Egypt beyond the crisis : medium-term challenges for sustained growth

The paper analyzes the impact of the recent global crisis in the context of the previous two decades'growth and capital flows. Growth decomposition exercises show that Egyptian growth is driven mostly by capital accumulation. To estimate the share of labor in national income, the analysis adjusts the national accounts statistics to include the compensation of self-employed and non-paid family workers. Still, the share of labor, about 30 percent, is significantly lower than previously estimated. The authors estimate the output costs of the current crisis by comparing the output trajectory that would have prevailed without the crisis with the observed and revised gross domestic product projections for the medium term. The fall in private investment was the main driver of the output cost. Even if private investment recovers its pre-crisis levels, there is a permanent loss in gross domestic product per capita of about 2 percent with respect to the scenario without the crisis. The paper shows how the shock to investment is magnified due to the capital-intensive nature of the Egyptian economy: if the economy had the traditionally-used share of labor in income (40 percent), the output loss would have been reduced by half.Economic Theory&Research,Debt Markets,Access to Finance,Emerging Markets,Banks&Banking Reform

Thyroid hormone dysfunctions affect the structure of rat thoracic aorta: a histological and morphometric study

Background: There are limited data about the influence of hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism on the connective tissue component and smooth muscle cells of the thoracic aorta. The aim was to study the histological changes of the wall of the thoracic aorta in the hypothyroid and hyperthyroid rats. Morphometric measurements were also done.Materials and methods: Thirty adult rats were used. They were divided into control, hyperthyroid, and hypothyroid groups. Each group consisted of 10 rats. The animals were sacrificed at the end of 8 weeks and the descending aorta was excised. Sections were stained with haematoxylin and eosin, orcein and Masson’s trichrome stains. Themorphometric measurement included: number of smooth muscle cell nuclei, number of the elastic lamellae, thickness of the tunica media, elastic fibre optic density, and relative collagen area.Results: Atheromatous plagues had been observed in the hyperthyroid group. Thinning and rupture of the elastic lamellae had been observed in the hypothyroid group; these were accompanied with intimal ulceration and aortic dissection. The average number of smooth muscle cell nuclei in the hyperthyroid group had doubled and tripled compared to their fellows in the control and hypothyroid groups, respectively. The thickness of the tunica media increased in the hyperthyroid and hypothyroid groups by 75% and 35%. In addition, the relative collagen area increased in the previously mentioned groups by 142% and 120%, respectively. On the other hand, the mean elastic fibre optic density decreased in both groups by 30%.Conclusions: Structure wall affections of the intima and media of the descending aorta were associated with the thyroid hormone dysfunctions. These changes were more severe in the hypothyroid group.

The liver microenvironment : a driver of hepatocellular carcinoma

PhD ThesisHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major health problem and is the third leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. The prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases (NAFLD) is on the rise, and the possibility for the development of HCC in NAFLD patients is increasing in the western countries. HCC driver mutations are not druggable and the median improvement of life expectancy in treated HCC patients doesn’t exceed, at best, 2 years. Therefore, novel rewarding targets should be identified, from whom the components of the liver microenvironment represent a fertile field of research and drug discovery. SULFATASE 2 (SULF2), an extracellular sulfatase, was markedly upregulated in the cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs) in more than half of HCC biopsies, and CAF-SULF2 expression was associated with poor prognosis and sorafenib tolerance in HCC patients. In vitro, stromal SULF2 induced the proliferation, migration, invasion and therapy evasion of HCC cell lines. Stromal SULF2 activated JNK/IL6 pathway in the fibroblast cell lines, while SULF2-rich secretome activated NF-kB/CD44 stemness pathway in the tumour cells justifying the aggressive, SULF2-dependent tumour cell phenotype. In a mouse model of NAFLD-induced HCC, Sulf2, as well as other targets, was upregulated in the non-tumour liver tissue of the dietary-challenged mice compared to matched controls. Pathway analysis and immunohistochemistry (IHC) validation in mouse and human tissue supported the profound role of different immune cells in the process of tumour development. We have identified a novel Cd44-positive macrophage phenotype that worked in concert with certain T cell subsets to develop HCC in mice. The number of CD44 positive macrophages in the non-tumour liver biopsies of NAFLD patients who developed HCC was higher than CD44 positive macrophages in patients who didn’t develop malignancy. In conclusion, non-parenchymal cell compartments play an essential role in HCC development and progression. Therapeutics targeting the activities of these cells represent a novel strategy for disease prevention/management

Descriptive Epidemiology of Hemophilia and Other Coagulation Disorders in Mansoura, Egypt: Retrospective Analysis.

Hemophilia represent the most severe inherited bleeding disorder (INB), it’s thought to affect inviduals from all geographical areas in equal frequency. In Egypt which has a population of approximately (80million) consanguineous marriage are frequent, therefore autosomal recessive coagulation disorders reach a higher prevalence than in many other countries

Harmonics Mitigation and Non-Ideal Voltage Compensation Utilizing Active Power Filter Based On Predictive Current Control

It is well-known that the presence of non-linear loads in the distribution system can impair the power quality. The problem becomes worse in microgrids and power electronic-based power systems as the increasing penetration of single-phase distributed generation may result in a more unbalanced grid voltage. Shunt active power filters (SAPFs) are used for improving the power quality and compensating for the unbalance grid voltage. This study presents a modification of the classical control structure based on the finite control set model predictive control (FCS-MPC). The proposed control structure can retain all the advantages of FCS-MPC, while improving the input current quality. Furthermore, a computationally efficient cost function based on only a single objective is introduced, and its effect on reducing the current ripple is demonstrated. The presented solution provides a fast response to the transients as well as compensates for the unbalanced grid voltage conditions. A straightforward single loop controller is compared to the conventional way of realising the active power filters, which is based on space vector pulse width modulation. The simulation results have been obtained from MATLAB/SIMULINK environment, while the obtained experimental results, utilising a 15 kVA power converter, highlight the effective performance of the proposed control scheme and verifies the introduced MPC-based method as a viable control solution for SAPFs

Undiagnosed depression: An epidemiologic study in three European countries

Tesis doctoral inédita leída en la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Facultad de Medicina, Departamento de Psiquiatría. Fecha de lectura: 21-11-201

L’hypermédia Au Service De La Formation Initiale D’enseignants-Stagiaires (Cas Du CRMEF-FESMEKNES)

In light of empirical experience from Morocco, combined with new possibilities afforded by Information and Communication Technology (ICT), there is a wish to integrate new technologies into distance education to help solve a set of problems identified in the initial training at the Regional Centre for the Professions of Education and Training of Fez-Meknes. The results of a study conducted among 15 trainee teachers of the Earth and Life Sciences allow us to conclude that designing a hypermedia tool for learning could constitute a promising solution to address the many challenges linked to the initial training of teachers in Morocco. Finally, the use of this digital resource by trainee teachers’ has also strongly contributed to their eagerness to integrate ICT in their subsequent teaching practices