted data. Results: Three main themes were evident in the study’s findings: Childhood memories, Friendships, and Relationships, as well as the elders’ past. Additionally, older adults passed on a number of gems of wisdom to be shared with the younger generations. Conclusion: This study aided in revealing the resiliency, social connections, and life reflections of Omani older adults. Based on these findings, future studies might explore particular aspects of older experiences and pinpoint solutions to improve their quality of life and well-being.

In this project, four of fibers Bragg gratings were fabricated by injecting different volumes of liquids (star line Glass Mechanix optical adhesive material, olive oil diluted with ethanol) into the hollow core fiber. The amplitude splitting interferometric technique with a high resolution specially designed translation stage was used for the fabrication process. The fabrication was done using ultraviolet laser operated at wavelength 405nm. The fabricated Bragg length of the four fibers is equal to 3.8 cm. The results presented fiber Bragg grating (FBG) with successful fabrication at 653.3 nm Bragg reflected wavelength.

The Last Planner System (LPS) aims to enhance planning reliability by reducing variability in construction processes. While LPS applications have been explored in construction and detailed design, its application in architectural design remains underrepresented due to its abstract nature. This study addresses this gap by proposing an LPS framework tailored for architectural design, utilizing LPS metrics to assess planning reliability. Key issues hindering formal planning methods' implementation are identified, and relevant LPS principles are aligned with these challenges, culminating in a conceptual LPS model designed for architectural projects. Building upon the conceptual model, an implementation model is then developed and put into practice within an architectural design company in the United States, resulting in measured improvements in planning reliability and responsiveness. Additionally, it unveils hidden challenges associated with emerging tasks, guiding future design process enhancements. This study demonstrates how tracking design planning performance with LPS metrics can promote LPS adoption in architectural design, offering a benchmark for necessary interventions to achieve desired performance in architectural design.

There are few published studies assessing dental students' and faculty's perception regarding environmental sustainability in dentistry (ESD), its existence within the dental curricula, along with barriers and enablers for its integration. As far as the authors know, no published study looked into this in Saudi Arabia, and this is what the current study aims to explore. A cross-sectional survey using validated online questionnaires for dental students and faculty was carried out in 26 dental schools in Saudi Arabia. The validated questionnaire utilized 25 questions using Qualtrics (XM) software. Both descriptive statistics and thematic analysis were included in the data analysis. ESD content is not formally embedded within the dental curricula in all 26 included universities in Saudi Arabia. Although the majority of students and faculty members agreed or strongly agreed on the importance of ESD as a whole and the importance of teaching it, more than 82% and 81% of students and faculty, respectively, demonstrated a lack of basic knowledge concerning ESD. There is a high demand for incorporating ESD content in dental education in Saudi Arabia. To achieve this, resources and policy changes are necessary. A top-down approach is needed, including incorporating ESD into dental education standards, using evidence-based practices in revising infection control regulations and providing institutional support through training, materials, and incentives. National dental associations and governments should provide practical solutions and actively support dental professionals in implementing ESD.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a global public health threat, with rates directly linked with consumption. The World Health Organization (WHO) AWaRе-classification aims to guide antibiotic use, which is influenced by drug availability, affordability, and economic policies. In Jordan, a high proportion of consumed antibiotics belong to the 'Watch' category. Data from the WHO-AWaRе classification, the Essential Medicines List, and the Jordan Food and Drug Administration were analyzed. Antibiotics for adults were classified and their cost per Defined Daily Dose (DDD) was determined, then affordability was assessed. In 2023, 43 injectable and 43 oral antibiotics for adults were registered in Jordan. 'Watch' antibiotics were the most common. 'Access' antibiotics had the lowest cost/DDD. 'Rеsеrvе' antibiotics were the most expensive with few generics. Injectable antibiotics had a negative correlation between cost and the number of alternatives. Affordability was higher for oral antibiotics compared to injectable ones. 'Rеsеrvе' antibiotics were generally unaffordable. This study highlights the need to promote 'Access' antibiotics over other categories by encouraging registration of missing ‘Access’ antibiotics and adjusting 'Watch' and 'Rеsеrvе' antibiotic prices. Competition among generics can lead to lower prices, increasing affordability and accessibility. We emphasize the importance of the AWaRе-classification in guiding antibiotic use in Jordan.

Despite the effectiveness of insulin injections in managing hyperglycemia in Type 1 Diabetes, they fall short in addressing autoimmunity and regenerating damaged islets. This review aims to explore the potential of various treatment modalities for T1DM, including mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), MSC-derived exosomes, gene therapy, islet allotransplantation, and pancreatic islet cell transplantation. Results: MSCs demonstrate efficacy in T1DM treatment through immunomodulation and tissue regeneration, although further research is warranted to optimize their therapeutic potential. Gene therapy presents a promising approach despite challenges such as donor shortage and immune rejection. Pancreatic islet cell transplantation emerges as a viable option, albeit with associated risks including graft rejection and the need for immunosuppression. Teplizumab, an FDA-approved humanized monoclonal antibody, revolutionizes the treatment landscape of Type 1 Diabetes by significantly delaying its onset, offering a paradigm shift since the discovery of insulin Conclusion: Ongoing studies and technological advancements in T1DM management offer a promising outlook for improved treatments and possibly even eradication on a global scale. MSCs, MSC-derived exosomes, gene therapy, and pancreatic islet transplantation hold considerable potential.

An improved FSM method is used in geophysical and environmental corrections to enhance the final product of the along track Jason-2 SLA data and extend it near the Red Sea borders. In this study the ionospheric correction range, wet tropospheric correction range, sea state bias correction range and dry tropospheric correction range are enhanced and improved using FSM01, which helped to retrieve three more tracks (106, 170 and 234), earlier neglected by the distribution centers, and extend the tracks towards the coast. The FSM01 SLA is compared with Jason-2 SLA and AVISO SLA for the available 5 tracks, in which the FSM01 SLA show a good agreement and higher correlation with the Jason-2 SLA compared with that of AVISO, in addition to that it fills the gaps in the times series of all tracks. The new retrieved tracks also compared with those retrieved by AVISO, both data show similar variability, with FSM01 SLA show no gaps in the time series. The FSM01 SLA also extended towards the coast and show high correlation with the coastal tide measurements.

The current study focused on reviewing the rapid growing of using magnetic water in different fields of science and measure the influence of several intensities of magnetization on the chemical and electrical properties of tap water treated by reverse osmosis. The work includes circulation of water for 24 h. in magnetic fields of intensity 500, 1000, 1500, and 2000 G. The magnetization of water causes increasing some positive and negative ions in water such as (Mg, K, Na, Cl¯, Alkaline and SiO₂) and decreasing some positive and negative ions (Ca and SO₃). In the near future, the application of concepts of sustainability development in civil engineering have the to produce structures in harmony with these concepts through using of high-performance materials with less impacts on the environmental and have low cost. The main application of using magnetic water is improvement the geotechnical properties of soil through precipitation of calcite which increases the bond between soil particles and then strength of soil.

While the debate on the association between Enterobius vermicularis (E. vermicularis) and acute appendicitis has not been settled, a few case reports of this very rare encounter are beginning to come to light. While E. vermicularis is one of the most common parasitic infestations around the world, acute appendicitis, on the other hand, is also a commonly encountered condition in general surgery. However, the association between the two remains controversial. Here we present a case report of a young woman with appendicitis associated with (E. vermicularis).

This paper introduces the complex Rayleigh-van der Pol-Duffing oscillators (RVDOs), which are hyperchaotic and can be either autonomous or non-autonomous. The fundamental dynamics of the autonomous and nonautonomous complex RVDOs including dissipation, symmetry, fixed points and their stability are studied. These oscillators are found in various important fields of physics and engineering. The paper proposes a scheme to achieve phase synchronization (PS) and antiphase synchronization (APS) for different dimensional models. These kinds of synchronization are considered as generalization of several other types of synchronization. For this scheme we use the active control method based on Lyapunov stability theory. By analytically determining the control functions, the scheme achieved PS and APS. Our scheme is applied to study PS of hyperchaotic behaviours for two distinct hyperchaotic non-autonomous and autonomous complex RVDOs. Additionally, the scheme is employed to achieve APS of chaotic real non-autonomous RVDO and hyperchaotic complex autonomous RVDO, including those with different dimensions. Our work presents numerical results that plot the amplitudes and phases of these hyperchaotic behaviours, demonstrating the successful achievement of PS and APS.

Inorganic nanoparticles based on magnetite improve the mechanical, thermal, and magnetic properties of microporous cryogel polymer composites. Here we report the synthesis of microporous cryogel based on the crosslinked sodium vinyl sulfonate (Na-VS) and 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid sodium salt (Na-AMPS). The magnetite nanoparticles were inserted into Na-VS/Na-AMPS cryogel either during its crosslinking polymerization or by in-situ technique after its crosslinking. The morphology, particle sizes, thermal stability and magnetite contents of Na-VS/Na-AMPS cryogel and its magnetite composites were investigated. The prepared Na-VS/Na-AMPS cryogel and its magnetite composites were used as adsorbents for methylene blue (MB) cationic dye using optimum conditions. The magnetite Na-VS/Na-AMPS cryogel composite prepared by in-situ technique achieved the best adsorption MB removal capacity for 7 cycles among the other adsorbents via chemical adsorption mechanism at room temperature.

Salmonella enterica includes enteric pathogens of zoonotic potential, possessing one of the largest pools of temperate phages in their genomes. One such class of phages previously called Podoviridae (Now genera placed directly under class Caudoviricetes temporarily) is the largest group of temperate phages that lysogenize clinically and economically important Salmonella enterica serovars. These phages are capable of generalized transduction and are well known for carrying foreign DNA (mobile genetic elements and resistance genes) to new bacterial species that play a major role in the evolution, pathogenicity, and host adaptability of Salmonella serovars. Here we report a novel species of podo viruses; Salmonella phage BIS08P22 (BIS08) that infects Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium strain SE-BS17 (Acc. NO: MZ503545). Phage BIS08 was viable only at biological pH and temperature (pH7 and 37 °C) and features 41,574 -base pair (bp) linear ds DNA genome with 47% GC content. It encodes 73 putative Open Reading Frames (ORFs), has a mosaic arrangement, and shares only 16 core genes with its closest homologs. BIS08 genome possesses only 52 % homology (genome-wide Nucleotide homology by VIRIDIC analysis) with members of the genus Lederbergvirus which is not sufficient to place it in the same genus. This phage has a unique terminase enzyme (DNA packaging motor) with no nucleotide and protein homology with any known member of the Lederbergvirus genus. We carried out a detailed phylogenetic and genome analysis of this novel phage and proposed its placement in a new genus. Our study also suggests a revision in the classification of the genus Lederbergvirus. We also performed in silico structural analysis of the BIS08 unique terminase enzyme comparing it to its close homologs.

As prominent oil producers, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries have played a significant role in the global energy market. However, as the world's attention increasingly shifts towards environmental sustainability, understanding the implications of the GCC's economic activities on CO2 emissions becomes indispensable. This research paper investigates the relationship between specific economic indicators and their impact on CO2 emissions in the GCC from 2001 to 2021. The study employs quantile regression, a powerful statistical method that estimates the conditional quantiles of a response variable given a set of predictor variables. The findings reveal several important insights: Financial institution efficiency is significant and negative at a 1% level at the lower (10th) -83537.3 and the higher quantile (90th) -549002.3. The relationship between GDP per capita and CO2 emissions varies across quantiles, highlighting the complexity of the growth-environment nexus. Total patents exhibit a positive and significant relationship with emissions, underscoring the importance of directing innovation towards environmentally sustainable solutions. Renewable energy consumption displays a nuanced relationship with CO2 emissions, with a stronger negative impact observed at higher consumption levels. This underscores the potential of renewable energy to mitigate emissions when integrated at scale. The study's outcomes hold crucial policy implications for the GCC countries as they seek to align economic growth with environmental sustainability. The findings emphasize the importance of fostering financial institution efficiency, promoting green innovation, and expanding renewable energy sources to reduce emissions

Hepcidin-25 was identified as the main iron regulator in the human body by binding to the sole iron-exporter ferroportin. Studies showed that the N-terminus of hepcidin is responsible for this interaction, the same N-terminus that encompasses a small copper(II)-binding site known as ATCUN (amino terminal Cu(II)- and Ni(II)- binding) motif. Interestingly, this copper-binding property is largely ignored in most papers dealing with hepcidin-25. In this context, detailed investigations of the formed complex of hepcidin-25 with copper could reveal insights into its biological role. The present work is mainly focused on the study of the metal-bound form of hepcidin-25, which could be considered the biologically active form. The first part is devoted to the reversed-phase chromatographic separation of copper-bound and copper-free hepcidin-25, which was achieved by applying basic mobile phases containing 0.1% ammonia. Further, mass spectrometry (tandem mass spectrometry MS/MS, high resolution mass spectrometry HRMS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy were employed to characterize the copper-peptide. Lastly, a 3D model of hepcidin-25 with bound copper(II) is presented. The identification of metal complexes and potential isoforms and isomers, from which the latter usually are left undetected by mass spectrometry, led to the conclusion that complementary analytical methods are needed to characterize a peptide calibrant or reference material comprehensively. Quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance (qNMR), inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), ion-mobility spectrometry (IMS) and chiral amino acid analysis (AAA) should be considered among others.

The literature study delves into novel therapeutic strategies in transplantation medicine, highlighting unique approaches that could revolutionize current practices. It emphasizes novel patterns that have the potential to transform the current landscape. Commencing with a thorough examination of the historical environment, it traces crucial advances and changes in transplantation. The focus is on traditional techniques, emphasizing their limitations and challenges. An extensive examination of contemporary transplantation therapies offers valuable insights into the most recent progress in organ, cellular, and tissue transplantation. This analysis examines the immunological obstacles and outlines the current advancements and constraints. The exploration further navigates into novel models and concepts such as immunomodulation, developments in organ preservation techniques, gene editing, biomaterials, scaffold-based solutions, and the integration of precision medicine, artificial intelligence, and machine learning applications. Each section analyzes the potential for change and current progress in various areas, backed by relevant scientific sources up to 2023. The subsequent sections delve into innovative cellular therapies, biotechnological progress, current clinical trials, and case studies demonstrating effective applications. This examination delves into the ethical and regulatory considerations of innovative therapeutic procedures, emphasizing ethical implications, regulatory frameworks, and the importance of balancing innovation with patient welfare. The literature review concludes by offering a forward-looking perspective, emphasizing potential progress, anticipated challenges, and advocating for collaboration and interdisciplinary approaches to overcome limitations in the field of transplantation medicine.

Demand for environmentally friendly types of energy is growing all over the world, which naturally increases the intensity of work on the production of hydrogen-containing fuel mixtures. Steam reforming of methanol is one of the most effective areas of research, as it is a process with low energy consumption. The results of steam reforming of methanol on the catalysts prepared by solution combustion synthesis (SCS) and impregnation by moisture capacity are presented. Investigation of the activity of Cu-Ce-Al catalysts of different composition was carried out for production of hydrogen and comparison of SCS with traditional impregnation method. Methanol conversion reaches 99%, while the selectivity of H2 was 88%, at 500 °C. It was found that CuAl2O4 spinel formation is due to substitution of Al3+ with Cu2+ Ce3+ cations. A consequence CuAl2O4 and CeAlO3 lattice parameters increase because of difference in ionic radius of Al3+ (0.53 Å) and Cu2+ (0.73 Å), Ce3+ (1.07 Å). Advantages of SCS catalysts in steam reforming of methanol were shown. The aim of this research is to develop a new catalyst for conversion of methanol into hydrogen containing fuel mixtures, which will further promote the organization of a new era of environmentally friendly energy-saving production methods.

Early detection of cancer increases the probability of recovery. This paper presents an intelligent decision support system (IDSS) for the early diagnosis of cancer based on gene expression profiles collected using DNA microarrays. Such datasets pose a challenge because of the small number of samples (no more than a few hundred) relative to the large number of genes (on the order of thousands). Therefore, a method of reducing the number of features (genes) that are not relevant to the disease of interest is necessary to avoid overfitting. The proposed methodology uses the information gain (IG) to select the most important features from the input patterns. Then, the selected features (genes) are reduced by applying the grey wolf optimization (GWO) algorithm. Finally, the methodology employs a support vector machine (SVM) classifier for cancer type classification. The proposed methodology was applied to two datasets (Breast and Colon) and was evaluated based on its classification accuracy, which is the most important performance measure in disease diagnosis. The experimental results indicate that the proposed methodology is able to enhance the stability of the classification accuracy as well as the feature selection

It is well known that fiber sizing is one of the most important component in the manufacturing of composites, and it does affect the mechanical properties including strength and stiffness. In this work, the influence of fiber sizing levels on the mechanical properties of carbon fibers (CF) is reported at room temperature by using single fiber tensile testing (Favimat+), single fiber pullout testing (SFPO), and interfacial elemental analysis using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Standard modulus of CF (7±0.2 μm in diameter) were sized using two Michelman commercially available sizing formulations. The average solid content for each sizing formulation is 26.3 ± 0.2% and 34.1 ± 0.2%, respectively. HEXION RIMR 135 with curing agent RIMH 137 was used as a model thermoset epoxy matrix during the SFPO measurements. A predictive engineering fiber sizing methodology is also developed. Sizing amounts of 0.5, 1, and 2 wt. % on the surface of the fiber is achieved for both sizing formulations. For each fiber sizing level, 50 single fiber tensile testing experiments and 20 single fiber pull-out tests were conducted. The ultimate tensile strength (σult) of the carbon fibers and the interfacial shear strength (τ_app) of the single fiber composite were analyzed. it is also investigated the effect of the sizing levels on the interfacial shear stress and the O/C (Oxygen/Carbon) surface composition ratio. As a result, generalized fiber sizing and characterization methods were established. The developed methods can be used to characterize the strength and interfacial shear strength of any man-made fibers with different sizing formulations and solid contents, irrespective of the matrix i.e. thermoset or thermoplastic.

The variability of ozone over Egypt has been studied in this work. Higher values of coefficient of variation (COV) at eight stations occur at winter while lowest values occur at summer. The COV is function of latitude in annual, winter and spring where it decreases gradually from the north to south of Egypt. The trend analysis of ozone over the eight stations indicates negative trends over northern stations for both annual and seasonal time series with the greatest one at winter. The horizontal distribution of ozone trend values is negative over all Egypt in winter while it positive over middle and south Egypt in the other seasons. The long-term variability of the behavior of the annual ozone shows positive trend values in ozone are the dominant features during the period 1979- 1989 at the most stations. Negative trend values in ozone are the dominant features during the period 1990- 2014 at all stations. The Mann–Kendall test confirms that there is an abrupt change towards decreasing of ozone occurs in 1981, 1984, 2012, 1999, 2000, 1998 and 2010, while a change towards increasing of ozone appears in 2006, 2014, 1993 and 1989.

Our study examines the association of the presence of mildew, cockroaches, and pets in homes as well as household dust allergens with the prevalence and/or severity of allergic diseases. No study has concurrently assessed home environment exposures in relation to allergic conditions in the general US population. Data from 5,409 participants from the 2005-2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey living in their current homes for ≥1 year were analyzed. Multivariate logistic regression analyses between home exposures and allergic diseases prevalence and severity were performed. In adjusted analyses, mildew was associated with higher current asthma, allergies, and allergic rhinitis prevalence; endotoxin, with higher current asthma prevalence), and dust Canis familiaris (Can f) 1, with higher allergic rhinitis prevalence. However, presence of cockroaches and dust Dermatogoides farinae (Der f) 1 were associated respectively with lower current asthma and allergies prevalence. Presence of mildew, dust Der f1, Dermatogoides pteronyssinus (Der p) 1, Feline domesticus (Fel d) 1, and endotoxin were all associated with asthma and/or wheeze severity. Non-atopic asthma was more frequent with mildew and/or musty smell dust and higher dust Fel d1 concentration, while atopic asthma was more prevalent with higher Can f1and endotoxin concentrations in dust. This study confirms previous relationships and reports novel associations, generating hypotheses for future research.

Energy demand has been overgrowing in developing countries. Moreover, the fluctuation of fuel prices is a primary concern faced by many countries that highly rely on conventional power generation to meet the load demand. Hence, the need to use alternative resources such as renewable energy is crucial to mitigate fossil fuel dependency alongside the reduction of Carbon Dioxide emission. Algeria’s being the largest county in Africa has rapid growth in energy demand since the past decade due to the significant increase of residential, commercial, and industry sectors. Currently, the hydrocarbon-rich nation highly dependent on fossil fuels for electricity generation, where renewable energy only has a small contribution to the country’s energy mix. However, the country has massive potential for renewable energy generations such as solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, and hydropower. Therefore, the government aims to diversify away from fossil fuel and promoting renewable energy generations through policies and renewable energy-related programs. The country’s Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Development Plan focuses on large scale solar, wind generation as well as geothermal and biomass technologies. This paper provides an update on the current energy position and renewable energy status in Algeria. Moreover, this paper discusses RE policies and programs that aim to increase the country’s renewable energy generation and its implementation status.

Tropical forests harbor complex communities that are linked together by biotic relationships. Asian forests in particular have lost many apex predators due to habitat loss. We studied a small forest patch in northeastern Bangladesh, Satchari National Park, to determine density and diversity of nocturnal mammals and evaluate their relationships. Transects were walked from February 2015 to July 2016 and density was estimated using distance sampling. Nine species of mammals (5 arboreal and 4 ground-dwelling) were encountered. Densities of the common palm civets, Paradoxurus hermaphrodites, Bengal slow loris, Nycticebus bengalensis, were the highest (19.48 and 15.03 individuals/km2). Density of small Indian civets, large Indian civets and Indian mongoose were lower (2.31-5.55 individuals/km2). Unexpectedly, a wide range of nocturnal mammals co-existed in this forest patch, in spite of fragmentation and severe disturbance. We did not find any significant association between any of the species studied, although this could be an artifact of low sample size. Conservation in Bangladesh remains a challenge due to high human population density. Thus, strict conservation measures are needed to permit the long-term survival of these species.

The persistent issue of bacterial and fungal colonization of artificial implantable materials and decreasing efficacy of conventional systemic antibiotics used to treat implant-associated infections has led to the development of a wide range of antifouling and antibacterial strategies. This article reviews one such strategy where inherently biologically active renewable resources, i.e. secondary plant metabolites (SPMs) and their naturally occurring combinations (i.e. essential oils) are used for surface functionalization and synthesis of polymer thin films. With a distinct mode of antibacterial activity, broad spectrum of action and diversity of available chemistries, secondary plant metabolites present an attractive alternative to conventional antibiotics. However, their conversion from liquid to solid phase without significant loss of activity is not trivial. Using select examples, this article shows how plasma techniques provide a sufficiently flexible and chemically reactive environment to enable the synthesis of biologically-active polymer-coatings from volatile renewable resources.

Background and objectives: The initiation of apoptotic death in cancer cells is the aim of many chemotherapeutic strategies. As many anticancer agents have been discovered in natural plant sources, the search for novel phytochemicals displaying anticancer activities continues at a tremendous rate. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of extractable polyphenols (EPP); non-extractable polyphenols (NEPP); nobiletin (NOB); tectorigenin (TEC) and persicogenin (PERS) from Barhi date palm kernels (BDPK) extracts on the induction of apoptosis in human lung cancer A549 and colon cancer HT29 cell lines. Materials and Methods: The anticancer activities were determined using MTT and trypan blue exclusion assays. Flow cytometry analysis was performed to study the cell viability, cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. The underlying mechanism of apoptosis induced by crude extracts and the purified compounds was investigated using caspase-3, -8 and -9 assays and the mitochondrial membrane potential assay. Results: The findings indicate that both BDPK extracts and the purified compounds do exert induced cell death on A549 and HT29 cells. The results observed from MTT- assay and trypan blue exclusion indicate that the cytotoxic effects of both plant extracts and the three isolated flavonoids are dose-dependent with higher cell death after 72 hours treatment. Treatment of human lung and colon cancer cells with EPP, NEPP, NOB, TEC and PERSI induced late stages of apoptosis as there was evidence of the DNA degradation and high percentage of the cells population was situated at sub-G1 phase, indicating a high population of apoptotic cells. Conclusions: Study of the apoptotic mechanism demonstrated that EPP and NEPP exhibited dependent mitochondrial signalling pathway as seen with caspase-9 and induced receptor-mediated (extrinsic) apoptotic pathway as seen with caspase-8. Therefore, our results suggest that BDPK extracts and the three isolated flavonoids could be a good candidate for developing anticancer agents.

Hyperlipidemia case was described as a rise of lipid profile or lipoproteins in the blood. This study describe briefly investigate the reducing hyperlipideamia impact of Ginkgo biloba on the level of lipid profile.

Background and aims: For many surgical procedures, spinal anesthesia is a reliable and efficient anesthetic approach. Numerous drugs have been reported to be administered to intrathecal local anesthetics as adjuvants to increase the efficacy of spinal anesthesia. There is little evidence of the effect of intrathecal dexmedetomidine on pain scores and the consumption of analgesia postoperatively. Methods: After obtaining ethical approval, demographical and clinical data of patients who underwent surgical procedures under spinal anesthesia with intrathecal dexmedetomidine or fentanyl was collected and analyzed. Results: In this study with 96 patients, intrathecal dexmedetomidine (group D) resulted in significantly lower post-operative pain scores compared to intrathecal fentanyl (group F) (p=0.000). Across various surgical types, including Orthopedic, General, Urology, and Obs/Gyne procedures, group D consistently displayed reduced pain scores (p&lt;0.001). The number of patients who needed post-operative analgesia was significantly higher in group (F) than in group (D) (40 vs 23, p=0.002). Conclusion: Compared to fentanyl, intrathecal dexmedetomidine as an adjuvant to local anesthesia was found to lower post-operative pain scores and decrease the need for post-operative analgesia.