Immune therapeutics holds great promise in the treatment of type 1 diabetes (T1D). Nonetheless, their progress is hampered by limited efficacy, equipoise, or issues of safety. To address this, a ...novel and specific nanodelivery platform for T1D that targets high endothelial venules (HEVs) presented in the pancreatic lymph nodes (PLNs) and pancreas is developed. Data indicate that the pancreata of nonobese diabetic (NOD) mice and patients with T1D are unique in their expression of newly formed HEVs. Anti-CD3 mAb is encapsulated in poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)-poly(ethylene glycol) nanoparticles (NPs), the surfaces of which are conjugated with MECA79 mAb that recognizes HEVs. Targeted delivery of these NPs improves accumulation of anti-CD3 mAb in both the PLNs and pancreata of NOD mice. Treatment of hyperglycemic NOD mice with MECA79-anti-CD3-NPs results in significant reversal of T1D compared to those that are untreated, treated with empty NPs, or provided free anti-CD3. This effect is associated with a significant reduction of T effector cell populations in the PLNs and a decreased production of pro-inflammatory cytokine in the mice treated with MECA79-anti-CD3-NPs. In summary, HEV-targeted therapeutics may be used as a means by which immune therapeutics can be delivered to PLNs and pancreata to suppress autoimmune diabetes effectively.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Problems Statement and Purpose. Libya is the fourth-largest country in Africa and the seventeenth-largest country in the world with area of 1,759,540 sq. km. Most of Libya is located in the Sahara ...Desert and known for being the driest and most remote regions with limited accessibility. In the 1970s, the Industrial Research Center in Libya began to create geological maps of all Libyan lands derived from analog (hard-copy) aerial photographs and geological field trips to some accessible places. Recently, remote sensing and data integration techniques using GIS are crucial to geological survey and mapping, which provides a useful tool for studying and investigating the geology of remote regions without having to physically access them. The purpose of this study is mapping lithological unites and structural lineaments in the region of Abu Ghaylan - Kiklah - Tighrinna, northwest Libya, using integrated remote sensing data and spatial analysis.
Data and Methods. Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+), Satellite Pour l'Observation de la Terre (SPOT 5), European Remote-Sensing Satellite-2 (ERS-2) Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) C-band, Digital Elevation Model (DEM), geologic maps, and aeromagnetic data were used to map and analyze the lithological and structural lineaments in the study area. Various fused images and IHS transformations were tested for lithological units recognizing. On the basis of spectral characteristics and topographic forms, lithological and structural lineaments were recognized and mapped. The extracted rasters and vectors data were integrated using remote sensing and GIS data integration techniques.
Ground Truthing. The purpose of the ground truthing was to validate the DEM-based structural mapping and identify any landslides, streams, or valleys that may appear as edges in the DEM data. Also, determining the locations of the artificial lines, that appears in the processed images as geological lineaments and edges.
Results and Discussion. The results indicate that remote sensing data were very useful in distinguishing between various rock units and recognizing geological lineaments in the study area. The generated lithologic map shows fifteen geological formations with apparent and accurate boundaries. The results exposed new geological lineaments in the study area. The direction of the extracted geological lineaments is dominantly NW-SE. The magnetic data reveal the boundary of sedimentary basin in the study area. The basement's depth within the basin varies from 122 meters to 4.5 kilometers. The extracted geological lineaments were analyzed and interpreted to provide more information about the main structural trends affecting the study area. The methods used in this study for remote sensing image analysis and field geological surveys can be used successfully in similar regions of Libya.
Assessing skeletal maturity is a critical factor in orthopedic treatment and orthognathic surgery. Quantitative methods have been suggested to decide the skeletal age. This study aims to assess the ...correlation between the middle phalanx of the third finger (MP3) method and cervical vertebral volume parameters (CVVP) in skeletal age determination.
This cross-sectional study was conducted on 21 boys and 29 girls between the ages of 8 and 16 years, who were divided into five groups of skeletal maturation: 100 MP3 radiographs and cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) were obtained and analyzed. Middle phalanx of the third finger maturation stages were evaluated according to Perinetti method (stages F-FG-G-H-I). The CVVP was determined on CBCT using Mimics Medical software. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Bonferroni tests were utilized to investigate the differences in volumetric parameters between MP3 stages. Spearman correlation coefficient was employed to obtain the correlation between MP3 stages and the CVVP.
The differences in CVVP concentrated between MP3-I stage and the previous stages, with the highest values those for the 4th vertebra. Spearman test revealed a significant highest correlation between MP3 stages and the CVVP in the 4th vertebra; the lowest was in the 2nd, which was higher in the girls group.
Strong level of agreement between the two methods was significant in the 4th vertebra.
Measurement of volumes of the 4th CVVP could be used as simple quantitative analysis in clinical practice to evaluate the maturity in orthodontic patients.
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the compliance of disclosure with the financial accounting standards of the Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions’ (AAOIFI) ...related to Islamic financing products by Islamic banks in Bahrain and Qatar.
Design/methodology/approach
The study measures compliance using disclosure indexes. The disclosure indexes include the three financial accounting standards of Murabaha, Mudaraba and Musharaka. The data are collected from the annual reports of 24 Islamic banks in Bahrain and Qatar over a period of 2012-2015.
Findings
The paper found that Islamic banks in Bahrain and Qatar comply with AAOIFI financial accounting standards related to Murabaha, Mudaraba and Musharaka. However, there was a level of non-compliance in both countries. In addition, it found that the extent of compliance had increased over the 2012-2015 period. Also, the Murabaha standard had the highest mean of compliance. Moreover, the results showed that the Islamic banks in Qatar tend to have more compliance of overall Murabaha and Mudaraba disclosures compared to the Islamic banks in Bahrain.
Research limitations/implications
The findings are preliminary and highlight that the issue is of high interest to Islamic banks and AAOIFI. Hence, it requires a detailed follow-up to form a complete picture that would assist AAOIFI and regulators gear their policies toward better quality disclosure by Islamic financial institutions. Even though the findings are encouraging, future research is recommended to enforce compliance with the AAOIFI financial accounting standards.
Originality/value
This is a pioneer empirical study that focuses on the level and trend of compliance with AAOIFI financial accounting standards related to the Islamic financing products of Murabaha, Mudaraba and Musharaka standards, especially in Qatar. Additionally, it is the first study comparing between the only two Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, i.e. Bahrain and Qatar, that mandatory apply the AAOIFI standards.
This study investigates the aptitudes of the cash-based and accrual-based accounting data for predicting future cash flows from operations in the French context. In addition, our paper aims to ...investigate the effect of the economic crisis on the prediction of future cash flow. The sample consists of 61 non-financial French listed companies, using annual data over the period 1999–2016. The study found that, regardless of the period, the model based on the operating cash flows combined with disaggregate accruals has a stronger explanatory power for predicting future operating cash flows, compared to both earnings and operating cash flows combined with the aggregate accruals models. Moreover, our results show that the aggregation of earnings falsifies the contribution of each accrual item and, as a result, the decomposition of earnings into cash flows and disaggregate accrual enables a much more accurate explanation of future operating cash flows.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Skin cancer is the most prevalent cancer, and its assessment remains a challenge for physicians. This study reports the application of an optical sensing method, elastic scattering spectroscopy ...(ESS), coupled with a classifier that was developed with machine learning, to assist in the discrimination of skin lesions that are concerning for malignancy. The method requires no special skin preparation, is non‐invasive, easy to administer with minimal training, and allows rapid lesion classification. This novel approach was tested for all common forms of skin cancer. ESS spectra from a total of 1307 lesions were analyzed in a multi‐center, non‐randomized clinical trial. The classification algorithm was developed on a 950‐lesion training dataset, and its diagnostic performance was evaluated against a 357‐lesion testing dataset that was independent of the training dataset. The observed sensitivity was 100% (14/14) for melanoma and 94% (105/112) for non‐melanoma skin cancer. The overall observed specificity was 36% (84/231). ESS has potential, as an adjunctive assessment tool, to assist physicians to differentiate between common benign and malignant skin lesions.
This study reports the application of elastic scattering spectroscopy coupled with machine learning to assist in the discrimination of skin lesions that are concerning for malignancy. The method requires no special skin preparation, is non‐invasive, requires minimal training, and allows rapid lesion classification. The classification algorithm was developed on a 950‐lesion training dataset, and diagnostic performance was evaluated against a 357‐lesion testing dataset. The observed sensitivity was 100% (14/14) for melanoma and 94% (105/112) for nonmelanoma skin cancer. The overall specificity was 36% (84/231). ESS has potential to assist physicians in evaluating common benign and malignant skin lesions.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
A mature dairy cow was transitioned from a high forage (100% forage) to a high-grain (79% grain) diet over seven days. Continuous ruminal pH recordings were utilized to diagnose the severity of ...ruminal acidosis. Additionally, blood and rumen papillae biopsies were collected to describe the structural and functional adaptations of the rumen epithelium. On the final day of the grain challenge, the daily mean ruminal pH was 5.41+/-0.09 with a minimum of 4.89 and a maximum of 6.31. Ruminal pH was under 5.0 for 130 minutes (2.17 hours) which is characterized as the acute form of ruminal acidosis in cattle. The grain challenge increased blood beta-hydroxybutyrate by 1.8 times and rumen papillae mRNA expression of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A synthase by 1.6 times. Ultrastructural and histological adaptations of the rumen epithelium were imaged by scanning electron and light microscopy. Rumen papillae from the high grain diet displayed extensive sloughing of the stratum corneum and compromised cell adhesion as large gaps were apparent between cells throughout the strata. This case report represents a rare documentation of how the rumen epithelium alters its function and structure during the initial stage of acute acidosis.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Abstract
Our previous study suggested that supplementation of high-grain diets with ruminally protected and non-protected active dried yeast (ADY) may potentially reduce manure pathogen excretion by ...feedlot cattle. We hypothesized that feeding ruminally protected ADY might change the fecal bacterial community of finishing cattle. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of feeding ruminally protected and non-protected ADY to finishing beef steers on their fecal bacterial community. Fresh fecal samples were collected on day 56 from 50 steers fed one of five treatments: 1) control (no monensin, tylosin, or ADY), 2) antibiotics (ANT, 330 mg monensin + 110 mg tylosin·steer−1d−1), 3) ADY (1.5 g·steer−1d−1), 4) encapsulated ADY (EDY; 3 g·steer−1d−1), and 5) a mixture of ADY and EDY (MDY; 1.5 g ADY + 3 g EDY·steer−1d−1). Bacterial DNA was extracted from fecal samples and sequenced using a MiSeq high-throughput sequencing platform. A total number of 2,128,772 high-quality V4 16S rRNA sequences from 50 fecal samples were analyzed, and 1,424 operational taxonomic units (OTU) were detected based on 97% nucleotide sequence identity among reads, with 769 OTU shared across the five treatments. Alpha diversity indices, including species observed, Chao estimate, abundance-based coverage estimator, Shannon, Simpson, and coverage, did not differ among treatments, and principal coordinate analysis revealed a high similarity among treatments without independent distribution. Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes were dominant phyla in the fecal bacterial community for all treatments, with a tendency (P < 0.10) for greater relative abundance of Bacteroidetes but lesser Firmicutes with ANT, EDY, and MDY compared with control steers. Prevotella was the dominant genus in all treatments and steers supplemented with ANT, EDY, and MDY had greater (P < 0.05) relative abundance of Prevotella than control steers, but lesser (P < 0.03) relative abundance of Oscillospira. No differences between ADY and control were observed for the aforementioned variables. Fecal starch contents were not different among treatments, but the relative abundance of Bacteroidetes, as well as Prevotella at genera level, tended (P < 0.06) to be positively correlated to fecal starch content. We conclude that supplementing ruminally protected or non-protected ADY or ANT had no effect on diversity and richness of fecal bacteria of finishing beef cattle, whereas feeding protected ADY or ANT to finishing beef steers altered the dominant fecal bacteria at phylum and genus levels. Therefore, supplementation of ruminally protected ADY may potentially improve intestinal health by stimulating the relative abundance of Prevotella.
Antimicrobial drug resistance has made the treatment of microbial infections quite challenging. A Gram-positive, anaerobic, spore-forming, and toxin-producing bacillus,
Clostridioides difficile
...infection causes diarrhea-related deaths globally. The available drugs like vancomycin and metronidazole are becoming less effective against this infection. We have designed this study to identify genes responsible for antimicrobial resistance and have a better understanding of the mutations and their impact on the antimicrobial resistance activity. The Whole Genome Sequencing data of 11
C. difficile
clinical isolates was analyzed to determine novel genes playing a significant role in antimicrobial resistance mechanisms. Comparative structure analysis of wild and mutant structures of proteins and their functions provided insight into the impact of the identified mutations on antimicrobial resistance. We identified 8 genes common in all the isolates that play a vital role in drug resistance through antibiotic efflux, ribosomal protection, and antibiotic inactivation. Variations in the functional domains of tetA(P), tetM, and ermB genes were found to be the most promising novel drug targets. Our findings suggest that these novel gene mutations would be beneficial in designing new drugs to combat
C. difficile
infection.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Accurate, early identification of patients at risk for developing acute lung injury (ALI) provides the opportunity to test and implement secondary prevention strategies.
To determine the frequency ...and outcome of ALI development in patients at risk and validate a lung injury prediction score (LIPS).
In this prospective multicenter observational cohort study, predisposing conditions and risk modifiers predictive of ALI development were identified from routine clinical data available during initial evaluation. The discrimination of the model was assessed with area under receiver operating curve (AUC). The risk of death from ALI was determined after adjustment for severity of illness and predisposing conditions.
Twenty-two hospitals enrolled 5,584 patients at risk. ALI developed a median of 2 (interquartile range 1-4) days after initial evaluation in 377 (6.8%; 148 ALI-only, 229 adult respiratory distress syndrome) patients. The frequency of ALI varied according to predisposing conditions (from 3% in pancreatitis to 26% after smoke inhalation). LIPS discriminated patients who developed ALI from those who did not with an AUC of 0.80 (95% confidence interval, 0.78-0.82). When adjusted for severity of illness and predisposing conditions, development of ALI increased the risk of in-hospital death (odds ratio, 4.1; 95% confidence interval, 2.9-5.7).
ALI occurrence varies according to predisposing conditions and carries an independently poor prognosis. Using routinely available clinical data, LIPS identifies patients at high risk for ALI early in the course of their illness. This model will alert clinicians about the risk of ALI and facilitate testing and implementation of ALI prevention strategies. Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT00889772).
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