Improving yield and irrigation water productivity of green beans under water stress with agricultural solid waste-based material of compacted rice straw as a sustainable organic soil mulch

This research aimed at water saving in irrigation by applying deficit irrigation using two strategies, standard drip and partial root drying (PRD), while applying organic and plastic mulch over two growing seasons of green beans. A field experiment was conducted in 2022 and 2023, using four irrigation treatments supplying 100% of the irrigation requirement (IRg), 75% IRg, 50% IRg, and 50% IRg—PRD, and four soil mulching treatments: uncovered soil (UC), plastic mulch (PM), rice straw mulch (RSM), and compacted rice straw mulch (CRSM). The combined effect of deficit irrigation strategies and soil mulching showed that the maximum irrigation water productivity (IWP) of 5.56 kg m−3 was achieved under 50% IRg—PRD & CRSM for both growing seasons, followed by 50% IRg—PRD & RSM and 50% IRg—PRD & PM, with 5.19 and 4.96 kg m−3, respectively. The highest yield of 8936 kg ha−1 was achieved with 50% IRg—PRD & CRSM, followed by 8914 kg ha−1 and 8898 kg ha−1 with 100% IRg & CRSM and 75% IRg & CRSM, respectively. The lowest yield of 6009 kg ha−1 was obtained with 50% IRg & UC. The highest soil moisture content was observed under 100% IRg & CRSM. The application of organic mulches was found to be particularly effective in conserving soil moisture due to enhanced infiltration, improved retention capacity, and suppression of weed growth, ultimately fostering optimal crop development and higher yield. The results of soil temperature variations beneath soil mulches showed that CRSM is effective in alleviating plant water stress, lowering the temperature below the cover and reducing water loss through evaporation from the soil surface. The combination of 50% IRg—PRD & CRSM produced plants with enhanced plant height, fresh and dry weight, leaf area, pod length, and green bean weight, as well as the highest vegetative growth indices. Generally, the organic mulching increased soil temperature, soil moisture, IWP, and green bean production

Bioassay- and metabolomics-guided screening of bioactive soil actinomycetes from the ancient city of Ihnasia, Egypt

Literature surveys, taxonomical differences, and bioassay results have been utilized in the discovery of new natural products to aid in Actinomycetes isolate-selection. However, no or less investigation have been done on establishing the differences in metabolomic profiles of the isolated microorganisms. The study aims to utilise bioassay- and metabolomics-guided tools that included dereplication study and multivariate analysis of the NMR and mass spectral data of microbial extracts to assist the selection of isolates for scaling-up the production of antimicrobial natural products. A total of 58 actinomycetes were isolated from different soil samples collected from Ihnasia City, Egypt and screened for their antimicrobial activities against indicator strains that included Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans. A number of 25 isolates were found to be active against B. subtilis and/or to at least one of the tested indicator strains. Principal component analyses showed chemical uniqueness for four outlying bioactive actinomycetes extracts. In addition, Orthogonal Projections to Latent Structures Discriminant Analysis (OPLS-DA) and dereplication study led us to further select two outlying anti-MRSA active isolates MS.REE.13 and 22 for scale-up work. MS.REE.13 and 22 exhibited zones of inhibition at 19 and 13 mm against MRSA, respectively. A metabolomics-guided approach provided the steer to target the bioactive metabolites (P<0.01) present in a crude extract or fraction even at nanogram levels but it was a challenge that such low-yielding bioactive natural products would be feasible to isolate. Validated to occur only on the active side of OPLSDA loadings plot, the isolated compounds exhibited medium to weak antibiotic activity with MIC values between 250 and 800 μM. Two new compounds, P_24306 (C10H13N2) and N_12799 (C18H32O3) with MICs of 795 and 432 μM, were afforded from the scale-up of MS.REE. 13 and 22, respectively

Impact of opioid-free analgesia on pain severity and patient satisfaction after discharge from surgery: multispecialty, prospective cohort study in 25 countries

Background: Balancing opioid stewardship and the need for adequate analgesia following discharge after surgery is challenging. This study aimed to compare the outcomes for patients discharged with opioid versus opioid-free analgesia after common surgical procedures.Methods: This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study collected data from patients undergoing common acute and elective general surgical, urological, gynaecological, and orthopaedic procedures. The primary outcomes were patient-reported time in severe pain measured on a numerical analogue scale from 0 to 100% and patient-reported satisfaction with pain relief during the first week following discharge. Data were collected by in-hospital chart review and patient telephone interview 1 week after discharge.Results: The study recruited 4273 patients from 144 centres in 25 countries; 1311 patients (30.7%) were prescribed opioid analgesia at discharge. Patients reported being in severe pain for 10 (i.q.r. 1-30)% of the first week after discharge and rated satisfaction with analgesia as 90 (i.q.r. 80-100) of 100. After adjustment for confounders, opioid analgesia on discharge was independently associated with increased pain severity (risk ratio 1.52, 95% c.i. 1.31 to 1.76; P &lt; 0.001) and re-presentation to healthcare providers owing to side-effects of medication (OR 2.38, 95% c.i. 1.36 to 4.17; P = 0.004), but not with satisfaction with analgesia (beta coefficient 0.92, 95% c.i. -1.52 to 3.36; P = 0.468) compared with opioid-free analgesia. Although opioid prescribing varied greatly between high-income and low- and middle-income countries, patient-reported outcomes did not.Conclusion: Opioid analgesia prescription on surgical discharge is associated with a higher risk of re-presentation owing to side-effects of medication and increased patient-reported pain, but not with changes in patient-reported satisfaction. Opioid-free discharge analgesia should be adopted routinely

Surgical site infection after gastrointestinal surgery in high-income, middle-income, and low-income countries: a prospective, international, multicentre cohort study

Background: Surgical site infection (SSI) is one of the most common infections associated with health care, but its importance as a global health priority is not fully understood. We quantified the burden of SSI after gastrointestinal surgery in countries in all parts of the world. Methods: This international, prospective, multicentre cohort study included consecutive patients undergoing elective or emergency gastrointestinal resection within 2-week time periods at any health-care facility in any country. Countries with participating centres were stratified into high-income, middle-income, and low-income groups according to the UN's Human Development Index (HDI). Data variables from the GlobalSurg 1 study and other studies that have been found to affect the likelihood of SSI were entered into risk adjustment models. The primary outcome measure was the 30-day SSI incidence (defined by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria for superficial and deep incisional SSI). Relationships with explanatory variables were examined using Bayesian multilevel logistic regression models. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02662231. Findings: Between Jan 4, 2016, and July 31, 2016, 13 265 records were submitted for analysis. 12 539 patients from 343 hospitals in 66 countries were included. 7339 (58·5%) patient were from high-HDI countries (193 hospitals in 30 countries), 3918 (31·2%) patients were from middle-HDI countries (82 hospitals in 18 countries), and 1282 (10·2%) patients were from low-HDI countries (68 hospitals in 18 countries). In total, 1538 (12·3%) patients had SSI within 30 days of surgery. The incidence of SSI varied between countries with high (691 [9·4%] of 7339 patients), middle (549 [14·0%] of 3918 patients), and low (298 [23·2%] of 1282) HDI (p < 0·001). The highest SSI incidence in each HDI group was after dirty surgery (102 [17·8%] of 574 patients in high-HDI countries; 74 [31·4%] of 236 patients in middle-HDI countries; 72 [39·8%] of 181 patients in low-HDI countries). Following risk factor adjustment, patients in low-HDI countries were at greatest risk of SSI (adjusted odds ratio 1·60, 95% credible interval 1·05–2·37; p=0·030). 132 (21·6%) of 610 patients with an SSI and a microbiology culture result had an infection that was resistant to the prophylactic antibiotic used. Resistant infections were detected in 49 (16·6%) of 295 patients in high-HDI countries, in 37 (19·8%) of 187 patients in middle-HDI countries, and in 46 (35·9%) of 128 patients in low-HDI countries (p < 0·001). Interpretation: Countries with a low HDI carry a disproportionately greater burden of SSI than countries with a middle or high HDI and might have higher rates of antibiotic resistance. In view of WHO recommendations on SSI prevention that highlight the absence of high-quality interventional research, urgent, pragmatic, randomised trials based in LMICs are needed to assess measures aiming to reduce this preventable complication

The PROVENT-C19 registry: A study protocol for international multicenter SIAARTI registry on the use of prone positioning in mechanically ventilated patients with COVID-19 ARDS

Background The worldwide use of prone position (PP) for invasively ventilated patients with COVID-19 is progressively increasing from the first pandemic wave in everyday clinical practice. Among the suggested treatments for the management of ARDS patients, PP was recommended in the Surviving Sepsis Campaign COVID-19 guidelines as an adjuvant therapy for improving ventilation. In patients with severe classical ARDS, some authors reported that early application of prolonged PP sessions significantly decreases 28-day and 90-day mortality. Methods and analysis Since January 2021, the COVID19 Veneto ICU Network research group has developed and implemented nationally and internationally the "PROVENT-C19 Registry", endorsed by the Italian Society of Anesthesia Analgesia Resuscitation and Intensive Care. . .'(SIAARTI). The PROVENT-C19 Registry wishes to describe 1. The real clinical practice on the use of PP in COVID-19 patients during the pandemic at a National and International level; and 2. Potential baseline and clinical characteristics that identify subpopulations of invasively ventilated patients with COVID-19 that may improve daily from PP therapy. This web-based registry will provide relevant information on how the database research tools may improve our daily clinical practice. Conclusions This multicenter, prospective registry is the first to identify and characterize the role of PP on clinical outcome in COVID-19 patients. In recent years, data emerging from large registries have been increasingly used to provide real-world evidence on the effectiveness, quality, and safety of a clinical intervention. Indeed observation-based registries could be effective tools aimed at identifying specific clusters of patients within a large study population with widely heterogeneous clinical characteristics. Copyright

Comparative Study of Passivity, Model Predictive, and Passivity-Based Model Predictive Controllers in Uninterruptible Power Supply Applications

Voltage source converters are widely used in distributed generation (DG) and uninterruptible power supply (UPS) applications. This paper aims to find the controller that performs best when model changes occur in the system, showing insensitivity to parameter variations. A comparison of the finite control set model predictive controller (FCS-MPC), interconnection and damping assignment passivity-based controller (IDA-PBC), and passivity-based model predictive control (PB-MPC) reveals that the PB-MPC provides high resistance to these unexpected LC filter changes in the converter. The second aim of the paper is to reduce the total harmonic distortion (THD) of the output voltage of the three-phase voltage source inverter (VSI). A high total harmonic distortion (THD) value exists in the voltage waveform of the three-phase voltage source inverter (VSI), feeding a non-linear load. A MATLAB simulation was performed using three control techniques for a three-phase VSI feeding: linear load, unbalanced load, and non-linear load. The PB-MPC performs better than the FCS-MPC and IDA-PBC in terms of having a low THD value in the output voltage of the converter under all types of applied loads, improving the THD by up to 30%, and having low variation in THD with mismatched filter parameters, as shown in the bar charts in the results section. Overall, the PB-MPC controller improves the robustness under parameter mismatch and reduces the computational burden. PB-MPC reduces the THD value because it integrates power shaping and the injection of damping resistances into the VSI

Current status of bacterial wilt (Ralstonia solanacearum) disease in major tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) growing areas in Egypt

A survey was carried out to determine the current status of bacterial wilt (Ralstonia solanacearum) disease in major tomato growing areas in Egypt incidence and distribution. In the 2014/2015 cropping season in major tomato growing areas of Upper and Lower Egypt. In upper highest incidence of bacterial wilt occurred in Luxour Governorate (10.29%) and lowest in Al- Giza Governorate (9.41%). Wilt severity was recorded (3.44%) in Luxour Governorate and the lowest (2.60%) was recorded in Sohag Governorate. In Lower Egypt Governorates, the highest disease incidence was recorded in Al- Behiera (15.28%) followed by Al-Daqahlia, (13.23), Al- Gharbia (12.41), Kafr Al- Shikh(12.70) and Al- Sharqia&nbsp; (12.14) Governorates.&nbsp; The lowest disease incidence recorded in Al- Suiz Governorate (10.27%), followed by 11.28, 11.58 and 11.67% in Al- Qalioubia, Al- Ismailia and Al- Minoufia Governorates respectively. The highest bacterial wilt severity was recorded in Al- Behiera Governorate, fields (5.70%), followed by Al- Gharbia (4.60%), while the lowest bacterial wilt severity was recorded in Al- Suiz Governorate (2.63%), followed by 3.30, in Al- Qalioubia Governorate. All the collected plants were subjected to PCR to detect the infected samples. The expected 288 bp amplicon was detected in bacterial wilt infected samples from above mentioned governorates and diseases percentage and severity were calculated

Influence of black tea on Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus levels in saliva in a Saudi cohort

الملخص: أهداف البحث: يرتبط تسوس الأسنان مع ارتفاع عدد المستعمرات من المكورات العقدية الطافرة والملبنة وانخفاض قدرة اللعاب على تخفيف تركيز هذه المستعمرات. تهدف هذه الدراسة لتقييم النشاط المضاد للميكروبات للشاي الأسود على البكتريا المسببة لتسوس الأسنان من المكورات العقدية الطافرة والملبنة. وتم قياس النشاط المضاد للميكروبات بعدد وحدات تشكيل المستعمرات. تمت دراسة العلاقة بين هذه العوامل قبل تناول الشاي وبعد ساعة وساعتين من شرب الشاي في مجموعة من البالغين في المدينة المنورة. طرق البحث: أجريت دراسة تجريبية مستقبلية متعددة مراحل المتابعة لتقييم النشاط المضاد للميكروبات للشاي الأسود على البكتريا المسببة لتسوس الأسنان من المكورات العقدية الطافرة والملبنة. تم الحصول على عينات اللعاب بدون أي محفزات من المشاركين (قبل وبعد شرب الشاي على الفور بعد ساعة واحدة) عن طريق البصق إلى أوعية معقمة. وأخذت العينات إلى المختبر مباشرة من أجل وضعها في محضن لمعادلة درجة الحرارة ثم العد للمستعمرات المتكونة لاحقا. تم حساب أعداد للمكورات العقدية الطافرة والملبنة من اللعاب باستخدام اختبار قياس مخاطر التسوس. النتائج: أجري البحث على ٢١ مشاركا، ١٣ من الذكور و٨ من الإناث الذين كان متوسط أعمارهم ٣٢.٦ ± ٨.٠٢. لم يكن للشاي الأسود تأثير معنوي على تقليل التعداد البكتيري. الاستنتاجات: يمكن استنتاج أن الشاي الأسود أظهر تأثيرا مضادا للميكروبات ضئيل ضد المكورات العقدية الطافرة والملبنة. Abstract: Objectives: Dental caries are associated with high counts of Streptococcus mutans (SM) and Lactobacillus (LB) and low saliva buffering capacity (BC). This study aimed to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of black tea on salivary cariogenic microflora, SM and LB species in an adult population. Antimicrobial activity was measured from the number of colony forming units (CFUs) of SM and LB, and BC of saliva. Methods: In this prospective experimental study, unstimulated saliva samples were acquired from the participants before, immediately after, and 1 h after drinking tea by collecting saliva in sterilised containers. Samples were taken to the laboratory for incubation and subsequent counting. SM and LB counts and BC of saliva were calculated using the caries risk test (CRT). Results: A total of 21 participants, 13 males and 8 females, with a mean age of 32.6 ± 8.02, were recruited in this study. Black tea had no significant effect on reducing the cariogenic bacterial counts (p > 0.05). Conclusion: Based on this study, it can be deduced that black tea exhibits an insignificant antimicrobial effect against Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus bacteria. الكلمات المفتاحية: الشاي الأسود, البكتيريا المسببة للتسوس, المكورات العقدية الطافرة, الملبنة, Keywords: Black tea, Cariogenic bacteria, Lactobacillus, Streptococcus mutan