Negotiating development: translocal gendered spaces in Muslim societies ; a methodology paper

Der Beitrag präsentiert und diskutiert den methodologischen Rahmen eines Forschungsprojektes zur Untersuchung der Verhandlung von Entwicklungskonzepten und -visionen in Südostasien sowie Ost- und Westafrika, die einen unterschiedlichen Grad des Islamisierungsprozesses aufweisen. Im Mittelpunkt stehen dabei der Kontext translokaler geschlechter-orientierter Räume der muslimischen Gesellschaften und die dort auftretenden Verbindungen bzw. Interaktionen zwischen den kulturellen Kategorien der muslimischen und der westlichen Welt. Das Aufeinandertreffen unterschiedlicher kultureller Ausrichtungen umfasst translokale Netzwerke von NGOs, Frauenbewegungen sowie -netzwerke, internationale Entwicklungsorganisationen bzw. -gruppen und deren Entwicklungskonzepte zu Menschenrechten, Armutsbekämpfung oder Geschlechtergleichheit. Die Ausführungen gliedern sich in die Erörterung der drei maßgeblichen methodologischen Vorgehensweisen zur Untersuchung der Lokalisation globaler Entwicklungskonzepte, die schließlich die Konstitution translokaler Räume in muslimischen Gesellschaften bewirken: (1) die soziologische Perspektive bei der empirischen Betrachtung der Verhandlung, (2) die wissenschaftliche Herangehensweise an den Forschungsgegenstand der Islamisierung durch eine translokal erzeugte Perspektive sowie (3) die Konstitution des Raumes im Kontext der Translokalität. (ICG

Appropriating the mosque: women's religious groups in Khartoum

'Seit der Machtübernahme der National Islamic Front (NIF) 1989 bildeten sich in den Moscheen der Hauptstadt des Sudan immer mehr Frauengruppen. Der vorliegende Beitrag vermittelt, auf welche Weise diese Moscheegruppen gesellschaftlichen Raum für Frauen herstellen, sich den religiös-öffentlichen, männlich bestimmten Raum der Moschee aneignen und ihn transformieren. Die Autorin betont, dieses Fallbeispiel der Moscheegruppen widerspreche der undifferenzierten Ansicht, Frauen in islamischen und speziell in islamistischen Ländern seien (notwendigerweise) unterdrückt und die Infragestellung ungleicher Geschlechterbeziehungen und Machtstrukturen setze eine Abwendung von der Religion voraus. Das Gegenteil sei der Fall: Frauen, die in Moscheegruppen aktiv sind, beanspruchen (mehr) Macht, indem sie religiös(er) werden. Sie transformieren öffentliche und religiöse Räume und handeln mit sozialen und religiösen Autoritäten und Institutionen geschlechtsspezifische Positionen aus.' (Autorenreferat)'This paper discusses the case of women's mosques groups in the capital of Sudan which have considerably spread since the National Islamic Front (NIF) seized power in 1989. The paper empirically demonstrates how the mosque groups are forming a social space for women and how this is leading to the appropriation and transformation of a public-religious and a highly masculine space such as the mosque. The main argument of the paper maintains that the case of the mosque groups contests the undifferentiated view that women in Islamic and specially Islamised societies are (necessarily) oppressed and that the only way to question the unequal gender relation and power structure is by getting away from religion. The paper asserts that, on the contrary, women active in mosque groups are claiming (more) power by becoming (more) religious. Through this power they constitute a space, transform public and religious ones and negotiate their gendered position vis-à-vis social and religious authorities and institutions.' (author's abstract)

Den Horizont erweitern: geschlechtsspezifische Perspektive des alltäglichen Lebens und der Gewohnheiten in einer islamischen Subkultur des Sudans

Der vorliegende Beitrag zeigt auf, wie ein Mitglied einer islamistischen Subkultur durch islamische Gewohnheiten im Alltag eine bestimmte Weltanschauung entwickelt. Der Beitrag stützt sich auf ein empirisches Forschungsprojekt, das der Autor in der sudanesischen Hauptstadt Khartoum 1998/99 durchgeführt hat. Die in diesem Artikel verwendete geschlechtsspezifische Perspektive zielt darauf ab, Frauen als eine Kategorie zu dekonstruieren, je nachdem wie sie zur 'Islamisierung' stehen. Wenn es um den Islam und gesellschaftlichen Wandel geht, werden Frauen oft als die 'meist betroffene Gruppe' angesehen. Oft meint man, dass geschlechtsbedingte Trennungen, Räume und Grenzen Frauen als Opfer an den Rand der Gesellschaft oder zumindest in eine Position drängen, in der ihr Wert im Sinne von Einflussnahme auf Veränderungen in den diskursiven und nicht-diskursiven Praktiken ideologischer Bewegungen wie dem Islamismus begrenzt ist. Der Artikel ist in zwei Teile gegliedert. Der erste beleuchtet eine umfangreiche Fallstudie einer jungen islamischen Frau, die sich intensiv damit beschäftigt, ihre Identität neu zu definieren und soziale Grenzen auszuhandeln, indem sie ihr tägliches Leben und ihre Gewohnheiten nach einer spezifischen Sicht des Islam ausrichtet. Der Fall unterstreicht die Beziehung zwischen islamischen symbolischen Praktiken und den allgemeinen Institutionen des Islam und die Art und Weise, wie diese Beziehung mobilisiert wird, um lokale Kulturen und Grenzen auszuhandeln. Er liefert eine detaillierte Beschreibung der sozialen Bedeutung dieser symbolischen Praktiken und ihrer Beziehung zum Definitionsprozess des (modernen) Ichs oder der individuellen Identität. Der Schlussteil untersucht die Beziehung zwischen symbolischen islamischen Alltagspraktiken, Modernität und dem Islamisierungsprozess aus theoretischer Sicht. (ICD

Assessment of knowledge and healthcare providers’ role in promoting lactation in United Arab Emirates

Background: This study was performed to assess mothers’ knowledge and awareness level regarding maternal medication intake during lactation and health care providers’ role in promoting lactation.Methods: This study is a cross-sectional, questionnaire based survey study and a convenient sample of (820) breastfeeding mothers in Ajman and Sharjah, United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) participated in the study. The results were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the data concerning the demographic characteristics and breastfeeding knowledge. Categorical variables (such as nationality and educational level) were described by using frequency, percentages, bar chart and pie chart.Results: The current study revealed a (72%) of maternal knowledge compared to (60.4%) four years ago and the most identified encouraging factor for the initiation of lactation stated by the respondents was their own decision followed by family support (58.4%, 39.8% respectively). The health care providers’ role was positively improved (58.4%) as observed in the current study compared to (52.1%) four years ago in UAE.Conclusions: An improvement was observed in terms of knowledge among breastfeeding mothers in the UAE compared to previous years as well as healthcare providers’ role which was also positively improved. Pharmacists were observed to have a low impact on the initiation of lactation, but on the other hand it was found that they had a significant role in terms of assessing maternal medication safety during lactation

Comparative study on the intervention of ‘Spice’ Mixture (SM) prepared by Natural Food Additives (NFA) alone or intervention of SM with mind calming exercise in the management on female obesity

889-896Obesity has become huge health problem in the entire world. In Sri Lanka, the prevalence of obesity is estimated to be 20.3% in men and 36.5% in women in four provinces. Further, the highest prevalence rate in Western Province, especially in Colombo was estimated to be 32.2%, among adults. Obesity is associated with osteoarthritis, obstructive sleep apnea, gall stones, and hiatus hernia. In addition to this obesity is related to numerous other problems, such as menstrual and mental disorders and varicose vein etc. According to the concept of Unani four treatment modalities are there; they are known as Dieto therapy (Ilaj Bil Ghiza), Pharmaco therapy (Ilaj Bil Dawa), Regimental therapy (Ilaj Bit Tadbeer) and Surgery (Ilaj Bil Yad). Biomarkers such as Lipid profile (VLDL, LDL, HDL And Serum triglycerides), Haemoglobin percentage, SGPT and SC (Serum Creatinine) were considered. Blood sample analysis was performed at NATH (National Ayurvedic Teaching Hospital), Borella, National Diabetic Centre, Rajagiriya and Asiri Hospitals Ltd. According to Unani or Greco-Arabic medical concept, improper digestion may play a main role to cause obesity. Improper digestion was corrected by using a ‘spice’ mixture made by Natural Food Additives (NFA), which possesses the actions of carminative, digestive and strengthens the gastro-intestinal tract. The preparation of ‘spice’ mixture included Natural Food Additives (NFA). They are Cumin (Cuminum cyminum), Garlic (Allium sativum), Curry Leaves (Murraya koenigii), Ceylon Cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum) and Black Pepper (Piper nigram). Studies revealed that waist circumferences (WC) is closely linked to CV disease risk factors. Also, WHO Expert Committee on Obesity in Asian and Pacific populations suggested that revised cutoff points for WC: 90 cm for men and 80 cm for women to identify patients with abdominal obesity. South Asians are more prone to insulin resistance and dyslipidaemic state of abdominal obesity. Study concluded that the intervention of ‘spice’ mixture reduces obesity and the effective mind calm exercises would give more beneficial effect in weight reduction

Measuring Impact of Air and Agricultural Soil Pollution on Social Development in Saudi Arabia

This research aimed to measure the impact of air and agricultural soil pollution on social development in Saudi Arabia from the period 1995–2019 by using social development indicators, concentrating on the percentages of expenditure on education and health, and the Human Development Index. In addition, this study uses multiple regressions in estimating the model to study the impact of air pollution and agricultural soil on social development. Results of the study showed that a 10% change in the number of chemical fertilizers and pesticides used in Saudi agriculture leads to a change in the total number of inpatients by 0.7% and 0.5%, respectively. It was also found that an increased percentage of health expenditure to total government spending by 10% leads to a decrease in the total number of patients in the hospital by 1.8%. An increase in air pollution, expressed as a 10% increase in CO2 emissions, increases the total number of hospitalized patients by 11.1%.  The increasing total number of patients by 10% leads to a decrease in the total productivity of the worker, as an indicator of 1.8%. Furthermore, a change of 10% in the ratio of education expenditure to total government expenditure leads to a change in the same direction of the Human Development Index by 9.6%. In light of these results, it can be recommended that the country need to reduce air pollution by expanding the use of natural gas in the industrial and transportation sectors, in addition to reducing the use of nitrogenous fertilizers and pesticides in Saudi agriculture through the expansion of clean farming and good agricultural practices

Global genomic epidemiology of chromosomally mediated non-enzymatic carbapenem resistance in Acinetobacter baumannii: on the way to predict and modify resistance

IntroductionAlthough carbapenemases are frequently reported in resistant A. baumannii clinical isolates, other chromosomally mediated elements of resistance that are considered essential are frequently underestimated. Having a wide substrate range, multidrug efflux pumps frequently underlie antibiotic treatment failure. Recognizing and exploiting variations in multidrug efflux pumps and penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) is an essential approach in new antibiotic drug discovery and engineering to meet the growing challenge of multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria.MethodsA total of 980 whole genome sequences of A. baumannii were analyzed. Nucleotide sequences for the genes studied were queried against a custom database of FASTA sequences using the Bacterial and Viral Bioinformatics Resource Center (BV-BRC) system. The correlation between different variants and carbapenem Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations (MICs) was studied. PROVEAN and I-Mutant predictor suites were used to predict the effect of the studied amino acid substitutions on protein function and protein stability. Both PsiPred and FUpred were used for domain and secondary structure prediction. Phylogenetic reconstruction was performed using SANS serif and then visualized using iTOL and Phandango.ResultsExhibiting the highest detection rate, AdeB codes for an important efflux-pump structural protein. T48V, T584I, and P660Q were important variants identified in the AdeB-predicted multidrug efflux transporter pore domains. These can act as probable targets for designing new efflux-pump inhibitors. Each of AdeC Q239L and AdeS D167N can also act as probable targets for restoring carbapenem susceptibility. Membrane proteins appear to have lower predictive potential than efflux pump-related changes. OprB and OprD changes show a greater effect than OmpA, OmpW, Omp33, and CarO changes on carbapenem susceptibility. Functional and statistical evidence make the variants T636A and S382N at PBP1a good markers for imipenem susceptibility and potential important drug targets that can modify imipenem resistance. In addition, PBP3_370, PBP1a_T636A, and PBP1a_S382N may act as potential drug targets that can be exploited to counteract imipenem resistance.ConclusionThe study presents a comprehensive epidemiologic and statistical analysis of potential membrane proteins and efflux-pump variants related to carbapenem susceptibility in A. baumannii, shedding light on their clinical utility as diagnostic markers and treatment modification targets for more focused studies of candidate elements

Core-in-cup/liquisol dual tackling effect on azelnidipine buccoadhesive tablet micromeritics, in-vitro release, and mucoadhesive strength

Reduced bioavailability of azelnidipine is related to its poor aqueous solubility and extensive first-pass metabolism, which hinder its efficacy. These problems were addressed by implementing (1) a liquisol technique for promoting the dissolution rate in a controlled-release manner and (2) a core-in-cup buccoadhesive drug delivery system as an alternative to the oral route. A 33 factorial design was used to study the effects of polymer type (sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC Na), chitosan, or Carbomer P940) concentration (5, 10 or 15 %) and preparation technique (simple mix, liquisol or wet granulation) on the dissolution and mucoadhesion of core-in-cup azelnidipine buccoadhesive tablets. Tablet micromeritics, swelling index, mucoadhesive strength and in vitro release were characterized. Statistical analyses of these factors showed significant effects on the studied responses, where F#16 prepared by the liquisol technique and containing 15 % CMC Na was chosen with an overall desirability of 0.953

Comparative study of the chemical composition and anti-proliferative activities of the aerial parts and roots of Apium graveolens L. (celery) and their biogenic nanoparticles

Apiaceae plants are multipurpose folk remedies and bioactive foods that show a remarkable ability to biosynthesize a large number of secondary metabolites with antitumor and chemopreventive potential. Among the various members of the Apiaceae, celery (Apium graveolens L.) has long been used as a popular edible and medicinal plant owing to its plentiful health benefits and nutraceutical properties; however, the anticancer potential of this important species has been seldom studied, mostly focusing on its seeds. Therefore, this work was designed to delve into the chemical composition and anti-proliferative potential of the total ethanolic extracts of the aerial parts (TEEAGA) and roots (TEEAGR) of A. graveolens var. dulce (Mill.) Pers. as well as their green synthesized silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). In general, both TEEAGA and TEEAGR exhibited moderate to potent inhibitory activities against human liver (HepG-2), colon (Caco-2), and breast (MCF-7) cancer cell lines, with interesting IC50 profiles [(41.37 ± 0.12, 27.65 ± 0.27, and 9.48 ± 0.04 μg/mL) and (11.58 ± 0.02, 7.13 ± 0.03, and 6.58 ± 0.02 μg/mL), respectively] as compared with doxorubicin, while more pronounced anti-proliferative effects were observed for their biogenic AgNPs, which showed IC50 values ranging between 25.41 ± 0.16 and 1.37 ± 0.03 μg/mL. Moreover, HPLC‒HESI‒HRMS-based metabolomics analysis of both extracts showed the presence of a varied group of secondary metabolites, including flavonoids, phenylpropanoids, phthalides, coumarins, and sesquiterpenes that further displayed moderate to promising binding affinities to the active site of cyclin G-associated kinase (GAK), particularly graveobioside A, graveobioside B, and celeroside C, suggesting their possible contribution as GAK modulators to the anti-proliferative potential of celery. These findings can help broaden future research on the utilization of different parts of celery and their NPs as functional foods and medicines in cancer chemoprevention and therapy