Comparison of quality of life in a group of Lebanese type 1 diabetics on insulin pump and those on multiple daily injections

Aim: The aim of the study is to investigate the differences in the quality of life (QOL) in Lebanese youths with type 1 diabetes using continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) and those using multiple daily injections (MDI) treatment modalities.Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional, comparative matched design was used. The sample included 36 adolescents and young adults on one of two treatment modalities (CSII or MDI) and matched for age, gender, and level of education. QOL was measured with the Indiana Diabetes Quality of Life for Youth and latest HbA1C level was recorded.Results: The CSII group had significantly lower HbA1C levels (p < 0.001), and reported better health perception (p = 0.029), more satisfaction with life (p = 0.002), less impact of the disease (p = 0.002), and fewer worries about their disease (p = 0.029), compared to the MDI group. The overall quality of life score was also significantly better in the CSII group than in the MDI group (p = 0.001).Conclusions: Findings suggest that CSII is associated with better glycemic control and QOL in the Lebanese youth population with type 1 diabetes

Coupling ultrasound with enzyme-assisted extraction of essential oil from algerian artemisia herba-alba asso

The composition of the essential oil (EO) of Artemisia herba-alba Asso, extracted by Hydro-Distillation (HD) and by coupling Ultrasound with Enzyme-Assisted Extraction (UE-AE) prior to HD from the plant's aerial parts were analyzed by GC-MS. Antibacterial, antifungal and antioxidant activities of the obtained EOs were evaluated. The yield of EO extraction after pretreatment of the desert wormwood leaves by coupling ultrasound with enzymes was in the range of 1.56%±0.07 compared to 1.01% ±0.08 in HD process; also, the total time necessary to complete EO extraction is 180min for HD and 120min for UE-AE. GC-MS profiling of the EOs showed changes in chemo type obtained by HD from camphor/1,8-cineole/α-mujone/chrysanmenone to a new chemo type in the case of UE-AE: camphor/α-thujone/1,8-cineole/filifolone; Then, an increasing of filifolone, α-thujone, 3-octyne and cis-limonene oxide characterize the UE-EO. The antifungal activity of the EO has slightly increased when extracted by UE-AE, however, both antibacterial and antioxidant activities were interestingly increased

A review of genetic taxonomy, biomolecules chemistry and bioactivities of Citrus hystrix DC

Citrus hystrix DC. with common name makrut lime or kafir lemon, is a very popular traditional medicinal plant as well as an important spice in Asiatic countries. The plant is native of the Indonesian island Sumbawa, then, it is cultivated in Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and the tropical region of Asia. It mainly contains essential oil and phenolic compounds. The most intense odor compounds of kafir lemon are Citronellal, L-Linalool, 1,8-Cineole , á-Terpeneol and ä-Cadinene. Such as Citrusosides-A and furanocoumarines, Makrut lime content also non-volatile compounds like alkaloids and glyceroglycolipids. Citrus hystrix DC has many biological activities due to its volatile and nonvolatile compounds, and it has been used in traditional medicine for treating various illnesses, particularly cold pain and stomach disorder. It is also used as a juice for its fruit or as spice for its aromatic leaves. This review covers data on the chemistry and biological effects of Citrus hystrix DC biomolecules, and aims to lay the foundation for further study on the extraction enhancement of these biomolecules and more useful formulations

A highly sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method for the analysis of a toxic water disinfection by-product, N-nitrosomethylethylamine

International audienceRecently, among the emerging contaminants, N-nitrosomethylethylamine has become of special concern because it is a potent human mutagenic and carcinogenic contaminant detected in chlorinated or chloraminated drinking waters and wastewaters. In this work a sensitive and robust method, which was based on solid-phase extraction followed by ultra-high-pressure liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry, was developed for the determination of N-nitrosomethylethylamine in water at ultra-trace levels. Chromatographic separation was performed on a C18 column. Quantification of N-nitrosomethylethylamine was achieved by using a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer that was equipped with an electrospray interface and was operated in positive ionization mode. Under optimized conditions, the calibration curve was linear from 0.1 to 100 μg L−1 (r2 ≥ 0.999). The precision of the intra- and inter-day values was found to be less than 2.5%, and the accuracy of the method was within ±3%. Moreover, an extraction efficiency greater than 86% was obtained at different concentration levels with relative standard deviation, RSD < 4.2%. Therefore, the experimental results showed that the proposed analytical method can be used successfully to determine N-nitrosomethylethylamine at ultra-trace levels (ng L−1) in aqueous samples

Ozone compatibility with polymer nanofiltration membranes

International audienceOzone is a strong oxidant applied in water treatment for disinfection and organic and inorganic pollutants removal. It can be coupled with membrane processes as a pre-treatment or post-treatment as well as in a hybrid configuration. In this study, we investigated the resistance of three commercial polymer nanofiltration membranes (NP10, NF90 and NF270) in contact with ozone (10 ppm for 1 h) at pH 3 and 7 to assess the influence of the ozone to hydroxyl radical concentrations balance. The surface properties of membranes were characterized before and after ozonation by means of various techniques, i.e. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in attenuated total reflectance mode (ATR-FTIR), zeta potential, water contact angle, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). For all membranes, the impact of ozonation on pure water permeability was greater at pH 7 than pH 3 due to the faster decomposition of ozone at pH 7 leading to the formation of more free radicals. A decrease in the NP10 membrane permeability (up to 25%) was obtained after ozonation. ATR-FTIR, zeta potential and SEM revealed a fairly good resistance of the polyethersulfone (PES) matrix to ozonation (thanks to the protective effect of electron-withdrawing sulfone groups) under the exposure conditions of this study but the polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) additive was substantially oxidized. XPS indicated that the degraded PVP was not released from the PES matrix. It was suggested that the decrease in the NP10 membrane permeability might result from a cross-linking process between macroradicals of degraded PVP chains. In contrast to what was observed with the NP10 membrane, the pure water permeability of the thin-film composite polyamide (PA) membranes dramatically increased after ozonation. The fully aromatic NF90 membrane appeared to be even more sensitive to ozone than the semi aromatic NF270. The different resistances of NF90 and NF270 membranes were attributed to the different amine monomers used for the synthesis of their active layer. Indeed, m-phenylenediamine used in interfacial polymerization of the NF90 active layer is an aromatic amine (aromatic rings are sensitive to ozonation) and is less basic than the non-aromatic piperazine used to develop the NF270 membrane (protonation of amines contributes to protect them from electrophilic attacks). For both PA membranes, ATR-FTIR and SEM indicated severely damaged active layers. The very sharp increase in the NF90 and NF270 permeabilities was attributed to the removal of active layer fragments, which was found compatible with both zeta potential and water contact angle measurements

Relevance of a hybrid process coupling adsorption and visible light photocatalysis involving a new hetero-system CuCo2O4/TiO2 for the removal of hexavalent chromium

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Polyaniline/Bi₁₂TiO₂₀ Hybrid System for Cefixime Removal by Combining Adsorption and Photocatalytic Degradation

Sillenite catalysts have shown efficient photocatalytic activity for the removal of various pollutants from water in previous studies, thus enhancing their activity by combining them with other materials will be very promising for environmental applications. In this context, an interesting hybrid system containing Polyaniline (PANI) as an adsorbent and Bi12TiO20 (BTO) sillenite as a catalyst was proposed in this work. Cefixime (CFX) has been selected as a pollutant for this study, and its removal was evaluated using PANI (adsorption), PANI and BTO (combined system) and the hybrid system Bi12TiO20/Polyaniline (BTO/PANI). First, the impact of PANI adsorption was investigated on its own; after that, the solution was filtered to separate the adsorbent from the liquid in order to re-treat the solution using photocatalysis (combining adsorption with photocatalysis). At the same time, a similar technique was used involving the hybrid system BTO/PANI. The results show that the hybrid system can remove a very high Cefixime concentration of 30 mg/L, almost 100%, within only 2 h, and this is better than previous investigations. These results indicate that it is possible to combine photocatalysis and adsorption processes to control water pollution

Peroxidase enzymes as green catalysts for bioremediation and biotechnological applications: A review

International audienceThe fast-growing consumer demand drives industrial process intensification, which subsequently creates a significant amount of waste. These products are discharged into the environment and can affect the quality of air, degrade water streams, and alter soil characteristics. Waste materials may contain polluting agents that are especially harmful to human health and the ecosystem, such as the synthetic dyes, phenolic agents, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds, polychlorinated biphenyls, pesticides and drug substances. Peroxidases are a class oxidoreductases capable of performing a wide variety of oxidation reactions, ranging from reactions driven by radical mechanisms, to oxygen insertion into C-H bonds, and two-electron substrate oxidation. This versatility in the mode of action presents peroxidases as an interesting alternative in cleaning the environment. Herein, an effort has been made to describe mechanisms governing biochemical process of peroxidase enzymes while referring to H2O2/substrate stoichiometry and metabolite products. Plant peroxidases including horseradish peroxidase (HRP), soybean peroxidase (SBP), turnip and bitter gourd peroxidases have revealed notable biocatalytic potentialities in the degradation of toxic products. On the other hand, an introduction on the role played by ligninolytic enzymes such as manganese peroxidase (MnP) and lignin peroxidase (LiP) in the valorization of lignocellulosic materials is addressed. Moreover, sensitivity and selectivity of peroxidase-based biosensors found use in the quantitation of constituents and the development of diagnostic kits. The general merits of peroxidases and some key prospective applications have been outlined as concluding remarks

Liquid-liquid extraction and quantitative determination of tungsten(VI) using macrocyclic reagent (DB-18-C-6) as a thiocyanate complex [WO (SCN)5]2-

International audienceIn recent years, the extraction using crown ethers has reached a resounding success in different scientific and technical fields. In this work, the authors report the results of the main steps of extraction and determination (proportioning) of the tungsten ion (VI) using a chloroformed solution of crown ether. The dibenzo-18-C-6(2,3,11,12-dibenzo-1,4,7,10,13,16-hexaoxacyclooctadeca-2,11-diene according to the IUPAC systematic nomenclature). The identification and quantification of W(VI) using the absorption spectrum, the influence of the necessary reagents, the needed acidity level for complete extraction and complexation of W(VI) using a crown ether, and the influence of multivalent metal ions were examined, considering that the sensitivity, selectivity, and detection limits have been determined. This system obeys Beer's law in the range of 0.18-18.3 μg cm−3of tungsten with a molar absorption of 1.6 × 104 mol−1 cm−1 at 415 nm and the detection, quantification limits were, respectively, equal to 0.7-1.8 μg cm−3. The developed method was applied for the extraction of W(VI) in the high speed steel (HSS): HS2-9-1-8 containing 2% W, 9% Mo, 1% V, and 8% Co