Exploration of the UAE Native Plants For sustainable Landscaping in Arid Region

In order to maintain sustainability for landscapes in the arid region, the use of native plants is of considerable importance, in the light of the fact that the exotic plants currently used do not resource efficient. The native plants adapted to the harsh environment of the desert ecosystem could play a critical role in this direction where the natural resources could be sustainably used. Research on evaluation and analyzes of native plant species of the UAE for potential application in landscapes have been considered. The present investigation reports the results of the exploration of native plants suited for sustainable landscape for resource efficiency. It also encompasses the study about the response of native grass species identified in the survey and the shrubs to varying levels of irrigation. Further, the germination responses of selected plant species, tissue culture propagation of endangered tree species and their long-term conservation strategies were also part of the study. During plant exploration, 61 plants were identified with potential for landscaping out of which, based on further evaluations with specific landscape qualities, 30 plant species of different forms were recommended for future landscape use. A native grass Digitaria spp. was identified, which was found to have the potential to be used as ground covers in arid landscapes, compared with four nonnative grass species. The analysis and confirmation of stabilized responses for drought tolerance were done based on morphological responses, elemental status and antioxidant enzyme mechanisms operating under wider frequency of irrigation. In 9 selected shrubs and one grass species, irrigation experiment was conducted with a constant irrigation volume under four different frequencies. The responses to induced drought were assessed based on the morphological parameters, macro and micronutrient status that can influence the growth and development. The seeds of fourteen plant species were subjected to germination responses after exogenous application of gibberellic acid at 400 mg/l and 200 mg/l to accelerate germination, where many of the desert species are recalcitrant. The mean germination time (MGT) was shorter, where higher germination is noticed. In vitro propagation protocols were standardized in 3 endangered tree species viz., Moringa peregrina, Haloxylon persicum and Acridocarpus orientalis by direct organogenesis as part of in vitro conservation and faster multiplication. Long-term storage employing cryopreservation by vitrification and desiccation method was accomplished in the above three species. Based on the findings of this study, it can be concluded that the use of native plants of the UAE for landscape applications could create resource efficient, sustainable landscaping

Epidemiological Study on Rift Valley Fever Virus among Domestic Animals in Taiz Governorate (Yemen)

Rift Valley Fever Virus (RVFV) is the causative agent of Rift Valley Fever (RVF), transmitted either by hematophagous insects that infect animals and humans or by direct contact with infected animals. This study was performed to preparing RVF antigen from liver of infected lamb to be used in detecting anti-RVFV antibodies by using Enzyme Linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and to study epidemiological prevalence of anti-RVFV IgM and IgG antibodies among animals which conducted in the Researches Center of Taiz University and Central Health Laboratory, Taiz Governorate, Southwestern Yemen. RVFV antigen was successfully prepared at a titer dilution of 1: 3200 by Chessboard (CB) ELISA assay. However, out of 188 samples, 147 samples were positive for ELISA assay, of which 12 (8.2 %) were positive for anti-RVFV IgM and 135 (91.8 %) for anti-IgG antibodies. The antigen was successfully produced, and successfully adhered to ELISA plates. Simple and inexpensive methods give good results. The results can be used to develop and refine predictive database for RVF transmission based on environmental and remote sensing data

Schematic knowledge deviation: delving into the depths of reader’s cognitive pathways

This paper is an attempt to show how readers' underlying network of prototypical schematic expectations might be activated at different levels to address schematic/cognitive challenges. When these levels of detail are activated, a cognitive defamiliarization process occurs as a result of schematic deviation. With varying degrees of under-/over-specification, this sort of cognitive deviation raises up certain levels of schematic instantiatio

A New Classification of Endodontic-Periodontal Lesions

The interrelationship between periodontal and endodontic disease has always aroused confusion, queries, and controversy. Differentiating between a periodontal and an endodontic problem can be difficult. A symptomatic tooth may have pain of periodontal and/or pulpal origin. The nature of that pain is often the first clue in determining the etiology of such a problem. Radiographic and clinical evaluation can help clarify the nature of the problem. In some cases, the influence of pulpal pathology may cause the periodontal involvement and vice versa. The simultaneous existence of pulpal problems and inflammatory periodontal disease can complicate diagnosis and treatment planning. An endo-perio lesion can have a varied pathogenesis which ranges from simple to relatively complex one. The differential diagnosis of endodontic and periodontal diseases can sometimes be difficult, but it is of vital importance to make a correct diagnosis for providing the appropriate treatment. This paper aims to discuss a modified clinical classification to be considered for accurately diagnosing and treating endo-perio lesion

Activation of Nrf2-Regulated Glutathione Pathway Genes by Ischemic Preconditioning

Prophylactic pharmacological activation of astrocytic gene expression driven by the transcription factor Nrf2 boosts antioxidant defences and protects against neuronal loss in ischemia and other disease models. However, the role of Nrf2 in mediating endogenous neuroprotective responses is less clear. We recently showed that Nrf2 is activated by mild oxidative stress in both rodent and human astrocytes. Moreover, brief exposure to ischemic conditions was found to activate Nrf2 both in vivo and in vitro, and this was found to contribute to neuroprotective ischemic preconditioning. Here we show that transient ischemic conditions in vitro and in vivo cause an increase in the expression of Nrf2 target genes associated with the glutathione pathway, including those involved in glutathione biosynthesis and cystine uptake. Taken together, these studies indicate that astrocytic Nrf2 may represent an important mediator of endogenous neuroprotective preconditioning pathways

Poultry and Beef Meat as Potential Seedbeds for Antimicrobial Resistant Enterotoxigenic Bacillus Species: A Materializing Epidemiological and Potential Severe Health Hazard

Although Bacillus cereus is of particular concern in food safety and public health, the role of other Bacillus species was overlooked. Therefore, we investigated the presence of eight enterotoxigenic genes, a hemolytic gene and phenotypic antibiotic resistance profiles of Bacillusspecies in retail meat samples. From 255 samples, 124 Bacillus isolates were recovered, 27 belonged to B. cereusand 97 were non-B. cereus species. Interestingly, the non-B. cereus isolates carried the virulence genes and exhibited phenotypic virulence characteristics as the B. cereus. However, correlation matrix analysis revealed the B. cereus group positively correlates with the presence of the genes hblA, hblC, and plc, and the detection of hemolysis (p \u3c 0.05), while the other Bacillus sp. groups are negatively correlated. Tests for antimicrobial resistance against ten antibiotics revealed extensive drug and multi-drug resistant isolates. Statistical analyses didn’t support a correlation of antibiotic resistance to tested virulence factors suggesting independence of these phenotypic markers and virulence genes. Of special interest was the isolation of Paenibacillus alvei and Geobacillus stearothermophilus from the imported meat samples being the first recorded. The isolation of non-B. cereus species carrying enterotoxigenic genes in meat within Egypt, suggests their impact on food safety and public health and should therefore not be minimised, posing an area that requires further research

E-cigarettes Perceptions and Use among Jordanian Medical Students

Purpose: Medical students are the cornerstone for future public health awareness; this study aimed to assess e-cigarettes perceptions and use among medical students.Methods: This is a cross-sectional, questionnaire-based national study. The study included all five medical schools in the country and addressed students in their clinical years. Data were collected through a self-administered and structured paper-based questionnaire between Dec 1, 2018, and Mar 30, 2019. Data obtained were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows and univariate inferential tests were employed to examine differences between groups.Results: A total sample of 1819 (97.4%) students returned their questionnaires; with a declaration of their smoking habits from the five medical schools, 47% are males, and 53% are females. Only 13 students 0.7% of all students or 2.1% of all smokers used e-cigarettes solely, but 177 students 9.5% of all students or 29% of all smokers used e-cigarettes combined with other types of smoking. Most medical students (86%) were aware of e-cigarettes. The main motive behind using e-cigarettes was the rare and different flavors provided by these cigarettes. The general perception among smokers and non-smokers is that e-cigarettes are less harmful and helpful in quitting smoking.Conclusion: Most medical students are aware of e-cigarettes. While their use as the only form of smoking is rare, e-cigarettes are frequently used in combination with other types of smoking

Assessment of atmospheric emissions due to anthropogenic activities in the state of Qatar

Atmospheric pollutants in the state of Qatar are derived from flaring and fugitive emissions due to a combination of new energy projects, operational conditions and plant operational problems. This research is the first attempt to quantitatively assess key atmospheric pollutants in Qatar, in accordance with the Kyoto agreements to reduce greenhouse gas production. Two datasets were analysed: 1. Between 2000 and 2002, data collected by industrial plants, as part of their own procedures, were assembled using a proforma questionnaire, to compile data on fuel consumption, fuel type, chemical characteristics, heat value, specific gravity etc, from industries in Qatar. The survey involved the oil & gas industry, petrochemical factories, power & desalination plants. Fuel data includes sulfur & nitrogen contents, chemical composition of flared gas and C content, some data compiled on road transport and fuel consumption. Analysis revealed significant atmospheric pollution. 2. Independent air-quality monitoring stations collected data between 2003 and 2005 to compare with data provided by industry. Three locations were chosen because of proximity to industrial plants: Mesaieed on the southeast coast, Dukhan on the west coast, and Halul Island, an offshore installation 30 km east of Qatar in the Arabian Gulf. Five key tropospheric pollutants (NO2, SO2, CO, O3 and PM10), wind speed and wind direction, were monitored hourly from three stations located near gas installations across Qatar. Registered levels of CO, NO2 and SO2 were within Qatari and European Standards. PM10, however, was higher than the standards in all three stations and measured daily O3 levels were sometimes higher than the reference for Halul Island. Therefore, in contrast to industry data, the monitoring sites showed much pollution is below (better than) accepted thresholds, the difference between the two datasets illustrating the complexity involved in correctly monitoring pollution, and the effect of wind direction and dispersal of pollutants. Therefore these results have stimulated a comprehensive response to pollution monitoring in Qatar between 2005 and the present day, leading to reduction in flaring and fugitive emissions over the last few years, by as much as 50% in some operations, as a result of more careful operational planning, upgrading and better controls applied to new and existing projects. This research therefore provided much of the stimulus for emission reduction in Qatar, currently being investigated under the Clean Development Mechanism and Technology Transfer.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Water-pipe smoking and serum testosterone levels in adult males in Qatar.

Water-pipe (WP) smoking is the most common method of tobacco consumption in the Middle-East and is rapidly spreading on a global scale. Although, water-pipe smoking is linked to various diseases, such as emphysema and various types of cancers, its effect on testosterone levels has yet to be investigated. This study explores the effect of water-pipe smoking on serum testosterone levels in males in Qatar. In this cross-sectional sample within a cohort study, we retrieved data for a total of 1000 male volunteers from the Qatar BioBank (QBB) project. A self-reported questionnaire was used to determine the water-pipe smoking status of participants. Moreover, participants were stratified based on the frequency of smoking. Total testosterone and sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) were measured clinically, whereas free testosterone and bioavailable testosterone were calculated using Vermeulen's equation. Hormone values of 541 males (277 water-pipe smokers and 264 non-smokers) were compared using multiple regression analysis based on water-pipe smoking status after adjusting for confounding factors. No statistically significant difference was observed between WP smokers and non-water-pipe smokers in the likelihood of having lower or higher total testosterone, after adjustment for confounding factors. Similar results were found in free testosterone, bioavailable testosterone, and sex hormone binding globulin (all p>0.05). When compared with the reference group, both light and heavy water-pipe smokers had a similar likelihood of circulating low total testosterone levels (OR=0.83, 95% CI: 0.46-1.49; and OR=0.80, 95% CI: 0.43-1.49; respectively). Our results reveal, for the first time, that there is no significant change in total testosterone, free testosterone, bioavailable testosterone and sex hormone binding globulin in waterpipe smokers compared to non-water-pipe smokers. Therefore, we believe that further studies are needed to confirm the effect of water-pipe smoking on testosterone in different populations.This work was supported by the College of Medicine of Qatar University and grant QUST-2-CMED-2018-1 from Qatar University

Fuzzy Logic Based Self-Adaptive Handover Algorithm for MobileWiMAX.

It is well known that WiMAX is a broadband technology that is capable of delivering triple play (voice, data, and video) services. However, mobility in WiMAX system is still a main issue when the mobile station (MS) moves across the base station (BS) coverage and be handed over between BSs. Among the challenging issues in mobile WiMAX handover are unnecessary handover, handover failure and handover delay, which may affect real-time applications. The conventional handover decision algorithm in mobile WiMAX is based on a single criterion, which usually uses the received signal strength indicator (RSSI) as an indicator, with the other fixed handover parameters such as handover threshold and handover margin. In this paper, a fuzzy logic based self-adaptive handover (FuzSAHO) algorithm is introduced. The proposed algorithm is derived from the self-adaptive handover parameters to overcome the mobile WiMAX ping-pong handover and handover delay issues. Hence, the proposed FuzSAHO is initiated to check whether a handover is necessary or not which depends on its fuzzy logic stage. The proposed FuzSAHO algorithm will first self-adapt the handover parameters based on a set of multiple criteria, which includes the RSSI and MS velocity. Then the handover decision will be executed according to the handover parameter values. Simulation results show that the proposed FuzSAHO algorithm reduces the number of ping-pong handover and its delay. When compared with RSSI based handover algorithm and mobility improved handover (MIHO) algorithm, respectively, FuzSAHO reduces the number of handovers by 12.5 and 7.5 %, respectively, when the MS velocity is <17 m/s. In term of handover delay, the proposed FuzSAHO algorithm shows an improvement of 27.8 and 8 % as compared to both conventional and MIHO algorithms, respectively. Thus, the proposed multi-criteria with fuzzy logic based self-adaptive handover algorithm called FuzSAHO, outperforms both conventional and MIHO handover algorithms