Djelovanje taurina protiv histomorfoloških i ultrastrukturnih promjena u testisima miševa izloženih aluminijevu kloridu

The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effects of taurine against histomorphological and ultrastructural changes in the testes of Swiss albino mice caused by acute in vivo exposure to AlCl3. Light microscopy revealed that a single intraperitoneal (i.p.) dose of AlCl3 (25 mg kg-1 Al3+) was associated with sloughing, tubular atrophy, germ-cell degeneration, and foci of Leydig cell hyperplasia. In addition, transmission electron microscopy showed a destruction of inter-Sertoli cell tight junctions, apoptotic cell death of spermatogonia and primary spermatocytes, various types of abnormalities in spermatid morphology, accumulation of lipid droplets, reduction of the smooth endoplasmic reticulum (sER), and mitochondrial damage in Leydig cells. Taurine post-treatment at i.p. dose of 1 g kg-1 diminished these changes and significantly reduced the number of affected tubules compared to Al-poisoned mice. This is the first study to evidence that taurine protects against pathological changes in the testicular tissue of Al-treated mice.promjena u testisima švicarskih albino miševa akutno izloženih AlCl3. Svjetlosnom je mikroskopijom utvrđena povezanost između jednokratne intraperitonealne (i.p.) doze AlCl3 (25 mg kg-1 Al3+) i odvajanja nekrotičnoga tkiva, atrofije tubula, degeneracije zametnih stanica te žarišta hiperplazije Leydigovih stanica. Usto su se elektronskom mikroskopijom mogli vidjeti razoreni čvrsti spojevi između Sertolijevih stanica, apoptoza spermatogonija i primarnih spermatocita, različite morfološke abnormalnosti spermatida, nakupljanje lipidnih kapi, stanjenje glatkog endoplazmatskog retikuluma (sER) te oštećenje mitohondrija u Leydigovim stanicama. Naknadna primjena taurina u i.p. dozi od 1 g kg-1 ublažila je ove promjene i značajno smanjila broj zahvaćenih tubula u odnosu na miševe otrovane aluminijem. Ovo je prvo istraživanje koje potvrđuje zaštitno djelovanje taurina protiv patoloških promjena na tkivu testisa miševa uzrokovanih aluminijem

Reconstruction of Long Anterior Urethral Strictures by Dorsally Quilted Penile Skin Flap

Objective. To present the results of reconstruction of long (>5 cm), penile, bulbar, and bulbopenile urethral strictures by penile skin flap as dorsal onlay in one-stage procedure. Patients and Methods. Between January, 1998 and December, 2004, 18 patients (aged from 28-65 years) presented with long urethral strictures, 5.6–13.2 cm (penile in 6, bulbar in 2 and combined in 10 cases), those were repaired utilizing long penile skin flaps placed as dorsal onlay flap in one stage (Orandi flap 6 cm in 6 cases, circular flaps 7–10 cm in 8, and spiral flaps 10–15 cm in 4). Followup of all patients after reconstruction included urine flow rate at weekly intervals, RUG at 6–12 weeks, and urethrocystoscopy at 12 and 18 months. Results. The urethral patency was achieved in 77% of patients. The complications were fistula in one patient (5.5%), restricture occurred in 3 patients (16.6%) that required visual internal urethrotomy and two patients (11%) showed curvature on erection that dose not interfere with sexual intercourse. Diverticulum (penile urethra) was seen in one patient (5.5%) containing stones and was excised surgically. There was penile skin loss in 3 patients (16.6%). All patients completed at least one-year followup period. Conclusion. Free penile skin flaps offer good results (functional and cosmetic) in long penile and/or bulbar urethral strictures. Meticulously fashioned longitudinal, circular or spiral penile skin flaps could bridge urethral defects up to 15 cm long

The Impact of Integration Between Intellectual Capital and Social Capital in Achieving the Competitive Advantage for the Public Industrial Jordanian Joint Stock Companies

The developed world today Witnesses dynamic transformations and many rapid changes in the structure of companies and organizations that are formed during the enormous economic growth and the technological acceleration. These changes and transformations did not occur as a result of technological developments and new technologies, but due to the increase attention towards two important resources which are: the intellectual capital and the social capital. Recent studies in those areas have confirmed that any corporation or pioneer company, in order to ensure its growth and survival and not to collapse or decay, should take advantage of these resources to gain access and be competitive, not only at the local level, but worldwide also. Based on the foregoing, this research worked on studying the fact of integration between the intellectual capital and the social capital in achieving the competitive advantage for Jordanian industrial companies from the standpoint of corporate managers. The most important results of the research were the consideration of both, the  intellectual and  social capital, as the most  important axis of companies survival, and without those capitals even simple companies cannot  survive, for this, they must maintain those capitals with quality, this can be done by providing a good work environment and studying  the work barriers and finding the best solutions for them, through the study of the properties of each of the social capital and the intellectual capital to reach the global competitiveness. the most important recommendations of this research is to urge the industrial companies to pay the necessary attention to the intellectual and social capitals, through social polarization and development in order to achieve the competitive advantage as for they are considered the real capital of the company. Keywords: Intellectual Capital, Social Capital, Competitive Advantage

Comparison of Oral, Tympanic and Fresh Urine Temperature in Healthy Young Adult Males in Kingdom Suadi Arabia

Background: Core body temperature (CBT) is commonly evaluated by measuring oral (OT) and tympanic membrane (TT) temperatures; however, there are considerable debates on which of these methods is the most appropriate.Objective: To evaluate concordance of OT and TT with CBT.Material and Methods: OT, TT and fresh urine temperature (FUT) were measuredsimultaneously in 45 apparently healthy young adult males from Buraydah, Qassim, KSA during July 2015. All readings were obtained between 7:00 and 10:00 pm according to the standard methods. FUT was used as indicator of CBT.Results: OT (36.35±0.41° C) was significantly higher compared with TT (35.99±0.81° C, P = 0.013) as well as FUT (35.55±0.76° C, P < 0.001). TT was significantly higher compared with FUT (P = 0.003). Using one sample t-test, the difference between OT and TT (0.36±0.92° C, P = 0.011), OT and FUT (0.80±0.90° C, P < 0.001) and TT and FUT (0.44±0.80° C, P = 0.001) were significantly above zero. Disconcordance of the OT, TT and FUT measurements are further illustrated by Bland-Altman plots. There were no significant correlations between OT and TT as well as between OT and FUT. However, TT correlated positively with FUT (r = 0.48, P = 0.001).Conclusions: OT and TT are inappropriate measures for CBT. CBT has influence on TT, but not OT.Key words: Core body temperature, oral, tympanic, urine

Extraction of Pectin from Tamarind Fruits (Tamarindus indica L.) and its Utilization in Jam Production

     In the present work, pectin was extracted from tamarind fruit pulp and used for jam production. The pectin yield in one kg tamarind pulp was 3.7 grams. The average chemical composition of tamarind pulp was: 5.44 % protein, 2.44 % ash, 18.21 % moisture, 1.99 ± 0.8% fat, 13.05 ± 0.7% fiber and 55% available carbohydrates. The tamarind fruit pulp also contained appreciable amounts of minerals as follows: 134 (mg/100g) sodium, 74 (mg/100g) potassium and 88 (mg/100g) calcium. The chemical, microbiological and sensory quality characteristics of the extracted pectin jam (A) as well as commercial pectin jam (B) were also determined. (A) contained: 8.5 % total sugar, 5 % reducing sugar, 67 % total soluble solid, 36 mg/100g sodium, (60 mg/100g potassium, 80 mg/100g calcium and had a pH value of 3.3. On the other hand, (B) contained:    12 % total sugar, 1.3 % reducing sugar, 68 % total soluble solid, 44 (mg/100g) sodium, 43 (mg/100g) potassium, 64 (mg/100g) calcium and had a pH value of 3.5±0.1. Microbiological analysis of (B) had shown high levels of yeast and mould, however, the counts of yeast and mould was highly reduced in (A). The sensory analysis indicated that all types of jams were accepted by panelists who generally preferred (B) than (A) due to its appealing colour and flavour

Serum CRP level in day of ovum pickup and embryo transfer as a predictor for success in patients undergoing IVF/ ICSI

Background: This study was performed to determine the level of serum C-reactive protein (CRP) in day of ovum pickup and embryo transfer as a predictor for success in patients undergoing In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) and Intracytoplasmic Sperm injection (ICSI).Methods: This study was a cross sectional study (prospective) that was conducted in assisted reproduction unit in Al-Azhar University Hospital on 50 infertile patients who were candidate for IVF/ICSI, using standard long protocol, blood was drawn two times during cycle, in the day of ovum pick up and the day of embryo transfer.Results: In (70.6 %) the serum of CRP level was higher in day of embryo transfer than day of ovum pick up. The ratio of CRP level in the day of embryo transfer to the day of ovum pick up was heigher (1.54) in patients who became pregnant after ICSI, patients with less than this ratio have not been pregnant.Conclusions: Controlled ovarian hyper stimulation and puncture of ovaries can potentiate systemic stimulation so increasing serum CRP level in day of embryo transfer rather than day of ovum pick up can predict success in patients undergoing IVF/ICSI.

THE EFFECTS OF DIABETES MELLITUS ON THE RESPONSE TO PEGINTERFERON-ALPHA IN COMBINATION WITH RIBAVIRIN THERAPY IN EGYPTIAN CHRONIC HEPATITIS C PATIENTS

Objective:The present study aimed to determine whether type 2 diabetes mellitus influences the response to antiviral therapy with peg-interferon alpha plus ribavirin in Egyptian patients with chronic hepatitis C. Methods:All patients were treated with peginterferon alpha 2 b (1.5 μg/Kg/body weight) subcutaneously plus oral ribavirin application in a dose ranging from 800-1200 mg/day and followed after 12 w of therapy. Results: The present study indicated that, non-significant changes were observed in liver function, kidney function, thyroid function tests, tumor marker, immunological analysis, hematological parameters, viral load and degree of cirrhosis between both groups’ baselines, while the only significant difference was regarded in glucose level. However, diabetic group showed a significant decrease in response to antiviral therapy as compared to non-diabetic hepatitis C virus (HCV) patients. Furthermore, significant decrease in serum liver enzymes activity and total bilirubin level as compared to baseline levels in both groups, while there were a significant increase in alanine transaminase (ALT) activity and total bilirubin level in diabetic group as compared to non-diabetic HCV group after treatment. Also, significant decreases in hemoglobin concentration, white blood cells and platelet counts, in both groups after treatment as compared to there before treatment while diabetic group showed significant decreases in hemoglobin concentration and white blood cells count when compared with non-diabetic HCV group after treatment. Conclusion: Type 2 diabetes mellitus influence the response to antiviral therapy with peginterferon plus ribavirin in Egyptian patients with chronic hepatitis C