Evaluating the In vivo Efficacy of Copper-Chitosan Nanocomposition for Treating Vascular Wilt Disease in Date Palm

Date palm, Phoenix dactylifera, as one of the most important fruit crops in Egypt and many other countries, can be affected by many fungal diseases, among which the vascular wilt disease, caused by the fungal pathogen Fusarium oxysporum, is considered the most deteriorating one. This study aims at evaluating the efficiency of Copper-Chitosan Nanopcomposition for treating the vascular wilt disease in date palm. The study relies mainly on beleaguering the disease via the double-role functionality of copper-chitosan nanocomposition, i.e. its potential antifungal effect on the fungal pathogen, besides its capability to enhance the immune responses of the infected plant. In this regard, chitosan nanoparticles were prepared according to the ionic gelation method, whereas copper nanoparticles were prepared according to the chemical reduction method. Physicochemical characterization of both chitosan and copper nanoparticles was performed using dynamic light scattering (DLS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and x-ray diffraction (XRD). Copper-chitosan nanocomposition could significantly reduce the vascular wilt disease severity; this means that the nanocomposition can be used in the future for developing new nano-fungicides to control such pathogens

Identification tools of Diplostomum spathaceum Rudolphi, 1819 (Diplostomida: Diplostomidae), a trematode parasite of herring gull (Larus argentatus)

ABSTRACT Specimens of the genus Diplostomum von Nordmann, 1832 (Trematoda, Diplostomidae) were collected from the intestine of the herring gull, Larus argentatus (Laridae), from El-Manzala Lake (Port Said City, Egypt). This parasite species was morphometrically, morphologically, and molecularly studied using the internal transcribed spacer (ITS1-5.8S-ITS2) gene region. The presence of a trematode species of Diplostomum spathaceum Rudolphi, 1819 (Diplostomidae) was observed in 70 % of the examined gull species. This species has generic features of the genus Diplostomum. Distinct criteria that discriminated this species from congeners were the division for body parts, the egg-shaped forebody with a smaller length than the hind body, the ventral sucker being smaller in size than the oral one, the position of the ventral sucker being near to the holdfast, vitellaria was compact and rarely extend anteriorly to the holdfast organ, and smaller egg size. Partial ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 sequences from diplosomite recovered in this study showed that they grouped with members of the genus Diplostomum and formed a monophyletic group supporting the morphological description. Findings obtained from molecular analysis are consistent with data from morphological classification where the parasite recorded was morphologically similar to Diplostomum spathaceum with a first record in Egyptian gulls

Falls Sensei: A serious 3D exploration game to enable the detection of extrinsic home fall hazards for older adults

© 2019 The Author(s). Background: Falls are the main cause of death and injury for older adults in the UK. Many of these falls occur within the home as a result of extrinsic falls risk factors such as poor lighting, loose/uneven flooring, and clutter. Falls education plays an important role in self-management education about extrinsic hazards and is typically delivered via information leaflets, falls apps, and educational booklets. Serious games have the potential of delivering an engaging and informative alternative to traditional methods but almost exclusively, these are currently delivered as exergaming applications that focus solely on intrinsic falls risk factors. This study presents 'Falls Sensei' a first-person 3D exploration game that aims to educate older adults about extrinsic falls risk factors within the home environment. After presenting Falls Sensei, game usability and older adults' perceptions and attitudes towards using the game in practice are explored. Methods: This study involved 15 community dwelling older adults. After playing the Falls Sensei game, participants completed a Systems Usability Scale (SUS) questionnaire and post task interview, and follow-up interviews three weeks later. Inductive and deductive thematic template analysis, informed by the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology model, was used to analyse the think-aloud, post-task and follow-up interview transcripts. Descriptive statistical analysis and one-sampled t-tests were used to analyse log-file data and SUS responses. Results: Three high-level themes emerged from the analysis of transcriptions: Performance Expectancy; Effort Expectancy; Social Influence. The SUS score was 77.5/100 which indicates 'Good' levels of usability. Interestingly, reported usability of the game increased with participant age. Participants were positive about the usability of the game (p < = 0.05 for 9/10 items). The most memorable fall hazards were those most commonly encountered in the game or those most challenging to participants. Conclusions: The results support the use of serious games as an engaging tool for educating older adults about extrinsic falls risk factors. Awareness of home hazard detection was raised by the game, and some older adults became more aware for the need to adapt their own homes after gameplay. Further research would be needed to draw comparisons with established interventions

Extraction of certain heavy metals from sewage sludge using different types of acids

The removal of heavy metal from sludge before disposal or application to farmland is a necessary step to achieve a more safe sludge usage or disposal. Chemical extraction using inorganic acids (nitric, hydrochloric) and organic acids (citric, oxalic) were tested for extraction of chromium, copper, nickel, lead and zinc from contaminated sewage sludge at different pH and reaction time. Results revealed that solubilization of metals using inorganic acids achieved its maximum extraction efficiency (Cr-88%, Cu-82%, Ni-86%, Pb-94%, Zn-89%) at pH value lower than 2 and acid contact times of 1hour. while in case of organic acids oxalic acid does not show good results comparing to citric acid that at pH 2.43 citric acid seemed to be highly effective in extracting Cu (86%), Zn(88%), mostly after 1 day of extraction time, Cr (90%), Ni (96%) at 5 days leaching time, while Pb(85%) removal at the same pH was at a longer leaching time 10 days. At pH 3, citric acid seemed to be also highly effective in extracting Cr (66%), Cu(48%), Pb (66%), Zn(69%) at 1 day, while higher removal was also attained for Ni(68%) at only 4 h leaching time. Finally the extraction efficiencies of citric acid for Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn, are high enough to reduce the heavy metal content in sludge to levels below the legal standards

Device Therapies Among Patients Receiving Primary Prevention Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillators in the Cardiovascular Research Network

BACKGROUND: Primary prevention implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) reduce mortality in selected patients with left ventricular systolic dysfunction by delivering therapies (antitachycardia pacing or shocks) to terminate potentially lethal arrhythmias; inappropriate therapies also occur. We assessed device therapies among adults receiving primary prevention ICDs in 7 healthcare systems. METHODS AND RESULTS: We linked medical record data, adjudicated device therapies, and the National Cardiovascular Data Registry ICD Registry. Survival analysis evaluated therapy probability and predictors after ICD implant from 2006 to 2009, with attention to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Coverage With Evidence Development subgroups: left ventricular ejection fraction, 31% to 35%; nonischemic cardiomyopathy \u3c9 \u3emonths\u27 duration; and New York Heart Association class IV heart failure with cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator. Among 2540 patients, 35% wereold, 26% were women, and 59% were white. During 27 (median) months, 738 (29%) received ≥1 therapy. Three-year therapy risk was 36% (appropriate, 24%; inappropriate, 12%). Appropriate therapy was more common in men (adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 1.84; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.43-2.35). Inappropriate therapy was more common in patients with atrial fibrillation (adjusted HR, 2.20; 95% CI, 1.68-2.87), but less common among patients ≥65 years old versus younger (adjusted HR, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.54-0.95) and in recent implants (eg, in 2009 versus 2006; adjusted HR, 0.66; 95% CI, 0.46-0.95). In Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Coverage With Evidence Development analysis, inappropriate therapy was less common with cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator versus single chamber (adjusted HR, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.36-0.84); therapy risk did not otherwise differ for Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Coverage With Evidence Development subgroups. CONCLUSIONS: In this community cohort of primary prevention patients receiving ICD, therapy delivery varied across demographic and clinical characteristics, but did not differ meaningfully for Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Coverage With Evidence Development subgroups

Morphological and molecular characterization of the monogenean gill parasite, Acleotrema maculatus, infecting Argyrops filamentosus fish in the Red Sea, Saudi Arabia

ABSTRACT Fish are considered one of the important sources of protein which are invaded by different parasites. This study aimed to shed light on monogenean parasites that infect fish within the family Sparidae in Saudi Arabia. A total of 30 Argyrops filamentosus specimens were collected from the Red Sea, the city of Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), and then examined for the presence of monogenean parasites. Parasitic species were isolated and studied morphologically using light microscopic examination and molecularly via the partial sequencing of the 28S rRNA gene. Only a monogenean parasitic species has been identified. This parasite is morphologically and morphometric compatible with previously Acleotrema maculatus Morsy, El-Fayoumi & Fahmy (2014), identified from Plectropomus maculatus in the Red Sea, Egypt. Phylogeny revealed that this putative diplectanid species nested well within a clade clustering Diplectanidae species, which along with morphological data, suggests it is a member of the genus Acleotrema. Query sequences showed identities of 98.92% for 28S rRNA (AF026118.1) of Acleotrema sp. This study reflects the first account of this genus as endoparasite taxa of the examined sparid fish, as well as providing novel DNA data for this species

BETWEEN BROADCASTING POLITICAL MESSAGES AND INTERACTING WITH VOTERS

Politicians across Western democracies are increasingly adopting and experimenting with Twitter, particularly during election time. The purpose of this article is to investigate how candidates are using it during an election campaign. The aim is to create a typology of the various ways in which candidates behaved on Twitter. Our research, which included a content analysis of tweets (n = 26,282) from all twittering Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat candidates (n = 416) during the 2010 UK General Election campaign, focused on four aspects of tweets: type, interaction, function and topic. By examining candidates' twittering behaviour, the authors show that British politicians mainly used Twitter as a unidirectional form of communication. However, there were a group of candidates who used it to interact with voters by, for example, mobilizing, helping and consulting them, thus tapping into the potential Twitter offers for facilitating a closer relationship with citizens