Impact of Propolis on Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis Based on Total DNA, RNA and Protein Levels.

<b>Background and Objectives:</b> Propolis is a natural product derived from plant resins and collected by honeybees to protect the colony against different pathogens. The antimicrobial properties of an ethanolic extract of propolis (EEP) were investigated in this study. <b>Materials and Methods:</b> In the Egyptian Governorate of Giza, F1 carniolan honeybee (<i>Apis mellifera carnica</i> P.) colonies collected propolis in the autumn, spring and summer of 2019-2020. We investigated the antibacterial activity of EEP against Gram-positive <i>B. subtilis</i> and Gram-negative <i>E. coli</i>. Propolis was evaluated and its effects on the amounts of total DNA, RNA and protein in <i>Bacillus subtilis</i> and <i>Escherichia coli</i> were investigated. <b>Results:</b> Propolis inhibited the growth of <i>B. subtilis</i>. At 5% concentration, the inhibition zones were 8.66, 10.66 and 8.52 mm for autumn, spring and summer propolis, respectively, at 10% concentration, they were 19.66, 21.33 and 18.0 mm, respectively. Propolis also inhibited the growth of <i>E. coli</i> at a 5% concentration. The inhibition zones were 3.660, 4.00 and 4.33 mm for autumn, spring and summer propolis, respectively and at 10% concentration, they were 7.65, 8.33 and 7.33 mm, respectively. The inhibition zones were the largest (10.66 and 21.33 mm) for <i>B. subtilis</i> at 5 and 10% propolis, respectively, whereas slightly low inhibition zones (4.0 and 8.33 mm) were observed for <i>E. coli</i> (5 and 10% propolis, respectively) in spring. In <i>E. coli</i> and <i>B. subtilis</i>, propolis inhibited the replication of DNA-dependent RNA polymerase. <b>Conclusion:</b> The study showed that total DNA, RNA and protein levels in <i>B. subtilis</i> were reduced by 40, 15.52 and 52.6%, respectively, whereas those in <i>E. coli</i> were reduced by 12, 15 and 8%, respectively. Furthermore, propolis activity was less effective against Gram-negative bacteria than Gram-positive bacteria.

Improving the performance of mini-channel heat sink by using wavy channel and different types of nanofluids.

The combination of nano fluid and changing cross-section mini-channel heat sink effects have become a remarkable choice for the use of thermal devices such as miniature electronic devices to be effectively cooled. In this paper, the comparison of three dimensional straight and wavy channel configuration with using different types nano fluids are numerically investigated. The effects of wave amplitude and A particular type of volume fraction of (Copper Oxide CuO, Dimond Al2O3, Iron Oxide Fe3O4, Titanium Oxide TiO2 and Silver Ag-nano fluids are offered. Three amplitudes of waves (0.15 mm, 0.2 mm and 0.25 mm) and Reynold's number from 200 to 1000 and concentration volume varieties from 0 to 0.075 are used. The effect on thermal resistance, pressures drop, factor of friction of the mini channel is displayed. It is observed that the mini-channel sink's heat transfer efficiency is greatly enhanced compared to the straight channel in an event of adding distilled water as accoolant. The results indicate that nano fluid and wavy mini-channel can boost the heat sink's hydrothermal efficiency and Ag- water nano fluid in term of heat transfer, it outperforms other nanofluids an enhancement in the Nusselt number reached to 54% at concentration volume 0.075.

MHD mixed convection and entropy generation of CNT-water nanofluid in a wavy lid-driven porous enclosure at different boundary conditions.

In this study, Galerkin Finite Element Method or GFEM is used for the modeling of mixed convection with the entropy generation in wavy lid-driven porous enclosure filled by the CNT-water nanofluid under the magnetic field. Two different cases of boundary conditions for hot and cold walls are considered to study the fluid flow (streamlines) and heat transfer (local and average Nusselt numbers) as well as the entropy generation parameters. Richardson (Ri), Darcy (Da), Hartmann angle (γ), Amplitude (A), Number of peaks (N), Volume fraction (φ), Heat generation factor (λ), Hartmann number (Ha) and Reynolds number (Re) are studied parameters in this study which results indicated that at low Richardson numbers (< 1) increasing the inclined angle of magnetic field, decreases the Nu numbers, but at larger Richardson numbers (> 1) it improves the Nu numbers.

Radiographic evaluation of the anatomical relationship of maxillary sinus floor with maxillary posterior teeth apices in the population of Al-Qassim, Saudi Arabia, using cone beam computed tomography.

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE: In current clinical dental practice radiographic imaging plays a major role in exploring the relationship between the maxillary sinus floor (MSF) and maxillary posterior teeth root apices, especially when there is an involvement of pathology in the periapical area that may lead to infectious, inflammatory or traumatic changes in the maxillary sinus (MS). It is also essential for exact implant placement, and therapeutic and surgical plans. The prevalence of different forms of anatomic relationship of the MSF to posterior root apices from one population to another is large. Hence the current research was conceived to evaluate the horizontal and vertical relationship forms of posterior root apices to the MSF in the Al-Qassim population of Saudi Arabia using Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT). MATERIALS AND METHODS: To conduct the study, a total of 200 patients' data (100 male and 100 female) were taken from the archives. The linear distances of the root apices to the MSF were measured for maxillary posterior teeth. On cross-sectional CBCT images, the Kwak et al. criteria were used to assess the horizontal and vertical relationships between the root apices of maxillary posterior teeth and the MSF. RESULTS: The mean distance between the apices of the maxillary second premolar ranged from 4.63 mm to 6.49 mm. The mean value of the distance between the apices of the posterior teeth and the MSF had a range of 0.68 ± 0.39 mm on the disto-buccal root (DBR) of the maxillary right second molar to 3.93 ± 1.26 mm on the palatal root (PR) of the maxillary left first molar. A similar result was observed in the maxillary second molar DBR in the male group (0.68 ± 1.17 mm) and the female group (0.69 ± 1.17 mm). The most frequently observed vertical relations were type 2 and type 2H horizontal relations. CONCLUSION: This study concludes that maxillary molar roots show greater proximity with the MSF when compared with premolars, and that the type 2 vertical and type 2H horizontal distribution suggests that the anatomy of each tooth and the maxillary sinus floor should be evaluated by CBCT prior to treatment planning.

Magnetic nanofluid behavior including an immersed rotating conductive cylinder: finite element analysis.

In this paper, numerical Galerkin Finite Element Method (GFEM) is applied for conjugate heat-transfer of a rotating cylinder immersed in Fe3O4-water nanofluid under the heat-flux and magnetic field. The outer boundaries of the cavity were maintained at low temperatures while beside the cylinder were insulated. It is assumed that the cylinder rotates in both clockwise and counter-clockwise directions. The dimensionless governing equations such as velocity, pressure, and temperature formulation were analyzed by the GFEM. The results were evaluated using the governing parameters such as nanoparticles (NPs) volume fraction, Hartmann and Rayleigh numbers, magnetic field angle and NPs shapes. As a main result, the average Nusselt number increases by increasing the NPs volume fraction, inclination angle and thermal conductivity ratios, while increasing the Hartmann number decreased the Nusselt number. Furthermore, platelet NPs had the maximum average Nusselt number and spherical NPs made the minimum values of Nusselt numbers among examined NPs shapes.

MHD effect on mixed convection of annulus circular enclosure filled with Non-Newtonian nanofluid.

The fluid flow and mixed convection heat transfer of a non-Newtonian (Cu-water) nanofluid-filled circular annulus enclosure in a magnetic field are investigated numerically for a two-dimensional, steady-state, incompressible, laminar flow using the Galerkin finite element method (GFEM). The Prandtl number (Pr = 6.2) and Grashof number (Gr = 100) are assumed to be constants, whereas the Richardson number varies within a range of 0 ≤ Ri ≤ 1, the Hartman number within a range of 0 ≤ Ha ≤60, the Power law index within a range of 0.2 ≤ n ≤ 1.4, and the volume fraction within a range of 0 ≤ φ ≤ 1. The enclosure consists of an outer rotating cylinder that is kept at a cold temperature (Tc) and an inner non-rotating cylinder kept at a hot temperature (Th). The ratio of the inner circular diameter to the annulus space length is kept constant at 2. The results depict that the stream function increases with increasing power law index, even up to n = 1, which causes the fluid to behave as a Newtonian fluid. The magnetic field has a critical impact on the fluid flow pattern. The average Nusselt number increases with decreasing Richardson number, owing to the improved heat transfer by forced convection.

Novel optical biosensor method to identify human blood types using free-space frequency-modulated wave of NIR photon technology.

BACKGROUND: The free-space broadband frequency-modulated near-infrared (NIR) photon transmission and backscattering mode technique has been used in this paper as an optical biosensor method. PURPOSE: The purpose is to measure, identify, and extract the optical properties of different blood types. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The method depends on the measurements of broadband frequencies ranging from 30 up to 1,000 MHz to predict two important parameters related to the incident-modulated signal. Blind samples collected from 30 patients were examined using the optical NIR transmission mode system, and an additional 40 blood samples from random patients were examined using the optical NIR reflection mode system. The study is divided into two stages: The first stage is dedicated to measuring the insertion loss and insertion phase over 30-1,000 MHz in a transmission mode to characterize the behavior of modulated photons as they interact with the blood samples. The second stage is dedicated to performing noninvasive backscattering measurements using the optical band developed to match the first stage results. RESULTS: In this paper, we have created an indexed database using optical transmission mode measurements, and then mapped it to a reflection noninvasive measurement to identify the blood types. Then for the purpose of device accuracy, we randomly selected 480 new human subjects to measure the false-negative error percentage. This method is novel in terms of using an optical system to measure and identify blood types without collecting blood samples. CONCLUSION: The novel approach shows a highly accurate method in identifying different blood types instantaneously using optical sensing for both in vitro and in vivo procedures, thereby saving time and effort.

A Clinicopathological Study of Various Oral Cancer Diagnostic Techniques.

Oral cancer is one of the most commonly occurring malignant tumors in the head and neck regions with high incident rate and mortality rate in the developed countries than in the developing countries. Generally, the survival rate of cancer patients may increase when diagnosed at early stage, followed by prompt treatment and therapy. Recently, cancer diagnosis and therapy design for a specific cancer patient have been performed with the advanced computer-aided techniques. The responses of the cancer therapy could be continuously monitored to ensure the effectiveness of the treatment process that hardly requires diagnostic result as quick as possible to improve the quality and patient care. This paper gives an overview of oral cancer occurrence, different types, and various diagnostic techniques. In addition, a brief introduction is given to various stages of immunoanalysis including tissue image preparation, whole slide imaging, and microscopic image analysis.

Comparative genomics of Mortierella elongata and its bacterial endosymbiont Mycoavidus cysteinexigens.

Endosymbiosis of bacteria by eukaryotes is a defining feature of cellular evolution. In addition to well-known bacterial origins for mitochondria and chloroplasts, multiple origins of bacterial endosymbiosis are known within the cells of diverse animals, plants and fungi. Early-diverging lineages of terrestrial fungi harbor endosymbiotic bacteria belonging to the Burkholderiaceae. We sequenced the metagenome of the soil-inhabiting fungus Mortierella elongata and assembled the complete circular chromosome of its endosymbiont, Mycoavidus cysteinexigens, which we place within a lineage of endofungal symbionts that are sister clade to Burkholderia. The genome of M. elongata strain AG77 features a core set of primary metabolic pathways for degradation of simple carbohydrates and lipid biosynthesis, while the M. cysteinexigens (AG77) genome is reduced in size and function. Experiments using antibiotics to cure the endobacterium from the host demonstrate that the fungal host metabolism is highly modulated by presence/absence of M. cysteinexigens. Independent comparative phylogenomic analyses of fungal and bacterial genomes are consistent with an ancient origin for M. elongata - M. cysteinexigens symbiosis, most likely over 350 million years ago and concomitant with the terrestrialization of Earth and diversification of land fungi and plants.

Performance evaluation of maximal separation techniques in immunohistochemical scoring of tissue images.

This paper presents an automatic scoring method for p53 immunostained tissue images of oral cancer that consist of tissue image segmentation, splitting of clustered nuclei, feature extraction and classification. The tissue images are segmented using entropy thresholding technique in which the optimum threshold value to each color component is obtained by maximizing the global entropy of its gray-level co-occurrence matrix and clustered cells are separated by selectively applying marker-controlled watershed transform. Cell nuclei feature is extracted by maximal separation technique (MS) based on blue component of tissue image and subsequently, each cell is classified into one of four categories using multi-level thresholding. Finally, IHC score of tissue images have been determined using Allred method. A statistical analysis is performed between immuno-score of manual and automatic method, and compared with the scores that have obtained using other MS techniques. According to the performance evaluation, IHC score based on blue component that has high correlation coefficients (CC) of 0.95, low mean difference (MD) of 0.15, and a very close range of 95% confidence interval with manual scores. Therefore, automatic scoring method presented in this paper has high potential to help the pathologist in IHC scoring of tissue images.

MAGIC in practice: experience of peri-operative ECF/X chemotherapy in gastro-esophageal adenocarcinomas.

BACKGROUND: The MAGIC trial demonstrated the perioperative regimen of Epirubicin (E), Cisplatin (C) and 5-Fluorouracil (F) to have an overall survival benefit for patients with gastro-esophageal adenocarcinomas. We present our experience of the peri-operative regimen of ECF/ECX(X = Capecitabine) in operable gastro-esophageal adenocarcinoma. METHODS: Analysis of retrospective data of patients treated with MAGIC style therapy between May 2006 and August 2008 with potentially operable gastro-esophageal adenocarcinoma. RESULTS: One hundred patients underwent peri-operative chemotherapy according to the MAGIC protocol. Median age was 66 years, with 39% above the age of 70 years. The tumours were evenly distributed between the lower esophagus, gastro-esophageal junction and stomach. Seventy-nine percent completed all pre-operative cycles of chemotherapy and 81% proceeded to surgery, whilst 24% did not receive curative surgery. The median survival on an intention to treat analysis is 31.7 months from diagnosis. The median survival of patients who underwent resection has not yet been reached after a median follow-up of 41.4 months. CONCLUSION: Our patient population is older than the patients in the MAGIC trial (age 66 years vs. 62 years) with a much higher proportion of esophageal and GEJ tumours. Overall, curative resection rate was comparable to the MAGIC trial. Overall survival is superior to that found in the MAGIC trial.

Effectiveness of educational interventions in improving clinical competence of residents in an internal medicine residency program in Pakistan.

INTRODUCTION: Medical education is a continuously evolving field. Training institutes and programs should have a process in place to gather continuous feedback and then make appropriate modifications in order to provide education and training effectively. Our study aimed to assess the effect of a quality improvement cycle approach in using various educational interventions within a residency. Effects were measured on the key educational outcomes of residents; medical knowledge, skills and professional attitudes using results of postgraduate examination with both written and clinical skills components. METHODOLOGY: A number of educational interventions were implemented which included changes in work hours with increased time for self-study, new educational activities including a Residents Hour, a Residents Slide Session, Grand Rounds and Journal Clubs, Clinico-pathological conferences, and a two- week postgraduate course for senior residents. Newer and improved assessment tools were also implemented, including an annual in-training mock exam based on the format of the postgraduate examination. Pass rates in postgraduate examinations (Fellow of College of Physicians and Surgeons exam and Member of Royal College of Physicians exam) were compared before and after the interventions to assess the effectiveness of the interventions. RESULTS: The first group of residents after introduction of the educational interventions completed residency training in 2001. Postgraduate exam pass rates (sometimes after two or more attempts) were 59.2% (42 of 71 graduates) before 2001 and 86.4% (38 of 44 graduates after 2001 (p = 0.002). The number of candidates passing the examinations in either their first or second attempts before 2001 was 17 of 42 (40.5%), which increased to 33 of 38 (86.8%) after 2001 (p = <0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Our study describes a number of interventions that were successful in bringing about an improvement in the performance of our residents. These can serve as a guide for postgraduate training programs, particularly those of Internal Medicine, in implementing strategies to strengthen training and enhance the performance of trainees.

Primary cerebral angitis of the central nervous system: case report.

We report a case of a 28 year old female who presented with variedly progressive stroke like illness and raised intracranial pressure. Brain MRI scans revealed pericallosal and periventricular hyperintensities with oedema. Various medications like intravenous immunoglobulin, antibiotics, acyclovir, methyl prednisolone and management for raised intracranial pressure were instituted. She rapidly deteroriated and died on tenth hospital day. Only at autopsy was the diagnosis of primary angitis of central nervous system established.

Pituitary apoplexy: report of two cases.

Pituitary apoplexy is a common clinical syndrome characterised by acute headache, ophthalmoplegia, diminished visual acuity and altered mental status caused by the sudden haemorrhage or infarction of the pituitary gland. The two cases reported highlight the variability in presentation which underscores the need for a high index of suspicion and the need for MRI in patients presenting with a thunderclap headache and 'normal' initial investigations.

Osmotic demyelination syndrome: case report.

We present a 40 year old man who was admitted to the hospital with convulsions. His final diagnosis was osmotic demyelination syndrome (ODS). We discuss the diagnostic and management challenges and the possible complications of this rare diagnosis.

Trends in the management of inguinal hernia in Karachi, Pakistan: a survey of practice patterns.

INTRODUCTION: The study was conducted to identify and document the various aspects of elective inguinal hernia repair performed by general surgeons working in the different university hospitals of Karachi, Pakistan. METHODS: This questionnaire-based survey, carried out over a two-year period, involved 84 general surgeons of Karachi. The respondents were divided into groups and comparative analysis was carried out. RESULTS: 65 respondents (77.4 percent) were male and 19 (22.6 percent) were female. Mean years and standard deviation since post graduation were 7.7 and 7.3 years, respectively. 60 respondents (71.4 percent) reported the routine use of prophylactic antibiotics in all inguinal hernia repairs. 34 respondents (40.5 percent) quoted "spinal anaesthesia" as their preferred type of anaesthesia, 46 respondents (54.8 percent) chose to perform the procedure as a day case, and 49 respondents (58.3 percent) reported mesh repair as their preferred type of repair. 60 respondents (71.4 percent) did not recommend the laparoscopic approach to hernia repair. Surgeons associated with private hospitals were found more likely to choose mesh as their preferred method of inguinal hernia repair (p-value is 0.007), but less likely to use prophylactic antibiotics (p-value is 0.05) and respondents with more than ten years of postgraduate experience were found more likely to perform hernia repairs on an inpatient basis (p-value is 0.045). CONCLUSION: Various aspects of management of inguinal hernias are still determined by the preference of the operating surgeon. Day case management of hernia repairs, routine use of prophylactic antibiotics, use of mesh and open repair of hernias were the practice of the majority of surgeons, although differences were noted in specific groups of surgeons.

Stevens Johnson syndrome in Pakistan: a ten-year survey.

OBJECTIVE: A pre-tested questionnaire-based, retrospective study to highlight the causative factors, mode of presentation, complications and outcome of patients with Stevens Johnson syndrome. SETTING: Aga Khan University Hospital over a 10 year period. METHODS: All case records with a diagnosis of Steven Johnson Syndrome in the period 1990 to 2000 were retrospectively reviewed. Data was retrieved on a comprehensive questionnaire. The demographic variatbles and drugs taken within the previous 21 days were noted. Date analysis was done by Epi-Info Version 6.0. RESULTS: Of the 101 studied patient files, the most common offender was found to be the Penicillins as a group and Sulfadoxine-Pyrimethamine (Fansidar) when considering all drugs individually. Most common complications included electrolyte disturbances (13.9%) and congestive heart failure (6.9%). Mortality rate was high at 10.1%. CONCLUSION: SJS was found to be a rare condition but having a mortality rate of 10.1%. As it can be induced by a large number of drugs, caution should be practiced while prescribing.

Abnormal mitochondrial function and muscle wasting, but normal contractile efficiency, in haemodialysed patients studied non-invasively in vivo.

BACKGROUND: Muscle dysfunction, which contributes to morbidity in patients on haemodialysis, has several manifestations and a number of possible causes. We applied the non-invasive techniques of (31)P-magnetic resonance spectroscopy ((31)P-MRS), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) to calf muscle of dialysed patients to define the abnormalities in muscle cross-sectional area (CSA), contractile efficiency, mitochondrial function and vascular O(2) supply. METHODS: We performed (31)P-MRS/NIRS/MRI studies on the lateral gastrocnemius during isometric plantarflexion and recovery in 23 male patients on haemodialysis (age 24-71 years; haemoglobin 9.9-14.2 g/dl; bicarbonate 17-30 mmol/l; urea reduction ratio 53-77%; parathyroid hormone 1-95 U/l) and 15 male controls (age 29-71 years). To understand the relationships between calf CSA and body mass we also performed MRI only in a further six male patients and 18 male controls. RESULTS: In patients, exercise duration was 30+/-11% lower than in controls. Muscle CSA was lower by 26+/-5%, but contractile efficiency (force/CSA/ATP turnover) was normal. Slowing of post-exercise phosphocreatine (PCr) recovery implied a 22+/-5% defect in effective 'mitochondrial capacity'. That PCr recovery was slow relative to NIRS recovery suggests that this is largely an intrinsic mitochondrial problem (not the result of impaired O(2) supply), one which, furthermore, correlated with CSA. Urea reduction ratio showed a negative correlation with body mass and CSA, but none with PCr rate constant. CONCLUSIONS: The relationships to urea reduction ratio reflect the effect of muscle mass on dialysis efficiency, rather than direct effects on muscle CSA or metabolism. The relationship between PCr recovery and calf CSA suggests a role for the mitochondrial defect, whatever its cause, in the development of muscle wasting, although a common cause (e.g. physical inactivity) for both abnormalities cannot be ruled out.

Analysis of Fc gamma receptor II (CD32) polymorphism in populations of African and South Asian ancestry reveals east-west geographic gradients of allele frequencies.

Analysis of FcgammaRIIA alleles in Pakistanis and in Trinidadians of South Asian, African and mixed ancestry revealed no significant differences between Trinidadian South Asians and Pakistanis. H131 homozygotes were more common among Trinidadian South Asians than among Africans and those of mixed ancestry. Comparison with other populations revealed east-west geographic gradients of allele frequencies.