73 research outputs found
Easily measureable morpho-physiological traits as selection criteria for terminal drought tolerance in groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.)
This study was conducted at El Obied Research Station Farm, North Kordofan State Sudan, with the objective of identifiying easily measurable morpho-physiolgical traits that could be used in drought tolerance breeding programs. Nine groundnut mutants together with three parents were evaluated under normal and terminal drought stress environments in 2003 and 2004 cropping seasons in a randomized complete block design with four replications. The genotypes did not differ significantly in the number of days to 75% emergence, with a range of 6-8 days. Most of the measured traits showed higher values under normal than under stressed environments. Under stressed environment, some mutants like Barberton-B-30-3 and Barberton-B-30-4, exceeded their parents in pod yield (PY) /plant, dry matter production (DM) and leaf relative water content (LRWC), whereas they showed lower specific leaf area (SLA), canopy temperature (CT) and leaf senescence (LSENS) than their parents. CT, LRWC, LSENS and PY showed relatively medium broad-sense heritab-ility estimates under stress environment. PY was positively, significantly and genotypically correlated with DM and LRWC while significantly and negatively correlated with SLA, CT and LSENS under stress enviro-nment. Since these traits are reasonably heritable, strongly correlated with PY under stress enviroment and easily measurable under field conditions, they could be suggested as selection criteria for droguht tolerance in groundnut. The mutant Barberton-B-30-3, which produced the highest PY, DM and LRWC, under terminal drought stress, could be suggested as the best drought tolerant mutant in this study bending further testing over years and locations.
 
Detection of Optimum pH of Momordica balsamina Seeds Lectin
Background: Lectins are carbohydrate binding proteins of non-immune origin that reversibly and non-enzymatically bind carbohydrates with high specificity for the chemical structure of the glycan array without changing their structure.Objectives: The present study aimed to detect the optimum pH of Momordica balsamina seeds lectin (MbSL).Materials and Methods:A season fresh of Momordica balsamina fruit seeds were brought from urban areas of Sudan (Gadarif and north Kurdofan states), then the lectin was isolated from saline extract by affinity chromatography on alpha agarose lactose matrix then the purified lectin activity was evaluated in different buffers to detect the optimum pH.Results: The activity of the lectin remained stable in the pH range 2-12.Conclusion: A lactose-binding lectin from seeds of Momordica balsamina medicinal plant shares a high degree of similarity with other Cucurbitaceae family lectins in term of their physicochemical features including sugar specificity, effect of pH on lectin stability.Keywords: Momordica balsamina; lectin; seeds; plant lectin; pH; protein
Some Features of Joint Confidence Regions for the Parameters of the Inverse Weibull Distribution
In this paper, we will study the joint confidence regions for the parameters of inverse Weibull distribution in the point of view of record values. One of the applications of the joint confidence regions of the parameters is to find confidence bounds for the functions of the parameters. Joint confidence regions for the parameters of extreme value distribution are also discussed. In this way we will discus some numerical examples with real data set and simulated data, to illustrate the proposed method. A simulation study is performed to compare the proposed joint confidence regions. Keywords: The joint confidence regions, confidence bounds; inverse Weibull distribution, extreme value distribution
Detection of Extended-Spectrum β-lactamases' (ESBLs) Resistance among Wound Infection Pathogens in Khartoum State
Abstract The presence of extended-spectrum-β lactamases (ESBLs) in a clinical infection can result in treatment failure if one of the third-generation cephalosporins is used. ESBLs detection has both clinical as well as epidemiological relevance. The present study was conducted to detect the frequency of ESBL producing pathogens that causes wound infections. Hundred wound samples were collected from Khartoum state Hospitals were investigated for isolation and identification (colonial characteristics, Gram reaction, biochemical reactions, and antibiotic susceptibility). The frequency of isolates from all cases was 95 (95%) with 5 (5%) yielding no growth. The isolates were E.coli, Klebsiella species, staph aureus, Proteus species and Pseudomonas aeruginosa which isolated from 27(28.4%), 13(13.68%), 23(24.21%), 20(21.05%) and 12(12.63%) respectively. The isolates were subjected to show their susceptibility against the third generation cephalosporins (Cefotaxime, Ceftazidime and Ceftriaxone) using disk diffusion method. The results were observed that 60(63.1%) out of 95 isolates shown resistance to third generation cephalosporins, while35 isolates were sensitive to these antibiotics. The sixty resistant isolates were subjected to show their ability to produce ESBL using Kirby _Bauer Method (Calvulanic acid + Third generation cephalosporins). Among 18 E.coli, 4 Klebsiella species, 16 Staph aureus, 12 Proteus species, 10 Pseudomonas aeruginosa, isolates which were tested, 6(33.33%), 1(25%), 9(56.2%), 3(30%) and 3(30%) were found to be ESBL producer respectively. We conclude that the ESBL producers were found in large proportions which may refers to misusing of antibiotics or inadequate treatment
Cost evaluation of therapeutic drug monitoring of gentamicin at a teaching hospital in Malaysia
Background: Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) makes
use of serum drug concentrations as an adjunct to
decision-making. Preliminary data in our hospital showed
that approximately one-fifth of all drugs monitored by TDM
service were gentamicin.
Objective: In this study, we evaluated the costs
associated with providing the service in patients with
bronchopneumonia and treated with gentamicin.
Methods: We retrospectively collected data from medical
records of patients admitted to the Hospital Universiti
Sains Malaysia over a 5-year period. These patients were
diagnosed with bronchopneumonia and were on
gentamicin as part of their treatment. Five hospitalisation
costs were calculated; (i) cost of laboratory and clinical
investigations, (ii) cost associated with each gentamicin
dose, (iii) fixed and operating costs of TDM service, (iv)
cost of providing medical care, and (v) cost of hospital stay
during gentamicin treatment.
Results: There were 1920 patients admitted with
bronchopneumonia of which 67 (3.5%) had TDM service
for gentamicin. Seventy-three percent (49/67) patients
were eligible for final analysis. The duration of gentamicin
therapy ranged from 3 to 15 days. The cost of providing
one gentamicin assay was MYR25, and the average cost
of TDM service for each patient was MYR104. The
average total hospitalisation cost during gentamicin
treatment for each patient was MYR442 (1EUR approx.
MYR4.02).
Conclusion: Based on the hospital perspective, in
patients with bronchopneumonia and treated with
gentamicin, the provision of TDM service contributes to
less than 25% of the total cost of hospitalization
An Investigation of Inference of the Generalized Extreme Value Distribution Based on Record
In this article, the maximum likelihood and Bayes estimates of the generalized extreme value distribution based on record values are investigated. The asymptotic confidence intervals as well as bootstrap confidence are proposed. The Bayes estimators cannot be obtained in closed form so the MCMC method are used to calculate Bayes estimates as well as the credible intervals. A numerical example is provided to illustrate the proposed estimation methods developed here. Keywords: Generalized extreme value distribution, Record values, Maximum likelihood estimation, Bayesian estimation
Serofrequency of Cytomegalovirus among pregnant ladies attending antenatal care at Omdurman Maternity Hospital, Sudan
Abstract Background: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a member of the family herpesviridae .This study was conducted to determine the serofrequency of cytomegalovirus (CMV) among pregnant ladies at Omdurman Maternity Hospital between the period April to July 2014. Vertically transmitted Cytomegalovirus is the most common cause of preventable congenital infection. Till date, there is no consensus on routine antenatal screening worldwide
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Highly Selective Syngas/H2 Production via Partial Oxidation of CH4 Using (Ni, Co and Ni–Co)/ZrO2–Al2O3 Catalysts: Influence of Calcination Temperature
In this study, Ni, Co and Ni–Co catalysts supported on binary oxide ZrO2–Al2O3 were synthesized by sol-gel method and characterized by means of various analytical techniques such as XRD, BET, TPR, TPD, TGA, SEM, and TEM. This catalytic system was then tested for syngas respective H2 production via partial oxidation of methane at 700 °C and 800 °C. The influence of calcination temperatures was studied and their impact on catalytic activity and stability was evaluated. It was observed that increasing the calcination temperature from 550 °C to 800 °C and addition of ZrO2 to Al2O3 enhances Ni metal-support interaction. This increases the catalytic activity and sintering resistance. Furthermore, ZrO2 provides higher oxygen storage capacity and stronger Lewis basicity which contributed to coke suppression, eventually leading to a more stable catalyst. It was also observed that, contrary to bimetallic catalysts, monometallic catalysts exhibit higher activity with higher calcination temperature. At the same time, Co and Ni–Co-based catalysts exhibit higher activity than Ni-based catalysts which was not expected. The Co-based catalyst calcined at 800 °C demonstrated excellent stability over 24 h on stream. In general, all catalysts demonstrated high CH4 conversion and exceptionally high selectivity to H2 (~98%) at 700 °C
Seroprevalence of Cytomegalovirus among Blood Donors at Omdurman Teaching Hospital, Omdurman, Sudan
Abstract: Backgroun
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