213 research outputs found
Nondestructive evaluation of residual stresses in nanostructured coatings by synchotron radiation:
No full textThis thesis presents a strain mapping in nanostructure Al2O3/TiO2 ceramic coatings on metallic Titanium substrates by synchrotron radiation. The mapping is obtained under various boundary conditions (tension/compression loads, four-point bending, etc.) and is accomplished using high energy (deeply penetrating) synchrotron white radiation with photon energies up to 200 keV to perform high precision x-ray diffraction on small volumes (1 µm to a few cm), which are then integrated into high resolution 3D maps of the strain fields. Strain mapping in conventional micro-size ceramic coatings are performed for comparison. The underlining structural and functional parameters in processing of these coatings, which result in dramatic improvements in their performance, are discussed. The thesis also presents mechanical properties such as elastic modulus, yield strength, etc., which are deduced from energy dispersive X-ray diffraction (EDXRD) strain mapping in conjunction with modeling.M.S.Includes bibliographical referencesby Nazia Ikram Ahmed
Erratum to: Epidemiology of Dementia: The Burden on Society, the Challenges for Research
No full textThe name of the Chapter 1 author had been inadvertently mentioned as M. Arfan Ikram.
This has been corrected and the name has been correctly updated to Ikram MA
Publisher correction: Novel pleiotropic risk loci for melanoma and nevus density implicate multiple biological pathways
No full textThe original version of this Article contained errors in the spelling of the authors Fan Liu and M. Arfan Ikram, which were incorrectly given as Fan Lui and Arfan M. Ikram.\ua0In addition,\ua0the original version of this Article also\ua0contained errors\ua0in the author affiliations which are detailed in the associated Publisher Correction
Italy
No full textIn January 1831, the Parisian printer Firmin Didot published a Manifesto announcing the imminent publication of the Egyptian and Nubian monuments by Jean-François Champollion and Ippolito Rosellini, based on the notes and images made during the 1828–29 Franco-Tuscan expedition (see p. 22). It contained a description of the work, equally divided between the French and the Italians, to be organised in three parts, to include albums of plates and volumes of texts in French and Italian, and to be issued in a series of fascicles. The death of Champollion in 1832, and subsequent conflicts between his brother Champollion-Figeac and Rosellini, stymied the joint project. Rosellini thus published his Monumenti dell’Egitto e della Nubia alone, in the face of many financial and interpersonal problems, between 1832 and his untimely death in 1843. The ninth and last volume of text and the third and last volume of plates, already prepared by the author, were posthumously published in 1844. This monumental work, presenting an extraordinary quantity of textual, archaeological and visual material, has been fundamental for the development of Egyptology in the Italian peninsula. Almost all the important Italian libraries subscribed to its fascicles, as attested by letters that Rosellini himself wrote to librarians and scholars all over Italy, asking them to sign the subscription Manifesto or informing them about the plans for the publication
Comparative analysis of the possible radical scavenging, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects of several extracts in case of Artemisia herba-alba and Juniperus communis gathered from Algeria\u27s mountainous regions
No full textThis research reports a comparative analysis of the possible radical scavenging, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects of several ex-tracts in case of Artemisia herba-alba and Juniperus communis gathered from Algeria\u27s mountainous regions. The plants extracts total phenolic acid content was ascertained using the Folin-Ciocalteu method, and their total flavonoid content was ascertained using the aluminum chlo-ride colorimetric test. By estimating their ability to remove free radi-cals using the DPPH method and the ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay, their antioxidant capacity was assessed. Disk diffusion was used to measure the antibacterial activity against five strains of bacteria, and a protein denaturation assay was performed to examine the anti-inflammatory activity. A high polyphenol content of 104.54 ±0.35 mg GAE/g was observed in the hydroethanolic extract of Artemi-sia herba-alba, while a high flavonoid content of 17.05 ±0.13 mg QE/g was found in the hydroethanolic extract of Juniperus communis. Both species extracts showed important antioxidant activity in two separate tests, where the hydroethanolic extracts demonstrated effective action. The crude extracts showed positive antibacterial activity, especially the hydroethanolic extracts against Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumoniae with a super inhibition on concentration 20 mg/ml. In the anti-inflammatory assay, the hydroethanolic extract of J. comminus with IC50: 23.58 ±0.02 μg/mL, has the most potent anti-denaturation effect on albumin. According to the study\u27s findings, the hydroethanolic ex-tracts in case of Artemisia herba-alba and Juniperus communis gathered from Algeria\u27s mountainous regions are possible sources of phenolic compounds with important natural antioxidant, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory characteristics that may be employed in pharmaceutical products
Medicinal Plants Used by Traditional Healers in the Treatment of Gastrointestinal Disorders in Oued Souf Region (southeast of Algeria)
No full textهدفت هذه الدراسة إلى توثيق وتحليل المعرفة الأصلية للنباتات الطبية التي يستخدمها المعالجون التقليديون لعلاج اضطرابات الجهاز الهضمي في منطقة وادي سوف (شمال الشرق الجزائري (, تم إجراء الاستطلاع من مايو إلى سبتمبر 2022، وفيه استجوب 20 معالجًا تقليديًا باستخدام أسئلة مفتوحة واستبيان شبه منظم. يتضمن النموذج المعلومات الاجتماعية والديموغرافية للمعالج والأسماء المحلية والعلمية للنبات الطبي، الأجزاء المستخدمة منه وطرق تحضيره، تحذيرات الاستخدام. لتقييم البيانات التي تم جمعها، تمت دراسة عاملين هما Usage Value و Informant Consensus Factor. أظهرت النتائج التي توصلنا إليها أن المعالجين التقليديين في منطقة واد سوف يستخدمون 47 نوعًا من النباتات الطبية من 22 عائلة لعلاج اضطرابات الجهاز الهضمي. كما كشفت نتائج التحقيق أن العمر والجنس والمستوى التعليمي وسنوات الخبرة جميعها لها تأثير على مدى تكرار استخدام النباتات الطبية. تعتبر كل من Lamiaceae ، Asteraceae، أكثر العائلات استعمالا بمعدل 9 و 7 أنواع على التوالي. كانت الأجزاء النباتية الأكثر استخدامًا هي الأوراق (35٪)، والغليان هي الطريقة الأفضل في تحضير المستخلص العشبي (55٪). بالإضافة إلى ذلك، كان النبات الأكثر شيوعًا الذي استخدمه المعالجون المحليون هو )Artemisia herba alba Asso (UV = 0.85. كما تم الاتفاق على أن عسر الهضم والبواسير هي أكثر اضطرابات الجهاز الهضمي التي يتم علاجها (1= FIC لكل منهما). ومنه فان المعالجين التقليديين في منطقة وادي سوف على دراية تامة بالنباتات الطبية واستخداماتها. ويمكن للباحثين والعلماء العثور على نباتات ذات صفات طبية قد تكون مفيدة في ابتكار أدوية جديدة باستخدام هذا المسح العرقي النباتي.This study aims to analyze indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants used by traditional healers to treat gastrointestinal disorders in the Oued Souf region. Data were collected through open-ended, semi-structured interviews. Various statistical indices, such as UV and ICF, were employed to evaluate quantitative data. The findings reveal that traditional healers utilize 47 medicinal plant species from 22 families for treating gastrointestinal disorders. Lamiaceae and Asteraceae emerge as the most dominant families, with 9 and 7 species, respectively. The most frequently used plant parts were leaves (35%), and the predominant method of preparation was infusion (55%). Among the most popular plants used by local healers were Artemisia herba alba Asso (UV = 0.85) and Juniperus communis (UV = 0.75). The study highlights the significant number and variety of medicinal plants employed by traditional healers to address digestive disorders. Consequently, this research can aid scientists in identifying plants with medicinal properties that may contribute to the development of new medications
Genome-wide association study identifies a variant in HDAC9 associated with large vessel ischemic stroke
No full textGenetic factors have been implicated in stroke risk, but few replicated associations have been reported. We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) for ischemic stroke and its subtypes in 3,548 affected individuals and 5,972 controls, all of European ancestry. Replication of potential signals was performed in 5,859 affected individuals and 6,281 controls. We replicated previous associations for cardioembolic stroke near PITX2 and ZFHX3 and for large vessel stroke at a 9p21 locus. We identified a new association for large vessel stroke within HDAC9 (encoding histone deacetylase 9) on chromosome 7p21.1 (including further replication in an additional 735 affected individuals and 28,583 controls) (rs11984041; combined P = 1.87 × 10<sup>−11</sup>; odds ratio (OR) = 1.42, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.28–1.57). All four loci exhibited evidence for heterogeneity of effect across the stroke subtypes, with some and possibly all affecting risk for only one subtype. This suggests distinct genetic architectures for different stroke subtypes
Preventing falls among the community-dwelling elderly: Analyzing the impact of fall prevention programs and evaluating the applicability of a Health Impact Bond
No full textFall prevention programs hold great promise to improve quality of life among older adults and to decrease healthcare expenditures. However, there are substantial barriers for entrepreneurs working in the elderly care to set up fall prevention programs, due to the size of the investments required, the uncertainty of the parties about the potential benefits from the reduction in healthcare expenditures and the divergence of interests within our fragmented healthcare system. Hence, a method to assess the effect of fall prevention programs is needed, and, if these programs indeed appear to have a positive effect on the healthcare costs, there might be possibilities to use an innovative financing structure, such as a Health Impact Bond (HIB), to encourage the implementation. A HIB is a performance-based instrument by which the financial risk shifts from local implementers to investors. During this research, a python tool was developed to determine the effect of fall prevention programs using hospital data. By doing a case study in Dordrecht, the economic feasibility of a HIB for fall prevention programs was assessed. A Difference-in-Differences design was used to determine the effect of the fall prevention programs on both the number of injurious fall incidents and healthcare costs. Other barriers for setting up these programs using a HIB regarding governance and law were identified.DrechtmaxEngineering and Policy Analysi
Synthesis and characterization of Y2O3 nano-material: An experimental and theoretical study
No full textRetinal arterioles narrow with increasing duration of anti-retroviral therapy in HIV infection: a novel estimator of vascular risk in HIV?
No full textOBJECTIVES: HIV infection is associated with an increased risk of age-related morbidity mediated by immune dysfunction, atherosclerosis and inflammation. Changes in retinal vessel calibre may reflect cumulative structural damage arising from these mechanisms. The relationship of retinal vessel calibre with clinical and demographic characteristics was investigated in a population of HIV-infected individuals in South Africa. METHODS: Case-control study of 491 adults ≥30 years, composed of 242 HIV-infected adults and 249 age- and gender-matched HIV-negative controls. Retinal vessel calibre was measured using computer-assisted techniques to determine mean arteriolar and venular diameters of each eye. RESULTS: The median age was 40 years (IQR: 35-48 years). Among HIV-infected adults, 87.1% were receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) (median duration, 58 months), their median CD4 count was 468 cells/µL, and 84.3% had undetectable plasma viral load. Unadjusted mean retinal arteriolar diameters were 163.67±17.69 µm in cases and 161.34±17.38 µm in controls (p = 0.15). Unadjusted mean venular diameters were 267.77±18.21 µm in cases and 270.81±18.98 µm in controls (p = 0.07). Age modified the effect of retinal arteriolar and venular diameters in relation to HIV status, with a tendency towards narrower retinal diameters in HIV cases but not in controls. Among cases, retinal arteriolar diameters narrowed with increasing duration of HAART, independently of age (167.83 µm 6 years, p-trend = 0.02), and with a HIV viral load >10,000 copies/mL while on HAART (p = 0.05). HIV-related venular changes were not detected. CONCLUSIONS: Narrowing of retinal arteriolar diameters is associated with HAART duration and viral load, and may reflect heightened inflammatory and pro-atherogenic states of the systemic vasculature. Measurement of retinal vascular calibre could be an innovative non-invasive method of estimating vascular risk in HIV-infected individuals
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