189 research outputs found
Ghassan Chebaro’s 2022 and the Forgotten Climate Crisis in the Middle East. Book Review: Chebaro (2009). 2022. Beirut: Arab Scientific Publishers. ISBN: 978-9953875118
No full textThe article discusses Ghassan Chebaro’s novel 2022 and the importance of grassroots action in battling the impending climate disaster in the Middle East. The article contrasts the novel’s optimism with the disappointing reality of inaction that is exacerbating the climate crisis. It also addresses the interconnectedness of capitalism, the military industrial complex, and the climate crisis
Association between sarcopenic obesity and metabolic syndrome in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis
No full textBackground: In the last two decades, a new phenotype termed Sarcopenic Obesity (SO), in which sarcopenia and obesity coexist, has emerged. Objective: The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was first to assess the prevalence of Metabolic syndrome (Mets) among individuals with and without SO, and second, to determine if SO may increase the relative risk of Mets. Methods: This study was conducted in adherence to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines and the data were collated by means of metaanalysis and narrative synthesis. Results: Twelve studies including a total of 11,308 adults with overweight or obesity of both genders met the inclusion criteria and were reviewed, revealing two main findings. First, a similar overall prevalence of Mets in individuals with SO (61.49%; 95% CI: 52.19-70.40) when compared to those without SO (56.74%; 95% CI: 47.32-65.93) was identified. Second, the presence of SO appears not to increase the risk of Mets with respect to those without SO (RR = 1.08, 95% CI: 0.99- 1.17, p = 0.07). Conclusion: No higher prevalence of Mets among individuals with SO when compared to those with obesity only, nor a significant association between SO and a higher risk of Mets was found
The Arts and Crafts Center of Vrancea: For the Simple Romanian People and the World
No full textThe thesis aims to show how culture tradition and identity are important in a country's economy and modernization. The location the project focuses in is Vrancea, a mountainous county in Romania. The problem with Vrancea is that the villages currently don't get enough benefits from the government, which doesn't provide enough economical stability for the people. After studying the area it was concluded that the primary expression of culture and tradition came from the Arts and Crafts of the region. Vrancea has certain culture and tradition that other counties in Romania don't practice. The Arts and Crafts center will not only bring in tourism and create an economic benefit for the villages, but it will also unite the villages and allow them to express their own identity. The Arts and Crafts center will play the role of a community, create interaction with the tourists and help the villagers have more stability in their lives.Explore LabArchitectureArchitecture and The Built Environmen
Substitutions at residue 211 in the prion protein drive a switch between CJD and GSS syndrome, a new mechanism governing inherited neurodegenerative disorders
No full textHuman prion diseases are a heterogeneous group of fatal neurodegenerative disorders, characterized by the deposition of the partially protease-resistant prion protein (PrPres), astrocytosis, neuronal loss and spongiform change in the brain. Among inherited forms that represent 15% of patients, different phenotypes have been described depending on the variations detected at different positions within the prion protein gene. Here, we report a new mechanism governing the phenotypic variability of inherited prion diseases. First, we observed that the substitution at residue 211 with either Gln or Asp leads to distinct disorders at the clinical, neuropathological and biochemical levels (Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease or Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker syndrome with abundant amyloid plaques and tau neurofibrillar pathology). Then, using molecular dynamics simulations and biophysical characterization of mutant proteins and an in vitro model of PrP conversion, we found evidence that each substitution impacts differently the stability of PrP and its propensity to produce different protease resistant fragments that may contribute to the phenotypical switch. Thus, subtle differences in the PrP primary structure and stability are sufficient to control amyloid plaques formation and tau abnormal phosphorylation and fibrillation. This mechanism is unique among neurodegenerative disorders and is consistent with the prion hypothesis that proposes a conformational change as the key pathological event in prion disorders. © The Author 2012. Published by Oxford University Press
A case study
No full textIncludes bibliographical references (leaves 80-88).The recognition of the importance of languages in the world is becoming quite
significant. This case study examines the effect of the teaching strategies on language
learning. The study of different languages caused the researcher to investigate the degree
of success in learning foreign languages at the American Community School (ACS) in
Beirut Lebanon at the High School Program. The researcher uses a vast array of
interviews, observations and questionnaires to assess the degree of success in the learning
process. The sample in this study consisted of students from the International
Baccalaureate (IB), the High School (HS), and the Lebanese Baccalaureate (LB) at ACS.
The researcher interviewed students from the three different programs, asked participants
from the three different programs to complete the questionnaires; also she observed
classes in the three different programs: IB, HS, and LB classrooms.
In addition, the role of the teacher in mediating relations between the teaching dimension
and the students' performance was examined. The results of this case study show that
there is a positive relationship between the teaching strategies and learning a foreign
language.
Moreover, the teaching strategies of the teacher indicate relevance to students' interests.
The integration of the four main skills, listening, speaking, reading and writing and the
use of the target language in the classroom not only motivate learners but also accelerate
the learning process. Thus, the repercussion of the teacher's performance in class affects
the social and academic achievements of students in high school program.1 bound copy: x, 161 leaves; ill.; 30 cm. available at RNL
Statistics of signal to interference plus noise ratio in a sectorized FH-TDMA system with a single cell frequency reuse pattern
No full textProblèmes de tournées de véhicules avec profits, méthodes exactes et approchées
No full textNous nous intéressons dans cette thèse à la résolution du problème de tournées sélectives (Team Orienteering Problem - TOP) et ses variantes. Ce problème est une extension du problème de tournées de véhicules en imposan tcertaines limitations de ressources. Nous proposons un algorithme de résolution exacte basé sur la programmation linéaire en nombres entiers (PLNE) en ajoutant plusieurs inégalités valides capables d’accélérer la résolution. D’autre part, en considérant des périodes de travail strictes pour chaque véhicule durant sa tournée, nous traitons une des variantes du TOP qui est le problème de tournées sélectives multipériodique (multiperiod TOP - mTOP) pour lequel nous développons une métaheuristique basée sur l’optimisation par essaim pour le résoudre. Un découpage optimal est proposé pour extraire la solution optimale de chaque particule en considérant les tournées saturées et pseudo saturées .Finalement, afin de prendre en considération la disponibilité des clients, une fenêtre de temps est associée à chacun d’entre eux, durant laquelle ils doivent être servis. La variante qui en résulte est le problème de tournées sélectives avec fenêtres de temps (TOP with Time Windows - TOPTW). Deux algorithmes exacts sont proposés pour résoudre ce problème. Le premier est basé sur la génération de colonnes et le deuxième sur la PLNE à laquelle nous ajoutons plusieurs coupes spécifiques à ce problème.We focus in this thesis on developing new algorithms to solve the Team Orienteering Problem (TOP) and two of its variants. This problem derives from the well-known vehicle routing problem by imposing some resource limitations .We propose an exact method based on Mixed Integer Linear Programming (MILP) to solve this problem by adding valid inequalities to speed up its solution process. Then, by considering strict working periods for each vehicle during its route, we treat one of the variants of TOP, which is the multi-period TOP (mTOP) for which we develop a metaheuristic based on the particle swarm optimization approach to solve it. An optimal split procedure is proposed to extract the optimal solution from each particle by considering saturated and pseudo-saturated routes. Finally, in order to take into consideration the availability of customers, a time window is associated with each of them, during which they must be served. The resulting variant is the TOP with Time Windows (TOPTW). Two exact algorithms are proposed to solve this problem. The first algorithm is based on column generation approach and the second one on the MILP to which we add additional cuts specific for this problem. The comparison between our exact and heuristic methods with the existing one in the literature shows the effectiveness of our approaches
Adaptation of Candida albicans to Reactive Sulfur Species
No full textThe opportunistic fungal pathogen Candida albicans is both a common commensal of the human microbiota and an agent of fatal systemic infections. C. albicans inhabits the mouth and skin, as well as gastrointestinal and genitourinary tracts of humans. One attribute that allows C. albicans to inhabit such physiologically distinct niches is the ability to resist and adapt to various oxidative stresses. This includes stress caused by reactive sulfur species (RSS), such as sulfite, produced by C. albicans, sulfate-reducing commensal microbes, and the host immune system. From a collection of transcription factor deletion mutants, only the mutant lacking the zinc cluster factor gene ZCF2 was found to be specifically sensitive to sulfite. In my thesis I show that C. albicans distinctively adapts to sulfite stress, and that Zcf2, as well as the sulfite exporter, Ssu1, are required for that response.
Gene expression profiling revealed that Zcf2 is required for the induction of genes predicted to remove sulfite from cells, and increase the import of a subset of nitrogen metabolites. Additionally, analysis of mutants in the sulfate assimilation pathway show that sulfite conversion to sulfide accounts for part of sulfite toxicity and that Zcf2-dependent expression of SSU1 is induced by both sulfite and sulfide. Mutations in the SSU1 promoter that selectively inhibit induction by sulfite, or the reactive nitrogen species (RNS), nitrite, a previously reported activator of SSU1, lead to the identification of distinct cis-acting regions in the SSU1 promoter. This supports a model in which RNS and RSS-induction of SSU1 are mediated by parallel pathways. Lastly, I found that endogenous sulfite production leads to an increase in resistance to exogenously added sulfite. Taken together, these data demonstrate that C. albicans has a unique response to sulfite that differs from the general oxidative stress response, and that adaptation to internal and external sulfite is largely mediated by one transcription factor and one effector gene
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