Ashraf Abu-Seida

This work represents a combined approach of green chemistry and analytical Quality-by-Design principles for developing sustainable HPLC-DAD methods with high operational flexibility and reliability. Two newly introduced pharmaceutical combinations were analyzed; the first one (mixture I) composed of tamsulosin and tadalafil, while the second (mixture II) was a mixture of alfuzosin and solifenacin. To achieve this goal, monolithic-based C18 column was utilized for its characteristic rapid flow and short analysis time in addition to expressing low back-pressure upon using ethanol as a green organic solvent. Analytical Quality-by-Design approach was conducted by applying quality risk assessment and scouting analysis followed by screening five chromatographic parameters via Placket-Burman design. Critical method parameters were thoroughly identified and then optimized using central composite design and Derringer’s desirability function. The optimized mobile phase was composed of ethanol and phosphate buffer (pH 4.0) in a ratio of 40:60 (v/v) for mixture I and in a ratio of 50:50 (v/v) for mixture II. The flow rate was adjusted at 2.3 mL/min with UV detection at 210 nm for both mixtures. Design space was then assigned to estimate the operating regions that guarantee satisfactory results and robust analysis. The proposed methods were validated as per ICH guidelines with peak purity assessment and careful robustness monitoring around the created design space. Moreover, the methods showed good applicability for determination of the cited drugs in their marketed formulations and evaluating their content uniformity. Finally, environmental impact of the methods was comparatively appraised by three state-of-the-art metrics, namely; National Environmental Methods Index, Analytical Eco-Scale and Green Analytical Procedure Index.

In type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), hyperglycemia leads to oxidative insult. Vitamins A and E have antioxidant potentials and may help in managing diabetes. The combined effect of high-dose vitamin A plus E supplementation with and without zinc on T2DM, has never been examined. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate and compare the effect of high-dose vitamin A plus E supplementation (AE) versus high-dose vitamin A plus E with zinc (AEZ), on different diabetic parameters. Ninety-eight patients with T2DM were randomized to receive either: 50,000 IU vitamin A and 100 mg vitamin E (AE group, N = 36), an equivalent dose of vitamin A and E combined with 25 mg zinc (AEZ group, N = 35), or no supplements (control group, N = 27) for three months. Compared to control, AEZ group showed significant reductions in fasting blood glucose, 2 h postprandial blood glucose, and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) with significant increases in homeostasis model assessment of beta‐cell function and difference value of fasting insulin. Two hair loss cases were recorded in both treated groups. Although vitamin A needs dose moderation, these results suggest that, high-dose vitamin A plus E supplementation combined with zinc may improve glycemic control, β-cell function, and insulin secretion in adults with T2DM. © 2020

Background: Antibiotic resistance (AR) is a major global concern. Indiscriminate use of antibiotics may contribute to treatment failure and AR. Data about community pharmacists’ (CPs) knowledge of and behaviour toward antibiotic use and AR are limited. Objective: Our objective was to evaluate the knowledge of and attitudes towards antibiotic use and AR in CPs in Jordan. Methods: A large cross-sectional face-to-face survey of a random sample of 500 CPs in Jordan was conducted over a 2-month period. A representative sample was collected using the proportionate random sampling technique, which enabled us to geographically categorize the study population. Reliability and validity measures were taken to ensure a comprehensive and appropriate study tool. We used the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS®) version 24 to conduct descriptive analysis and logistic regression. Results: The majority (86.6%) of respondents thought it was legal to dispense antibiotics without a prescription in Jordan. Only 24.2% had good knowledge regarding amoxicillin dosages for upper respiratory tract infections, and 66.2% did not know that bacteria are the predominant causative pathogens of acute otitis media. The majority (71.6%) knew that overuse of antibiotics is considered the principal cause of AR. However, only 34.4% were familiar with the definition of cross resistance, and 85.6% had misconceptions regarding patient compliance and its causal relationship with AR. Knowledge of antibiotic use was likely to be better in CPs who worked in urban areas than in those working in rural areas (odds ratio [OR] 1.2; 95% CI 0.74–2.31; p = 0.02) and in CPs with a postgraduate degree than in those without (OR 2.6; 95% CI 1.89–4.56; p = 0.04). Conclusion: As many CPs in Jordan have poor knowledge of antibiotics and AR, continual educational interventions to improve this situation are necessary. © 2020, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Untreated poultry manure/droppings were used in integrated fish ponds as organic fertilizers. This process could put an additional complexity on the bacterial load within fish's ponds ecosystem. Arcobacter species is one of the most important food-borne zoonotic pathogens that infect humans, animals, fish, and fowl. This study aimed to examine if raw poultry manure could possibly enhance Arcobacter propagation among the cohabitant Nile tilapia. In addition, the comparative phenotypic and molecular characterizations among various Arcobacter spp. retrieved from two diverse animal hosts (the Nile tilapia and fowl) with special reference to antibiotic-resistant and virulence genes traits were also studied. Clinically, the examined Nile tilapias exhibited darkness, fin rot, and skin hemorrhages. Internally, the Nile tilapias displayed severe congestion in internal organs, catarrhal enteritis, and swollen gall bladder. The moribund chickens exhibited mild diarrhea, anorexia, and ruffled feathers. Internally, chickens displayed enlarged spleen and liver, enteritis, and kidney congestion. The bacterial colonies on Arcobacter selective agar appeared small and non-pigmented with an intact edge. The recovered bacterial isolates were identified as Arcobacter spp. depending on the phenotypic characters and PCR. Sequencing of 16S rRNA gene confirmed the identity of Arcobacter butzleri (A. butzleri), A. skirrowii, and A. cryaerophilus in both fish and fowl, while A. cloacae was confirmed in fish. PCR confirmed the occurrence of two virulence genes (pldA and tlyA) in most fish and chicken Arcobacter isolates. All chicken Arcobacter isolates showed resistance against ampicillin, ampicillin-sulbactam, and cefotaxime, and variable susceptibility to ciprofloxacin, aztreonam, imipenem, and amikacin. Fish Aeromonads were sensitive to ciprofloxacin, sulpha-trimethoprim, and amikacin.

Clinostomiasis is one of the parasitic diseases infecting freshwater fish caused by digenetic trematodes that belong to family Clinostomatidae. During the course of the present study, it was found that 392 out of 520 examined Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus were infected with EMC belonging to family: Clinostomatidae with an overall prevalence in (mean ± SD) was 74.12 ± 5.19. The investigated O. niloticus were found to be simultaneously infected with two morphologically different encysted metacercariae (EMC); small cysts (Type 1) ranged from 1.0-3.0 mm in diameter and large cysts (Type 2) were measured 4.0-8.0 mm. Furthermore, an identification of the main morphological features (size of suckers, body length) in both excysted metacercariae was assessed to assist the morphological differentiation of these EMC; namely, Clinostomum complanatum and C. phalacrocoracis. The prevalence rates of C. complanatum and C. phalacrocoracis infections were 35.94± 2.24 and 60.93± 6.70, respectively. In the present study, the molecular identification was carried out by sequencing their COI mtDNA; BLAST analysis of C. complanatum (MT140101.1) showed 100% and 99.74% nucleotide similarity (MK501949.1; MF741769.1) in China, respectively. On the other hand, C. phalacrocoracis (MT140102.1) revealed 100%  nucleotide identity (KY906238.1) in South Africa and 99.66% (KJ786967.1) in Israel.

Abstract Newcastle disease (ND), caused by avian orthoavulavirus type-1 (NDV), is endemic in poultry in many regions of the world and causes continuing outbreaks in poultry populations. In the Middle East, genotype XXI, used to be present in poultry in Egypt but has been replaced by genotype VII. We investigated whether virus evolution contributed to superseding and focussed on the antigenic sites within the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase (HN) spike protein. Full-length sequences of an NDV genotype VII isolate currently circulating in Egypt was compared to a genotype XXI isolate that was present as co-infection with vaccine-type viruses (II) in a historical virus isolated in 2011. Amino acid differences in the HN glycoprotein for both XXI and VII viruses amounted to 11.7% and 11.9%, respectively, compared to the La Sota vaccine type. However, mutations within the globular head (aa 126?570), bearing relevant antigenic sites, were underrepresented (a divergence of 8.8% and 8.1% compared to 22.4% and 25.6% within the protein domains encompassing cytoplasmic tail, transmembrane part and stalk regions (aa 1?125) for genotypes XXI and VII, respectively). Nevertheless, reaction patterns of HN-specific monoclonal antibodies inhibiting receptor binding revealed differences between vaccine-type viruses and genotype XXI and VII viruses for epitopes located in the head domain. Accordingly, compared to Egyptian vaccine-type isolates and the La Sota vaccine reference strain, single aa substitutions in 6 of 10 described neutralizing epitopes of HN were found. However, the same alterations in neutralization sensitive epitopes were present in old genotype XXI as well as in newly emerged genotype VII isolates. In addition, isolates were indistinguishable by polyclonal chicken sera raised against different genotypes including vaccine viruses. These findings suggest that factors other than antigenic differences within the HN protein account for facilitating the spread of genotype VII versus genotype XXI viruses in Egypt.

Abstract Skeletal deformities in fish are abnormal transformations of normal bony and/or cartilaginous structures into abnormal skeletal structures that are histologically and anatomically different from their normal prototype. Such deformities are diverse in their location, morphology and impact. The three main topographic regions of a fish (head, trunk and tail) could be affected by several types of deformities with various degrees of severity depending on the cause, age and histology of the affected tissue, regardless of whether it is bony or cartilaginous. The degree of skeletal deformity could impact physiological processes, including swimming, reproduction, growth, resistance to diseases and susceptibility to predation, as well as being the direct or indirect cause of low body weight gain or even death in young fish. Skeletal deformities are commonly recorded from wild and cultured fish, with high incidence in fish hatcheries. Skeletal deformities are responsible for considerable economic damage to the sector of aquaculture by making fish unsightly and affected fish consequently remain unsold. Such deformities are also proposed as biological indicators of aquatic environmental pollution and defaults in aquaculture management. Several diagnostic techniques, such as radiography, ultrasonography and magnetic resonance imaging, have been used for detecting and defining skeletal deformities in fish. Here, the present review summarizes the incidence, classification, aetiological factors, diagnostic procedures and prevention of the most common skeletal deformities in fish.

An efficient route for the preparation of new heterocyclic cyanoacrylamides based p-fluorophenyl and p-phenolic compounds was depicted. All structures were confirmed based on the different spectral tools and elemental analyses. MTT assay for the novel synthesized series was performed against four different cell lines (A549, MCF7, Hepg2, and Wi38). Among all tested groups, the p-phenolic compound 10 (207.1 µg/ml) and the corresponding p-fluorophenyl derivative 6 (325.7 µg/ml) were selected for further simulation and molecular studies against liver carcinoma. Compounds 6 and 10 were investigated theoretically to different protein sets as (cdk2, Bcl2-xl, cIAP1-BIR3, and MDM2) and they illustrated different binding affinities. The computational studies and different molecular techniques (e.g. cell cycle analysis, DPA assay, relative gene expression, and ELISA assay) were utilized in this report.

Abiotic stresses in sandy soil, which include saline water, saline soil, and lack of nutrients, affect the productivity and quality traits of peanuts (Arachis hypogaea L). Elemental calcium (Ca2+) is necessary for the proper development of peanut pods. This work aimed at comparing conventional Ca and nano-Ca form effects on peanut production and quality traits. Two randomized complete block field experiments were conducted in the 2015 and 2016 seasons. Treatments were control, gypsum plus calcium nitrate Ca(NO3)2, Ca(NO3)2, and chelated calcium, as well as 100, 75, 50, 25, and 12.5% of Ca(NO3)2 doses in a nano form. The results indicated that the treatment of gypsum plus conventional CaNO3 achieved the highest yield and best quality traits, followed by the Ca(NO3)2 and 100% nano Ca(NO3)2 treatments. The treatments of the control, gypsum, and 12.5% nano Ca(NO3)2 had the lowest effect on peanut performance. The conventional treatment of gypsum plus Ca(NO3)2 resulted in the greatest seed yield (1.6 ton ha−1), oil yield (700.3 kg ha−1), and protein yield (380.1 kg ha−1). Peanuts may benefit from Ca2+ better by using gypsum as the soil application and calcium nitrate as the foliar application to prevent disorders of Ca2+ deficiency under sandy soil conditions.

Copper (Cu)-induced stress caused adverse effects to plant growth and productivity thus considered as a severe threat for sustainable crop production. This article presents an overview of copper stress in plants. Copper participates in many physiological processes as a co-factor for catalysis of many metalloproteins; however, problem occurs when excess amount of copper is present in cells. The high concentration of copper suppresses biomass accumulation and linear plant growth. Copper affected root growth stronger than shoot growth. The reduced mobility of Cu in soil is due to its strong binding to organic and inorganic colloids, where it acts as a barrier to Cu toxicity in terrestrial plants. Excess of Cu inhibits a large number of enzymes and interferes with several aspects of plant biochemistry, including photosynthesis, pigment synthesis, and membrane integrity. So, the most important effect of copper toxicity is associated with the blocking of photosynthetic electron transport, leading to the production of radicals which start peroxidative chain reactions. Copper induces oxidative stress that involves induction of lipid peroxidation in the plant which further cause a severe damage to the cell membrane. High copper concentration can disturb the chloroplast ultrastructure by disturbing the photosynthetic process. Like chromium and iron, copper is also a redox metal that can have direct involvement in inducing oxidative stress in plants. In addition, Cu stress induced -production of reactive oxygen species is well recognized and controlled at both the production and consumption levels, through increased antioxidative systems.

A correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-021-02725-4

The present century will undoubtedly be marked with the COVID-19 global health crisis. It is not time yet to talk about the total number of deaths and hospitalizations, as they are enormously growing daily. Understanding the nature of COVID-19-induced pneumonia is vital in order to deal with the associated health complications. Cell stress is an established mechanism known to be associated with infection and cancer. Different proteins crucial for cellular response to stress are reported to be a possible target to stop the infection and to reduce the chemo-resistance in cancer. Heat shock protein (HSP) families of chaperones play an essential role in cells both in normal state and under stress. The upregulation of HSP5A, also termed GRP78 or Bip, is reported in different viral infections. This chapter introduces the current knowledge about severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which has caused the COVID-19 pandemic, and cell stress aimed at defining possible strategies to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Efficient land and water management require the accurate selection of suitable crops that are compatible with soil and crop water requirements (CWR) in a given area. In this study, twenty soil profiles are collected to represent the soils of the study area. Physical and chemical properties of soil, in addition to irrigation water quality, provided data are utilized by the Agriculture Land Evaluation System for Arid and semi-arid regions (ALES-Arid) to determine crop suitability. University of Idaho Ref-ET software is used to calculate CWR from weather data while the Surface Energy Balance Algorithms for Land Model (SEBAL) is utilized to estimate CWR from remote sensing data. The obtained results show that seasonal weather-based CWR of the most suitable field crops (S1 and S2 classes) ranges from 804 to 1625 mm for wheat and berssem, respectively, and ranges from 778 to 993 mm in the vegetable crops potato and watermelon, respectively, under surface irrigation. Mean daily satellite-based CWR are predicted based on SEBAL ranges between 4.79 and 3.62 mm in Toshka and Abu Simbel areas respectively. This study provides a new approach for coupling ALES-Arid, Ref-ET and SEBAL models to facilitate the selection of suitable crops and offers an excellent source for predicting CWR in arid environments. The findings of this research will help in managing the future marginal land reclamation projects in arid and semi-arid areas of the world.

A new (0D) hybrid (n-C8H17NH3)2CoCl4 has been synthesized and characterized electrically and thermally. Moreover, single crystal X-ray diffraction evidenced that the hybrid belongs to a monoclinic system with a space group P21/n. The mean molar magnetic susceptibility (χ¯M)was measured as a function of temperature (80 K < T < 373 K). The results indicate that the hybrid behaves as paramagnetic material with a sign of antiferromagnetic interaction at very low temperatures. The structural origin of the anomaly that observed at 340 K from electrical measurements, has been confirmed by DSC thermogram. Based on the hydrogen bonding systems, one can suggest the strategy of the structural phase transition.