Identification of Bacitracin Produced by Local Isolate of Bacillus licheniformis

Bacillus licheniformis was isolated from soil of different house gardens. Diagnosis was performed according to Gram stain, motility, shape forming, aerobic condition and other tests. Bacitracin was primary identified after its activity was tested against some species of Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria. Identification was completed by using thin layer chromatographic technique

The Potential Ability of Plaster to Cause Breast Cancer as Indicated by CA15-3 and CEA Antigens in Women Working in Gypsum Factory

Plaster is an important form of gypsum that mainly used in building construction. Breast cancer was investigated among women exposure to the dust of such material. The levels of CA15-3 and carcinoembryonic antigens (CEA) as indicators for breast cancer were measured in the serum of 120 women working in a plaster factory. All of involved women showed a normal level of CEA, while 12.5% of them had moderately elevated levels of CA15-3. In conclusion; plaster dust has no significant effect to cause breast cancer in working women. Moderately high levels of CA15-3 in some of exposed women may relate to liver diseases

A Comparative Study between Piled-Raft and Two Soil Improvement Techniques

This investigational study was directed to establish the correlation between piled raft foundation and two soil improvement techniques, stone columns and lime columns to evaluate the bearing improvement ratio BCR for the soft clay soil with three values of undrained shear strength, 8 kPa,10 kPa and 12 kPa. The 12 model tests was conducted in the present work, three models of untreated soil, three models of soil with piled raft, three models of soil treated with stone columns and three models of soil treated with lime columns. The container used in experimental works was made of steel with plane area of 500 mm * 500 mm and 500mm in height. The thickness of soil sample inside the container was 400 mm.The study showed that the piled raft was more efficient in the bearing capacity improvement than the two soil improvement techniques. The bearing improvement ratio were 3.39, 3.27 and 2.78 in the three model tests of piled-raft for three samples of soil, respectively, while the lime columns provided the lowest values of the bearing improvement ratio were 1.64, 1.67 and 1.8 respectively

Statins as anti-inflammatory agents: A potential therapeutic role in sight-threatening non-infectious uveitis

In addition to the known lipid-lowering effects, statins are now widely accepted to have antiinflammatory and immunomodulatory effects. Adjunctive use of statins has proven beneficial in the context of a wide range of inflammatory diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis. Evidence also suggests that statins may also have utility in the management of uveitis, a form of sight threatening inflammation which occurs in the eye. In this article, we outline our rationale behind a clinical trial of simvastatin as a steroid-sparing agent in uveitis, to which patient recruitment started last year. Potential risks associated with the clinical use of statins, including putative effects on the eyes, are discussed

Water Infiltration Characteristics for Artificial Lake in Bahr Al-Najaf

Al-Najaf is one of the important cities in Iraq due to its high spiritual and religious reputation that attracts Moslems from different parts of the world to visit the holy shrine of Al-Imam Ali (peace be upon him). The city of Al-Najaf and particularly Bahr Al-Najaf area, is expecting a number of large scale construction activities, among these development activities are the planning of a new tourist city called Sayf Thulfiqar city. Sayf Thulfiqar city is planned to be the largest tourist city in Iraq. The area of the proposed tourist city is about 63 hectares, consists of an artificial lake 1000m long surrounded by twelve towers and a number of small dwellings. This lake is considered as a big challenge in planning, construction, and sustainability. The challenging points primarily are the sources of water required to fill the lake, infiltration characteristics of the soil at site, weather conditions, etc.The present paper focuses on investigating the rate of water infiltration through the base and side walls of a pit with dimensions 3m by 3m and 0.5m in depth excavated and filled with water in the location of artificial lake. The process of filling was repeated several times with full observation and continuous field measurements. The results revealed some useful characteristics and correlations regarding the infiltration of water of artificial lake in Bahr Al-Najaf

Quantifying the Relationship between Capability and Health in Older People: Can't Map, Won't Map

BACKGROUND: Intuitively, health and capability are distinct but linked concepts. This study aimed to quantify the link between a measure of health status (EQ-5D-3L) and capability (ICECAP-O) using regression-based methods. METHODS: EQ-5D-3L and ICECAP-O data were collected from a sample of older people ( n = 584), aged over 65 years, requiring a hospital visit and/or care home resident, and recruited to one of 3 studies forming the Medical Crisis in Older People (MCOP) program in England. The link of EQ-5D-3L with 1) ICECAP-O tariff scores were estimated using ordinary least squares (OLS) or censored least absolute deviation (CLAD) regression models; and 2) ICECAP-O domain scores was estimated using multinomial logistic (MNL) regression. Mean absolute error (MAE), root mean squared error (RMSE), absolute difference (AD) between mean observed and estimated values, and the R(2) statistic were used to judge model performance. RESULTS: In this sample of older people ( n = 584), higher scores on the EQ-5D-3L were shown to be linked with higher ICECAP-O scores when using linear regression. An OLS-regression model was identified to be the best performing model with the lowest error statistics (AD = 0.0000; MAE = 0.1208; MSE = 0.1626) and highest goodness of fit ( R(2) = 0.3532); model performance was poor when predicting the lower ICECAP-O tariff scores. The three domains of the EQ-5D-3L showing a statistically significant quantifiable link with the ICECAP-O tariff score were self-care, usual activities, and anxiety/depression. CONCLUSION: A quantifiable, but weak, link between health (EQ-5D-3L) and capability (ICECAP-O) was identified. The findings from this study add further support that the ICECAP-O is providing complimentary information to the EQ-5D-3L. Mapping between the 2 measures is not advisable and the measures should not be used as direct substitutes to capture the impact of interventions in economic evaluations

Modelling spillover effects on informal carers: the carer QALY trap

The provision of informal (unpaid) care can impose significant ‘spillover effects’ on carers, and accounting for these effects is consistent with the efficiency and equity objectives of health technology assessment (HTA). Inclusion of these effects in health economic models, particularly carer health-related quality of life (QOL), can have a substantial impact on net quality-adjusted life year (QALY) gains and the relative cost effectiveness of new technologies. Typically, consideration of spillover effects improves the value of a technology, but in some circumstances, consideration of spillover effects can lead to situations whereby life-extending treatments for patients may be considered cost ineffective due to their impact on carer QOL. In this piece we revisit the classic ‘QALY trap’ and introduce an analogous ‘carer QALY trap’ which may have practical implications for economic evaluations where the inclusion of carer QOL reduces incremental QALY gains. Such results may align with a strict QALY-maximisation rule, however we consider the extent to which this principle may be at odds with the preferences of carers themselves (and possibly society more broadly), potentially leading decision makers into the carer QALY trap as a result. We subsequently reflect on potential solutions, highlighting the important (albeit limited) role that deliberation has to play in HTA