Chromohysteroscopy after failed intracytoplasmic sperm injection

Background: ICSI is the injection of a single sperm directly into the cytoplasm of the oocyte (ICSI). The failure to achieve pregnancy after ICSI has been studied over many years to reach the possible and preventable causes to avoid another failure. The aim of this study was to assess the value of using Chromohysteroscopy as a part of the work up of cases with one or more failed ICSI. The Ultimate goal is to detect the possible endometrial abnormalities and /or endometritis.Methods: Prospective cohort study was carried out with total of 50 infertile women recruited from infertility clinic in Elshatby Maternity University Hospital, Alexandria University, Egypt. Cases were allocated in 2 groups with 25 cases in each group. The first group included cases that had a failed trial of ICSI. The second group included control cases who were seeking for fertility treatment with no previous history of ICSI or any uterine surgery or anatomical abnormalities. In the postmenstrual period, Chromohysteroscopy was done by the same surgeon and documentation of all findings in the cavity and presence of endometritis.Results: There was a significant increase in the incidence of endometritis among the study group 68% in comparison to 16% in the control group.Conclusions: In this study endometrial dying with methylene blue at hysteroscopy improve the detection of chronic endometritis

Assessing the Impact of Changes to CG Codes on the Financial Performance of UAE Firms

This study undertook a comparison of the changes to corporate governance (CG) practices, based on the UAE CG codes, for three different periods of time between 2006 to 2007, 2009 to 2010 and 2013 to 2014. An ordinary least squares model, along with analysis of variance testing, was employed to compare this. The study sample included 47 listed firms in the UAE. The changes made to the CG code during the study period affected the audit and board committee characteristics. The results show that the second CG code change had the most significant effect on board meetings, board members’ education, board members’ experience, audit committee meetings and audit committee members’ education impact on the financial performance of UAE listed firms. The potential policy implications arising from the study centre on ensuring greater firm compliance to meet the expectations of the regulatory body, as mandated in the CG code

The Impact of Board and Audit Characteristics on the Financial Performance of UAE Listed Firms

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide empirical insights on the impact of board and audit committee characteristics on the financial performance of United Arab Emirates (UAE) listed firms.Design/methodology/approach – A multiple regression panel model was employed for the period 2006 to 2015. The analysis incorporates Anderson Lagrange Multiplier test and Hausman test to determine if a fixed effects or random effects model should be employed.Findings – Our results demonstrated that board size and board meetings had a significant positive relationship with financial performance while there were also significant positive relationships between both audit committee composition and audit committee members’ education and firm financial performance.Research limitations/implications – The findings inform UAE firms about the benefits of employing directors with a more diverse skill set to enhance board effectiveness as well as having audit committee members hold a recognised qualification in finance or accounting to improve firm financial performance.Originality/value – Our study contributes to the CG literature by adding to the limited studies on CG in the UAE which help reduce the significant gap between foundation theories and practical applicability

On Dual Curves of DAW(k)-Type and Their Evolutes

In this paper, we study to express the theory of curves including a wide section of Euclidean geometry in terms of dual vector calculus which has an important place in the three -dimensional dual space $\mathbb{D}^{3}$. In other words, we study $DAW(k)$-type curves $\left( 1\leq k\leq 3\right)$ by using Bishop frame defined as alternatively of these curves and give some of their properties in $\mathbb{D}^{3}$. \ Moreover, we define the notion of evolutes of dual spherical curves for ruled surfaces. Finally, we give some examples to illustrate our findings

Design and analysis of 1-to-4 Wilkinson power divider for antenna array feeding network

In this paper, A Novel 1 to 4 modified Wilkinson power divider operating over the frequency range of (3 GHz to 8 GHz) is proposed. The design perception of the proposed divider based on two different stages and printed on FR4 (Epoxy laminate material) with the thickness of 1.57mm and ϵr =4.3 respectively. The modified design of this power divider including curved corners instead of the sharp edges and some modification in the length of matching stubs. In addition, this paper contain the power divider with equal power split at all ports, reasonable insertion loss, acceptable return loss below -10 dB, good impedance matching at all ports and satisfactory isolation performance has been obtained over the mentioned frequency range. The design concept and optimization development is practicable through CST simulation software

Monolithic modular thyristor-based DC-Hub with zero reactive power circulation

The promising features of HVDC technology have led to the possibility of numerous renewable resources integration and enormous DC grids interconnection. In spite of the obstacles, these interconnections encounter such as the necessity to block DC faults, achieving isolation between different schemes, the ability to maintain power flow throughout different power flow profiles, and the interfacing with various infrastructures, the DC-Hub arises to overcome these interconnection obstacles being the excellent approach to enhance the DC grid capabilities. This paper proposes a new monolithic modular thyristor-based multilevel converter, which serves as the fundamental building block of the DC-Hub, offering advantages such as lower switch count, bidirectional power flow, and DC fault blocking capability. Moreover, a control algorithm, for zero reactive power circulation in the DC-Hub, is introduced. The proposed algorithm successfully mitigates the circulation of reactive power throughout the entire range of power flow. A comprehensive mathematical analysis, optimum design of converter parameters, and the proposed control technique, which suppress the circulating reactive power at full range of power flow, are illustrated. Finally, simulation modelling and hardware test rig are established to validate the claims of the DC-Hub at different normal and faulty scenarios

Blue biotechnology: Computational screening of sarcophyton cembranoid diterpenes for SARS-CoV-2 main protease inhibition

The coronavirus pandemic has affected more than 150 million people, while over 3.25 million people have died from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). As there are no established therapies for COVID-19 treatment, drugs that inhibit viral replication are a promising target; specifically, the main protease (Mpro) that process CoV-encoded polyproteins serves as an Achilles heel for assembly of replication-transcription machinery as well as down-stream viral replication. In the search for potential antiviral drugs that target Mpro, a series of cembranoid diterpenes from the biologically active soft-coral genus Sarcophyton have been examined as SARS-CoV-2 Mpro inhibitors. Over 360 metabolites from the genus were screened using molecular docking calculations. Promising diterpenes were further characterized by molecular dynamics (MD) simulations based on molecular mechanics-generalized Born surface area (MM-GBSA) binding energy calculations. According to in silico calculations, five cembranoid diterpenes manifested adequate binding affinities as Mpro inhibitors with ΔGbinding \u3c -33.0 kcal/mol. Binding energy and structural analyses of the most potent Sarcophyton inhibitor, bislatumlide A (340), was compared to darunavir, an HIV protease inhibitor that has been recently subjected to clinical-trial as an anti-COVID-19 drug. In silico analysis indicates that 340 has a higher binding affinity against Mpro than darunavir with ΔGbinding values of -43.8 and -34.8 kcal/mol, respectively throughout 100 ns MD simulations. Drug-likeness calculations revealed robust bioavailability and protein-protein interactions were identified for 340; biochemical signaling genes included ACE, MAPK14 and ESR1 as identified based on a STRING database. Pathway enrichment analysis combined with reactome mining revealed that 340 has the capability to re-modulate the p38 MAPK pathway hijacked by SARS-CoV-2 and antagonize injurious effects. These findings justify further in vivo and in vitro testing of 340 as an antiviral agent against SARS-CoV-2

Cyanobacteria—From the Oceans to the Potential Biotechnological and Biomedical Applications

Cyanobacteria are photosynthetic prokaryotic organisms which represent a significantsource of novel, bioactive, secondary metabolites, and they are also considered an abundant source ofbioactive compounds/drugs, such as dolastatin, cryptophycin 1, curacin toyocamycin, phytoalexin,cyanovirin-N and phycocyanin. Some of these compounds have displayed promising results insuccessful Phase I, II, III and IV clinical trials. Additionally, the cyanobacterial compounds applied tomedical research have demonstrated an exciting future with great potential to be developed into newmedicines. Most of these compounds have exhibited strong pharmacological activities, includingneurotoxicity, cytotoxicity and antiviral activity against HCMV, HSV-1, HHV-6 and HIV-1, so thesemetabolites could be promising candidates for COVID-19 treatment. Therefore, the effective large-scale production of natural marine products through synthesis is important for resolving the existingissues associated with chemical isolation, including small yields, and may be necessary to betterinvestigate their biological activities. Herein, we highlight the total synthesized and stereochemicaldeterminations of the cyanobacterial bioactive compounds. Furthermore, this review primarilyfocuses on the biotechnological applications of cyanobacteria, including applications as cosmetics,food supplements, and the nanobiotechnological applications of cyanobacterial bioactive compoundsin potential medicinal applications for various human diseases are discussed.Stockholm UniversityPeer Reviewe