Biochemical composition of three Tunisian silverside (fish) populations caught in open sea, lagoon and island coasts

Fatty acid and amino acid profiles were determined in three silverside populations caught in Tunisian waters Atherina boyeri (open sea), Atherina lagunae (lagoon) and Atherina sp. (island coasts). Saturated fatty acids reached in total lipids 43.54%, 36.96% in marine and 33.64% in insular silverside and A. lagunae, in which eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid and linoleic acid were the prominent fatty acids. The n-3/n-6 index showed a significant level indicating a tendency to accumulate n-3 fatty acids in A. boyeri and A. lagunae and n-6 fatty acids in Atherina sp. Total amino acid content ranged from 528 to 588 mg/g crude protein, in which, glutamic acid was the most abundant. Methionine had the lowest essential amino acid score in A. boyeri and Atherina sp. (0.73 and 0.71, respectively)while tryptophan had the lowest in A. lagunae (0.07)

Fungitoxicity of some fungicides against to pathogens responsible of olive trees decline in the Chebika’s area in Tunisia

The incidence of the disease seems very important on young trees and tends to bemoderate with the aging of the tree. In fact, olive trees have a shallow root system and arestill vulnerable to pathogens especially the irrigated varieties. Chemical and biological control against Fusarium solani, Fusarium oxysporum, Rhizoctonia solani and Verticillium dahliae have revealed that the application in vitro of Prodazim and of Methyl-thiophanatehave showed a very good efficacy up to 100%. Ridomil and Tachigaren have indicated aregular efficiency, while the two bio-fungicides Fungstop and the compost juice havedemonstrated a low efficiency. The two bio-control agents Trichoderma harzianum and Gliocladium virens have showed a relatively high effectiveness in vitro. In vivo, obtainedresults have revealed that the nature of the product, the doses applied and the condition ofthe olive trees are highly correlated factors. The treatment doesn’t appear to have apositive effect on the beginning of stage 1 and on plots presented a good structured soil.Going beyond this stage, whatever the product and the doses used, the attack isirreversible

Geomorphology of the north-eastern coast of Gozo (Malta, Mediterranean Sea)

The paper presents a geomorphological map of the north-eastern coast of the Island of Gozo (Malta) integrating inland and offshore areas at the scale 1:15,000. The map derives from the integration of different methods, such as aerial photo interpretation, field surveys and analysis of seafloor bathymetry. The landforms identified on land were shaped by coastal, fluvial, karst and gravity-induced processes, and some of them prolong on the seafloor. Most of the submerged landforms appear to have been modelled in subaerial conditions during sea-level lowstands, having been sealed by the rising sea in post-glacial times. Two sketches accompany the Main Map showing the type and distribution of coastal geomorphotypes and the land cover of the area

Assessment of InAs/AlGaSb Tunnel-FET Virtual Technology Platform for Low-Power Digital Circuits

In this work, a complementary InAs/Al0.05Ga0.95Sb tunnel field-effect-Transistor (TFET) virtual technology platform is benchmarked against the projection to the CMOS FinFET 10-nm node, by means of device and basic circuit simulations. The comparison is performed in the ultralow voltage regime (below 500 mV), where the proposed III-V TFETs feature ON-current levels comparable to scaled FinFETs, for the same low-operating-power OFF-current. Due to the asymmetrical n-and p-Type I-V exts , trends of noise margins and performances are investigated for different Wp/Wn ratios. Implications of the device threshold voltage variability, which turned out to be dramatic for steep slope TFETs, are also addressed

Revision shoulder hemiarthroplasty and total shoulder arthroplasty a systematic review and meta-analysis.

The number of shoulder replacements performed each year continues to increase, and the need for revision replacements has grown accordingly. The outcome of a revision replacement may influence which primary implant is selected and the timing of primary surgery, particularly in younger patients. The aim of this study was to establish the expected improvement in shoulder function and implant survival following revision of a hemiarthroplasty and revision of an anatomical total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA). A systematic review and meta-analysis were performed of all studies reporting shoulder scores or implant survival following revision hemiarthroplasty or revision TSA. MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL, The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and National Joint Registry reports were searched. 15 studies were included, reporting on 593 revision anatomical shoulder replacements. There was large variation in the magnitude of improvement in shoulder scores following revision surgery. Over 80% of revision replacements last 5 years and over 70% last 10 years. There was no significant difference in shoulder scores or implant survival according to the type of primary implant. The belief that revision of a shoulder hemiarthroplasty may lead to improved outcomes compared to revision of a TSA is not supported by the current literature

Ability to fatten Tunisian lambs in Sheepfold

L’aptitude à l’engraissement des agneaux de races tunisienne en fonction des régimes alimentaires disponibles est une demande importante voire obligatoire pour nos éleveurs à nos jours afin de trouver une synergie entre le coût de production d’un kg de viande et le prix de vente. Pour cela, on a procédé à réaliser un essai de performances des agneaux de races différentes conduits en bergerie et recevant une ration alimentaire classique à base de foin d’avoine et d’aliment concentré dans la ferme pédagogique de l'École Supérieure d’Agriculture de Mateur. Les résultats obtenus étaient dans les normes en tenant compte de la ration et l’âge des agneaux. L’ingestion moyenne de la matière sèche de foin d’avoine était de 551 g /j/agneau, l’indice de consommation moyen a été de 6,34 Kg MS/Kg de gain de poids, le poids vifs des agneaux évolue d’un semaine à l’autre pour atteindre un poids final de 18,2 kg. Mots clés: Engraissement, race ovine, Tunisie, Indice de consommationThe ability to fatten lambs of Tunisian breeds according to the diets available is an important or even a compulsory demand of our breeders today in order to find a synergy between the cost of production of one kg of meat and the price of sale. For this, we carried out a performance test of lambs of different breeds in sheepfolds and receiving a classic food ration based on oat hay and feed concentrate in the educational farm of the Higher School of Agriculture of Mateur. The obtained results were within the standards taking into account the ration and the age of the lambs. The average dry matter intake of oat hay was 551 g / day / lamb, the average consumption index was 6.34 Kg DM / Kg of weight gain, the live weight of lambs increased weekly to reach a final weight of 18.2 kg. Keywords: Fattening, sheep breed, Tunisia, Consumption inde

Consent for orthopaedic trauma surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic

INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 pandemic has brought a series of new challenges to the management of surgical patients. The consent process relies on a foundation of open and non-coerced discussion between clinician and patient, which includes all the potential risks of surgery. This must be updated to incorporate the additional risks of surgery during the pandemic including infection with the SARS-CoV-2 and increased risks of complications with the potential requirement for intensive care support. AIM: The aim of this multi-cycle quality improvement project was to ensure all patients were fully informed of the risks of developing COVID-19 and the possible need for intensive care unit (ICU) support. METHODS: We investigated the quality of the consent process for patients undergoing surgery for trauma at our major trauma centre. Our baseline data collection included a review of all orthopaedic trauma consent forms over a 4-week period in March 2020. We subsequently undertook three further Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycles over separate 4-week periods. First, in June 2020, after education measures and presentation of baseline data, second in July 2020 after further education and regular digital reminders were sent to staff, and third in September 2021 after the implementation of an electronic consent form. RESULTS: At baseline, only 2.6% of consent forms mentioned the risk of COVID-19 and none mentioned the risk of requiring ITU support. Through three PDSA cycles this increased to 97% of cases where consent forms displayed the additional risks of COVID-19 and the potential need for ITU admission. CONCLUSION: Our quality improvement project improved the informed consent procedure at our trust. By incorporating these additional risks into the template of an electronic consent form, we hope to achieve sustained improvement in practice

Digital and analog TFET circuits: Design and benchmark

In this work, we investigate by means of simulations the performance of basic digital, analog, and mixed-signal circuits employing tunnel-FETs (TFETs). The analysis reviews and complements our previous papers on these topics. By considering the same devices for all the analysis, we are able to draw consistent conclusions for a wide variety of circuits. A virtual complementary TFET technology consisting of III-V heterojunction nanowires is considered. Technology Computer Aided Design (TCAD) models are calibrated against the results of advanced full-quantum simulation tools and then used to generate look-up-tables suited for circuit simulations. The virtual complementary TFET technology is benchmarked against predictive technology models (PTM) of complementary silicon FinFETs for the 10 nm node over a wide range of supply voltages (VDD) in the sub-threshold voltage domain considering the same footprint between the vertical TFETs and the lateral FinFETs and the same static power. In spite of the asymmetry between p- and n-type transistors, the results show clear advantages of TFET technology over FinFET for VDDlower than 0.4 V. Moreover, we highlight how differences in the I-V characteristics of FinFETs and TFETs suggest to adapt the circuit topologies used to implement basic digital and analog blocks with respect to the most common CMOS solutions

Screening of fungi implicated in the dieback of olive trees (Olea europea) in Chebika’s area

Several surveys were conducted during spring 2008 in Chebika’s area in Tunisia. Samples were collected from infected plants showed different types of symptoms and they have been the subject of mycological analysis. The morphological identification of fungal colonies isolated from roots, crown and stems of two olive varieties Koroneiki and Chemlali Sfax, revealed the presence of a fungi complex including Fusarium oxysporum, Fusarium solani, Rhizoctonia solani, Verticillium dahliae, Cladosporium fulvum, Alternaria solani, Alternaria tenuis, Bispora punctata. and Cylindrocarpon .sp; Although,those fungi Fusarium oxysporum, Fusarium solani, Rhizoctonia solani and Verticillium dahliae are ubiquitous and the predominant one. Pathogenicity results revealed that the fungi isolated from olive trees exhibited typical symptoms on Koroneiki variety incontrolled conditions