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Duodenal perforation during percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) in a pediatric patient: A case report
No full textAbstractIntroductionColonic perforations are known complications of percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL). However, to the best of our knowledge, small bowel perforation has rarely been reported..ObservationWe report the case of a 7-year-old girl who presented with a duodenal perforation in the early postoperative period after undergoing PCNL for a calculus sized 2.5cm in the right renal pelvis. She was successfully managed conservatively. The diagnostic workup and management are discussed
Resting state functional network disruptions in a kainic acid model of temporal lobe epilepsy
No full textAbstractWe studied the graph topological properties of brain networks derived from resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging in a kainic acid induced model of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) in rats. Functional connectivity was determined by temporal correlation of the resting-state Blood Oxygen Level Dependent (BOLD) signals between two brain regions during 1.5% and 2% isoflurane, and analyzed as networks in epileptic and control rats. Graph theoretical analysis revealed a significant increase in functional connectivity between brain areas in epileptic than control rats, and the connected brain areas could be categorized as a limbic network and a default mode network (DMN). The limbic network includes the hippocampus, amygdala, piriform cortex, nucleus accumbens, and mediodorsal thalamus, whereas DMN involves the medial prefrontal cortex, anterior and posterior cingulate cortex, auditory and temporal association cortex, and posterior parietal cortex. The TLE model manifested a higher clustering coefficient, increased global and local efficiency, and increased small-worldness as compared to controls, despite having a similar characteristic path length. These results suggest extensive disruptions in the functional brain networks, which may be the basis of altered cognitive, emotional and psychiatric symptoms in TLE
Effect of chromium speciation on its sorption mechanism onto grape stalks entrapped into alginate beads
No full textAbstractSorption of Cr(III) and Cr(VI) ions onto 2% grape stalk (GS) powder entrapped in a biopolymeric gel matrix of calcium alginate (CA) has been investigated and a mechanism for the retention of both, Cr(VI) and Cr(III) is proposed. Protons were found to be consumed in Cr(VI) sorption/reduction and to compete with Cr(III) for the sorbent active sites. Isotherm equilibrium was modelled according to Langmuir equation: maximum capacity was found to be 6.4 and 3.6mgg−1 for Cr(III) and Cr(VI), respectively. The important Ca2+ release observed when Cr(III) is sorbed indicates that ion exchange is the main mechanism involved at concentrations lower than 200mgL−1 while other mechanisms such as microprecipitation or coordination might take place for higher initial concentrations. In the case of Cr(VI), the sorption mechanism is based on the reduction to Cr(III) promoted by both protons and the functional groups on the GS surface; this reduction-formed Cr(III) is retained by the alginate gel matrix and by microprecipitation onto the surface of GS particles. ESR and SEM-EDX were used to identify chromium species sorbed on the solid phase. Results from this study suggest that GS entrapped in CA gel beads is an effective sorbent for both, Cr(III) and Cr(VI) removal from aqueous solutions
Critical analysis of Big Data challenges and analytical methods
No full textAbstractBig Data (BD), with their potential to ascertain valued insights for enhanced decision-making process, have recently attracted substantial interest from both academics and practitioners. Big Data Analytics (BDA) is increasingly becoming a trending practice that many organizations are adopting with the purpose of constructing valuable information from BD. The analytics process, including the deployment and use of BDA tools, is seen by organizations as a tool to improve operational efficiency though it has strategic potential, drive new revenue streams and gain competitive advantages over business rivals. However, there are different types of analytic applications to consider. Therefore, prior to hasty use and buying costly BD tools, there is a need for organizations to first understand the BDA landscape. Given the significant nature of the BD and BDA, this paper presents a state-of-the-art review that presents a holistic view of the BD challenges and BDA methods theorized/proposed/employed by organizations to help others understand this landscape with the objective of making robust investment decisions. In doing so, systematically analysing and synthesizing the extant research published on BD and BDA area. More specifically, the authors seek to answer the following two principal questions: Q1 – What are the different types of BD challenges theorized/proposed/confronted by organizations? and Q2 – What are the different types of BDA methods theorized/proposed/employed to overcome BD challenges?. This systematic literature review (SLR) is carried out through observing and understanding the past trends and extant patterns/themes in the BDA research area, evaluating contributions, summarizing knowledge, thereby identifying limitations, implications and potential further research avenues to support the academic community in exploring research themes/patterns. Thus, to trace the implementation of BD strategies, a profiling method is employed to analyze articles (published in English-speaking peer-reviewed journals between 1996 and 2015) extracted from the Scopus database. The analysis presented in this paper has identified relevant BD research studies that have contributed both conceptually and empirically to the expansion and accrual of intellectual wealth to the BDA in technology and organizational resource management discipline
A 25-year-old male with appendicular agenesis: A case report and literature review
No full textAbstractCongenital agenesis or absence of vermiform appendix is extremely rare. This case report entails a 25-year-old male who developed symptoms and signs of acute appendicitis. Despite an extensive surgical exploration, the vermiform appendix could not be found. The postoperative investigation did not reveal any abnormality, and the patient was diagnosed as a case of nonspecific abdominal pain (NSAP) and appendicular agenesis
Synthesis of biologically active cadmium (II) complex with tridentate N2O donor Schiff base: DFT study, binding mechanism of serum albumins (bovine, human) and fluorescent nanowires
No full textAbstractThe photophysical properties of luminescent tetra-coordinated cadmium (II) complex formulated as [Cd(L)Cl],HL=(1-[(3-methyl-pyridine-2-ylimino)-methyl]-naphthalen-2-ol) were synthesized and characterized by analytical and spectroscopic methods. The density function theory calculations are used to investigate the electronic structures of the ligand and its complex. The interactions of cadmium (II) complex towards bovine serum albumin (BSA) and human serum albumin (HSA) were investigated using absorption and fluorescence spectroscopic techniques at pH 7.4. The quenching constants, binding constants and number of binding sites were determined by fluorescence quenching method. The calculated thermodynamic parameters (ΔG, ΔH, and ΔS) confirmed that the binding reaction is mainly entropy-driven and hydrophobic forces played an important role in the reaction. Here, we proposed a new synthetic procedure for the preparation of BSA and HSA with cadmium complex nanowires. The scanning electron microscopy images show that BSA and HSA with cadmium complex product are wire-like in structure. The complex shows enhanced antibacterial activity compared with the free ligand and standard antibiotic chloramphenicol. Antioxidant studies showed that the complex has significant antioxidant activity against DPPH. The obtained IC50 value of the DPPH activity for complex (IC50=138μg/ml) showed excellent scavenging property compared to standard ascorbic acid
Radiation-induced degradation of sodium alginate and its plant growth promotion effect
No full textAbstractAlginate was irradiated as a solid with 60Co gamma rays in the dose range of 20–100kGy to investigate the effect of radiation on alginates. One of the principle factors for reducing the cost is achieving the degradation at low irradiation doses which occurs with addition of chemical initiator to NaAlg during irradiation process that leads to a synergistic effect, which remarkably increases the degradation efficiency of alginate. The factors affecting the degradation process such as irradiation dose and potassium per-sulfate (KPS) addition were studied. The average molecular weight of the irradiated alginate was investigated in detail by using several complementary techniques such as chromatography and viscometry. The lowest molecular weight of alginate resulted at 100kGy and added KPS, whereas the highest one at 20kGy in absence of KPS. Characterization of the oligoalginates obtained by radiation degradation was performed by FT-IR and UV–vis spectroscopy, XRD and TGA. The effect of water-soluble radiation-induced alginate fractions on the growth promotion of Faba bean plant was studied. The highest plant growth and seed yield compared with control occurred for plants sprayed with low molecular weight NaAlg fractions (treated with 100kGy and added KPS)
What women want: Exploring pregnant women’s preferences for alternative models of maternity care
No full textAbstractDepending on obstetric risk, maternity care may be provided in one of two locations at hospital level: a consultant-led unit (CLU) or a midwifery-led unit (MLU). Care in a MLU is sparsely provided in Ireland, comprising as few as two units out of a total 21 maternity units. Given its potential for greater efficiencies of care and cost-savings for the state, there has been an increased interest to expand MLUs in Ireland. Yet, very little is known about women’s preferences for midwifery-led care, and whether they would utilise this service when presented with the choice of delivering in a CLU or MLU. This study seeks to involve women in the future planning of maternity care by investigating their preferences for care and subsequent motivations when choosing place of birth. Qualitative research is undertaken to explore maternal preferences for these different models of care. Women only revealed a preference for the MLU when co-located with a CLU due to its close proximity to medical services. However, the results suggest women do not have a clear preference for either model of care, but rather a hybrid model of care which encompasses features of both consultant- and midwifery-led care
Ectopical expression of FABP4 gene can induce bovine muscle-derived stem cells adipogenesis
No full textAbstractFatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP4) plays a key role in Fatty acid catabolism in mammals. Findings from our previous studies have indicated that FABP4 neither affect the differentiation of bovine preadipocytes nor does it change the expression of upstream genes. To investigate whether ectopically expressed FABP4 can induces Muscle-Derived Stem Cells (MDSCs) lipid synthesis and understand the regulatory mechanism behind it. In this study, adenoviruses infection is achieved to ectopically expressed FABP4 in bovine MDSCs, RNA-seq analyses at the very early stages of induction were performed to reveal gene expression level changes during MDSCs transdifferentiation. Results showed FABP4 can induce bovine Muscle-Derived Stem Cells transdifferentiation into adipocyte-like cells, 23 genes' expression levels changed after 24 h inducing although there is no significant change in cell phenotypes. Along with induction time, more differently expressed genes (256 genes changes after 48 h induction) were screened out. These genes should be at the downstream of signal pathways and be regulated by the 23 genes identified before. Our findings may provide a unique new model for studying the molecular control of cattle cross-talk between adipose and skeletal muscle
Assessing EU perception in Kazakhstan's mass media
No full textAbstractThis paper explores the mass media perception of the European Union (EU) in Kazakhstan by utilizing the content analysis of the major mass media outlets. The authors examine news reports and periodical articles from four major national Kazakh newspapers using three measurement points. The first measurement point covers the early 1990s when Kazakhstan declared independence and began to establish its foreign relations. The second measurement point covers the periods before and after introduction of the EU Strategy for Central Asia (2006–2008). The third measurement point covers the years (2011–2013) associated with implementation with the EU Strategy and assessing its results.Our main findings suggest that Kazakhstan's mass media positively perceives the role of the EU in the region. Moreover, they tend to portray the EU mainly as an economic powerhouse. Our findings support some suggestions by similar studies of the EU's external perception