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Diallyl sulfide (DAS) is a garlic-derived organosulfur compound. The current study was planned to evaluate the protecting effects of DAS against cyclophosphamide (CP)-induced nephropathic encephalopathy. DAS (100 mg/kg) was orally administered for 4 days, 60 min after the last dose, rats were injected with CP (150 mg/kg). DAS treatment before CP significantly decreased serum urea, creatinine, sodium, potassium, calcium, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-1β (IL-1ß) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) compared with CP-treated rats. DAS treatment decreased malondialdehyde (MDA) and increased superoxide dismutase (SOD) and reduced glutathione (GSH) levels in the renal tissues and significantly attenuated the elevated neurotransmitters N-methyl-D-aspartate/adenosine triphosphate (NMDA), γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) levels and remarkably restored neuronal nitric oxide (NO) level and nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) activity in the brain compared to CP-treated rats. DAS for 4 consecutive days before CP showed moderate positive immunohistochemically expression of the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) in the brain and kidney tissues comparable to CP-treated rats. DAS afforded renal and neuroprotection against CP-induced nephropathic encephalopathy due to its capacity to ameliorates the afore-mentioned biochemical parameters which were supported by histopathological and immunohistochemically examination.

Background Stroke is a leading cause of disability worldwide with a great impact on quality of life. Ain Shams University Hospital is a tertiary center for neurology and a pioneer in offering comprehensive stroke service in the region. Methods A cross sectional study in which an 8 domains questionnaire was applied to all cerebrovascular stroke patients who were admitted to the stroke unit of the neurology department of Ain Shams University Hospital in the period from January 2016 till May 2017, with the aim to define pitfalls in post discharge. Results From our study show that 20% of all patients discharged from acute stroke unit did not have further follow up with any stroke doctor. Moreover, 60% of patients were not seen by a physiotherapist after discharge, including almost half of patients with moderate or severe disability on discharge who are expected to have ongoing care needs. Patients who developed stroke complications were more likely to seek follow up. As expected, continuous follow up was associated with increased adherence to secondary preventive medications. Conclusions Patient needs should be assessed before patient discharge and patient and care givers should have clear written information on required follow up with stroke doctors, and arrangements made for receiving adequate rehabilitation post discharge.

This paper is a part of a research project funded by the Science and Technology Development Fund (STDF), to create a product serving the digital transformation of Egyptian manufacturing companies. It allows a manufacturing company to be a member of a distributed manufacturing network. The resulting system can be plugged into any ERP system. In this work, the limitation of a centralized integration entity to satisfy loosely coupling of distributed systems is overcome. The SOA framework and the remote method invocation (RMI) are applied using SOAP-XML technology. Enterprise integration patterns (EIP) were used in the architecture design.

A tyrosine kinase inhibitor Imatinib (IM) is used in the treatment of different varieties of cancers. The current study was designed to explore the beneficial role of l -carnitine against IM-induced cardiotoxicity in rats. Male albino rats received IM (40 mg/kg, i.p.) either alone or/in combination with l -carnitine (100 mg/kg, i.p.) for 7 days. IM increased serum inflammatory cytokines, concomitant with activation of cardiac MAPK, α-SMA, malondialdehyde (MDA) and nitric oxide(NO), decreased cardiac peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPAR-γ) level, superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, and glutathione (GSH) content. The expression levels of Bcl-2 and PDGF were significantly decreased, while the expression levels of CTGF and BAX were significantly increased in the IM group. The l -carnitine treatment successfully protected the heart as indicated by the improvement of the biochemical and histopathological parameters. l -carnitine didn't affect the serum concentration of IM and increased intracellular concentration in the combination-treated group as measured by the mass spectrometer. Conclusion: l -carnitine abrogated IM-induced cardiac damage and apoptosis via PDGF/PPARγ/MAPK pathways.

Grain refining and microstructure homogenization are fundamental challenges for enhancing the performance of the materials. One of the effective ways to solve these challenges is the Friction stir processing (FSP) technique. This paper investigates the FSP parameters’ impact on the microstructure, hardness, wear, and corrosion behavior of A356 Al–Si cast alloy. The FSP parameters are rotational speed (355–900 rpm), trasverse speed (10–40 mm min−1), and two different tool geometries. The results revealed that the intense plastic deformation and dynamic recrystallization fragmented the needle-shaped eutectic silicon particles. The particle size change was more pronounced as the rotational speed was increased than the transverse speed and the pin profile tool geometry. The fragmented and homogeneously distributed Si particles in the investigated alloy increased their hardness, wear, and corrosion resistance compared with those of the unprocessed base metal. The hardness increased by two times, and the wear rate reduced by ten times, while the corrosion rate decreased by 200 times than the BM at lower tool rotational speeds and higher transverse speed. The Possible reasons were discussed for these enhancements.

Consequent to the extended use of intravenous iodinated contrast media, increased adverse effects have been recognized, with Contrast-Induced Nephropathy (CIN) constituting one of the most serious of these adverse effects. The purpose of the current study was to investigate a prophylaxis strategy for reducing the effect of intravenous contrast on the development of CIN. Data were collected from 120 patients who received intravenous iodinated contrast agents during CT procedures. CIN was defined as a relative increase of more than 25% or an absolute increase of ≥ 0.5 mg/dL (44 µmol/L) in serum creatinine levels within 48-72 hours post-CT. Our prophylaxis strategy involved intravenous administration of 500 ml normal saline within one hour before the CT procedure and 3 liters of oral hydration within 12 hours post-CT. Additionally, the volume of administered low osmolality contrast media was based on the weight of the patient. A paired t-test revealed no statistically significant differences in creatinine (t = 0.07, P = 0.942) or urea (t = 0.52, P = 0.608) pre-CT vs. post intravenous iodinated contrast media-enhanced CT. Use of low osmolality contrast media and good hydration pre and post intravenous iodinated contrast administration are effective approaches to the prevention of CIN.

The energy spectra of three types of two-dimensional potentials (we will call them ‘Davidson-like potentials’ (DLPs)), characterized by four minima separated by barriers, are investigated. The predictions for spectra and wave functions are obtained by using the nine-point finite-difference method. For these potentials, with the existence of a single configuration, a transition of spectra, as a function of barrier height, is covered from tunneling splitting modes to fluctuations phenomena, with equal peaks wave functions, crossing to the spectra of purely anharmonic oscillator potentials (AOPs). A different type of phase transition occurs when two (or more) configurations coexist. With the change of the parameters, a transition of spectra is covered from coexistence phenomena of two distinct quantum tunneling modes to fluctuations phenomena, with unequal peaks wave functions, crossing to the spectra of purely AOPs. Using DLPs, a particular application of the coherent quadrupole–octupole model to describe energy bands with alternating parity of the nuclei 100Mo, 146,148Nd, 148,150Sm, 220Ra, 220,222Rn, and 220,222Th is presented. The global parametrization of the model for the selected nuclei is achieved.

Numerical algorithms for the flow of cooling tower axial fans in the flow wise direction and span-wise direction have been transformed and solved by the Matlab application with a graphical user interface to obtain the optimum axial fan design. The analyses of the velocity and pressure distributions were achieved using the thin airfoil theory. The fan has a single rotor with no inlet or outlet guide vanes and produces a large amount of flow rate and a small pressure rise. Then, the air flow governing equations for the new design were solved using the commercial computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code ANSYS CFX-16.0. A comparison between the new design and an existed design (usually a mean line design approach) of the ammonia cooling tower fan in El-Delta for Fertilizers Company in Talkha City, Egypt was done. The efficiency of the new design is higher than that of the existed one. The new designed fan is capable to deliver more air flow or the same flow rate at higher pressures with the same power requirement. This enables the installation of new high resistance fill, which increases the area of contact between air and water to increase cooling efficiency.

Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) have been used to investigate the effect of filling each of poly (ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) (EVA), acrylonitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), and thei...

Supply chain management has become a major component of competitive strategy to enhance organizational productivity and profitability. It is stated that supply chain performance measurement is so important in developing supply chain. Performance measurement has a substantial role to play in setting objectives, evaluating performance, and determining future courses of actions. The order fulfillment process specifies the particular steps regarding the flow of the customer orders through supply chain and how customer orders are: generated, entered, processed, manufactured, documented, picked, delivered and handled post-delivery, so it is considered the prime process to integrate and manage supply chain. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the performance of order fulfillment process through a developed measurement framework. A review of the current understanding of supply chain management and literature related to supply chain performance measurement is performed. The measurement framework is divided into two categories of measures that evaluate the performance of order fulfillment activities and the accuracy of the delivered orders respectively. Each category's measures are weighted by making a survey through a distributed questionnaire. Objectives Matrix tool is applied to each category to obtain an overall performance index for each category. A case study is made at a leading textile company in Egypt. The results are two performance indices for order fulfillment; the first one indicates the order fulfillment activities performance and the other indicates the delivered orders accuracy as the main intent of order fulfillment process.

International audience; Four batches of UO2 pellets were studied comparatively, before and after creep tests, to evaluate a characterization methodology aimed to determine the links between microstructure and damage mechanisms induced by compressive creep of uranium dioxide at 1500 degre. They were observed by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with image analysis, to quantify their fabrication porosity and the occurrence of inter-granular cavities after creep, and electron back scattered diffraction (EBSD), especially to characterize sub-structures development associated with plastic deformation. Electron channeling contrast imaging (ECCI) was also applied to evidence dislocations, at an exploratory stage, on one of the deformed pellets.This approach helped to identify and quantify microstructural differences between batches. Their as-fabricated microstructures differed in terms of grain size and fabrication porosity distribution. The pellets which had the lowest strain rates were those with the largest number of intra-granular pores, regardless of their grain size. They also exhibited less numerous sub-boundaries within the grains.These first results clearly illustrate the benefit of systematic examinations of crept UO2 pellets at a mesoscopic scale, by SEM and EBSD, to study their deformation process. In addition, ECCI appears as a powerful tool to evidence local dislocations arrangements, in bulk samples. Even if the sampling was limited, the results of this study also tend to indicate that the intra-granular pores population, resulting from the manufacturing of the samples by powder metallurgy, could have a significant influence on the UO2 viscoplastic deformation mechanisms.

Body shape of high-speed underwater vehicles has a great effect on the Supercavitation behaviour. The transient flow around either partially cavitating or supercavitating body affects the trajectory of high-speed underwater vehicles. Commercial code (ESI-CFD ACE+, V 2010) was used to simulate the supercavitation around two different shapes of a projectile with their noses of hemispherical shape and telescopic shape. Also, conical and blunt projectile shapes were considered. Also, a comparison between two different designs of grid was performed numerically. Grid designs were structured and unstructured grids. Navier-Stokes equations were used as governing equations for simulating supercavitation. Cavity shape was determined over projectile body and around wake. Also, two-dimensional flow field around the cavitating body was determined. Projectile body has a diameter about 0.4 times its length (0.4L). In the case of the Blunt end there is a strong wake effect. The ESI-CFD code (2010) is valid for observing the supercavitation phenomena. Unstructured grid is more accurate than structured one in simulating supercavitation.

The present work was carried out to study the effect of seasonal variations on the levels of pesticideresidues in water, feeds and milk. Our results illustrated that the significantly highest concentrations ofOCs in water and feed were detected during summer [(1.05±0.35, 0.72±0.24, 0.77±0.25, 2.5±0.70 and0.81±0.27 μg/L, for p.p.DDT, aldrin, β-BHC, lindane and γ.chlordane respectively in water samples)and (30.0±10.20, 45.00±13.02, 65.33±21.90, 35.33±13.20, 43.67±13.30, 22.00±7.33 and 19.13±8.6 μg/kg, for p.p.DDD, p.p.DDE, p.p.DDT, aldrin, lindane, γ.chlordane and methoxychlor, respectively infeed samples) ], while the lowest were detected during spring, on the other hand, none of pesticidesdetected in winter which may be attributed to environmental factors. The significantly highestconcentration of diazinon in water and feed was recorded during autumn (78.75±26.30 μg/L and140.00±64.60 μg/kg, respectively), while the lowest levels were detected during spring. Also, thehighest concentrations of deltamethrin was detected during spring in water (55.30±18.50 μg/L) andduring summer in feed samples (78.40±26.70 μg/kg), while the lowest levels were detected duringautumn in water and during spring in feed samples. The significantly highest concentrations of residuesin milk were detected during summer (p.p.DDD, p.p. DDE, p.p.DDT, heptachlor, heptachlor epoxide,γ.chlordane, methoxychlor, diazinon and deltamethrin were 20.10±6.01, 52.30±17.20, 33.20±20.06,1.16±0.38, 6.72±0.90, 2.570±2.23, 0.70±0.20, 58.50±19.20 and 45.13±15.10 μg/kg, respectively) andthe lowest were detected in winter. Our results concluded that the seasonal variations greatly influencethe levels of all examined pesticide residues with variable degree specially diazinon and deltamethrin.

Resume Une grande majorite des patients consultant pour douleur thoracique aigue (DTA) aux urgences n’a pas de modifications ECG notables, ni d’histoire connue de maladie coronaire. Identifier le faible nombre de sujets qui ont, ou vont developper reellement un syndrome coronarien aigu (SCA) au sein d’un groupe considere a faible risque demeure un vrai defi pour les cliniciens urgentistes. Chez ces patients, l’objectif du recours a un examen complementaire d’imagerie non invasive, morphologique ou fonctionnelle est d’exclure le diagnostic de pathologie coronaire. Les performances diagnostiques contemporaines du coroscanner rapportent une sensibilite de 96 %, un rapport de vraisemblance negatif de 0,09, soit des valeurs tres contributives en termes d’apport diagnostique et son integration dans un algorithme decisionnel apparait comme la strategie la moins couteuse, avec le meilleur rapport cout/efficacite. Le coroscanner est indique devant des douleurs thoraciques aigues associees a des ECG non contributifs, en l’absence d’autres diagnostics evidents, lorsqu’il n’existe pas de detection de la troponine ultrasensible ou que les variations dynamiques de celle-ci sont modestes, lentes et/ou non concluantes. Le coroscanner devrait idealement etre effectue dans un delai de 3 a 48 heures apres la consultation initiale.

En Abstract Background Laryngeal cancer is the most common malignant tumor of the upper aerodigestive tract. Surgical treatment of advanced laryngeal cancer often requires a total laryngectomy (TL), resulting in a permanent tracheostomy and potential difficulties with a patient’s speech and communication. Objectives The aim of this study was to assess post-treatment voice changes, swallowing, and quality of life (QoL) of patients with carcinoma of the larynx treated with different treatment modalities. Patients and methods A total of 100 patients with laryngeal cancer treated with different treatment modalities were included in the present study. The primary treatment modality included TL (n = 46), partial laryngectomy (PL) (n = 7), transoral cordectomy (n = 9), radiotherapy (Rx) (n = 29), or combined treatment during the last 10 years with radiation after TL (TL and Rx, n = 9). Patients were subjected to full history taking, complete ENT examination, and assessment of: global QoL, voice, and acoustic parameters using the computerized speech lab at the outpatient clinic of Tanta University Hospitals (TUH). Evaluation of swallowing was carried out using a modified Arabic version of the QoL questionnaire called the Sydney Swallow Questionnaire. Patients having problems with swallowing were further evaluated using fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing, at the outpatient clinic of TUH. Respiratory function of the larynx was evaluated by applying a modification of St George’s Respiratory Questionnaire. Results Results of voice analysis showed that the best voice was evident in patients who had undergone cordectomy, followed by those who had received radiotherapy. There was no significant difference in voice characteristics between patients using voice prosthesis, esophageal voice, or electrolarynx after TL and those using these aids after PL. Worst voice as well as swallowing was seen in patients who had undergone combined TL and postoperative radiotherapy. The best results of swallowing were seen in patients who had undergone cordectomy. Patients who had undergone TL or radiotherapy alone showed similar swallowing results, but better than those who had undergone PL, especially those who had undergone supracricoid laryngectomy. Assessment of respiratory function showed best results in patients who had undergone cordectomy, followed by those who had undergone TL and radiotherapy. Poorest results were seen in patients with combined surgery and Rx, and those who had been treated with PL. Conclusion Our study revealed that the best significant performance results were seen in patients who had undergone transoral cordectomy, followed by patients who had received radiotherapy only. This was followed by patients who had undergone TL and PL, with no significant difference between the two groups. The worst results were seen in patients who had undergone combined surgery and radiotherapy as the primary treatment modality.

Background: Monoclonal B-cell lymphocytosis (MBL) is a benign expansion of clonal B lymphocytes that can be found in the blood of healthy adults, and it has the potential for evolution to chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). MBL is commonly found among elderly population. We aimed to study the frequency among 200 healthy elderly adults who were chosen from general practice, ophthalmology, gynecology, cardiology, dermatology, and orthopedic preoperative patients. The selected individuals had normal hematologic parameters with no evident history of malignant disease. Methods: Blood samples were collected on EDTA, the leukocytes were stained by CD5/CD19 and kappa/lambda/CD19, and then MBL cells were searched for using flow cytometry to detect CD19-positive B-cell population with abnormal kappa/lambda immunoglobulin light chain ratio (> 3 or < 0.3) or disease-specific immunophenotype (IPT), i.e., co-expression of CD5/CD19. Results: The frequency of MBL among the studied samples was 5.5% without significant difference between males and females. The detected frequency found may be related to the sensitivity of the method used. Higher frequencies may be detected if more colors were used to detect more antigens. Conclusion: The study suggested that MBL can be identified through routine hospital investigations among elderly subjects and that monoclonal proliferation of B lymphocytes can be detected in an increasing number depending on the progressive improvements in the flow cytometric techniques. J Hematol. 2016;5(2):54-59 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.14740/jh269w

We assessed CT-derived left ventricular strain in a cohort of patients referred for transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and validated it against 2 dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography as the gold standard. 65 consecutive patients with symptomatic aortic valve stenosis referred for CT imaging prior to TAVI were included in this analysis. For all patients, retrospectively ECG-gated multi-phase functional CT data sets acquired with identical reconstruction parameters were available. All data sets were acquired using a third generation dual source system. In all patients, multiphase reconstructions in increments of 10% of the cardiac cycle were rendered (slice thickness 0.75, increment 0.5 mm, medium smooth reconstruction kernel) and transferred to a dedicated workstation (Ziostation2, Ziosoft Inc., Tokyo, Japan). Additional functional reconstructions for dynamic assessment and quantification of strain were processed. Multiplanar reconstructions (MPR) of the left ventricle similar to standard echocardiographic 4, 2 and apical 3 chamber views were rendered in CT. Similar to echocardiographic longitudinal strain, the perimeter of the left ventricle was manually traced within the myocardium and peak maximal shortening as a parameter representing longitudinal strain was calculated for each view and averaged to obtain a marker for global longitudinal strain (CT perimeter-derived strain). Furthermore, for quantification of 3-dimensional strain, endocardial and epicardial borders of myocardium were marked in six short axis views and peak maximum 3- dimensional strain of the myocardium was calculated in standard six basal, six mid and four apical segments. 3-dimensional strain values of the 16 standard segments as well as perimeter-derived strain values in the three standard windows were averaged to obtain global strain. Echocardiography was performed in all patients before CT data acquisition. Digital loops were acquired from three apical views (four-, two-, and three chamber views). For assessment of 2 dimensional global longitudinal strain (GLS), recordings were processed with acoustic-tracking software allowing offline semiautomated speckle-based strain analyses. The mean age of all 65 patients was 81 ± 5 years. The mean echocardiographic ejection fraction and mean echocardiographic GLS were 50 ± 12% and -13.6 ± 4.5%, respectively. The mean CT-derived peak 3-dimensional global strain and mean peak strain derived by perimeter was 43.2 ± 13.5% and -11.2 ± 3.5%, respectively. Both CTderived global 3D-strain and perimeter derived strain showed a significant correlation to GLS derived by echocardiography (r = -0.8, p < 0.0001 for 3D strain and r = 0.71, p < 0.0001 for perimeter-derived strain). Bland-Altman analysis showed a systematic underestimation (i. e. worse strain values) of CT perimeter-derived strain compared to GLS by echocardiography (mean difference -2.4% with 95% limits of agreement between 4% to -9%). ROC Curve analysis assuming a normal GLS when less than -18% showed that a CT-derived peak 3-dimensional global strain cut-off-value of 45% has a sensitivity of 91% and a specificity of 60% for detecting normal left ventricular strain (AUC 0.81, p = 0.001). For CT perimeter-derived strain, a cut-off value of -12%-assuming a normal echocardiographic GLS when less than -18%-achieved a sensitivity of 82% and a specificity of 61% (AUC of 0.82, p = 0.001) for detecting abnormal left ventricular strain. Using dedicated software, assessment of CT-derived left ventricular strain is feasible and comparable to strain derived by echocardiographic 2 dimensional speckle tracking.

Pulmonary fibrosis and cardiotoxicity are a common and dose-limiting side-effect of ionizing radiation used to treat cancers of the thoracic region. This study aims at investigating the role of Bcl-2, Bax protein and caspase-3 in the pathogenesis of tissue damage induced by gamma irradiation (IRR) and the protective potential role of vitamin E (Vit E) and/or L-carnitine (L-car) against γ-irradiation induced oxidative injury. Irradiation was performed as a whole body γ-irradiation (5Gy). Immnuohistochemistry was used to estimate Bcl-2 expression. The level of Bax and caspase 3 activity were determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. C-reactive protein was determined using immunoturbidimetric assay. Results revealed that γ-irradiation (5Gy) induced apoptosis via the mitochondrial pathway by downregulating Bcl-2 expression, upregulating Bax protein and activating caspase-3. Administration of Vit E (50mg/kg) and/or L-car (300mg/kg) prior to gamma-irradiation decreased apoptosis through changing the expression of Bcl-2, Bax and caspase-3 activity. Exposure to γ-irradiation increased triglyceride, cholesterol, low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), C-reactive protein (CRP) and potassium levels, creatine kinase (CK-MB) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activities and decreased high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) levels. The altered lipid profile, CRP and potassium levels, CK-MB and LDH activities induced by exposure to γ-irradiation were significantly renovated in Vit E and/or L-car pretreated γ-irradiated rats. In conclusion, Vit E and/or L-car might ameliorate γ-irradiation induced apoptosis via modulation of Bcl-2, Bax and caspase-3.

The importance of angular resolution in EBSD analyses is discussed based on an Inconel 718 sample containing several populations of recrystallized grains, with subtle differences in dislocation contents. Classical EBSD analyses (with angular resolution in the range of 0.5-1°) do not allow for distinguishing recrystallized grains grown dynamically or post-dynamically. The angular resolution of EBSD orientation and misorientation data can be significantly improved (down to about 0.1-0.2°) either using more sophisticated Kikuchi pattern indexing methods and/or using the recently proposed LLASS denoising filter (Local Linear Automatic Smoothing Splines). Then the coexistence of both dynamically and post-dynamically recrystallized grains in the sample can be confirmed and quantified. ECCI images unambiguously confirm the conclusions drawn from the analysis of improved angular resolution EBSD data, and furthermore reveal the presence of thermal stress induced dislocations with typical patterns in water quenched Inconel 718 recrystallized grains. LAY DESCRIPTION: EBSD is widely used to study recrystallization phenomena. Conventional EBSD is nevertheless not able to distinguish dynamic recrystallized grains from post-dynamic recrystallized grains which differ by subtitle differences in dislocation contents. In this paper, we show that improving the orientation precision of EBSD data by means of different methods allows distinguishing these two recrystallized grains populations. Analyses and discussion are based on an Inconel 718, a famous Nickel-based superalloy in aeronautic.

This work was carried out to evaluate the quality and the developmental competence of the in vitro buffalo embryos produced under different culture conditions. Oocytes were matured in TCM 199 for 24 h at 38.5°C and 5% CO2. After maturation, oocytes were in vitro fertilized by frozen thawed sperms capacitated in vitro by caffeine at final concentration 2 million sperm /ml. The sperm-oocytes were incubated in TALP medium for 24 hrs. Fertilized oocytes were cultured in Cell free media (CR1aa) or with cumulus or oviductal cell monolayers (Experiment 1), CR1aa with addition of (10, 20, 50 and 100 µg/mL) lactoferrin (Experiment 2) inside CO2 incubator with 5% CO2 at 38°C. The cleavage, morula, blastocyst rates were recorded and embryo cell number and mitochondrial function were evaluated. Addition of bovine oviductal cell monolayer (BOCM) to culture media significantly increased the morula and the blastocyst compared with cell free media and media with cumulus cell monolayer and also significantly increased the cell number and the mitochondrial function of in vitro produced buffalo embryos. Addition of lactoferrin by concentration 50µg/ml to culture media resulted in a significant increase in rates of cleavage; morula and blastocyst compared with control or other concentrations and also resulted in an increase in the cell number and the mitochondrial function of in vitro produced buffalo embryos. It could be concluded that, addition of oviductal cells (monolayer) or lactoferrin to culture medium significantly improved the quality of in vitro produced buffalo embryos.

Groundwater is the key for life in arid areas. Aquifer overexploitation and climatic conditions can significantly deteriorate groundwater quality. The Al-Qassim area in central Saudi Arabia is characterized by dense agricultural use and is irrigated mainly by fossil groundwater from the Saq Aquifer. Understanding the area’s hydrochemistry, major factors governing groundwater quality, and alternative uses of the groundwater are the main goals of this study. Groundwater samples were collected and examined for major, minor, and trace elements. Ionic relationships, hydrochemical facies, geospatial distributions, and multivariate analyses were conducted to assess the hydrochemical processes at play. The salinity and nitrate concentrations of the Saq Aquifer’s groundwater were found to increase in the outcrop areas more than the confined areas. The spatial distributions were fragmented by three main factors: (i) modern recharge by relatively brackish water, (ii) irrigation return flow in intensive farming areas, and (iii) overexploitation and draining of deep and relatively saline zones of the aquifer. Seven water types were found representing the alkaline water with a predominance of sulfate–chloride ions and earth alkaline water with a predominance of sulfate and chloride. Mixing between fresh and brackish water, dissolution of mineral phases, silicate weathering, and reverse ion exchange were recognized as the evolutionary processes, while evaporation played a minor role. Cluster analyses characterized the fresh groundwater zone, modern groundwater recharge zone, and anthropogenic influence zone. In the confined areas, nearly all the groundwater was appropriate for domestic use and irrigation. In the outcrop areas, some limitations were found due to unsuitable conditions.

Multiple myeloma (MM) remains an incurable disease, with little information available on its management in real-world clinical practice. The results of the present prospective, noninterventional observational study revealed great diversity in the treatment regimens used to treat MM. Our results also provide data to inform health economic, pharmacoepidemiologic, and outcomes research, providing a framework for the design of protocols to improve the outcomes of patients with MM. Background: The present prospective, multinational, noninterventional study aimed to document and describe real-world treatment regimens and disease progression in multiple myeloma (MM) patients. Patients and Methods: Adult patients initiating any new MM therapy from October 2010 to October 2012 were eligible. A multistage patient/site recruitment model was applied to minimize the selection bias; enrollment was stratified by country, region, and practice type. The patient medical and disease features, treatment history, and remission status were recorded at baseline, and prospective data on treatment, efficacy, and safety were collected electronically every 3 months. Results: A total of 2358 patients were enrolled. Of these patients, 775 and 1583 did and did not undergo stem cell transplantation (SCT) at any time during treatment, respectively. Of the patients in the SCT and non-SCT groups, 49%, 21%, 14%, and 15% and 57%, 20%, 12% and 10% were enrolled at treatment line 1, 2, 3, and ≥ 4, respectively. In the SCT and non-SCT groups, 45% and 54% of the patients had received bortezomib-based therapy without thalidomide/lenalidomide, 12% and 18% had received thalidomide/lenalidomide-based therapy without bortezomib, and 30% and 4% had received bortezomib plus thalidomide/lenalidomide-based therapy as frontline treatment, respectively. The corresponding proportions of SCT and non-SCT patients in lines 2, 3, and ≥ 4 were 45% and 37%, 30% and 37%, and 12% and 3%, 33% and 27%, 35% and 32%, and 8% and 2%, and 27% and 27%, 27% and 23%, and 6% and 4%, respectively. In the SCT and non-SCT patients, the overall response rate was 86% to 97% and 64% to 85% in line 1, 74% to 78% and 59% to 68% in line 2, 55% to 83% and 48% to 60% in line 3, and 49% to 65% and 36% and 45% in line 4, respectively, for regimens that included bortezomib and/or thalidomide/lenalidomide. Conclusion: The results of our prospective study have revealed great diversity in the treatment regimens used to manage MM in real-life practice. This diversity was linked to factors such as novel agent accessibility and evolving treatment recommendations. Our results provide insight into associated clinical benefits. © 2018 The Authors

This study was conducted to study the possibility of partial replacement of wheat flour with SRB to prepare high nutritive value cupcake and pan bread and partial replacement of yellow corn flour with RBPC to prepare value-added tortilla. Quality characteristics of the cupcake, pan bread and tortilla were evaluated. The RBPC had higher crude protein and lower crude fat, total ash, total carbohydrates contents, and caloric value than SRB. The RBPC had higher levels of essential amino acids than SRB. The RBPC had higher water absorption, oil absorption, foaming capacity, foaming stability and emulsifying stability and lower bulk density than SRB. The proximate composition, height, weight, volume, specific volume, specific gravity, in-vitro protein digestibility and textural profile of cupcake and pan bread were affected by increasing the level of SRB in the cupcake and pan bread formulas. Cupcake and pan bread prepared with SRB had darker crust and crumb colors than the control. Sensory properties of the cupcake and pan bread prepared with 5% SRB were similar to the control. The crude protein, total ash and alkaline water retention capacity of tortilla were increased by increasing the level of RBPC. However, total carbohydrates, crude fat and crude fiber had an opposite trend. Tortilla prepared with RBPC had darker color than the control tortilla. Tortilla prepared with 7.5% RBPC had higher lysine (27.31%) and tryptophan (33.33%) than control tortilla. In-vitro protein digestibility of tortilla was significantly increased by increasing the RBPC up to 7.5%. The tortilla prepared with 7.5% RBPC had higher rating score of overall acceptability than control tortilla.

In this study, ethanol extracts, ethyl acetate extracts and chloroform extracts of olive leaves, pomaces and virgin oil of picual and coratina cultivars were examined for their antioxidant activities. Coratina pomace ethanol extract had higher antioxidant activity(99.90%)than α-tocopherol (80.40%). Coratina pomace extracts had 97 mg gallic acid/g dried sample total phenols and 23.83 mg rutin acid/g dried sample total flavonoids. E-vanillic, salicylic, pyrogallol, benzoic acid, and catechin were the most abundant phenolic compounds in coratina pomace ethanol extract which represented 82.65% of the total phenolic compounds. Naringin, luteolin, hispertin, and quercetin were the most abundant flavonoid compounds in coratina pomace ethanol extract which represented 85.82% of the total flavonoids compounds. The coratina pomace ethanol extract had 7.53 h induction period of sunflower oil which represented 92.75% of α-tocopherol. Therefore, coratina pomace ethanol extract was selected for improving the shelf-life of carp fillets and carp burgers during storage at 5°C for 16 days. Carp fillets treated with coratina pomace ethanol extract at the concentration of 250 ppm and dipping time of 30 min and stored at 5°C for 16 days had lower TBA values, total bacteria, psychrophilic bacteria, lipolytic bacteria, proteolytic bacteria, total yeast and mold counts and rancid odor (described as very slight) as compared with the untreated sample (described as very strong). Fat retention and juiciness of carp fillets were increased and moisture retention and shrinkage decreased, however, the cooking yield was not affected. Carp burgers treated with coratina pomace ethanol extract at the concentration of 250 ppm and dipping time of 30 min and stored at 5°C for 16 days had lower moisture content, TBA values, total bacteria, psychrophilic bacteria, lipolytic bacteria, proteolytic bacteria and total yeast and mold counts than untreated sample. However, crude protein, crude fat, total ash and total carbohydrate contents had an opposite trend. Carp burgers stored at 5°C for 16 days in nitrogen packaging condition had lower mean TBA values, total carbohydrate than carp burgers stored in air packaging condition either in uncooked or cooked burgers. However, moisture, crude fat, total ash and crude protein contents had opposite trend. The total aerobic bacteria and psychrophilic bacteria counts were reduced by the cooking process either with air or nitrogen packaging conditions. However, lipolytic bacteria, proteolytic bacteria and total yeast and mold counts were inhibited by the cooking process. The uncooked carp burgers had mean rating scores ranged between like moderately (7.0) and like very much (8.0). However, cooked burgers had mean rating scores ranged between neither like nor dislike (5.26) and like moderately (7.0).

Novel hyperbranched alkyd resins (HBAs) were synthesized by reacting the hydroxyl end-groups of the prepared hyperbranched polyesters, based on 1,3,5-tris(2-hydroxyethyl) cyanuric acid (THECA) as a trifunctional core, with different oil fatty acids, namely, linseed, soya and sunflower oil fatty acids. Resins of different compositions of HBAs were prepared by changing either the fatty acid or the generation of the hyperbranched polyester. Their molecular structures were identified using IR and 1 H and 13 C NMR spectroscopy. The thermal stability, glass transition temperatures and rheological properties were investigated. All of the alkyd resins exhibited initial decomposition temperature at values >300 °C. The decreased Tg values of LG3, SG3 and SFG3 render them suitable for use as coatings that are applied at ambient temperature. All HBAs show Newtonian behaviour and the viscosity was ranging between 1.2 and 5.2 Pa s. Film properties of the prepared alkyd resins using different driers were determined and it has been found that all samples exhibited good adhesion, bending, impact, ductility, and high gloss, but show low hardness.

This paper presents an experimental investigation of adsorption equilibrium characteristics of natural gas onto granular activated carbon (GAC). Experiments have been conducted at adsorption temperatures ranging from 20 °C to 50 °C and pressures up to 10 bar. The measurements are based on measuring the adsorption uptake difference between two equilibrium adsorption states. Experimental data have been correlated using four adsorption isotherm models, namely, Langmuir, Toth, Dubinin–Astakhov (D–A), with and without volume correction. The proposed method reduces the time required to conduct the experiments significantly. It is found that 1 kg of GAC can adsorb about 77 g of natural gas at adsorption temperature of 20 °C and equilibrium pressure of 10 bar. Isosteric heat of adsorption of natural gas/GAC pair has been estimated using Clausius–Clapeyron equation. Comparison between storage capacities of adsorbed natural gas and compressed natural gas has also been discussed. Results extracted from the present s...

Occupational hazards, exposure to blood and body fluids (BBF) accidents and safet y precautions constitute an important public health issue. We assessed the prevalence and determinants of exposure to occupational hazards among nurses, and their knowledge of occupational safety precautions. In a cross-sectional study, we surveyed 332 nurses working in 4 hospitals, Nablus, West Bank, Palestine, by a questionnaire. Bivariate analysis tested the associations between ever exposure and the high likelihood of BBF exposure and the independent socio-demographic and occupational variables. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to assess the associations between the same two exposures and selected independent variables (those significant in the bivariate analysis). Prevalence of ever exposure to BBF was 51.7%, and was associated with working in private and charitable hospitals (OR 2.62, 2.68, respectively), having 4–6 family members (OR 0.52) and “nursing” being as one's top career choice at university (OR 0.48). The prevalence of high likelihood of BBF exposure was 62.2%, and was associated with working in charitable and private hospitals (OR 7.81, 2.43, respectively) and “nursing” being as one's top career choice (OR 0.57). Regarding knowledge, most respondents believed it is necessary to enact laws and regulations regarding occupational safety precautions, reported the use of sharps containers, immediate disinfection after an accident, reporting an accident, and using personal protective equipment. Nurses had adequate knowledge of the risks of their hospital work. Nevertheless, they exhibited high prevalence of exposure to BBF accidents. Future studies are needed to re-evaluate existing occupational safety guidelines in hospitals, establish monitoring and evaluation protocols for health care workers' adherence to the guidelines, and institute well-defined policies for reporting occupa tional injury incidents so these can be handled appropriately.

Biodegredable and injectable nanocomposites based on polypropylene fumarate (PPF) as unsaturated polyester were prepared .The investigated polyester was crosslinked with three different monomers namely N-vinyl pyrrolidone (NVP), methyl methacrylate (MMA) and a mixture of NVP and MMA (1:1 weight ratio) and was filled with 45 wt% of hydroxyapatite (HA) incorporated with different concentrations of chemically treated natural bone powder (NBP) (5, 10 and 15 wt%) in order to be used in treatment of orthopedics bone diseases and fractures. The nanocomposites immersed in the simulated body fluid (SBF) for 30 days, after the period of immersion in-vitro bioactivity of the nanocomposites was studied through Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) in addition to dielectric measurements. The degradation time of immersed samples and the change in the pH of the SBF were studied during the period of immersion.

A series of experiments were conducted to study the effects of contraction ratio and different liquid properties on gas–liquid two-phase flow through sudden contraction in micro-channel. Two rectangular microchannels with different contraction ratio were used. The widths of the larger channels upstream of the contraction were 0.53 or 0.78 mm (0.230 mm in height), while those of the smaller ones were fixed at 0.270 mm (0.230 mm in height). Distilled water, ethanol 49 wt% aqueous solution, pure ethanol and hydrofluoroether (HFE)-7200 were used as the test liquids, and nitrogen as the test gas. Flow pattern, bubble length, liquid slug length and bubble velocity were determined by analyzing video images of the flows. In addition, pressure profile upstream and downstream from the contraction was also measured for single-phase and two-phase flows. The pressure loss due to the contraction was determined from the pressure profiles. In the analysis, bubble velocity data and the pressure loss data were compared with calculations by some correlations in literatures. The bubble velocity data both upstream and downstream from the contraction were correlated with Kawahara et al.’s correlation (2010) where the correlation was accounted for aspect ratio of the channel. The correlation of the contraction coefficient for single-phase liquid flows was newly developed with Reynolds number and contraction ratio. The two-phase pressure drop data reasonably agreed with a slip flow model combined with the present contraction coefficient correlation and drift flux model based void fraction correlation. Moreover, numerical simulations were performed using the computational fluid dynamics software FLUENT (Fluent Inc.) and the volume of fluid (VOF) model. The present numerical simulation data agreed well with the experimental data for flow pattern, bubble velocity, bubble length, bubble pitch and pressure changes through the contraction.

Cyclophosphamide (CP) is an oxazaphosphorine nitrogen mustard alkylating drug used for the treatment of chronic and acute leukemias, lymphoma, myeloma, and cancers of the breast and ovary. It is known to cause severe cardiac toxicity. This study investigated the protective effect of N-Acetylcysteine (NAC) on CP-induced cardiotoxicity in rats. CP resulted in a significant increase in serum aminotransferases, creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase(LDH) enzymes, asymmetric dimethylarginine and tumor necrosis factor-α and significant decrease in total nitrate/nitrite(NOx). In cardiac tissues, a single dose of CP (200mg/kg, i.p.) resulted in significant increase in malondialdehyde and NOx and a significant decrease in reduced glutathione content, glutathione peroxidase, catalase, and superoxide dismutase activities. Interestingly, Administration of NAC (200mg/kg, i.p.) for 5 days prior to CP attenuates all the biochemical changes induced by CP. These results revealed that NAC attenuates CP-induced cardiotoxicity by inhibiting oxidative and nitrosative stress and preserving the activity of antioxidant enzymes.

Environmental isotope analyses in conjunction with the hydro-geochemical investigations and tentative reviewing of the paleoclimatic sea level changes are carried out to fingerprint the implications of climatic changes on the groundwater flow regime and geochemistry at the Nile Delta. Following up the footprints of groundwater flow history, it is observed that the Pleistocene, main groundwater aquifer of the Nile Delta was drained and refilled with Nile water several times due to the eustatic sea level propagations between dry and wet periods. Therefore, the present-day groundwater flow regime could be affected by the latest Holocene phase of climate changes during which no significant dramatic sea level changes were recorded. After the time slice of the Mediterranean humid phase, 8000-5500 BP, the sea level started to rise steeply from –15 m to the present-day level. Under this rising rate, the seawater invaded most of the northern delta lope and several 10ths of kilometres inland via the mouths of the ancient Nile branches. During these arid conditions, deterioration of the Pleistocene unconfined aquifer could take place. This finding matches a famine and economic instabilities during the arid periods and flourishing and economic stabilities during the humid pluvial periods along the history of the ancient Egyptian civilization. In accordance to the latest active sea level rise stage in conjunction with the delta subsidence, a contagious groundwater level rise with a recent order of 3 cm/year is taking place leading to form several lake-like lagoons, water logging and soil salinization along the coastal plain and the eastern low lands. The Nile Delta is expected to suffer extreme soil salinization and gradual merging under the groundwater logging and seawater transgression especially, along the eastern coastal zone which suffers a high subsidence rate of about 5 mm/year. In contrast to previous studies, our findings show that, the present groundwater composition and salinity in the Nile Delta aquifers cannot be attributed to a recent seawater intrusion. The physico-chemical processes that explain this composition are combination of salt dissolution (mainly from Holocene fluvio-marine aquifer), flushing by recent Nile water, ion exchange and evaporation.

In this study, gas–non Newtonian liquid two-phase flows in a horizontal rectangular microchannel have been investigated. The rectangular microchannel has a hydraulic diameter of 0.235 mm, and a width and depth of 0.24 mm and 0.23 mm, respectively. A T-junction-type gas–liquid mixer was used to introduce gas and liquid in the channel. Polyacrylamide aqueous solutions with different mass concentration, which exhibits pseudo plastic with viscoelasticity, were used as non-Newtonian liquids, while the nitrogen gas was used as the test gas. The flow pattern, the bubble length, the liquid slug length, the bubble velocity and frictional pressure drop in two-phase flow were measured. Each experimental data are compared to those for nitrogen gas–water two-phase flow. From the comparison, rheological properties of polyacrylamide solutions are found to significantly affect flow parameters measured. In addition, two-phase frictional pressure drop could be correlated by using Lockhart–Martinelli method with a newly developed two-phase friction multiplier as function of void fraction and rheological flow index.

Electrical and mechanical properties of polymer composite materials are investigated through the determination of resistivity and hardness for composites samples. Epoxy composite samples have been prepared with different concentrations of certain inorganic fillers such as; Titanium dioxide (TiO2) and Silica (SiO2), of various size (micro, nano and hybrid) to study the electrical and mechanical behavior. The volume resistivity reaches 3.23×1014 ohm.cm for the micro silica composite. Surface of composite material has been mechanically examined by hardness test. The results show that the resistivity of microcomposites and nanocmposites are increased with the decrease of filler concentration. But the resistivity of hybrid composites is increased with the increase of filler concentration. Maximum hardness value was obtained from hybrid silica composite with 0.1% filler concentration.

The influence of the concentration of aluminum (Al) and aluminum/nickel (Al/Ni) hybrid fillers on the mechanical and electrical properties of the prepared Al/epoxy and Al/Ni/epoxy composites were studied. The results showed that sample containing 20 wt% Al has the highest compressive strength value whereas the maximum conductivity was observed at 30 wt% Al. By replacing Al by different ratios of Ni in Al/epoxy composites the samples showed a little decrease in conductivity and tensile strength values but an increase in the hardness. The composites were also studied by positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy. The ortho-positronium lifetime (τ3) results showed that 30 wt% Al and 40/10 wt% Al/Ni are the critical concentrations for Al/epoxy and Al/Ni/epoxy composites respectively. The correlation between positron annihilation lifetime parameters, electrical and mechanical properties was also discussed. A negative correlation was obtained between nanoscale free-volume parameters and mechanical properties for both Al/epoxy and Al/Ni/epoxy composites.

Electrical and mechanical properties of polymer composite materials are investigated through the determination of resistivity and hardness for composites samples. Epoxy composite samples have been prepared with different concentrations of certain inorganic fillers such as; Titanium dioxide (TiO2) and Silica (SiO2), of various size (micro, nano and hybrid) to study the electrical and mechanical behavior. The volume resistivity reaches 3.23×1014 ohm.cm for the micro silica composite. Surface of composite material has been mechanically examined by hardness test. The results show that the resistivity of microcomposites and nanocmposites are increased with the decrease of filler concentration. But the resistivity of hybrid composites is increased with the increase of filler concentration. Maximum hardness value was obtained from hybrid silica composite with 0.1% filler concentration.

Background: The optimum target in surgery for Parkinson’s disease (PD) is still controversial, especially in patients with tremor-dominant PD. We aim to compare results in tremor-dominant patients undergoing pallidotomy vs. those undergoing simultaneous posteroventral pallidotomy (PVP) and ventral intermediate nucleus (VIM) thalamotomy. Methods: Twenty-four patients with tremor-dominant PD were included in this study. Twelve patients received unilateral PVP contralateral to the most affected side. The other 12 patients received simultaneous unilateral PVP and VIM thalamotomy contralateral to the most affected side. Assessment of results in both groups was achieved using both UPDRS “off” motor scores and UPDRS rest tremor subscores. Results: The mean UPDRS off motor score improved in the pallidotomy group from 61.3 preoperatively to 36.8 at 12 months. In the combined group, it improved from 59.6 to 35.2 at 12 months, with no statistically significant difference between both groups. On the other hand, while the mean tremor subscore in the pallidotomy group improved from a mean of 2.3–0.8, the tremors were abolished in all of the patients in the combined group except for 1 patient who showed slight infrequent tremors at 12 months. Conclusion: Patients with tremor-dominant PD achieve more improvement in tremor control after combined PVP and VIM thalamotomy.

The pheochromocytome is a localized tumor at the level of the medullosurrenale in 85% of the cases. The clinical presentation is very variable. Severe Heart failure presentation can be the mode of revelation in 2% of the cases. We present the case of a patient admitted for refractory cardiogenic shock correlated to pheochromocytome tumor. The difficulty of this rare clinical presentation was to confirm rapidly and in emergency this diagnosis in the same time when the patient presents a persistante and severe cardiogenic chock after finding a sub-occluded and thrombotic LAD coronary artery and which was treated by thrombectomy and coronary revascularization. The surgical treatment of this tumor is considered to be a quickly saving treatment. It allows a fast recovery of the cardiac function.