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The study of fluid flow in cylindrical shapes under the effect of electric fields is of utmost importance because of its vast applications in industrial, agricultural, and biomedical domains, as well as in drilling machines, equipment, transport brakes, and vehicles. The purpose of this research is to analyze the influence of Hall impacts, slippage effects, and thermal relaxation time on the magnetohydrodynamic flow near an extended cylinder or flat plate. An assessment of entropy generation is carried out. Results are determined by the process of elongating a planar surface and a cylindrical object. The velocity field and entropy production are greater in the case of a stretched cylinder compared to a stretching flat plate. The choice of an appropriate stretching surface may have an impact on the thermal conductivity of the boundary layer. Velocity, temperature, and entropy are influenced by several factors including the Eckert number, thermal relaxation time, transverse curvature, magnetic field, Hall effect, molecular slip, and mixed convection parameters. These characteristics influence the movement of fluid, the transfer of heat, the measure of disorder (entropy), and the Bejan number. The variables mentioned cause changes in skin friction and Nusselt values. The Hall effect has advantages in reducing friction and enhancing heat transfer in industrial and technical processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regioselective synthesis of quinolone-1,2,4-triazoles was established starting from 4-hydroxyquinol-2-ones. The strategy started by the reaction of ethyl bromoacetate with 4-hydroxyquinoline to give the corresponding ethyl oxoquinolinyl acetates, which reacted with hydrazine hydrate to afford the hydrazide derivatives. Subsequently, hydrazides reacted with isothiocyanate derivatives to give the corresponding acyl thiosemicarbazides. Finally, subjecting the thiosemicarbazide derivatives with ethyl bromoacetate, the reaction underwent internal cyclization and alkylation processes. Alkylation occurred regioselectivity to the sulfur atom of the thione group and not to the amino group. Thus 3-S-1,2,4-triazole-quinolones were obtained in good yields. The structure of the obtained compounds was proved by different spectroscopic techniques together with elemental analysis and X-ray crystallography. Synthesis of novel quinoline-2-one/1,2,4-triazole hybrids in four steps. NMR, IR and mass spectra together with elemental analysis and X-ray crystallography proved the structure of 3-S-alkylated-1,2,4-triazole-quinolones and excluded the formation of 2-N-alkylated-1,3,4-thiadiazole-quinolones. Plausible mechanism for the formation of the targeted compounds was suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one the strongest risk factors for cardiovascular disease and, in particular, for ischemic heart disease (IHD). The pathophysiology of myocardial ischemia in diabetic patients is complex and not fully understood. Some diabetic patients have mainly coronary stenosis obstructing blood flow to the myocardium and others present with coronary microvascular disease with an absence of plaques in the epicardial vessels. Objective: This review article aimed to study diabetes mellitus in order to reduce the high morbidity and mortality due to cardiovascular disease in diabetic patients. Methods: These databases were searched for articles published in English in 3 data bases [PubMed - Google scholarscience direct] and Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT) had been used such as diabetes mellitus and ischemic heart disease or coronary artery disease and in peer-reviewed articles between July 1998 and April 2021. A 23-year date range was selected without language limitations, and filtered in selected data basis for the last 23 years. Documents in a language apart from English have been excluded as sources for interpretation. Papers apart from main scientific studies had been excluded (documents unavailable as total written text, conversation, conference abstract papers and dissertations). Conclusion: Diabetes mellitus, a simultaneously endocrine and metabolic disease, is an especially aggressive process leading to vascular lesions. In order to reduce the high morbidity and mortality due to cardiovascular disease in diabetic patients the goals of prevention must be maximal on non-diabetic persons who already have ischemic heart disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The aim of this study was to identify national utilization trends of robotic surgery for elective colectomy, conversion rates over time, and the specific impact of conversion on postoperative morbidity. Conversion to open represents a hard endpoint for minimally invasive surgery (MIS) and is associated with worse outcomes when compared to MIS or even traditional open procedures. Methods: All adult patients who underwent either laparoscopic or robotic elective colectomy from 2013 to 2018 as reported in the American College of Surgeons Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) database were included. National trends of both robotic utilization and conversion rates were analyzed, overall and according to underlying disease (benign disease, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), cancer), or the presence of obesity (body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30 kg/m2). Demographic and surgical risk factors for surgical conversion to open were identified through multivariable regression analysis. Further assessed were overall and specific postoperative 30-day complications, which were risk adjusted and compared between converted patients and the remaining cohort. Results: Of 66,652 included procedures, 5353 (8.0%) were converted to open. Conversion rates were 8.5% for laparoscopic and 4.9% for robotic surgery (p < 0.0001). A decline in conversion rates over the 6-year inclusion period was observed overall and for patients with obesity. This trend paralleled an increased utilization of the robotic platform. Several surrogates for advanced disease stages for cancer, diverticulitis, and IBD and prolonged surgical duration were identified as independent risk factors for unplanned conversion, while robotic approach was an independent protective factor (OR 0.44, p < 0.0001). Patients who had unplanned conversion were more likely to experience postoperative complications (OR 2.36; 95% CI [2.21–2.51]), length of hospital stay ≥ 6 days (OR 2.86; 95% CI [2.67–3.05], and 30-day mortality (OR 2.28; 95% CI [1.72–3.02]). Conclusion: This nationwide study identified a decreasing trend in conversion rates over the 6-year inclusion period, both overall and in patients with obesity, paralleling increased utilization of the robotic platform. Unplanned conversion to open was associated with a higher risk of postoperative complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Obesity is a risk factor for failure of pouch surgery completion. However, little is known about the impact of obesity on short-term outcomes after minimally invasive (MIS) ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA). This study aimed to assess short-term postoperative outcomes in patients undergoing MIS total proctocolectomy (TPC) with IPAA in patients with and without obesity. Materials and methods: All adult patients (≥ 18 years old) who underwent MIS IPAA as reported in the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) Participant User Files 2007 to 2018 were included. Patients were divided according to their body mass index (BMI) into two groups (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2 vs. BMI < 30 kg/m2). Baseline demographics, preoperative risk factors including comorbidities, American Society of Anesthesiologists Class, smoking, different preoperative laboratory parameters, and operation time were compared between the two groups. Propensity score matching (1:1) based on logistic regression with a caliber distance of 0.2 of the standard deviation of the logit of the propensity score was used to overcome biases due to different distributions of the covariates. Thirty-day postoperative complications including overall surgical and medical complications, surgical site infection (SSI), organ space infection, systemic sepsis, 30-day mortality, and length of stay were compared between both groups. Results: Initially, a total of 2158 patients (402 (18.6%) obese and 1756 (81.4%) nonobese patients) were identified. After 1:1 matching, 402 patients remained in each group. Patients with obesity had a higher risk of postoperative organ/space infection (12.9%; vs. 6.5%; p-value 0.002) compared to nonobese patients. There was no difference between the groups regarding the risk of postoperative sepsis, septic shock, need for blood transfusion, wound disruption, superficial SSI, deep SSI, respiratory, renal, major adverse cardiovascular events (myocardial infarction, stroke, cardiac arrest requiring cardiopulmonary resuscitation), venous thromboembolism, 30-day mortality, and length of stay. Conclusion: MIS IPAA can be safely performed in patients with obesity. However, patients with obesity have a 2-fold risk of organ space infection compared to patients without obesity. Loss of weight before MIS IPAA is recommended not only to allow for pouch creation but also to decrease organ space infections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peach fruit fly, Bactrocera zonata (Saunders, 1841) is a destructive polyphagous pest threatening the horticultural production in Egypt. Licorice, Glycyrrhiza glabra (Linnaeus, 1753) is a plant growing in Egypt and many other countries and famous for saponins groups that have insecticidal effect against broad spectrum of insect pests. In the present study, the insecticidal effect of licorice roots aqueous extract (LRAE), petroleum oil, KZ light mineral oil 96% (EC), water and an emulsion (1/4 L LRAE + ? L petroleum oil + ½ L KZ light oil 96% (EC)) treatments in a ratio 1 L: 29 L water were used in Matabi® sprayer of 20 L capacity against B. zonata pupae in sandy and clay soils. In sandy and clay soils LRAE reduced B. zonata population by 74.44% and 87.55% while petroleum oil, KZ light mineral oil 96% (EC) prevented flies emergence (100% reduction). Water treatment suppressed B. zonata population by 78.61% in sandy soil but caused 100% population reduction in clay soil. The emulsion reduced B. zonata population by 96.94% in sandy soil and 100% in clay soil. The best method for application of the emulsion was to spray as one target spray technique for eight seconds that was sufficient to obtain suitable coverage on soil with spray speed 1.2 km / hour. The persistence of the emulsion that highly reduced B. zonata larval populations was 3.5 and 4.5 days in sandy and clay soils, respectively. The flies emerged from B. zonata pupae treated with the emulsion neither feed nor move naturally. The histological studies showed that these flies suffered changes in the eyes, labellum, muscles and midgut tissues that were different from the emerged control treatment flies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives: The goal of this study was to compare disease-specific risk factors and 30-day outcomes between patients with Crohn's disease (CD) and colon cancer (CC) undergoing right-sided surgical resection. Methods: The American College of Surgeons-National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP®) was interrogated to extract all patients ≥18 years undergoing elective right-sided resection for CD versus CC. Independent risk factors for surgical complications were identified through multivariable logistic regression for both groups. In a second step, surgical and medical 30-day morbidity was compared after risk adjustment. Results: The cohort consisted of 17,516 patients, of which 2,899 (16.6%) underwent surgery for CD versus 14,617 (83.4%) for CC. Independent risk factors for surgical complications in patients with CD were male gender, African American race, ASA score (III or IV), active smoking, prolonged surgery, and preoperative anemia. Independent risk factors for surgical complications in the cancer group were age ≥70 years, male gender, ASA score (III or IV), respiratory and cardiovascular comorbidities, and preoperative hypoalbuminemia (<3.5 g/dL). After risk adjustment, surgical complications (OR 1.25, p = 0.002), sepsis (OR 1.64, p = 0.012), and unplanned readmissions (OR 1.39, p = 0.004) were more common in patients with CD. Thirty-day mortality was higher in cancer patients (1.1 vs. 0.1%, p < 0.0001). Conclusions: Patients with Crohn's disease were more prone to surgical complications and postoperative sepsis compared to the cancer group undergoing the same procedure. Careful evaluation and correction of disease-specific modifiable risk factors of patients with CD and CC, respectively, are important. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: BMI ≤18.5 kg/m2 and preoperative weight loss may lead to inaccurate assessment of nutritional status, given the increasing prevalence of obesity. The aim of this study was to assess whether clinical evaluation of malnutrition based on these parameters is sufficient to predict complications after colorectal cancer surgery. Materials and Methods: The American College of Surgeons-National Quality Improvement Program database was queried from 2005 to 2018. Patients undergoing elective colorectal cancer surgery were divided into 4 groups: (1) albumin <3.1 g/dL within 21 days of surgery, (2) European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (ESPEN) 2 clinical parameters for malnutrition (≥10% loss of weight/6 months plus [BMI <20 kg/m2 if age <70 years OR BMI <22 kg/m2 if age ≥70 years]), (3) both aforementioned criteria, and (4) none of aforementioned criteria. Results: Of 82,280 patients, 5,932 (7.2%) had hypoalbuminemia <3.1 g/dL, 764 (0.9%) fulfilled clinical ESPEN 2 parameters, and 338 (0.4%) met both criteria. After adjusting for baseline confounders, patients in the hypoalbuminemia group had a higher risk of overall complications (odds ratio [OR] 1.92, p < 0.05 vs. OR 1.18 in the ESPEN 2 group, p < 0.05), major complications (OR 1.98, p < 0.05 vs. OR 1.20, p < 0.05), surgical complications (OR 1.77, 95% p < 0.05 vs. OR 1.1, p > 0.05), medical complications (OR 1.73, p < 0.05 vs. OR 1.16, p > 0.05), surgical site infection (OR 1.32, p < 0.05 vs. OR 0.86, p > 0.05), and prolonged hospitalization (OR 1.79, p < 0.05 vs. OR 1.22, p < 0.05). Patients who met both criteria were at highest risk. Conclusions: Preoperative measurement of serum albumin appears to be essential to identify patients at risk for complications after colorectal cancer surgery. Clinical evaluation through BMI and weight loss alone may underestimate surgery-associated risks in the USA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Phytoestrogen is a plant derived compound which have estrogenic effect similar to estrogen. Aim of work: The present study was carried out to investigate some pharmacological and biochemical effects of anise oil on male albino rats. Materials and methods: twelve animals were divided randomly into two groups. Group A: Control. Group B: treated rats. The treated rats were given an oral dose of 1 ml/kg body weight/day anise oil once daily for one month. At the end of the experiment, blood samples were collected for biochemical analysis. Results: The anise oil induced highly significant decrease (p<0.01) in TC, TG, LDL, VLDL, LDL/HDL. In addition, significant increase (p<0.05) in HDL and highly significantly decreased in FSH, LH, testosterone and sperm count compared to normal control group. Conclusion: This study showed that high levels of anise intake cause hormonal disturbance and decrease sperm count. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The minimum number attribute reduction problem is an important issue when dealing with huge amounts of data. The problem of minimum attribute reduction is formally known to be as an NP complete nonlinearly constrained optimization problem. Social spider optimization algorithm is a new meta-heuristic algorithm of the swarm intelligence field to global solution. The social spider optimization algorithm is emulates the behavior of cooperation between spiders based on the biological laws of the cooperative colony. Inspired by the social spiders, in this paper, an improved social spider algorithm for the minimal reduction problem was proposed. In the proposed algorithm, the fitness function depends on the rough sets dependency degree and it takes into a consideration the number of selected features. For each spider, the fitness function is computed and compared with the global best fitness value. If the current value is better, then the global best fitness is replaced with it and its position became the reduct set. Then, the position of each spider is updated according to its type. This process is repeated until the stopping criterion is satisfied. To validate the proposed algorithm, several real clinical medical datasets which are available from the UCI Machine Learning Repository were used to compute the performance of the proposed algorithm. The experimental results illustrate that the proposed algorithm is superior to state-of-the-art swarm-based in terms of classification accuracy while limiting number of features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The steady MHD boundary layer flow near the stagnation point over a stretching surface in the presence of the induced magnetic field, viscous dissipation, magnetic dissipation, slip velocity phenomenon, and heat generation/absorption effects has been investigated numerically. The Casson fluid model is used to characterize the non-Newtonian fluid behavior. The governing partial differential equations using appropriate similarity transformations are reduced into a set of nonlinear ordinary differential equations, which are solved numerically using a shooting method with fourth-order Runge-Kutta integration scheme. Comparisons with the earlier results have been made and good agreements were found. Numerical results for the velocity, induced magnetic field, temperature profiles, skin friction coefficient, and Nusselt number are presented through graphs and tables for various values of physical parameters. Results predicted that the magnetic parameter with α<1 has the tendency to enhance the heat transfer rate, whereas the reverse trend is seen with α>1. It is also noticed that the rate of heat transfer is a decreasing function of the reciprocal of a magnetic Prandtl number, whereas the opposite phenomenon occurs with the magnitude of the friction factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The using of solar energy has been increased since it is a clean source of energy. In this way, the design of photovoltaic cells has attracted the attention of researchers over the world. There are two main problems in this field: having a useful model to characterize the solar cells and the absence of data about photovoltaic cells. This situation even affects the performance of the photovoltaic modules (panels). The characteristics of the current vs. voltage are used to describe the behavior of solar cells. Considering such values, the design problem involves the solution of the complex non-linear and multi-modal objective functions. Different algorithms have been proposed to identify the parameters of the photovoltaic cells and panels. Most of them commonly fail in finding the optimal solutions. This paper proposes the Chaotic Whale Optimization Algorithm (CWOA) for the parameters estimation of solar cells. The main advantage of the proposed approach is using the chaotic maps to compute and automatically adapt the internal parameters of the optimization algorithm. This situation is beneficial in complex problems, because along the iterative process, the proposed algorithm improves their capabilities to search for the best solution. The modified method is able to optimize complex and multimodal objective functions. For example, the function for the estimation of parameters of solar cells. To illustrate the capabilities of the proposed algorithm in the solar cell design, it is compared with other optimization methods over different datasets. Moreover, the experimental results support the improved performance of the proposed approach regarding accuracy and robustness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study focuses on the effect of Hall current on an unsteady free convection slip flow of a Casson fluid past an infinite vertical permeable plate in presence of variable suction. The non-linear coupled partial differential equations of the momentum and energy, which control the flow field, are converted into a system of ordinary differential equations using perturbation technique. The resulting equations are solved analytically with the objective of getting non-dimensional velocity and temperature fields. The study has also presented graphically the velocity and temperature profiles for different values of the parameters entering into the problem. Skin friction coefficient and Nusselt number which are of physical interest are sorted out and presented in the form of graphics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of automated morphological classification schemes can successfully distinguish between morphological types of galaxies and can be used for studies of the formation and subsequent evolution of galaxies in our universe. In this paper, we present a new automated machine supervised learning astronomical classification scheme based on the Nonnegative Matrix Factorization algorithm. This scheme is making distinctions between all types roughly corresponding to Hubble types such as elliptical, lenticulars, spiral, and irregular galaxies. The proposed algorithm is performed on two examples with different number of image (small dataset contains 110 image and large dataset contains 700 images). The experimental results show that galaxy images from EFIGI catalog can be classified automatically with an accuracy of ∼93% for small and ∼92% for large number. These results are in good agreement when compared with the visual classifications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces a new algorithm for solving the localization problem of moving multiple disjoint sources using time difference of arrival and frequency difference of arrival. The localization of moving sources can be considered as a least-square problem. There are many algorithms used to solve this problem such as, two-step weighted least squares, constrained total least-square and practical constrained least-square. However, most of these algorithms suffer from either slow convergence or numerical instability and don't attain Cramer-Rao lower bound. We introduce a free-gradient algorithm called cuckoo search which avoids the slow convergence problem. The cuckoo search provides a combined global and local search method. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm achieves better performance than other algorithms and attains Cramer-Rao lower bound. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil degradation with salinity and sodicity has become a major issue in Egypt causing a decline in soil quality and crop productivity in these soils. The addition of gypsum (G), rice straw compost (C) and foliar application of ZnO nanoparticles (Z) as foliar application and their combinations to improve soil quality and physiology of wheat plants in saline-sodic soil is unclear. We studied the effects of G, C, Z and their integrated application in the field experiment during the two winter seasons in full form design on some soil properties, proline content, antioxidant enzyme activity and yield of wheat plants grown in the saline – sodic soil. The results showed that the addition of G, C or Z alone or their integrated application led to a significant increase in soil total porosity, infiltration rate, organic matter (OM), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K) and zinc (Zn) uptake, the yield of wheat plant and a decrease in soil salinity and exchangeable sodium percentage in both seasons. The proline, superoxide dismutase and peroxidase content increased by 605.0%, 20.5% and 12.1% for Z while it increased by 617.5%, 34.4% and 15.2% for G + Z, respectively, compared to the control. The experimental results confirmed that integration of G or C with foliar application of Z can be a promising strategy to alleviate abiotic stresses wheat plants grown under saline-sodic soil and improve their quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A series of pyrano[3,2- c quinoline/triazolopyrimidine hybrids was made. • Products were characterized by IR, MS, and multinuclear NMR (1H, 13C, and 15N). • The products showed antiproliferative activity versus cancer cell lines. • Open chain formimidic esters were more potent than heteroannulated systems. • The most active compounds were also studied for caspase activation. Pyrano[3,2- c quinoline derivatives have been synthesized and utilized to obtain various new hetero-annulated triazolopyrimidine, containing quinoline, pyran, 1,2,4-triazine and pyrimidine in good yields. Newly synthesized compounds have been characterized by spectral data and elemental analysis. Most of the synthesized compounds showed moderate to weak antiproliferative activity on most cancer cell lines, especially leukemia and breast cancer cell lines. The open chain formimidic acid ethyl ester is slightly more potent than hetero-annulated systems. The most active compounds were further investigated for caspase activation, Bax activation and Bcl-2 down regulation compared to doxorubicin as a standard, and indeed exhibited mainly cell cycle arrest at the Pre-G1 and G2/M phases. The transcription effects of 5a and 5b on the p53 were assessed and compared with the reference doxorubicin. The results revealed an increase of 12–19 in p53 level compared to the test cells and that p53 protein level of 5a and 5b was significantly inductive (991, and 639 pg/mL, respectively) in relation to doxorubicin (1263 pg/mL) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Through a meta-analysis of seven randomized-controlled trials we found difference in terms of complete response and survival rates between microwave ablation (MWA) and radiofrequency ablation (RFA). While local recurrence rate was similar between MWA and RFA, distant recurrence rate was significantly lower with MWA. As a consequence, disease-free survival at 1, 2, and 3 years was similar between the two groups whereas disease-free survival at 5 years was significantly in favor of MWA. Adverse event rate was similar between the two treatments. Our results indicate a similar efficacy and safety profile between the two techniques. MWA seems to decrease the rate of long-term recurrences, but this finding needs to be confirmed in further trials. There are limited and discordant results on the comparison between microwave ablation (MWA) and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This meta-analysis aims to compare the two treatments in terms of efficacy and safety, based on a meta-analysis of randomized-controlled trials (RCTs). A computerized bibliographic search was performed on the main databases throughout August 2020. The primary outcome was the complete response rate, while survival rate (at 1-, 2-, 3-, and 5-year), disease-free survival rate (at 1-, 2-, 3-, and 5-year), local and distant recurrence rate, adverse event rate, and number of treatment sessions were the secondary outcomes. Seven RCTs enrolling 921 patients were included. No difference in terms of complete response between the two treatments was observed (risk ratio (RR) 1.01, 95% CI 0.99–1.02). Survival rates were constantly similar, with RRs ranging from 1.05 (0.96–1.15) at 1 year to 0.91 (0.81–1.03) at 5 years. While local recurrence rate was similar between MWA and RFA (RR 0.70, 0.43–1.14), distant recurrence rate was significantly lower with MWA (RR 0.60, 0.39–0.92). Disease-free survival at 1, 2, and 3 years was similar between the two groups with RR 1.00 (0.96–1.04), 0.94 (0.84–1.06), and 1.06 (0.93–1.21), respectively. On the other hand, RR for disease-free survival at 5 years was significantly in favor of MWA (3.66, 1.32–42.27). Adverse event rate was similar between the two treatments (RR 1.06, 0.48–2.34), with bleeding and hematoma representing the most frequent complications. Our results indicate a similar efficacy and safety profile between the two techniques. MWA seems to decrease the rate of long-term recurrences, but this finding needs to be confirmed in further trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Statins can decrease hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) occurrence, but the magnitude and the predictors of these effects remain unclear. This meta-analysis provides a pooled estimate of the impact of statin use on HCC occurrence. Pooled effects were calculated using a random-effects model by means of the DerSimonian and Laird test. Primary endpoint was the time-dependent correlation between statin use and HCC incidence expressed as hazard ratio (HR), both crude and adjusted. The crude and adjusted odds ratios (OR) for HCC occurrence between statin users and non-users were analyzed. Twenty-five studies with 1,925,964 patients were included. Crude OR for HCC incidence was 0.59 (95% CI: 0.47–0.74), confirmed in adjusted analysis (OR: 0.74, 95% CI: 0.70–0.78). Adjusted HR was 0.73 (95% CI: 0.69–0.76). This effect was more pronounced in HBV patients (HR: 0.46, 95% CI: 0.36–0.60) and with a cumulative daily dose beyond 365 (HR: 0.27, 95% CI: 0.11–0.67). Lipophilic statins were associated with reduced HCC incidence (HR: 0.49, 95% CI: 0.39–0.62). Atorvastatin determined the greater magnitude of effect (HR: 0.43, 95% CI: 0.28–0.65). This meta-analysis demonstrates the beneficial chemopreventive effect of statins against HCC occurrence. This effect is dose-dependent and more pronounced with lipophilic statins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regorafenib showed promising results as a second-line agent after sorafenib failure in hepatocellular carcinoma patients. The aim of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of regorafenib in hepatocarcinoma patients. A computerized bibliographic search was performed on the main databases. The primary outcome was overall survival. Secondary outcomes were progression-free survival, tumor response, and the adverse events rate. Outcomes were pooled through a random-effects model and summary estimates were expressed in terms of median and 95% confidence interval or rates, as appropriate. One randomized-controlled trial and seven non-randomized studies with 809 patients were included. The great majority of recruited patients were in Child-Pugh A and ECOG 0 stage. Median overall survival was 11.08 months (9.46–12.71) and sensitivity analyses confirmed this finding, with a median survival ranging from 10.2 to 13.8 months. Duration of regorafenib therapy was 3.58 months, whereas median progression-free survival was 3.24 months (2.68–3.86). The pooled objective response rate was 10.1% (7.8–12.5%) while the disease control rate was 65.5% (61.3–69.7%) with no evidence of heterogeneity (I2 = 0%; Diarrhea, fatigue, and hand-foot skin reaction were the most frequent adverse events. The current meta-analysis shows that regorafenib represents a valuable and relatively safe therapeutic option in intermediate/advanced hepatocellular carcinomapatients who progress on sorafenib. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is one of the common vaginal infections among childbearing women. The usual treatment for BV is metronidazole; hence 30% of women have recurrence within 60 to 90 days after treatment. There are some studies which assessed the effect of secnidazole on BV. The aim of this systematic review was to investigate the effectiveness of secnidazole for treatment of BV.Methods: The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE (PubMed), Scopus, and Web of Science (all databases from inception till October 28, 2018) were searched. Primary outcomes were clinical cure rate and microbiologic cure rate and the secondary outcomes were adverse events. Data was extracted from eligible studies by two review authors individually and analyzed by RevMan 5.3.Results: Our search found six trials involving 1528 participants. Treatment with 2 g secnidazole could significantly reduce the risk of BV in patients with three or less episodes of BV in the last year by OR: 7.54 (95% CI, 3.89-14.60, p < 0.00001) and in patients with four or more episodes of BV in the last year (OR: 4.74, 95% CI: 1.51-14.84, p = 0.0.008). Secnidazole (2 g) could significantly increase the microbiologic cure rate in women with 3 or less episodes of BV in the last year (OR: 7.63, 95% CI: 2.30-25.33, p = 0.0009) but not in the women with 4 or more episodes of BV in the last year (OR: 20.17, 95% CI: 1.06-382.45, p = 0.05). The clinical cure rate, microbiological effect and the therapeutic cure rate of 2 g secnidazole was significantly more than that of 1 g secnidazole. The results showed that the clinical cure rate of 2 g secnidazole was not different from the following medications: metronidazole (500 mg bid for 5 days), secnidazole plus vaginal metronidazole, 2 g single dose of oral metronidazole and 2 g secnidazole plus vaginal ornidazole.Conclusion: This review showed that 2 g and 1 g secnidazole were better than placebo, however, 2 g secnidazole was more effective than 1 g. Secnidazole 2 g was not different from metronidazole (500 mg bid for 5 days), or from secnidazole plus vaginal metronidazole, or 2 g single dose of oral metronidazole or from 2 g secnidazole plus vaginal ornidazole. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fractionation of the stem bark of Enantia chlorantha Oliv yields three alkaloids, palmatine (1), jatrorrhizine (2), columbamine (3), and β-Sitosterol (4). In this investigation, density functional theory (DFT) calculations were carried out to evaluate the electronic structure and properties of 1–4 by DFT-B3LYP/6-31G level of theory using Gaussian 09 software. The highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO), lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO), HOMO-LUMO energy difference (band gap), hardness (η), softness (S), dipole moment (μ), electronegativity (χ), hydrophobicity (logP), topological surface area (TPSA), and energy gap (Eg) were calculated. The in vitro cytotoxicity of the compounds was investigated against MCF-7 and HCT116 cancer cell lines using Wi-38 cells as a control. The compounds inhibited the proliferation of the MCF-7 and HCT116 cell lines and induced apoptosis via upregulation of caspase-3, Bax, PARP cleavage, and downregulation of Bcl-2. DFT analyses revealed that compounds 1 and 3 have smaller energy gaps, 0.072 and 0.071eV, respectively, with the highest dipole moments; hence, these compounds are more chemically reactive and exhibit better modulation of caspase-3 enzyme and inhibitory activities of the MCF-3 and HCT116 cell lines. The antimicrobial and antiparasitic evaluation of 1–4 showed moderate efficacy against the bacterial strains and moderate antiparasitic activity against Cichlidogyrus tilapia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impacts of entropy generation and Hall current on MHD Casson fluid over a stretching surface with velocity slip factor have been numerically analyzed. Numerical work for the governing equations is established by using a shooting method with a fourth-order Runge–Kutta integration scheme. The outcomes show that the entropy generation is enhanced with a magnetic parameter, Reynolds number and group parameter. Further, the reverse behavior is observed with the Hall parameter, Eckert number, Casson parameter and slip factor. Also, it is viewed that Bejan number reduces with a group parameter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This novel work explored the second law analysis and heat transfer in a magneto non-Newtonian power-law fluid model with the presence of an internal non-uniform heat source/sink. In this investigation, the motion of the studied fluid was induced by an exponentially stretching surface. The rheological behavior of the fluid model, including the shear thinning and shear thickening properties, are also considered as special case studies. The physical problem developed meaningfully with the imposed heat flux and the porosity of the stretched surface. Extensive numerical simulations were carried out for the present boundary layer flow, in order to study the influence of each control parameter on the boundary layer flow and heat transfer characteristics via various tabular and graphical illustrations. By employing the Shooting Runge–Kutta–Fehlberg Method (SRKFM), the resulting nonlinear ordinary differential equations were solved accurately. Based on this numerical procedure, the velocity and temperature fields are displayed graphically. By applying the second law of thermodynamics, and characterizing the entropy generation and Bejan number, the present physical problem was examined and discussed thoroughly in different situations. The attained results showed that the entropy generation can be improved significantly by raising the magnetic field strength and the group parameter. From an energetic point of view, it was found that the Reynolds number boosts the entropy generation of the fluidic medium and reduces the Bejan number. Also, it was observed that an amplification of the power-law index diminished the entropy generation near the stretched surface. As main results, it was proven that the heat transfer rate can be reduced with both the internal heat source intensity and the magnetic field strength. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Moth-flame Optimisation Algorithm (MFO) is a new metaheuristics optimisation algorithm presented by Mirjalili in 2015 which inspired by the navigation method of moths in nature. It has gained a huge interest due to its impressive characteristics mainly: no derivation information needed in the starting phase, few numbers of parameters, simple in implementation, scalable and flexible. Till now, different variants to solve various optimisation problems such as binary, real(continuous), constraint, single-objective, multi-objective, and multimodal MFO has been introduced. Many research papers have been presented and summarised. In this review, a general overview of MFO is presented at first. Then, different variants of MFO are described which are classified into three classes: modified, hybridised, and multi-objective. Furthermore, applications of MFO in Engineering, Computer Science, Wireless Sensor Networks, and other fields are discussed. Finally, many possible and future directions are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The assessment of liver stiffness and the degree of fibrosis are important factors affecting the management strategy. Multiple non-invasive tools are now available to offer an adequate alternative to biopsy. In this study, we tried to compare the performance of 2D shear wave elastography (SWE) to the transient elastography/fibroscan as a non-invasive tool in the prediction of liver stiffness. This is a prospective study of 215 patients confirmed by serology to have positive virus C or B infection. 2D SWE was done followed by vibration-controlled transient elastography (VCTE) known as fibroscan at the same session. Biopsy results were collected. Results: The mean age was 51.07 years ± 6.07 SD. Five cases were excluded due to insufficient data. Fibroscan failed in 30 cases out of 210 cases (failure rate of 14.3%) compared with only 12 patients (6.7% failure rate) while using SWE. Only 180 patients completed the study to the result analysis. SWE results showed significant agreement to the fibroscan results with 86.7% agreement with a tendency for overestimation of the degree of fibrosis (11.7%). The efficacy of SWE was the highest during the assessment of patients with F0 (98.9%), F1 (97.8%), and F4 (93.3%) respectively and relatively low in F2 (92.8%) and F3 (90.6%). Conclusion: 2D SWE is a relatively recent non-invasive tool in the assessment of liver fibrosis grading which can be used as an alternative to the fibroscan with almost similar diagnostic performance especially when fibroscan is not capable to obtain adequate results such as in obesity and ascites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The search for new energy resources is a crucial task nowadays. Research on the use of solar energy is growing every year. The aim is the design of devices that can produce a considerable amount of energy using the Sun's radiation. The modeling of solar cells (SCs) is based on the estimation of the intrinsic parameters of electrical circuits that simulate their behavior based on the current vs. voltage characteristics. The problem of SC design is defined by highly nonlinear and multimodal objective functions. Most of the algorithms proposed to find the best solutions become trapped into local solutions. This paper introduces the Chaotic Improved Artificial Bee Colony (CIABC) algorithm for the estimation of SC parameters. It combines the use of chaotic maps instead random variables with the search capabilities of the Artificial Bee Colony approach. CIABC has also been modified to avoid the generation of new random solutions, preserving the information of previous iterations. In comparison with similar optimization methods, CIABC is able to find the global solution of complex and multimodal objective functions. Experimental results and comparisons prove that the proposed technique can design SCs, even with the presence of noise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Renal resistive index (RRI) was suggested as an indicator of renal atherosclerotic changes in hypertensive patients with possible prognostic role in treatment. Objectives: This study aimed to assess RRI in hypertensive subjects, its relation to other predictors of target organ damage and prognostic usefulness in management, specifically, with different antihypertensive drugs. Patients and methods: The study included 100 newly diagnosed hypertensive adult subjects, who underwent abdominal ultrasound with Doppler to assess RRI, which was correlated with their clinical parameters including estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and other subclinical atherosclerosis markers as carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) and aortic knob width (AKW) calculated from chest radiograph. Another 50 non hypertensive subjects were assessed for their RRI as a control group. In addition, some of hypertensive patients were followed up one year after starting treatment was done and effects of different antihypertensive agents on their RRI were compared. Results: The mean baseline RRI in hypertensive patients (0.71 ± 0.04) was significantly higher compared to control group (0.60 ± 0.02) and was positively significantly correlated with their clinical parameters (age, systolic, diastolic, pulse pressure and eGFR) and with their atherosclerotic parameters (IMT and AKW). In addition, ACE/ARBs treatment was associated with significant decrease of RRI compared to other drugs [beta blocker (BB) and calcium channel blocker (CCB)], indicating their more renal protective effect. Conclusion: Assessment of RRI in patients with primary hypertension not only reflecting intrarenal perfusion changes, but it indicates systemic atherosclerotic changes, so it can be useful as prognostic parameter in addition to its possible therapeutic implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: phytoestrogens are a diverse group of plant-derived compounds that structurally or functionally mimic mammalian estrogens. They have been investigated at the epidemiological, clinical and molecular levels to determine their potential health benefits. Aim: the present study was carried out to investigate some biochemical effects of fenugreek oil and soymilk on male albino rats. Materials and Methods: eighteen (18) animals were divided randomly into three groups with 6 animals per group. Group "1" received normal saline 1 mL/kg body weight orally for four weeks. Group "2" rats were treated with oral dose of soymilk 1 ml/kg body weight/day once daily for four weeks, while rats in group "3" were treated with oral dose of fenugreek 1 ml/kg body weight/day once daily for four weeks. Blood samples were collected on the last day of the experiment for biochemical analysis. Results: the fenugreek oil and soymilk induced highly significant decrease (p<0.01) in total cholesterol, triacylglycerol, low-density lipoprotein, very low-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein high-density lipoprotein ratio (LDL/HDL) and a significant increase (p<0.05) in high-density lipoprotein. The results also showed highly significant decrease in follicle stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, testosterone and sperm count compared to normal control group. Conclusion: the results of this study suggest that high levels of fenugreek and soymilk intake can cause hormonal disturbance and decrease sperm count. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: hypertrophied adenoid tissue is one of the most common health problems that occurs in childhood that results in many symptoms including 1. Nasal obstruction. 2. Mucoid, mucopurulent nasal discharge and postnasal discharge 3. Snoring and obstructive sleep apnea. 4. Recurrent acute otitis media (A.O.M). Objective: to evaluate the correlation between subjective and linear measurements of palatal airway on lateral cephalographs. Patients and Methods: Diagnostic lateral cephalometric imaging study that took place from March 2017, to July 2018. 200 Children with chronic mouth breathing (116 boys and 84 girls), with age range from 2 to 14 years, were enrolled in this study. Patients were grouped into three groups according to age: a- 2 - <6 years were 84 patients (42%). b- 6 - <10 years were 76 patients (38%). c- 10 – 14 years were 40 patients (20 %). Results: The age was inversely correlated with the grade of airway obstruction. The correlations between the palatal airway grading with the shortest adenoid distance (SAD) and the most convex adenoid distance (CAD) were r= -0.826 and r= -0.424, respectively, which is statistically significant. The relation between SAD and CAD was directly proportional to each other accounting for correspondence of evaluation in more than 50% of the population which is statistically significant. Conclusion: subjective grading of palatal airway obstruction correlates with the objective measurements of SAD and CAD. Although both methods are reliable in measurement particularly the more severe obstructions, SAD is a more favorable objective tool. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Climate change poses a serious threat to arid and low elevation coastal zones. Kafrelsheikh governorate, as a large agricultural and coastal region on the Egyptian North Nile Delta, is one of the most vulnerable areas to higher temperature and global sea level rise. Two DSSAT wheat models (CERES and N-Wheat) were calibrated using a local cultivar (Misr3) grown under irrigated conditions in Egypt. Experimental data of two successive growing seasons during 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 were used for calibration using different treatments of irrigation, planting dates and fertilization. Both models simulated the phenology and wheat yield well, with root mean square deviation of <10%, and d-index > 0.80. Climate change sensitivity analysis showed that rising temperature by 1 °C to 4 °C decreased wheat yield by 17.6%. However, elevated atmospheric CO 2 concentrations increased yield and could overtake some of the negative temperature responses. Sea level rise by 2.0 m will reduce the extent of agricultural land on the North Nile Delta of Egypt by ~60% creating an additional challenge to wheat production in this region. Graphical abstract Unlabelled Image Highlights • Integrated impacts of T and CO 2 on wheat yield received little attention in Egypt. • DSSAT models showed a robust calibration with a recent high yielding wheat cultivar. • A SLR by 2.0 m decreased the agricultural land and wheat production significantly. • Higher levels of CO 2 alleviated impacts of temperature on wheat yield. • Misr3 is a high yielding cultivar responding to elevated T with higher CO 2 levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work was performed to evaluate the effects of dietary supplementation with natural clay, coumarin, curcumin, vitamin C, probiotics and prebiotics on alleviating the harmful impacts resulting from aflatoxin B 1 (AFB 1 ) toxicity in Nile tilapia. One hundred and sixty tilapia fish with average weight 7.360 ± 0.048 were distributed into 8 groups. The first group fed the basal diet (T 1 ), the second group fed T 1 diet contaminated with 2 ppm AFB 1 (T 2 ) and the other groups fed the T 2 diet plus 20 g bentonite/kg diet (T 3 ), 5 g coumarin/kg diet (T 4 ), 5 g curcumin/kg diet (T 5 ), 100 mg vitamin C/kg diet (T 6 ), 1 g Bactocell®/kg diet (T 7 ) or 3 g Bio-Mos®/kg diet (T 8 ) for 14 weeks. Fish fed T 2 diet had reduced final body weight, weight gain and feed conversion by 19.85, 24.18 and 34.21%, respectively compared with fish fed T 1 diet. The T 6 group recorded the highest growth rate (25.20%) followed by T 5 (23.62%) and (T 3 ) compared with the T 2 group. Also, T 8 and T 3 groups recorded the best feed conversion ratio. Blood hemoglobin, total erythrocyte, total protein, albumin, and globulin concentrations decreased with aflatoxin contamination in T 2 group, while leukocytes enumerate increased. Supplemented aflatoxin contaminated diets with tested feed additives increased the concentration of hemoglobin, total erythrocyte, total protein, albumin, and globulin compared with the T 2 group, while the leukocytes decreased. Aflatoxin residues increased in fish fed T 2 diet compared to the other fish groups. Supplemented aflatoxin contaminated diets with tested feed additives decreased the level of aflatoxin residues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the implementation of an intraoperative standardized surgical site infection (SSI) prevention bundle. Methods: The multimodal, evidence-based care bundle included nine intraoperative items (antibiotic type, timing, and re-dosing; disinfection; induction temperature control > 36.5°; glove change; intra-cavity lavage; wound protection; and closure strategy). The bundle was applied to all consecutive patients undergoing colonic resections. The primary outcome, SSI, was independently assessed by the National Infection Surveillance Committee for up to 30 postoperative days. A historical, institutional pre-implementation control group (2012–2017) with an identical methodology was used for comparison. Findings: In total, 1516 patients were included, of which 1256 (82.8%) were in the control group and 260 (17.2%) were in the post-implementation group. After 2:1 propensity score matching, the groups were similar for all items (p > 0.05). Overall compliance with the care bundle was 77% (IQR 77–88). The lowest compliance rates were observed for temperature control (53% overall), intra-cavity lavage (64% overall), and wound protection and closure (68% and 63% in the SSI group, respectively). Surgical site infections were reported in 58 patients (22.2%) vs. 21.4% in the control group (p = 0.79). Infection rates were comparable throughout the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) categories: superficial, 12 patients (4.5%) vs. 4.2%, p = 0.82; deep incisional, 10 patients (3.7%) vs. 5.1%, p = 0.34; organ space, 36 (14%) vs. 12.4%, p = 0.48. After propensity score matching, rates remained comparable throughout all comparisons (all p > 0.05). Conclusions: The implementation of an intraoperative standardized care bundle had no impact on SSI rates. This may be explained by insufficient compliance with the individual measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In December 2019, a novel coronavirus, called COVID-19, was discovered in Wuhan, China, and has spread to different cities in China as well as to 24 other countries. The number of confirmed cases is increasing daily and reached 34,598 on 8 February 2020. In the current study, we present a new forecasting model to estimate and forecast the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the upcoming ten days based on the previously confirmed cases recorded in China. The proposed model is an improved adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) using an enhanced flower pollination algorithm (FPA) by using the salp swarm algorithm (SSA). In general, SSA is employed to improve FPA to avoid its drawbacks (i.e., getting trapped at the local optima). The main idea of the proposed model, called FPASSA-ANFIS, is to improve the performance of ANFIS by determining the parameters of ANFIS using FPASSA. The FPASSA-ANFIS model is evaluated using the World Health Organization (WHO) official data of the outbreak of the COVID-19 to forecast the confirmed cases of the upcoming ten days. More so, the FPASSA-ANFIS model is compared to several existing models, and it showed better performance in terms of Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE), Root Mean Squared Relative Error (RMSRE), Root Mean Squared Relative Error (RMSRE), coefficient of determination ( R 2 ), and computing time. Furthermore, we tested the proposed model using two different datasets of weekly influenza confirmed cases in two countries, namely the USA and China. The outcomes also showed good performances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]