Three siblings with Charcot-Marie-tooth Disease with no other family history

Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease is one of the most common inherited disorders of the peripheral nervous system. Patients diagnosed with CMT disease have axonal degeneration which results in muscle wasting, sensory loss and weakness. These patients have a very characteristic walking gait and shape of hands, along with other changes. Despite many common visible changes, no singular common genetic mutation for this disease or its cure has been identified. Therefore more case series for this disease needs to be identified so that future studies increase our knowledge about this disease. Here, we present a case series of 3 out of 4 siblings who have been diagnosed with CMT disease. Based on their age, these siblings show the different developmental stages of this disease. More of such case series need to be identified and reported so that we can identify the true genetic cause of this disease and develop a definitive cure for it

Modelling of QSAR Equations for Styryl Quinolone Compound Derivatives as HIV-1 Inhibitors

HIV-1 (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) inhibitor compounds have been designed using a QSAR analysis approach for 33 styryl quinolone derivative compounds, with descriptors calculated using semi-empirical methods. This research aims to determine the best semi-empirical method and to obtain the best QSAR equation by comparing the Principal Component Regression method with Multiple Linear Regression, as well as modifying the structure of new styryl quinolone derivative compounds to achieve higher predicted theoretical HIV-1 integrase protein inhibitor activity. The analysis results showed that the semi-empirical MINDO3 method was the best. The QSAR MINDO3 equation with Principal Component Regression is as follows: :  pIC50 = 5.046 + 0.515 VL1 with n = 33, r = 0.611, r2 = 0.374, SD = 0.677, Fcount/Ftable = 4.45, PRESS = 20.554, Sig = 0.01.  Meanwhile, with Multiple Linear Regression, the equation is as follows: pIC50 = -11.252 + 88.481 (qC3) + 26.667 (qC4) + 9.156 (qC5) – 1.443 (qC7) + 4.284 (qC8)-0.03 (Surface Area Approx) + 0.033 (Grid) - 0.195 (logP) – 0.007 (Mr) – 2.166 (HOMO) with n = 33; r = 0.870; r2 = 0.758; SD =0.500; Fcount/Ftable =2.995; PRESS =5.505; Sig. 0.01. The design of the new compound was carried out based on the best QSAR equation, namely Multiple Linear Regression. We obtained 10 structural modifications from the equation above with the best theoretical pIC50 values from the reference ligand

Bioactive Constituents from the Traditional Kurdish plant Iris persica

In the first phytochemical investigation of non-volatile secondary metabolites from the Kurdish traditional plant Iris persica L, (-)-embinin was isolated from flowers and leaves, isovitexin from flowers, trans-resveratrol-3- O-β-D-glucopyranoside from rhizomes and tectorigenin from bulbs. The complete NMR spectra of embinin are reported for the first time. In an MTT assay, embinin showed an inhibition activity higher than the well-known antitumor drug cisplatin against five of the six tested human tumor cells. Moreover, embinin showed a significant DPPH radical scavenging activity (IC50 value of 112.16) comparable to the reference antioxidant ascorbic acid. The remarkable biological activities exhibited by the extracts of Iris persica and isolated compounds have validated the uses of I. persica in the traditional medicine of Kurdistan

Preliminary Phytochemical Screening of Iris Persica L. (Flowers, Leaves, Bulbs and Rhizomes) Collected in Kurdistan Region-Iraq.

The curative properties of medicinal plants are perhaps due to the presence of various secondary metabolites. This paper reports the first investigation of phytochemical constituents present in the methanolic extracts of flowers, leaves, bulbs and rhizomes of Iris persica L. (Iridaceae), collected in Korek Mountain (Rawanduz) in the Kurdistan Region-Iraq, which is used by local people for the treatment of wound inflammation and tumor. The phytochemical analysis was performed to detect the presence of flavonoids, polyphenols, terpenoids, protiens and reducing sugar in all extracts of Iris persica. While tannins and saponins were found in bulb and rhizome extracts only, alkaloids, steroids, aminoacids and anthraquinons were found to be absent in all extracts

Anti-bacterial prenylated phenols from the Kurdish medicinal plant Onobrychis carduchorum (Fabaceae)

Onobrychis carduchorum C.C. Towns. is a plant widely employed in the Kurdish traditional medicine, to cure inflammations and other skin diseases. We isolated ten different phenolic metabolites from an acetone extract of leaves and flowers. The phenolic compounds belong to three different classes, i.e.: 1. iso-flavones, having a genistein skeleton; 2. flavanones, bearing a naringenin skeleton; 3. dihydro-stilbenes. Many of them have a prenyl unit on an aromatic ring. The above compounds have been found to date mostly in other Fabaceae, as Glycyrrhiza glabra L. (liquorice)1. However, their bioactivities are largely unknown. In this work we reported a strong inhibition activity on the growth of Staphylococcus aureus, a well-known human pathogen. In particular, compound (Fig. 1) shows an inhibitory activity on growth, comparable to that of vancomycin, using the agar-diffusion standard method

Phytochemistry and Ethnopharmacology of Some Medicinal Plants Used in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

The majority of Kurds inhabit a region that includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey. This review shows that the traditional medicine is still used by Kurdish peoples and underlines the medicinal value of a great number of plants used locally. The medicinal uses include the treatment of a variety of diseases, ranging from simple stomach-ache to highly complicate male and female disorders; even sexual weakness and kidney stones are treated by plants. The majority of the plants that are used are for curing gastro-intestinal disorders and inflammation, followed by urinary tract disorders, skin burns, irritations and liver problems. In the last part of this paper, we also report the first results of our ongoing research project on the constituents of some uninvestigated Kurdish medicinal plants. The C-glycosylflavone embinin, the α-methylene acyl derivative 6-tuliposide A, and the iridoids aucubin and ajugol were isolated for the first time from Iris persica, Tulipa systole and Verbascum calvum, respectively. These plants are traditionally used against inflammation, pain, and skin burns

Utilization of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in dam disaster management: evacuation planning

With the increase of world population and eventually the increase in populated areas at disaster prone areas, a disaster that previously would have been low in risk, is getting more catastrophic each year. Various counter measures are being undertaken to ensure that the impact of a disaster is being well mitigated to ensure the safety and sustainability of the population at risk. This paper will be looking at more depth on the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) in emergency preparedness, particularly towards the identification effective evacuation routes, in order for the targeted population to safely reach the identified safe haven

Dam safety evacuation planning for community downstream of Pergau Dam, Jeli, Kelantan (case study of Kg Batu Melintang)

Dam safety evacuation planning is crucial to ensure the sustainability of hydro dam operations in the surrounding environment. One of the critical aspects that are being focused on at the moment is the dam safety for the community downstream of the dam itself, which normally will be the first to receive the direct impact from a dam-related incident. In this paper, focusing on the potential disaster of dam failure and the evacuation planning for the community downstream of a dam will be focused on. As a case study, the community downstream of Pergau Dam, covering the most populated area known as Kampung Batu Melintang, will be looked into. Evacuation planning covers mostly the evacuation route, evacuation shelter, and most importantly the critical function of an early warning system to initiate early preparation for evacuation