General public knowledge, perceptions and practice towards pharmaceutical drug advertisements in the Western region of KSA

AbstractThis study aims to examine general public knowledge and behavior toward pharmaceutical advertisements in the Western part of KSA. A cross sectional convenience sampling technique was used in this study. A total of 1445 valid questionnaires were received and analyzed using SPSS version 16 at alpha value of 0.05. Majority of respondents were aware of different types of drugs to be advertised and drug advertisements should seek approval from the health authorities. Television and Internet showed the highest effect on consumers. Almost half of the participants preferred an advertised drug over non-advertised one. Most of the respondents indicated that the quality of frequently advertised drugs is not better than those prescribed by the doctors. Majority of participants had positive beliefs toward advertised drugs concerning their role in education and spreading of awareness among the public. Pharmaceutical advertisements harm the doctor–patient relationship as evidenced by one-third of the investigated sample. Moreover, majority of the participants mentioned that they would consult another doctor or even change the current doctor if he/she refused to prescribe an advertised medication. Results of this study could be used to develop awareness programs for the general public and try to enforce the regulations and policies to protect the general public and patients from the business oriented pharmaceutical companies and drug suppliers

Twelve-month observational study of children with cancer in 41 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction Childhood cancer is a leading cause of death. It is unclear whether the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted childhood cancer mortality. In this study, we aimed to establish all-cause mortality rates for childhood cancers during the COVID-19 pandemic and determine the factors associated with mortality. Methods Prospective cohort study in 109 institutions in 41 countries. Inclusion criteria: children <18 years who were newly diagnosed with or undergoing active treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma, retinoblastoma, Wilms tumour, glioma, osteosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, medulloblastoma and neuroblastoma. Of 2327 cases, 2118 patients were included in the study. The primary outcome measure was all-cause mortality at 30 days, 90 days and 12 months. Results All-cause mortality was 3.4% (n=71/2084) at 30-day follow-up, 5.7% (n=113/1969) at 90-day follow-up and 13.0% (n=206/1581) at 12-month follow-up. The median time from diagnosis to multidisciplinary team (MDT) plan was longest in low-income countries (7 days, IQR 3-11). Multivariable analysis revealed several factors associated with 12-month mortality, including low-income (OR 6.99 (95% CI 2.49 to 19.68); p<0.001), lower middle income (OR 3.32 (95% CI 1.96 to 5.61); p<0.001) and upper middle income (OR 3.49 (95% CI 2.02 to 6.03); p<0.001) country status and chemotherapy (OR 0.55 (95% CI 0.36 to 0.86); p=0.008) and immunotherapy (OR 0.27 (95% CI 0.08 to 0.91); p=0.035) within 30 days from MDT plan. Multivariable analysis revealed laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection (OR 5.33 (95% CI 1.19 to 23.84); p=0.029) was associated with 30-day mortality. Conclusions Children with cancer are more likely to die within 30 days if infected with SARS-CoV-2. However, timely treatment reduced odds of death. This report provides crucial information to balance the benefits of providing anticancer therapy against the risks of SARS-CoV-2 infection in children with cancer

Biology and biotechnology of modified oils

The objectives of this study were three fold and these are described in three parts. In the first part incorporation of long-chain n-3 fatty acids (FA) into three types of high-laurate canola oils was examined. Incorporation of the n-3 FA, namely eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, C20: 5 n-3), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA, C22: 5 n-3), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, C22: 6 n-3) into three types of high-Iaurate canola oils, known as Laurical 15, 25, and 35 with 15, 25, and 35% oleic acid content, respectively, was carried out. -- Production of SL via acidolysis of Laurical 15 with EPA, DPA, and DHA was carried out using five lipases from Candida antarctica, Mucor miehei, Pseudomonas sp., Aspergillus niger, and Candida rugosa. Pseudomonas sp. lipase gave the best incorporation of EPA, DPA, or DHA into Laurical 15. Optimum reaction conditions for EPA incorporation into Laurical 15 were 4% enzyme load, and an oil to EPA mole ratio of 1:3 at 45°C over 36 h. For DPA incorporation into Laurical 15, the optimum conditions were 6% lipase amount, and an oil to DPA mole ratio of 1:2 at 35°C over 48 h. Similarly, incorporation of DHA into Laurical 15 was best achieved at a mole ratio of oil to DHA of 1:3, 10% lipase concentration, at 35°C over 48 h. Lauric acid remained mostly esterified to the sn-1,3 positions while EPA, DPA or DHA was also located mainly in the sn-1,3 positions of the modified oils. The modified oils were more prone to oxidation than their unmodified counterparts, as evidenced by the 2-thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) test. -- In another study, response surface methodology (RSM) was employed to obtain a maximum incorporation of EPA or DHA into Laurical 25. Under optimum conditions incorporation of EPA (61.6%) into Laurical 25 was achieved using 4.6% enzyme from Pseudomonas sp. at 39.9°C over 26.2 h. The corresponding maximum incorporation of DHA into Laurical 25 was 37.3% using 4.79% enzyme from Pseudomonas sp., 46.1°C, and 30.1 h. For EPA-modified Laurical 25, lauric acid was present mainly in the sn-1,3 positions while EPA was randomly distributed over the three positions. Similarly, DHA as well as lauric acid were primarily located at the sn-1,3 positions of the modified oil. The unmodified oil remained unchanged during storage for 72 h as indicated by the conjugated diene (CD) values, but EPA- or DHA-modified Laurical 25 SL were oxidized to a much higher level than the original oil. The CD values were higher in DHA-modified than EPA-modified oil. The modified oils also attained considerably higher TBARS values than the original oil over the entire storage period. -- Lipases from Mucor miehei (Lipozyme-IM), Pseudomonas sp. (PS-30), and Candida rugosa (A Y -30) catalyzed optimum incorporation of EPA, DP A, and DHA, into Laurical 35, respectively. The maximum incorporation of EPA (62.2%) into Laurical 35 using RSM was predicted at 4.36% of enzyme load and 43.2°C over 23.9 h. Under optimum conditions (5.41% enzyme; 38.7°C; 33.5 h), incorporation of DPA into Laurical 35 was 50.8%. The corresponding maximum incorporation of DHA (34.1 %) into Laurical 35 was obtained using 5.25% enzyme, at 43.7°C, and over 44.7 h. EPA and DHA were mainly esterified to the sn-1,3 positions of the modified oils while DP A was randomly distributed over the three positions of the TAG molecules. Meanwhile, lauric acid remained primarily esterified to the sn-1 and sn-3 positions of the modified oils. The modified oils were more susceptible to oxidation than the unmodified oil, when considering both CD and TBARS values

Lipase-catalyzed acidolysis of algal oils with a medium-chain fatty acid, capric acid

Lipase-assisted acidolysis of algal oils with a medium-chain fatty acid (capric acid) was studied. Five commercially available lipase preparations from Candida antarctica, Mucor miehei, Pseudomonas sp., Aspergillus niger and Candida rugosa were initially used as biocatalysts for the incorporation of capric acid (CA) into selected algal oils. The algal oils of interest were arachidoinc acid single cell oil (ARASCO), docosahexaenoic acid single cell oil (DHASCO) and single cell oil rich in docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and docosapentaenoic acid (DP A) (OMEGA-GOLD). Among the lipases examined, Pseudomonas sp. was the most efficient. -- Effects of various reaction variables, namely the mole ratio of substrates, enzyme amount, time course, temperature and the amount of added water were examined for Pseudomonas sp. Response surface methodology was used to obtain a maximum incorporation of CA into algal oils. The process variables studied were the amount of enzyme (2-12 %), reaction temperature (25-55°C) and incubation time (12-48h). All experiments were conducted according to a face-centred cube design. Under optimum conditions (12.3 % of enzyme; 45°C; 29.4 h), the incorporation of CA was 20.0 % into ARASCO. Optimization of acidolysis of DHASCO with CA gave rise to a maximum of 22.6 % at 4.2 % enzyme amount, and a reaction temperature of 43.3°C and reaction time of 27.1 h. Similarly, the maximum incorporation of CA into the OMEGA-GOLD oil was obtained when enzyme amounts, reaction temperature and time were 2.5 %, 46.6°C and 25.2 h, respectively. -- Stereospecific analysis was performed to establish positional distribution of fatty acids on the glycerol backbone of modified ARASCO, DHASCO and the OMEGA-GOLD oil. In all oils examined CA was mainly located at the sn-1 and sn-3 positions of the triacylglycerol (TAG) molecules. In ARASCO-based SL, arachidonic acid (ARA) was mostly esterified at the sn-2 position of the glycerol backbone. In DHASCO-based SL, DHA was concentrated in the sn-2 position, but also present in the sn-1,3 positions. DHA or DP A were preferentially esterified at the sn-2 position of the modified OMEGA-GOLD oil. -- The oxidative stabilities of enzymatically modified oils as well as their unmodified counterparts were assessed under Schaal oven conditions at 60°C over a 72 h storage period. Conjugated dienes (CD), and 2-thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) were used to follow the primary and secondary products of oxidation, respectively. Among the oils tested, the structured lipids (SL) of ARASCO, DHASCO, and the OMEGA-GOLD oil had higher conjugated dienes than those of their unmodified counterparts. TBARS values of modified DHASCO were significantly higher than their origin oil at all times. TBARS values of both modified and unmodified ARASCO increased gradually over the entire storage period. TBARS values of the OMEGA-GOLD-based SL increased steadily with increasing storage time. The results presented in this study suggest that enzymatically modified oils are more susceptible to oxidation than their unmodified counterparts. However, when the three oils (ARASCO, DHASCO and the OMEGA-GOLD) were subjected to the same procedure steps, the stabilities of the oils were adversely affected to a large extent. This observation might possibly be due to the loss of natural antioxidants during the reaction work up

The association of eating habits and lifestyle with overweight and obesity among health sciences students in Taif University, KSA

أهداف البحث: درس هذا البحث آثار العادات الغذائية ونمط الحياة على مدى انتشار زيادة الوزن والسمنة بين طلبة العلوم الصحية في جامعة الطائف بالمملكة العربية السعودية. طرق البحث: أُجري مسح مقطعي على ٢٢٨ من طلبة العلوم الصحية في إطار جامعي باستخدام استبانة التردد الغذائي. كما اُستخدم مؤشر كتلة الجسم لتقييم زيادة الوزن، بينما استخدم محيط الخصر لتقييم السمنة في منطقة البطن. النتائج: كانت نسبة انتشار كل من زيادة الوزن والسمنة ٢٥.٩٪ و١٠.٩٪ على الترتيب، بنسبة انتشار كلية نسبتها ٣٦.٨٪. وكان تأثير جميع المتغيرات الديموغرافية ضئيلا على محيط الخصر. وكانت هناك ارتباطات ذات قيمة بين الجنس، والعام الدراسي، والتخصص وبين مؤشر كتلة الجسم. على الرغم من اعتراف ٤٨.٢٪ من الطلبة بأنهم غير نشطين بدنيا، إلا أن هذا المؤثر لم يكن ذا قيمة على كلا المؤشرين. وكان لكل من التدخين، والجهد، ومدة مشاهدة التلفاز، والنوم الليلي والنهاري أثر على كل من مؤشر كتلة الجسم ومحيط الخصر إلا أنه لم يكن ذا قيمة إحصائية. كما كان للإفطار، والوجبات الخفيفة، والأكل مع العائلة، والوجبات السريعة، والمشروبات الغازية العادية والخالية من السكر تأثيرات لم تكن ذات قيمة على مؤشر كتلة الجسم. ولوحظت علاقة كبيرة بين استهلاك الكبد ومؤشر كتلة الجسم، في حين لم يكن لتناول اللحوم، والبيض، والحليب، والفواكه، والخضروات، والحبوب أي أثر ذا قيمة على مؤشر كتلة الجسم. كما أن جميع أنواع الأطعمة لم يكن لها أي أثر ذا قيمة على محيط الخصر. الاستنتاجات: كانت نسبة انتشار زيادة الوزن والسمنة ٣٦.٨٪. وكان لكل من جنس المشارك، وعامه الدراسي، وتخصصه، واستهلاكه للكبد آثارا ذات قيمة على مؤشر كتلة الجسم. وأظهرت جميع المتغيرات الأخرى التي تمت دراستها علاقات لا اعتبار لها مع محيط الخصر