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A library of N-benzylpyridinium-based compounds, 7a-j and 8a-j, was designed and synthesised as potential acetylcholinesterase) AChE (inhibitors. An in vitro assay for the synthesised compounds showed that most compounds had significant AChE inhibitory activities at the nanomolar and submicromolar levels. The benzyl (8a) and fluoro (8b) derivatives were the most active, with IC50 values ≤56 nM. Compound 7f, which had a benzyl moiety, showed the highest potency among all the target compounds, with an IC50 value of 7.5 ± 0.19 nM against AChE, which was higher than that of the activities of tacrine (IC50 = 30 ± 0.2 nM) and donepezil (IC50 = 14 ± 0.12 nM). Compounds with vanillin moieties exhibited antioxidant activity. Among the tested compounds, four derivatives (7f, 7 g, 8f, and 8 g) exhibited superior AChE inhibitory activity, with Ki values of 6–16 nM, which were potent in the same range as the approved drug, donepezil. These compounds showed moderate antioxidant activities, as indicated by the results of the ABTS assay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although several interventions are utilized for pain management, opioids remain the most effective intervention for moderate to severe pain. Despite opioids being the most potent analgesics used in different pain settings, several factors impede the optimal prescribing of opioids. The study seeks to identify and address the barriers physicians face to prescribing opioids in managing pain. This study was conducted in a tertiary care center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It involved distributing questionnaires to the participants. The questionnaires sought to identify prescribers' knowledge and current practices as well as obstacles that they face when prescribing opioids. A total of 109 questionnaires were completed by participants. More than half [59.6%] of the respondents thought that opioid use was an optimal way to treat moderate to severe pain. About 33% chose "never" when asked if they fear legal sanctions when prescribing opioids. Fear of side effects limited almost 90% of the respondents from prescribing opioids. The study confirmed the perception that opioids are the most potent pharmacological intervention in treating pain. Several barriers were identified and discussed in this study. Further studies from different settings to understand these barriers are highly recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This study presents a data-driven system analysis approach intended to improve greywater reuse at the household/community level using a case study of ¨Granular Activated Carbon-Membrane Integrated-Multigrade Effluent¨(GAC-MI-ME) treatment system. It consists of a matrix of advanced filtration units and provides multi-grade water reuse options. Using experimental data with varying greywater strengths, artificial neural networks were applied to develop effluent prediction models for water quality parameters including turbidity, total dissolved solids, five-day biochemical oxidation demand, oxidation redox potential and pH. The results show that the GAC-MI-ME can improve water quality with terminal removal efficiency of 99% and above for turbidity and BOD. At the same time, the model simulations can effectively predict effluent quality, which can be applied as decision-making tools in selecting and the treatment trains of GAC-MI-ME. The concept may help broaden the greywater reuse by ensuring it meets the requirements of diverse water reuse regulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims at improving greywater reuse potential. An advanced physical filtration system named as GAC-MI-ME was developed to attain multi-grade effluents for versatile reuse of greywater. It consists of a matrix of treatment trains including coarse filtration, microfiltration, activated carbon, ultrafiltration, ultraviolet, and reverse osmosis. A preliminary set of experiments were conducted to characterize the greywater originating from shower, washbasin, and laundry. The samples were subsequently treated through GAC-MI-ME system. It was observed that the activated carbon along with microfiltration and coarse filtration played vital roles as pre-filtration for ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis. The contaminant load distributions of GAC-MI-ME system were observed with an average of 90.4% turbidity and 53.2% of biochemical oxidation demand (BOD5) as the pre-filtration, whereas the effluents at ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis showed unrestricted water reuse possibilities. The GAC-MI-ME system can be envisioned as advancement to the conventionally applied greywater treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the photocatalytic activity of TiO2nanofibers toward ammonia borane hydrolysis has been strongly modified by doping the nanostructure by ZnO and Fe2O3oxides. Due to the differences in the work function and band gap energy among the three semiconductors (TiO2, ZnO and Fe2O3), illumination of TiO2leads to accumulate the electrons and holes on the conduction and valance bands of Fe2O3and ZnO, respectively. Accordingly, the experimental results indicated that the surface of the obtained nanofibers is very active which results in an instant hydrolysis of ammonia borane molecules reaching the active zone surrounding the nanofibers. Moreover, negative activation energy was determined as increasing the temperature led to decrease the photocatalytic performance. Furthermore, kinetic studies indicated that the heterogeneous catalytic reaction describing the ammonia borane hydrolysis process is zero order which additionally supports the super activity of the introduced nanofibers. It was also observed that Fe2O3content in the introduced nanofibers has distinct influence as the best performance was obtained at 1 wt%. The modified TiO2nanofibers were prepared by calcination of electrospun nanofibers composed of titanium isopropoxide, zinc acetate and iron acetate in air at 700 °C for 1 h. Overall, the present study opens a new avenue to overcome the fast electrons/holes recombination dilemma facing TiO2-based nanostructures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes theoretical foundations for conveying temporal (i.e. relating to time) and spatial (i.e. relating to space) information using auditory cues in interactive systems. Three theoretical models are developed to aid the design of auditory interfaces, including an audio integration model that outlines an end-to-end process for adding sounds to interactive interfaces, a temporal audio model that provides a framework for when to integrate these sounds to meet certain performance objectives and a spatial audio model that provides a framework for adding spatialisation cues to interface sounds. The models presented in this paper, which are each coupled with a set of design guidelines theorised from the literature, put forward a structured process for integrating sounds in interactive interfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Field experiments were carried out at the experimental farm of the Faculty of Agriculture, Sohag, South Valley University during two successive seasons, 2002 and 2003, to study the relative susceptibility of some maize and sorghum varieties to infestation by greater sugar cane borers, Sesamia cretica L., and the effect of chemical insecticide (methomyl), microbial insecticide (B.t.) i.e. Agrein, petroleum oil (Sisi 6), and in organic salt (barium nitrate) against these pests, under field conditions. The roles of controlling S. cretica by these materials in increasing the yield of maize and sorghum varieties were also studied. Results revealed that all tested maize and sorghum varieties infested by S. cretica had significant differences observed between them. Infestation percentage of S. cretica in maize and sorghum varieties generally increased gradually with plant age. Data indicated that methomyl was the most effective material in reducing the infestation of maize plants by S. cretica, followed by Agrein, Sisi 6, and barium nitrate. The same potency order of tested materials on maize was also found on sorghum varieties during the two seasons. Results also revealed that the reduction of S. cretica population play an important role in increasing the yield of maize and sorghum. The yield of all treated plants was higher than that of untreated plants. However, methomyl was the most active material followed by Agrein in controlling the pest and resulted in increasing yield of all maize and sorghum varieties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of organic amendments on vegetable crop production, phosphorus (P), and trace element (Zn, Cu, Mn, B, Cd, Pb, Ni) concentrations in groundwater were investigated on calcareous and sandy soils in south Florida. Treatments consisted of applying yard trash and food compost, biosolids compost, a co-compost of municipal solid waste and biosolids, and inorganic fertilizer. A randomized complete block design with four replications was used at both study sites. Total Kjeldahl phosphorus (TKP) and soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) were periodically measured in grab samples collected for two years for both soils from wells above and below the spodic horizon at Ft. Pierce and from one depth at Homestead. Treatments were similar (P > 0.05) except on two sampling dates from the deep wells in the sandy soil at Ft. Pierce, one for SRP and one for TKP. Phosphorus concentrations for all treatments averaged < 1.2 mg SRP L-1 at Ft. Pierce and 0.04 mg SRP L-1 for the calcareous soil at Homestead. From solely a P consideration, organic P sources could be used to offset all or a portion of P required to satisfy vegetable crop nutrient requirements. This statement is consistent with crop yields at Ft. Pierce where yields from the three organic sources were equal to or exceeded inorganic fertilization yields. Micronutrient and trace element concentration responses to organic treatments were more pronounced at Ft. Pierce, perhaps due to soil chemical conditions including lower soil pH. The cocompost should be used cautiously to avoid contamination problems, especially when application rates are based on N fertilization as in this study. Due to the calcareous soil at Homestead, trace element concentrations in the groundwater were considerably lower than Ft. Pierce concentrations. However, the cocompost source was elevated for lead (Pb) (P < 0.05) compared with all other treatments, although higher concentrations were observed only on one sampling date. Results from this study indicated that, combined with the environmental benefits of recycling waste, the use of these organic amendments is a viable alternative to inorganic P fertilizers in the sandy and calcareous soils of peninsular Florida. The compost treatments were comparable to inorganic fertilizer with regard to P concentrations in the groundwater white producing similar or higher vegetable crop yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experiments were conducted on calcareous and sandy soils to investigate the effects of organic amendments for vegetable production on groundwater nitrogen (N) concentration in south Florida. The treatments consisted of applying yard and food residuals compost, biosolids compost, a cocompost of the municipal solid waste and biosolids, and inorganic fertilizer. Nitrate nitrogen (NO3-N), ammonium nitrogen (NH4-N), and total N concentrations were collected for a period of two years for both soils. Statistical analysis results revealed that for the three species tested, there were no significant differences among treatments. NO3-N concentrations for all treatments remained less than the maximum contamination level (10 mg/L). NO3-N transport to groundwater was higher in calcareous soil (mean=5.3 mg/L) than in sandy soil (mean=0.6 mg/L). NH4-N concentrations ranged from 0 to 13.6 mg/L throughout the experiment. Calcareous soil had lower NH4-N concentrations (mean=0.1 mg/L) than sandy soils (mean=0.7 mg/L). Total N ranged from 0.4 to 21.7 mg/L for all treatments for both soils reflecting high adsorption of dissolved organic N in both soils. Overall, results indicated that all the compost treatments were comparable to inorganic fertilizer with regard to N leaching and N concentrations in the groundwater while producing similar or higher yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]