Association between aortic sclerosis and coronary artery disease

Background: Although there is a recognized link between cardiovascular hazards and coronary artery disease (CAD), it is still unknown whether aortic sclerosis and CAD are linked.Objective: This study aimed to check whether if there is a link between aortic sclerosis and the existence and severity of coronary artery disease .Patients and methods: 204 individuals were enrolled in the study, transthoracic echocardiographic, and coronary angiography were done. Aortic leaflets were tested for the amount of thickness in the short axis view. The involvement of coronary arteries represented by the gensini score and the association between aortic valve sclerosis score and the degree and severity of coronary affection was investigated using the Gensini score.Results: The individuals were divided into 2 groups grounded on the severity of aortic valve sclerosis. Group A (GP A) included patients with aortic valve sclerosis (AVS) ≥ 2 and group B (GP B) included patients with AVS < 2. In GP A, the right coronary cusp was the most afflicted one, whereas the LAD was the most affected in coronaries. The degree and severity of CAD were more significant in GP A, as evidenced by a higher Gensini score value of 39.27 versus 28.84 in GP B.Conclusion: AVS has been found to be correlated with the presence and severity of CAD and could be used as a potential surrogate marker for the illness

The impact of quality management systems on construction performance in the North West of England

As the total construction output in the North West of England (NWE) is forecast to rise by an average of 2.5% over the next five years. It is imperative for organizations in the region to improve their overall construction performance, particularly if they are to hit the targets presented by UK Government in the construction 2025 report. Despite the known benefits of quality management systems (QMS) its implementation in relation to construction performance is very limited, particularly in the UK. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine whether QMS can affect construction performance in the NWE. A pragmatic mixed method approach of sequential explanatory strategy was adopted to conduct this research. This initially involved a quantitative approach of questionnaire surveys to gain opinions and views of a representative sample of industry professionals based in the NWE. The quantitative results were analyzed to discover relationships in the data and further formulate the questions for the qualitative interviews. Three interviews with leading industry professionals were then conducted and the data was analyzed using a thematic approach. The themes identified in the interviews were then cross-referenced with the data discovered in the questionnaire survey and literature review. The findings provide a clear indication that the implementation of a QMS has a positive effect on construction performance in the NWE. Immediate improvements in efficiency of a construction organization when implementing a QMS were discovered, including greater managerial control and the recording and reduction in defects. Long term effects of changing company attitude by setting out company requirements and responsibilities through highlighting the significance of quality, and furthermore encouraging a culture of co-operation and teamwork, were also proven to increase construction performance as time progresses. To further enhance this research the focus could be on the whole of the UK. However, a greater amount of time would be required to gain the required representative sample. Furthermore, although the questionnaire survey was distributed equally within the selected sample, a greater number of respondents working for contractors responded. Therefore, the respondents of the questionnaire survey were not equal in terms of organization (client, contractor, sub-contractor, project manager). According to the best knowledge of the authors and through searching many sources, there are no specific studies examining QMS and their effect on construction performance in the UK and particularly in the NWE. Therefore, it is believed the study is the first of its kind. The study discovered many findings that can be considered as a contribution to practice and theory. Moreover, it can be considered as a fundamental base for future studies in this research area. © 2019, © 2019 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

Ultramafic Rocks and Their Alteration Products From Northwestern Allaqi Province, Southeastern Desert, Egypt: Petrology, Mineralogy, and Geochemistry

The ophiolitic rocks, island arc metasediments, and granitic rocks are encountered in the study of the Allaqi province. The present study concentrated on ultramafic rocks and their various forms of hydrothermal alteration. Ophiolites commonly occur as dismembered rock sequences and have different types of hydrothermal alteration products. Ophiolites contain the essential type as serpentinites and talc-carbonate rocks, listwaenites, and amphibolites along shear zones and faults. Listwaenite is one of the most significant rocks in this area because it contains gold. The whole serpentinite rocks are affected by regional metamorphosis into greenschist facies. Geochemically, Neoproterozoic serpentinites fall into SSZ ophiolites, alpine-type peridotite, formed in the forearc peridotite tectonic environment. Regardless, the listwaenite and talc-carbonate rocks revealed that they trend to silica, carbonate, and talc. Listwaenites are classified into two types: carbonate-rich listwaenites and silica–carbonate-rich listwaenites. Magnetite, chromite, galena, and gold are the most typical ores recorded in this research. Copyright © 2022 Abdel-Rahman, El-Desoky, Shalaby, Awad, Ene, Heikal, El-Awny, Fahmy, Taalab and Zakaly.The authors thank the “Dunarea de Jos” University of Galati, Romania, for the APC support. The researcher (HA) is funded by a scholarship under the Joint (Executive Program between Egypt and Russia)

Clinical, hemato-biochemical alterations and oxidant–antioxidant biomarkers in Babesia-infected calves

Babesia is one of the main causes of anemia in cattle, a lot of elucidations have been suggested to explain its pathogenesis. This study was designed to investigate clinical, hemato-biochemical and oxidant/antioxidant status and its relation with the resultant anemia in Babesia-infected calves. Seventeen (17) native breed calves were involved in this study, clinical signs and microscopic findings were recorded, also blood samples were taken to investigate hematologic changes, serum biochemical variations and oxidative stress biomarkers. The most commonly observed clinical signs were fever, emaciation, depression, icterus and hemoglobinuria. Significant reduction in PCV, HB, RBCs, MCHC, Total protein, and albumin along with significant increase in MCV, WBCs, monocytes and BUN were the most consistent hemato-biochemical changes. Oxidant/antioxidant and trace mineral assessment showed significant reduction in Superoxide dismutase “SOD”, Glutathione peroxidase “GPx”, Zn, Cu along with significant increase in malondialdehyde (MDA) activities. In the current investigation, oxidant/antioxidant imbalance along with the synchronized alterations in antioxidant trace minerals was detected in Babesia-infected calves. These findings support notion that Babesia infection associated with oxidative stress and this process may be linked to the resultant anemia