Effect of Some Medicinal Plants in U.A.E. on Glucose Homeostasis in Rats

Diabetes mellitus is one of the most common endocrine diseases in the world that affects almost 6% of the world population. The treatment of diabetes mellitus takes three main forms. First, diet and exercise. Secondly, insulin therapy, and thirdly, using hypoglycaemic agents (suiphonylureas and biguanides). Many of these agents are not very effective in lowering glucose level in diabetic patients and are either too expensive or have undesirable side effects and contraindications. As a result of this, the search for effective drugs for the treatment of diabetes mellitus continues. Before the introduction of insulin in 1922, the treatment of diabetes mellitus relied heavily on initiatives derived from folk medicine. These initiatives include the use of traditional plants therapies. Many traditional plants treatment for diabetes exist but few have received scientific or medical scrutiny. The use of traditional plants for the treatment of diabetes mellitus is widely practiced in the Middle East. In UAE many traditional plants are used as anti-diabetic remedies, such as the leaves of Rhaza stricta (Al Harmal), Tephrosia apollinea (Dhafra), Zygophyllum simplex (Al hirm), Moringa pere grEna (Shoo), Ziziphus spina-cristi (Al seder), Citrullus colocynthis (Handal) and Teucrium mascatense (Jaadah). In spite of the wide use of these herbs to treat diabetes, no laboratory investigations have been conducted to determine the accuracy of the claims about their anti-diabetic effects. The aim of this study was to examine the efficacy of these plants in the treatment of diabetes mellitus. The aqueous extracts of these plants were incubated with pancreatic fragments to determine whether they have the ability to stimulate insulin secretion. Aqueous extracts of Citrullus colocynthis, Zygophyllum simplex and Tephrosia Apollonia stimulated insulin secretion significantly in vitro. However, only Curullus culocynthis was able to stimulate insulin release in a consistent manner. The oral administration of aqueous extract of Citrullus colocynthis seeds was investigated for its effects on biochemical and metabolic parameters of normal and streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes rats. The results of this study revealed that oral administration of the aqueous extract of the seed significantly reduced blood glucose levels in normal and diabetic rats in a dose-correlate manner. Moreover, aqueous extract of Chrullus colocynthis seeds increased plasma insulin level. In addition, C. colocynthis appeared to induce a significant increase in the number of insulin-secreting cells after induction of diabetes islets. There is strong indication that aqueous Citrullus colocynthis significantly decreased the percentage distribution of glucagon secreting cells. However, the treatments of aqueous extract of C. colocynthis did not completely normalize these parameters as the values were still significantly different from those of controls

ANALYSIS OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN IEQ AND ENERGY CONSUMPTION IN UAE UNIVERSITY BUILDING: IMPACT OF THERMAL AND LIGHTING COMFORT ON ENERGY USAGE

The Indoor Environment Quality (IEQ) of buildings becomes increasingly critical as people spend more than 90% of their time inside buildings based on the National Human Activity Pattern Survey (NHAPS) (Klepeis et al., 2001). The quality of the indoor environment in a building has been shown to have a significant impact on users\u27 productivity and energy consumption. Further, if tenants are working in a comfortable indoor environment, absenteeism rates and incidental expenses, such as medical expenses, will be reduced. For instance, a comfortable workplace increases productivity by 10-15% and reduces absenteeism by 2.5% (Leyten & Boerstra, 2003). According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) recent climate report, UAE residents are experiencing higher temperatures and harsher weather conditions (UAE MOCCAE, 2021). Research over the last years concluded that the longer people stay inside buildings, the more likely they are to be exposed to unhealthy environments. Which means more physical and psychological problems such as Sick Building Syndrome (SBS). The overtime spent inside also means more demands for energy inside the buildings.This thesis studied the relationship between Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) and energy use in a UAE university building. To assess IEQ levels, one of the university buildings was selected, and several IEQ parameters such as temperature, Relative Humidity (RH), Indoor Air Quality (IAQ), and illuminance were monitored. An online occupancy survey was distributed to users of the case study building to conduct a Post Occupancy Evaluation (POE) study. Dynamic simulation methods were applied to validate proposed changes based on monitoring and POE findings to improve comfort and energy efficiency, especially lighting and temperature.The main results of the survey can be summarized as follows: over 40% of students feel neutral on most parameters and are satisfied with their overall IEQ. However, students feel uncomfortable with the dry, stuffy air and the cold room temperature. When considering lighting comfort, 49% of students complain of too much artificial lighting and 32% complain of not enough daylight, and 51% are uncomfortable with glare and reflections. Regarding the results for Sick Building Syndrome (SBS), some students showed symptoms such as a runny nose, dry skin, headache, and fatigue. These symptoms are related to low room temperature, relative humidity, airflow from the AC system, and poor lighting.As a result of the monitoring experiment, lighting and temperature were found to be the most noticeable issues, which supports the results of the survey. The temperature in most classrooms was below 24 °C. Although most classrooms have plenty of natural light from morning to noon, daylight is not well utilized, resulting in the need for artificial lighting. It has also been observed that in most classrooms with tables and smartboards that are perpendicular to windows, factors such as glare and reflection arise. These factors reduce reliance on daylight and increase the use of artificial light.Simulation studies results show that the optimal solution to reduce energy consumption and improve occupant comfort is to increase the room temperature based on standards, change the classroom layout, increase daylight use and create artificial lighting zones. These changes result in saving 39% of the cooling load, 92% of artificial lighting, and 51% of total energy consumption.All the research findings are discussed in full detail in this thesis. The findings could be implemented in other UAE university buildings to improve IEQ, user comfort, and energy consumption

A Cerebellar High-Grade Neuroepithelial Tumour with BCOR Alteration in a five-year-old Child: A case report.

New groups of high-grade neuroepithelial tumours (HGNET) have emerged from the reclassification of central nervous system (CNS) embryonal tumours that have recognised CNS HGNET with BCOR alteration (CNS HGNET-BCOR). We report a two-year, nine-month-old Omani boy who presented to the Royal Hospital, Muscat, Oman, in 2015 with subacute head tilting and neck pain. A well-defined cerebellar lesion was found and he was treated with standard chemoradiotherapy. After a relapse at the age of five years, molecular testing revealed a BCOR alteration. He was treated with further surgery and high-dose chemotherapy; unfortunately, he relapsed and died three years after he was diagnosed

The Effectiveness of an Interactive WhatsApp Bot on Listening Skills

The present paper attempted to measure the effectiveness of an interactive WhatsApp bot on the listening skills of Omani English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners. For this purpose, 40 Omani intermediate EFL learners were divided into two groups: a control and an experimental in a higher education institution. A pretest was conducted to ensure the homogeneity of listening skills among all the participants. While both groups received instructions and exercises on listening in class, an interactive WhatsApp bot was designed for the experimental group to receive more instructions and training without time and place limitations. Later, a posttest and a delayed posttest were conducted to compare learners’ performance. The study results showed smooth progress of both groups in listening exams during the posttest and delayed posttest; however, the experimental group’s performance was significantly high. The findings of the study are efficacious and helpful for teachers and learners

Engaged Service Learning Shapes Students’ Individual Identities, Fostering Community Stewardship

Service learning creates a space for transformative learning to occur, employing a framework that unites practice and theory with reflection. Service learning that gives students a sense of responsibility for outcomes and is perceived as significant enhances student efficacy. This integrative work meaningfully connects students to a deeper understanding of academia, the community, and personal identity. The University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) has a Service Learning Academy (SLA) that facilitates service learning projects. We analyzed qualitative responses of open-ended questions collected from a post-survey given to UNO students enrolled in a service learning course in the spring or fall semesters of 2019. The open-ended questions gave students the opportunity to share how their service learning experience impacted their relationship to and perceptions of academia and their community. The following themes emerged from student responses and revealed a transformative service learning experience: expanded awareness of social issues and community resources, deepened sense of civic responsibility, increased connection to the community, improved self-efficacy, and solidified career choice. Beyond shaping identity, students experience a greater sense of belonging and stewardship to their community. Giving students the opportunity to experience service learning allows them to share their talents and build relationships in a real-world setting and explore their identity within a larger context. This instills a greater level of confidence in the work they do on campus and within the community

Laboratory investigation of platelet function in patients with mild bleeding disorders

Platelets play a crucial role in haemostasis by preventing bleeding at sites of vascular injury. Inherited or acquired platelet defects can impair haemostasis resulting in bleeding symptoms of varying severity ranging from mild to excessive which can be life threatening. Diagnosis of mild platelet-based bleeding disorders is challenging due to the absence of a gold standard technique and their variable bleeding symptoms and bleeding phenotypes observed in healthy individual as well as other haemostatic disorders. The work in this thesis built on the previous studies in the genotyping and platelet phenotyping project allowing further characterization of inherited platelet function defects in individuals with mild bleeding disorders. Platelet aggregation and secretion in samples from 206 patients were investigated during the course of this thesis and were categorised on the basis of the observed defects. Surprisingly, in over a half of these patients, an ex vivo platelet function defect was not found. The genetic investigation of selected cases using whole exome sequencing identified mutations in number of genes previously known to be critical in platelet biology. This thesis also focused on evaluation of three other platelet techniques by comparison with lumi-aggregometry to assess their overall potential in detecting platelet function defects. Further studies are still needed to further assess the potential of these techniques before they can be applied in routine clinical diagnosis

Overcoming Institutional Barriers to Service Learning

Partnerships between universities and community organizations contribute to sustainable community development by creating networks of resources that may not otherwise exist among university faculty, students and community members. Service learning serves as a vessel for connecting and strengthening these resources; however, barriers within universities limit effective practice. University faculty members often cite time constraints, coordination challenges, and lack of support as deterrents to the incorporation of service learning projects in their courses. To overcome such barriers, universities can implement institutional structures and programs that facilitate community-engaged learning. A case study of the Service Learning Academy (SLA) at the University of Nebraska Omaha (UNO) provides an example of an institution that uses a number of strategies to deliberately solve challenges in service learning. The SLA is located in UNO’s Community Engagement Center and has a team of staff, graduate assistants, and student workers. Our location and resources allow the SLA to serve as a central hub for service learning, facilitating relationships between faculty, students, and community partners. With its unique design as a center for campus-wide service learning, UNO’s SLA has developed best practices and strategies to ease the facilitation process for university faculty. This creates the opportunity for coordinated programming and opens a door for faculty to embrace engaged learning for students that ties theory to practice

55 dB High Gain L-Band EDFA Utilizing Single Pump Source

In this paper, we experimentally investigate the performance of an efficient high gain triple-pass L-band Erbium-Doped Fiber (EDF) amplifier structure with a single pump source. The amplifier gain and noise figure variation with EDF pump power, input signal power and wavelengths have been investigated. The generated backward Amplified Spontaneous Emission (ASE) noise of the first amplifier stage is suppressed by using a tunable band-pass filter. The amplifier achieves a signal gain of 55 dB with low noise figure of 3.8 dB at -50 dBm input signal power. The amplifier gain shows significant improvement of 12.8 dB compared to amplifier structure without ASE suppression