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Landfilling is known as a popular way to get rid of municipal waste because it is easy to use and reasonably priced, but it also leads to environmental issues like leachate pollution. Thus, solid residues from Zingiber zerumbet rhizome subcritical water extraction (SWE) were assessed in this study to see if they met the criteria for municipal waste that could be disposed of safely in a landfill. The assessment comprises of four crucial properties; ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity, and toxicity and was conducted on a sample taken during a 15-minute SWE following the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and Malaysian Department of Environment (DOE) criteria. The residue was found to be non-ignitable (flash point above 200°C), non-corrosive (pH of 6.65 ± 0.02), and non-reactive (no visible toxic gases, vapors, or fumes) in normal environmental settings. Meanwhile, in accordance with the Toxicity Characteristics Leaching Procedure (TCLP), the toxicity analysis results were considered at their maximum limits. Heavy metals such as barium showed the highest detectable concentration at < 0.8 mg/L, while cadmium followed at < 0.6 mg/mL, but both remained below the limits of ≤ 100.0 mg/L and ≤ 1.0 mg/L, respectively. The volatile organic compounds (VOCs), semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) and herbicides detected in the sample were at remarkably low concentrations below the legal limit. Overall, these results provide convincing evidence that the solid residues of the rhizome of Z. zerumbet from the SWE can be categorised as municipal solid waste. Pre-treatment prior to landfill is therefore unnecessary. SWE promotes ecological waste management practises thus contributing to a safer and more sustainable future for all.

Abstract Objective Objective was to investigate the effect of NovaMin toothpaste and two experimental toothpastes on surface microhardness of hypersensitive dentin. Methods Eighty specimens were prepared and divided randomly into eight groups (n = 10/group) according to the tested toothpastes (NovaMin, moringa and propolis toothpastes) and the acidic challenge (with or without 6% citric acid challenge). Enamel surfaces were removed, and the dentin surfaces were exposed on which the three tested toothpastes were brushed twice a day for 1 week using an electric toothbrush, then a 4-d citric acid cycling model with pH 5 was performed. The prepared specimens were stored in artificial saliva until the microhardness test was performed. Statistical analysis was done using One-way ANOVA followed by Tukey post hoc test. Results NovaMin-containing toothpaste showed an increased dentin surface microhardness following a week of twice daily brushing compared to other groups. However, NovaMin-containing toothpaste showed the highest microhardness values following pH cycling with citric acid of pH 5 compared to other tested groups. Conclusions NovaMin-containing toothpaste showed a partial recovery of dentin microhardness at pH 5 during the acidic challenge. Moreover, propolis- and moringa-containing toothpastes had an insignificant effect on dentin surface microhardness with and without citric acid challenge.

Abstract Background This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of radiation exposure and storage time on the degree of conversion (DC%) and flexural strength (FS) of three different resin composites. In total, 90 disk-shaped, and 360 rod-shaped composite specimens were prepared to evaluate the DC% and FS, respectively. Specimens were divided into 18 groups (DC%: n = 5 and FS: n = 20) according to the three experimental factors of the study: 1—Radiation (no-exposure and exposure), 2—Resin composite material (Herculite XRV Ultra, Z250 XT and Grandio), and 3—Storage time (24 h in distilled water, 3-m and 6-m in 70% ethanol). Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR) was used to determine the DC%. For FS, the specimens were subjected to a three-point bending test at 1 mm/min crosshead speed. Data were analyzed using three-way ANOVA/Tukey HSD test. Significant level was set at P = 0.05. Results For DC%, there was no significant difference between no-radiation exposure and radiation exposure (P > 0.05). Herculite XRV Ultra revealed the highest statistically significant DC% (P

Hala MF Mohammad,1,2 Ahmed A Abdelghany,3 Essam Al Ageeli,4 Shahad W Kattan,5 Ranya Hassan,6 Eman A Toraih,7,8 Manal S Fawzy,9,10 Naglaa Mokhtar10,11 1Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt; 2Central Laboratory, Center of Excellence in Molecular and Cellular Medicine (CEMCM), Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt; 3Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt; 4Department of Clinical Biochemistry (Medical Genetics), Faculty of Medicine, Jazan University, Jazan, Saudi Arabia; 5Department of Medical Laboratory, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Taibah University, Yanbu, Saudi Arabia; 6Department of Clinical Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt; 7Department of Surgery, Tulane University, School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA, USA; 8Genetics Unit, Department of Histology and Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt; 9Department of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt; 10Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Northern Border University, Arar, Saudi Arabia; 11Department of Medical Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura, EgyptCorrespondence: Manal S FawzyDepartment of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, 41522, EgyptTel + 20 1008584720Fax + 20 64 321 6496Email manal_mohamed@med.suez.edu.egBackground: Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play essential roles in molecular diagnosis and therapeutic response in several diseases.Purpose: For the first time, we aimed to evaluate the association of four lncRNAs TUG1 (rs7284767G/A), MIAT (rs1061540T/C), MALAT1 (rs3200401C/T), and SENCR (rs12420823C/T) variants with susceptibility to diabetic retinopathy (DR), disease severity, and early therapeutic response to intravitreous anti-vascular endothelial growth factor aflibercept therapy.Patients and Methods: This case-control study enrolled 126 adult patients with type 2 diabetes. TaqMan assays using Real-Time PCR were run for genotyping. Multivariable regression analyses were applied to assess the role of each polymorphism after the adjustment of covariates.Results: Carriers of TUG1 A/G and MIAT T/C and C/C genotypes were more likely to develop DR [OR=3.15 (95% CI=1.15– 8.64), and OR=4.31 (95% CI=1.78– 10.47)], while MALAT1 T/C conferred protection (OR=0.40, 95% CI=0.16– 0.99). For TUG1, MALAT1, MIAT, and SENCR genotype combinations, GTCT and GCCC had a higher disease risk (P=0.012). For disease severity, MIAT T/T homozygosity was associated with higher DR grade [33.3% (T/T) vs 10% (C/C) and 4.2% (C/T) carriers, P=0.012]. Otherwise, patients with the SENCR T variant exhibited better pre-treatment best-corrected visual acuity level (p=0.021). Following aflibercept administration, carrying the TUG1 A or MIAT T/C was associated with a poor therapeutic response (OR=5.02, 95% CI=1.60– 15.76, and OR=10.23, 95% CI=1.51– 69.15, respectively).Conclusion: The lncRNAs TUG1 (rs7284767G/A) and MIAT (rs1061540T/C) were associated with increased DR susceptibility and poor response to aflibercept treatment, while MALAT1 (rs3200401C/T) conferred protection to DR. These genetic determinants could be useful in DR risk stratification and pharmacogenetics after validation in large-scale studies.Keywords: aflibercept, diabetic retinopathy, MALAT1, MIAT, SENCR, TUG1

The addition of absorber can lead to increase the reaction temperature in the microwave pyrolysis process. Three different sources for microwave absorbers were used to identify the effect of microwave absorber on the product yield from microwave pyrolysis of oily sludge. These absorbers are namely, coconut activated carbon (CAC), palm kernel shell activated carbon (PKSAC) and petroleum coke. The microwave absorbers were added to elevate the temperature of pyrolysis reaction in a nitrogen atmosphere using a modified microwave household reactor. The process included identifying the effect of microwave absorber concentration, and initial moisture content at an optimum sweep gas flow rate on the product yield. The results demonstrated that the addition of CAC, PKSAC and petroleum coke improved the heating rate by shortening the drying process. The results showed that the addition CAC during microwave pyrolysis of oily sludge resulted in the higher gas product distribution compared to other types of absorbers. The results revealed that the addition of 10% of the CAC can pyrolyze oily sludge at a nitrogen gas flow rate of 200 mL/min. At this condition, ~65 wt% of gas was produced for all moisture content of oily sludge samples (4%, 40% and 75%). As well as, this treatment method shortened drying time of oily sludge to 30 minutes. The results showed that higher produced gases of H2 (15%) and CO (13.3%) giving lower heating value (LHV) at 5.57 MJ/m3 were achieved using 10% of CAC in microwave pyrolysis of oily.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of long-term argan oil administration on vascular responsiveness and susceptibility to H2O2. 16 Wistar rats were divided into 2 groups; control group and treated group receiving 5 ml/kg/day of argan oil. After 8 weeks of treatment, vascular contractility was measured on isolated aortic rings from both groups by addition to the organ bath of cumulative concentration of vasoactive drugs (phenylephrine, acetylcholine and sodium nitroprussiate). In parallel, these isolated aortic rings were exposed to increasing doses of H2O2 (0, 1, 5 and 10 mM) for 20 minutes and the residual vascular response to phenylephrine (PE 10−6 M) and acetylcholine (Ach 10−6 M) was evaluated. Our results show that no significant differences between control and argan oil group were observed. Maximal contraction response to 10−6 MPE was 1.68 ± 0.20 g and 2.14 ± 0.20 g for control and argan oil groups, respectively. In precontracted isolated aortic rings, endothelium dependent relaxation to acetylcholine and endothelium-independent relaxation were not influenced by the diet. Maximal relaxation in response to 10−6M of Ach was 54 % for control group and 47 % for argan oil group. Addition of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to the organ bath for 20 minutes led to a dosedependent alteration of vascular reactivity, which was characterized by similar decrease in both the PE-induced contraction and the Ach-induced relaxation in the two experimental groups. These results suggest that argan oil treatment does not influence vascular reactivity nor its sensitivity to the oxidative stress.

The curriculum for undergraduate engineering courses in Malaysia is becoming increasingly structured, following the global trend for quality assurance in engineering education, through accreditation schemes. Generally, the accreditation criteria call for the graduates from engineering programs to demonstrate a range of skills, from technical problem solving to soft skills and an aptitude for lifelong learning. In order to comply with these criteria, accreditation schemes are adopted as a quality assurance measure. This paper shall introduce the characteristics of the engineering accreditation scheme in Malaysia. The impact of the accreditation scheme on the quality of these engineering programs shall be evaluated. Data collection is in the form of benchmarking and questionnaires. The evaluation criteria shall be in terms of benefits to the institution, academic faculty, students, and the challenges encountered. A discussion on the evaluation shall include the supposed dichotomies which arise from this accreditation process, namely the compromise between research versus teaching; and the value of engineering knowledge whether as an academic pursuit or catering to industry's needs. Ultimately, this paper shall address a fundamental question related to undergraduate teaching in engineering: whether accreditation is a necessary prerequisite in maintaining high standards in engineering programs in Malaysia.

The aim of this research was to develop a high performance adaptive control strategy based on the model reference adaptive control (MRAC) approach, using the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) law rule as an adjustment mechanism to control the speed of a DC motor. In this work, we propose a modified model reference adaptive control (MRAC) to exploit the advantages of adaptive control within the classical feedback loop. This new control strategy is a hybrid between the classical control loop and MRAC, designed specifically for the control of a DC motor system. The modified MRAC demonstrates remarkable robustness and superior control performance, particularly in terms of overshoot percentage, settling time, rise time and disturbance rejection. The effectiveness of the proposed control strategy was evaluated with the use of various reference signals.

Xue Ting Tan, Nurin Nazirah Binti Mokhtar, Shirley Yi Fen Hii, Fairuz Amran Bacteriology Unit, Infectious Diseases Research Centre, Institute for Medical Research, National Institute of Health, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Setia Alam, Selangor, MalaysiaCorrespondence: Xue Ting Tan, Bacteriology unit, Infectious Diseases Research Centre, Institute for Medical Research, National Institutes of Health, Ministry of Health Malaysia, No. 1, Jalan Setia Murni U13/52 Seksyen U13, Setia Alam, 40170, Selangor, Malaysia, Email tanxt@moh.gov.myPurpose: Azole resistance in Aspergillus fumigatus poses a significant challenge in the management of invasive aspergillosis. This study aimed to investigate the antifungal susceptibility and cyp51A mutation profiles of A. fumigatus isolates in Malaysia.Patients and Methods: Sixty clinical A. fumigatus isolates were collected and subjected to antifungal susceptibility testing (AFST) and molecular analysis. The antifungal susceptibility testing was performed according to CLSI M38 guideline. The geometric mean (GM) minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), MIC50/MIC90 for voriconazole, itraconazole, posaconazole, amphotericin B, and isavuconazole against A. fumigatus in non-invasive cases and invasive cases were calculated. In addition, the presence of cyp51A mutations was also identified.Results: The present study revealed an overall resistance rate of 6.7% among the isolates. In non-invasive cases, isavuconazole and posaconazole demonstrated the lowest GM MIC of 0.08 μg/mL. Following them were itraconazole, voriconazole, and amphotericin B with concentrations of 0.15μg/mL, 0.16μg/mL and 0.90μg/mL, respectively. Similarly, in invasive cases, isavuconazole and posaconazole exhibited the lowest GM MIC of 0.09μg/mL. Following them were itraconazole, voriconazole, and amphotericin B with concentrations of 0.14μg/mL, 0.17μg/mL and 0.80μg/mL, respectively. Genotypic analysis revealed various cyp51A mutations, including F46Y, M172V, N248K, R34L, V244A, V244S, and E427K. However, not all mutations corresponded to antifungal resistance.Conclusion: The majority of clinical Aspergillus fumigatus isolates demonstrated susceptibility to the antifungal agents tested, with isavuconazole and posaconazole demonstrating the lowest MIC values. However, cyp51A mutations were discovered without a consistent correlation to antifungal resistance, emphasising the need for additional research.Keywords: invasive aspergillosis, minimum inhibitory concentration, voriconazole, isavuconazole, posaconazole

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Accuracy of the bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) depends on population-specific prediction equations. The aim of our study was to develop prediction equations for assessing total body water (TBW) and fat-free mass (FFM) in healthy North-African adults. SUBJECTS/METHODS: In all, 250 participants (194 women, 56 men) aged 18-64 years were included in the analysis. BIA variables were measured by a tetra-polar device. TBW and FFM were assessed by the dilution of deuterium ([D.sub.2]O). The participants were sorted by gender and randomly split into development and validation subgroups. The validity of other published equations was also tested using Bland and Altman procedure, proportional bias and pure error. RESULTS: The prediction equations derived were: TBW (l) = 5.68 + 0.267 [height.sup.2]/resistance + 4.42 sex (male = 1, female = 0) + 0.225 weight--0.052 age ([R.sup.2] = 0.92, root mean square error (RMSE) = 1.75 l, RMSE% = 5.65); and FFM (kg) = 7.47 + 0.366 [height.sup.2]/resistance + 6.04 sex + 0.306 weight-0.063 age ([R.sup.2] = 0.92, RMSE = 2.38 kg, RMSE% = 5.61). The new equations provided nonsignificant proportional bias values, and better agreement than other tested equations. Bias and pure error values were 0.36 and 1.88 1 for men and 0.00 and 1.82 l for women, for TBW equation. For FFM equation, bias values were 0.43 and -0.04 kg, and pure errors were 2.57 and 2.46 kg for men and women, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The new prediction equations provide reliable estimates of TBW and FFM in North-African adults and are recommended for use in these populations. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2013) 67, 1081-1086; doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2013.125; published online 10 July 2013 Keywords: bioelectrical impedance; prediction equation; total body water; fat-free mass; North-Africans; cross-validation, INTRODUCTION The existence of both the nutrition transition and the double burden of malnutrition is of great concern in many developing countries. (1,2) As these countries struggle with undernutrition, overweight [...]

Background and aims: Ocular traumas are among the most important causes of visual acuity loss and acquired unilateral blindness in children, with permanent effects on their psychological and social development. The epidemiology of ocular traumas, especially those of children in different societies, is affected by the culture and level of education, lifestyle, and socioeconomic level. Considering that no accurate statistics on these injuries have been reported in Hamadan, Iran, this study aimed to investigate the epidemiology of various types of injuries in children following ocular traumas in Hamadan. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 293 patients under 18 years of age with ocular trauma who were visited in Farshchian Sina hospital in 2019. A detailed medical history was obtained including demographic information, type of injury, initial and final visual acuity, cause of injury, mother’s occupational status, and the delay between trauma and the examination, and the examiner-recorded definitive care. Finally, the data were analyzed using Excel software, and a significance level of 0.05 was used. Results: Out of 293 patients examined, 38.91% were female, and 61.09% were male. Children aged 1-5 years (30.72%) were the most commonly affected group, followed by those aged 6-10 years (29.35%). There were 19 cases of chemical injury, 33 cases of penetrating trauma, and 241 cases of blunt trauma. The mean initial vision in patients was 0.31±0.347 logMAR, and the mean final vision was 0.06±0.084 logMAR. In 94 patients, it was impossible to check visual acuity due to their lower age. Besides, 49.83% of injuries happened at home. Conclusion: In this research, the most common type of ocular trauma was blunt trauma in male patients, which occurred at home in the presence of the mother. Therefore, it is obvious that the most effective way to prevent these incidents is that parents should pay more attention to their children, implement well-established safety precautions while playing at home, and use standard play equipment.