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The COVID-19 epidemic is affecting individuals in many ways and continues to spread all over the world. Vaccines and traditional medical techniques are still being researched. In diagnosis and therapy, biological and digital technology is used to overcome the fear of this disease. Despite recovery in many patients, COVID-19 does not have a definite cure or a vaccine that provides permanent protection for a large number of people. Current methods focus on prevention, monitoring, and management of the spread of the disease. As a result, new technologies for combating COVID-19 are being developed. Though unreliable due to a lack of sufficient COVID-19 datasets, inconsistencies in the datasets availability, non-aggregation of the database because of conflicting data formats, incomplete information, and distortion, they are a step in the right direction. Furthermore, the privacy and confidentiality of people's medical data are only partially ensured. As a result, this research study proposes a novel, cooperative approach that combines big data analytics with relevant Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques and blockchain to create a system for analyzing and detecting COVID-19 instances. Based on these technologies, the reliability, affordability, and prominence of dealing with the above problems required time. The architecture of the proposed model will analyze different data sources for preliminary diagnosis, detect the affected area, and localize the abnormalities. Furthermore, the blockchain approach supports the decentralization of the central repository so that it is accessible to every stakeholder. The model proposed in this study describes the four-layered architecture. The purpose of the proposed architecture is to utilize the latest technologies to provide a reliable solution during the pandemic; the proposed architecture was sufficient to cover all the current issues, including data security. The layers are unique and individually responsible for handling steps required for data acquisition, storage, analysis, and reporting using blockchain principles in a decentralized P2P network. A systematic review of the technologies to use in the pandemic covers all possible solutions that can cover the issue best and provide a secure solution to the pandemic.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0277992.].

Diet-induced obesity reduces oocyte quality mainly by impacting oocyte mitochondrial functions. Moreover, maternal obesity is associated with mitochondrial dysfunction in oocytes of their adult offspring. However, these effects were reported only in fully grown oocytes, mainly in the form of abnormal mitochondrial ultrastructure. It is unknown if obesogenic (OB) diets or maternal obesity already impact the primordial and preantral follicles. Considering the long duration and dynamics of folliculogenesis, determining the stage at which oocytes are affected and the extent of the damage is crucial for optimal reproductive management of obese patients and their daughters. Potential interaction between maternal and offspring diet effects are also not described, yet pivotal in our contemporary society. Therefore, here we examined the impact of OB diets on oocyte mitochondrial ultrastructure in primordial and activated preantral follicles in offspring from diet-induced obese or lean mothers. We used an outbred Swiss mouse model to increase the pathophysiological relevance to humans. Female mice were fed control or OB diets for 7 weeks, then mated with control males. Their female offspring were fed control or OB diets after weaning for 7 weeks (2-by-2 factorial design). Adult offspring ovarian sections were examined using transmission electron microscopy. We characterised and classified unique features of oocyte mitochondrial ultrastructure in the preantral follicles. An increase in mitochondrial matrix density was the most predominant change during follicle activation in secondary follicles, a feature that is linked with a higher mitochondrial activity. Maternal obesity increased mitochondrial density already in the primordial follicles suggesting an earlier increase in bioenergetic capacity. Maternal obesity did not induce abberant ultrastructure (abnormalities and defects) in primordial or preantral follicles. In contrast, offspring OB diet increased mitochondrial abnormalities in the primordial follicles. Further investigation of the consequences of these changes on oocyte metabolic regulation and stress levels during folliculogenesis is needed.

The government of Saudi Arabia is making significant efforts to improve the quality of health education and healthcare services. Professional identity has been linked to the quality of healthcare services provided by practitioners, however, data concerning the professional identity of health profession students (HPS) and healthcare practitioners (HCP) are still lacking in Saudi Arabia. The current study aimed to assess the level of professional identity in HPS and HCP in Saudi Arabia and to investigate its predictors. Cross-sectional data were collected from 185 HPS and 219 HCP in Saudi Arabia using river sampling technique. Data related to the sample characteristics were collected; an adapted version of the Macleod Clark Professional Identity Scale was utilized to collect data about the level of professional identity. Total score of professional identity was later calculated for each participant. Median professional identity scores for HPS and HCP were 38.0 (34.0-41.0) and 41.0 (37.0-43.0), respectively, out of 45. Significantly higher median professional identity score was found among HCP as compared to HPS (p

Agricultural Remote Sensing has the potential to enhance agricultural monitoring in smallholder economies to mitigate losses. However, its widespread adoption faces challenges, such as diminishing farm sizes, lack of reliable data-sets and high cost related to commercial satellite imagery. This research focuses on opportunities, practices and novel approaches for effective utilization of remote sensing in agriculture applications for smallholder economies. The work entails insights from experiments using datasets representative of major crops during different growing seasons. We propose an optimized solution for addressing challenges associated with remote sensing-based crop mapping in smallholder agriculture farms. Open source tools and data are used for inter and intra-sensor image registration, with a root mean square error of 0.3 or less. We also propose and emphasize on the use of delineated vegetation parcels through Segment Anything Model for Geospatial (SAM-GEOs). Furthermore a Bidirectional-Long Short-Term Memory-based (Bi-LSTM) deep learning model is developed and trained for crop classification, achieving results with accuracy of more than 94% and 96% for validation sets of two data sets collected in the field, during 2 growing seasons.

Oblique orientation of vocal cord demands strict compliance, by technicians and clinicians, to the recommended parallel plane CT scan of larynx. Repercussions of non-compliance has never been investigated before. We aimed to observe influence of non-parallel vocal cord plane CT scan on qualitative and quantitative glottic parameters, keeping parallel plane CT as a standard for comparison. Simultaneous identification of potential suboptimal imaging sequelae as a result of unformatted CT plane was also identified. In this study we included 95 normal adult glottides and retrospectively analyzed their anatomy in two axial planes, non-parallel plane ① and parallel to vocal cord plane ②. Qualitative (shape, structures at glottic level) and quantitative (anterior commissure ACom, vocal cord width VCw, anteroposterior AP, transverse Tr, cross-sectional area CSA) glottic variables were recorded. Multivariate statistical analysis was used to predict pattern and their impact on glottic anatomy. Plane ① displayed supraglottic features in glottis; adipose (90.5%) and split thyroid laminae (70.6%). Other categorical variables: atypical shape, submental structures and multilevel vertebral crossing were also in majority. All glottic dimensions varied significantly between two planes with most in ACom (-5.8mm) and CSA (-15.0 mm2). In contrast, plane ② manifested higher VCw (>73%), Tr (66.3%), CSA (64.2%) and AP (44.2%) measurements. On correlation analysis, variation in ACom, CSA, Tr was positively associated with VC or plane obliquity (p

ObjectivesTo describe the extent to which caregivers' emotional and communication needs were met during pediatric emergency department (PED) visits. Secondary objectives included describing the association of caregiver emotional needs, satisfaction with care, and comfort in caring for their child's illness at the time of discharge with demographic characteristics, caregiver experiences, and ED visit details.Study designElectronic surveys with medical record review were deployed at ten Canadian PEDs from October 2018 -March 2020. A convenience sample of families with children ResultsThis study recruited 2005 caregivers who self-identified as mothers (74.3%, 1462/1969); mean age was 37.8 years (SD 7.7). 71.7% (1081/1507) of caregivers felt their emotional needs were met. 86.4% (1293/1496) identified communication with the doctor as good/very good and 83.4% (1249/1498) with their child's nurse. Caregiver involvement in their child's care was reported as good/very good 85.6% (1271/1485) of the time. 81.8% (1074/1313) of caregivers felt comfortable in caring for their child at home at the time of discharge. Lower caregiver anxiety scores, caregiver involvement in their child's care, satisfactory updates, and having questions adequately addressed positively impacted caregiver emotional needs and increased caregiver comfort in caring for their child's illness at home.ConclusionApproximately 30% of caregivers presenting to PEDs have unmet emotional needs, over 15% had unmet communication needs, and 15% felt inadequately involved in their child's care. Family caregiver involvement in care and good communication from PED staff are key elements in improving overall patient experience and satisfaction.

Studies have shown the possibility of using the part of the foreskin removed after circumcision in the field of scientific and therapeutic research. Donations of tissues and organs are always associated with ethical challenges posed by bioethicists and societies to ensure the appropriate use of these tissues/organs. The purpose of this study was to understand the attitudes and awareness of parents/guardians regarding donation of excised foreskin to research and medical use. The study was based on a questionnaire and included 133 parents/guardians who visited Uhud Children's Hospital in Madinah, Saudi Arabia for newborn male circumcision. The results showed a high willingness (61.7%) to donate the extracted foreskin to research. The willingness to donate the extracted foreskin to research associated with undergraduate degree (P = 0.018), male sex (P = 0.011), high income (P = 0.029), and participation in previous research studies (P = 0.002). About 41.8% were convinced that written informed consent should be obtained before circumcision surgery, 38.1% (n = 51) were convinced that written informed consent should be taken after surgery, while the remaining 19.4% reported that the timing of written informed consent is unimportant. Finally, fear of excision of excess tissue (74.5%), lack of confidence in the research (68.6%), and potential for commercial use (64.7%) were the main barriers to unwillingness to donate the excised foreskin for research. In conclusion, a reasonable portion of Saudis agreed to donate their foreskin for research purposes. There is an urgent need to enhance awareness and attitudes towards tissue donation for research and therapeutic use.

ObjectivesStroke represents a health care challenge to most parts of the world including the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The MENA represents 6% of the world population with an age-standardized stroke rate of 87.7 (78.2-97.6) per 100,000 population. This number is subject to increase given that the cause of morbidity has recently shifted from infectious diseases to non-communicable diseases. Thus, in the coming years, treatment of stroke will pose a major burden on MENA countries which mostly lie in the low to middle income economies. Accordingly, we need to study the state of MENA stroke services in order to recognize and further inform policy makers about any gaps that need to be bridged in this domain.Methods and resultsStroke specialists representing 16 countries filled an online survey that included: screening for risk factors, acute management, diagnostics, medications, post-discharge services, and stroke registries. Results showed that 11 countries screen for risk factors, 16 have neuroimaging studies, 15 provide intravenous thrombolysis (IVT), 13 mechanical thrombectomy (MT) while medications for secondary prevention are available in all countries. However, stroke units are not equally available and even absent in 4 countries, and despite the availability of IVT yet, the rate of administration is still low in 6 countries (ConclusionAlthough imaging, revascularization therapies and medications for secondary prevention are available in most MENA countries, yet the rate of revascularization is low, so is the number of stroke units insufficient in some countries. Additionally, registries and structured training are still defective. Further field studies are required for more accurate determination of the status of stroke services in the MENA region.

BackgroundThere is a paucity of studies documenting medical malpractice litigation in countries of the Arabian Gulf, such as Oman.ObjectivesTo describe the characteristics of malpractice claims, the outcomes decided by the medical liability committee, and predictors of medical errors.MethodsThis is a retrospective observational study that reviewed medical malpractice cases registered in Oman over a 12-year period (2010-2021) with the medical liability committee, known as the Higher Medical Committee (HMC). Descriptive and inferential statistical techniques, including multiple logistic regression techniques, were used for data analysis.ResultsBetween 2010 and 2021, the HMC registered 1284 medical malpractice cases, out of which 1048 were fully investigated. The number of registered cases increased during this period. These cases included those raised by Omani nationals and expatriates, with a majority (86%) raised by Omani complainants. Two-thirds (67%) of the cases involved adult complainants aged 18-60 years. About 43% of the cases were from the urban Muscat region, and 68% were related to public hospitals. The most common specialties involved were obstetrics and gynecology (20.1%), internal medicine (19.7%), surgery (17.6%) and orthopedics (13.8%). Half (51%) of the appeals or grievances were dismissed because they were not preceded by medical negligence or malpractice. The average waiting time to initiate the investigation was 10 months. Errors were more common among non-Omani complainants and cases related to private hospitals. Significant predictors of errors included nationality (i.e. Omani vs. non-Omani), the referring institution, the medical specialty and the type of health institution involved, and the waiting time to initiate the investigation.ConclusionTo date, the number of cases of medical malpractice in Oman is lower compared to international trends, although there has been an upsurge in recent years. More research using a more robust methodology is warranted to contextualise the factors that contribute to this upward trend, as well as the preponderance in urban settings and among certain demographic populations.

The notion of sobriety is considered a key variable in various energy transition scenarios. Often associated with a form of punitive ecology, it is, nevertheless, possible to make it a component that supports green growth, by linking it to the concept of "satisfaction". In this work, we have invented a way to achieve both "digital", "economic", and "ecological" sobriety, while ensuring the satisfaction of the end user. Directly correlated to the production of goods or services, the satisfaction function is built on the well-documented marginal utility function, which measures the need (or not) to consume further resources to satisfy the economic agents. Hence, it is justified and exists because it stands for the expectations of end users and makes sure the latter is met. This product itself is a function of the allocation of a set of resources, mapped using activity-based costing tools (ABC method). In this work, we focus on an AI proof-of-concept and demonstrate that it is possible to reach numerical sobriety by controlling the size of the training dataset while ensuring roughly the same model performance. In general, we show that it is possible to preserve the efficiency of AI processes while significantly minimizing the need for resources. In this sense, after establishing an analytical model, we suggest reducing the amount of data required to train the machine learning (ML) models, while guaranteeing zero change in terms of performance (say their accuracy). We show that it affects the energy consumed, and, thereby, the associated cost (i.e., economic and ecological) and the associated CO2eq emission. We thus confirm the existence of a "triangle of sobriety". It is defined as a virtual circle governed by a digital-economic-ecological sovereignty. We also propose that if AI production processes have a potential for sobriety, all identical activities have the same characteristics, thus opening the path to green growth.

BackgroundMonkeypox (mpox), re-emerging zoonotic infectious disease, is striking the world with serious public health concerns, especially in non-endemic countries. The public's knowledge and attitude towards the monkeypox virus (MPXV) influence their adherence to preventive strategies. Therefore, we aimed to assess the public's knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions (KAP) of MPXV in Pakistan.MethodsWe collected data for this cross-sectional study from 1040 participants via online self-reported questionnaire from July 5th, 2022, to August 1st, 2022. The questionnaire consisted of a total of 29 items in four sections, assessing socio-demographics, knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding MPXV. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS V.25, and factors associated with MPXV knowledge, attitude, and practices were identified by using logistic regression analyses.ResultsA total of 1040 participants were included. 61.4% were male, and 57.2% had graduation level education. Only 34.4% had good knowledge about MPXV, and 30% knew the effectiveness of the smallpox vaccine against MPXV. 41.7% had a positive attitude, 48.6% agreed that it is a fatal disease, and 44.6% were in favour of banning travel from endemic to non-endemic regions. 57.7% had good practices, and 69.9% would use protective measures if MPXV became an epidemic. Binary logistic regression analysis revealed that gender and education significantly impacted knowledge (pConclusionThe majority of study participants had inadequate levels of knowledge, and attitudes regarding MPXV. To prevent the emergence and spread of MPXV in Pakistan, a comprehensive strategic framework for public health education must be established and implemented.

BackgroundVancomycin has been widely used in the last six decades to treat methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and other resistant gram-positive infections. The risk of vancomycin toxicity increases with the utilization of higher doses while treating the resistant form of bacterial infections. Nephrotoxicity is one of the major complications reported to be a hinderance in the prognosis of vancomycin therapy.ObjectivesThis hospital-based study aimed to highlight the influence of vancomycin on renal function with special emphasis on identifying the predictors and augmenting factors for nephrotoxicity.MethodologyA cross-sectional, unicentric, hospital-based study was conducted at King Fahad Specialist Hospital (KFSH) in Qassim region in Saudi Arabia (KSA). It included 319 hospitalized patients who received vancomycin at intermittent doses (15 to 30 mg/kg IV per day) based on the diseased state. Data regarding vancomycin dose, frequency, duration and data of renal function tests and type of admission were analysed to evaluate their influence on the renal function using parameters such as blood urea, serum creatinine levels and creatinine clearance. One-way ANOVA and Spearman correlation test were used in the analysis of data.ResultsBoth male and female patients treated with vancomycin had significantly (pConclusionData suggested that vancomycin treatment reduced the renal function in patients and indicated its association with several predictors and confounding factors. The findings of the study might assist in identifying the patients under risk from the vancomycin-induced nephrotoxicity and in designing the preventive strategies to reduce such complications.

Deep learning based data driven methods with multi-sensors spectro-temporal data are widely used for pattern identification and land-cover classification in remote sensing domain. However, adjusting the right tuning for the deep learning models is extremely important as different parameter setting can alter the performance of the model. In our research work, we have evaluated the performance of Convolutional Long Short-Term Memory (ConvLSTM) and deep learning techniques, over various hyper-parameters setting for an imbalanced dataset and the one with highest performance is utilized for land-cover classification. The parameters that are considered for experimentation are; Batch size, Number of Layers in ConvLSTM model, and No of filters in each layer of the ConvLSTM are the parameters that will be considered for our experimentation. Experiments also have been conducted on LSTM model for comparison using the same hyper-parameters. It has been found that the two layered ConvLSTM model having 16-filters and a batch size of 128 outperforms other setting scenarios, with an overall validation accuracy of 97.71%. The accuracy achieved for the LSTM is 93.9% for training and 92.7% for testing.

BackgroundMost of hematology laboratories in Saudi Arabia utilize the reference intervals (RIs) provided by instrument manufacturers. This study aimed to define RIs of hematological parameters for adult population in the western region of Saudi Arabia and to explore their specific features from an international perspective.MethodThis study was conducted according to the harmonized protocol of IFCC Committee on RIs and Decision Limits. Blood samples collected from 409 healthy Saudi males and females adults were analyzed for complete blood count (CBC) by using Cell-Dyn Sapphire analyzer and for iron profile by using Architect analyzers. The needs for RIs partitioned by sex and age was based on standard deviation ratio (SDR) and/or bias ratio (BR). RIs were derived parametrically with/without application of the latent abnormal values exclusion method (LAVE).ResultsBased on thresholds of SDR≥0.4 and/or BR≥0.57, RIs were partitioned by sex for red-blood cell count, hemoglobin, hematocrit, red cell distribution width, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, iron, transferrin, ferritin, eosinophil, platelet, plateletcrit, etc. Partitioning by age was not necessary for any of the analytes. LAVE procedure caused appreciable changes in RI limits for most erythrocyte and iron parameters but not for leukocyte parameters. Comparable to other non-IFCC studies on CBC RIs, the RBC and hematocrit (Ht) ranges have shifted to a higher side in both genders. After applying the LAVE method, the male and female RIs for Hb were 4.56 to 6.22 ×106/μL and 3.94 to 5.25 ×106/μL respectively while RIs for Ht were 40.2 to 52.0% and 33.6 to 44.5% respectively.ConclusionLAVE method contributed to reducing the influence of latent anemia in deriving RIs for erythrocyte related parameters. Using the up-to-date methods, the RIs of CBC determined specifically for Saudis will help to improve the interpretation of test results in medical decision making.

In view of the challenges faced by organizations and departments concerned with agricultural capacity observations, we collected In-Situ data consisting of diverse crops (More than 11 consumable vegetation types) in our pilot region of Harichand Charsadda, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Pakistan. Our proposed Long Short-Term Memory based Deep Neural network model was trained for land cover land use statistics generation using the acquired ground truth data, for a synergy between Planet-Scope Dove and European Space Agency's Sentinel-2. Total of 4 bands from both sentinel-2 and planet scope including Red, Green, Near-Infrared (NIR) and Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) were used for classification purpose. Using short temporal frame of Sentinel-2 comprising 5 date images, we propose an realistic and implementable procedure for generating accurate crop statistics using remote sensing. Our self collected data-set consists of a total number of 107,899 pixels which was further split into 70% and 30% for training and testing purpose of the model respectively. The collected data is in the shape of field parcels, which has been further split for training, validation and test sets, to avoid spatial auto-correlation. To ensure the quality and accuracy 15% of the training data was left out for validation purpose, and 15% for testing. Prediction was also performed on our trained model and visual analysis of the area from the image showed significant results. Further more a comparison between Sentinel-2 time series is performed separately from the fused Planet-Scope and Sentinel-2 time-series data sets. The results achieved shows a weighted average of 93% for Sentinel-2 time series and 97% for fused Planet-Scope and Sentinel-2 time series.

BackgroundRapid Response Teams were developed to provide interventions for deteriorating patients. Their activation depends on timely detection of deterioration. Automated calculation of warning scores may lead to early recognition, and improvement of RRT effectiveness.MethodThis was a "Before" and "After" study, in the "Before" period ward nurses activated RRT after manually recording vital signs and calculating warning scores. In the "After" period, vital signs and warning calculations were automatically relayed to RRT through a wireless monitoring network.ResultsWhen compared to the before group, the after group had significantly lower incidence and rate of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) (2.3 / 1000 inpatient days versus 3.8 / 1000 inpatient days respectively, p = 0.01), significantly shorter length of hospital stay and lower hospital mortality, but significantly higher number of RRT activations. In multivariable logistic regression model, being in the "After" group decreases odds of CPR by 33% (OR = 0.67 [95% CI: 0.46-0.99]; p = 0.04). There was no difference between groups in ICU admission.ConclusionAutomated activation of the RRT significantly reduced CPR events and rates, improved CPR success rate, reduced hospital length of stay and mortality, but increased the number of RRT activations. There were no differences in unplanned ICU admission or readmission.

Control fabrication of metal-oxide nanocatalysts for electrochemical reactions has received considerable research attention. Here, manganese oxide (Mn3O4) nanorods modified indium tin oxide (ITO) electrodes were prepared based on the in-situ one-step hydrothermal methods. The nanorods were well characterized using field emission scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared, and X-ray diffraction spectroscopy. The results showed the formation of pure crystalline Mn3O4 nanorods with a length of approximately 1.4 μm and a thickness of approximately 100 ± 30 nm. The Mn3O4 nanorod-modified ITO electrodes were used for accelerating urea electrochemical oxidation at room temperature using cyclic and square wave voltammetry techniques. The results indicated that the modified electrode demonstrated excellent electrocatalytic performance toward urea electrooxidation in an alkaline medium over concentrations ranging from 0.2 to 4 mol/L. The modified electrode showed high durability, attaining more than 88% of its baseline performance after 150 cycles; furthermore, the chronoamperometry technique demonstrated high stability. Thus, the Mn3O4 nanorod-modified ITO electrode is a promising anode for direct urea fuel cell applications.

Information sharing via social networking systems (SNS) is a common practice among academics, as well as others, that brings substantial benefits. At the same time, privacy concerns are widespread among SNS users, which may tend to inhibit their maximising the benefit from using the systems. This paper investigates the proposition that SNS user attitudes and behaviour are affected by privacy concerns, and that the effects are subject to significant cultural factors. A broad assessment of the literature provides the context for the study. Working in the context of Saudi Arabia, we apply a mixed-methods approach beginning with in-depth interviews, exposing in detail a range of views and concerns about privacy and SNS use, also allowing us to identify three key factors that bear on SNS usage and users’ concerns. Analysis of these factors in the light of the “theory of reasoned action” derives a structural model predicting several hypotheses relating the factors and users’ attitudes and behaviour. We assess the model through development of a questionnaire, administered to a large pool of academic participants, that allows us to examine how the model responds in general, and via multigroup partial least squares analyses, differentially to gender and to culturally distinct (Arab vs. non-Arab) constituents of the participant group. Results show good support for the hypotheses and clear gender and culture effects. Picking up issues from the interviews, discussion focuses on users’ views about SNS providers’ privacy policies and their inadequacy regarding culturally specific ethical concerns. We argue that these views may reflect different regulatory environments in combination with other cultural factors.

This research aimed to qualitatively explore whether the determinants of handwashing behaviour change according to the duration of displacement or the type of setting that people are displaced to. We conducted an exploratory qualitative study in three different post-conflict settings in Northern Iraq–a long-term displacement camp, a short-term displacement camp, and villages where people were returning to post the conflict. We identified 33 determinants of handwashing in these settings and, of these, 21 appeared to be altered by the conflict and displacement. Determinants of handwashing behaviour in the post-conflict period were predominantly explained by disruptions to the physical, psychological, social and economic circumstances of displaced populations. Future hygiene programmes in post-conflict displacement settings should adopt a holistic way of assessing determinants and design programmes which promote agency, build on adaptive norms, create an enabling environment and which are integrated with other aspects of humanitarian response.

Malaria is a vector born parasitic disease causing millions of deaths every year. Despite the high mortality rate, an effective vaccine against this mosquito-borne infectious disease is yet to be developed. Up to date, RTS,S/AS01 is the only vaccine available for malaria prevention; however, its efficacy is low. Among a variety of malaria antigens, merozoite surface protein-1(MSP-1) and ring-infected erythrocyte surface antigen (RESA) have been proposed as promising candidates for malaria vaccine development. We developed peptide-based Plasmodium falciparum vaccine candidates that incorporated three previously reported conserved epitopes from MSP-1 and RESA into highly effective liposomal polyleucine delivery system. Indeed, MSP-1 and RESA-derived epitopes conjugated to polyleucine and formulated into liposomes induced higher epitope specific antibody titres. However, immunized mice failed to demonstrate protection in a rodent malaria challenge study with Plasmodium yoelii. In addition, we found that the three reported P. falciparum epitopes did not to share conformational properties and high sequence similarity with P. yoelii MSP-1 and RESA proteins, despite the epitopes were reported to protect mice against P. yoelii challenge.

Studies have reported reduced cognitive function following COVID-19 illness, mostly from hospital settings with short follow-up times. This study recruited non-hospitalized COVID-19 patients from a general population to study prevalence of late cognitive impairment and associations with initial symptoms. We invited patients with PCR-confirmed COVID-19. A postal questionnaire addressed basic demographics, initial COVID-19 symptoms and co-morbidity about 4 months after diagnosis. About 7 months later, we conducted cognitive tests using the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery, comprising four tests for short-term memory, attention and executive function. We present descriptive statistics using z-scores relative to UK population norms and defined impairment as z-score

Research questionHow long does it take for an obesogenic (high-fat/high-sugar, HF/HS) diet to influence the oviductal microenvironment? What are the affected cellular pathways and are they dependent on the genetic background of the mouse model?DesignFemale Swiss (outbred) and C57BL/6N (B6, inbred) mice were fed either a control (10% fat) or HF/HS (60% fat, 20% fructose) diet. Body weight was measured weekly. Mice were sacrificed at 3 days (3d), 1 week (1w), 4w, 8w, 12w and 16w on the diet (n = 5 per treatment per time point). Total cholesterol concentrations and inflammatory cytokines were measured in serum. Oviductal epithelial cells (OECs) were used to study the expression of genes involved in (mitochondrial) oxidative stress (OS), endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and inflammation using qPCR.ResultsBody weight and blood cholesterol increased significantly in the HF/HS mice in both strains compared to controls. In Swiss mice, HF/HS diet acutely increased ER-stress and OS-related genes in the OECs already after 3d. Subsequently, mitochondrial and cytoplasmic antioxidants were upregulated and ER-stress was alleviated at 1w. After 4-8w (mid-phase), the expression of ER-stress and OS-related genes was increased again and persisted throughout the late-phase (12-16w). Serum inflammatory cytokines and inflammatory marker-gene expression in the OECs were increased only in the late-phase. Some of the OEC stress responses were stronger or earlier in the B6.ConclusionsOECs are sensitive to an obesogenic diet and may exhibit acute stress responses already after a few days of feeding. This may impact the oviductal microenvironment and contribute to diet-induced subfertility.

BackgroundPopulations such as healthcare workers (HCW) that are unable to practice physical distancing are at high risk of acquiring Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). In these cases pharmacological prophylaxis would be a solution to reduce severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS CoV-2) transmission. Hydroxychloroquine has in vitro antiviral properties against SARS CoV-2. We therefore sought to determine the efficacy and safety of hydroxychloroquine as prophylaxis for COVID-19.Methods and findingsWe electronically searched EMBASE, MEDLINE, the Cochrane COVID-19 Register of Controlled Trials, Epistemonikos COVID-19, clinicaltrials.gov, and the World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform up to September 28th, 2020 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs). We calculated pooled relative risks (RRs) for dichotomous outcomes with the corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using a random-effect model. We identified four RCTs (n = 4921) that met our eligibility criteria. The use of hydroxychloroquine, compared to placebo, did not reduce the risks of developing COVID-19 (RR 0.82, 95% CI 0.65 to 1.04, moderate certainty), hospitalization (RR 0.72, 95% CI 0.34 to 1.50, moderate certainty), or mortality (RR 3.26, 95% CI 0.13 to 79.74, low certainty), however, hydroxychloroquine use increased the risk of adverse events (RR 2.76, 95% CI 1.38 to 5.55, moderate certainty).ConclusionAlthough pharmacologic prophylaxis is an attractive preventive strategy against COVID-19, the current body of evidence failed to show clinical benefit for prophylactic hydroxychloroquine and showed a higher risk of adverse events when compared to placebo or no prophylaxis.

Vitellogenins, major yolk protein precursors, play an essential role in the reproduction and spread of all oviparous species, including insects. To investigate reproductive strategies of the warehouse moth Cadra cautella at the molecular level, a partial transcript of the C. cautella vitellogenin (CcVg) gene was extended through the rapid amplification of cDNA ends PCR and sequenced. The complete CcVg mRNA transcript was 5,334 bp long, which encoded a protein of 1,778 amino acids, including the first 14 amino acids of the signal peptide. The deduced CcVg protein contained a putative cleavage site (RTRR) at the amino-terminal side, similar to several other insect species. DGQR and GI/LCG motifs were present at the CcVg gene C-terminus, followed by nine cysteine residues. CcVg harbored 131 putative phosphorylation sites, numbering 84, 19, and 28 sites for serine, threonine, and tyrosine, respectively. The transcript showed a great resemblance with other lepidopteran Vgs. CcVg protein analysis revealed three conserved regions: 1) vitellogenin-N domain, 2) DUF 1943 (domain of unknown function), and 3) a von Willebrand factor type D domain. Additionally, sex, stage-specific, and developmental expression profiles of the CcVg gene were determined through RT-PCR. The Vg was first expressed in 22-day-old female larvae, and its expression increased with growth. The phylogenetic analysis based on different insect Vgs revealed that the CcVg exhibited close ancestry with lepidopterans. The CcVg-based RNAi experiments were performed, and the effects were critically evaluated. The qRT-PCR results showed that CcVg-based dsRNA suppressed the Vg gene expression up to 90% at 48 h post-injection. Moreover, CcVg-based RNAi effects resulted in low fecundity and egg hatchability in the CcVg-based dsRNA-treated females. The females laid eggs, but because of insufficient yolk protein availability the eggs could not succeed to hatch. The significant difference in the fecundity and hatchability unveils the importance of CcVg gene silencing and confirmed that the Vg gene plays a key role in C. cautella reproduction and it has the potential to be used as a target for RNAi-mediated control of this warehouse pest.

It is already known that there are many factors responsible for the successful grafting process in plants, including light intensity. However, the influence of the spectrum of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) on this process has almost never been tested. During the pre-grafting process tomato seedlings grew for 30 days under 100 μmol m-2 s-1 of mixed LEDs (red 70%+ blue 30%). During the post-grafting period, seedlings grew for 20 days under the same light intensity but the lightening source was either red LED, mixed LEDs (red 70% + blue 30%), blue LED or white fluorescent lamps. This was done to determine which light source(s) could better improve seedling quality and increase grafting success. Our results showed that application of red and blue light mixture (R7:B3) caused significant increase in total leaf area, dry weight (total, shoot and root), total chlorophyll/carotenoid ratio, soluble protein and sugar content. Moreover, this light treatment maintained better photosynthetic performance i.e. more effective quantum yield of PSII photochemistry Y(II), better photochemical quenching (qP), and higher electron transport rate (ETR). This can be partially explained by the observed upregulation of gene expression levels of PsaA and PsbA and the parallel protein expression levels. This in turn could lead to better functioning of the photosynthetic apparatus of tomato seedlings and then to faster production of photoassimilate ready to be translocated to various tissues and organs, including those most in need, i.e., involved in the formation of the graft union.

Recent attacks by the red palm weevil, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier), have become a severe problem for palm species. In present work, fat body transcriptome of adult female red palm weevil was analyzed, focusing on the identification of reproduction control genes. Transcriptome study was completed by means of next-generation sequencing (NGS) using Illumina Hiseq 2000 sequencing system. A total of 105,938,182 raw reads, 102,645,544 clean reads, and 9,238,098,960 clean nucleotides with a guanine-cytosine content of 40.31%, were produced. The processed transcriptome data resulted in 43,789 unique transcripts (with mean lengths of 1,172 bp). It was found that 20% of total unique transcripts shared up to 80%-100% sequence identity with homologous species, mainly the mountain pine beetle Dendroctonus ponderosae (59.9%) and red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum (26.9%). Nearly 25 annotated genes were predicted to be involved in red palm weevil reproduction, including five vitellogenin (Vg) transcripts. Among the five Vg gene transcripts, one was highly expressed compared with the other four (FPKM values of 1.963, 1.471, 1.028, and 1.017, respectively), and the five Vg gene transcripts were designated as RfVg, RfVg-equivalent1, RfVg-equivalent2, RfVg-equivalent3, and RfVg-equivalent4, respectively. The high expression level of RfVg verified by RT-polymerase chain reaction analysis suggested that RfVg is the primary functional Vg gene in red palm weevil. A high similarity of RfVg with other Coleopterans was also reflected in a phylogenetic tree, where RfVg was placed within the clade of the order Coleoptera. Awareness of the major genes that play critical roles in reproduction and proliferation of red palm weevil is valuable to understand their reproduction mechanism at a molecular level. In addition, for future molecular studies, the NGS dataset obtained will be useful and will promote the exploration of biotech-based control strategies against red palm weevil, a primary pest of palm trees.

Background Non-communicable diseases (NCD) represent a major public health issue and currently cause 185.75 deaths per 100,000 population in Oman. Hence, there is a need for comprehensive, up-to-date and internationally comparable data on NCD risk factors in order to evaluate the effectiveness of ongoing public health policies and to develop further NCD prevention and control interventions. The aim of the study was to provide evidence-based, up-to-date, extensive, and reliable baseline data on the behavioural and biological risk factors of NCDs in the Sultanate of Oman. Methods A cross‐sectional, prospective, observational community‐based survey designed to be nationally representative of the Sultanate of Oman was conducted based on the WHO STEPwise approach to Surveillance (STEPS). Multi-stage stratified random sampling according to geographical distribution selected a total of 9053 households (Omani nationals and non-Omani residents). Cluster sampling was used to randomly select equal clusters from each governorate. 823 households were randomly selected from the list of all households in all selected clusters from each governorate and one eligible adult selected from each household randomly accounting for 6582 consenting participants. The survey used demographic and behavioural information questionnaires along with physical and biochemical measurements among adults aged 18 years and above. Results The prevalence of behavioural risk factors such as tobacco use was 9%, alcohol consumption was 2%, insufficient fruit or vegetable intake was 61%, and insufficient physical activity was 39%. The prevalence of biological risk factors such as overweight and obesity was 66%, raised blood pressure was 33%, raised blood glucose was 16%, and raised blood cholesterol was 36%. The prevalence of multiple risk factors was also determined and 95% of the population were found to have more than one risk factor. Three or more risk factors were found among 33% of population aged 18 years and above and 45% of the population aged 45 years and above. Conclusion A high prevalence of various NCD risk factors was found which needs to be addressed through health promotion, education, and policy. The findings are important to support the formulation and implementation of NCD-related policies and action plans that improve health status and prevent mortality due to NCDs in Oman.

IntroductionHepatic steatosis (HS) negatively impacts transplant outcomes in living liver donors. To date, liver biopsy is preferred for HS evaluation. This study aims to evaluate the measurement of controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) as a diagnostic tool of HS in living liver donors.MethodsCandidates recruited to this study, conducted from April 2016 to February 2020, were potential donors who had undergone transient elastography using Fibroscan® and CAP measurements at liver segments VI and VII, followed by liver biopsy. The HS grades from liver biopsy were classified as S0 (66%). For CAP, they were S0 (≤218dB/m), S1 (218-249dB/m)), S2 (250-305dB/m)), and S3 (>305dB/m)). The CAP measurements were compared with the liver biopsy results.ResultsOf the 150 potential donors [male, 73.3%; mean age, 30.0±7.0 years; body mass index (BMI), 24.7±3.5kg/m2], 92 (61.3%) had no or mild HS, while 58 (38.7%) and 10% had moderate to severe HS based on CAP and liver biopsy, respectively. Subjects with moderate to severe HS per CAP were mostly males (0.014), and had higher BMI (p = .006), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) (.001), gamma-glutamyl transferase (.026), and high-density lipoprotein (.008). On multivariate analysis, high ALT (OR, 1.051; 95% CI, 1.016-1.087; p = .004) was a predictor of significant HS. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values of CAP to detect significant HS were 93.3%, 67.4, 24.1%, and 98.9%, respectively.ConclusionThe high sensitivity and negative predictive values of CAP make it a good screening test to exclude significant HS in potential living liver donors which, in turn, can help avoid unnecessary liver biopsies.

ObjectiveThe disruption of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) causes more adverse events after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, incidence and predictors of DAPT non-compliance are unknown in chronic coronary syndrome patients when compared between planned and ad hoc PCI.MethodsThis investigation was aimed to assess the incidence, predictors, outcomes, and primary mode of non-compliance of DAPT in patients with chronic coronary syndrome undergoing their first PCI. We analyzed the patients between planned (group 1) and ad hoc (group 2) PCI.ResultsThere were a total of 628 participants in this investigation (370 were in planned PCI and 270 in the ad hoc PCI group). Out of 628 patients, by one month, 10% left DAPT in planned PCI group and 19.7% in ad hoc PCI group (aOR: 0.451, 95% CI: 0.285-0.713, p = 0.001). At 12 months, DAPT non-compliance was significantly more in ad hoc PCI group (52.7% vs. 47.8%; aOR: 0.647 95% CI: 0.470-0.891, p = 0.008). Age > 65 years (p < 0.001), low education status (p = 0.012), residents of rural areas (p < 0.001), ad hoc PCI group (p = 0.036), and angina class II (p = 0.038) were predictors for DAPT non-compliance in this cohort.ConclusionApproximately 5 out of 10 patients disrupt DAPT due to non-compliance. This investigation provides an insight on additional predictors of non-compliance to DAPT, helping us to identify and address specific patient-related factors for disruption.

Background After recovery from acute infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), many patients experience long-term symptoms in different body systems. The aim of the present study was to identify these symptoms, their severity, and their duration as a first step in building a system to classify post-recovery long-term symptoms of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Methods An online-based cross-sectional survey was administered between September and October 2020. Data regarding the severity of post-recovery symptoms and their duration were collected using an Arabic questionnaire divided into six categories encompassing the 20 most prevalent symptoms. Results A total of 979 patients recovered from COVID-19 in Saudi Arabia in the study period, of whom 53% were male and 47% were female. The most common symptoms included general fatigue and weakness (73% each), with moderate severity of neurological symptoms including mood changes (41%) and insomnia (39%). Among the special senses, loss of smell and taste of marked severity were reported by 64% and 55% among respiratory symptoms, cough of mild severity (47%), and dyspnea of moderate severity (43%). Loss of appetite of moderate severity was reported in 42%, and diarrhea, abdominal pain, and nausea of mild severity were reported by 53%, 50%, and 44% of respondents, respectively. Conclusions Long-term symptoms after recovery from COVID-19 warrant patient follow-up. The authors propose a classification system as a starting point to guide the identification and follow-up of long-term symptoms post-recovery, and recommend larger-scale studies to broaden the definition of recovery from COVID-19, which appears to have two phases, acute and chronic.

Globally, the economic losses due to hard ticks infestation and the control of the associated diseases have been calculated at USD $13.9-18.7 billion per year. The economic impact is related to its direct damage to the skins, blood loss, anemia, severe immunological reactions and indirect losses that related to the effects of hemoparasites, cost of treatment for clinical cases and expenses incurred in the control of ticks. The current study evaluated the acaricidal activities of fennel Foeniculum vulgare essential oil and its main components; trans-anethole and fenchone; against R. annulatus. GC-MS analysis revealed that this oil contained 16 components representing 99.9% of the total identified compounds with E-anethole being the predominant component(64.29%), followed by fenchone (9.94%). The fennel oil and trans-anethole showed significant acaricidal activities. The LC50 of the fennel oil was attained at concentrations of 12.96% for adult ticks and 1.75% for tick larvae meanwhile the LC50 of trans-anethole was reached at concentrations of 2.36% for adult tick and 0.56% for tick larvae. On the contrary, fenchone showed no any significant adulticidal activities and its LC50 attained at a concentration of 9.11% for tick larvae. Regarding repellence activities, trans-anethole achieved 100% repellency at the concentration of 10% while fennel showed 86% repellency at the same concentration. Fenchone showed no repellency effect. Treatment of larvae with fennel, trans-anethole, and fenchone LC50 concentrations significantly inhibited the acetylcholinesterase activity. Meanwhile, glutathione s-transferase activity was significantly decreased in fennel treated larvae but no significant effect was found in the larvae of trans-anethole and fenchone groups. These results indicate that the acaricide effect of fennel oil may attributed to its high content of trans-anethole. This was supported by potent adulticidal, larvicidal, and repellency effects of trans-anethole against Rhipeciphalus annulatus tick and therefore it could be included in the list of acaricide of plant origin.

This research work aims to develop a deep learning-based crop classification framework for remotely sensed time series data. Tobacco is a major revenue generating crop of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province of Pakistan, with over 90% of the country's Tobacco production. In order to analyze the performance of the developed classification framework, a pilot sub-region named Yar Hussain is selected for experimentation work. Yar Hussain is a tehsil of district Swabi, within KP province of Pakistan, having highest contribution to the gross production of the KP Tobacco crop. KP generally consists of a diverse crop land with different varieties of vegetation, having similar phenology which makes crop classification a challenging task. In this study, a temporal convolutional neural network (TempCNNs) model is implemented for crop classification, while considering remotely sensed imagery of the selected pilot region with specific focus on the Tobacco crop. In order to improve the performance of the proposed classification framework, instead of using the prevailing concept of utilizing a single satellite imagery, both Sentinel-2 and Planet-Scope imageries are stacked together to assist in providing more diverse features to the proposed classification framework. Furthermore, instead of using a single date satellite imagery, multiple satellite imageries with respect to the phenological cycle of Tobacco crop are temporally stacked together which resulted in a higher temporal resolution of the employed satellite imagery. The developed framework is trained using the ground truth data. The final output is obtained as an outcome of the SoftMax function of the developed model in the form of probabilistic values, for the classification of the selected classes. The proposed deep learning-based crop classification framework, while utilizing multi-satellite temporally stacked imagery resulted in an overall classification accuracy of 98.15%. Furthermore, as the developed classification framework evolved with specific focus on Tobacco crop, it resulted in best Tobacco crop classification accuracy of 99%.

Background and purposeMR contrast-enhanced techniques are undergoing increased scrutiny since the FDA applied a warning for gadolinium-based MR contrast agents due to gadolinium deposition within multiple organ systems. While CE-MRA provides excellent image quality, is it required in a screening carotid study? This study compares 2D TOF and 3D TOF MRA vs. CE-MRA in defining carotid stenosis in a large clinical patient population, and with multiple readers with varying experience.Materials and methods200 consecutive patients had their carotid bifurcations evaluated with 2D TOF, 3D TOF and CE-MRA sequences by 6 board-certified neuroradiologists. Stenosis and quality of examinations were defined for each study. Inter-rater reliability was assessed using two-way random effects intraclass correlation coefficients. Intra-reader reliability was computed via weighted Cohen's κ. Weighted Cohen's κ were also computed to assess agreement in stenosis ratings between enhanced images and unenhanced images.ResultsAgreement between unenhanced and enhanced ratings was substantial with a pooled weighted κ of 0.733 (0.628-0.811). For 5 of the 6 readers, the combination of unenhanced 2D TOF and 3D TOF showed better agreement with contrast-enhanced than either 2D TOF or 3D TOF alone. Intra-reader reliability was substantial.ConclusionsThe combination of 2D TOF and 3D TOF MRA showed substantial agreement with CE-MRA regarding degree of carotid stenosis in this large outpatient population across multiple readers of varying experience. Given the scrutiny that GBCA are undergoing due to concerns regarding CNS and soft tissue deposition, it seems prudent to reserve CE-MRA for cases which are not satisfactorily answered by the nonenhanced study or other noninvasive examinations.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a severe incurable neurological disorder. It is mostly characterized by non-motor symptoms like fatigue, dementia, anxiety, speech and communication problems, depression, and so on. Electroencephalography (EEG) play a key role in the detection of the true emotional state of a person. Various studies have been proposed for the detection of emotional impairment in PD using filtering, Fourier transforms, wavelet transforms, and non-linear methods. However, these methods require a selection of basis and are confined in terms of accuracy. In this paper, tunable Q wavelet transform (TQWT) is proposed for the classification of emotions in PD and normal controls (NC). EEG signals of six emotional states namely happiness, sadness, fear, anger, surprise, and disgust are studied. Power, entropy, and statistical moments based features are elicited from the highpass and lowpass sub-bands of TQWT. Six features selected by statistical analysis are classified with a k-nearest neighbor, probabilistic neural network, random forest, decision tree, and extreme learning machine. Three performance measures are obtained, maximum mean accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of 96.16%, 97.59%, and 88.51% for NC and 93.88%, 96.33%, and 81.67% for PD are achieved with a probabilistic neural network. The proposed method proved to be very effective such that it classifies emotions in PD and could be used as a potential tool for diagnosing emotional impairment in hospitals.

Successful antibiotic treatment of infections relies on accurate and rapid identification of the infectious agents. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is implicated in a wide range of human infections that mostly become complicated and life threating, especially in immunocompromised and critically ill patients. Conventional microbiological methods take more than three days to obtain accurate results. Pyocyanin is a distinctive electroactive biomarker for Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Here, we have prepared polyaniline/gold nanoparticles decorated ITO electrode and tested it to establish a rapid, diagnostic and highly sensitive pyocyanin sensor in a culture of Pseudomonas aeruginosa clinical isolates with high selectivity for traces of pyocyanin when measured in the existence of different interferences like vitamin C, uric acid, and glucose. The scanning electron microscopy and cyclic voltammetry techniques were used to characterize the morphology and electrical conductivity of the constructed electrode. The determined linear range for pyocyanin detection was from 238 μM to 1.9 μM with a detection limit of 500 nM. Compared to the screen-printed electrode used before, the constructed electrode showed a 4-fold enhanced performance. Furthermore, PANI/Au NPs/ITO modified electrodes have demonstrated the ability to detect pyocyanin directly in Pseudomonas aeruginosa culture without any potential interference with other species.

Soil C:N:P stoichiometry plays a vital role in nutrient cycling in ecosystems, but its importance to P transformation in paddy soil remains unclear. We investigated the effect of soil C:N:P stoichiometry on P mobility and uptake under long-term fertilization. Three treatments, CK (no fertilization), NPK (inorganic nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilization) and NPKM (combined inorganic NPK fertilizer and manure application), were selected from two long-term experiments of paddy soil that were initiated in 1991 and 1982 in Chongqing and Suining, respectively. The results showed that in comparison the control treatment, under long-term fertilization, soil pH decreased. In comparison with the NPK and CK treatments, the NPKM treatment significantly increased soil nutrient contents, P uptake and phosphatase activities. In comparison to the CK treatment, the NPK and NPKM treatments significantly decreased soil C:N, C:P and N:P ratios. In comparison to NPK and CK treatments, the NPKM treatment decreased residual-P at both sites. Compared with CK treatment, the NPKM treatments increased labile-P and moderately labile-P by 987% and 144%, respectively, and NPK treatment increased these factors by 823% and 125%, respectively, at the Chongqing site. At the Suining site, with NPKM treatment, increases in labile-P and moderately labile-P were 706% and 73%, respectively, and with NPK treatment, the increases were 529% and 47%, respectively. In contrast, non-labile-P was significantly decreased with NPKM treatment in comparison to that with NPK and CK treatments. Moreover, increases in soil C:N and C:P ratios decreased the labile-P pools and increased non-labile-P pools. A path analysis indicated that soil C:N:P stoichiometry indirectly controlled P uptake by directly affecting P transformation from non-labile to labile-P pools. Moreover, the non-labile-P in soil with high SOM and P content directly affected P uptake, indicating that soil P transformation is mainly driven by soil C and P in paddy soil. In conclusion, understanding mechanism of P mobility influenced by soil C:N:P stoichiometry could be helpful to manage soil P fertility under long-term fertilization in paddy soils of these regions.

This study aimed to investigate physicians' and nurses' knowledge and attitudes toward advance directives (ADs) for cancer patients, which empower patients to take decisions on end-of-life needs if they lose their capacity to make medical decisions. A cross-sectional study was conducted using convenience sampling. The outcomes were responses to the knowledge and attitude questions, and the main outcome variables were the total scores for knowledge and attitudes toward ADs. This study included 281 physicians and nurses (60.5%). Most physicians were men (95, 80.5%), whereas most nurses were women (147, 86.5%). The mean (standard deviation; SD) total knowledge score was 6.8 (4.0) for physicians and 9.1 (3.0) for nurses (p < 0.001). There was a significant difference in the total knowledge score between nurses and physicians, with an adjusted mean difference of 1.54 (95% confidence interval [CI]; 0.08-2.97). Other significant independent predictors of knowledge of ADs were female sex (1.60, 95% CI; 0.27-3.13) and education level (master's versus bachelor's: 1.26, 95% CI; 0.30-2.33 and Ph.D. versus bachelor's: 2.22, 95% CI; 0.16-4.52). Nurses' attitudes appeared to be significantly more positive than those of physicians, and the mean total attitude score (SD) was 19.5 for nurses (6.2) and 15.1 (8.1) for physicians (p < 0.001). The adjusted mean difference (95% CI) for nurses versus physicians was 3.71 (0.57-6.98). All participants showed a high level of knowledge of ADs; however, nurses showed considerably more positive attitudes than physicians.

Aflatoxins (AFs) are a family of fungal toxins that produced in food and feed by two Aspergillus species (Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus). Several techniques have been reported for AFs detection including high-pressure liquid chromatography, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, surface plasmon resonance and recombinant immune blotting assay. But, these methods are disadvantaged because they consumed a long time for analysis; in addition, they required a piece of complicated and expensive equipment. Therefore, developing of inexpensive sensors with high selectivity and sensitivity for detecting of AFs levels without extensive sample preparation has received great attention. Several electrochemical AFs sensors have been reported; however, there is still a need for developing a new, simple and rapid electrochemical AFs sensor. Here, we have developed a new AFs sensor based on Au nanostructures/graphene nanosheets modified ITO substrate that could enhance the Raman effect and the electrochemical conductivity. The modified electrode was prepared based on layer-by-layer electrochemical deposition method. AFs antibody was immobilized onto the Au nanostructures/graphene nanosheets; then it was used as a probe for rapid, simple and cheap detection of AFs level using Raman spectroscopy and electrochemical techniques. Our results demonstrated that the developed system showed a simple, easy and sensitive sensor for monitoring low concentrations of AFB1 with a detection limit of about 6.9 pg/mL, also it allowed the determination of AFB1 in spiked food samples.

BackgroundDuring critical illness in humans, the effects of caloric restriction on the inflammatory response are not well understood. The aim of this study is to examine the associations of caloric restriction, inflammatory response profiles and outcomes in critically ill patients.MethodsThis is a sub-study of the PermiT trial (Permissive Underfeeding or Standard Enteral Feeding in Critically Ill Adults Trial- ISRCTN68144998). Serum samples were collected on study days 1, 3, 5, 7 and 14 and analyzed for a panel of 29 cytokines. We used principal component analysis to convert possibly correlated variables (cytokine levels) into a limited number of linearly uncorrelated variables (principal components). We constructed repeated measures mixed linear models to assess whether permissive underfeeding compared to standard feeding was associated with difference cytokine levels over time.ResultsA total of 72 critically ill patients were enrolled in this study (permissive underfeeding n = 36 and standard feeding n = 36). Principal component analysis identified 6 components that were responsible for 78% of the total variance. When adjusted to principal components, permissive underfeeding was not associated with 90-day mortality (adjusted odds ratio 1.75, 95% confidence interval 0.44, 6.95, p = 0.43) or with incident renal replacement therapy. The cytokines did not differ with time between permissive underfeeding and standard feeding groups.ConclusionsThe association of permissive underfeeding compared to standard feeding with mortality was not influenced by the inflammatory profile. Permissive underfeeding compared to standard feeding was not associated with differences in the serum levels of cytokines in critically ill patients.

Our aim was to assess the utility of a novel machine learning software (Orbit Image Analysis) in the histological quantification of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) clots. We analyzed 50 AIS blood clots retrieved using mechanical thrombectomy procedures. Following H&E staining, quantification of clot components was performed by two different methods: a pathologist using a reference standard method (Adobe Photoshop CC) and an experienced researcher using Orbit Image Analysis. Following quantification, the clots were categorized into 3 types: RBC dominant (≥60% RBCs), Mixed and Fibrin dominant (≥60% Fibrin). Correlations between clot composition and Hounsfield Units density on Computed Tomography (CT) were assessed. There was a significant correlation between the components of clots as quantified by the Orbit Image Analysis algorithm and the reference standard approach (ρ = 0.944**, p < 0.001, n = 150). A significant relationship was found between clot composition (RBC-Rich, Mixed, Fibrin-Rich) and the presence of a Hyperdense artery sign using the algorithmic method (X2(2) = 6.712, p = 0.035*) but not using the reference standard method (X2(2) = 3.924, p = 0.141). Orbit Image Analysis machine learning software can be used for the histological quantification of AIS clots, reproducibly generating composition analyses similar to current reference standard methods.

Ginkgo biloba leaves extract (GBE) was subjected to neuroprotective-guided fractionation to produce eleven fractions with different polarities and constituents. The intermediate polar fraction was shown to be terpene trilactones-enriched fraction (TEGBE). Out of this fraction, pure ginkgolide B (G-B) was further purified and identified based on its spectral data. The effects of GBE and TEGBE were evaluated in comparison to that of G-B in the crush sciatic nerve injury rat model. To evaluate the neuroprotective effects, sixty Wistar male rats were randomly allocated into 6 groups: naive, sham, crush + normal saline, and three treatment groups; crush + GBE, crush + TEGBE, and crush + G-B. Treatments were given one hour following injury, and once daily for 14 days. Neurobehavioral tests, histomorphological examinations, and immunohistochemical analysis of the sciatic nerve and the spinal cord were performed at weeks 3 and 6 post-injury. GBE, TEGBE and G-B were shown to enhance the functional and sensory behavioral parameters and to protect the histological and the ultrastructural elements in the sciatic nerve. Additionally, all treatments prevented spinal cord neurons from further deterioration. It was shown that G-B has the most significant potential effects among all treatments with values that were nearly comparable to those of sham and naive groups.

Systemic lupus erythematous (SLE) is a chronic multi-organ autoimmune disease. Genetic and environmental factors contribute to disease onset and severity. Sphingolipids are signaling molecules involved in regulating cell functions and have been associated with multiple genetic disease processes. African-Americans are more likely to suffer from SLE morbidity than Whites. The Medical University of South Carolina has banked plasma samples from a well-characterized lupus cohort that includes African-Americans and Whites. This study examined the influence of race on plasma sphingolipid profiles in SLE patients and association of sphingolipid levels with comorbid atherosclerosis and SLE disease activity. Mass spectrometry revealed that healthy African-Americans had higher sphingomyelin levels and lower lactosylcermide levels compared to healthy Whites. SLE patients, irrespective of race, had higher levels of ceramides, and sphingoid bases (sphingosine and dihydrosphingosine) and their phosphates compared to healthy subjects. Compared to African-American controls, African-American SLE patients had higher levels of ceramides, hexosylceramides, sphingosine and dihydrosphingosine 1-phosphate. Compared to White controls, White SLE patients exhibited higher levels of sphingoid bases and their phosphates, but lower ratios of C16:0 ceramide/sphingosine 1-phosphate and C24:1 ceramide/sphingosine 1-phosphate. White SLE patients with atherosclerosis exhibited lower levels of sphingoid bases compared to White SLE patients without atherosclerosis. In contrast, African-American SLE patients with atherosclerosis had higher levels of sphingoid bases and sphingomyelins compared to African-American SLE patients without atherosclerosis. Compared to White SLE patients with atherosclerosis, African-American SLE patients with atherosclerosis had higher levels of select sphingolipids. Plasma levels of sphingosine, C16:0 ceramide/sphingosine 1-phosphate ratio and C24:1 ceramide/sphingosine 1-phosphate ratio significantly correlated with SLEDAI in the African-American but not White SLE patients. The C16:0 ceramide/sphingosine 1-phosphate ratio in SLE patients, and levels of C18:1 and C26:1 lactosylcermides, C20:0 hexosylceramide, and sphingoid bases in SLE patients with atherosclerosis could be dependent on race. Further ethnic studies in SLE cohorts are necessary to verify use of sphingolipidomics as complementary diagnostic tool.

The angiotensin-(1-7) [Ang-(1-7)]/MAS1 receptor signaling axis is a key endogenous anti-inflammatory signaling pathway. However, the mechanisms by which its mediates the anti-inflammatory effects are not completely understood. Using an allergic murine model of asthma, we investigated whether Ang-1(1-7)/MAS1 receptor axis a): inhibits allergic inflammation via modulation of Src-dependent transactivation of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and downstream signaling effectors such as ERK1/2, and b): directly inhibits neutrophil and/or eosinophil chemotaxis ex vivo. Ovalbumin (OVA)-induced allergic inflammation resulted in increased phosphorylation of Src kinase, EGFR, and ERK1/2. In addition, OVA challenge increased airway cellular influx, perivascular and peribronchial inflammation, fibrosis, goblet cell hyper/metaplasia and airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR). Treatment with Ang-(1-7) inhibited phosphorylation of Src kinase, EGFR, ERK1/2, the cellular and histopathological changes and AHR. Ang-(1-7) treatment also inhibited neutrophil and eosinophil chemotaxis ex vivo. These changes were reversed following pre-treatment with A779. These data show that the anti-inflammatory actions of Ang-(1-7)/ MAS1 receptor axis are mediated, at least in part, via inhibition of Src-dependent transactivation of EGFR and downstream signaling molecules such as ERK1/2. This study therefore shows that inhibition of the Src/EGRF/ERK1/2 dependent signaling pathway is one of the mechanisms by which the Ang-(1-7)/ MAS1 receptor axis mediates it anti-inflammatory effects in diseases such as asthma.

There are many challenges facing the use of alendronate sodium for the treatment of osteoporosis such as low bioavailability of 0.6% and oesophageal ulceration with bleeding. Due to the aforementioned limitation, the main objective of this research is to utilize a statistical experimental design in the formulation and optimization of alendronate in the form of controlled release biodegradable intramuscular in-situ gel. A Box-Behnken experimental design employing Statgraphics® software was used to develop an optimized in-situ gel formulation and to estimate the effects of Poly-DL-lactide-coglycolide as a primary polymer, the copolymer polycaprolactone, and lipid surfactant capryol 90. Every system was evaluated for gellation character, and in vitro release. As a novel technique for evaluation of the in-situ gel, in-vivo biodegradability rate was estimated in rats. Pharmacokinetic parameters were assessed in rabbits. The results indicated a significant effect of the copolymer and lipid surfactant on initial burst, and a significant effect of the primary and copolymer on drug percentage released. The optimum formulation showed a 5% initial burst, an in-vivo biodegradability rate estimated at 8% every seven days in rats, and the pharmacokinetic evaluation revealed that alendronate sodium mean residence time extended to 102 days in rabbits. In conclusion, the optimum biodegradable intramuscular in-situ gel formulations is a promising approach for providing higher bioavailability, extended release for more than three months, with elimination of esophageal side effects.

Antibiotic resistance of bacteria common to the ocular surface is an evolving problem. Thus, novel treatment options with new modes of action are required. We investigated the antibacterial activity and safety of three commercially available topical veterinary ophthalmic products (cationic steroid antibiotics, products A and B, and a neutral superoxidized water, product C) to determine their potential use as antimicrobial alternatives. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of the three products were determined against 17 antibiotic resistant bacterial clinical isolates from the ocular surface. Using a standard cytotoxicity assay, the products at varying concentrations were evaluated with a corneal fibroblast cell line and a macrophage-like cell line to determine their potential toxic effect in vitro. The commercial ophthalmic solutions, ofloxacin 0.3%, tobramycin 0.3% and gentamicin 0.3% were used as positive controls for the MIC and tobramycin 0.3% was used as positive control for the cytotoxicity assays. For the MIC, Product C showed no inhibition of growth for any organisms, while Products A and B showed inhibition of growth similar to slightly less than the positive controls. For the cytotoxicity assays, Product C exhibited minimal toxicity while Products A and B exhibited toxicity similar to the controls. In conclusion, Product C had no antibacterial activity in these assays, while Products A and B had antibacterial profiles similar to slightly less than common topical ophthalmic antibiotics and cytotoxicity profiles similar to common topical ophthalmic antibiotics. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the antibacterial activity and safety of the cationic steroid antibiotics and superoxidized water.

BACKGROUND:Non-gonococcal urethritis (NGU) is a common syndrome in men. NGU may have several causes, but many cases are caused by sexually transmitted infections that may also cause complications in their female partners. Chlamydia trachomatis and Mycoplasma genitalium are the most common causes of NGU, but in up to 35% of the cases, none of the known viral or bacterial causes are found. Traditionally, pathogens have been detected using various culture techniques that may not identify all species present in the urethra. To address this, we used culture-independent methods for analysis of the male urethral microbiota. METHODS:This case-control study analysed first void urine samples, collected at STD clinics in Stockholm, Sweden from men with idiopathic urethritis (IU), i.e. negative for Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Chlamydia trachomatis, Mycoplasma genitalium, Ureaplasma urealyticum, Trichomonas vaginalis, adenovirus, and herpes simplex virus type 1 and -2 together with samples from men without urethritis. Forty-six controls and 39 idiopathic urethritis patients were analysed. RESULTS:The microbiota was highly diverse: None of the 302 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) found in negative controls and IU patients were found in all of the samples or even in all of the samples in one group. More than 50% of the OTUs were only found in one or two of the total of 85 samples. Still the most dominant 1/6 of the genera constituted 79% of the sequences. Hierarchical clustering in a heatmap showed no specific clustering of patients or controls. A number of IU patient samples were dominated by a single genus previously related to urethritis (Gardnerella, Haemophilus, Ureaplasma). CONCLUSION:The male urethra contain a very diverse composition of bacteria, even in healthy controls. NGU may be caused by a number of different bacteria but more studies including a higher number of samples are needed for elucidation of the role of each species.

The Sab'atayn Basin is one of the most prolific Mesozoic hydrocarbon basins located in central Yemen. It has many oil producing fields including the Habban Field with oil occurrences in fractured basement rocks. A comprehensive seismic analysis of fractured basement reservoirs was performed to identify the structural pattern and mechanism of hydrocarbon entrapment and reservoir characteristics. A 3D post-stack time migration seismic cube and logging data of 20 wells were used and several 2D seismic sections were constructed and interpreted. Depth structure maps were generated for the basement reservoir and overlying formations. The top of the basement reservoir is dissected by a set of NW-SE step-like normal faults (Najd Fault System) and to a lesser extent, by secondary NNE-SSW oriented faults (Hadramauwt System). The Najd Fault System is dominant and dissects the reservoir in the middle of the field into two prospective uplifts. The northern and northeastern areas constitute the deep-seated downthrown side of the reservoir. Hydrocarbon emplacement is through the fault juxtaposition of the fractured basement against the organic shale source rock of the overlying Madbi Formation. Hydrocarbons are hosted in basement horsts formed by fault-controlled blocks and overlain by the regional seal of the Sab'atayn Formation. The basement reservoir rock is mainly composed of granite, quartz-feldspar, weathered silica, and mica minerals. Fractures were identified from the outcrops, cores, image logs, and the petrophysical analysis. Hydrocarbon saturation was observed in the upper and middle parts of the reservoir, more specifically in front of the highly fractured sections. The fracture porosity was less than 5% and the dead oil had an API gravity of 40° with no H2S or CO2. In conclusion, the structural highs of the Habban Field are of interest because most oil producing wells are drilled into them. We recommend extending the drilling and development activities in these uplifts.

Opiates, one of the oldest known drugs, are the benchmark for treating pain. Regular opioid exposure also induces euphoria making these compounds addictive and often misused, as shown by the current epidemic of opioid abuse and overdose mortalities. In addition to the effect of opioids on their cognate receptors and signaling cascades, these compounds also induce multiple adaptations at cellular and behavioral levels. As omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs) play a ubiquitous role in behavioral and cellular processes, we proposed that supplemental n-3 PUFAs, enriched in docosahexanoic acid (DHA), could offset these adaptations following chronic opioid exposure. We used an 8 week regimen of n-3 PUFA supplementation followed by 8 days of morphine in the presence of this diet. We first assessed the effect of morphine in different behavioral measures and found that morphine increased anxiety and reduced wheel-running behavior. These effects were reduced by dietary n-3 PUFAs without affecting morphine-induced analgesia or hyperlocomotion, known effects of this opiate acting at mu opioid receptors. At the cellular level we found that morphine reduced striatal DHA content and that this was reversed by supplemental n-3 PUFAs. Chronic morphine also increased glutamatergic plasticity and the proportion of Grin2B-NMDARs in striatal projection neurons. This effect was similarly reversed by supplemental n-3 PUFAs. Gene analysis showed that supplemental PUFAs offset the effect of morphine on genes found in neurons of the dopamine receptor 2 (D2)-enriched indirect pathway but not of genes found in dopamine receptor 1(D1)-enriched direct-pathway neurons. Analysis of the D2 striatal connectome by a retrogradely transported pseudorabies virus showed that n-3 PUFA supplementation reversed the effect of chronic morphine on the innervation of D2 neurons by the dorsomedial prefontal and piriform cortices. Together these changes outline specific behavioral and cellular effects of morphine that can be reduced or reversed by dietary n-3 PUFAs.

There is a significant clinical need to improve current therapeutic approaches to treat ocular surface injuries and disease, which affect hundreds of millions of people annually worldwide. The work presented here demonstrates that the presence of Silk-Derived Protein (SDP) on the healing rabbit corneal surface, administered in an eye drop formulation, corresponds with an enhanced epithelial wound healing profile. Rabbit corneas were denuded of their epithelial surface, and then treated for 72-hours with either PBS or PBS containing 5 or 20 mg/mL SDP in solution four times per day. Post-injury treatment with SDP formulations was found to accelerate the acute healing phase of the injured rabbit corneal epithelium. In addition, the use of SDP corresponded with an enhanced tissue healing profile through the formation of a multi-layered epithelial surface with increased tight junction formation. Additional biological effects were also revealed that included increased epithelial proliferation, and increased focal adhesion formation with a corresponding reduction in the presence of MMP-9 enzyme. These in vivo findings demonstrate for the first time that the presence of SDP on the injured ocular surface may aid to improve various steps of rabbit corneal wound healing, and provides evidence that SDP may have applicability as an ingredient in therapeutic ophthalmic formulations.