Comparison between physical properties of ring-spun yarn and compact yarns spun from different pneumatic compacting systems

A comparative study pertaining to physical and mechanical properties of ring-spun yarn vis-à-vis compact yarns spun using three different compacting systems has been reported. Rieter (K-44), Toyota (RX-240) and Suessen (Fiomax) spinning machines have been used and the condensing process of the fibres in the yarn cross-section as per these compact spinning systems is accomplished pneumatically. Thus, a yarn of linear density 5.9 tex (100 Ne) is spun on the spinning systems using Egyptian cotton of the type Giza 86. One way Anova together with least significant difference are employed to feature the means of the properties of spun yarns and a significant difference among them is observed. According to the performed statistical analysis, there is a significant difference between ring - spun yarn properties and each of the pnuematic compact spun yarns. These compact-spun yarns are also found to differ significantly in terms of their physical and mechanical properties; however, they are all found superior to the ring-spun yarn

Equity incentives, earnings management and corporate governance: Empirical evidence using UK panel data

Using a UK panel data set drawn from 1675 Chief Executive Officer (CEO) year observations and 1540 Chief Financial Officer (CFO) year observations, we examine the relationship between CEO and CFO equity incentives and earnings management. In addition, we examine the moderation effect of corporate governance mechanisms on the relationship between executives’ equity incentives and earnings management. We use multivariate regression models to test our hypotheses. We find that CEO equity incentives are related to higher absolute and income increasing earnings management. These results support the managerial power theory argument that CEOs exploit equity-linked compensation to obtain more personal benefits without causing public anger. Contrary to CEO equity incentives, we could not find any significant relationship between CFO equity incentives and any of the earnings management proxies. In addition, we find that corporate governance quality (measured by individual mechanisms and overall index) has no effect on the relationship between executives’ equity incentives and earnings management. This result indicates that whereas some corporate governance mechanisms can reduce earnings management in general, they do not affect wealth driven incentives to manipulate accruals. In total, results question the effectiveness of the corporate governance system in mitigating opportunistic behavior motivated by executives’ compensation structures

Early Outcomes of Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting in Patients with Low Ejection Fraction

Background: Patients with low ejection fraction (EF) are at a higher risk for postoperative complications and mortality. Our objective was to assess the effect of low EF (<40%) on early clinical outcomes after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and to determine the predictors of mortality. Methods: From June 2017 to February 2019, 170 consecutive patients underwent CABG. There were 120 patients with low EF (<40%; 37.49 ± 2.89%); 94 were men (78.3%), and the mean age was 55.83 ± 8.04 years. Fifty patients had normal EF (> 40; 57.90 ± 2.27 %), 41 were men (82.0%), and the mean age was 54.30 ± 7.01 years and used as a control group. Results: Overall 30-day mortality was 10/120 patients (8.3%). Factors associated with higher mortality were females ( 70.0% vs. 17.3%, P<0.001); older age (61.40 ± 7.01 vs. 55.32 ± 7.97 years, P=0.025); diabetes mellitus (100% vs. 51.8%; P=0.003); longer cardiopulmonary bypass time (148.70 ± 40.12 vs. 108.49 ± 36.89 min; P=0.012); longer cross clamp time (88.19 ± 31.94 vs.64.77 ± 22.67 min; P=0.049), longer total operative time (6.82 ± 1.03 vs 5.38 ± 0.95 hours; P=0.001); intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) insertion (90.0% vs. 10.9%; P<0.001); intra-operative complications (60% vs. 1.8%, P<0.001); ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation (30% and 50% vs. 4.5% and 5.5% respectively; P=0.002 for both); myocardial infarction (70% vs 11.8%, P<0.001), and lower postoperative ejection fraction (21.46 ± 1.93 vs 40.30 ± 8.19 %, P<0.001). In patients with low EF, postoperative NYHA and CCS angina class have improved compared to the preoperative levels (1.50 ± 0.61 vs. 3.31 ± 0.56; p< 0.001 and 1.38 ± 0.52 vs. 3.11 ± 0.55; p< 0.001 respectively) Conclusion: Patients with low EF have a higher risk of morbidity and mortality; however, the clinical and echocardiographic parameters improve over time. Therefore, CABG remains a viable option in selected patients with low EF. Factors affecting our 30-days mortality were related to the severity of the disease

Imaging of choroidal neovascular membrane by optical coherence tomography Angiography

Background: Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) is a new safe imaging technique that uses motion contrast imaging to high-resolution volumetric blood stream information to produce angiographic pictures in a matter of seconds. Objectives: We aimed to identify different patterns and types of CNV by OCTA and the relationship between these patterns and activity of CNV. Patients and Methods: Fifty eyes of 50 patients presented with CNV had a regular diagnostic evaluation that included FA and/or OCT. Suspected cases with CNV underwent scanning by OCTA in this study. Patients with media opacity or bad image quality had been excluded. Results: In 80% of patients, there is a statistically significant correlation between the patterns of CNV and its activity (P-value =0.0001). Conclusion: OCTA is a critical technique for better characterizing the various forms and patterns of CNV, as well as the link between these patterns and CNV activity

Mitochondrial D-loop sequences and haplotypes diversity in Egyptian rabbit breeds

[EN] Rabbit breeds in Egypt are local and adapted foreign breeds that have been imported since the middle of the last century. Stressful environmental conditions including climatic changes, exposure to diseases and breeding selection have an influence on how gene flow has shaped the genetic diversity of the breeds. Mitochondrial DNA D-loop is a genetic marker used to trace the geographic distribution of genetic variation for the investigation of expansions, migrations and other gene flow patterns. The study aimed to determine the genetic diversity of the mitochondrial DNA D-loop (mtDNA D-loop) in Black Baladi, Red Baladi, Gabali, APRI line and New Zealand breeds to gather the scientific data required to create a proper conservation and sustainable management plan. Blood samples were taken from animals unrelated to each other. A 332-bp of mtDNA D-loop was successfully amplified and alignment sequences were deposited in the GenBank database. The results detected six haplotypes in the five breeds. Haplotype diversity within individual breeds varied from 0 (Red Baladi) to 0.551±0.114 (Gabali). The nucleotide diversity (π) value was relatively low (0.001-0.006), with greater values in APRI and New Zealand. Pairwise distances between breeds yielded varying values ranging from 0 to 0.254, and the values between the Red Baladi and other breeds were comparatively high, with pairwise distances from 0.172 to 0.254. The phylogenetic analysis involved 74 nucleotide sequences of the Egyptian rabbit and thirty-one sequences retrieved from GenBank of the reference samples of different haplogroups. The results of the phylogenetic analysis correlated to the reference mtDNA GenBank database showed that the five Egyptian rabbit breeds were grouped into haplotypes A, B and K. The results of the genetic diversity using mtDNA shed light on the importance of the local breed s genetic diversity information and revealed unique mtDNA haplotypes, which is an important finding for breeding strategies designed to conserve genetic variants and provide sustainable management.Ahmed, SSE.; Ali, NI.; Abdelhafez, MA.; Darwish, HR.; El-Keredy, A. (2022). Mitochondrial D-loop sequences and haplotypes diversity in Egyptian rabbit breeds. World Rabbit Science. 30(3):201-207. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2022.1723520120730

Reproductive Toxicity Induced by Low Dose Bisphenol A(BPA) in Male Rats

Bisphenol A(BPA) an endocrine disruptor used in the manufacturing process of plastic. BPA low doses on long exposure periods had many hazardous effects. The aim of the present study was to assess the effect of lowest dose of BPA on the male induced orally on the at reproductive performance and changes in the testes that takes place histologically. P53 gene expression by Realtime PCR was also evaluated. Seventy- two albino male rats were divided into two groups, group I (control male rats receiving corn oil only). Group II (64 male rats) which was treated with oral doses of 50 µg/ kg/ day daily for 8 weeks. Every week 8 male rats were dissected and subjected to the investigated parameters. BPA treated groups presented decrease in sperms count, motility, progression and viability as well as a significant increase in sperms head or/and tail abnormalities were recognized. Histology of the testes showed abnormal and irregular organization of seminiferous tubules and decreased sperms in the testes lumen. Moreover, up-regulation in p53 expression was recorded after BPA exposure. In conclusion, these results showed that exposure to BPA at low dose 50µg/kg can cause many reproductive disorders which may impair fertility

Molecular Identification of Ladybird Beetles (Coccinella: Coccinellidae) Using DNA Barcodes

DNA barcoding is a molecular genetics technique commonly applied for species identification based on the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene located on the mitochondrial DNA genome. Based on our analysis, the DNA barcodes were generated from 16 specimen of Coccinella (family Coccinellidae). All the samples were collected from diverse sites in Egypt and Libya. Morphological traits based on the number of dorsal spots, DNA extraction, PCR amplification of COI, sequencing, nucleotide BLAST, and phylogenetics analyses were used to classify the specimens. A phylogenetic tree was constructed using the maximum likelihood method, including 46 COI sequences (the study and NCBI sequences). Three Coccinella clusters were defined and classified as Coccinella septempunctata, Coccinella novemnotata, and Coccinella undecimpunctata each species clustered into a unique branch. DNA barcodes discriminated clearly against the analyzed species. This study validated the COI efficiency as a marker for DNA barcoding of insects (Coccinella, family Coccinellidae)

MicroRNAs as biomarkers in spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage: a systematic review of recent clinical evidence

Spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (SICH) is a subtype of stroke associated with high mortality and devastating disabilities. Therefore, identifying non-invasive biomarkers for SICH would have a tremendous clinical impact. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are non-coding single-stranded RNAs containing 21-23 nucleotides that control the activity of various protein-coding genes through post-transcriptional repression. In this systematic review, we report the recent clinical evidence on the role of miRNAs as biomarkers for the prediction, prognosis, early detection, and risk stratification of SICH

¹H-NMR metabolic profiling, antioxidant activity, and docking study of common medicinal plant-derived honey

The purpose of this investigation was to determine ¹H-NMR profiling and antioxidant activity of the most common types of honey, namely, citrus honey (HC1) (Morcott tangerine L. and Jaffa orange L.), marjoram honey (HM1) (Origanum majorana L.), and clover honey (HT1) (Trifolium alexandrinum L.), compared to their secondary metabolites (HC2, HM2, HT2, respectively). By using a ¹H-NMR-based metabolomic technique, PCA, and PLS-DA multivariate analysis, we found that HC2, HM2, HC1, and HM1 were clustered together. However, HT1 and HT2 were quite far from these and each other. This indicated that HC1, HM1, HC2, and HM2 have similar chemical compositions, while HT1 and HT2 were unique in their chemical profiles. Antioxidation potentials were determined colorimetrically for scavenging activities against DPPH, ABTS, ORAC, 5-LOX, and metal chelating activity in all honey extract samples and their secondary metabolites. Our results revealed that HC2 and HM2 possessed more antioxidant activities than HT2 in vitro. HC2 demonstrated the highest antioxidant effect in all assays, followed by HM2 (DPPH assay: IC50 2.91, 10.7 μg/mL; ABTS assay: 431.2, 210.24 at 50 ug/mL Trolox equivalent; ORAC assay: 259.5, 234.8 at 50 ug/mL Trolox equivalent; 5-LOX screening assay/IC50: 2.293, 6.136 ug/mL; and metal chelating activity at 50 ug/mL: 73.34526%, 63.75881% inhibition). We suggest that the presence of some secondary metabolites in HC and HM, such as hesperetin, linalool, and caffeic acid, increased the antioxidant activity in citrus and marjoram compared to clover honey

Mapping of heavy metal contamination in alluvial soils of the Middle Nile Delta of Egypt

Areas contaminated by heavy metals were identified in the El-Gharbia Governorate (District) of Egypt. Identification used remote sensing and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) as the main research tools. Digital Elevation Models (DEM), Landsat 8 and contour maps were used to map physiographic units. Nine soil profiles were sampled in different physiographic units in the study area. Geochemical analysis of the 33 soil samples was conducted using X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF). Vanadium (V), nickel (Ni), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) concentrations were measured. V, Ni and Cr concentrations exceeded recommended safety values in all horizons of the soil profiles, while Cu had a variable distribution. Zn concentrations slightly exceeded recommended concentration limits. Concentrations were mapped in each physiographic unit using the inverse distance weighted (IDW) function of Arc-GIS 10.1 software. Pollution levels were closely associated with industry and urban areas