Students’ Motivations for Enrolling in Universities in Jordan In The Light of Some Variables

This study aims to identify students’ motivations for enrolling in universities in Jordan, in the light of  some variables whether they are career, financial, social or academic motivations. The current study also seeks to determine the impact of gender, major and academic year on these motivations. The study sample consisted of (188) male and female students. Results indicate that the most important career and financial motivations were to get a more prestigious job, while the most important social and personal motivation was ‘because I feel a sense of joy and satisfaction when learning new things’. Whereas the most important academic motivation was ‘the joy I get when I learn things I did not previously know’. Furthermore, the results indicate that there are no statistically significant differences at (?> 0.5) attributable to the variables of gender, major, and academic year on students’ motivations to enroll in universities in Jordan. The study recommends the need to provide career counseling to students and their parents during the last stages of school so that they would be able to determine the majors they want to study at the undergraduate level. Keywords: Motivations, Universities

Adherence of Healthcare Professionals to Evidence-based Clinical Practice Guidelines in the Management of Hemodialysis Patients, Khartoum State, Sudan

Introduction: Hemodialysis (HD) is a complex procedure with many specifications and requires adherence to a set of particular clinical practice guidelines. These guidelines had already been established by globally acclaimed renal authorities and their implementation was shown to correlate with patients’ morbidity and mortality. This study was conducted to evaluate the adherence of healthcare professionals to the evidence-based clinical practice patterns in Khartoum State HD units.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Khartoum State HD units during the period from September 2010 to January of 2011. Data was collected from the healthcare professionals using a specially designed checklist. The checklist included the evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for the HD vascular access, HD adequacy, anemia of chronic kidney disease (CKD), nutrition, cardiovascular risk assessment, and hepatitis B and C virus infection control. Implementation of these guidelines was evaluated, and further graded using a Likert-type scale.Results: Four randomly selected HD units were included in the study. The rate of implementation of the HD vascular access guidelines was 54.8%, adequacy guidelines 57%, anemia of CKD 68.8%, nutrition 58.4%, cardiovascular risk assessment 57%, and hepatitis B and C infection control guidelines was 79.2%. Overall, the four HD units assessed showed moderate deviations from the practice guidelines of anemia of CKD and hepatitis B and C infection control. Extreme deviations from the clinical practice guidelines were seen in HD vascular access practices, adequacy assessments, nutrition and cardiovascular risk assessment.Conclusion: Hemodialysis services in Khartoum State are in need of great improvements regarding adherence to protocols and the standards of care.Key words: Clinical practice guidelines; Hemodialysis; Suda

Fragment screening reveals salicylic hydroxamic acid as an inhibitor of <em>Trypanosoma brucei</em> GPI GlcNAc-PI de-N-acetylase

The zinc-metalloenzyme GlcNAc-PI de-N-acetylase is essential for the biosynthesis of mature GPI anchors and has been genetically validated in the bloodstream form of Trypanosoma brucei, which causes African sleeping sickness. We screened a focused library of zinc-binding fragments and identified salicylic hydroxamic acid as a GlcNAc-PI de-N-acetylase inhibitor with high ligand efficiency. This is the first small molecule inhibitor reported for the trypanosome GPI pathway. Investigating the structure activity relationship revealed that hydroxamic acid and 2-OH are essential for potency, and that substitution is tolerated at the 4- and 5-positions

Effects of Acute or Chronic Ethanol Exposure during Adolescence on Behavioral Inhibition and Efficiency in a Modified Water Maze Task

Ethanol is well known to adversely affect frontal executive functioning, which continues to develop throughout adolescence and into young adulthood. This is also a developmental window in which ethanol is misused by a significant number of adolescents. We examined the effects of acute and chronic ethanol exposure during adolescence on behavioral inhibition and efficiency using a modified water maze task. During acquisition, rats were trained to find a stable visible platform onto which they could escape. During the test phase, the stable platform was converted to a visible floating platform (providing no escape) and a new hidden platform was added in the opposite quadrant. The hidden platform was the only means of escape during the test phase. In experiment 1, adolescent animals received ethanol (1.0g/kg) 30min before each session during the test phase. In experiment 2, adolescent animals received chronic intermittent ethanol (5.0g/kg) for 16 days (PND30 To PND46) prior to any training in the maze. At PND72, training was initiated in the same modified water maze task. Results from experiment 1 indicated that acute ethanol promoted behavioral disinhibition and inefficiency. Experiment 2 showed that chronic intermittent ethanol during adolescence appeared to have no lasting effect on behavioral disinhibition or new spatial learning during adulthood. However, chronic ethanol did promote behavioral inefficiency. In summary, results indicate that ethanol-induced promotion of perseverative behavior may contribute to the many adverse behavioral sequelae of alcohol intoxication in adolescents and young adults. Moreover, the long-term effect of adolescent chronic ethanol exposure on behavioral efficiency is similar to that observed after chronic exposure in humans

Nodulation and nitrogen fixation of some wild legumes from differing habitats in Egypt

This study was devoted to exploring the natural nodulation and nitrogen fixation of wild legumes grown in different Egyptian habitats. These habitats are representative to four phytogeographical regions. Sites that inhabited by Melilotus indicus, Medicago polymorpha, Trifolium resupinatum, Trigonella hamosa and Vicia sativa in each region were selected for study. High nodulation, nitrogen fixation and plant biomass were recorded in plants grown at Nile region and Oases compared with those at Mediterranean region and Sinai. The inhibition in nodulation and potential of nitrogen fixation in legumes at MR and S were attributed to drought and low soil fertility. Differences in species, regions or their interaction have significant effect on nodulation, legheamoglobin, nitroginase activity and biomass of nodules, shoots and roots; the magnitude of effect due to different species was the greatest. Five rhizobial isolates (Sinorhizobium fredii, Rhizobium mesosinicum, Rhizobium daejeonense, Rhizobium huautlense, Rhizobium alamii) recovered from root nodules of the five species were identified by 16S rRNA gene sequence. The indigenous rhizobia of legumes grown at MR and S expected to be exhibit higher tolerance to the existing harsh environmental conditions. These rhizobia can be used as inoculants for crop legumes under unfavorable environmental conditions of agroecosystems or recently reclaimed desert. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22401

A UV-Spectrophotmetric Chemometric Method for the Simultaneous Determination of Sulfadoxine and Pyrimethamine in Tablets

In the present study, a simple, inexpensive, precise and accurate uv-spectrophotometric method based on chemometrics, has been developed for the simultaneous determination of sulfadoxine and pyrimethamine in tablet formulation. The % recoveries obtained were 99.7% ± 0.9 and 101.5% ± 0.8 for sulfadoxine and pyrimethamine, respectively. The developed method has been compared to USP-HPLC method with regard to accuracy and precision. The calculated F-ratio and the (t) statistics indicate that there is no significant difference at 5% level with regard to precision and accuracy between the proposed and the USP methods. Moreover, the developed method is simple, cost-effective, and less time-consuming. Accordingly, it can be used advantageously in routine quality control of sulfadoxine and pyrimethamine in tablet formulation

Hearing Loss After COVID-19 Vaccines: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

ABSTRACT. Background: Hearing loss is generally classified as conductive hearing loss (CHL) and sensory-neural hearing loss (SNHL). It has been reported that COVID-19 infection may affect the vestibular-hearing system causing dizziness, tinnitus, vertigo, and hearing impairment. However, other studies reported that COVID-19 did not lead to significant hearing impairment. Many studies in the literature have reported hearing loss as a complication of COVID-19 vaccines. However, no systematic review or meta-analysis summarizes the literature on this topic. &nbsp; Method: We performed a comprehensive search for the following databases: PubMed, Cochrane (Medline), Web of Science, and Scopus. All studies published in English till October 2022 were included. These include case reports, case series, prospective and retrospective observational studies, and clinical trials reporting hearing loss following COVID-19 vaccines. Newcastle Ottawa scale (NOS) was used to assess the risk of bias for observational studies. NIH tools were used for non-controlled before and after clinical trials and case reports and case series. A third author solved any disagreements. We analyzed the data using SPSS Software version 26. &nbsp; Results: A total of 630 patients were identified, with a mean age of 57.3 that ranged from 15 to 93 years old. The majority of the patients were females, 339 (53.8%). In addition, 328 out of 609 vaccinated patients took the Pfizer-BioNTech BNT162b2 vaccine, while 242 (40%) took the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. The mean time from vaccination to hearing impairment was 6.2, ranging from a few hours to one month after the last dose. Most patients reported unilateral sensorineural hearing loss post-vaccination 593 (94.1%). In order to report the fate of cases, a follow-up was initiated with a mean of 15.6 and a range of 2 to 63 days after the initiation of the treatment. A total of 20 patients were fully recovered, and 11 reported no response. Three out of 328 patients who took the Pfizer-BioNTech BNT162b2 vaccine fully recovered, while five reported partial recovery. According to the chi-squared test, there is a statistically significant difference between patients in terms of fate and the type of COVID-19 vaccination (P-value = 0.001) while reporting no significant difference in dose number prior to the onset of the symptoms (P-value = 0.65) and gender (P-value = 0.4). The ANOVA test was conducted to compare vaccine types and the number of doses in terms of mean time from vaccination to hearing impairment onset. The results found a significant difference between vaccine types (P-value &lt; 0.000) while showing no significance in terms of the number of doses prior to the onset (P-value = 0.6). &nbsp; Conclusion: There is a statistically significant difference between patients in terms of fate and the type of COVID-19 vaccination while reporting no significant difference in dose number prior to the onset of the symptoms and gender. Further, we concluded that there is a significant difference between vaccine types while showing no significance in terms of the number of doses prior to the onset

Non-infectious Complications of Peritoneal Dialysis among Sudanese Patients: Five Years Experience

Introduction: The technique of Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis (CAPD) is known to be associated with various infectious and non-infectious complications. The latter term includes anatomical/mechanical complications as well as hemoperitoneum, inflow pain, electrolyte disturbances, metabolic derangements and delayed gastric emptying. Methods: We retrospectively evaluated all patients who were maintained on CAPD for a minimum of 90 days in Sudan, in the period between May 2005 and Apr 2010. We examined the incidence of various non-infectious complications and their possible associations. Results: The analysis included 296 patients including 71 children (24%). Males constituted 62.2% of the study population and 13.9% were diabetic. The incidence per 100 patient-years of various non-infectious complications was as follows: hypokalemia (30.4), catheter dysfunction (10.8), dialysate leak (5.3), hernia (4.7), hemorrhagic effluent (4.7), inflow pain (2.3), upper gastrointestinal symptoms (2) and cuff extrusion (0.9). Catheter block and hernia were diagnosed with a median duration after catheter insertion of 6 and 7.5 months, respectively. Catheter block was significantly more prevalent among children (22.5% versus 9.3%; P = 0.006). A high body mass index (BMI) was the only identified independent predictor for leak (OR 1.4, P = 0.005). More than half of the 16 hernias were umbilical, and four of the five inguinal hernias were bilateral. Non-infectious complications were responsible for 32% of technique failures. Conclusion: Non-infectious complications were fairly common among our CAPD patients and led to catheter removal in a considerable number of patients. Care is, therefore, needed to screen CAPD patients for these complications in order to timely address and manage problems. Keywords: Peritoneal Dialysis; Non-infectious Complications; Sudan; Herni

Using Voice Technologies to Support Disabled People

In recent years, significant strides have been made in speech and speaker recognition systems, owing to the rapid evolution of data processing capabilities. Utilizing a speech recognition system facilitates straightforward and efficient interaction, especially for individuals with disabilities. This article introduces an automatic speech recognition (ASR) system designed for seamless adaptation across diverse platforms. The model is meticulously described, emphasizing clarity and detail to ensure reproducibility for researchers advancing in this field. The model’s architecture encompasses four stages: data acquisition, preprocessing, feature extraction, and pattern recognition. Comprehensive insights into the system’s functionality are provided in the Experiments and Results section. In this study, an ASR system is introduced as a valuable addition to the advancement of educational platforms, enhancing accessibility for individuals with visual disabilities. While the achieved recognition accuracy levels are promising, they may not match those of certain commercial systems. Nevertheless, the proposed model offers a cost-effective solution with low computational requirements. It seamlessly integrates with various platforms, facilitates straightforward modifications for developers, and can be tailored to the specific needs of individual users. Additionally, the system allows for the effortless inclusion of new words in its database through a single recording process