Medical ethics in Libya: where to start?

When it was decided that I will write the editorial for the second issue of the Libyan Journal of Medicine, I was not sure where to start. There are many topics that are related to global health issues and many are specifically related to the health system in Libya. For this issue, I decided to start some discussion on medical ethics as it relates to the Libyan medical culture

Renewable energy - new forces in global ethanol trade?

The paper presents an extended gravity equation application for the global trade with ethanol. The background and different attempts for a theoretical foundation of the standard approach are discussed. The econometric work takes regional integration schemes into account, as well as the influence of the production factor agricultural land and the level of oil prices on the world market. Results indicate that global bilateral trade flows of ethanol can be explained by a set of comprehensive explanatory variables, including regional agreements and the price level of oil. From a global perspective the EU effect on trade flows is trade diverting as the regional agreement reduces the linkage to world markets and increases the intra-regional level of trade with ethanol. The analysis over time however indicates that the decoupling of the EU ethanol market from the world market is decreasing, potentially reflecting demand increases within the EU.gravity equation, bilateral trade flows, trade with renewable energy, biofuels, and econometric estimation, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Effect of black cumin seeds (Nigella sativa L.) supplementation on broilers performance

   أجريت الدراسة  لتقييم أثر بذور الكمون الأسود كمضاف طبيعي في أعلاف الدجاج اللاحم. أستخدم عدد 160 كتكوت غير مجنس من سلالة روسي عمريوم واحد  لفترة 6 أسابيع من العمر. تم تقسيم الكتاكيت عشوائيا إلى أربع مجموعات تجريبية. وشملت كل مجموعة تجريبية 40 كتكوت. المجموعة التجريبية الأولى تمثل الشاهد و تلقت المجموعات من 2-4 العلائق التي تحتوي على مستويات مختلفة من الكمون (1% 3% و 6%) على التوالي. كانت المجموعات التجريبية متساوية تقريبا في وزن الجسم الحي في بداية التجربة.  ويمكن تلخيص النتائج  كما يلي: لا توجد فروق معنوية في استهلاك العلف اليومي ولكن كانت فروقات معنوية في الزيادة اليومية للوزن  بين المعاملات. تغذية الطيور على العليقة التي تحتوي على  بذور 1% الكمون الأسود  كانت أعلى، تليها  الوجبات  الأخرى. تم تحسين معدل التحويل بشكل كبير مع 1% بذور الكمون الأسود  مقارنة مع الشاهد. وقد لوحظ أن أوزان الذبيحة، الفخذ والصدر، الجناح،والرقبة و الكبد سجلت أعلى قراءات عند إستخدام الكمون الأسود بنسبة 3%. وفقا لذلك، يمكن اعتبارإضافة 3% من بذور الكمون الأسود إلى الوجبات الغذائية، مضاف طبيعي محفز لنمو الدواجن.   &nbsp

Study of serum levels of insulin-like growth factor -1, insulin - like growth factor bunding protein -1 and -3, prealbumin and aminoterminal propetide of type -1 procollagen in infants and children with protein energy malnutrition

Protein energy malnutrition (PEM) is a range of pathological conditions arising from coincident deficiency of proteins and calories in varying proportions occurring mostly in infants and young children. According to Welcome classification, PEM is classified into mild form (underweight) and severe form (marasmus, kwashiorkor or marasmic kwashiorkor) (Wellcome, 1970). The assessment of nutritional condition may be done through clinical examination, anthropometric measures or biochemical tests. The insulin-like growth factors (IGFS), are defined as polypeptide growth factors secreted by the liver and other tissues in response to stimulation by growth hormone (GH) (Guyton, 1996). In humans, there are two main forms of IGFS: Irsulin-like growth foctor-1 (IGF-1) and insulin-like growth foctor-11 (IGF-11). The most important of these is IGF-1, its synthesis is GH dependent, and its plasma levels are very sensitive to changes in GH availability (Berne et al, 1998). The IGFS circulate in plasma in complex with a family of binding proteins that extend the serum half-life of the IGF peptides, transport the IGFS to target cells and modulate the interaction of the IGFS with surface membrane receptors (Reiter and Rosenfeld, 1998). There are six IGF - binding proteins (IGFBPS) designated IGFBP-1 to IGFBP-6. They are designated on the basis of their amino acid sequence (Berne et al, 1998). IGFBP-1 is generating much interest, because it possesses properties that are a typical for a classical binding protein. It is an important modulator of IGF activities (Martina et al, 1997). IGFBP-3 is the major IGFBP in the circulation (Boisclair et al, 2001). The prealbumin is a protein synthesized by the liver. It plays an important role in the plasma transport of vitamin A, and also involved in the transport of thyroid hormones (Silverman and Christenson, 1994) The aminoterminal peptide of procollagen, are removed during processing of collagen and released into the circulation. The level of procollagen peptides may provide a clinically useful index of growth (Raisz et al., 1998). -Aim of work : The aim of work is to evaluate serum levels of IGF-1 , IGFBP-1 , IGFBP-3 , prealbumin and aminoterminal propeptide of type 1 procollagen in malnourished children and demonstrate the effect of malnutrition on these parameters

Study of Performance Enhancement of a Building in Tropical Climate

The application of Trombe wall in hot climate is problematic due to undesired heat gains and overheating resulting from the solar radiation incident on the building. Heating and cooling in commercial and residential buildings consume a lot of energy generated mostly from fossil fuels and steam plants. Studies and researches are made to come up with better solutions to save the cost of energy, and the new types of energy are called renewable energies like solar energy, wind energy and biomass energy. They are introduced to compensate the degradation of fossil fuels and reduce the electricity bills. Using the solar energy principles, Trombe wall- a passive solar system- is becoming widely used to establish heat energy transfer from the solar radiation to moderate the ambient temperature of a building. In this project the concept of Trombe wall will be studied and applied to suite the Malaysian climatic conditions. At the end of the project the effect of double glazing filled with argon was justified and found to reduce the temperature inside the building

The Impact of Task-Based Approach on EFL Learner’s Performance

The aim of this study is to investigate the extent to which task-based instruction affecting EFL learners’ performance. This paper covers the impact of task approach on EFL learners’ performance. It shades light on the relevant literature reviewed and studies on TBLT. At the same time, the speaking skill and speaking sub-skills are introduced as a base for teaching and developing speaking activities. On the other hand, the paper reflects on implementing task-based instruction and the principles for implementation by drawing a framework for implementation, and factors affecting implementation of TBI. On the above findings, the researcher recommends that teaching instruction should be given more attention in EFL classes in the light of using task-based approach. Also the researcher suggests that further research is needed to explore more in the effectiveness of task-based programs on EFL learner’s performance as well as its fluency