Respuesta química y eficacia agronómica de cultivos de girasol (Helianthus agnnuus L.) a fuentes de nitrógeno orgánico y fertilizantes convencionales nitrogenados en suelos áridos

Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) is an option for oilseed production, particularly in dry land areas due to good root system development. In this study, two field experiments were performed in the El-Khattara region (Sharkia Governorate, Egypt) during the 2005 season. The objective of this research was to determine the effect of organicnitrogen (ON) sources and their combinations as well as to compare the effect of ON and ammonium sulfate (AS) as a conventional fertilizer added individually or in combination on growth, yield components, oil percentage and the uptake of some macronutrients by sunflowers grown on sandy soil. The treatments of chicken manure (CM) and a mixture of farmyard manure (FYM) with CM were superior to the other treatments and gave the highest yield, dry matter yield, NPK uptake by plants at all growth stages along with seed yield at the mature stage. The effect of the different ON on crop yield and its components may follow the order; CM> palma residues (PR)> FYM. This was more emphasized when the materials were mixed with AS at a ratio of 3:1 and 1:1. The uptake of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) by plants was affected by the addition of different N sources and treatments. The highest nutrient content and uptake by straw were obtained when treated with CM followed by PR at all growth stages, while it was PR followed by CM for seeds. Oil recovery was shown to respond to the N supply and the changes in individual fatty acids were not statistically different. However, it seems that the application of organic fertilizers resulted in an increase in total unsaturated fatty acids compared to the control.El girasol (Helianthus annuus) es una opción para la producción de semillas oleaginosas, en particular en terrenos arenosos debido al buen desarrollo de sus raíces. En este trabajo, dos estudios de campo fueron realizados en la región de El-Ishattara (Sharkia Governorate, Egypt) durante la estación 2005. El efecto de diversas fuentes de nitrógeno orgánico (ON) y el de su combinación, así como el efecto de ON y sulfato amónico (AS) como fertilizante convencional añadido individualmente o en combinación ha sido estudiado en base a su crecimiento, rendimiento de los componentes, porcentaje de aceite y consumo de micronutrientes en girasoles crecidos en suelos arenosos. El tratamiento con estiércol de pollo (CM) y una mezcla de estiércol de corral (FYM) con CM fue superior a otros tratamientos y dio el más alto rendimiento, la mayor cantidad de materia seca, y el mayor consumo de NPK por la planta en todos los estadios de crecimiento, así como en el rendimiento de la semilla en el estado de madurez El efecto promotor de los diferentes ON en el rendimiento del cultivo y sus componentes puede seguir el orden siguiente: CM> residuos de palma (PR)> FYM. Este efecto fue mayor cuando los materiales fueron mezclados con AS en una proporción 3:1 y 1:1. El consumo de nitrógeno (N), fósforo (P) y potasio (K) por la plantas dependió de la adición de diferentes fuentes de nitrógeno y tratamientos. El consumo y contenido de nutrientes más alto del tallo fue obtenido cuando se trató con CM seguido por PR en todos los estadios de crecimiento, mientras que PR fue seguido por CM para semillas. Se ha encontrado que la recuperación del aceite responde a la adición de nitrógeno, pero los cambios en los ácidos grasos no fueron significativamente diferentes. Sin embargo la aplicación de fertilizantes orgánicos resultó en un incremento de los ácidos grasos insaturados

Potencial antioxidante total de zumos, bebidas y bebidas calientes consumidas en Egipto determinadas mediante ensayo in vitro con DPPH

Plant foods contain different classes and types of antioxidants and knowledge of their total antioxidant potential (TAP), which is the cumulative capacity of food components to scavenge free radicals, would be useful for epidemiological purposes.To accomplish this, a variety of fruit juices, hot drinks and beverages commonly consumed in Egypt were analyzed using in vitro DPPH assay. The order of effectiveness of fruit juices in inhibiting free radicals was as follows: red grapes juice > mango juice > guava juice > cocktail juice > pineapple juice > orange juice > cherry juice > apple juice. Among beverages and hot drinks, teas followed by coffees had the greatest TAP. These data confirm grape juice, teas and coffees as good dietary sources of antioxidants.Las plantas comestibles contienen diferentes clases y tipos de antioxidantes y el conocimiento de su potencial antioxidante total (TAP), que es la capacidad acumulativa de los componentes de los alimentos para captar radicales libres, debería ser útil en estudios epidemiológicos. De acuerdo a esto, una variedad de zumos de fruta, bebidas calientes y bebidas consumidas habitualmente en Egipto fueron analizadas usando un ensayo in vitro con DPPH. El orden de efectividad de los zumos de frutas en inhibir los radicales libres fue el siguiente: zumo de uva tinta zumo de mango zumo de guayaba zumo de macedonia de frutas zumo de piña zumo de naranja zumo de cereza zumo de manzana. Entre las bebidas y bebidas calientes, el té seguido por el café son los que tuvieron mayores TAPs. Estos datos confirman que el zumo de uva, el té y el café son buenas fuentes de antioxidantes

Adjuvant role of corticosteroids in the treatment of community-acquired pneumonia

AbstractBackgroundDespite progress in life-support measures and antimicrobial therapy, the mortality of severe pneumonia has not varied since the mid-1990s, suggesting that other factors are of crucial importance in the evolution of this respiratory infection.ObjectiveTo evaluate the impact of hydrocortisone infusion in community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in the attenuation of systemic inflammation and reduction of sepsis-related complications.MethodsThe study enrolled 80 patients, clinically and radiolodically diagnosed as community-acquired pneumonia, admitted to Chest department, Respiratory Intensive Care Unit, General Medicine Department and General Medicine Intensive Care Unit of Zagazig University Hospitals. Sixty of them were randomized to receive hydrocortisone as a bolus dose of 200mg intravenously once (only at day 1) then 10mg/h IV infusion for 7days and twenty received placebo, along with antibiotics according to IDSA/ATS 2007 guidelines which were given for both groups. The following parameters were compared in both groups; PaO2 and PaO2/FiO2 ratio, length of hospital stay, duration of IV antibiotic treatment, duration of mechanical ventilation, weaning success from mechanical ventilation, pneumonia complication and hospital outcome.ResultsHydrocortisone treated patients showed a significant improvement in PaO2 and PaO2/FiO2 ratio, a significant reduction in White blood cell count, C-reactive protein levels, Erythrocyte sedimentation rate, a significant reduction in the duration of mechanical ventilation, duration of IV antibiotic treatment, pneumonia complications, and length of hospital stay. Also there was an improvement of hospital outcome, weaning success from mechanical ventilation and radiological resolution compared to the placebo group.ConclusionAdjunctive 7day course of low dose hydrocortisone IV in patients with CAP hastens clinical recovery and prevents the development of sepsis-related complications with a significant reduction in the duration of mechanical ventilation, duration of IV antibiotics and length of hospital stay with the improvement in hospital outcome and weaning success from mechanical ventilation

HEPATOPROTECTIVE AND HEPATOTHERAPUTIC EFFECTS OF PROPOLIS AGAINST D-GALACTOSAMINE/LIPOPOLYSACCHARIDE-INDUCED LIVER DAMAGE IN RATS

Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate the potential hepatoprotective and hepatotherapeutic activities of propolis against D-galactosamine and lipopolysaccharide (D-GaIN/LPS)-induced hepatotoxicity in rats.Methods: Hepatotoxicity was induced in rats by intra peritoneal injection of GalN (300 mg/kg) and LPS (30 μg/kg). In the hepatoprotection experiment, propolis was administered orally for 10 days before induction of hepatoxicity. In another experiment (hepatotherapy), propolis was dosed immediately after GalN/LPS injection.Results: Injection of GalN/LPS to rats induced hepatic damage that was manifested by a significant increase in the activities of aminotransferases, alkaline phosphatase, lactate dehydrogenase and levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and total bilirubin in serum. Liver homogenate of intoxicated animals had the lower content of reduced glutathione with increased levels of the hepatic malondialdehyde and caspase-3 enzyme. Histological data presented marked damage in liver sections of intoxicated rats. Oral dosing of propolis before or once immediately after intoxication reversed these altered parameters near to normal values.Conclusion: Liver apoptotic events such as DNA fragmentation and increased caspase-3 activity observed during intoxication were prevented by pre and post- propolis treatment. These results suggest that propolis could afford significant protection and therapy in alleviation of hepatotoxicity.Â

SMART OUTLIER DETECTION OF WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORK

Data sets collected from wireless sensor networks (WSN) are usually considered unreliable and subject to errors due to limited sensor capabilities and hard environmental resulting in a subset of the sensors data called outlier data. This paper proposes a technique to detect outlier data base on spatial-temporal similarity among data collected by geographically distributed sensors. The proposed technique is able to identify an abnormal subset of data collected by sensor node as outlier data. Moreover the proposed technique is able to classify this abnormal observation, an error data set or event affected set. Simulation result shows that high detection rate is achieved compared to conventional outlier detection techniques while preserving low positive false alarm rate

Contribution of tocols to food Sensorial properties, stability, and overall quality

This paper reviews the contribution of tocopherols and tocotrienols (tocols) to food quality as well as their bioactivity and health-promoting properties, which have attracted researchers and food technologists. Tocols are lipophilic phenolic antioxidants encompassing tocopherols that are characterized by a saturated side chain and tocotrienols with an unsaturated isoprenoid side chain. Tocols are natural constituents of several foods like dairy, vegetable oils, nuts, and grains. Their presence in foods, namely, as food additives, helps prevent lipid oxidation, which negatively affects the sensorial quality of foods, and even the nutritional value and safety. Supplementation of animals’ diets with tocopherols has proven its effectiveness in preserving fresh color and flavor of the meat. Although alfa-tocopherol displays much higher vitamin E activity than other tocols, health outcomes have been reported for tocotrienols, thus calling for more studies.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Comparación entre el efecto de la γ-irradiación y el horneado en el perfil y en la actividad antioxidante de los lípidos del germen de trigo

In order to utilize wheat germ, a nutrient-dense byproduct of the wheat milling industry, in various food products, different treatments are used to investigate and stabilize its influence on lipid characteristics. However, there are no reports on the effect of γ-irradiation on the lipid profile of wheat germ. In this study, the impact of γ-irradiation (at radiation doses 1/4, 1/2 and 1 kGy) and roasting at (160 °C for 20 min) on the lipid constituents of wheat germ was examined. Both thermal and irradiation treatments did not have a significant effect on the total lipid recovery or the fatty acid composition of wheat germ lipids. The fatty acid profile was found to be made up of linoleic followed by oleic and palmitic as the major fatty acids. An increase in the content of free fatty acids characterized the lipid profile of the irradiated wheat germ samples. Antiradical properties of lipids from roasted and irradiated samples were analyzed using the bleaching of the stable 1,1-diphenyl-2- picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH). Lipids from irradiated samples exhibited relatively stronger radical scavenging potential than lipids from roasted wheat germ. It has been concluded that γ- irradiation could be applied for wheat germ preservation, where it might be limited to a dose of 1/4 kGy in the processing.Se estudió el efecto de la γ-irradiación (dosis de irradiación de 1/4, 1/2 y 1 kGy) y del horneado (160 °C durante 20 min) en los componentes lipídicos del germen de trigo, un subproducto rico en nutrientes de la industria harinera. Ninguno de los tratamientos empleados tuvo un efecto significativo ni en el total de los lípidos recuperados ni en su composición en ácidos grasos. Los ácidos grasos mayoritarios fueron el ácido linoleico, seguido de los ácidos oleico y palmítico. Un aumento del contenido de ácidos grasos libres caracterizó el perfil lipídico de las muestras irradiadas. Las propiedades antiradicalarias de los lípidos de las muestras irradiadas y horneadas fueron estudiadas analizando el blanqueo del radical estable 1,1-difenil-2-picrilhidrazilo. Los lípidos de las muestras irradiadas exhibieron un potencial antiradicalario superior a los lípidos del germen de trigo horneado. Estos resultados sugieren que la γ-irradiación puede ser aplicada a la estabilización del germen de trigo, si bien la irradiación empleada podría estar limitada a 1/4 kGy

Occurrence of tocols in foods: an updated shot of current databases

Tocols are present in various foods, mostly in fruits and in plant seeds. Edible oils are the most important natural dietary sources of tocopherols and tocotrienols, collectively known as tocols. Tocopherols and tocotrienols are considered beneficial for their antioxidant effect which impacts on prevention of different health conditions. This perspective is addressed to give an updated picture of the tocol occurrence in foods. Moreover, the current state of the art of tocols in updated databases is explored and commented outlining their importance and future trends.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Contraception use among Muslim women in Alexandria, Egypt: a descriptive pilot study

Background: This pilot study aimed to create a questionnaire survey directed to understand knowledge gaps related to contraception among Muslim women in Alexandria, Egypt, so potential interventions could be designed to enable more informed decision-making. The project was a mixed-method, cross-sectional study using a questionnaire survey.Methods: Participants were randomly selected at outpatient clinics at Alexandria university hospitals in September and October 2020. The inclusion criteria were to be an 18 year old or older woman and able to give consent. The recruitment goal for this pilot study was 100 participants. The consented participants were interviewed about demographics, socio-structural and contraception use. The questionnaire was tested using a focus group of 11 women. The study data was collected using KoBoToolbox and exported to the SPSS software for descriptive analysis. The primary outcome was to validate the survey questionnaire and the secondary outcome to assess knowledge regarding contraception methods and emergency contraception.Results: The age of study participants ranged from 18-60 with a mean of 34 years. Almost all participants had previously heard of various contraceptive methods and 75% used them before. The majority did not know about emergency contraception. Most respondents had a favorable attitude toward family planning, and their primary sources of information were family and friends.Conclusions: Preliminary findings show that most women knew about contraception methods, though few of them heard of emergency contraception. Because of the patriarchal nature of Egyptian society, family planning education should target the whole population