Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Virulence Dynamics and Diversity Ofpuccinia striiformis Populations in Egypt during 2017/18 and 2018/19 Growing Seasons

Stripe rust, caused by Puccinia striiformis (Pst), is an important disease of wheat in Egypt. A total of nine and ten races were designated during two seasons. The most common race were 64E0, 66E0 and70E26 (23.07%, 26.92% and 23.07) during 2017/18. While, race 450E254, 206E174, 192E192,136E54 and 70E182 were the most common during 2018/19 at it was occurred at high frequency (22.50%,17.5, 15.0, 10.0 and 10.0% frequencies, respectively). The three races; 64E0, 66E0 and 70E22 were the widely geographical distributed, as each was detected in all governorates during the first season, While,the 136E54, 192E192 and 206E174 during sacond season. No virulences were occurred to wheat stripe rust monogenic lines with Yr1, Yr5, Yr10 and Yr15, during the two years of the study. Different frequencies of virulence of Pst isolates were obtained against wheat cultivars used. Cultivars; Misr3, Giza171, Sakha94, Sakha95, and Gemmeiza12 showed the highest level of resistance against the tested Pst isolates. High similarity was found between stripe rust populations in the six locations. The phenotypic diversity within different populations was characterized using the three main indexes; Shannon, Gleason and Simpson. Shannon index proved to be more suitable to accurately measure the phenotypic diversity between the tested populations, as it was sensitive to sample size, number of isolates, number of races and standard deviation of race frequency than the others. Monitoring the dynamics and variation of virulence in stripe rust populations, that provides the basic information needed for an anticipatory breeding program for disease resistance in Egypt.
Gas Sensing Characterization of Single Layer Graphene Prepared by ICP-CVD Method

Recently, there has been an increased demand for low cost, highly sensitive and selective gas sensing devices. Graphene, single atomic layer of graphite, has been considered as very attractive as gas sensor device application (The graphene have higher sensitivities for NO2 and NH3.). In the past few years, there have been mechanical exfoliation method using scotch tape and many chemical approaches to synthesize large-scale graphene have been developed, including epitaxial growth on silicon carbide at high temperature (1450 C), formation of graphene in ultra-high vacuum environment and chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Recently it becomes increasingly important to form highquality graphene layer at lower process temperature to be applied to flexible electronics. As a good candidate, Inductively-Coupled Plasma Chemical Vapor Deposition (ICP-CVD) was used to form graphene at 650 C. However, there have been no reports on gas sensitivity and temperature effect of graphene FET by ICP-CVD method. In this master’s thesis, we report gas sensitivity and effect of temperature (T) and relativity humidity (RH) on gas sensitivity of the bottom-gate graphene FETs with single atomic layer of channel graphene fabricated by ICP-CVD method. The graphene FETs have relatively higher sensitivities for NH3 (~20% at 50 ppm) and NO2 (~30% at 50 ppm). Other gases such as CH4, C3H8, H2S, and SO2 show a sensitivity of less than ~10% at even 10 ppm. The sensitivity of graphene exposed to nitrogen oxide (NO2) and ammonia (NH3) was increased with increasing temperature and humidity. For NO2 gas, the graphene FET shows increasing ID with increasing T and also increasing ID with increasing humidity. However, the FET shows opposite trend with the T and humidity for NH3 gas. We observed that gases produce distinguishably different effects on the low-frequency noise spectra of graphene. These characterizations could be used to design more reliable graphene gas senor
Forecasting Tourism Demand with an Improved Mixed Data Sampling Model

Search query data reflect users’ intentions, preferences and interests. The interest in using such data to forecast tourism demand has increased in recent years. The mixed data sampling (MIDAS) method is often used in such forecasting, but is not effective when moving average (MA) dynamics are involved. To investigate the relevance of the MA components in MIDAS models to tourism demand forecasting, an improved MIDAS model that integrates MIDAS and the seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average process is proposed. Its performance is tested by forecasting monthly tourist arrivals in Hong Kong from mainland China with daily composite indices constructed from a large number of search queries using the generalized dynamic factor model. The forecasting results suggest that this new model significantly outperforms the benchmark model. In addition, comparing the forecasts and nowcasts shows that the latter generally outperforms the former.
Evaluation of the pharmacokinetics of ketamine for the treatment of major depressive disorder.

III DECLARATIONS . V DECLARATION 1PLAGIARISM . V LIST OF PUBLICATIONS . VI ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . VII LIST OF FIGURES . X LIST OF TABLES . XI LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS . XII THESIS OUTLINE. 32 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION . 33 1.1 MAJOR DEPRESSIVE DISORDER (MDD) . 33 1.2 CURRENT ANTIDEPRESSANT TREATMENTS . 35 1.2.1 TRICYCLIC ANTIDEPRESSANT (TCAS) . 35 1.2.2 MONOAMINE OXIDASE INHIBITORS . 36 1.2.3 SELECTIVE SEROTONIN REUPTAKE INHIBITORS (SSRIS) . 37 1.2.4 ALTERNATIVE TREATMENTS . 38 1.3 KETAMINE . 40 1.3. 1 KETAMINE’S USE IN DEPRESSION . 40 1.3. 2 PHARMACOKINETICS AND BIOAVAILABILITY OF KETAMINE . 43 1.4 LIQUID CHROMATOGRAPHY-MASS SPECTROMETRY . 44 COMPONENTS OF A LC-MS SYSTEM . 46 1.5 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES . 48 CHAPTER 2 . 49 ABSTRACT . 50 1| INTRODUCTION . 50 2| MATERIALS AND METHODS . 52 2.1| CHEMICALS AND REAGENTS . 52 2.2| CHROMATOGRAPHIC CONDITIONS . 52 2.3| MASS SPECTROMETRY . 52 2.4| ANIMALS . 53 2.5| DRUG ADMINISTRATION AND SAMPLE COLLECTION . 53 2.6| METHOD VALIDATION . 53 3| RESULTS AND DISCUSSION . 55. 50 1| INTRODUCTION . 50 2| MATERIALS AND METHODS . 52 2.1| CHEMICALS AND REAGENTS . 52 2.2| CHROMATOGRAPHIC CONDITIONS . 52 2.3| MASS SPECTROMETRY . 52 2.4| ANIMALS . 53 2.5| DRUG ADMINISTRATION AND SAMPLE COLLECTION . 53 2.6| METHOD VALIDATION . 53 3| RESULTS AND DISCUSSION . 55
magnetiC resonanCe enteroClysis and enterography

Examination of intestines using methods of magnetic resonance (MR) enterography and MR enteroclysis is currently considered to be the best way to visualise diseases of the small intestine like Crohn’s disease, other inflammatory diseases of the small intestine, celiac disease, small intestine tumours, and cancers. They are both used in the initial diagnostics, assessment of the severity, as well as in monitoring of the course of the disease and possible complications. Both diagnostic methods require initial preparation of the patient by oral administration of a contrast agent. There are three types of oral contrast agents used in MR enterography and MR enteroclysis: positive, negative, and biphasic. In addition, an intravenous gadolinium contrast agent is administered during the study. MR enterography and MR enteroclysis allow accurate assessment of such structures as: the thickness of the intestinal wall, layering of the intestinal wall, narrowing, obstruction, gastrointestinal fistulas, gastrointestinal adipose tissue, encapsulated or free fluid in the abdomen, and lymph nodes. The undoubted advantages of these diagnostic methods include the lack of invasiveness, the possibility of obtaining multifaceted images, the possibility of assessing pathology not only within the intestine, but also in parenteral localisation, and the total absence of exposure of the patient to ionising radiation. The quality of the MR images obtained using both techniques depends largely on the correct preparation of the patient before the examination, in which the nurse participates to a large extent, leading the correct cooperation of the patient with the medical staff performing the MRI examination.
Contrast-enhanced ultrasonography in the initial evaluation of the kidney graft function: a pilot study.

AIM Our study aimed to assess the usefulness of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) in the initial evaluation of the graft function. MATERIALS AND METHOD A cross-sectional study was conducted in the early postoperative period on patients with kidney transplantation, between September 2017 to November 2018. Two groups of patients were investigated; delayed graft function (DGF) and early graft function (EGF). All patients were examined by grey scale, Doppler ultrasound and CEUS. RESULTS Nineteen patients, aged from 23 to 64 years (mean age 50 years), 7 in the DGF group and 12 in the EGF group were evaluated. The resistive index (RI) show significantly higher values in the DGF group at the level of upper interlobar artery (p=0.025) and medium interlobar artery (p=0.02). The CEUS investigation shows a greater region of interest (ROI) area (p=0.02) and lower values for wash-out area under the curve (WoAUC) (p=0.047) and respectively wash-in and wash-out area under the curve (WiWoAUC) (p=0.031) for the DGF group. The quality of fit (QoF) proved lower in the DGF group either for evaluation of global graft (p=0.012), cortex (p=0.025), or medulla (p=0.009). A significant relationship among all patients was found between the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) [ml/min] and the renal artery fall time (FT) [s] (p=0.012), WoAUC [a.u. ] (p=0.03), and WiWoAUC [a.u. ] (p=0.024). The arterial QoF [%] was associated with the arterial ROI area (p=0.048). CONCLUSIONS Intensity CEUS parameters WoAUC and WiWoAUC may be useful to diagnose and follow-up grafts with delayed function. Additional studies on larger cohorts are required for the recommendation of CEUS as a routine evaluation of the transplanted kidney.
Exploring EFL Students’ Gaming Experience in Acquiring Second Language Vocabulary

— How students acquire a second language (L2) has been varied due to the development of information and communications technology (ICT). Different digital technologies, especially video games, which are used to assist students in acquiring language have been examined by researchers. However, studies exploring EFL students’ gaming experience in acquiring a second language (L2) vocabulary is sparsely investigated. For that reason, this study aims at exploring how EFL students’ gaming experience assists the students in acquiring their second language (L2) vocabulary. The data of this study were gained from EFL students’ experience. Four EFL students were interviewed, and the data from the interview were analyzed through thematic analysis. Several of the initial questions given to the EFL students were used to stimulate the students to begin to tell their experience in playing games. Then, other questions were delivered to explore more about the story that the students have already told. The results of this study indicated that the games, particularly online games, have the potential to assist EFL students in acquiring second language (L2) vocabulary. Several principal reasons related to how games assist the students in acquiring new vocabulary emerged in this study. Pedagogically, this study contributes to the strategy of vocabulary teaching and learning which hopefully can be beneficial for EFL students and teachers.
Leishmanicidal and Cytotoxic Activity of Algerian Medicinal Plants on Leishmania major and Leishmania infantum

*Correspondence Email: neddaikra@yahoo.fr Tel: +213 552178227 Fax: +213 552178227 Introduction: Leishmaniasis is a severe disease that presents a real public health problem worldwide. Antileishmanial therapy remains expensive with intolerable side effects; therefore, it is essential to develop tolerable antileishmanial medications with a selective efficacy. Methods: In this study, the leishmanicidal activities of seven Algerian plant extracts, selected based on either ethnobotanical or chemotaxonomical data, were screened for their antileishmanial activity against promastigotes and amastigotes of cutaneous leishmaniasis agent Leishmania major (MON 25), and visceral leishmaniasis agent Leishmania infantum (MON 1). The cytotoxic activity against human monocytes THP1 was also determined. Results: In both species, amastigotes showed more sensitivity to the extracts than promastigotes. Erica arborea flower (IC50=43,98 μg/mL), Marrubium vulgare leaves (IC50=45,84 μg/mL) and Artemisia herba-alba Asso aerial parts (IC50=55,21 μg/mL) had an almost similar inhibitory effect on L. major promastigote. Marrubium vulgare leaves (IC50=35,63 μg/mL) was most effective against L. infantum promastigotes. Besides, these extracts exhibited low selectivity indices. The best results were obtained with M. vulgare on both L. major and L. infantum promastigotes (IC50s of 45,84 μg/ml and 35,63 μg/ml), and amastigotes (IC50s of 32,15 μg/ml and 18,64 μg/ml). The selectivity index was above two (2.34 for L. major and 3.01 for L. infantum), calculated based on the acceptable cytotoxic effect of M. vulgare on human macrophage cell line (CC50=107,45 μg/ml). Conclusion: Out of the seven methanol extracts tested against promastigotes of L. major and L. infantum, three showed promising activity with potent leishmanicidal effect and acceptable selectivity indices on L. major and L. Infantum.
LOCAL IMPACTS OF DOMINANT COMPANIES AND THE LEVEL OF DOMINANCE

One of the most important categories of local impact studies is the investigations about the roles of a large company in the life of a small and medium-sized towns. The first part of this paper analyses this question on a conceptual, theoretical level and by the help of literature review. A systematic overview will be given on the different roles of big companies, such as in the field of economy, labour market, infrastructure, land use, traffic, local services, local taxes, demography, culture, milieu, lifestyle, politics, education, tourism and others. There can be both positive and negative side of the dominance, for example local labour market can be more stable and more vulnerable at the same time. There is a scarcity of the empirical research on these questions, mainly due to the complexity and the business secret character of some detail. The second part of the paper gives a comparative analysis about the role of Audi Hungary Company in the western Hungarian medium-sized town, Győr, which is the sixth biggest settlement in Hungary. It is an interesting test case, because the role and importance of the Audi is significantly larger than in other big companies in similar city size category in Hungary, but its weight is not extremely large in international comparison.
OTT_A_225120 9975..9986

Congcong Shen Hui Hua Lixiong Gu Shuanglin Cao Hengji Cai Xiaodong Yao Xiaodong Chen 1Department of Dermatology, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong 226001, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Dermatology, The Third People’s Hospital of Nantong, Nantong 226001, People’s Republic of China Background: miRNAs are small noncoding RNAs that function as posttranscriptional regulators during development and disease. Aberrant expression of miRNAs has been associated with various types of malignant tumors. Decreased levels of miR-124 have been observed in human cancers. RACK1 is a scaffold protein that acts as an oncogene in various human cancers. The association between miR-124 and RACK1 in melanoma has not been characterized. Materials and methods: Real-time quantitative PCR was used to analyze RACK1 and miR-124 expression in melanoma tissue and cell lines. Dual-Luciferase reporter assay was performed to evaluate the effect of miR-124 inhibition on RACK1 expression. The effects of miR-124 on RACK1 in melanoma cell lines were evaluated using Western blot analysis and immunocytochemical staining. Wound-healing, transwell, and MTT assays, and annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate/propidium iodide followed by flow cytometry were used to evaluate the effects of miR-124 on RACK1-mediated proliferation, migration, invasion, and apoptosis of melanoma cells. Results: The expression ofmiR-124 inmelanoma tissuewas lower than that in normal skin tissue, and the expression of RACK1 was higher in melanoma tissue than that in normal skin tissue. Analysis usingDual-Luciferase reporter assay showed that RACK1was a direct target of miR-124. Western blot and immunocytochemical staining showed that the expression of RACK1 was significantly inhibited by miR-124 in both A375 and A875 melanoma cells. Furthermore, the results of functional experiments showed that degradation of RACK1 by miR-124 inhibited proliferation, migration, and invasion of melanoma cells, and promoted melanoma cell apoptosis. Conclusion: The results suggested that miR-124 affected melanoma cells by directly targeting RACK1. miR-124 and RACK1 may be biomarkers for clinical diagnosis, and prognostic factors of human melanoma. Furthermore, miR-124 and RACK1 may be targets for the treatment of melanoma.
An Automatic System of Retinal Blood Vessel Detection from Fundus Image for Diabetic Retinopathy Patients

Diabetic retinopathy is one of the causes of blindness among people of working age in many countries [2]. The global prevalence of diabetes was 2.8% in 2000 and is expected to rise to 4.4% in 2030 [3]. Retina is the light sensitive layer of the eye that converts light into electrical signal. The signals are sent through the optic nerves and we see the image by the interpretation of brain. For this retina needs a continuous supply of blood which it receives by tiny blood vessels. High blood sugar level causes the blood vessels more narrow that cause’s insufficient supply of blood. In initial stage, retinopathy does not cause any significant symptoms until visual loss develops usually in the later stages when treatment is less effective. So it is important to ensure that the treatment is received in time, the patient needs annual eye screening [4]. The screening for diabetic retinopathy of diabetic patients can reduce the risk of blindness up to 50%. If the number of patients is large then it is needed to have the number of ophthalmologist larger to cope with all the patients. But it is difficult for many countries to have large number of ophthalmologists or the workload of local ophthalmologists is high. 98% of vision loss from diabetic retinopathy can be prevented if treated early [1]. So, an automated detection system will be helpful for the patients and it will release pressure from ophthalmologists. An automated detection system based on some features on segmented retinal blood vessel image is used in this system. Blood vessel segmentation technique based on some morphological and other techniques is described in this paper.
Cardioprotective Effect of Ethanolic Flower Extract of ClitoriaTernatea on Doxorubicin Induced Cardiotoxicity in Rats

Tamizhselvi A*1, Durairaj S2, Mohamed Sadiq A3, Gopinath G1, Rajeshkumar S4 1Department of Bio-Chemistry, Indo-American College, Perungalathur 604407, Cheyyar, Tamil Nadu, India 2Department of Zoology, Aringnar Anna Government Arts College, 604407, Cheyyar, Tamil Nadu, India 3Department of Bio-Chemistry, Adhiprasakthi College of Arts &Science, G.B Nagar, Kalavai632506, Tamil Nadu, India 4 Department of Pharmacology, Nanobiomedicine Lab, Saveetha Dental college, SIMATS, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
TRACE ELEMENTS AND METAL CONTENT IN THE FEATHERS OF THE NORTHERN BALD IBIS (GERONTICUS EREMITA)

Long-lived bird species, such as the Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita), are exposed to heavy metals through air, water and food because they are at the highest point in the food supply chain. Birds accumulate heavy metals in their bodies, organs, and in their feathers. The article aimed to investigate the trace element and heavy metal content of Northern bald ibis feathers using ICP-MS, as an endangered sentinel species, in order to both determine the contamination level of the area and evaluate the risk the species is facing. The study included 34 samples of feathers obtained from bald ibises released into their natural habitat. The results of the study showed that the average values of the trace elements (Na, Mg, Ca, K, P, Al, Fe) which are necessary for the survival of living organisms were above 100 μg g-1, the second group of metals (Ti, Mn, Cu, Zn, 82 Br) which are toxic to the body in high amounts were between 8.24-22.4 μg g and those which are highly toxic at very low doses (Sb, Ni, As, Co, Ba, Pb, Cd, Mo, 75 Se) were lower than 1 μg g. This study of the Northern Bald Ibis species, animals threatened by extinction due to environmental pollution, investigated their levels of heavy metal pollution in the feathers and indicates that Bald Ibis are possible bioindicators of environmental trace element contamination.
DESALINZATION AND FORTIFICATION OF SOIL USING POTASSIUM CHLORIDE

This study was conducted on saline soil collected from Biosaline Research Station (BSRS) of Nuclear Institute for Agriculture and Biology (NIAB) Faisalabad, Pakistan to determine the effect of potassium fertilizer (KCl) on growth performance of Eucalyptus camaldulensis. Potassium was applied at 100 and 200 kg K2O ha -1 as KCl. Results showed that most agronomic parameters like number of branches, leaves per plant, fresh and dry weight and ionic uptake of potassium and chloride increased in Eucalyptus camaldulensis due to soil applied KCl. However, 200 kg K2O ha -1 (as KCl) was more effective in producing higher biomass than 100 kg ha in salt-affected wastelands. It was concluded that application of KCl (muriate of potash) could increase the growth and nutrients uptake of Eucalyptus camaldulensis in salt-affected soil. Key-words: K-Fertilizer, growth parameters, Eucalyptus, saline soil.
RESPONSE OF EGGPLANT (Solanum melongena L .) TO POTASSIUM AND LIQUORICE EXTRACT APPLICATION UNDER SALINE CONDITIONS

Eggplant ( Solanum melongena L.) is one of the important summer vegetable crops of the Solanaceae family due to its high content of carbohydrates, protein a nd minerals i.e. N, P, K and Fe as well as vitamin C. The performance of Eggplant ( Solanum melongena L.) to foliar spray with potassium (0, 1, 2 and 3 g·l) and liquorice extract (0, 2, 4 and 6 g·l ) were investigated in summer 2013 and 2014 seasons at Ras Sudr research station farm, South Sinai governorate on a s alinity soil under drip irrigation system. The effects of the experimental factors on pla nt growth parameters (height, leaf number, branch number, fresh and dry weight), leaf chlorophyll content, leaf minerals (N, P and K), yield parameters such as, fruit numbe r/plant, fruit weight, total yield per feddan (0.42 ha) were evaluated. The results proved that the foliar application with potassium and liquorice extract produce a significant in crease in all parameters under study compared to the control. The foliar application of 2 g·l potassium plus 6 g·l -1 liquorice extract gave the highest values of vegetative growt h, mineral values of the leaves, yield and its components.
Islamic Commercial Banks and Sharia Business Units; How Efficient Are They?

The purpose of this study is to determine the efficiency level of Islamic commercial banks and Sharia Business Units for the period of 2012-2017 and to examine the existence of size effect in bank efficiency. Using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) method, this research employs total assets, deposits, and operating costs as the inputs, while the output is total financing and operating income. The samples are 11 Islamic commercial Banks and 20 Sharia Business Units. Results of this study show that Islamic commercial banks are more efficient than Sharia Business Units during the period of analysis and large Islamic commercial banks are more efficient than small sharia business units which provide evidence of size effect existence in bank efficiency. Thus, the policymaker needs to consider bank size in policy formulation regarding bank efficiency.