Potentially curative treatment in patients with hepatocellular cancer—results from the liver cancer research network

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/92135/1/apt5174.pd

Effects of selected additives on a luminous diffusion flame

Imperial Users onl

Developing city-level sustainability indicators in the MENA region with the cases of Benghazi and Amman

The development of a methodological framework for local and institutional sustainability assessment can be helpful for planners and urban governments. The aim of this research is to develop an approach to local and institutional sustainability assessment (ALISA). It is designed to assist in the clarification, formulation, preparation, selection, and ranking of key indicators to facilitate the assessment of city sustainability at the local and institutional level in the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) cities. The ALISA methodological framework is developed using joint documentary and analysed data in the two case studies of Benghazi and Amman. The data for this also includes focus-group discussions, semi-structured interviews, and questionnaires that reflect the approach required in order to develop a combined framework that assists the development of sustainability indicators. The initial list of proposed sustainability indicators for Benghazi contains 37 indicators. This list was developed based on logical information and procedure which has been supported by consultants and specialists in sustainability and urbanization from the University of Benghazi in the form of workshops as well as searching through the literature on sustainable development. Similarly, with support from consultants and specialists in sustainability and urbanization from the Applied science University a list of 36 indicators was also developed in Amman. Both lists were given to the local communities in Benghazi and Amman to be ranked based on priority to identify two final lists of sustainability indicators. The results indicated that economic and social indicators were highly ranked in Benghazi and Amman, respectively

Synthesis, Spectral Characterization, Thermal and In vitro Antimicrobial Studies for Novel Co(II) and Ni(II) Complexes of (N,N'-(1,2-Phenylene)Bis(2-Aminobenzamide)

Novel metal complexes of Co(II) and Ni(II) have been  prepared from reaction of their different salts with previously prepared ligand (L) namely (N,N'-(1,2-phenylene)bis(2-aminobenzamide). Synthesis ligand and its metal (II) complexes (1-5) were reported and characterized with the help of analytical and physiochemical analysis as elemental, IR spectra, thermal (TG/DTG), UV-Vis, magnetic susceptibility and molar conductance in DMF, On the view of the previous data and measurements, the structure and composition species behave as mononuclear and octahedral geometry has been proposed for all the complexes except for complex (1) adopted tetrahedral structure. Furthermore, the in vitro antibacterial Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923) as Gram-positive strain, Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922) as Gram-negative strain and antifungal Candida albicans (ATCC 10231) have been studied for all samples using disc diffusion method against Ampicillin and Fluconazole as positive controls, respectively. The results show that complexation facilitates the activity of most studied metal complexes than the free ligand

Natural history of irritable bowel syndrome

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/73897/1/j.1365-2036.2004.01929.x.pd

Bioactive constituents and allelopathic activities of the invasive weed Ranunculus sceleratus L. Nile Delta, Egypt

Ranunculus sceleratus L. (celery-leaved buttercup) is a herbaceous plant grows in wet and moist habitats and is native to temperate and boreal North America and Eurasia. Moreover, it is listed as an invasive weed in northern Africa, Europe and Asia. This study aimed to determine some secondary products in R. sceleratus (Shoot and Root system) collected from canal banks of drains, Nile Delta, Egypt and to demonstrate their antioxidant and allelopathic potential. Results revealed that, methanolic extract of R. sceleratus rich in phenols, saponins and tannins. The antioxidant activity of the R. sceleratus has IC50 value of 0.37 mg/ml and 0.34 mg/ml for shoot and root, respectively, compared to 0.15 mg/ml for catechol. At 400 mg/ml, Chenopodium murale germination was inhibited by 79.74% and 92.64 for shoot and root extract, respectively, compared to control. However, the shoot growth was reduced by 76.06 % and 87.96 %, with the same sequence. The root growth was more sensitive to the allelopathic effect compared to the shoot, where it was inhibited by 82.68% and 98.67%, respectively, compared to control at the highest concentration. The obtained results on this invisive weed R. sceleratus could be a source of eco-friendly bioherbicides against C. murale and as a source of antioxidants

Dietary intake and the risk of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease: a cross sectional study in volunteers

Background: Although diet has been associated with gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD), the role of dietary components (total energy, macro and micronutrients) is unknown. We examined associations of GORD symptoms with intakes of specific dietary components

Open-Data and Data Acquisition for Smart Cities and Urban Mobility Studies: Potential Approaches and Current Challenges

The experience of urban users is shaped by cities—by their shapes, components, and how they function. An immense quantity of data is included in the process of how the city functions, how it affects its inhabitants, and how its residents view its components. Researchers need an extensive number of datasets on land use (type & quantification) and geometric dimensions of the built environment (3D, form, & pattern) to fully grasp this relationship. In addition to the need to collect data about users’ experience via using web-based/location-based surveys. The acquisition, exploration, and analysis of these datasets contributes to enabling a better understanding, operation, and monitoring of the city’s systems. Thus, facilitating the design, implementation, and operation of functional, efficient, and reliable smart cities. This paper focuses on transportation and mobility, and how can open-data sources be utilized for data acquisition for urban mobility studies. This highlights possible, simple, and accessible open-data acquisition tools for urban planners. It further outlines the limitations and challenges for data acquisition related to the global south context. The main aim is to explore the potential of integrating different open-data sources, web-based tools, and data analytics in defining travel time map and accessibility with respect to modality of mobility. It examines the accessibility, availability, and obtainability of data from these open-data sources (i.e., OpenStreetMap, Uber Movement, Jupyter Notebook) to be further used in urban studies, specifically in the context of the selected case study area. An exploratory approach is adopted to perform an analysis between the built environment and travel time during mobility, using Isochrone map acquired from open-data sources. The aim is to delineate an approach that could be adopted by urban planners who are not well acquainted with open-data sources, python scripts and codes. This approach could be utilized, modified, and replicated in further urban studies related to other regional contexts similar to the Egyptian context

Racial and ethnic disparities in access to liver transplantation

Access to liver transplantation is reportedly inequitable for racial/ethnic minorities, but inadequate adjustments for geography and disease progression preclude any meaningful conclusions. We aimed to evaluate the association between candidate race/ethnicity and liver transplant rates after thorough adjustments for these factors and to determine how uniform racial/ethnic disparities were across Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) scores. Chronic end-stage liver disease candidates initially wait-listed between February 28, 2002 and February 27, 2007 were identified from Scientific Registry for Transplant Recipients data. The primary outcome was deceased donor liver transplantation (DDLT); the primary exposure covariate was race/ethnicity (white, African American, Hispanic, Asian, and other). Cox regression was used to estimate the covariate-adjusted DDLT rates by race/ethnicity, which were stratified by the donation service area and MELD score. With averaging across all MELD scores, African Americans, Asians, and others had similar adjusted DDLT rates in comparison with whites. However, Hispanics had an 8% lower DDLT rate versus whites [hazard ratio (HR) = 0.92, P = 0.011]. The disparity among Hispanics was concentrated among patients with MELD scores < 20, with HR = 0.84 ( P = 0.021) for MELD scores of 6 to 14 and HR = 0.85 ( P = 0.009) for MELD scores of 15 to 19. Asians with MELD scores < 15 had a 24% higher DDLT rate with respect to whites (HR = 1.24, P = 0.024). However, Asians with MELD scores of 30 to 40 had a 46% lower DDLT rate (HR = 0.54, P = 0.004). In conclusion, although African Americans did not have significantly different DDLT rates in comparison with similar white candidates, race/ethnicity-based disparities were prominent among subgroups of Hispanic and Asian candidates. By precluding the survival benefit of liver transplantation, this inequity may lead to excess mortality for minority candidates. Liver Transpl 16:1033–1040, 2010. © 2010 AASLD.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/78074/1/22108_ftp.pd