SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence and associated factors among outpatient attendees at health facilities in different provinces in Chad.

Background: Chad with 7,698 confirmed cases of infection and 194 deaths since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, is one of the African countries with the lowest reported case numbers. However, this figure likely underestimates the true spread of the virus due to the low rate of diagnosis. The high rate of asymptomatic infections reflects the reality of SARS-CoV-2 transmission in Chad.

Antibiotic prescription prevalence in Iranian outpatients: A focus on defined daily doses and the AWaRe classification system.

Background: The inappropriate use and overprescription of antibiotics pose a global health threat, particularly contributing to antimicrobial resistance. This study aims to evaluate antibiotic prescription prevalence in Iranian outpatients using the defined daily doses (DDD) and Access, Watch, and Reserve classification systems.

Methods: This retrospective study analyzed electronic prescriptions for systemic antibiotics in Tehran, Iran, from March 2022 to March 2023.

Evaluation of the Correlation Between the Structural Parameters of Trabecular Bone in CBCT and the Primary Stability of Dental Implants.

Purpose: To investigate the relationship between the structural parameters of trabecular bone obtained from CBCT imaging and the primary stability of dental implants.

Materials And Methods: Sixty patients underwent implant placement followed by primary stability evaluation via measurement of the insertion torque (IT) and the implant stability quotient (ISQ). Gray values (GV) and the fractal dimension (FD) were also measured using pretreatment CBCT images.

Cigarette smoke extract acts directly on CD4 T cells to enhance Th1 polarization and reduce memory potential.

Although cigarette smoke is known to alter immune responses, whether and how CD4 T cells are affected is not well-described. We aimed to characterize how exposure to cigarette smoke extract impacts CD4 T cell effector generation in vitro under Th1-polarizing conditions. Our results demonstrate that cigarette smoke directly acts on CD4 T cells to impair effector expansion by decreasing division and increasing apoptosis.

Interaction of Methanol Spray and Water-Deficit Stress on Photosynthesis and Biochemical Characteristics of Phaseolus vulgaris L. cv. Sadry.

This study was a factorial experiment with a completely randomized design and three replications. The four levels of methanol spraying were used. Spraying was carried out three times during the growing season at 10-day intervals beginning at 4 weeks after sowing.

A short-term, multicomponent infection control program in nursing homes: a cluster randomized controlled trial.

Objectives: To assess the impact of a hygiene-encouragement program on reducing infection rates (primary end point) by 5%.

Design: A cluster randomized study was carried out over a 5-month period.

Settings And Participants: Fifty nursing homes (NHs) with 4345 beds in France were randomly assigned by stratified-block randomization to either a multicomponent intervention (25 NHs) or an assessment only (25 NHs).

Photocatalytic degradation of monoethanolamine in wastewater using nanosized TiO2 loaded on clinoptilolite.

The use of titanium dioxide (TiO(2)) as photocatalyst to degrade the organic compounds is an effective method of oxidation process and has been widely studied in environmental engineering. In this investigation photocatalytic degradation of monoethanolamine (MEA) using TiO(2) (in form of anatase) loaded on surface of clinoptilolite (CP) (TiO(2)-CP) in wastewater was studied. The surface interaction between TiO(2) and CP was investigated by means of transmission electron microscope (TEM), atom force microscope (AFM), IR and X-ray diffraction (XRD).

Determination of Venus Winds by Ground-Based Radio Tracking of the VEGA Balloons.

A global array of 20 radio observatories was used to measure the three-dimensional position and velocity of the two meteorological balloons that were injected into the equatorial region of the Venus atmosphere near Venus midnight by the VEGA spacecraft on 11 and 15 June 1985. Initial analysis of only radial velocities indicates that each balloon was blown westward about 11,500 kilometers (8,000 kilometers on the night side) by zonal winds with a mean speed of about 70 meters per second. Excursions of the data from a model of constant zonal velocity were generally less than 3 meters per second; however, a much larger variation was evident near the end of the flight of the second balloon.

Overview of VEGA Venus Balloon in Situ Meteorological Measurements.

The VEGA balloons made in situ measurements of pressure, temperature, vertical wind velocity, ambient light, frequency of lightning, and cloud particle backscatter. Both balloons encountered highly variable atmospheric conditions, with periods of intense vertical winds occurring sporadically throughout their flights. Downward winds as large as 3.