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Background Human adenoviruses (HAdVs) frequently cause common respiratory or gastrointestinal infections among children, adults, individuals with immune deficiencies, and other vulnerable populations with varying degree of symptoms, ranging from mild to server, and in some cases, even fatalities. Despite the significant clinical impact of HAdVs, there is currently no approved vaccine available. Methods This study explores the potential of the adenovirus type 5 fiber knob (Ad5-FK) to stimulate the production of Ad-specific neutralizing antibodies and T-cell responses in mice. Based on structure predictions, we first expressed Ad5-FK in E. coli and confirmed the assembly of FK into its trimeric form. After testing the binding capability of the trimeric FK to susceptible cells, the immunogenicity of the protein in combination with the c-di-AMP adjuvant was assessed in BALB/c mice. Results The purified Ad5-FK exhibited self-trimerization and maintained correct conformation akin to the authentic FK structure. This facilitated effective binding to susceptible HEK293 cells. Notably, the protein demonstrated significant inhibition of HEK293 cells infection by rAd5-GFP. Immunization of BALB/c mice with Ad5-FK, or Ad5-FK mixed with c-di-AMP yielded FK-specific antibodies with potent neutralization capacity. Significantly, Ad5-FK was found to elicit a vigorous CD4 + T-cell response in the immunized mice. Conclusion Our findings underscore the efficacy of FK-based vaccine in eliciting anti-Ad humoral immune response and CD4 T-cell immune reactions essential for protection against viral infections.

New composite membranes of polysulfone (PSu) and cellulose acetate (CA) incorporated with pre-synthesized chitosan grafted p-phenylenediamine (Ch-g-PDA) were prepared and tested for uranium adsorption. The new composite membrane offers easily handling, low cost and reasonable efficiency adsorptive candidate. The prepared membranes were characterized with FTIR, XRD, SEM and EDX. Application of the new membranes in uranium removal from its waste was investigated. Optimization the adsorption variables as metal ion concentration, pH and contact time were performed followed with adsorption isotherm and kinetics models in order to estimate the adsorption mechanism and rate. The Langmuir model can define the isotherm adsorption with a maximum capacity of 44 mg g−1 and 39 mg g−1 for synthesized PSu/C-g-PDA and CA/C-g-PDA, respectively, within short time. Uranium adsorption experimental data demonstrated that both adsorbents were well fitting with Langmuir isotherm and pseudo-second order kinetics model. The reusability of the membrane in six adsorption desorption cycles, resulted in adsorption efficiency of 85.8, and 83.8 % for for synthesized PSu/C-g-PDA and CA/C-g-PDA, respectively, of the initial values which indicate the stability and efficiency of the composite membranes in U removal from waste solution.

Chemical grafting of low-density polyethylene film blended with ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber (PE/EPDM) using styrene monomer followed by a sulfonation process was investigated. Different factors affecting the grafting process, such as monomer and initiator concentrations, time of reaction, and grafting temperature, were studied. Sulfonation of the grafted films was carried out using chlorosulfonic acid in dichloromethane. Characterization of the grafted and sulfonated films was performed using ATR-FTIR, SEM, TGA, and XRD instruments. The grafting was successfully performed in aqueous media using sodium bisulfite as initiator, reaching a grafting yield of 130% and an ion exchange capacity of 1.2 m eq /g. The removal of thorium ions from aqueous solution was studied using the obtained ion exchange films. The results showed that the maximum adsorption capacity of Th(IV) was 177.5 mg. g −1 (pH = 3, 298 K and 60 min). Removal isotherm and Kinetics were investigated, and the results revealed that the adsorption process was chemisorption homogeneous monolayer adsorption, exothermic, and spontaneous.

Hatcheries have the power to spread antimicrobial resistant (AMR) pathogens through the poultry value chain because of their central position in the poultry production chain. Currently, no information is available about the presence of AMR Escherichia coli strains and the antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) they harbor within hatchezries. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the possible involvement of hatcheries in harboring hemolytic AMR E . coli . Serotyping of the 65 isolated hemolytic E . coli revealed 15 serotypes with the ability to produce moderate biofilms, and shared susceptibility to cephradine and fosfomycin and resistance to spectinomycin. The most common β-lactam resistance gene was bla TEM , followed by bla OXA-1 , bla MOX -like , bla CIT -like , bla SHV and bla FOX . Hierarchical clustering of E . coli isolates based on their phenotypic and genotypic profiles revealed separation of the majority of isolates from hatchlings and the hatchery environments, suggesting that hatchling and environmental isolates may have different origins. The high frequency of β-lactam resistance genes in AMR E . coli from chick hatchlings indicates that hatcheries may be a reservoir of AMR E . coli and can be a major contributor to the increased environmental burden of ARGs posing an eminent threat to poultry and human health.

This study aims to map the rock types in the Um Had region by integrating remote sensing applications of Landsat-8 (OLI) image processing, field studies, and petrographic investigations. The present work involves updating the existing geological map of the Um Had area in the central Eastern Desert, Egypt, due to the lack of a precise and accurate geological map. Several rock types dating to the Neoproterozoic Era, including oceanic crust (ophiolitic and island arc) and continental crust assemblages, originated in the region during two tectonic stages (late to post-orogenic and syn-orogenic). Remote sensing technology is already widely utilized for various geological domains like mineralogy, lithology mapping, geomorphology, and others. In our study, it is specifically used for lithological mapping. We utilized the optimum index factor and correlation coefficient methods to identify the most effective results from False-Color Composite (FCC), Principal Component Analysis (PC), and Band Ratio (BR). These techniques, combined with supervised classification, enabled us to distinguish among different rock units based on their spectral signatures. All results were combined with the previously mentioned techniques that include principal component images (PC1, PC4, and PC3; PC2, PC3, and PC4) and band ratio images (2/4, 5/7, and 5/3 × 2; 4/2, 5/6, and 6/7). Consequently, this supported the geological mapping and confirmed the field and petrographic investigations. This approach enabled the identification of seventeen distinct rock units, namely serpentinite, biotite schist, talc schist, metabasalt, metaandesite, metadacite, metarhyolite, metagabbro, quartz diorite, tonalite, rhyolite, granodiorite, monzogranite, syenogranite, siltstone, graywacke, and conglomerate. A comparative analysis of the newly modified and created lithological maps with previously published maps of the Um Had region significantly enhanced the accuracy and robustness of geological mapping and rock unit identification.

Background The present investigation was an endeavor into the elucidation of the disease-causing pathogen of streptococcosis in Nile tilapia ( Oreochromis niloticus ) in Egypt affecting adult fish cultured and wild fish in the Nile river. Fish were obtained from commercial fishermen, collected as part of their routine fishing activities. The researchers observed the routine fishing process and selected fish for use in the study, at the point of purchase from the fisherman. Results Diseased fish showed exophthalmia with accumulation of purulent and haemorrhagic fluid around eyes, and ventral petechial haemorrhages. The Post mortem examination revealed, abdominal fat haemorrhage, pericarditis and enlargement of the liver, spleen and kidney. Gram-stained smears revealed the presence of Gram-positive cocci, β-hemolytic, oxidase and catalase negative. Analysis of the 16S rRNA gene confirmed that the 17 tilapia isolates studied were 6/17 Enterococcus faecalis, 2/17 Enterococcus gallinarum, 3/17  Streptococcus pluranimalium, 2/17 Aerococcus viridans, 1/17 isolate of each Streptococcus dysgalactiae, Streptococcus anginosus, Lactococcus garvieae and Granulicetella elegans / Leuconostoc mesenteroides cremoris . It should be noted that there was no mixed infection. Multiple resistance was observed and the most frequent antibiotic combination was penicillin, ampicillin, vancomycin, chloramphenicol, rifampicin, ofloxacin, clindamycin, erythromycin and tetracycline representing eight classes. Conclusions Consequently, we concluded that Streptococcus species are an emerging pathogen for Nile tilapia aquaculture in Egypt and to be considered as a new candidate in the warm water fish diseases in Egypt with special reference to L. garvieae, S. dysgalactiae in addition to L. mesenteroides cremoris which was not reported before from tilapia and taking into consideration their zoonotic implications for public health.

Purpose Axillary dissection has been shown to be equivalent to axillary radiotherapy in the AMAROS trial; however, extracapsular invasion of sentinel lymph nodes was not considered among the evaluated variables. The clinical significance of extracapsular extension (ECE) in one or two positive sentinel lymph nodes remains under investigation. This study aims to evaluate the impact of targeted axillary radiation therapy while omitting completion axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) in the presence of extracapsular extension. Methods A retrospective study was conducted between 2016 and 2023 involving cT1–2N0 breast cancer patients who did not receive neoadjuvant chemotherapy and underwent either breast-conserving surgery or mastectomy, with extracapsular extension present in one or two positive sentinel lymph nodes. Results Our study included 213 patients treated between 2016 and 2023, with a median follow-up of 48.07 months (range: 9.07–103.10 months). ECE was ≤ 2 mm in 201 patients (94.4%) and > 2 mm in 12 patients (5.6%). A total of 112 patients (52.6%) underwent completion ALND. Systemic recurrence occurred in 24 patients (11.3%), while local recurrence occurred in one patient (0.5%). The 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) rates were 86% in the completion axillary clearance (AC) group and 89% in the non-AC group. The estimated DFS rates for the entire study at 1, 3, and 5 years were 97%, 89%, and 86%, respectively. Conclusions Within this single-institution study of early breast cancer patients with predominantly luminal A subtype and mostly limited ECE (≤ 2 mm) treated with targeted axillary radiation, omission of ALND did not result in inferior DFS compared to completion ALND. However, these findings are preliminary, hypothesis-generating, and limited by the retrospective design, short follow-up, and specific patient population studied. Prospective studies are needed to confirm these observations. Trial registration Retrospectively registered after the approval of Baheya Ethical Committee, IRB no. 202,304,030,017.

Hand hygiene is the key factor to control and prevent the spread of infections, for example, hospital-acquired infections (HAIs). People commonly use alcohol-based hand sanitizers to assure hand hygiene. However, frequent use of alcohol-based hand sanitizers in a pandemic situation (e.g., COVID-19) was associated with serious drawbacks such as skin toxicity including irritation, skin dermatitis, and skin dryness or cracking, along with peeling, redness, or itching with higher possibility of infection. This demands the development of alternative novel products that are effective as alcohol-based hand sanitizers but have no hazardous effects. Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) are known to have broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity, be compatible with the biological system and the environment, and have applicable and economic industrial-scale production. Thus, ZnO-NPs might be a good candidate for hand sanitation. To the best of our knowledge, the antibacterial activity of ZnO-NPs in comparison to alcohol-based hand sanitizers has not yet been studied. In the present work, a comparative study of the antibacterial activity of ZnO-NPs vs. Sterillium, a commercial alcohol-based hand sanitizer that is commonly used in Egyptian hospitals, was performed against common microorganisms known to cause HAIs in Egypt, including Acinetobacter baumannii, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), and Staphylococcus aureus. The safety profiles of ZnO-NPs and Sterillium were also assessed. The obtained results demonstrated the superior antibacterial activity and safety of ZnO-NPs compared to Sterillium. Therefore, ZnO-NPs could be a promising candidate for hand sanitation in comparison to alcohol-based hand sanitizers; however, several studies related to long-term toxicity and stability of ZnO-NPs and investigations into their antimicrobial activity and safety in healthcare settings are still required in the future to ascertain their antimicrobial activity and safety.

The exponential spread of news and posts related to the COVID-19 pandemic on social media platforms led to the emergence of the disinformation phenomenon. The phenomenon of spreading fake information and news creates significant concern for the public health and safety of the population. In this paper, we propose a disinformation detection framework based on multi-task learning (MTL) and meta-heuristic algorithms in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The developed framework uses an MTL and a pre-trained transformer-based model to learn and extract contextual feature representations from Arabic social media posts. The extracted contextual representations are fed to an alternative feature selection technique which depends on modified version of the Fire Hawk Optimizer. The proposed framework, which aims to improve the disinformation detection rate, was evaluated on several datasets of Arabic social media posts. The experimental results show that the proposed framework can achieve accuracy of 59%. It obtained, at best, precision, recall, and F-measure of 53%, 71%, and 53%, respectively, on all datasets; and it outperformed the other algorithms in all measures.

A comparison of the efficacy of apathogenic genotype I (V4) and lentogenic genotype II (LaSota) strains of live Newcastle disease virus (NDV) vaccines was performed following vaccination with pathogen-associated molecular pattern (PAMP) H9N2 avian influenza vaccine and challenge with velogenic NDV genotype VII.1.1 (vNDV-VII.1.1). Eight groups (Gs) of day-old chicks were used (n = 25). Groups 1–4 received a single dose of PAMP-H9N2 subcutaneously, while Gs (1, 5) and (2, 6) received eye drops of V4 and LaSota, respectively, as two doses. All Gs, except for 4 and 8, were intramuscularly challenged with vNDV-VII.1.1 at 28 days of age. No signs were detected in Gs 1, 5, 4, and 8. The mortality rates were 0% in Gs 1, 4, 5, and 8; 40% in G2; 46.66% in G6; and 100% in Gs 3 and 7. Lesions were recorded as minimal in Gs 1 and 5, but mild to moderate in Gs 2 and 6. The lowest significant viral shedding was detected in Gs 1, 2, and 5. In conclusion, two successive vaccinations of broilers with a live V4 NDV vaccine provided higher protection against vNDV-VII.1.1 challenge than LaSota. PAMP-H9N2 with live NDV vaccines induced more protection than the live vaccine alone.