Effects of Probiotic on Comfort and Body Care Behaviors of Broilers Reared at Different Stocking Densities

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of probiotic on comfort and body care behaviors of broilers reared at two different densities. Two hundred and forty chicks were subdivided into four groups, two groups were reared under low stocking density (LSD); 10 bird/m2 and another 2 groups were reared under high stocking density (HSD); 15 bird/m2. In each density, one group was supplemented with probiotic in the drinking water and the other was not supplemented. Normal behavior of birds was recorded throughout the growing cycle twice a week, using video camera (Sony, Japan). Then after, comfort (standing, lying and sleeping), body care (preening, dust bathing, wing/leg stretching and head scratching) and aggressive behaviors of birds were analyzed. HSD reduced comfort behavior compared to low density without probiotic group. Standing frequency was significantly increased at the 6th week of the growing cycle. In addition, interrupted lying bouts frequency was increased and the non-interrupted lying bouts (frequency and duration) were decreased significantly. Moreover, preening frequency was decreased. However, aggressive behavior was not observed in all groups. Probiotic supplementation didn’t alter comfort, aggressive and body care behaviors of broilers at both densities in comparison to low density without probiotic group. However, birds stocked at high stocking density and supplemented with probiotic showed no alterations in all behavioral patterns compared to HSD group without probiotic supplementation. Data suggested that the used probiotic in this study was unable to improve comfort and body care behaviors of broilers reared at low stocking density and failed to alleviate impacts of high density stress on these behaviors

Efficacy of Probiotic in Improving Welfare and Mitigating Overcrowding Stress in Broilers

This study was conducted to investigate the efficacy of probiotic in improving welfare of broilers reared under low stocking density (LSD) and mitigating high stocking density (HSD) stress. A total number of 240 chicks were sub divided into four groups with three replicates for each. Two groups were reared under LSD (10 bird/m2).; 48 chicks (16 bird/ replicate) for each and another 2 groups were reared under HSD (15 bird/m2); 72 chicks (24 bird/ replicate). At each density, one group was supplemented with Protexin® and the other was not supplemented. Blood corticosterone (CS) level was measured and behavior of broilers was recorded weekly. At the end of the growing cycle, behavioral welfare fear response test (time of first attempt to stand, number of attempts to stand and tonic immobility duration) was performed and brain monoamines (serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine) concentrations were measured. As a result, HSD stress increased the time birds spent to perform the first attempt to stand and prolonged TI duration. However, Protexin® supplementation only reduced the time of first attempt to stand at higher density without alteration of the number of attempts required to induce TI. No significant improvement in fear response in LSD birds supplied with Protexin®. Furthermore, HSD stress decreased feeding, drinking and walking duration. However, Protexin® supplementation improved feeding, drinking and walking behaviors at LSD and did not improve behaviors of birds at HSD. Moreover, HSD increased CS levels at the 4th, 5th and 6th week of the growing cycle. However, Protexin® supplementation had a decreasing effect on CS levels in the birds reared at HD at the last two weeks of the growing cycle. In addition, brain serotonin concentration was increased in birds reared at HD without Protexin® supplementation and showed no alteration in that supplemented with the probiotic at LSD and HSD. Data suggests that, Protexin® supplementation may be beneficial in improving welfare (behavior al indicator) of broilers reared at LSD and alleviate some effects of HSD stress on birds

Double negative alpha beta T cells in pediatric hemophagocytic syndromes

Introduction: Autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome (ALPS) and hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) share clinical and laboratory features including lymphadenopathy, splenomegaly, and pancytopenia. We sought to measure αβ double negative T cells (αβ DNT) in a group of patients with established diagnosis of HLH in relation to disease activity and severity.Methods: We conducted a follow-up, controlled study that comprised 25 patients with HLH and 25 healthy matched controls. Patients were subjected to clinical evaluation and flowcytometric measurement of αβ DNT Cells at presentation and 9 weeks after start of HLH induction treatment.Results: In 17 (68%) patients, infection was the trigger of HLH while the cause was malignancy in three (12%), and rheumatological disorders in two patients (8%). At enrollment, 15 patients (60%) had αβ DNT cells levels [median (IQR): 1.71 (1.25-2.12)] that were significantly higher than the control values [median (IQR): 0.7 (0.4-0.8)] (p<0.001). The αβ DNT counts of patients were also higher at enrollment as compared to values at the end of week 9 [median (IQR): 0.76 (0.45-1.17)]; p=0.018. Survivors (n=8) and non-survivors (n=17) had comparable levels of αβ DNT cells at enrollment (p=0.861). αβ DNT cell count correlated positively with ALT (p=0.019) and negatively with CD4/CD8 ratios (p=0.023).Conclusion: Elevated αβ DNT cell counts might be related to the HLH process and this implies that mild elevation can exist in HLH and are not specific to ALPS. Wider scale studies with longer periods of follow up are needed to validate the results and properly outline the correlation between both medical conditions.Keywords: Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis, Double negative T cells, mortality, ALP

Integration of Computer Vision and Natural Language Processing in Multimedia Robotics Application

Computer vision and natural language processing (NLP) are two active machine learning research areas. However, the integration of these two areas gives rise to a new interdisciplinary field, which is currently attracting more attention of researchers. Research has been carried out to extract the text associated with an image or a video that can assist in making computer vision effective. Moreover, researchers focus on utilizing NLP to extract the meaning of words through the use of computer vision. This concept is widely used in robotics. Although robots should observe the surroundings from different ways of interactions, natural gestures and spoken languages are the most convenient way for humans to interact with the robots. This would be possible only if the robots can understand such types of interactions. In the present paper, the proposed integrated application is utilized for guiding vision-impaired people. As vision is the most essential in the life of a human being, an alternative source that helps in guiding the blind in their movements is highly important. For this purpose, the current paper uses a smartphone with the capabilities of vision, language, and intelligence which has been attached to the blind person to capture the images of their surroundings, and it is associated with a Faster Region Convolutional Neural Network (F-RCNN) based central server to detect the objects in the image to inform the person about them and avoid obstacles in their way. These results are passed to the smartphone which produces a speech output for the guidance of the blinds

Response of seedling barley (Hurdeom vulgar, L.) to foliar fertilization of nano-oxides (Fe, Cu, Mg)

Background. An experiment was conducted at the Grain Technology Laboratory, Crop Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Omar Al-Mukhtar University, during the 2023 season. The experiment utilized a completely randomized design to study the response of barley to foliar application of fine nanoscale iron, manganese, and copper fertilizers. The application was carried out as foliar spray at two different doses, two weeks and one month after sowing, using 3 kg capacity pots with 20 seeds per pot. The experiment included three observations for each treatment, with the nanoscale iron, manganese, and copper oxides applied at a concentration of 1 cmol/L. The data revealed the following: Significant positive response of barley shoots to foliar application of nanoscale iron, manganese, and copper fertilizers in various growth indicators, including shoot weight, shoot length, leaf area, crop growth rate, and specific leaf weight. High significant differences were observed in the effect of nanoscale iron, manganese, and copper oxides on the average shoot weight, crop growth rate, and leaf area. Copper oxide and manganese oxide showed the highest means, followed by iron oxide, compared to the control. Iron oxide exhibited the highest specific leaf weight for barley shoots, followed by copper oxide and then manganese oxide, compared to the control treatment

Role of Inflammatory Cytokines in Obese and Nonobese Diabetic Children

BACKGROUND: Obesity is an expanded health problem worldwide and it is blamed for a startling rise in type 1 diabetes (T1DM), the interaction between obesity, autoimmune processes, and glucose homeostasis is a growing field of study. AIM: This study was undertaken to predict the role of the inflammatory cytokines (interleukin [IL]-17 and IL-10) as biomarkers in early screening for obesity and T1DM and to determine the relation of inflammatory cytokines with diabetic complications especially nephropathy. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The target group consisted of 92 children with type 1 diabetes children who were diagnosed according to the criteria provided by American Diabetes Association Diabetic; cases were divided into two groups, Group 1 (overweight and obese diabetics) and Group 2 (normal weight diabetic children). The levels of serum IL-17 and IL-10 were assayed in these children by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Serum triglycerides (TG) and cholesterol levels were measured as well as urinary microalbumin level was estimated for detection of nephropathy. RESULTS: Diabetic overweight and obese children exhibited significantly 3.8 folds more at risk to be bad glycemic control than diabetic children with normal body mass index (BMI). Furthermore, overweight and obese diabetic children displayed significantly 15 times more at risk of having nephropathy than diabetic children with normal BMI. Low serum level of IL 10 and high level of IL 17 showed a significant association with high BMI in diabetic children. High HBA1c, low IL 10, and long disease duration were significantly considered as predominant risk factors for diabetic nephropathy in diabetic children. CONCLUSION: The obtained data from these investigations proved that overweight and obese children have a low serum level of IL-10 and high serum IL-17 levels. The relationship between IL-10/IL-17 can be applied as a good marker for the inflammatory state and these inflammatory interleukins can be employed as biomarkers in early screening for obesity and T1DM. Furthermore, these interleukins can be utilized as a predictor for early diabetic complications, particularly nephropathy

Abdominal computed tomography findings in patients with exudative ascites

Background: peritoneal cavity can be involved in inflammatory and malignant diseases and using computed tomography (CT) findings of exudative ascites may help in the differentiation. Objectives: 1-Describe CT features in patients with exudative ascites.2-Obtain useful CT findings to differentiate between tuberculous (TB) peritonitis and peritoneal carcinomatosis. Patients &methods: A cross sectional study conducted in Medical City Teaching Complex from September 2009 to September 2010 studied patients with exudative ascites using CT scan and confirmed later with histopathology examination. CT scan results were presented according to cytology examination and biochemical analysis. Results: 35 patients with exudative ascites were studied, including 19 males &16 females, age varied from 20 to73 years. While the amount of ascites(large or small) did not show statistically significant association with malignant disease, the density of ascitic fluid was slightly higher in TB[range(18-22)Hounsfield Unit(HU),mean is 20HU]compared to malignant ascites [range(15-20)HU ,mean is 18HU].Right subphrenic ascitic collections are associated with malignant disease (12 or 60% compared to 2 or 13.3% in TB) and pelvic ascitic collections were associated with TB disease (8 or 53.3% compared to 3 or 15% in malignant disease). Conclusion: In addition to omental cake &thickened bowel wall, malignant exudative ascites on CT scan is likely to have lower density, located in the right subphrenic space than in the pelvic region compared to benign (tuberculous) exudative ascites المقدمة :هذه الدراسة للتفريق بين مسببات الاستسقاء النضحي الحميدة والخبيثة باستخدام المفراس الحلزوني. الاهداف: وصف مشاهدات المفراس الحلزوني في الاستسقاء النضحي، استخدام مشاهدات المفراس الحلزوني للتفريق بين مسببات الاستسقاء النضحي الحميدة والخبيثة المرضى والطرائق: لقد تم دراسة 35 مريض يعانون من استسقاء البطن عن طريق الاختيار العشوائي للمرضى في وحدة المفراس لمستشفيات مدينة الطب التعليمية للفترة من ايلول 2009 الى ايلول 2010, وتم تأكيد النتيجة من الفحص المختبري,هؤلاء المرضى مكونين من 19 ذكر و16 أنثى .وكانت أعمار المرضى تتراوح بين 20-73. النتائج: وجدنا ان كثافة سائل الاستسقاء كانت مرتفعة عند مرضى التدرن البريتوني (20 وحدة هاونسفيلد) بالمقارنة مع المسسببات الخبيثة للاستسقاء النضحي (15 وحدة هاونسفيلد) يكون تجمع الاستسقاء في الناحية تحت الحجاب اليمنى في المسببات الخبيثة (12 او 60% بالمقارنة مع 2 او 13.3% في المسببات الحميدة ) والتجمع في الناحية الحوضية اكثر في مرضى التدرن (8 او 53.3% بالمقارنة مع 3 او 15 % في المسببات الخبيثة). الاستنتاج: اضافة الى الكعكة الثربية والتثخن في جدار الامعاء, يكون الاستسقاء النضحي ذو المسببات الخبيثة بكثافة اقل ويكثر تواجده في الناحية تحت الحجاب اليمنى بالمقارنة مع المسببات الحميدة للاستسقا

Effectiveness of a structured pharmacist-delivered intervention for patients post-acute coronary syndromes on all-cause hospitalizations and cardiac-related hospital readmissions: a prospective quasi-experimental study

Background: Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity in Qatar and globally. Aim: The primary objective of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a structured clinical pharmacist-delivered intervention on all-cause hospitalizations and cardiac-related readmissions in patients with ACS. Method: A prospective quasi-experimental study was conducted at Heart Hospital in Qatar. Discharged ACS patients were allocated to one of three study arms: (1) an intervention group (received a structured clinical pharmacist-delivered medication reconciliation and counselling at discharge, and two follow-up sessions at 4 weeks and 8 weeks post-discharge), (2) a usual care group (received the general usual care at discharge by clinical pharmacists) or, (3) a control group (discharged during weekends or after clinical pharmacists' working hours). Follow-up sessions for the intervention group were designed to re-educate and counsel patients about their medications, remind them about the importance of medication adherence, and answer any questions they may have. At the hospital, patients were allocated into one of the three groups based on intrinsic and natural allocation procedures. Recruitment of patients took place between March 2016 and December 2017. Data were analyzed based on intention-to-treat principles. Results: Three hundred seventy-three patients were enrolled in the study (intervention = 111, usual care = 120, control = 142). Unadjusted results showed that the odds of 6-month all-cause hospitalizations were significantly higher among the usual care (OR 2.034; 95% CI: 1.103–3.748, p = 0.023) and the control arms (OR 2.704; 95% CI: 1.456–5.022, p = 0.002) when compared to the intervention arm. Similarly, patients in the usual care arm (OR 2.304; 95% CI: 1.122–4.730, p = 0.023) and the control arm (OR 3.678; 95% CI: 1.802–7.506, p ≤ 0.001) had greater likelihood of cardiac-related readmissions at 6 months. After adjustment, these reductions were only significant for cardiac-related readmissions between control and intervention groups (OR 2.428; 95% CI: 1.116–5.282, p = 0.025). Conclusion: This study demonstrated the impact of a structured intervention by clinical pharmacists on cardiac-related readmissions at 6 months post-discharge in patients post-ACS. The impact of the intervention on all-cause hospitalization was not significant after adjustment for potential confounders. Large cost‐effective studies are required to determine the sustained impact of structured clinical pharmacist-provided interventions in ACS setting. Trial registration: Clinical Trials: NCT02648243 Registration date: January 7, 2016.This work was supported by an internal grant (Grant Number QUUG-CPH-CPH-14\15-2) from Qatar University Office of Research and Graduate Studies. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of Qatar University