Perspectives on Preparedness for Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Threats in the Middle East and North Africa Region: Application of Artificial Intelligence Techniques

Over the past 3 decades, the diversity of ethnic, religious, and political backgrounds worldwide, particularly in countries of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), has led to an increase in the number of intercountry conflicts and terrorist attacks, sometimes involving chemical and biological agents. This warrants moving toward a collaborative approach to strengthening preparedness in the region. In disaster medicine, artificial intelligence techniques have been increasingly utilized to allow a thorough analysis by revealing unseen patterns. In this study, the authors used text mining and machine learning techniques to analyze open-ended feedback from multidisciplinary experts in disaster medicine regarding the MENA region's preparedness for chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) risks. Open-ended feedback from 29 international experts in disaster medicine, selected based on their organizational roles and contributions to the academic field, was collected using a modified interview method between October and December 2022. Machine learning clustering algorithms, natural language processing, and sentiment analysis were used to analyze the data gathered using R language accessed through the RStudio environment. Findings revealed negative and fearful sentiments about a lack of accessibility to preparedness information, as well as positive sentiments toward CBRN preparedness concepts raised by the modified interview method. The artificial intelligence analysis techniques revealed a common consensus among experts about the importance of having accessible and effective plans and improved health sector preparedness in MENA, especially for potential chemical and biological incidents. Findings from this study can inform policymakers in the region to converge their efforts to build collaborative initiatives to strengthen CBRN preparedness capabilities in the healthcare sector

Investigation of the corrosive enviroment effects on ageing of aluminium and hydroxy-terminated polybutadiene(HTPB) based composite materials

Alüminyum (Al) ve Hidroksil Uçlu Polibütadien (HTPB) kompozit roket yakıtlarında yaygın olarak kullanılan malzemelerdir. Bu çalışmada, kompozit malzemelerin içeriğinde yer alan HTPB ve Alüminyumun değişen oranlarının zamana bağlı olarak yaşlanması incelendi. Bu amaçla, farklı HTPB/Al oranlarında (HTPB/Al: 4,44; 2,77; 1,88; 1,33) kompozit numuneler hazırlandı. Daha sonra bu numuneler etüvde, nem ve oksijen atmosferlerinde 90 &#9702;C'de 22 gün yaşlandırıldı. Yaşlandırmanın korozyon davranışları üzerindeki etkileri, 25 ±0,1 0C'de 0,1 M HCl çözeltisi içinde Tafel ekstrapolasyon metodu ile incelenirken, numunelerin mikroyapıları XRD analizleri ile incelendi. Sonuçlar numunenin yüzeyindeki alüminyum oksit tabakasının başlangıçta pasif olduğunu ancak beş yıl sonunda oksit tabakasının açılarak, alüminyum yüzeyinin aktifleştiğini gösterdi. On yıl yaşlandırma süresi sonunda oksit tabakasının tekrar oluştuğu ve yüzeyi pasif hale getirdiği tespit edildi. Yaşlandırma boyunca yüzeyde aktif-pasif geçişlerin birbirini takip ettiği XRD ve Tafel ekstrapolasyon yöntemi ile belirlendi. Ayrıca yine, nem ve oksijen atmosferlerinde numuneler mikrokalorimetre sisteminde 900C'de 22 gün yaşlandırıldı ve zamana karşı ısı akış eğrileri elde edildi. Aşındırıcı ortam etkisinin Oksijen < Nem < Nem + Oksijen sırası ile artış gösterdiği belirlendi. Tek başına nem ya da oksijen ortamlarında, kompozitin reaktifliğinin, numune içindeki alüminyum oranına bağlı olduğu, nem + oksijen ortamında ise, alüminyum ve HTPB'in her ikisininde reaktifliği arttırdığı ısı akışlarındaki artıştan tespit edildi.Aluminum (Al) and Hyroxyl-Terminated Polybutadiene (HTPB) are most common ingredients for composite rocket propellants. In this study, various ratios of Al and HTPB ageing with time in composite materials were investigated. For this purpose, composite samples were prepared at different HTPB /Al ratios (HTPB / Al: 4,44; 2,77; 1,88; 1,33). Then, they were aged at 90 &#9702;C for 22 days in the oven under humidity and oxygen atmosphere. While the effects of aging on the corrosion behavior of the composite materials were investigated by using Tafel extrapolation method in 0.1 M HCl aqueous solution at 25 ±0,1 0C, the microstructure was investigated by XRD analyses . The results showed that oxide layer of aluminum on the surface of the sample was passive at the beginning, but after five years, the oxide layer was opened and aluminum started to be activated. After ten years ageing time, it was determined that oxide layer was formed again and the surface was become passive. Active-passive transitions on the surface during ageing were identified by XRD and Tafel Extrapolation methods followed each other. In addition to this, again under humidity and oxygen atmosphere, samples were aged in a microcalorimetry system at 90 &#9702;C for 22 days and the heat flow per unit time were investigated. The increment of the effects of corrosive enviroment was determined in order of Oxygen<Humidity< Humidity + Oxygen. It was found from the heat flow increases, under humidity or oxygen environment the reactivity of composite depended on aluminum ratio increment in the sample, but under humidity and oxygen environment both of Aluminum and HTPB increased the reactivity

Molecular detection of Bacillus anthracis: evaluation of the efficiency of DNA extraction and a novel dry PCR

Background: Due to recent increase in mailings of anthrax spores, the detection of bioweapons has gained a great deal of interest. This study aimed to investigate the yield and purity of DNA obtained from spores and vegetative forms of Bacillus anthracis for detection by conventional (wet) and dry (lyophilized) PCR methods