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Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is accompanied by different metabolic disorders and is linked with a heightened incidence of cardiovascular diseases and death. The information actively engaged in relating obstructive sleep apnea and dyslipidemia is quite uncertain.

The aim of this study is to examine experimentally the thickness variations of a falling film on plain and hydrophilic horizontal tube evaporator surfaces in order to enhance the performance of the horizontal tube evaporators. The hydrophilic surfaces are acquired by exposing them to plasma irradiation for a 120 s time period. A test loop has been installed, and by using electrical film thickness measuring devices, the distributions of the formed liquid thickness layer around the hot plain and hydrophilic surfaces are determined at different operating conditions. By analyzing the experimental data, the present results show that the film thickness around the hydrophilic tube changes with the same pattern around the plain tube. The film distribution along the peripheral angle is non- symmetrical, minimum film thickness values are more likely to appear at a different angular position of 90°–120° under various conditions. The film thickness is significantly decreased for hydrophilic surfaces. The film thickness mainly increases as the flow rate increases, while it decreases as the tube diameter increases, the evaporation pressure increases, the inlet water sub-cooling increases, and tube surface temperature increases. The feeder height has a minor influence on the film thickness. Comparison between the current results and results acquired by another researcher is in good agreement between 2.0% and 18%.

Background: Integrated pest management is one of the ways to solve the problems of increased outbreaks of pests induced by the effects of climate change. Therefore, the present investigation was carried out to study the integrated effect of entomopathogenic fungus, Metarhizium anisopliaeand gamma radiation to control 5th instar larvae the black cut worm, Agrotis ipsilon(Hufnagel) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), under laboratory condition. The leaf dipping technique was used to test the pathogenicity of different concentrations of the fungus against normal and F1 (resulted from irradiated male parent pupae with 100 Gy) larvae. As well as, the changes in the haemocytes were studied using LC50of M. anisopliaeof both treatment (unirradiated and F1 larvae). Results: The results showed that larval mortality percentage was both M. anisopliaevirulent and time dependent. Furthermore, F1 larvae were more susceptible to M. anisopliaewhere 100% mortality was recorded after 3 days of M. anisopliaetreatment at 8 × 105spores/ml concentration. While mortality of normal (unirradiated) larvae reached 40% at the same time and concentration. The haematological examination of larvae revealed significant reduces in total haemocyte counts, differential percentage and increase in morphological malformation of the haemocytes which was pronounced by F1 + M. anisopliaeLC50. Conclusions: According to the obtained results, the gamma irradiation increased the pathogenicity of the fungus against the 5th instar A. ipsilonlarvae. So, the combination between the two control tools may provide a satisfactory integrated control program after further field trials.

Staphylococci are one of the most significant causative mastitis pathogens in both clinical and subclinical cases. The present study aimed to study the prevalence of staphylococcal subclinical mastitis studying their antibiogram and detection of the prevalence mecA and blaZ genes in β-lactams resistant isolates using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). A total of 433 Staphylococcusspecies were recovered from 493 subclinically mastitic quarters with a prevalence of 87.8%. S. aureuswere the most prevalent isolates as 237 isolates (48%). Also, 196 Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci (CNS) isolates (39.8%); representing 8 species, were recovered of which S. xylosuswas the most predominant (36.7%), followed by S. epidermidis(14.8%), S. chromogenes(13.3%), S. haemolyticus(11.2%) and S. saprophyticus(9.7%). Results of antimicrobial susceptibility testing showed high resistances against ampicillin and cefoxitin while a moderate resistance was recorded against amoxicillin. PCR was applied on 40 β-lactam resistant Staphylococcus isolates (20 S. aureusand 20 CNS) for detection of mecA and blaZ genes. The two genes were detected in 75% and 65% of S. aureusisolates as well as in 70% and 55% of CNSisolates, respectively.

The goal of this work was to investigate the effect of gamma irradiated entomopathogenic nematode EPN; Steinernema scapteriscion third and fourth larval instars of Culex pipiensunder laboratory conditions and its effect on the elemental composition of the treated larvae. Results showed that normal and irradiated tested nematodes differed in their efficacies against third and fourth larval instars. The mortality rates increased with increasing the nematode concentration and the period after treatment, in most cases the mortality in fourth instar larvae was more than in third instar larvae under the same treatments, and the percentage of mortality in irradiated nematodes was more than that in unirradiated ones. Studying the elemental composition showed that phosphorus (P) was the highest concentration in untreated larvae or those treated with normal S. scapterisci, while calcium (Ca) was the highest concentration in gamma irradiated S. scapterisci. The lowest concentration in untreated larvae was zinc (Zn), while copper (Cu) was the lowest concentration in unirradiated and 2 Gy gamma irradiated S. scapterisci. In conclusion, the gamma irradiation of S. scapteriscienhanced its efficacy against C. pipiens, therefore it could serve as safe control method for C. pipiens.

Background: The fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda(J.E. Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is an endemic destructive pest for several cultivars in America and recently in Africa and Asia. Due to the development of pesticide resistance as well as environmental contamination, chemical control of the fall armyworm is ineffective. Alternatively, entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) provide a successful biological control tool sustainably. This study was designed to estimate the virulence of 2 isolates (Steinernema carpocapsae(All) and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora(HP88)) on 3rd and 5th larval instars of FAW under laboratory conditions. As well, the effect of gamma radiation (with 2 Gy) on the nematodes’ pathogenicity was studied. Results: The results revealed that S. frugiperdalarvae were sensitive to the 2 tested nematodes which were more apparent to S. carpocapsae. The mortality rates presented a significant elevation with the increase in un-irradiated and irradiated nematode concentrations. The highest recorded mortality for the 3rd and 5th larval instars was 100% after 3 and 4 days of treatment at concentration (80 IJs/ml) irradiated S. carpocapsaeand the recorded death rate for un-irradiated S. carpocapsaewas 72.2 and 77.8% for the two treated larval instars, respectively, after 4 days of the treatment with the same concentration. However, H. bacteriophoracaused mortality of 88.9 and 61.1% at irradiated concentration (80 IJs/ml) and 66.7 and 50% at un-irradiated concentration (80 IJs/ml) for the 3rd and 5th larval instars, respectively, after 6 days of treatment. Based on the LC50values, the 3rd instar larvae was more susceptible than the 5th instar larvae. In addition, juveniles’ irradiation increased their virulence. Conclusions: Laboratory studies indicated that S. carpocapsaehad a high potency among S. frugiperdalarvae, especially the irradiated juveniles. Therefore, they have the potential to be developed as a biological control agent for S. frugiperdaafter further field studies.

Abstract2-Aminothiazole (AT) was covalently bonded to polyurethane foam (PUF) via –N=N–NH– group and used for preconcentration/separation of Ni(II), Zn(II), and Cd(II) from water, black tea, and plant leaves prior to flame atomic absorption spectrometry determination. The resulting AT–PUF sorbent was characterized by density measurement, elemental analysis, UV–vis, and IR spectroscopy. The optimum sorption of these elements was achieved at sample pH 5–6. The sorption capacity was found to be 461 ± 1.4, 341 ± 1.3, and 435 ± 2.4 μg g−1and limit of detection (3σ) was 2.0, 3.0, and 3.0 μg L−1for Ni(II), Zn(II), and Cd(II), respectively. The preconcentration factor was 100 for all elements. The developed method was successfully applied for determination of these elements in tap and lake water, spinach and parsley leaves, and black tea samples and the corresponding relative standard deviation values were less than 10%.

2-Aminothiazole (AT) was covalently bonded to polyurethane foam (PUF) via –N=N–NH– group and used for preconcentration/separation of Ni(II), Zn(II), and Cd(II) from water, black tea, and plant leaves prior to flame atomic absorption spectrometry determination. The resulting AT–PUF sorbent was characterized by density measurement, elemental analysis, UV–vis, and IR spectroscopy. The optimum sorption of these elements was achieved at sample pH 5–6. The sorption capacity was found to be 461 ± 1.4, 341 ± 1.3, and 435 ± 2.4 μg g−1and limit of detection (3σ) was 2.0, 3.0, and 3.0 μg L−1for Ni(II), Zn(II), and Cd(II), respectively. The preconcentration factor was 100 for all elements. The developed method was successfully applied for determination of these elements in tap and lake water, spinach and parsley leaves, and black tea samples and the corresponding relative standard deviation values were less than 10%.

Optical tweezers are a key technique for trapping and contactless manipulation of particles at the micro- and nanoscale that can exert and sense forces from hundreds of piconewton down to few femtonewton. In their simplest implementation, they are based on a single laser beam tightly focused to a high-intensity diffraction-limited spot. Here, after reviewing the general theoretical background on optical forces, we focus on their calibration and show a comparison between frequency and time domain methods. Then, we show novel measurements and calculations of optical forces on gold nanoparticles discussing their size scaling behavior. Finally, we describe recent applications of chiral optical trapping to soft materials, and integration of optical tweezers with Raman spectroscopy for ultra-sensitive spectroscopy of biomolecules in liquids.

The Candidaspecies are the most important factors of fungal infections in humans and animals. It is necessary to prepare antifungal or antimicrobial drugs because of increasing drug resistance. The natural treatment of diseases of bacterial origin using medicinal plants is important. In this study the effect of antimicrobial medicinal herbal essential oils and conventional antifungal drugs were evaluated on Candida albicans in vitro.

Background: Quality of care for diabetes mellitus and hypertension has been found to be suboptimal at primary health care level. There is an expectation that improving quality will require the increased utilisation of resources. This research was intended to determine the quality of care and cost of prescriptions at 10 facilities in the Cape Town Metropole.Method: An analytical, cross-sectional study was conducted in order to relate the cost of medication to quality-of-care indicators for patients with diabetes mellitus and hypertension. Data were collected at the 10 facilities in the Cape Town Metropole over a three-month period.Results: Quality-of-care processes were performed more often in diabetic than in hypertensive patients, i.e. determination of body mass index (BMI) 52.4% vs. 46.4%, creatinine 45.2% vs. 35.7% and cholesterol 44.5% vs. 35.4%, respectively. Nevertheless, outcome measures were better in the hypertensive patients. Targets were achieved in hypertensive vs. diabetic patients, respectively, as follows: BMI (22.2% vs.18.1%), blood pressure (39.8% vs. 28.7%), creatinine (93.2% vs. 91.4%) and cholesterol (46.8% vs. 44%). The median cost per script was R44.66 and R30.06 for diabetic and hypertensive patients with good quality-of-care scores, respectively, and R51.18 and R31.00, for those with poor quality-of-care scores.Conclusion: The quality of care provided was poor when compared with the guideline recommendations, but was comparable to care provided in many other populations. There was no correlation between quality of care and the cost of the prescriptions.

AbstractObjectives:There has been a rapid increase in the prevalence of noncommunicable diseases globally. It is thought that this increase will have the greatest impact on developing countries, such as South Africa, where it will adversely affect quality of life and increase healthcare costs. This research was conducted to determine the disease profile and cost of treating patients at 10 facilities in the western half of the Cape Town Metropole.Design:An analytical, cross-sectional study was carried out in order to interpret the cost of the medication in relation to the patient disease profile.Setting and subjects:Data were collected from 10 facilities in the western half of the Cape Town Metropole over a three-month period.Outcome measure:The outcome measure was the disease profile of patients attending the facilities and the cost of prescriptions for these patients.Results:Most patient visits to the community health centres were to treat chronic diseases (82%). The disease profile of patients was as follows: 58.96% had hypertension, 19.67% diabetes, 12.14% asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and 21.80% arthritis. It was found that 65% of patients with a chronic condition had co-morbidities. The cost of prescriptions was significantly higher (p-value < 0.001) for chronic conditions than for acute conditions. The number of comorbidities per patient also influenced the cost of the prescriptions.Conclusion:The results indicated that most of the adults attending public sector facilities in the western half of the Cape Town Metropole have chronic diseases and that the cost of treating these conditions is significantly greater than that of treating acute conditions. An integrated approach to the management of chronic diseases is important in low-resource settings for the efficient utilisation of limited resources.

Ornithine transcarbamylase (OTC) deficiency (OTCD) is an X‐linked urea cycle disorder. Being an X‐linked disease, the onset and severity of the disease may vary among female carriers. Some of them start to develop the disease early in life, whereas others remain asymptomatic throughout their lives. Our patient was a 42‐year‐old man who developed severe hyperammonemia and fatal brain edema after receiving a right lobe graft from an asymptomatic female living donor with unrecognized OTCD. The donor developed hyperammonemia and disturbed level of consciousness that was managed successfully by hemodialysis. Molecular testing of the OTC gene in the donor revealed a heterozygous nonsense mutation (c.429T > A) in exon 5.

Ornithine transcarbamylase (OTC) deficiency (OTCD) is an X-linked urea cycle disorder. Being an X-linked disease, the onset and severity of the disease may vary among female carriers. Some of them start to develop the disease early in life, whereas others remain asymptomatic throughout their lives. Our patient was a 42-year-old man who developed severe hyperammonemia and fatal brain edema after receiving a right lobe graft from an asymptomatic female living donor with unrecognized OTCD. The donor developed hyperammonemia and disturbed level of consciousness that was managed successfully by hemodialysis. Molecular testing of the OTC gene in the donor revealed a heterozygous nonsense mutation (c.429T > A) in exon 5.

Our aim was to determine the prevalence of the HCV infection among children with type 1 DM as compared to a group of non-diabetic children attending the general outpatient clinics of the same hospital and investigate the possible risk factors. The study was carried out on 692 children with type 1 DM attending the Pediatric Diabetes Unit at Cairo University Pediatric Hospital, Egypt, and 1042 non-diabetic children attending the general outpatient clinics of the same hospital. They were screened for HCV antibodies using third generation ELISA. Anti-HCV antibody prevalence in diabetic children below 9 years of age was comparable to that of non diabetic children (2.5&percnt vs. 1.4 p&equals0.25). Diabetic children had higher exposure to medical care (p0.04); all diabetics were exposed to daily insulin injections and daily blood glucose monitoring. Non-diabetics had higher exposure to razors used by others (p0.05) and higher rate of traditional hair cutting (p0.05). To conclude, the prevalence of anti-HCV in diabetic children below 9 years of age was comparable to non diabetic children of the same age group. Application of standard precautions for infection control could successfully limit spread of HCV infection in our Pediatric Diabetes Unit, in a country with high HCV load as Egypt.

Abstract: Driver drowsiness is a major safety concern, especially among commercial vehicle drivers, and is responsible for thousands of accidents and numerous fatalities every year. The design of a drowsiness detection system is based on identifying suitable driver-related and/or vehicle-related variables that are correlated to the driver’s level of drowsiness. Among different candidates, vehicle control variables seem to be more promising since they are unobtrusive, easy to implement, and cost effective. This paper focuses on in-depth analysis of different driver-vehicle control variables, e.g., steering angle, lane keeping, etc. that are correlated with the level of drowsiness. The goal is to find relationships and to characterize the effect of a driver’s drowsiness on measurable vehicle or driving variables and set up a framework for developing a drowsiness detection system. Several commercial drivers were tested in a simulated environment and different variables were recorded. This study shows that drowsiness has a major impact on lane keeping and steering control behavior. The correlation of the number and type of accidents with the level of drowsiness was also examined. Significant patterns in lateral position variations and steering corrections were observed, and two phases of drowsiness-related degradation in steering control were identified. The two steering degradation phases examined are suitable features for use in drowsiness detection systems.

The inhibition properties of two imidazol-1-ium bromide compounds, namely, 1-hexyl-1-methyl-1H-imidazol-1-ium bromide and 1-dodecyl-1-methyl-1H-imidazol-1-ium bromide on the carbon steel corrosion in 1.0 MHCl were estimated using mass loss, electrochemical, and theoretical studies. The new investigated compounds are easily prepared, low-cost, and effective corrosion inhibitors. It is found that these compounds act as excellent inhibitors and act as mixed-type inhibitors. EIS showed that the investigated compounds act by the creation of a protective film at the metal surface. The outcomes show that the inhibition effect of the investigated compounds is affected by the increasing concentration and the capability to produce micelles in an aqueous solution. The adsorption of imidazol-1-ium bromide derivatives is a physical type and agrees with Langmuir adsorption isotherm. SEM, AFM, and FTIR spectroscopy were used to study the morphology of the C-steel surface and the protecting film on the surface. The relationship between experimental results and theoretical calculations was confirmed. The results obtained open visions for the use of these surfactants as corrosion inhibitors. The data from different methods were in acceptable agreement.

The aminothiadiazole (II) on treatment with aromatic aldehydes yielded Schiff bases, which cyclized to thiazolidinone derivatives by reaction with thioglycolic acid. Reaction of II with phenyl isocyanate and phenyl isothiocyanate afforded the carbamide and carbothiamide derivatives, respectively, which on reaction with malonic acid in acetyl chloride gave barbituric and thiobarbituric acid derivatives. However, reaction of carbon disulfide and methyl iodide with II gave dithiocarbamidate derivative which on treatment with ethylenediamine or o-phenylenediamine gave the condensed N-imidazolylthiadiazolylamine derivatives.

Wear of a cutting edge in end-milling is a complicated process that requires a reliable technique for in process monitoring and control of the cutter performance. This paper presents an approach to examine the effect of wear variation on the magnitude of the cutting force harmonics. This approach implies a cutting force based model of end mill wear using computer simulation as function of axial depth of cut, feed rate per tooth, specific cutting pressure of work material and instantaneous angle of rotation. The results were plotted at various cutting conditions in time and frequency domains. Cutting forces in end-milling were measured using highly sensitive strain gauge dynamometer which was calibrated in static and dynamic ranges. The tool wear was measured in an off-line manner and interrelationships of cutting force harmonics and tool wear magnitude were constructed and were found comparable with the computer simulation results. Hence a cutter wear monitoring strategy is constructed.

We wished to correlate the morphological acetabular changes in developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) with changes at the tissue level. A secondary aim was to develop a way of measuring the dysplastic acetabulum. We studied the changes in rabbit acetabula after maintaining knee extension, measuring the major diameter from the acetabular notch to the farthest opposite point on the acetabular margin. The minor diameter was at right angles to this. The dysplastic acetabula showed elongation along the major diameter compared to control hips. Microscopic sections were made along major and minor diameters. The posterosuperior lip of the dysplastic acetabulum showed an early eversion of the acetabular cartilage. Growth of the articular cartilage in this new direction accounted for the acetabular elongation. As well as providing insight into the manner of acetabular shape change, the findings suggest the nature of remodeling required before normal acetabular growth can resume during treatment.

In the past two decades, several reports have documented inflammatory changes in acquired diverticula of the terminal ileum and their associated complications, namely, perforation, intestinal obstruction, gastrointestinal hemorrhage, and fistulization. A comprehensive review revealed 28 cases of diverticulitis of the terminal ileum documented in the world medical literature. Only one case of internal fistula (ileovesical) has been reported previously. This report describes another patient with diverticulitis of the terminal ileum with associated perforation and jejunoileal fistula and reviews the world literature.

Combined effect of substerilizing doses of gamma radiation (40 and 100 Gy) and different concentrations of the entomopathogenic nematode, Steinernema carpocapsaeBA2 (20 and 40 IJs/ml) on the hemocyte count of the greater wax moth, Galleria mellonella(L.) larvae was studied. Eight types of hemocytes were described in the hemolymph of the normal larvae of G. mellonella.Prohemocytes were the predominant type, while the cystocytes were the rare ones. Morphological malformations and changes in the number of each hemocyte type were observed in F1 larvae (of irradiated male parent pupae with 40 or 100 Gy) or larvae treated with different concentrations of the S. carpocapsaeBA2 (normal or F1 larvae); these alterations were increased by increasing the radiation dose or the nematode concentration that led to increase the susceptibility of the larvae to the nematode. Therefore, it could be concluded that integration of entomopathogenic nematodes and gamma radiation may serve as integrated control program for G. mellonella.

We use laser beams with radial and azimuthal polarization to optically trap carbon nanotubes. We measure force constants and trap parameters as a function of power showing improved axial trapping efficiency with respect to linearly polarized beams. The analysis of the thermal fluctuations highlights a significant change in the optical trapping potential when using cylindrical vector beams. This enables the use of polarization states to shape optical traps according to the particle geometry, as well as paving the way to nanoprobe-based photonic force microscopy with increased performance compared to a standard linearly polarized configuration.

Three nonionic surfactant (NIS) compounds containing five membered heterocyclic moiety were synthesized and identified from spectral data such as IR and 1HNMR spectra. The inhibiting effect of NIS compounds toward the corrosion of aluminium (Al) in 1.0MHCl solutions was examined using weight loss, thermometric, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and galvanostatic polarization techniques. The results obtained indicated that the three compounds are good corrosion inhibitors. The inhibition efficiency increases as the concentration of the NIS compounds increases, as well as the decrease in temperature, surface tension and interfacial tension. The polarization measurement showed that these inhibitors are acting as mixed inhibitors mainly cathodic. The inhibition was interpreted in view of spontaneous adsorption of NIS compounds onto the Al surface by forming a stable chelating ring between the Al surface and NIS molecules. The adsorption mechanism obeys Freundlich isotherm. The activated thermodynamic parameters such Ea, ΔH* and ΔS*were calculated and clarified.

ChemInform is a weekly Abstracting Service, delivering concise information at a glance that was extracted from about 200 leading journals. To access a ChemInform Abstract, please click on HTML or PDF.

ChemInform is a weekly Abstracting Service, delivering concise information at a glance that was extracted from about 200 leading journals. To access a ChemInform Abstract, please click on HTML or PDF.

For Abstract see ChemInform Abstract in Full Text.

For Abstract see ChemInform Abstract in Full Text.

ChemInform is a weekly Abstracting Service, delivering concise information at a glance that was extracted from about 100 leading journals. To access a ChemInform Abstract of an article which was published elsewhere, please select a “Full Text” option. The original article is trackable via the “References” option.

ChemInform is a weekly Abstracting Service, delivering concise information at a glance that was extracted from about 100 leading journals. To access a ChemInform Abstract of an article which was published elsewhere, please select a “Full Text” option. The original article is trackable via the “References” option.

Twenty‐two derivatives of type (III), (V), (VI) and (VIII) are synthesized.

The acetylindolinyl sulfonamides (III) are prepared by reacting the sulfonyl chlorides (I) with the amino acid derivatives (II).