Validated stability-indicating spectrofluorimetric methods for the determination of ebastine in pharmaceutical preparations

Two sensitive, selective, economic, and validated spectrofluorimetric methods were developed for the determination of ebastine (EBS) in pharmaceutical preparations depending on reaction with its tertiary amino group. Method I involves condensation of the drug with mixed anhydrides (citric and acetic anhydrides) producing a product with intense fluorescence, which was measured at 496 nm after excitation at 388 nm

Burnout among surgeons before and during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: an international survey

Background: SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had many significant impacts within the surgical realm, and surgeons have been obligated to reconsider almost every aspect of daily clinical practice. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study reported in compliance with the CHERRIES guidelines and conducted through an online platform from June 14th to July 15th, 2020. The primary outcome was the burden of burnout during the pandemic indicated by the validated Shirom-Melamed Burnout Measure. Results: Nine hundred fifty-four surgeons completed the survey. The median length of practice was 10 years; 78.2% included were male with a median age of 37 years old, 39.5% were consultants, 68.9% were general surgeons, and 55.7% were affiliated with an academic institution. Overall, there was a significant increase in the mean burnout score during the pandemic; longer years of practice and older age were significantly associated with less burnout. There were significant reductions in the median number of outpatient visits, operated cases, on-call hours, emergency visits, and research work, so, 48.2% of respondents felt that the training resources were insufficient. The majority (81.3%) of respondents reported that their hospitals were included in the management of COVID-19, 66.5% felt their roles had been minimized; 41% were asked to assist in non-surgical medical practices, and 37.6% of respondents were included in COVID-19 management. Conclusions: There was a significant burnout among trainees. Almost all aspects of clinical and research activities were affected with a significant reduction in the volume of research, outpatient clinic visits, surgical procedures, on-call hours, and emergency cases hindering the training. Trial registration: The study was registered on clicaltrials.gov "NCT04433286" on 16/06/2020

General characteristics of current in front of Port Said, Egypt

This paper is a preliminary investigation of the general characteristics of the current in front of the coastal Mediterranean city: Port Said, Egypt. The study of the current regime in front of Port Said helps environmental engineers to tackle problems as marine port sedimentation and shoreline changes. Surface and bottom current recordings at a single offshore station of depth 104 m located at 31° 34.90′ N, 32° 30.01′ E have been subject to statistical analysis. The measurements showed unexpectedly that bottom currents were relatively stronger than surface currents during May-99

Rapid On-Treatment Response as a Predictor in HCV Infected Naïve Egyptian Patients

Background and Study Aims: Effect of peginterferon and ribavirin treatment on chronic hepatitis C virus infection has been early established. However, predictors of treatment success need more elucidation. The present study is directed to estimate the importance of rapid virological response, and other host and viral factors in naïve Egyptian patients treated with 48 weeks of pegylated interferon and ribavirin. Patients and Methods: A total of 111 naïve Egyptian patients with chronic hepatitis C genotype 4 were randomly assigned to a treatment regimen consisting of either peginterferon-alpha-2a (180 μg/week) or peginterferon-alpha-2b (1.5 μg/Kg/week) plus oral ribavirin (10.6 mg/Kg/day). This treatment was given for 48 weeks with a 24-week follow-up. The endpoint was sustained virological response. Results: Overall, sustained virological response was achieved by 85 (70.2%) patients, while 26 (21.5%) patients relapsed. Rapid virological response occurred in 95 patients where 77 (84.6%) of them attained SVR and 14 (15.4%) of them relapsed (P\lt;0.001). Concerning host and viral factors, age, gender and pretreatment viral load, they all did not influence the outcome of therapy. On the other hand, higher liver fibrosis stage according to Metavir score (F3) significantly modified the sustained virological response compared to stage F1 with an Odds ratio 5.9 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.1-31.0) and compared to F2 with an Odds ratio 7.2 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.3-40.9). Conclusion: Rapid virological response is an independent factor that influences the sustained virological response. Besides, low pretreatment fibrosis stage is a predictor of sustained virological response

التنبؤ بإرتفاع مستوى سطح البحر الناشىء عن العواصف في موسم الشتاء عند الأسكندرية

Since storms frequently occur in the winter season, at Alexandria, SE of the Mediterranean Sea. storm surges often affect this area. In this paper, we attempt to forecast the storm surge heights in the commercial Western Harbor of Alexandria, during both strong and moderate storms, using statistical multiple regression analysis. On applying different statistical models and after validation, the present results showed that a strong surge (Y) can be forecast using a three hour prognosis model expressed by: (Y=0.85* HT12 +0.84* n3 +2.27* p3), where HT12 is the mean surge height over 12 hours proceeding the forecast time. n3 and p3 are the wind velocity component normal to the shore in (knots) and the atmospheric pressure (mb) respectively three hours before the forecast time. On the other hand, three equations were found to be convenient to forecast the moderate surge at Alexandria. The occurrence of strong or moderate surges cases could be forecast using the meteorological synoptic conditions over the Eastern Mediterranean.نتيجة لتعرض المنطقة الساحلية بالأسكندرية للعواصف الجوية لاسيما خلال فصل الشتاء ، فإن مستوى سطح الماء يتأثر سواء ا بارتفاع أو الإنخفاض مما يؤثر على المنشأت الساحلية والتخطيط العمراني بالقرب من السواحل . ويمثل هذ ا البحث محاولة للتنبؤ بإرتفاعات المياه الناشئة عن العواصف الجوية القوية والمتوسطة القوة عند الساحل وذلك باستخدام نماذج إحصائية مبنية على تحليل العلاقات متعددة المتغيرات . وقد استنتجت معادلات يمكن إستخدامها في هذا التنبؤ . وقد وجد أن أهم المتغيرات في حالة العواصف الجوية القوية هي متوسط الإرتفاعات الناشئة عن العوامل الجولة خلال 12 ساعة قبل العاصفة ، وكذلك سرعة الرياح عموديا على الساحل والضغط الجوي عند الأسكندرية قبل العاصفة بثلاث ساعات . كما وجدت عدة معدلات للتنبؤ بالعواصف المتوسطة . ويمكن معرفة نوع العواصف من حيث قوتها مسبقا باستخدام الخرائط المتتابعة لتوزيع الضغوط الجوي

Iron/Copper/Phosphate nanocomposite as antimicrobial, antisnail, and wheat growth-promoting agent

Abstract Background One of the current challenges is to secure wheat crop production to meet the increasing global food demand and to face the increase in its purchasing power. Therefore, the current study aimed to exploit a new synthesized nanocomposite to enhance wheat growth under both normal and drought regime. The effectiveness of this nanocomposite in improving the microbiological quality of irrigation water and inhibiting the snail’s growth was also assessed. Results Upon the employed one-step synthesis process, a spherical Fe/Cu/P nanocomposite was obtained with a mean particle size of 4.35 ± 1.524 nm. Cu2+, Fe2+, and P4+ were detected in the dried nanocomposite at 14.533 ± 0.176, 5.200 ± 0.208, and 34.167 ± 0.203 mg/ml concentration, respectively. This nanocomposite was found to exert antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhi. It caused good inhibition percent against Fusarium oxysporum (43.5 ± 1.47%) and reduced both its germination rate and germination efficiency. The lethal concentration 50 (LC50) of this nanocomposite against Lanistes carinatus snails was 76 ppm. The treated snails showed disturbance in their feeding habit and reached the prevention state. Significant histological changes were observed in snail digestive tract and male and female gonads. Drought stress on wheat’s growth was mitigated in response to 100 and 300 ppm treatments. An increase in all assessed growth parameters was reported, mainly in the case of 100 ppm treatment under both standard and drought regimes. Compared to control plants, this stimulative effect was accompanied by a 2.12-fold rise in mitotic index and a 3.2-fold increase in total chromosomal abnormalities. Conclusion The finding of the current study could be employed to mitigate the effect of drought stress on wheat growth and to enhance the microbiological quality of irrigation water. This is due to the increased efficacy of the newly synthesized Fe/Cu/P nanocomposite against bacteria, fungi, and snails. This methodology exhibits potential for promoting sustainable wheat growth and water resource conservation