Basic Science Sector

To study the effect of different concentration of lead in drinking water on nucleic acid contents, nuclease activities and GOT in different tissues. It was attempts to reduce toxic effects of lead on survive of the environment especially human and rats by using pectin and chitin natural compounds in rat diets.

Dispersal ability and field progeny production of augmentative released biological control agents depend on ecological adaptations of the particular species or strains used. Four species of the egg parasitoid genus Trichogramma were compared aiming to select suitable candidates for control of lepidopteran olive pests.

The reaction kinetics of epoxy resin cured with stoichiometric amounts of amine-like structure and loaded with different levels of Cloisite 25A (C25A), has been studied by dynamic differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) to investigate the effect of the nano-organoclay particles on the kinetic parameters of the cure reaction.

Aspartame is one of the most widely used artificial sweeteners in over 90 countries worldwide. It is ahighly intensity sweetener added to a large variety of food, most commonly found in low caloriebeverages, desserts and table top sweeteners added to tea or coffee. The present study examinedwhether the daily oral administration of ASP (40 mg/kg) for 2, 4 and 6 weeks induce oxidative stress inthe liver and kidney of male albino rats. Lipid peroxidation (LPO), glutathione reduced (GSH) levels aswell as the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione-S-transferase (GST) and catalase (CAT) enzymes were determined. A significant increase in LPO levels was obtained in the liver tissueafter 4 and 6 weeks of ASP administration while there was a significant decrease in LPO level after 2weeks followed by a significant increase in the renal tissue at the end of the 6 weeks. SOD activitysignificantly decreased in the liver tissue after 2, 4 and 6 weeks of treatment. Also, there was asignificant decrease in SOD activity after 2 and 4 weeks in the renal tissue. CAT activity significantly decreased in the liver tissue after 2 and 4 weeks of ASP administration. Regarding to GSH content, there was a significant decrease in the liver tissue after 2, 4 and 6 weeks which was accompanied by asignificant increase in GST activity after 4 and 6 weeks of ASP administration. In conclusion, ASP may induce an oxidative stress in the liver and kidney of male albino rats.

The present study aimed to investigate the possibility of involved oxidative stress due to the oraladministration of either ciprofloxacin or levofloxacin (under therapeutic level) in the three brain regions, cerebral cortex, hippocampus and striatum of male albino rats weighing

As incidence of diabetes is increasing worldwide, besides it is associated with complications, the present studyaimed to investigate the effect of a traditional botanical, ginseng on diabetes induced alterations in kidneyfunctions. Thirty male rats were used in the study by randomly allocating them into three groups, each of ten rats,namely the control group, diabetes group (D), and diabetes+ ginseng group (DG). The latter two groups wererendered diabetic by I/P injection of streptozotocin (50 mg/kg). Daily ginseng extract was administered orally 100( mg/kg BW), one week post streptozotocin (STZ) injection. Ninety days post STZ injection; rats weresacrificed, where serum and kidneys were obtained for determination of metabolic profile, serum electrolytes,kidney function tests, renal tissue enzymes, and renal antioxidant status, together with histopathology. Theobtained results revealed a modest improvement in metabolic profile due to ginseng extract administration.However, the kidney functions were greatly improved as evidenced by amelioration of urea nitrogen, creatinine,total protein concentrations and serum electrolytes. Also an increase was noted in renal tissue enzymes andantioxidants with a decrease in malondialdehyde and renal pathology. In conclusion, ginseng extract may be ofsupportive treatment to combat diabetes complications.

The toxic effect of Pb ion (lead acetate) was investigated using male albino rats, which was ingested at 1/20, 1/40, and 1/60 sublethal doses. Relative to normal control, the ingestion of Pb2+ induced significant stimulation in ALT and AST activity. In addition, total soluble protein and albumin contents of plasma were decreased, while the content of globulin was changed by the Pb2+ treatments. The cholinesterase activity was inhibited, but the activities of alkaline and acid phosphates as well as lactate dehydrogenase were stimulated as a result of lead acetate intoxication. These observations were gradually paralleled across the experiment dose of the three doses of intoxicated Pb2+. In the case of blood picture, Pb2+ ingestion significantly reduced the contents of hemoglobin and RBC count of intoxicated rat’s blood, while the plasma levels of T3 and T4 and blood WBC count were insignificantly decreased or unchanged. All results of the present study showed that the Pb2+ ingestion was more effective in the case of the high dose (1/20 LD50) than that of the low dose (1/60 LD50) ingestion relative to the normal healthy control. The results of the present work advice the need to avoid exposure of humans to the lead compound to avoid injurious hazard risk.

CdTe/CdSe core-shell QDs type II was prepared by two steps synthetic process and embedded in polymer host. Emission in the NIR region was recorded. The effect of Ar laser excitation at different powers on the optical properties of the prepared QDs is studied at different temperatures (300–10 K). Amplified spontaneous emission is observed at room temperature and at 10 K. Also, lifetime measurement of prepared QDs was documented using N2-laser.

Detailed studies on the effect of urbanization and industrialization processes on outdoor thermal human com- fort in Greater Cairo region, Egypt have been performed in this study. Four different districts in Greater Cairo region have been selected to represent rural, suburban, typical urban and industrial areas. The data of surface dry, wet bulb temperatures and wind speed for two different periods represent non-urbanized and urbanized periods have been used. Discomfort indices for the two periods have been calculated for the four districts.
The study revealed that urbanization and industrialization processes have resulted in the distinctly modification of human comfortable at all districts. The feeling of quite comfortable reduced from the old non-urbanized period to the recent urbanized period at the four districts. During the recent urbanized period, the rural area has the highest total number of quite comfortable hours while both urban and industrial areas have the lowest total number of hours. The serious hot uncomfortable didn’t occur at all districts during the old non-urbanized period while during the recent urbanized period, all people had felt extreme serious hot uncomfortable only at urban and industrial areas. It could be concluded that the urbanization and industrialization processes cause increase of human serious hot uncomfortable feeling which in turn leads to more hindering for the human activities while the rural conditions leads to optimum weather comfort for further and more human activities.

The anthelminthic efficacy of some differently obtained extracts of several plants was tested in vivo in laboratory animals and in vitro. The extracts were obtained by ethanolic, methanolic, aqueous, or chloroform, respectively, acetonitrile polyethylenglycol (PEG) and/or propylencarbonate (PC) elution at room temperature or at 37°C. The plants used were bulbs of onions, garlic, chives, coconut, birch tree, ananas, cistrose, banana, chicory, date palm fruit, fig, pumpkin, and neem tree seeds. The worm systems tested both in vivo and in vitro were Trichuris muris and Angiostrongylus cantonensis but only in vivo Toxocara cati. The tests clearly showed that the different extraction methods eluted different components and different mass amounts, which had different efficacies against the above-cited worms. In vitro effects against A. cantonensis and T.muris were best with aqueous extracts, followed by chloroform extracts. The other plant extracts showed only low or no effects on A. cantonensis in vitro. In the case of T. muris, best results were obtained in vivo and in vitro with PEG/PC extracts of the onion followed by the aqueous extract of coconut. The complete elimination of worms in the in vivo experiments with T. muris was obtained when infected mice were treated with a 1:1 mixture of extracts of coconut and onion being produced by elutions with a mixture of 1:1 PEG and PC and fed daily for 8 days. T. cati in a naturally infected cat was eliminated by daily oral application of 6 ml coco’s fluid for 5 days. This study shows that a broad spectrum of plants has anti-nematodal activities, the intensity of which, however, depends on the mode of extraction. This implicates that, if results should be really comparable, the same extraction methods at the same temperatures have to be used. Furthermore, efficacy in in vitro systems does not guarantee as good—if at all—efficacy in vivo.

This study was carried out in the laboratory to investigate the effects of elemental sulfur (S-0), Paracoccus versutus (Pv), phosphorus (P) and micronutrients (DTPA extractable Fe+Mn+Zn) both singly and combined on nutrient availability of calcareous soils. Soils were collected from Al Semaih, Al Dhahrah and Melaiha in United Arab Emirates (UAE) and all soils were incubated at 40 +/- 2(0)C for 32, 64, 96 and 128 days. Soil pH dropped and S concentration increased significantly with the addition of S-0 alone or in combination with Pv, P and micronutrients in all types of soils. Elemental S application considerably increased the electrical conductivity (EC) of Al Semaih and Melaiha soils but reduced EC in Al Dhahrah soils at 128 days after incubation (DAI). Phosphorus availability was higher and prolonged with the application of S-0 along with P. Zinc (Zn) and manganese (Mn) availability did not increase with the individual application of S-0 or P. Inoculation of Pv influenced S and P availability but had no effect on iron (Fe), Mn and Zn. The study suggests that S-0 is an effective agent for the amendment of sandy calcareous soils. Application of S-0 accompanied with Pv, P and micronutrients are essential for nutrient availability in calcareous soils.

Purpose: Rose Bengal (RB) is a potential photodynamic sensitizer in anticancer therapy. The purpose of this study was to prepare multivesicular liposomes (MVL) loaded with RB to enhance its photostability and intracellulaer photodynamic efficacy.

Cairo Air Pollution and Climate (CAPAC) is dedicated to the understanding of the urban energy balance inCairo, Egypt, through measurements from space and at ground stations. The in situ measurements will provide a focused insight into three carefully chosen microclimates (urban, suburban-agriculture, and suburban-desert) and provide at the sametime ground-truth data for satellite image analysis, which will expand the acquired knowledge into the spatial domain. Insitu measurements were made during a field campaign in Greater Cairo from November 2007 to February 2008. In thisstudy, the dataset of the CAPAC measurement campaign will be presented and analysed in terms of use for a remote sensingstudy. Measured variables complied with our expectations. The urban area featured a distinct nocturnal heat island. Duringthe day the choice of reference station was responsible for the magnitude of the heat island. The diurnal cycle of radiativetemperature at the suburban-desert station clearly exceeded the one at the urban station, thus the urban setting seemed tohave a better heat storage than the suburban-desert. The stations also determined the partitioning of the turbulent heat fluxes.
While in Cairo and at the suburban-desert station most of the available energy was partitioned into the sensible heat flux,the suburban-agricultural station maintained a high latent heat flux. The radiation and soil heat flux measurements provedto be applicable for comparison with remotely sensed data. However, the analysis of the turbulent heat fluxes showedthat several constraints exist: measured fluxes tend to underestimate the actual flux and directional effects complicate theinterpretation. An energy balance closure and footprint modelling is necessary to compare measured fluxes with satelliteimage retrieved products. Finally, turbulent fluxes are time averages, which is contrary to the remote sensing principle. Consequently, a direct use is problematic.

Atomic structure data and effective collision strengths for 1s22s22p63s23p6 3d10and 54 ?ne-structure levels contained in the con?gurations 1s22s22p63s23p63d9 4l (l=s, p, d, f) for the nickel-like Gd ion. These data are used in the determination of the reduced population for the 55 ?ne structure levels over a wide range of electron densities (from 1021 to 1023) and at various electron plasma temperatures. The gain coef?cient for those transitions with positive population inversion factor are determined and plotted against the electron density.

We report high-power single-higher-order transverse mode emission of a large-area oxide-confined rectangular-shaped vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) with a multispot shallow surface relief. Both a record-high output power of 12 mW and a record-low differential series resistance of 18 ohms are achieved. Stable single-higher-order transverse mode emission with a sidemode suppression ratio (SMSR) exceeding 35 dB is maintained up to thermal rollover. Single-polarization lasing along the major axis is achieved with 27.5-dB spectral orthogonal polarization suppression ratio at thermal rollover. Measurements of near- and far-field intensity profiles of the higher-order mode are also presented.

The objective of the study was to evaluate the 980-nm diode laser in conjunction with corticosteroids in the treatment of ear lobule keloids. Several methods have been described for the treatment of keloid scars, but none of them have been 100% successful.

Concentrations of amino acid neurotransmitters were assessed in the hippocampus and cortex using HPLC. Control data showed slight differences from normal animals in the delta, theta and alpha waves while an increase in the beta wave was obtained. After 24 h of PSD, delta relative power increased and the rest of EEG wave’s power decreased with respect to control. After 48 h and 72 h the spectral power analysis showed non-significant changes to control. The amino acid neurotransmitter analysis revealed a significant increase in cortical glutamate, glycine and taurine levels while in the hippocampus, glutamate, aspartate, glutamine and glycine levels increased significantly. Both the waking EEG and neurotransmitter analyses suggest that PSD induced neurochemical and electrophysiological changes that may affect brain proper functionality. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sugar and nucleoside identifications are important for the detection and treatment of dangerous diseases. In this study, a fluorescent boronic acid (3-(5-(dimethylamino) naphthalene-1-sulfonamido) phenyl) boronic acid (DNSBA) was bound to a diol quencher via a boronic ester linkage, and fluorescence recovery upon exposure to saccharides and nucleosides was demonstrated. Further, we successfully detected sugars and nucleosides in buffer systems. DNSBA expresses selectivity toward adenosine, fructose, sorbitol, and tartaric acid. Our investigations into the effects of pH on sensor sensitivity revealed that changes between the neutral and anionic forms of the boronic acid group, induced at high pH and/or in the presence of sugars or nucleosides, induce visible/optimal changes in DNSBA. DNSBA is responsive at pH = 8.21 whereas acidic media do not exhibit sensitivity. DNSBA can thus be useful in clinical applications as a novel sensor for sugars and nucleosides.

We investigate two stable methods for solving the system of linear algebraic equations arising
from plane, singular boundary-value problems for Laplace’s equation for rectangular domains [1, 21]. The
dynamical systems method and the variational regularization method are applied to derive stable solutions
for these systems, and the results are compared with those obtained from the QR-factorization technique
contaminated with noise. The results put in evidence the difficulties that may arise from the use of the QRfactorization
method due to instability.

In this work, the potential of plume imaging was investigated as a real-time monitoring technique for the control of the laser cleaning process in cultural heritage objects with emphasis on encrusted stonework. Optical pulses generated by Nd:YAG laser were used to remove a high absorbing layer of crust from the surface of a lower absorbing marble substrate. Two regimes of operation have been employed for laser cleaning test, Q-switched ns mode, and short free running ?s mode. Laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) was also employed to study the stratigraphy of the cleaned surfaces, and thus to confirm the validity of the suggested monitoring technique.