Can an ICT CPD programme have an impact on EFL teachers in Saudi Arabia : a case study

This study describes the design and evaluation of an in-service professional development program (CPD) to enable teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) in Saudi Arabia (SA) to develop their use of information communication technology (ICT) in their teaching. The study covered two interventions, one in an English language teaching department in a higher education (HE) institute in SA, the other a secondary school in which English is taught as a compulsory subject in SA. The overarching aim of this study is to evaluate how ICT CPD could have an impact on university and school EFL teachers’ attitudes, knowledge, and behaviour towards the use of ICT in their teaching. The thesis reports on the two rounds of ICT CPD design, implementation, and evaluation. The design phase includes needs analysis questionnaires (n=28) and pre-course interviews (n=14), leading to an online intervention in which a four-level reflective model was adapted to introduce a triggering event that leads to a reflection on practise, which leads to construction of meaning through an integration process and finally the ability of making resolutions of the knowledge constructed. Evaluation of both cases was carried out through during and post course interviews (n=26), online observations (n=5), and post course group discussions (n=12). The thesis describes a bottom-up design of ICT CPD, in which the idea of teachers’ technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) was influential. The ICT CPD was largely well perceived, but its impact was mixed in both contexts. As regards to take up of ICT, three user patterns emerged. Optimistic users tended to value the use of ICT in their teaching and experimented with almost all of the tools/applications presented in the training and were able to adapt some of the tools/applications in their teaching. Cautiously optimistic users saw the value of using technology in their teaching but were tentatively cautious and adopted a relatively smaller number of tools/applications. Sceptical users tended to be reluctant about using technology in their teaching and experimented with only a few of the tools/applications presented. In terms of the overall evaluation of the initiative, it was found that almost all of the participants had reported positively on the general design, online delivery, and content presented. Working hours and commitment were seen as barriers to face-to-face CPD in both contexts. Contextual barriers to ICT use covered class size, students’ language levels, and access in the university context; whereas class time, facilities, and support were seen as barriers in the school context. Also, casual, intervening and contextual conditions shaped teachers’ use of ICT. This research contributes to the field of ICT CPD studies in that it addresses the issue of whether ICT CPD interventions can have an impact on teaching practice. It sheds light on the under researched area of ICT use in SA. It covers a context where access to facilities and teachers’ competence are taken for granted and teachers are expected to use technology in their teaching. It further contributes to an understanding of the design of ICT CPD

Antimicrobial activity of Dracaena cinnabari resin from Soqotra Island on multi drug resistant human pathogens

Background: Few studies showed that Dracaena cinnabari resin, collected from Soqotra Island,  Yemen,  has antimicrobial activity. This study is the first to investigate antimicrobial activity of the resin on both antibiotic multi-resistant human pathogens and on poly-microbial culture.Material and Methods: Antimicrobial activity of ethanolic extract of Dracaena cinnabari resin from  Soqotra Island on multidrug resistant Gram-positive and Gram-negative human ATCC standard pathogens  and Ascosphaera apis, the causal organism of chalkbrood disease of honeybee was studied using the agar disc diffusion method. The minimal inhibitory concentration of extracts was carried out by  the broth micro dilution method.Results: Ethanolic extract of Dracaena cinnabari resin showed a considerable antimicrobial activity  against all the pathogens tested. The zone of inhibition were between 4.9-11.5 mm. The most sensitive  microbe was Staphylococcus aureus and least sensitive was Aspergillus nidulans. The minimal inhibitory concentration of the extract against Escherichia. coli ATCC 10402, Klebsiella pneumonia ATCC 10031, and Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29212 was 1.25 μg/mL (w/v) and for the other pathogens (Candida albicans ATCC 10231, Salmonella typhimurum ATCC 3311 and Pseudomonos aeruginosa ATCC 2785) was 2.5 μg/mL (w/v).Conclusion: Ethanolic extract of Dracaena cinnabari resin has a considerable antimicrobial activity  against Gram-positive and Gram-negative human pathogens and fungi. This extract might possess a role in the management of microbial infections in human and honeybee disease.Key words: Antimicrobial Activity, Dracaena cinnabari, Human pathogens, Minimum Inhibitory Concentratio

10 Gbps Mobile Visible Light Communication System Employing Angle Diversity, Imaging Receivers, and Relay Nodes

Over the last decade, visible light communication (VLC) systems have typically operated between 50 Mbps and 3.4 Gbps. In this paper, we propose and evaluate mobile VLC systems that operate at 10 Gbps. The enhancements in channel bandwidth and data rate are achieved by the introduction of laser diodes (LDs), angle diversity receivers (ADR), imaging receivers, relay nodes and delay adaptation techniques. We propose three mobile VLC systems; an ADR relay assisted LD-VLC (ADRR-LD), an imaging relay assisted LD-VLC (IMGR-LD) and select-the-best imaging relay assisted LD-VLC (SBIMGR-LD). The ADR and imaging receiver are proposed for the VLC system to mitigate the intersymbol interference (ISI), maximise the signal to noise ratio (SNR) and reduce the impact of multipath dispersion due to mobility. The combination of IMGR-LD with a delay adaptation technique adds a degree of freedom to the link design, which results in a VLC system that has the ability to provide high data rates under mobility. The proposed IMGR-LD system achieves significant improvements in the SNR over other systems in the worst case scenario in the considered real indoor environment

Prevalence and correlates of diastolic dysfunction in patients with hypertension: a cross-sectional study from in The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Introduction: diastolic dysfunction refers to impaired ventricular relaxation or filling regardless of ejection fraction and symptoms. It accounts for 8% and 25% in the hospitalized and general population, respectively. The present study was conducted to determine the prevalence and correlates of diastolic dysfunction in hypertensive patients living in Saudi Arabia. Methods: a multicentric, cross-sectional study was conducted from February 2019 to February 2020 at King Khalid Hospital and Prince Sultan Center for Health Services, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University hospital in Al Kharj, and Al Kharj Military Industries Corporation hospital, KSA. All patients with hypertension who underwent an echocardiography were included in the study. Logistic regression analysis was performed to determine factors associated with left ventricular diastolic dysfunction (LVDD). Results: the study included a total of 104 participants, where 51.9% were females andthe mean age of the patients was 48.01±12.81 years.Most patients had an abnormal echocardiography finding (64.4%, n = 67). The most common abnormalities were left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy (44.2%, n = 46), and diastolic dysfunction, (35.6%, n = 37). The study revealed that age (aOR: 6.1, 95% CI 1.17-31.3; p = 0.032) and dyslipidemia (aOR: 3.45, 95% CI 1.16-10.24; p = 0.026) have significant association with LVDD in the patients with hypertension. Conclusion: in conclusion, diastolic dysfunction is prevalent among older hypertensive patients and those with dyslipidaemia. Age and dyslipidaemia were non-modifiable and modifiable factors associated with LVDD in hypertensive patients, respectively

BRAF mutations in thyroid tumors from an ethnically diverse group

BACKGROUND: The molecular etiology of thyroid carcinoma (TC) and other thyroid diseases which may present malignant precursor lesions is not fully explored yet. The purpose of this study was to estimate frequency, type and clinicopathological value of BRAF exon 15 mutations in different types of cancerous and non-cancerous thyroid lesions originating in an ethnically diverse population. METHODS: BRAF exon 15 was sequenced in 381 cases of thyroid lesions including Hashimoto´s thyroiditis, nodular goiters, hyperplastic nodules, follicular adenomas (FA), papillary TC (PTC), follicular variant PTC (FVPTC), microcarcinomas of PTC (micro PTC; tumor size ≤ 1 cm), follicular TC (FTC), and non-well differentiated TC (non-WDTC). RESULTS: We identified BRAF mutations in one of 69 FA, 72 of 115 (63%) PTC, seven of 42 (17%) FVPTC, 10 of 56 (18%) micro PTC, one of 17 (6%) FTC, and one of eight (13%) non-WDTC. Most of the cases showed the common V600E mutation. One case each of PTC, FVPTC, and FTC harbored a K601E mutation. A novel BRAF mutation was identified in a FA leading to deletion of threonine at codon 599 (p.T599del). A rare 3-base pair insertion was detected in a stage III PTC resulting in duplication of threonine at codon 599 (p.T599dup). Patients with PTC harboring no BRAF mutation (BRAF(wt)) were on average younger than those with a BRAF mutation (BRAF(mut)) in the PTC (36.6 years vs. 43.8 years). Older age (≥ 45 years) in patients with PTC was significantly associated with tumor size ≥ 4 cm (P = 0.018), vessel invasion (P = 0.004), and distant metastasis (P = 0.001). Lymph node (LN) involvement in PTC significantly correlated with tumor size (P = 0.044), and vessel invasion (P = 0.013). Of notice, taken the whole TC group, family history of thyroid disease positively correlated with capsular invasion (P = 0.025). CONCLUSIONS: Older age is manifold associated with unfavorable tumor markers in our series. The K601E identified in a PTC, FVPTC, and FTC seems to be more distributed among different histological types of TC than previously thought. The T599del is a yet undescribed mutation and the rare T599dup has not been reported as a mutation in PTC so far

Survival implications vs. complications: unraveling the impact of vitamin D adjunctive use in critically ill patients with COVID-19—A multicenter cohort study

BackgroundDespite insufficient evidence, vitamin D has been used as adjunctive therapy in critically ill patients with COVID-19. This study evaluates the effectiveness and safety of vitamin D as an adjunctive therapy in critically ill COVID-19 patients.MethodsA multicenter retrospective cohort study that included all adult COVID-19 patients admitted to the intensive care units (ICUs) between March 2020 and July 2021. Patients were categorized into two groups based on their vitamin D use throughout their ICU stay (control vs. vitamin D). The primary endpoint was in-hospital mortality. Secondary outcomes were the length of stay (LOS), mechanical ventilation (MV) duration, and ICU-acquired complications. Propensity score (PS) matching (1:1) was used based on the predefined criteria. Multivariable logistic, Cox proportional hazards, and negative binomial regression analyses were employed as appropriate.ResultsA total of 1,435 patients were included in the study. Vitamin D was initiated in 177 patients (12.3%), whereas 1,258 patients did not receive it. A total of 288 patients were matched (1:1) using PS. The in-hospital mortality showed no difference between patients who received vitamin D and the control group (HR 1.22, 95% CI 0.87–1.71; p = 0.26). However, MV duration and ICU LOS were longer in the vitamin D group (beta coefficient 0.24 (95% CI 0.00–0.47), p = 0.05 and beta coefficient 0.16 (95% CI −0.01 to 0.33), p = 0.07, respectively). As an exploratory outcome, patients who received vitamin D were more likely to develop major bleeding than those who did not [OR 3.48 (95% CI 1.10, 10.94), p = 0.03].ConclusionThe use of vitamin D as adjunctive therapy in COVID-19 critically ill patients was not associated with survival benefits but was linked with longer MV duration, ICU LOS, and higher odds of major bleeding

Ultrasonographic and biochemical assessments as early prediction of polycystic ovarian syndrome in obese women

Backgroud: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is considered as a common cause of hormonal disturbance and obesity. The diagnosis of PCOS was done by different methods including clinical signs as anovulation, hyperandrogenism, biochemical markers and ultrasounographic investigation. This study investigated comparative outcomes of ultrasonographic and biochemical markers for early prediction of PCOS in obese women. Subjects and methods: Seventy-five patients were clinically diagnosed with obese, PCOS and obese with PCOS and twenty-five normal age matched subjects were enrolled as control. Abdominal and transvaginal ultrasonographic for assessment of ovarian properties. In addition, BMI, serum free testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), insulin, glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and LDL-c levels were evaluated. Results: In obese patients with PCOs (20%) ovaries revealed normal appearance in morphology while the rest (80%) showed PCOs in the form of cysts of 2\u20138 mm in diameter peripherally arranged around stroma. A significant elevation of free testosterone, DHEA and insulin in obese with or without PCOS compared with obese group (p<0.001). A positive correlation with hormonal abnormalities of increased HA1c, LDL-c, free testosterone, DHEA and insulin compared with obese only. Conclusion: According to our study findings, ovarian morphology combined with biochemical markers is more reliable for early prediction and diagnosis of PCOS for interpretation and management