Influence of Using Packing Materials on the UASB Performance

A lot of researchers studied the main factors affecting the performance of using the Up flow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) reactors for domestic wastewater treatment. The previous researches and experiments to investigate some parameters which affecting the treatment process using UASB reactors such as Hydraulic retention time, sludge blanket thickness, mode of operation (Continues and feed – feed less), feed less period and internal media inside the reactor.This paper investigate the influence of using pieces of sponge used as an internal media (packing materials) on the UASB performance in treating the municipal wastewater. The main purpose of using the internal media inside the reactor is to allocate large surface area for bacterial community growth.A pilot scale setup was designed and constructed at Zenien wastewater treatment plant (Zenien WWTP) in Giza Governorate, Egypt. It was operated under ambient environmental conditions.The experimental works shows increment at the UASB performance of the main parameters COD, BOD, TSS and VSS. Keywords: Sewage treatment, Packing Materials, UAS

CryoTran user's manual, version 1.0

The development of cryogenic fluid management systems for space operation is a major portion of the efforts of the Cryogenic Fluids Technology Office (CFTO) at the NASA Lewis Research Center. Analytical models are a necessary part of experimental programs which are used to verify the results of experiments and are also used as a predictor for parametric studies. The CryoTran computer program is a bridge to obtain analytical results. The object of CryoTran is to coordinate these separate analyses into an integrated framework with a user-friendly interface and a common cryogenic property database. CryoTran is an integrated software system designed to help solve a diverse set of problems involving cryogenic fluid storage and transfer in both ground and low-g environments

Carpal tunnel syndrome in patients with and without diabetes mellitus in Upper Egypt: The impact of electrophysiological and ultrasonographical studies

Background: Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is the most common entrapment neuropathy in the upper extremity. Nerve conduction studies (NCS) is the most valid way of diagnosing CTS in combination of these clinical symptoms together with positive signs by physical examination. Ultrasonography is a useful non-invasive diagnostic method for CTS and there is considerable correlation between the electrophysiological tests and the measurements of cross-sectional area (CSA) by ultrasonography. Many studies have shown that the carpal tunnel syndrome seems to occur more frequently in patients with diabetes mellitus and might be associated with the duration of diabetes mellitus, microvascular complications and degree of glycemic control. Although diabetes mellitus is a risk factor for CTS, reports about median nerve CSA measurements between CTS patients with and without DM are scant. This prospective study aimed to evaluate whether or not ultrasonographic findings of the median nerve is different between DM and non-DM-CTS patients. To correlate the diagnostic results in both DM and non-DMCTS patients.Patients and methods: Thirty six non-diabetic patients and twenty five diabetic patients with CTS were assessed. All patients were subjected to thorough history taking, full clinical examination, electrophysiological assessment of wrists and gray scale ultrasonography (US).Results: High mean cross sectional area of median nerve (CSA) on ultrasonographical studies was detected with non-significant difference between both groups. Additionally, a non-significant difference for flattening ratio was found between two groups. Moreover, there was a highly significant positive correlation between electro diagnostic and ultrasonographic results in diabetic patients.Conclusion: The CSA of median nerve is larger in CTS hands in both DM and non-DM patients. Mean electro-diagnostic parameters were not significant predictors of CTS in patients with diabetes. The combination of electrophysiological and ultrasonography provides diagnostic effective tools across the entire spectrum of CTS in diabetic and non-diabetic patients. Nevertheless, screening for DM in patients with CTS is not recommended.Keywords: Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), Diabetes mellitus (DM), Diabetic polyneuropathy (DPN), Electrophysiological and ultrasonography (US

STRESS ANALYSIS COMPARING EFFECT OF TWO DIFFERENT CAD-CAM IMPLANT SUPERSTRUCTURE MATERIALS (IN-VITRO STUDY)

Purpose: This study was conducted to evaluate the micro-strain around dental implant using two different CAD/CAM crown fabricated materials through strain gauge analysis. Materials and Methods: Five dental implants were fixed in a 5 previously drilled solid rigid polyurethane test blocks in the edentulous area with neighboring abutments mesial and distal printed out using special 3D Dental printer, Cyanoacrylate adhesive was then used to fix the printed-out part on to the polyurethane test blocks, creating the bounded saddle replicas. Ten CAD/CAM screw retained crowns were fabricated; five Enamic crowns from vita enamic blocks, and five zirconia crowns from presintered katana zirconium blocks. Each crown was cemented to abutment and screwed over the implant fixture. Two strain gauges were installed on their corresponding prepared sites to measure the micro-strains in the medium surrounding the implant. For each tested implant, loads were applied by a universal testing machine, micro-strains were recorded with the strain gauges and stress distribution around the implant was statistically evaluated. Results: Micro-strain recording revealed a statistically significant difference in mean micro-strain recording applied in central fossa between Zirconia and Enamic, for both the buccal and lingual measurements, Enamic was significantly lower than Zirconia. Conclusion: The modulus of elasticity of restorative materials has a meaningful effect on forces applied to dental implant and transmitted to the supporting bone

Fluorescence microscope (Cyscope®) for malaria diagnosis in pregnant women in Medani Hospital, Sudan

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Accuracy of diagnosis is the core for malaria control. Although microscopy is the gold standard in malaria diagnosis, its reliability is largely dependent on user skill. We compared performance of Cyscope^®fluorescence microscope with the Giemsa stained light microscopy for the diagnosis of malaria among pregnant women at Medani Hospital in Central Sudan. The area is characterized by unstable malaria transmission.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Socio-demographic characteristics and obstetrics history were gathered using pre-tested questionnaires. Blood samples were collected from febrile pregnant women who were referred as malaria case following initial diagnosis by general microscopist.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>During the study period 128 febrile pregnant women presented at the hospital. Among them, <it>Plasmodium falciparum </it>malaria was detected in 82 (64.1%) and 80 (62.5%) by the Giemsa-stained light microscopy and the Cyscope^®fluorescence microscope, respectively. The sensitivity of the Cyscope^®fluorescence microscope was 97.6% (95% CI: 92.2%-99.6%). Out of 46 which were negative by Giemsa-stained light microscopy, 5 were positive by the Cyscope^®fluorescence microscope. This is translated in specificity of 89.1% (95% CI: 77.5%-95.9%). The positive and negative predictive value of Cyscope^®fluorescence microscope was 94.1% (95% CI: 87.4% -97.8%) and 95.3% (95% CI: 85.4% - 99.2%), respectively.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study has shown that Cyscope^®fluorescence microscope is a reliable diagnostic, sensitive and specific in diagnosing <it>P. falciparum </it>malaria among pregnant women in this setting. Further studies are needed to determine effectiveness in diagnosing other <it>Plasmodium </it>species and to compare it with other diagnostic tools e.g. rapid diagnostic tests and PCR.</p

The Glucocorticoid Receptor and Certain KRÜPPEL-Like Transcription Factors have the Potential to Synergistically Stimulate Bovine Herpesvirus 1 Transcription and Reactivation from Latency

Bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1), an important bovine pathogen, establishes life-long latency in sensory neurons within trigeminal ganglia (TG). Stress, as mimicked by the synthetic corticosteroid dexamethasone, consistently induces reactivation in calves latently infected with BoHV-1. Dexamethasone induces expression of several transcription factors in TG neurons during early stages of reactivation, including Krüppel-like transcription factors (KLF): KLF4, KLF6, KLF15, and promyelocytic leukemia zinc finger. Furthermore, the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) is consistently detected in TG neurons expressing viral regulatory proteins during reactivation from latency. The viral immediate early transcription unit 1 (IEtu1) promoter that drives expression of two viral transcription factors (bICP0 and bICP4) contains two GR response elements (GREs) and is stimulated by DEX. KLF15 and the GR form a feed forward transcription loop that synergistically stimulates productive infection and IEtu1 promoter activity. New studies demonstrate the GR and KLF6 synergistically stimulate productive infection and IEtu1 promoter activity if the GREs are intact. Furthermore, the GR and KLF6 interact with wild-type GREs within the IEtu1 promoter, but not GRE mutants. These studies suggest that certain KLF family members and the GR can convert a silent viral genome in latently infected neurons into an actively transcribing genome during reactivation from latency

Review for the management of vitamin B12 deficiency in diabetic patients on metformin

Long-term usage of Metformin is associated with lower serum vitamin B12 levels. The lower than normal levels could worsen neurological complications of diabetes, including diabetic neuropathy and poor cognition. Guidelines advise periodic monitoring of vitamin B12 but do not specify frequency, treatment targets or treatment modality. This commentary aims to review the prevalence and the severity of the presentation and to provide evidence-based answers to those clinical questions not answered by current guidelines

Concurrent Acquisition of a Single Nucleotide Polymorphism in Diverse Influenza H5N1 Clade 2.2 Sub-clades

Highly pathogenic Influenza A H5N1 was first identified in Guangdong Province in 1996, followed by human cases in Hong Kong in 1997. The number of confirmed human cases now exceeds 300, and the associated Case Fatality Rate exceeds 60%. The genetic diversity of the serotype continues to increase. Four distinct clades or sub-clades have been linked to human cases. The gradual genetic changes identified in the sub-clades have been attributed to copy errors by viral encoded polymerases that lack an editing function, thereby resulting in antigenic drift. We report here the concurrent acquisition of the same polymorphism by multiple, genetically distinct, clade 2.2 sub-clades in Egypt, Russia, and Ghana. These changes are not easily explained by the current theory of &#x201c;random mutation&#x201d; through copy error, and are more easily explained by recombination with a common source. This conclusion is supported by additional polymorphisms shared by clade 2.2 isolates in Egypt and Germany

Aggregation of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms in a Human H5N1 Clade 2.2 Hemagglutinin

The evolution of H5N1 has attracted significant interest 1-4 due to linkages with avian 5,6 and human infections 7,8. The basic tenets of influenza genetics 9 attribute genetic drift to replication errors caused by a polymerase complex that lacks a proof reading function. However, recent analysis 10 of swine influenza genes identifies regions copied with absolute fidelity for more than 25 years. In addition, polymorphism tracing of clade 2.2 H5N1 single nucleotide polymorphisms identify concurrent acquisition 11 of the same polymorphism onto multiple genetic backgrounds in widely dispersed geographical locations. Here we show the aggregation of regional clade 2.2 polymorphisms from Germany, Egypt, and sub-Sahara Africa onto a human Nigerian H5N1 hemagglutinin (HA), implicating recombination in the dispersal and aggregation of single nucleotide polymorphisms from closely related genomes