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Background: The high contagiousness of the COVID 19 disease, the uncertain course, and the high morbidity and mortality has led to unprecedented burden on the health care system, especially when the crisis has gone on for more than 5 months with no end in sight. The chronic high degree stress has made burnout in health care workers (HCWs) a reality that needs urgent attention which can otherwise lead to compromised patient care apart from their own suffering. Aims and Objectives: This study was planned to assess and compare the burnout in doctors and nurses of our dedicated COVID 19 hospital, to understand its correlates, and look for any implications on future policy decisions. Materials and Methods: Our study assessed and compared the burnout in 150 doctors and 150 nurses of our dedicated COVID 19 hospital using the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI). The CBI Scale is a 19 item scale including three domains of burnout in the form of personal (1–6), work related (7–13), and patient related burnout (14–19). More than 25% average score on these items is taken as the presence of burnout. Results: We found burnout in 58% of all HCWs with 78% in doctors (n = 150) and 38% in nurses (n = 150), the difference being statistically significant. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed to find common factors affecting burnout among both the groups, which were female gender, facing stigma due to COVID 19 duty, regular exercise/yoga, and dissatisfaction with administrative services. Our findings propose to emphasize the need to address the impact of working under pressure for sustained periods among HCWs.

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of water-soluble egg membrane (WSEM) on wrinkle reduction in a clinical pilot study and to elucidate specific mechanisms of action using primary human immune and dermal cell-based bioassays. Methods To evaluate the effects of topical application of WSEM (8%) on human skin, an open-label 8-week study was performed involving 20 healthy females between the age of 45 years and 65 years. High-resolution photography and digital analysis were used to evaluate the wrinkle depth in the facial skin areas beside the eye (crow’s feet). WSEM was tested for total antioxidant capacity and effects on the formation of reactive oxygen species by human polymorphonuclear cells. Human keratinocytes (HaCaT cells) were used for quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis of the antioxidant response element genes Nqo1, Gclm, Gclc, and Hmox1. Evaluation of effects on human primary dermal fibroblasts in vitro included cellular viability and production of the matrix components collagen and elastin. Results Topical use of a WSEM-containing facial cream for 8 weeks resulted in a significant reduction of wrinkle depth (P, Video abstract

The present work aimed to develop and validate spectrophotometric methods for simultaneous estimation of rabeprazole sodium and aceclofenac in a pure and capsule dosage form. A simple, sensitive, spectrophotometric method in UV region has been developed for the simultaneous estimation of Rabeprazole sodium and Aceclofenac in bulk and semi dosage form (Capsule). Standard solution of Rabeprazole sodium shows maximum absorbance at 283 nm and Aceclofenac shows maximum absorbance at 276 nm. Beer’s Lamberts law is obeyed in concentration range 10-60 µg/ml for Rabeprazole with regression, slope and intercept of 0.991, 0.0918 and 0 respectively while for, Beer’s Aceclofenac Lambert law is obeyed in concentration range 10-60 µg/ml with regression, slope and intercept having 0.9984, 0.2069 and 0.0253 respectively. Method was validated for linearity, range, accuracy, precision, recovery studies and interference study of mixture. All these parameters showed the adaptability of the method for the quality control analysis of the drug in bulk and in combination formulations. Keywords: Rabeprazole sodium, Aceclofenac, Simultaneous equations, absorbance interference study

Quantizer noise can improve statistical signal detection in array-based nonlinear correlators in Neyman-Pearson and maximum-likelihood (ML) detection. This holds even for infinite-variance symmetric alpha-stable channel noise and for generalized-Gaussian channel noise. Noise-enhanced correlation detection leads to noise-enhanced watermark extraction based on such nonlinear detection at the pixel or bit level. This yields a noise-based algorithm for digital watermark decoding using two new noise-benefit theorems. The first theorem gives a necessary and sufficient condition for quantizer noise to increase the detection probability of a constant signal for a fixed false-alarm probability if the channel noise is symmetric and if the sample size is large. The second theorem shows that the array must contain more than one quantizer for such a stochastic-resonance noise benefit if the symmetric channel noise is unimodal. It also shows that the noise-benefit rate improves in the small-quantizer noise limit as the number of array quantizers increases. The second theorem further shows that symmetric uniform quantizer noise gives the optimal rate for an initial noise benefit among all finite-variance symmetric scale-family noise. Two corollaries give similar results for stochastic-resonance noise benefits in ML detection of a signal sequence with known shape but unknown amplitude.

Background: Down syndrome (DS) is caused by either complete or partial triplication of chromosome 21, affecting approximately 1/1000 live births, and it is widely accepted that individuals with DS are more likely to develop dementia of Alzheimer's disease (DAD) compared with the general population. Many studies have investigated genetic susceptibility to AD in the general population, resulting in a number of potential candidate genes that may influence the development of DAD. The majority of these variants, however, have not been investigated in subjects with DS. Aim: The aim of this study was to determine whether genetic variants previously associated with AD in the general population, were also associated with DAD in individuals with DS. Methods: Genotyping of 43 SNPs within 28 genes was undertaken in 187 individuals with Down syndrome with and without dementia of Alzheimer's disease, using the SNPlex platform. Results: Significant associations of SNPs in five genes with DAD in DS were found, namely APOE, SORL1, BACE1, RUNX1 and ALDH18A1. As expected, the most strongly associated SNP was the APOE ɛ4 rs429358 variant (HR = 2.47 [1.58, 3.87], p = 7.52 × 10−5), although variants within the more recently implicated SORL1 and RUNX1 genes were also strongly associated with DAD in DS (HR = 0.54 [0.37, 0.80], p = 0.002 and HR = 1.61 [1.15, 2.26], p = 0.006 respectively). Conclusions: Our study demonstrates that a number of variants previously associated with AD in the general population are also associated with DAD in DS. To enable us to determine whether these variants, as well as other more recently revealed AD susceptibility variants, truly contribute to the development of DAD in DS, further multi-centre collaborative studies comprising large number of individuals with DS are needed.

A new theorem shows that additive quantizer noise decreases the mean-squared error of threshold-array optimal and suboptimal linear estimators. The initial rate of this noise benefit improves as the number of threshold sensors or quantizers increases. The array sums the outputs of identical binary quantizers that receive the same random input signal. The theorem further shows that zero-symmetric uniform quantizer noise gives the fastest initial decrease in mean-squared error among all finite-variance zero-symmetric scale-family noise. These results apply to all bounded continuous signal densities and all zero-symmetric scale-family quantizer noise with finite variance.

We present theorems and an algorithm to find optimal or near-optimal ldquostochastic resonancerdquo (SR) noise benefits for Neyman-Pearson hypothesis testing and for more general inequality-constrained signal detection problems. The optimal SR noise distribution is just the randomization of two noise realizations when the optimal noise exists for a single inequality constraint on the average cost. The theorems give necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of such optimal SR noise in inequality-constrained signal detectors. There exists a sequence of noise variables whose detection performance limit is optimal when such noise does not exist. Another theorem gives sufficient conditions for SR noise benefits in Neyman-Pearson and other signal detection problems with inequality cost constraints. An upper bound limits the number of iterations that the algorithm requires to find near-optimal noise. The appendix presents the proofs of the main results.

Levy noise can help neurons detect faint or subthreshold signals. Levy noise extends standard Brownian noise to many types of impulsive jump-noise processes found in real and model neurons as well as in models of finance and other random phenomena. Two new theorems and the ItO calculus show that white Levy noise will benefit subthreshold neuronal signal detection if the noise process's scaled drift velocity falls inside an interval that depends on the threshold values. These results generalize earlier “forbidden interval” theorems of neuronal “stochastic resonance” (SR) or noise-injection benefits. Global and local Lipschitz conditions imply that additive white Levy noise can increase the mutual information or bit count of several feedback neuron models that obey a general stochastic differential equation (SDE). Simulation results show that the same noise benefits still occur for some infinite-variance stable Levy noise processes even though the theorems themselves apply only to finite-variance Levy noise. The Appendix proves the two ItO-theoretic lemmas that underlie the new Levy noise-benefit theorems.

Objectives Previous research has demonstrated that alpha2 agonists improve working memory performances in healthy individuals and in primates with prefrontal lesions. We conducted this study to determine whether the alpha2 agonist, guanfacine, could improve working memory performances in patients with frontal lobe epilepsy (FLE) and/or in those with focal epilepsy outside the frontal lobes (ie, temporal lobe epilepsy [TLE]). Methods Fourteen patients with FLE, 13 patients with TLE, and 10 healthy controls completed immediate and delayed match-to-sample tasks before and after ingestion of 2 to 3 mg of guanfacine. Results All 3 groups showed an increase in accuracy on the delayed match-to-sample task, but not the immediate match-to-sample task, following administration of guanfacine. Inspection of the group means revealed somewhat greater benefits for the control and FLE groups relative to the TLE group. Increased accuracy was not associated with slower performances in any group, suggesting that the cognitive benefits of guanfacine did not occur at the expense of increased sedation. Conclusions These data suggest that guanfacine improves working memory in patients with FLE and may be a viable treatment for attenuating such deficits in this patient population.

Plasma concentrations of HDL (high-density lipoprotein) cholesterol are low in the Saudi Arabian population. A B polymorphism at the CETP (cholesteryl ester protein transfer) locus that is detectable with the restriction enzyme TaqI is a genetic determinant of the plasma HDL cholesterol concentration. We assessed the relationship between the TaqI B CETP polymorphism and lipid and apolipoprotein concentrations in a study sample of 335 Saudi residents. The TaqI B1 and B2 allele frequencies were 0.54 and 0.46 respectively, similar to those in other populations. HDL cholesterol levels in B2B2 homozygotes were significantly higher than in B1B1 homozygotes [1.01 (0.3) compared with 0.92 (0.2) mmol/l; mean (S.D.); P=0.03]. There was also a significant difference between the B2B2 and B1B1 homozygotes with regard to apolipoprotein AI concentration [123.6 (16.4) compared with 113.7 (13.9) mg/dl; P=0.04]. This genetic variation was independent of metabolic risk factors known to influence HDL cholesterol levels. The allele frequency of the TaqI B CETP polymorphism and its relatively modest impact on HDL cholesterol concentrations argue against an important role for this allele, or for strongly linked loci, in determining the low levels of HDL cholesterol seen in the Saudi population.

Purpose – Entrepreneurship development in Nigeria requires the adoption and assimilation of enterprise development models from nations with replicable success stories. Technology incubation centre (TIC) is one of the potent mechanisms that launched the “BRIC nations” – Brazil, Russia, India and China – to global prominence as the five biggest emerging economies. This paper attempts to unveil the potentials of TICs as novel tools for entrepreneurship development and actualisation of the Vision 20:2020 in Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach – The authors adopt analytical and discursive approaches using qualitative and quantitative data sourced from Industrial policy documents, Goldman Sachs report, online databases of government agencies, Vision 20:2020 policy document and published articles on the subject matter. The generated data were subjected to content and thematic analyses, on the basis of which relevant conclusions were drawn. Findings – The findings from the research indicate that there are 37 TICs in Nigeria with very weak socio-economic impact on job creation, wealth creation and industrial development in Nigeria. However, for the BRIC nations, adopted as comparative models, TICs have impacted positively on job creation, wealth creation and economic development of the five nations. Research limitations/implications – The paper is essentially discursive and subjective. Further research on this subject matter should explore empirical analysis for an objective assessment of the situation. Practical implications – This paper underscores the need for harmonisation of policy objectives with policy implementation. At present, there are gaps between TIC policy objectives and woeful performance of the 37 TICs in Nigeria. Social implications – For Nigeria, to enhance job creation, wealth creation and economic development in the society, there is the need for functional TICs at local, institutional, regional, state and national levels. Originality/value – The paper unveils the gap between economic theory and practical model implementation in developing economy (Nigeria). It is a major contribution to the functionalist and structuralist debates on why policies fail.

Purpose – Poverty is a plague which has continental manifestation, but its impact is heavily felt in several Muslim majority nations (MMNs), where unemployment, illiteracy, chronic diseases, food shortage, sectarian wars and wave of militancy are surging at alarming rates. The purpose of this paper is to develop a faith-based model (FBM) to complement the conventional poverty reduction models. Experiences have shown that FBMs find more acceptability among Muslim nations because they have theoretical and theological underpinnings from the Qur’an and Hadith, as opposed to conventional models that are often viewed with suspicion, sequel to Islamic revivalism. Design/methodology/approach – This research adopts a qualitative research method relying on secondary data/information sourced from CIA Factbook, previous scholarly works, working papers, case studies and relevant internet resources. In line with methodological approach of qualitative research, the secondary data/information were subjected to content and thematic analyses (CTA) from which facts, figures and presumptions were derived to support the FBM. Findings – The paper justified the plausibility of integrating corporate social responsibility (CSR), Waqf system (WS) and Zakat system (TZS) as FBM for poverty reduction, enterprise development and economic empowerment in MMNs. Research limitations/implications – The gap left behind by the paper is for future researchers to carry out an empirical investigation on the viability or otherwise of the FBM. This could include the governance structure, operational modalities and regulatory frameworks that would enhance the functioning of the FBM. Practical implications – FBM framework is practically a corporate social investment (CSI), which would be heavily funded by Zakat payers, CSR donations and Waqf. The funds would be deployed to poverty reduction in a number of ways ranging from training, micro-credit support for SMEs, apprenticeships, setting up technology business incubation centres, cluster development, infrastructural development in industrial parks, as well as providing welfare support services to the poor, marginalised communities and other economically disadvantaged groups. Originality/value – The theoretical research is a contribution to theory and practice of CSR in the field of management and Islamic economics. It has developed a FBM for adoption by MMNs who are hesitant in adopting western model for fear of compromising their ethical values.

Diabetic nephropathy can develop in up to one-third of patients with type 1 diabetes and approximately 25% of patients with type 2 diabetes. This complication is important as it not only leads to renal failure but is associated with a high risk of coronary artery disease and other vascular complications. Although hyperglycaemia is necessary for the development of diabetic nephropathy, it is not sufficient, genetic factors also being important. This is evidenced by studies showing that only a subgroup of patients are at risk of nephropathy and that nephropathy clusters in families. The genes involved in susceptibility to diabetic nephropathy have yet to be identified. Most studies to date have been case–control in design, and there have been conflicting results. Genes suggested as having a role include those encoding angiotensin-1 converting enzyme, apolipoprotein E, heparan sulphate and aldose reductase. In order to clarify the role of these and other candidate genes in nephropathy, association studies in families are necessary. Because of the large number required, this will require international collaboration. A genetic marker for nephropathy would enable the earlier detection of this complication, thus facilitating screening and targeted intervention. An understanding of the role of susceptibility genes will ultimately allow the development of novel therapeutic strategies.

Researchers frequently come across teachers who distrust a learning environment as embodying the beliefs of the designers and not their own pedagogy. Following the lead provided by user modelling work carried out in the field of human‐computer interaction, there has been much research on student modelling and adaptivity to individual learners; however, the role of the teacher as the manager of the learning process and hence a much more significant user of a learning environment has been ignored. This paper discusses the need for a human teacher model in any computer‐based learning environment and recommends configurable, incremental and re‐structurable contributive learning environments (CIRCLE) architecture to ensure wider acceptance and greater reuse of the phenomenal creative effort that goes into designing a good learning environment.

Describes Byzantium, an intelligent tutoring system for teaching the concepts and skills of accounting. The generic design philosophy of Byzantium and its associated intelligent tutoring tools are described, together with commentary that places Byzantium in the tradition of the adaptive teaching machines and conversational tutorial systems (SAKI and CASTE) developed by Gordon Pask.

Serum alpha 1 -acid glycoprotein (AAG) reportedly can increase with age in the normal population, especially among women. In 33 patients with unipolar major depression or bipolar disorder, serum AAG was measured by age. The authors noted a positive association with age, particularly in depressed female patients (n=18; r s =0.61; P

The paper describes an intelligent assessment system for numeric disciplines. The system works in conjunction with the intelligent tutoring tools developed by TLTP Byzantium, a consortium of six UK Universities. The benefits of the intelligent assessment system discussed in this paper include the saving of teacher time and effort previously spent in marking and compilation of results. The faster turnaround of the assessment related work resulting into a much shorter testing, assessment and feedback cycle, enables more frequent testing. Since tutoring tools are knowledge based, they are capable of generating infinite number of test problems by randomly selecting the independent variables and assigning them random values, as well as providing solution to the generated problems. For developing data interpretation skills, it is possible for a teacher to hand out a problem expressed in a narrative form and provide a model answer to the assessment system. A unique feature of the Byzantium assessment system is its capability of discriminating between incorrect interpretation of given data and incorrect method of solution, allowing a teacher to set a fractional score for a variable that is calculated using a correct method but based on an incorrect interpretation of data.

Description du projet Byzantium (projet TLTP- Teaching and Learning Technology Programme- numero 48) ayant pour but le developpement et l'implementation d'un logiciel d'aide a l'apprentissage de la comptabilite financiere et la comptabilite de gestion

SUMMARY Research in the field of intelligent tutoring systems has failed to provide any substantial or viable systems that could be used in real academic environments. This situation appears to be the result of two factors: first, the failure to identify clearly the objectives and the scope of such systems; and second, the continuously shifting technological platform on which such systems are built. This paper examines the possible objectives for the development of tutoring systems and presents an approach adopted by the Byzantium Project. It describes a model for a computer integrated learning environment (CILE) and discusses the role of an intelligent tutoring tool (ITT) within this model. The paper also considers the potential of the Internet for various learning environments. Based on our experience of designing and implementing four ITTs that have the same look and feel (but which address diverse subject areas) the paper suggests a possible extension of the Byzantium approach to the Internet through ...

Religion in the contemporary times has potentials from which conventional models and theories could leverage for public wellbeing. Considering themoral and ethical dimensions of corporate social responsibility (CSR), understanding this nebulous concept from the religious lenses could help strengthen CSR compliance and reporting in the industrial societies, wherereligions play direct and indirect role in corporate governance and people‘s lifestyle. This paper explores eclectic sources to provide answer to the questions: Does CSR have theological foundation in Islam Christianity and Judaism? Can religions strengthen CSR and fortify compliance and reporting? The authors sourced the required qualitative data from journal articles, Islamic jurisprudence, Judaic sources and Biblical texts as well as relevant online resources on the subject. The extractions from eclectic sources were subjected to content analysis from which conclusions on the two questions were established. The findings indicate that CSR has theological foundation in the three religions, and religious ethics and values could be potent drivers for strengthening CSR and reporting.

The genus Prosopis (Leguminosae, Mimosoideae), comprises 44 species widely distributed in arid and semi-arid zones. Prosopis pallida (Humb. and Bonpl. ex Willd.) Kunth and P. juliflora (Sw.) DC. are the two species that are truly tropical apart from P. africana, which is native to tropical Africa (Pasiecznik et al. 2004), and they have been introduced widely beyond their native ranges. However, taxonomic confusion within the genus has hampered exploitation and better management of the species. The present study focusses primarily on evaluating the genetic relationship between Prosopis species from the section Algarobia, containing most species of economic importance, though P. tamarugo from section Strombocarpa is also included for comparison. In total, 12 Prosopis species and a putative P. pallida x P. chilensis hybrid were assessed for their genetic relationships based on RAPD markers and microsatellite transferability. The results show that P. pallida and P. juliflora are not closely related despite some morphological similarity. Evidence also agrees with previous studies which suggest that the grouping of series in section Algarobia is artificial.

Cisplatin was the first platinum compound to be introduced as a chemotherapeutic agent with antineoplastic activity against a wide variety of solid tumors. Renal impairment with a decline in glomerular filtration has been the classical nephrotoxicity of cisplatin. Renal salt wasting syndrome is yet another, though it is not common. Previous studies were identified by searching the Pubmed database using the following keywords: cisplatin, cisplatin nephrotoxicity, renal salt wasting, and salt loosing nephropathy. Renal salt wasting syndrome has been described in 17 case reports since 1984. It is a rare side effect of cisplatin that manifests with polyuria, hypovolemia, and hyponatremia, and, because of similarities in clinical settings and laboratory values, it is frequently misdiagnosed as a syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone. Other causes of polyuria and hyponatremia should be excluded. Treatment aims at restoring the lost water and salt. Substituting cisplatin with carboplatin depends on individual clinical settings. Prognosis is excellent, as recovery was the rule in all the reported cases.

This exploratory study assesses, from a structuration theory perspective, the impact information and communications technology (ICT) tools and techniques are currently having on audit tasks, auditors (internal and external) and the organisations they work for from the point of view of coordination, control, authority and structure. Based on a triangulation of interview and questionnaire techniques, the findings indicate that ICT is re-shaping auditors' roles and outputs as well as audit organisations' structures. The findings also project the view that continuous auditing, artificial intelligence and CobiT are expected to gain more prominence while a need was also seen for new software development to help auditors match the complexity of their clients' information systems. The study's results reveal the current state of affairs of the relationship between ICT and auditing against the backdrop of continuous global ICT sophistication thereby updating ICT audit literature and the likely future direction of this relationship.

This article has been withdrawn at the request of the editor after inadvertently being published prematurely before the full review process was completed. The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. The full Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal can be found at http://www.elsevier.com/locate/withdrawalpolicy.