Hanan Hassan Fouad

{This work was initiated for the development of a Knowledge Representation Object Language (KROL), implemented in SICStus Prolog, that supports the integration and cooperation of multiple-problem solving methods, inference mechanisms, and software programs. This paper addresses an environment based on OAM which is the foundation of KROL. OAM consists of components which are called agents. The cooperation of these components support the process of developing expert systems. The key component of this model is a cooperator agent that uses a reasoning strategy and blackboard structures. A number of problem solving-methods have been implemented and integrated successfully with the proposed architecture. Consequently, domain knowledge can be represented using heterogeneous representation which is the major landmark of the second generation expert systems.}

Cytokines and growth factors are powerful modulators of the immune response. Their aberrant expression either by the tumor cells or by the tumor infiltrating lymphocytes confers a selective advantage to the tumor to grow and suppress the cytotoxic activity of the infiltrating lymphocytes. Therefore, analysis of these soluble factors in the tumor microenvironment can provide an insight into the understanding of the tumor behavior and may be used as a prognostic factor. In the present study the nature of the tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and cytokine profile was examined in 36 and 19 mammary carcinoma tissues, respectively, by immunohistochemistry and PCR. Phenotypic differences in the number of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CD8+) and lymphokine activated killer cells (CD16) was observed among TILs when patients with either early disease stage (39% and 46.6%, respectively) or those alive with no residual disease (31% and 52%, respectively) were compared with late stage (9.7% and 22.8%, respectively) or those dead of disease (14.6% and 15.6%, respectively). Furthermore, analysis of the 19 tumor samples for cytokine mRNA expression by RT-PCR revealed the presence of TNF-alpha, IL-10, TGF-beta1, and IL-2. However, semi-quantitative PCR analysis demonstrated TGF-beta1 expression to be significantly higher in patients with a favorable outcome (1.0246 attomoles/micromoles) as compared to patients with a poor prognosis (0.1157 attomoles/micromoles). Our results demonstrate the potential biological significance of certain host factors, particularly TILs and TGFbeta1 expression, on the outcome of breast cancer.

Variation in the third base of a codon hampers genotypic characterization, particularly of RNA viruses. Some restriction endonucleases, however, have a recognition site with a variable base at the third position and will always cleave when a certain amino acid pair occurs (such as glycine-proline for Sau96I and glutamic or aspartic acid followed by serine usually for HinfI). We developed a restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) procedure based on these enzymes for P-typing bovine group A rotaviruses (BRV). Employing this procedure 20 BRV local strains, isolated in tissue culture as well as the original faecal sample, could be typed in one of three patterns. More variability was observed when restriction endonucleases were employed whose cleavage sites cannot be predicted from the amino acid sequence (TaqI and Tsp509I). These RFLP results agreed with the PCR-VP4 typing assay, neutralization tests, and nucleotide sequence analysis. RFLP with Sau96I and HinfI provided quick and objective P-typing of strains and could detect multiple genotypes in the same sample.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the role of DNA and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) image analysis (IA) in enhancing the diagnostic sensitivity of conventional cytology (CC).

STUDY DESIGN: The histopathologic and clinical data on 87 consecutive pleural and peritoneal effusions were used to evaluate the accuracy of CC and DNA IA results.

RESULTS: CC showed a sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of 65%, 100%, 100% and 62%, respectively. Aneuploidy peaks were seen in 49 cases; 47 of them were true positives. Thirty of 38 diploid cases were true negatives. The sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV were 85%, 94%, 96% and 80%, respectively. There were positive correlations between DNA ploidy profile and PCNA proliferative index (PI), (R = .697) and significant differences in PCNA PI between malignant and benign effusions (P < .001).

CONCLUSION: The DNA IA PI by PCNA can be used as a complementary diagnostic tool with CC in cytologically inconclusive cases.

Apramycin was administered to chickens orally, intramuscularly and intravenously to determine blood concentration, kinetic behaviour, bioavailability and tissue residues. Single doses of apramycin at the rate of 75 mg kg-1 body weight were given to broiler chickens by intracrop, i.m. and i.v. routes. The highest serum concentrations of apramycin were reached 0.20 and 0.76 hours after the oral and i.m. doses with an absorption half-life (t1/2(ab.)) of 0.10 and 0.19 hours and an elimination half life (t1/2(beta)) of 1.22 and 2.31 hours respectively. The systemic bioavailability was 2.0 and 58 per cent after intracrop and i.m. administration, respectively, indicating poor absorption of the drug when given orally. Following i.v. injection, the kinetics of apramycin was described by a two-compartment open model with a (t1/2(alpha)) of 1.5 hours, (t1/2(beta)) of 2.1 hours. Vd(ss) (volume of distribution) of 4.82 litre kg-1 and C1(B) (total body clearance) of 1.88 litre kg-1 hour-1. The serum protein-binding of apramycin was 26 per cent. The highest tissue concentrations of apramycin were present in the kidneys and liver. No apramycin residues were detected in tissues after six hours except in the liver and kidneys following intracrop dosing and kidneys following i.m. administration.

The anticoccidial activities of toltrazuril and halofuginone against Eimeria tenella were tested in broiler chickens. Comparisons were made between ummedicated infected and uninfected control birds in addition to infected groups given either toltrazuril at 37.5, 75 and 150 ppm in the drinking water, or halofuginone at 1.5, 3 and 6 ppm in the feed. Both drugs were highly efficacious against E tenella. Treatment improved the bodyweight gain and survival percentage in comparison with the unmedicated, infected group. Intestinal lesions, faecal and oocyst scores and oocyst shedding in dropping were significantly reduced by both drugs. Toltrazuril gave better protection than halofuginone; 75 and 150 ppm toltrazuril in drinking water gave good protection when administered four and five days after inoculation.

The effect of acute and chronic treatments of the calcium-channel blockers, isradipine, diltiazem and flunarizine in protecting against lorazepam dependence has been demonstrated in mice. Dependence was induced by twice-daily administration of lorazepam (1 mg kg-1) for 10 days, doubling the dose during the next 10 days. Withdrawal symptoms and changes in the noradrenaline, dopamine and 5-hydroxytryptamine content of different regions of the brain were observed after either 24-h withdrawal or flumazenil administration. Isradipine inhibited lorazepam withdrawal symptoms, the effect being accompanied in the 24-h withdrawal group by significant decreases in the noradrenaline and dopamine content of the thalamus and hypothalamus and in the noradrenaline content of the mid-brain. In the flumazenil-treated group isradipine produced significant decreases in mid-brain noradrenaline and dopamine levels and in the dopamine content of the thalamus and hypothalamus. Diltiazem did not, on the other hand, afford significant protection against lorazepam withdrawal symptoms and did not induce any significant change in the neurotransmitters studied. Flunarizine significantly inhibited lorazepam withdrawal symptoms, an effect accompanied by significant reduction in noradrenaline and dopamine levels in the thalamus and hypothalamus. Dopamine was also significantly reduced in the cerebral cortex. Similar effects were produced in the flumazenil-treated group, and the noradrenaline content was reduced in the medulla, pons and cerebellum. It was concluded that isradipine and flunarizine might be of value in ameliorating lorazepam withdrawal symptoms.

The effect of acute and chronic treatments of the calcium-channel blockers, isradipine, diltiazem and flunarizine in protecting against lorazepam dependence has been demonstrated in mice. Dependence was induced by twice-daily administration of lorazepam (1 mg kg-1) for 10 days, doubling the dose during the next 10 days. Withdrawal symptoms and changes in the noradrenaline, dopamine and 5-hydroxytryptamine content of different regions of the brain were observed after either 24-h withdrawal or flumazenil administration. Isradipine inhibited lorazepam withdrawal symptoms, the effect being accompanied in the 24-h withdrawal group by significant decreases in the noradrenaline and dopamine content of the thalamus and hypothalamus and in the noradrenaline content of the mid-brain. In the flumazenil-treated group isradipine produced significant decreases in mid-brain noradrenaline and dopamine levels and in the dopamine content of the thalamus and hypothalamus. Diltiazem did not, on the other hand, afford significant protection against lorazepam withdrawal symptoms and did not induce any significant change in the neurotransmitters studied. Flunarizine significantly inhibited lorazepam withdrawal symptoms, an effect accompanied by significant reduction in noradrenaline and dopamine levels in the thalamus and hypothalamus. Dopamine was also significantly reduced in the cerebral cortex. Similar effects were produced in the flumazenil-treated group, and the noradrenaline content was reduced in the medulla, pons and cerebellum. It was concluded that isradipine and flunarizine might be of value in ameliorating lorazepam withdrawal symptoms.

The effect of acute and chronic treatments of the calcium-channel blockers, isradipine, diltiazem and flunarizine in protecting against lorazepam dependence has been demonstrated in mice. Dependence was induced by twice-daily administration of lorazepam (1 mg kg-1) for 10 days, doubling the dose during the next 10 days. Withdrawal symptoms and changes in the noradrenaline, dopamine and 5-hydroxytryptamine content of different regions of the brain were observed after either 24-h withdrawal or flumazenil administration. Isradipine inhibited lorazepam withdrawal symptoms, the effect being accompanied in the 24-h withdrawal group by significant decreases in the noradrenaline and dopamine content of the thalamus and hypothalamus and in the noradrenaline content of the mid-brain. In the flumazenil-treated group isradipine produced significant decreases in mid-brain noradrenaline and dopamine levels and in the dopamine content of the thalamus and hypothalamus. Diltiazem did not, on the other hand, afford significant protection against lorazepam withdrawal symptoms and did not induce any significant change in the neurotransmitters studied. Flunarizine significantly inhibited lorazepam withdrawal symptoms, an effect accompanied by significant reduction in noradrenaline and dopamine levels in the thalamus and hypothalamus. Dopamine was also significantly reduced in the cerebral cortex. Similar effects were produced in the flumazenil-treated group, and the noradrenaline content was reduced in the medulla, pons and cerebellum. It was concluded that isradipine and flunarizine might be of value in ameliorating lorazepam withdrawal symptoms.

Human fascioliasis (HF) has been reported in children worldwide and occasionally from Egypt. In the past 7 years we diagnosed 16 children aged 3.5-11 years (mean age: 6.5 years), 13 of them were boys, as HF. They were referred to Cairo University, Paediatric Hospital (CUPH), with pyrexia of undetermined origin (PUO) and abdominal pain. Diagnosis was based on high peripheral blood eosinophilia (14-82 per cent) in all patients along with Fasciola hepatica egg detection on direct stool smear in three or stool concentration in four, antibody detection by indirect haemagglutination test (IHAT) in seven egg-negative patients and ultrasonographic detection of hepatic and/or biliary lesions of HF in two egg-negative patients. Percutaneous liver biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of an eosinophilic abscess (parasitic granuloma) in 12 of 13 patients. Therefore, HF does occur in Egyptian children and its diagnosis needs a high index of suspicion supported by stool microscopy, serology, imaging procedures, and probably liver biopsy.

Tilmicosin was administered to goats intravenously and subcutaneously to determine its concentration in blood and milk and its kinetic behaviour. After a slow intravenous injection, the serum concentration-time curve indicated a two compartment open model with a mean (SEM) elimination half-life (t1/2 beta S) of 4.36 (0.04) hours. After a subcutaneous injection the drug was eliminated more slowly from serum and milk, with t1/2 beta S of 29.3 and 41.4 hours, respectively. The apparent volume of distribution of tilmicosin was more than 1 litre kg-1. The peak serum tilmicosin concentration was 1.56 micrograms ml-1 6.39 hours after a subcutaneous injection of 10 mg kg-1. Tilmicosin was extensively secreted into milk, reaching a maximum concentration of 11.6 micrograms ml-1 and having a large AUCmilk/AUCserum ratio of approximately 12:1. Tilmicosin was detectable in milk for 11 days after a single subcutaneous dose.

The dielectric behaviour of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) has been investigated for the glass (α) relaxation in the temperature and frequency ranges of -60 to 100deg;C and 103-105Hz, respectively. Also, the crystallization kinetics of PHB has been studied dielectrically as a function of heating rate, time and temperature. Crystallinity has a marked influence on the glass relaxation characteristics owing to the relative constraint imposed on the amorphous phase by the crystallites. Furthermore, the results obtained showed that: (1) the optimum crystallization temperature is about 25°C; (2) the time at which crystallization starts is a function of the working temperatures and apparently is reduced to just a few minutes at 40°C; and (3) the crystallization process is completed within a period of less than 1 h in the temperature range 20-40°C. The bulk crystallization phenomena could be also described by the Avrami equation with an exponent ∼ 3.8. © 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.

The real and imaginary parts of the relative permittivity (ε′t and ε″t) as well as the a.c. resistivity of the mixed ferrite CoxZn1-xFe2O4 (x = 0.1 → 1.0) were measured as a function of temperature and frequency. The calculated values of the activation energy indicate that the conductivity of the system increased with increasing Zn concentration. The Curie temperature of the system as determined from a.c. conductivity measurements agree well with that of the relative permittivity. The calculation of the relaxation time (τ) from Cole-Cole plots indicates that its maximum value occurs at the critical concentration (x = 0.6). The grain size was calculated at different Co concentration with values ranged from 0.995 × 10-7 to 0.617 × 10-7 mm.

The real part of the relative permittivity ε′t as well as the dielectric loss as represented by ε″t for the compounds (CH2)x(NH3)2MCl4-xBr x (where x = 0, 2, n = 2, 3 and M = Cu, Co) have been measured. The measurements were carried out as a function of temperature and frequency. Both ε′t and ε″t show the same relaxation phenomena which involves large reorientable dipoles in the total polarization. The phase transition observed at ∼312K for ε′t and ε″t is expected from the variation in the spacing between the adjacent metallic layers arising from the increase in the number of carbon atoms and/or introducing Br- ions in the out of plane position.

4-Hexadecyloxyphenyl-4′-substituted benzoates, Ia-d, and 4-substituted phenyl-4′-hexadecyloxy benzoates, IIa-d, with the substituents CH3O, Cl, CN, and NO2, respectively, were prepared and characterized by infrared spectroscopy and the apparent solution dipole moment measured using cyclohexane as a solvent. Smectic A mesophase stability was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry and polarized light microscopy. The effects of structural changes on phase transitions in these two series of compounds are discussed in terms of dipole and mesomeric effects.

The dielectric characteristics for some cellulose derivatives, namely chlorodeoxycellulose (Cell-Cl; degree of substitution of chlorine, DSCl = 0·87), bromodeoxycellulose (Cell-Br; DSBr = 0·92)and thiocyanatodeoxycellulose (Cell-SCN; DSSCN = 0·88), all substituted only at C-6, together with those of regenerated cellulose, have been investigated in the temperature range -60 to 120°C, and in the frequency range 0·2-100 kHz. Only one relaxation process, designated as β, was identified within the frequency and temperature ranges studied. The activation energy of this relaxation increases in the order Cell-Cl < Cell-Br < Cell-SCN, suggesting that the bulkiness of the substituent was the determining factor of the activation energy. The characteristic dielectric parameters, namely polarization magnitude (Δε) and shape parameter (α or β̄), were obtained by the analysis of absorption bands and are discussed in relation to the substituent effect.

A kinetic and thermodynamic study of the aerial oxidation of perphenazine is presented. The investigations involve factors that are likely to be operative under normal conditions of the storage of the drug in liquid formulations. The factors which have been investigated one at a time comprise, pH, dissolved oxygen, metal ions, solvent, ionic strength and temperature. The experimental results were discussed and the kinetic parameters evaluated at 60°C and 80°C were employed for the computation of the activation energy (E(a)(#)), enthalpy change (ΔH(#)) entropy change (ΔS(#)) and free energy change (ΔG(#)). The relevance of these thermodynamic parameters to the rate constant (k) of the reaction and the effect of the surface activity of perphenazine on the degradation:process have been discussed.