Effects of cytokinins and auxins on the micropropagation of a local grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) cultivar, using nodal explants

   This study was conducted in the Plant Tissue Culture Unit of the Agricultural Research Corporation, Wad Medani, Sudan, during the years 2006- 2007. The objectives were to develop an in vitro technique for the propagation of a local cultivar of grapevine. The basal Murashige and Skoog medium was supplemented with benzylaminopurine (BAP) and kinetin both at concentrations of 0.0, 0.25, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 4.0, 6.0, and 8.0 mg/l. Isopentenyladenine (2iP) and BAP were also used at concentrations of 0.0, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 mg/l.  The interaction effects of indole acetic acid (IAA) at concentrations of 0.0, 0.25, 0.5 and 1.0 mg/l with BAP at 1.0 or 2.0 mg/l and indole butyric acid (IBA) at concentrations of 0.0, 0.1, 0.3, and 0.5 mg/l with 2iP at 1.0 or 2.0 mg/l were also tested. For in vitro rooting, plantlets were cultured on MS medium supplemented with different concentrations of NAA (0.0, 0.25, 0.5, and 1.0 mg/l). The best morphogenesis of shoots was achieved on MS medium supplemented with BAP at 1.0-1.5 mg/l. The morphogenetic response increased with time and the best response was attained after six weeks. Higher concentrations of BAP (2.0-8.0 mg/l) resulted in abnormal growth of plantlets. The combination of BAP with IAA did not improve shoot morphogenesis. The morphogenesis of the nodal explants was similar on kinetin and 2iP which resulted in a single shoot per explant. The combinations of 2iP at different concentrations with IBA did not improve shoot morphogenesis compared to 2iP alone. The best rooting of regenerated shoots of grapevine was achieved on MS medium supplemented with 0.25 and 0.5 mg/l NAA after four weeks. أجريت هذه الدراسة بوحدة زراعة الأنسجة النباتية بهيئة البحوث الزراعية بواد مدني، السودان، خلال الفترة 2006-2007 م. كان الهدف من هذه الدراسة إكثار السلالة البلدية لكرمه العنب عن طريق تقنية الإكثار النسيجي. أختبر أثر ثلاثة أنواع  من السيتوكينينات في وسط  موراشيجي واسكوق و هي بنزيل أمينوبيورين (BAP) و الكينيتين (kinetin ) بالتركيزات  0.0, 0.25 ،0.5 ،1.0، 2.0، 4.0، 6.0 و8.0 ملجم/لتر وآيزوبنتينيل أدنين (2iP)و BAP بالتركيزات 0.0 , 1.0 , 1.5 و2.0 ملجم/لتر . كما تم اختبار تداخلها مع بعض الاوكسينات مثل اندول حامض الخليك(IAA)   بالتركيزات     0.0, 0.25 ،0.5   و1.0 ملجم/لتر مع BAP  بتركيز 1.0 أو2.0 ملجم/لتر و اندول حامض البيوترك IBA) ) بالتركيزات 0.0 ,  0.1, 0.3 و0.5 ملجم/لتر مع   2iPبتركيز 1.0 أو2.0 ملجم/لتر . أختبر أثر منظم النمو نفثالين حامض الخليك (NAA ) بالتركيزات  0.0, 0.25،0.5   و1.0 ملجم/لتر علي تحفيز التجذير لنبتات سلالة العنب البلدية المنتجة نسيجيا.  اختلفت استجابة البراعم للإكثار النسيجي وذلك باختلاف منظم النمو ودرجة تركيزه. وكانت الاختلافات معنوية بين أنواع هذه المنظمات ودرجة تركيزها.  أفضل استجابة لنمو البراعم كانت علي وسط  موراشيجي واسكوق مضافا إليه BAP بتركيز 1.0 أو 1.5 ملجم/لتر مقارنة بمنظمات النمو الأخرى. كما إزدات أعداد النبتات النامية بزيادة فترة تحضين المنفصل النباتي المزروع حتى الأسبوع السادس. تسببت التركيزات العالية من BAP (2-8 ملجم/لتر) في إنتاج سيقان منتفخة و نمو غير طبيعي للأوراق. لم يؤدي تداخل IAA مع BAP إلي  زيادة عدد النبتات النامية علي المنفصل النباتي المزروع . منظمات النمو kinetin و2iP لم تظهر أي فروق معنوية ما بين  تركيزاتها المختلفة و كانت متساوية في عدد النبتات المنتجة وأعطت نبتة واحدة لكل منفصل نباتي. لم يحسن تداخل IBA مع 2iP في زيادة عدد النبتات النامية علي المنفصل النباتي المزروع.  أفضل استجابة لنمو الجذور كانت علي وسط  موراشيجي واسكوق مضافا إليهNAA  بتركيز 0.25 أو0.5 ملجم/لتر بعد أربعه أسابيع من الزراعة.&nbsp

Chest wall reconstruction still has place in Today’s modern practice:" a tertiary center experience"

Background: The key factor following chest wall resection is the preservation of the stability and integrity of the chest wall to support the respiration and protect the underlying organs. The present study aims to evaluate the use of the available grafts and prosthetic materials at our center in chest wall reconstruction with adherence to the proper surgical techniques, good perioperative and postoperative care to obtain good results. Methods: This is a retrospective single center study that concludes all patients underwent chest wall reconstruction for a variety of defects resulting from resection of tumors, trauma due to primarily firearms or motor car accidents, resection of radio necrotic tissues, infection and dehiscence of median sternotomy wounds after cardiac surgery.  Results: Study population consisted of 30 patients between January 2015and may 2018, among them were 20 male (70%) and 10 female patients (30%), with a median age of 43 ± 16.3 years, resection and reconstruction was performed in 23 cases (15 neoplastic,5 infective and  3 firearm cases) while reconstruction alone was performed in 7 (traumatic flail chest)  cases. Eighteen patients, underwent rib resection with an average 4.18 ± 2.2 ribs (range 2-6). Associated lung resection was performed in 5 patients (27.8 %): diaphragmatic resection was done in 2 cases in addition total sternal resection was performed in 5 cases. Most of the patients (96.7%) had primary healing of their wounds. there was one death (3.3%) in the early postoperative period. The average length of hospital stay for all patients was 8.7 days (range: 5–15). Respiratory complications occurred in three cases in the form of atelectasis and pneumonia at the ipsilateral side of reconstruction. Three cases suffered wound seroma which successfully managed by daily dressing and antibiotic coverage. Conclusions: according to our study and the analysis of similar studies, adequate perioperative preparation of patient undergoing chest wall resection and reconstruction with adherence to effective surgical techniques allowed us to use the available materials at our center for chest wall reconstruction with good and effective results without adding burden in terms of cost on the patient

RURAL WOMEN ADOPTION OF ENVIRONMENTAL PRACTICES IN MENUFIYA GOVERNORATE

This study aimed basically at identifying the level of rural women adoption of environmental practices in Menufiya Governorate. This main obective was achieved throw the followinge sub-objectives : determining the environmental knowledge level of rural women, identifying the dgree of rural women application of environmental practices, determining the factors which correlated  with each of the environmental knowledge level and dgree of rural women application of  environmental  practiece. The study was carried out in two villeges in Menufiya Governorate, the first villege was Monshiat Bakhaty which belongs to Shebien Elkom district and the sconede villege was Sahel Elgawaber which belongs to El shohadaa district. 100 rural women were selected randomly from each village. The study findings were: the environmental knowledge level was high as 83.5% from respondents. About 47% from respondents were applying the environmental practices. There were four independent variables (social participation, culturel cosmoplitness, geographical cosmoplitness, age) explained together 16.3 % of the total variance of the environmental knowledge level. There were six independent variables (family monthly incom, environmental situation at the village, cultural cosmoplitness, family education, geographical cosmoplitness, environmental knowledge) explained together 55.5% of the total variance of the environmental application dgree

EFFECT OF RICE STRAW AND APPLICATIONS OF POTASSIUM SILICATE, POTASSIUM HUMATE AND SEAWEED EXTRACT ON GROWTH AND SOME MACRONUTRIENTS OF SWEET PEPPER PLANTS UNDER IRRIGATION DEFICIT

growing seasons of 2013-2014 and 2014-2015, in a private farm at El-Salheya El-Gedida City, Ismailia Governorate, Egypt, to investigate the effect of rice straw (RS) as alternative to sandy soil (SS) and drenching applications of potassium humate (K2-HA) at 2 g/l, potassium silicate (K2SiO3) at 5 g/l, and seaweed extract (SWE) at 0.5 g/l on improving growth of sweet pepper (capsicum annuum L.) plants under deficit irrigation every 2 (I2), 3 (I3) and 4 (I4) days in addition to daily irrigation (I1) as control. Plant samples were taken at 90 days after transplanting to record leaf area, shoot fresh and dry weights, in addition to, determination of leaf relative water content (LRWC), concentrations of  N, P, K and Ca. Mean values of drenching applications showed significant increase in the growth parameters ;shoot fresh and dry weights, leaf area, LRWC, as well as, concentrations of  N, P and Ca in the two seasons comparing to untreated control and the best results were due to K2-HA followed by SWE then K2SiO3. The highest concentration of  K was obtained by K2SiO3 followed by K2-HA then SWE. Plants were grown on RS showed significant increase in LRWC comparing to plants were grown on SS. Plants were applied with I2+ K2-HA+ SS showed the highest significant value of shoot fresh weight, shoot dry weight, leaf area, N, P and Ca concentrations followed by I2+SWE+SScomparing to control plants applied with I1+ SS without drenching applications. Plants were grown on RS showed significant increase in growth parameters comparing with control plants but less than those were grown on SS. The best results were achieved by I3 + K2-HA+ RS, I3 + SWE+ RS, I4 + K2-HA+ RS. Plants were grown on rice strawunderI3 irrigation and applied with K2-HA or SWE showed significant increase in N, P and Ca concentrations, while, under I4  irrigation an increase in N and P concentrations was obtained by K2-HA.The highest concentrations of k were observed with plants grown on SS under the highest level of irrigation deficit I4 by K2SiO3.It could be concluded from the present study that rice straw could alleviate the negative effect of low water supply and applications of K2-HA and SWE are recommended for enhancing sweet pepper growth and nutrient elements uptake under water deficit conditions

BRAF mutations in thyroid tumors from an ethnically diverse group

BACKGROUND: The molecular etiology of thyroid carcinoma (TC) and other thyroid diseases which may present malignant precursor lesions is not fully explored yet. The purpose of this study was to estimate frequency, type and clinicopathological value of BRAF exon 15 mutations in different types of cancerous and non-cancerous thyroid lesions originating in an ethnically diverse population. METHODS: BRAF exon 15 was sequenced in 381 cases of thyroid lesions including Hashimoto´s thyroiditis, nodular goiters, hyperplastic nodules, follicular adenomas (FA), papillary TC (PTC), follicular variant PTC (FVPTC), microcarcinomas of PTC (micro PTC; tumor size ≤ 1 cm), follicular TC (FTC), and non-well differentiated TC (non-WDTC). RESULTS: We identified BRAF mutations in one of 69 FA, 72 of 115 (63%) PTC, seven of 42 (17%) FVPTC, 10 of 56 (18%) micro PTC, one of 17 (6%) FTC, and one of eight (13%) non-WDTC. Most of the cases showed the common V600E mutation. One case each of PTC, FVPTC, and FTC harbored a K601E mutation. A novel BRAF mutation was identified in a FA leading to deletion of threonine at codon 599 (p.T599del). A rare 3-base pair insertion was detected in a stage III PTC resulting in duplication of threonine at codon 599 (p.T599dup). Patients with PTC harboring no BRAF mutation (BRAF(wt)) were on average younger than those with a BRAF mutation (BRAF(mut)) in the PTC (36.6 years vs. 43.8 years). Older age (≥ 45 years) in patients with PTC was significantly associated with tumor size ≥ 4 cm (P = 0.018), vessel invasion (P = 0.004), and distant metastasis (P = 0.001). Lymph node (LN) involvement in PTC significantly correlated with tumor size (P = 0.044), and vessel invasion (P = 0.013). Of notice, taken the whole TC group, family history of thyroid disease positively correlated with capsular invasion (P = 0.025). CONCLUSIONS: Older age is manifold associated with unfavorable tumor markers in our series. The K601E identified in a PTC, FVPTC, and FTC seems to be more distributed among different histological types of TC than previously thought. The T599del is a yet undescribed mutation and the rare T599dup has not been reported as a mutation in PTC so far

Bridging the gap: Using design based activities to develop problem-solving skills in Qatari high school students

A substantial number of secondary school students are accepted into engineering schools without adequate exposure to key engineering based skills, such as analytical thinking, problem solving, critical thinking and design. Unfamiliarity with the practical skills needed in engineering leaves students unprepared, leading to poor academic performance and demotivating them about engineering. It is critical that students be able to apply learnt scientific concepts to solve real life problems. In this paper, we will present a set of design-based learning activities created to help develop the analytical thinking and problem solving skills of students in local Qatari secondary schools. We will discuss implementation details of these design-based learning activities along with results, comments from participating students and teachers as well as data analysis.qscienc

Developing One Health surveillance systems

The health of humans, domestic and wild animals, plants, and the environment are inter-dependent. Global anthropogenic change is a key driver of disease emergence and spread and leads to biodiversity loss and ecosystem function degradation, which are themselves drivers of disease emergence. Pathogen spill-over events and subsequent disease outbreaks, including pandemics, in humans, animals and plants may arise when factors driving disease emergence and spread converge. One Health is an integrated approach that aims to sustainably balance and optimize human, animal and ecosystem health. Conventional disease surveillance has been siloed by sectors, with separate systems addressing the health of humans, domestic animals, cultivated plants, wildlife and the environment. One Health surveillance should include integrated surveillance for known and unknown pathogens, but combined with this more traditional disease-based surveillance, it also must include surveillance of drivers of disease emergence to improve prevention and mitigation of spill-over events. Here, we outline such an approach, including the characteristics and components required to overcome barriers and to optimize an integrated One Health surveillance system.</p

Developing One Health surveillance systems

The health of humans, domestic and wild animals, plants, and the environment are inter-dependent. Global anthropogenic change is a key driver of disease emergence and spread and leads to biodiversity loss and ecosystem function degradation, which are themselves drivers of disease emergence. Pathogen spill-over events and subsequent disease outbreaks, including pandemics, in humans, animals and plants may arise when factors driving disease emergence and spread converge. One Health is an integrated approach that aims to sustainably balance and optimize human, animal and ecosystem health. Conventional disease surveillance has been siloed by sectors, with separate systems addressing the health of humans, domestic animals, cultivated plants, wildlife and the environment. One Health surveillance should include integrated surveillance for known and unknown pathogens, but combined with this more traditional disease-based surveillance, it also must include surveillance of drivers of disease emergence to improve prevention and mitigation of spill-over events. Here, we outline such an approach, including the characteristics and components required to overcome barriers and to optimize an integrated One Health surveillance system

Ruminant Brucellosis in the Kafr El Sheikh Governorate of the Nile Delta, Egypt: Prevalence of a Neglected Zoonosis

Brucellosis is a zoonosis of mammals caused by bacteria of the genus Brucella. It is responsible for a vast global burden imposed on human health through disability and on animal productivity. In humans brucellosis causes a range of flu-like symptoms and chronic debilitating illness. In livestock brucellosis causes economic losses as a result of abortion, infertility and decreased milk production. The main routes for human infection are consumption of contaminated dairy products and contact with infected ruminants. The control of brucellosis in humans depends on its control in ruminants, for which accurate estimates of the frequency of infection are very useful, especially in areas with no previous frequency estimates. We studied the seroprevalence of brucellosis and its geographic distribution among domestic ruminants in one governorate of the Nile Delta region, Egypt. In the study area, the seroprevalence of ruminant brucellosis is very high and has probably increased considerably since the early 1990s. The disease is widespread but more concentrated around major animal markets. These findings question the efficacy of the control strategy in place and highlight the high infection risk for the animal and human populations of the area and the urgent need for an improved control strategy

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London