Osteoporosis in older Saudi women: A perspective study

The purpose of this research is to first discuss and discover reasons behind this increasing outburst of osteoporosis cases in older Saudi women and then to develop certain prevention strategies based on Social Cognitive Theory and this research and its reasoning, in an attempt to check the rapid increase of this disease in menopausal Saudi women. All of these targets can be achieved by an in-depth study of osteoporosis, and then applying this knowledge toward prevention of the disease

Planting arrangement, nitrogen resources and plant density on some vegetative characteristics of Melissa officinalis

In order to study the effect of nitrogen supply resources, planting arrangement and bush density on some vegetative characteristics in Melissa, an experiment was conducted as split-split- plot based on randomized complete blocks design with three replications in Takestan region in 2013. Planting arrangement were placed in two levels of diamond and square in main plots, nitrogen supply resources in three levels of chemical fertilizer, manure and vermicompost in sub plots and bush density in three levels of 30 × 30 cm, 40 × 40 cm and 50 × 50 cm in sub sub plots, too. Traits such as bush height, stem diameter, number of leaves per bush, leaf and stem dry weight and lateral branches were Measured. The results indicated that greatest bush height, number of leaves and lateral branches and dry weight related to usage of nitrogen fertilizer. The greatest stem diameter, lateral branches and stem dry weight related to diamond arrangement. Also, the greatest bush height and leaf dry weight related to density of 30×30 cm, the greatest lateral branches, number of leaves per bush and stem dry weight related to 40 × 40 cm density and the highest stem diameter related to 50 × 50cm density. The highest bush height, stem dry weight and number of leaves per bush belonged to square arrangement × chemical fertilizer × bush density of 30 × 30 cm interaction treatment. Also, the greatest stem diameter and number of lateral branches belonged to diamond arrangement × manure fertilizer × bush density of 40 × 40cm

PREVALENCE OF BRCA1 AND BRCA2 MUTATIONS AMONG BREAST AND OVARIAN CANCER PATIENTS IN NORTHERN EMIRATES

Breast Cancer (BC) is the most common cancer and the second most cause of death among women. Mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes confer high susceptibility to both breast and ovarian cancer. However, data on the prevalence of the BRCA1/2 mutations among breast and ovarian cancer patients is limited. The genetic component of breast cancer in the UAE is largely unknown and no study has evaluated the BRCA mutations status in breast and ovarian cancer patients in the UAE population. This retrospective study aimed to establish mutation frequencies of the BRCA genes in breast and ovarian cancer patients from the Northern Emirates and sought to examine the potential association of BRCA carriers and Triple- Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC). The study population included patients who underwent BRCA genetic testing at Sheikh Khalifa Specialty Hospital (SKSH) to determine hereditary breast/ovarian cancer. Mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 were analyzed by Sanger sequencing or next-generation sequencing (NGS) along with Multiple Ligation Probe Amplification (MLPA). Among 262 patients, 224 (85.5%) had no mutation. BRCA mutations were identified in 38 patients (14.5%). BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations were detected in 6.9% and 7.6% of the patients, respectively. A variant of unknown significance in BRCA1 was found in 0.4% of patients (one patient). TNBC accounted for 22% of all patients with Breast Cancer (BC) who underwent immunohistochemistry (28/127). Importantly, one novel BRCA1 mutation: c. (80+1_81-1) _ (441+1_442-1) dup in exons 3,5,6,7 was observed in one patient with ovarian cancer who showed positive family history and age ≤ 45. Moreover, two novel deletion mutations were identified in the BRCA2 gene. One deletion in exon 5 in ovarian cancer patients who showed positive family history and age ≤ 45. The second was a deletion in exons 10-13 observed in male patients with breast cancer with age ≤ 45. The current study results will help to establish the spectra of BRCA mutations and risks associated with breast and ovarian cancer in UAE patients

Effect of culture on women physicists\u27 career choice: A comparison of Muslim majority countries and the West

Women continue to be underrepresented in physics in the United States. This is while many Muslim majority (MM) countries have a high representation of women in undergraduate and graduate physics programs. While there is a growing awareness of this trend, little is being done to understand why and how this trend has manifested and how it can be used to inform broadening the participation of women in physics in the U.S. To better understand how cultural experiences can influence the pursuit of physics, this study examines the lived experiences of female physics faculty members in the U.S. who came from MM countries. The study draws on seven phenomenological interviews focusing on how cultural experiences shaped participants\u27 gender and physics identities. The results reveal several possible hypotheses on differences and similarities in how physics and gender identities intersect in MM countries as opposed to what has been found in the West. In particular, expressions of femininity in MM countries can have a more constructive intersection with expressions of physics identity in ways that promote participation and persistence

COMPARISON OF SERUM VITAMIN A LEVELS BETWEEN NEONATES WITH CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE AND CONTROLS

Objective: Prevention of congenital heart disease (CHD) has been hampered by a lack of information about the known modifiable risk factors for abnormalities in cardiac development. Vitamin A plays an important role in the periods of rapid cellular growth and differentiation, especially during pregnancy. Assuming a link between Vitamin A levels and congenital malformations, hypothetical different levels of Vitamin A were evaluated in neonates with and without CHD, in this study.Methods: In a case–control study that was conducted in 2015 in Mashhad/Iran, serum levels of Vitamin A in 30 neonates with CHD were compared to 30 healthy controls. The cases were diagnosed by echocardiography and recruited by convenience sampling. Demographic and laboratory data including age, sex, and serum Vitamin A level in each group were collected. Data analysis was done in SPSS V 20 software, and descriptive statistics, t-test, and analysis of covariance were used.Results: The mean age in cases was 11±3.4 days and in controls was 12.5±4.8 days. A total of 18 patients (60%) were male. In CHD patients, 10 cases (33.3%) had cyanotic heart disease, and 20 cases (66.7%) had non-cyanotic heart disease. The mean serum Vitamin A values in subjects (11.54±9.56 μg/dL) and controls (21.84±14.3 μg/dL) were significantly different, (p<0.05) and in case group was lower than the normal range.Conclusion: There was a significant difference in serum Vitamin A values in subjects and controls. Therefore, awareness of people about the importance of this vitamin in preventing CHD in children seems necessary

The Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Willingness to Communicate among Iranian EFL Learners

English has changed into an international language after second world war and over a million people speak into it as their first, second or third language across the world. However, knowing a language is accompanied with speaking skill and the ability to communicate with it. Therefore, the purpose of the present study is to find the factors which affect EFL students’ willingness to communicate (WTC). To find the relationships between willingness to communicate and students’ emotional intelligence (EQ- i) two questionnaires were used and 130 intermediate students were selected randomly from 6 language institutes in Saveh. Their level of language proficiency was determined through administering Cambridge Language Proficiency Test (Language, PET) and results of the Person Correlation Test showed a positive relationship between EFL Learners’ WTC and four factors of the EQ-i named: Interpersonal Relationship (IP), Empathy (EM), Assertiveness (AS), and Emotional Self-Awareness (ES) and emotional intelligence

The Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Willingness to Communicate among Iranian EFL Learners

English has changed into an international language after second world war and over a million people speak into it as their first, second or third language across the world. However, knowing a language is accompanied with speaking skill and the ability to communicate with it. Therefore, the purpose of the present study is to find the factors which affect EFL students’ willingness to communicate (WTC). To find the relationships between willingness to communicate and students’ emotional intelligence (EQ- i) two questionnaires were used and 130 intermediate students were selected randomly from 6 language institutes in Saveh. Their level of language proficiency was determined through administering Cambridge Language Proficiency Test (Language, PET) and results of the Person Correlation Test showed a positive relationship between EFL Learners’ WTC and four factors of the EQ-i named: Interpersonal Relationship (IP), Empathy (EM), Assertiveness (AS), and Emotional Self-Awareness (ES) and emotional intelligence

ROLE OF USING GENEXPERT MTB/RIF ASSAY IN DETECTION OF MYCOBACTERIUM TUBERCULOSIS

Background; The annual incidence of tuberculous meningitis (TM) is unknown. TM is a disease that still often results in residual sequelae, and has a mortality rate ranging between 15 and 51%. Experience of countries such as Pakistan where drug-resistant tuberculosis and TM are prevalent is important. Objective:  To determine the frequency of M. Tuberculosis detection in CSF of patients with suspected tuberculous meningitis. Materials and Methods; The study was conducted at the Inpatient department of Medicine, Nishtar Hospital Multan. The demographic data like age, sex, height, weight, monthly family income and address of the patients was collected. Cases of TBM fulfilling inclusion and exclusion criteria were included in the study. CSF was collected after consent, through lumbar puncture (LP) done by the post graduate trainee (author or colleagues) under aseptic measures and was sent to the designated hospital laboratory for GeneXpert MTB/Rif assay and report was assessed for M. tuberculosis detection. Data was collected and entered in SPSS and analyzed. Results; total of 95 patients with tuberculous meningitis meeting inclusion criteria of our study were included in this study. Of these 95 study cases, 37 (38.9%) were male patients while 58 (61.1%) were female patients. Mean age of our study cases was 26.62 ± 5.94 years. Of these 95 study cases, 49 (51.6%) were from rural areas and 46 (48.4%) belonged to the urban areas while 62 (65.3%) were from poor families. Seventeen (17.9%) had diabetes and 25 (26.3%) were having history of hypertension. Mean weight of our study cases was 56.16 ± 10.27 kilograms and 66 (69.5%) had up to 60 kilograms of weight. Mycobacterium tuberculous was noted in 49 (51.6%) of our study cases Conclusion; High frequency of Mycobacterium tuberculosis was observed in our study in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of suspected patients of tuberculosis meningitis using genexpert MTB/RIF assay. Mycobacterium tuberculosis was significantly associated with age, socioeconomic status, diabetes and hypertension. Keywords; Tuberculous meningitis, Mycobacterium TB, Genexpert

OUTCOME OF COLOSTOMY CLOSURE WITHOUT PRIOR CONVENTIONAL BOWEL PREPARATION.

Background; Colostomy closure is a routine procedure performed frequently by pediatric surgeons all over the world. It is an elective procedure that is assumed to be easy,yet, the literature indicates that this procedure still may be the source of significant complications, including death. Because of these facts, as well as the very good results encountered in our series, we decided to share our routines and surgical technique that we use during the colostomy closure procedure. Results; Out of these 102 study cases, 66 (64.7%) were boys and 36 (35.3%) were girls while male to female ratio was 1.83:1. Mean age of our study cases was 6.19 ± 2.64 years (with minimum age was 2 years while maximum age was 12 years). Mean duration of surgery in our study cases was 105.88 ± 18.55 minutes (with minimum duration of the surgery was 65 minutes while maximum duration of the surgery was 145 minutes). Obesity was noted in 15 (14.7%) of our study cases. Anastomotic leakage was noted in 10 (9.8%), wound infection in 15 (14.7%) and prolonged hospital stay in 30 (29.4%) of our study cases. Conclusion; The results of this study indicate that colostomy closure without prior conventional bowel preparation is safe, reliable and cost effective mode of treatment. It can be applied to children of different age groups without any significant side effects and it provides less pre-operative hospital stay which is beneficial not only for the parents but also for the hospital authorities. So our study results recommend the use of colostomy closure without prior conventional bowel preparation with desired outcomes. Keywords; Colostomy closure, wound infection, anastomotic leak

Predicting Yield Performance of Parents in Plant Breeding: A Neural Collaborative Filtering Approach

Experimental corn hybrids are created in plant breeding programs by crossing two parents, so-called inbred and tester, together. Identification of best parent combinations for crossing is challenging since the total number of possible cross combinations of parents is large and it is impractical to test all possible cross combinations due to limited resources of time and budget. In the 2020 Syngenta Crop Challenge, Syngenta released several large datasets that recorded the historical yield performances of around 4% of total cross combinations of 593 inbreds with 496 testers which were planted in 280 locations between 2016 and 2018 and asked participants to predict the yield performance of cross combinations of inbreds and testers that have not been planted based on the historical yield data collected from crossing other inbreds and testers. In this paper, we present a collaborative filtering method which is an ensemble of matrix factorization method and neural networks to solve this problem. Our computational results suggested that the proposed model significantly outperformed other models such as LASSO, random forest (RF), and neural networks. Presented method and results were produced within the 2020 Syngenta Crop Challenge.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figure