Physical Child Abuse by Parents and Teachers in Saudi Arabia:A Systematic Literature Review

A systematic review was conducted to find out what is known about the prevalence and nature of physical child abuse in Saudi. The review identified 15 abuse prevalence studies carried out in Saudi Arabia between 1998 and 2016, written in English or Arabic. An analysis of these revealed the known relative prevalence of different types of child abuse, the relationship of the abuser to the victim, and the level of awareness among school professionals of procedures and programs in Saudi to protect children from abuse. The review revealed many shortcomings of the existing literature, including a paucity of published studies, lack of rigor in research design, an absence of data from many parts of the country, and an emphasis on hospital reports rather than data collected directly from victims. Studies conducted to date suggest that physical abuse of children is more widespread and severe in the Kingdom than previously acknowledged

Improved flux linkage observer for position estimation of permanent magnet synchronous linear motor

With the development of motor technology, sensorless control attracts more and more attention. In this paper, an improved flux linkage observer is proposed to overcome issues including inaccurate initial positions and sampling noise. The voltage and current models are combined, and a sliding-mode observer is designed based on the hybrid model to obtain the compensation voltage. Therefore, the estimated flux linkage after compensation can greatly resist the influence caused by inaccurate initial positions or sampling noise. Phase-locked loop technology is used to process the estimated flux linkage to get the stable estimated speed and position. The proposed scheme has a simple structure and only one parameter. It is easy to use and adjust in practice. The simulation and experimental results verify that the proposed algorithm is effective, and the estimated flux linkage and position is accurate with an inaccurate initial position.</p

Reticular dysgenesis-associated AK2 protects hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell development from oxidative stress.

Adenylate kinases (AKs) are phosphotransferases that regulate the cellular adenine nucleotide composition and play a critical role in the energy homeostasis of all tissues. The AK2 isoenzyme is expressed in the mitochondrial intermembrane space and is mutated in reticular dysgenesis (RD), a rare form of severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) in humans. RD is characterized by a maturation arrest in the myeloid and lymphoid lineages, leading to early onset, recurrent, and overwhelming infections. To gain insight into the pathophysiology of RD, we studied the effects of AK2 deficiency using the zebrafish model and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) derived from fibroblasts of an RD patient. In zebrafish, Ak2 deficiency affected hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell (HSPC) development with increased oxidative stress and apoptosis. AK2-deficient iPSCs recapitulated the characteristic myeloid maturation arrest at the promyelocyte stage and demonstrated an increased AMP/ADP ratio, indicative of an energy-depleted adenine nucleotide profile. Antioxidant treatment rescued the hematopoietic phenotypes in vivo in ak2 mutant zebrafish and restored differentiation of AK2-deficient iPSCs into mature granulocytes. Our results link hematopoietic cell fate in AK2 deficiency to cellular energy depletion and increased oxidative stress. This points to the potential use of antioxidants as a supportive therapeutic modality for patients with RD

The Effect of Hepatitis B on Humans

The aim of the study is to know the effect of the hepatitis B virus on humans, how the virus is transmitted, what is the method of preventing it, and what treatment is used to alleviate the severity of the disease. The questionnaire was designed via the Google Drive application and distributed via the social networking application (WhatsApp), with complete transparency to the population targeted by the research. The city of Mecca, from the age of (25-55 years), where 550 questionnaires were distributed via social media application groups (WhatsApp) according to available conditions (distancing), and answers to 525 questionnaires were obtained

One fungus, which genes?: development and assessment of universal primers for potential secondary fungal DNA barcodes

The aim of this study was to assess potential candidate gene regions and corresponding universal primer pairs as secondary DNA barcodes for the fungal kingdom, additional to ITS rDNA as primary barcode. Amplification efficiencies of 14 (partially) universal primer pairs targeting eight genetic markers were tested across > 1 500 species (1 931 strains or specimens) and the outcomes of almost twenty thousand (19 577) polymerase chain reactions were evaluated. We tested several well-known primer pairs that amplify: i) sections of the nuclear ribosomal RNA gene large subunit (D1-D2 domains of 26/28S); ii) the complete internal transcribed spacer region (ITS1/2); iii) partial beta-tubulin II (TUB2); iv) gamma-actin (ACT); v) translation elongation factor 1-alpha (TEF1 alpha); and vi) the second largest subunit of RNA-polymerase II (partial RPB2, section 5-6). Their PCR efficiencies were compared with novel candidate primers corresponding to: i) the fungal-specific translation elongation factor 3 (TEF3); ii) a small ribosomal protein necessary for t-RNA docking; iii) the 60S L10 (L1) RP; iv) DNA topoisomerase I (TOPI); v) phosphoglycerate kinase (PGK); vi) hypothetical protein LNS2; and vii) alternative sections of TEF1 alpha. Results showed that several gene sections are accessible to universal primers (or primers universal for phyla) yielding a single PCR-product. Barcode gap and multi-dimensional scaling analyses revealed that some of the tested candidate markers have universal properties providing adequate infra- and inter-specific variation that make them attractive barcodes for species identification. Among these gene sections, a novel high fidelity primer pair for TEF1 alpha, already widely used as a phylogenetic marker in mycology, has potential as a supplementary DNA barcode with superior resolution to ITS. Both TOPI and PGK show promise for the Ascomycota, while TOPI and LNS2 are attractive for the Pucciniomycotina, for which universal primers for ribosomal subunits often fail

Risk associated with malaria infection in Tihama Qahtan, Aseer region, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: 2006-2007

Introduction: Since 2004, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has pursued a policy of malaria elimination. The distribution of malaria at this time was constrained to regions located in the South Western part of the country. The present study aimed to understand the risk of malaria infection and factors associated with these events between March 2006 and August 2007 in one part of Aseer region. Methods: The study was carried out in Tihama Qahtan area in the far southeastern part of Aseer, historically the most malaria endemic area of this region. The area covers 54 villages served by three primary health care centres (Wadi Alhayah, Alfarsha and Albuqaa). Malaria cases were detected using passive case detection (PCD) at the three health centres for 18 months from March 2006, each positive case was investigated using patient and household level enquiries. In addition, four cross-sectional surveys in 12 villages were undertaken using rapid diagnostic tests within the catchments of each health centre coinciding with malaria transmission seasons. Results: Among 1840 individuals examined in the PCD survey, 49 (2.7%) were positive for malaria, most were Plasmodium falciparum cases and one was a P. vivax case. The majority of these infections were likely to have been acquired outside of the area and represent imported cases, including those from the neighboring region of Jazan. Among the 18 locally acquired cases, the majority were adult males who slept outdoors. 3623 individuals were screened during the cross-sectional surveys, 16 (0.44%) were positive and infections only detected during peak, potential transmission periods. Conclusion: There was evidence of local malaria transmission in the Tihama Qahtan area in 2006-2007, however prevalence and incidence of new infections was very low, making the future ambitions of elimination biologically feasible. The constant source of imported infections must be considered in the area’s elimination ambitions, alongside strong behavioural community messages about sleeping outdoors unprotected and travel to malaria endemic areas outside the region

Proposed nomenclature for Pseudallescheria, Scedosporium and related genera

As a result of fundamental changes in the International Code of Nomenclature on the use of separate names for sexual and asexual stages of fungi, generic names of many groups should be reconsidered. Members of the ECMM/ISHAM working group on Pseudallescheria/Scedosporium infections herein advocate a novel nomenclature for genera and species in Pseudallescheria, Scedosporium and allied taxa. The generic names Parascedosporium, Lomentospora, Petriella, Petriellopsis, and Scedosporium are proposed for a lineage within Microascaceae with mostly Scedosporium anamorphs producing slimy, annellidic conidia. Considering that Scedosporium has priority over Pseudallescheria and that Scedosporium prolificans is phylogenetically distinct from the other Scedosporium species, some name changes are proposed. Pseudallescheria minutispora and Petriellidium desertorum are renamed as Scedosporium minutisporum and S. desertorum, respectively. Scedosporium prolificans is renamed as Lomentospora prolificans

Glioblastoma treatment in the elderly in the temozolomide therapy era

BACKGROUND: optimal treatment of glioblastoma (gBM) in the elderly remains unclear. the impact of age on treatment planning, toxicity, and efficacy at a Canadian Cancer Centre was retrospectively reviewed. METHODS: glioblastoma patients treated consecutively between 2004 and 2008 were reviewed. utilizing 70 years as the threshold for definition of an elderly patient, treatments and outcome were compared in younger and elderly populations. RESULTS: four hundred and twenty one patients were included in this analysis and median overall survival (oS) for the entire cohort was 9.8 months. 290 patients were aged &lt;70 (median age 57, range 17- 69) and 131 were aged ≥ 70 (median age 76, range 70-93). patients ≥ 70 were more likely to receive best supportive care (BSC) and all patients &gt;70 who were treated with radiotherapy received &lt;60 gy (P&lt;0.001), except one. patients aged &gt;70 demonstrated inferior survival (one year oS 16% versus 54% for those &lt;70, hr 3.46, P&lt;0.001). in patients treated with BSC only, age had no impact on survival (median survival two months in both groups, hr 0.89, P=0.75). for those treated with higher doses of radiotherapy (&gt;30 gy to &lt;60 gy), one year survival was 19% versus 24% in patients aged &gt;70 versus &lt;70 (hr 1.47, P=0.02) respectively. CONCLUSION: in this retrospective single institution series, elderly patients were more likely to be treated with BSC or palliative doses of radiotherapy. randomized phase iii study results are required for guidance in treatment of this population of patients