"Dissecting the poisoned honey" : Sexist Humor in Egypt: A linguistic analysis of sexism in Colloquial Cairene Arabic jokes

This paper attempts to shed light on sexism in Egyptian Internet jokes. It examines how language, as an institution largely controlled by men, is manipulated and used to disparage women in this discursive mode of humor. Through running a qualitative and quantitative analysis of 284 sexist internet jokes, the study addressed three points; namely, the most frequently targeted category of women in sexist jokes; the most salient physical and personal attributes and finally the way sexist jokes is used to promote violence against women. The analysis has shown that the "wife" is the category most ridiculed. The data also revealed that in spite of the freedom in anonymity that the internet provides, personal attributes far outnumber the physical features. The jokes conformed to the conservative nature of the society as derision of physical features was done through the use of general terms. The analysis has shown that 'hatefulness' was the most highly criticised personal attribute, with "stupidity" coming second. It was also shown that under the guise of benign amusement, the effect of these jokes go beyond tolerating gender inequality to actually promoting physical violence against women. We conclude that in a patriarchal social system like that of Egypt, which already disparages women as the 'marked' and the 'different', such jokes should not be dismissed lightly as "just jokes".Este artículo trata de arrojar luz sobre el sexismo en los chistes de Internet egipcios. Examina cómo el lenguaje, entendido como una institución controlada en gran medida por los hombres, es manipulado y utilizado para desacreditar a las mujeres en esta modalidad discursiva del humor. El estudio consta de un análisis cualitativo y cuantitativo de 284 chistes sexistas de Internet

Humor sexista en Egipto: Un análisis lingüístico del sexismo en los chistes coloquiales árabes cairotas

Aquest article tracta sobre el sexisme en els acudits d'Internet egipcis. Examina com el llenguatge, entès com una institució controlada en gran mesura pels homes, és manipulat i utilitzat per desacreditar les dones en aquesta modalitat discursiva de l'humor. L'estudi consta d'una anàlisi qualitativa i quantitativa de 284 acudits sexistes d'Internet.This paper attempts to shed light on sexism in Egyptian Internet jokes. It examines how language, as an institution largely controlled by men, is manipulated and used to disparage women in this discursive mode of humor. Through running a qualitative and quantitative analysis of 284 sexist internet jokes, the study addressed three points; namely, the most frequently targeted category of women in sexist jokes; the most salient physical and personal attributes and finally the way sexist jokes is used to promote violence against women. The analysis has shown that the 'wife' is the category most ridiculed.  The data also revealed that in spite of the freedom in anonymity that the internet provides, personal attributes far outnumber the physical features.   The jokes conformed to the conservative nature of the society as derision of physical features was done through the use of general terms.  The analysis has shown that 'hatefulness' was the most highly criticised personal attribute, with 'stupidity' coming second.  It was also shown that under the guise of benign amusement, the effect of these jokes go beyond tolerating gender inequality to actually promoting physical violence against women. We conclude that in a patriarchal social system like that of Egypt, which already disparages women as the 'marked' and the 'different', such jokes should not be dismissed lightly as 'just jokes."Este artículo trata de arrojar luz sobre el sexismo en los chistes de Internet egipcios. Examina cómo el lenguaje, entendido como una institución controlada en gran medida por los hombres, es manipulado y utilizado para desacreditar a las mujeres en esta modalidad discursiva del humor. El estudio consta de un análisis cualitativo y cuantitativo de 284 chistes sexistas de Internet

Laboratory findings in COVID-19 - alterations of hematological, immunological, biochemical, hormonal and other lab panels: a narrative review

Up to the present date, according to the official reports of the World Health Organization (WHO), 205,338,159 patients have been confirmed with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and 4,333,094 have died as a consequence of this infectious disorder. The majority of COVID-19 patients will develop hematological, biochemical, immunological, hormonal and other complex alterations of their laboratory data which may be diagnosed using different biomarkers. In this paper, we review the alterations of the hematology, immunology, biochemistry, hormonal and other laboratory panels discovered in the subjects diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection, based on the available data in the literature

Metabolomic profile, anti-trypanosomal potential and molecular docking studies of <i>Thunbergia grandifolia</i>

Trypanosomiasis is a protozoan disease transmitted via Trypanosoma brucei. This study aimed to examine the metabolic profile and anti-trypanosomal effect of methanol extract of Thunbergia grandifolia leaves. The liquid chromatography-high resolution electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry (LC-HRESIMS) revealed the identification of fifteen compounds of iridoid, flavonoid, lignan, phenolic acid, and alkaloid classes. The extract displayed a promising inhibitory activity against T. brucei TC 221 with MIC value of 1.90 μg/mL within 72 h. A subsequent in silico analysis of the dereplicated compounds (i.e. inverse docking, molecular dynamic simulation, and absolute binding free energy) suggested both rhodesain and farnesyl diphosphate synthase as probable targets for two compounds among those dereplicated ones in the plant extract (i.e. diphyllin and avacennone B). The absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity (ADMET) profiling of diphyllin and avacennone were calculated accordingly, where both compounds showed acceptable drug-like properties. This study highlighted the antiparasitic potential of T. grandifolia leaves

'Discourse on the Go': Thematic Analysis of Vehicle Graffiti on the Roads of Egypt

This paper investigates graffiti drawn on vehicles in Egypt as an expression of their authors' social values, religious ideologies and political affiliations.  Little research has been done in Egypt on these meaning-loaded messages. This paper gives further evidence that graffiti are a very powerful mode of expression for groups that feel disenfranchised by the wider society.  The data comprise (614) written graffiti taken from both highway and in-city vehicles from different parts of Egypt. This paper employs Fairclough's (1995) post-structuralist model of discourse analysis which extends the concept of discourse from the traditional and natural 'language in use' to be a social practice per se. One of the aims of this study is to explore the various discourse domains of vehicle graffiti in Egypt through thematically analyzing their patterns of usage. For this aim, the authors have devised a four-pronged thematic classification of such graffiti. The paper also tackles some of the lexical features of graffiti and addresses the language and language variations used. Results show that religious expressions constitute more than half the data.  It is also shown that graffiti about the self or car are positive whereas statements about 'the other' are negative. The analysis reveals a strong positive inclination in the social and philosophical expressions with almost nonexistent political graffiti.Keywords: Graffiti, post-structuralist model, Discourse Analysis, discourse domains, Egyp

'Discourse on the Go': Thematic Analysis of Vehicle Graffiti on the Roads of Egypt

This paper investigates graffiti drawn on vehicles in Egypt as an expression of their authors' social values, religious ideologies and political affiliations.  Little research has been done in Egypt on these meaning-loaded messages. This paper gives further evidence that graffiti are a very powerful mode of expression for groups that feel disenfranchised by the wider society.  The data comprise (614) written graffiti taken from both highway and in-city vehicles from different parts of Egypt. This paper employs Fairclough's (1995) post-structuralist model of discourse analysis which extends the concept of discourse from the traditional and natural 'language in use' to be a social practice per se. One of the aims of this study is to explore the various discourse domains of vehicle graffiti in Egypt through thematically analyzing their patterns of usage. For this aim, the authors have devised a four-pronged thematic classification of such graffiti. The paper also tackles some of the lexical features of graffiti and addresses the language and language variations used. Results show that religious expressions constitute more than half the data.  It is also shown that graffiti about the self or car are positive whereas statements about 'the other' are negative. The analysis reveals a strong positive inclination in the social and philosophical expressions with almost nonexistent political graffiti. Keywords: Graffiti, post-structuralist model, Discourse Analysis, discourse domains, Egyp

Comparative Study of Essential Oils from Different Organs of <i>Syzygium cumini</i> (Pamposia) Based on GC/MS Chemical Profiling and In Vitro Antiaging Activity

Syzygium cumini L. is an evergreen tree belonging to family Myrtaceae, employed for different traditional uses like diabetes, inflammation, and fever. The current study aimed to compare the chemical compositions of the essential oils (EOs) isolated from different organs of Syzygium cumini (leaves (Scl), fruits (Scf), seeds (Scs), and bark (Scb)) using a GC/MS analysis. Also, a chemometric analysis was applied to explore the main similarities and differences among different organs using a Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and a hierarchal cluster analysis (HCA). Furthermore, in vitro antiaging activities were investigated via anti-collagenase, anti-elastase, and anti-hyaluronidase assays. The GC-MS analysis revealed 82 compounds representing 92.13%, 99.42%, 100%, and 92.97% in Scl, Scf, Scs, and Scb, respectively. The predominant components were α-pinene, β-pinene, (E)-β-caryophyllene, α-caryophyllene, caryophyllene oxide, and α-humulene epoxide II with variable percentages. All EOs were positioned on positive PC1, except for Scs, which was positioned on the negative side in a separate quadrant. The HCA dendrogram displayed the closeness of Scl and Scb, which was not clearly recognized in the PCA score plot. Moreover, the Scs oils were totally discriminated from other parts. The Scl and Scs oils showed superior anti-collagenase, anti-elastase, and anti-hyaluronidase activities. Thus, S. cumini oils should be considered for cosmetic preparations to retard skin aging manifestations

Insights on the Inhibitory Power of Flavonoids on Tyrosinase Activity: A Survey from 2016 to 2021

Tyrosinase is a multifunctional copper-containing oxidase enzyme that initiates melanin synthesis in humans. Excessive accumulation of melanin pigments or the overexpression of tyrosinase may result in skin-related disorders such as aging spots, wrinkles, melasma, freckles, lentigo, ephelides, nevus, browning and melanoma. Nature expresses itself through the plants as a source of phytochemicals with diverse biological properties. Among these bioactive compounds, flavonoids represent a huge natural class with different categories such as flavones, flavonols, isoflavones, flavan-3-ols, flavanones and chalcones that display antioxidant and tyrosinase inhibitor activities with a diversity of mechanistic approaches. In this review, we explore the role of novel or known flavonoids isolated from different plant species and their participation as tyrosinase inhibitors reported in the last five years from 2016 to 2021. We also discuss the mechanistic approaches through the different studies carried out on these compounds, including in vitro, in vivo and in silico computational research. Information was obtained from Google Scholar, PubMed, and Science Direct. We hope that the updated comprehensive data presented in this review will help researchers to develop new safe, efficacious, and effective drug or skin care products for the prevention of and/or protection against skin-aging disorders