| 11. |
- El-Seedi, Hesham R., et al.
(författare)
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CYTOTOXIC EFFECTS OF THE RED SEA SOFT CORAL SARCOPHYTON TROCHELIOPHORUM
- 2016
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Ingår i: Acta Poloniae Pharmaceutica. - : POLSKIE TOWARZYSTWO FARMACEUTYCZNE. - 0001-6837. ; 73:6, s. 1587-1592
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The present study describes the in vitro cytotoxic effects of soft coral (Sarcophyton trocheliophorum). Soft corals of genus Sarcophyton were reported to contain compounds that arc active against brine shrimp and promote paclitaxel cytotoxicity in the human colon cancer Caco-2 cell line. The a-hexane extract of the soft coral Sarcophyton trocheliophorum induced significant dose-dependent toxicity (LC50 96.7 ppm) compared with ethyl acetate (LC50 120 ppm). We reported the most active cytotoxic level to be correspondence to LC50 values of 20.2, 59.2 ppm and 18.9 and 26 ppm. Accordingly, bio-assay guided fractionation was conducted to identify the bioactive compounds. Arachidonic acid. eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid were characterized based on GC-MS analyses. Our results demonstrate the value of marine products as a natural source of medicinally interesting cytotoxic compounds.
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| 12. |
- Elimian, K, et al.
(författare)
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COVID-19 mortality rate and its associated factors during the first and second waves in Nigeria
- 2022
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Ingår i: PLOS global public health. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 2767-3375. ; 2:6, s. e0000169-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- COVID-19 mortality rate has not been formally assessed in Nigeria. Thus, we aimed to address this gap and identify associated mortality risk factors during the first and second waves in Nigeria. This was a retrospective analysis of national surveillance data from all 37 States in Nigeria between February 27, 2020, and April 3, 2021. The outcome variable was mortality amongst persons who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 by Reverse-Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction. Incidence rates of COVID-19 mortality was calculated by dividing the number of deaths by total person-time (in days) contributed by the entire study population and presented per 100,000 person-days with 95% Confidence Intervals (95% CI). Adjusted negative binomial regression was used to identify factors associated with COVID-19 mortality. Findings are presented as adjusted Incidence Rate Ratios (aIRR) with 95% CI. The first wave included 65,790 COVID-19 patients, of whom 994 (1∙51%) died; the second wave included 91,089 patients, of whom 513 (0∙56%) died. The incidence rate of COVID-19 mortality was higher in the first wave [54∙25 (95% CI: 50∙98–57∙73)] than in the second wave [19∙19 (17∙60–20∙93)]. Factors independently associated with increased risk of COVID-19 mortality in both waves were: age ≥45 years, male gender [first wave aIRR 1∙65 (1∙35–2∙02) and second wave 1∙52 (1∙11–2∙06)], being symptomatic [aIRR 3∙17 (2∙59–3∙89) and 3∙04 (2∙20–4∙21)], and being hospitalised [aIRR 4∙19 (3∙26–5∙39) and 7∙84 (4∙90–12∙54)]. Relative to South-West, residency in the South-South and North-West was associated with an increased risk of COVID-19 mortality in both waves. In conclusion, the rate of COVID-19 mortality in Nigeria was higher in the first wave than in the second wave, suggesting an improvement in public health response and clinical care in the second wave. However, this needs to be interpreted with caution given the inherent limitations of the country’s surveillance system during the study.
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| 13. |
- Aguinaldo, M. E.C., et al.
(författare)
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Climate change perspectives and adaptation strategies of business enterprises : a case study from Italy
- 2018
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Ingår i: International Journal of Sustainable Development and World Ecology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1350-4509 .- 1745-2627. ; 26:2, s. 129-140
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The purpose of the paper is to present empirical evidence on how to develop climate-resilient business enterprises under the auspices of an industrial park management. This was facilitated through the collective mapping of climate adaptation strategies corresponding to the identified business risks exacerbated by climate events directly experienced in the shared territory. The cluster approach attempted to overcome the typical challenges of single business enterprises, mostly small and medium-sized enterprises, with respect to their lack of human and financial resources and scientific and technical knowledge to understand climate change risks. The prospects of facilitating knowledge-sharing and information exchange within a cluster of business enterprises give impetus to the replicability and transferability of the approach in other industrial areas and organizational contexts.
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| 14. |
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| 15. |
- Chen, S. C., et al.
(författare)
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Development of A Minimum Dataset for the Monitoring of Recombinant Human Growth Hormone (rhGH) Therapy Use in Children with Growth Hormone Deficiency (GHD) - A GloBE-Reg Initiative
- 2023
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Ingår i: Hormone Research in Paediatrics. - 1663-2818 .- 1663-2826.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Introduction Although there are some recommendations in the literature on the assessments that should be performed in children on recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) therapy, the level of consensus on these measurements is not clear. The objective of the current study was to identify the minimum dataset (MDS) that could be measured in a routine clinical setting across the world, aiming to minimise burden on clinicians and improve quality of data collection. Methods This study was undertaken by the GH Scientific Study Group (SSG) in GloBE-Reg, a new project that has developed a common registry platform that can support long-term safety and effectiveness studies of drugs. Twelve clinical experts from 7 international endocrine organisations identified by the GloBE-Reg Steering Committee, 2 patient representatives and representatives from 2 pharmaceutical companies with previous GH registry expertise collaborated to develop this recommendation. A comprehensive list of data fields routinely collected by each of the clinical and industry experts for children with GHD was compiled. Each member was asked to determine the: (1) Importance of the data field and (2) Ease of data collection. Data fields that achieved 70% consensus in terms of importance qualified for the MDS, provided <50% deemed the item difficult to collect.Results A total of 246 items were compiled and 27 removed due to redundancies, with 219 items subjected to the grading system. Of the 219 items, 111 achieved at least 70% consensus as important data to collect when monitoring children with GH deficiency (GHD) on rhGH treatment. Sixty-nine of the 219 items were deemed easy to collect. Combining the criteria of importance and ease of data collection, 63 met the criteria for the MDS. Several anomalies to the MDS rule were identified and highlighted for discussion, including whether the patients were involved in current or previous clinical trials, need for HbA1c monitoring, other past medical history, and adherence, enabling formulation of the final MDS recommendation of 43 items; 20 to be completed once, 14 every 6 months and 9 every 12 months.Conclusion In summary, this exercise performed through the GloBE-Reg initiative provides a recommendation of the minimum dataset requirement, collected through real-world data, for the monitoring of safety and effectiveness of rhGH in children with GHD, both for the current daily preparations and the newer long-acting growth hormone.
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| 16. |
- Gomaa, Mohamed N., et al.
(författare)
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Antibacterial effect of the red sea soft coral Sarcophyton trocheliophorum
- 2016
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Ingår i: Natural Product Research. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1478-6419 .- 1478-6427. ; 30:6, s. 729-734
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The marine soft corals Sarcophyton trocheliophorum crude extracts possessed antimicrobial activity towards pathogenic bacterial strains, i.e. Bacillus cereus, Salmonella typhi, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Bioassay-guided fractionation indicated that the antimicrobial effect was due to the presence of terpenoid bioactive derivatives. Further biological assays of the n-hexane fractions were carried out using turbidity assay, inhibition zone assay and minimum inhibitory concentration for investigating the growth-inhibition effect towards the Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The fractions were screened and the structure of the isolated compound was justified by interpretation of the spectroscopic data, mainly mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The structure was assigned as (5S)-3-[(3E,5S)-5-hydroxy-3-hepten-6-yn-1-yl]-5-methyl-2(5H)-furanone and was effective at concentrations as low as 0.20mg/mL. The above findings, in the course of our ongoing research on marine products, may implicate that the profound anti-microbial activity of the S. trocheliophorum soft corals, inhabiting the red sea reefs, is attributed to the presence of growth-inhibiting secondary metabolites mainly terpenoids.
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| 17. |
- Lazaridis, Iosif, et al.
(författare)
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Ancient human genomes suggest three ancestral populations for present-day Europeans
- 2014
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 513:7518, s. 409-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We sequenced the genomes of a similar to 7,000-year-old farmer from Germany and eight similar to 8,000-year-old hunter-gatherers from Luxembourg and Sweden. We analysed these and other ancient genomes(1-4) with 2,345 contemporary humans to show that most present-day Europeans derive from at least three highly differentiated populations: west European hunter-gatherers, who contributed ancestry to all Europeans but not to Near Easterners; ancient north Eurasians related to Upper Palaeolithic Siberians(3), who contributed to both Europeans and Near Easterners; and early European farmers, who were mainly of Near Eastern origin but also harboured west European hunter-gatherer related ancestry. We model these populations' deep relationships and show that early European farmers had similar to 44% ancestry from a 'basal Eurasian' population that split before the diversification of other non-African lineages.
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| 18. |
- Pilz, Patrick M., et al.
(författare)
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Remote ischemic perconditioning attenuates adverse cardiac remodeling and preserves left ventricular function in a rat model of reperfused myocardial infarction
- 2019
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Ingår i: International Journal of Cardiology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5273. ; 285, s. 72-79
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims: Remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) is considered a potential clinical approach to reduce myocardial infarct size and ameliorate adverse post-infarct left ventricular (LV) remodeling, however the mechanisms are unknown. The aim was to clarify the impact of RIC on Neuregulin-1 (NRG-1)/ErbBs expression, inflammation and LV hemodynamic function. Methods and results: Male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to 30 min occlusion of the left coronary artery (LCA) followed by 2 weeks of reperfusion and separated into three groups: (1) sham operated (without LCA occlusion); (2) Myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (MIR) and (3) remote ischemic perconditioning group (MIR + RIPerc). Cardiac structural and functional changes were evaluated by echocardiography and on the isolated working heart system. The level of H3K4me3 at the NRG-1 promoter, and both plasma and LV tissue levels of NRG-1 were assessed. The expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, ECM components and ErbB receptors were assessed by RT-qPCR. MIR resulted in a significant decrease in LV function and enlargement of LV chamber. This was accompanied with a decrease in the level of H3K4me3 at the NRG-1 promoter. Consequently NRG-1 protein levels were reduced in the infarcted myocardium. Subsequently, an upregulated influx of CD68+ macrophages, high expression of MMP-2 and -9 as well as an increase of IL-1β TLR-4, TNF-α TNC expression were observed. In contrast, RIPerc significantly decreased inflammation and improved LV function in association with the enhancement of NRG-1 levels and ErbB3 expression. Conclusions: These findings may reveal a novel anti-remodeling and anti-inflammatory effect of RIPerc, involving activation of NRG-1/ErbB3 signaling.
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| 19. |
- Sadiq, Sakar, et al.
(författare)
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Mechanism of Haibat Sultan Mountain Landslide in Koya, North Iraq
- 2016
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Ingår i: Engineering. - : Scientific Research Publishing, Inc.. - 1947-3931 .- 1947-394X. ; 8:8, s. 535-544
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Haibat Sultan Mountain is a long range with elevation of about 860 m (a.s.l.); the PilaSpi Formation forms its carapace in Koya vicinity, with relief difference of about 300 m from Koisanjaq plain. The PilaSpi Formation consists of well thickly to massively bedded dolostone and dolomitic limestone with thickness of about 120 m in Koya vicinity. The main trend is NW - SE being a limb of Bustana anticline representing part of the southwestern limb, with dip amount that ranges from (15 - 30). On 11th of November 2015 a landslide had occurred after a heavy rainfall along Koya - Dukan main road. The type of the slide was plane sliding due to daylight slope, which was formed afterthe road cut. The length of the slide area: along the road is 90 m with height of 40 m forming almost a parallelogram shape; the thickness of the slid beds is about 2.5 m. The estimated volume of the slid mass is 9000 m3. The main cause of the landslide is the presence of daylight slope, high slope angle; more than the dip angle, presence of old crack surfaces which are filled by reddish brown clayey residual soil. After the he heavy rain fall, which lasted for 20 hours, the infiltrated rain water in the bedding planes in the well bedded, cracked, and jointed beds has increased the pore pressure and decreased the internal friction angle; therefore, the sliding has occurred. The root of the slid mass is below the base of the paved road; therefore, that part which is above the paved road has slid. The remaining part is highly cracked and partly accumulated in the base of the slid mass. Fortunately, the height of the slid mass is only 40 m and the relief difference between the crown area and the toe area is about 50 m; otherwise the slid mass would be larger than the present slid mass. From the field inspection, it is very clear that the involved area is very unstable and in critical equilibrium. The presence of daylight bedding above the crown area, clayey soil in the fractures and open joints and steep slope all are very favorable conditions for triggering the unstable slope, consequently developing of another landslide with larger mass.
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| 20. |
- A. Manneh, Ilana, et al.
(författare)
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Progression in action for developing chemical knowledge
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Annan publikation (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- In this paper, we discuss the well-known teaching challenge of how to provide undergraduate students with basic chemistry knowledge without making them experience these basics as meaningless and unintelligible. First, we situate the challenge in a classic dilemma: should we teach the necessary basic facts before the chemical explanations or should the explanations be taught before or in parallel to these facts? Here we draw on examples from interviews with graduate students reflecting on their experiences regarding their studies at the undergraduate level. Second, we suggest a way out of the dilemma, through a shift in perspective from the typical progression of facts and explanations towards a purpose and activity-based progression. We conclude with a discussion of implications of such a shift for university chemistry education together with suggestions for future research.
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