Awareness and acceptance of human papillomavirus vaccine in the Middle East: A systematic review, meta-analysis, and meta-regression of 159 studies.

Cervical cancer, closely linked to human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, is a major global health concern. Our study aims to fill the gap in understanding HPV vaccine awareness and acceptance in the Middle East, where national immunization programs are often lacking and cultural perceptions hinder acceptance. This systematic review and meta-analysis adhered to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines.

A comprehensive review on the treatment of pesticide-contaminated wastewater with special emphasis on organophosphate pesticides using constructed wetlands.

Pesticides pose a significant threat to aquatic ecosystems due to their persistent nature and adverse effects on biota. The increased detection of pesticides in various water bodies has prompted research into their toxicological impacts and potential remediation strategies. However, addressing this issue requires the establishment of robust regulatory frameworks to determine safe thresholds for pesticide concentrations in water and the development of effective treatment methods.

Oral Risk Factors in Patients with Cancer Undergoing Chemotherapy - A Pilot Study.

Background: Treatment modalities for cancer including surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy, have some complications even in the oral cavity. The literature describes oral lesions that may arise as a result of chemotherapy. However, information regarding oral symptoms in advanced cancer patients is poor.

Seroprevalence of human brucellosis in Turkey: A comprehensive meta-analysis.

Aims: Brucellosis remains a common zoonotic disease, in developing countries, as well as in Turkey where it is endemic, underdiagnosed, and underreported. The aim of this meta-analysis was to provide a comprehensive estimate of seroprevalence with a large sample size, covering all regions of Turkey, including both grey literature and published studies.

Methods And Results: A systematic search was performed in MEDLINE (via PubMed), TürkMedline (National Health Sciences-Periodicals Database), and YÖKSİS database (Higher Education Council Information System) until May 5th, 2023.

Social and Cultural Insights into Healthy Aging: A Qualitative Study from the South Indian City of Bengaluru, India.

Background: Qualitative methods through lived experience narratives provide relevant sociocultural insights into healthy aging.

Objectives: The aim of this qualitative study was to explore social and cultural perceptions of healthy aging from older adults (OAs), their next of kin, and those involved in providing services to OAs in Bengaluru, India.

Materials And Methods: We conducted in-depth interviews with 28 participants, all purposefully selected based on specific inclusion criteria, to get as varied a sample as possible.

Optimal cut-off value of procalcitonin and procalcitonin/albumin ratio for predicting bacteremia among patients living with cancer: a test-negative case-control study.

Objective: The occurrence of bacteremia is critically important for the survival of cancer patients. Therefore, our study aims to evaluate the efficacy of procalcitonin (PCT) and the procalcitonin to albumin ratio (PAR) in predicting bacteremia among this population.

Methods: In this retrospective test-negative case-control study, we included 903 hospitalized cancer patients, divided into two groups: the bacteremia-positive group (BSI group,  = 384) and the bacteremia-negative group (non-BSI group,  = 519).

Influential Factors of Tuberculosis Notification Rates in Turkey: A Provincial-Level Spatial Analysis.

Objective: The total annual count of reported tuberculosis (TB) cases continues to decline throughout Turkey. Recognizing the regions with high and low burdens and revealing the factors affecting TB notification rates may play a role in guiding national control programs. This study aimed to analyze the spatial distribution of TB notification rates from 2005 to 2018 and evaluate the factors contributing to TB rates.

Design and development of benzyl piperazine linked 5-phenyl-1,2,4-triazole-3-thione conjugates as potential agents to combat Alzheimer's disease.

Our present work demonstrates the molecular hybridization-assisted design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of 22 benzylpiperazine-linked 1,2,4-triazole compounds (PD1-22) as AD modifying agents. All the compounds were tested for their in vitro hChEs, hBACE-1, and Aβ-aggregation inhibition properties. Among them, compound PD-08 and PD-22 demonstrated good hChE and hBACE-1 inhibition as compared to standards donepezil and rivastigmine.

Risk factors for prolonged viral RNA shedding in patients with COVID-19; a nested case-control study.

Introduction: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic continues to have a global impact. The behavior and viral course of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) remains unpredictable. We aimed to investigate the prediction factors associated with prolonged viral shedding in COVID-19 patients.

Screening of AS101 analog, organotellurolate (IV) compound 2 for its in vitro biocompatibility, anticancer, and antibacterial activities.

Organotellurium compounds are being well researched as potential candidates for their functional roles in therapeutic and clinical biology. Here, we report the in vitro anticancer and antibacterial activities of an AS101 analog, cyclic zwitterionic organotellurolate (IV) compound 2 [Te{CHCH(NH)COO}(Cl)]. Different concentrations of compound 2 were exposed to fibroblast L929 and breast cancer MCF-7 cell lines to study its effect on cell viability.

Clinical efficacy and safety of prolonged versus intermittent administration of antipseudomonal beta-lactam antibiotics in adults with severe acute infections: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Introduction: In order to compare the clinical efficacy and safety of prolonged versus intermittent antipseudomonal beta-lactam antibiotic infusion for the treatment of severe acute infections in adult patients, a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was performed.

Methods: We systematically searched MEDLINE and Cochrane Library databases until December 2022. The outcomes were all-cause mortality, clinical success, microbiological eradication and adverse events.

Acoustic shock waves emitted from two interacting laser generated plasmas in air.

We present an acoustic detection technique to study the interaction of two shock waves emitted by two nearby, simultaneous, laser-induced air-breakdown events that resembles the phenomenon of interaction of fluids. A microphone is employed to detect the acoustic shock wave (ASW) from the interaction zone. The experiments were done at various separation distances between the two plasma sources.

Development and validation of a comprehensive needs assessment tool to assess the burden of cancer chemotherapy patients attending a tertiary care hospital.

Introduction: In India in 2020, there were an estimated 1.39 million cancers present in the country. Chemotherapy patients experience several problems such as ADRs (adverse drug reactions), and because of this, many dropouts have been happening.

"Healthy Heart, Healthy You": Ten-Year Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) Risk among Adults in Anekal Taluk Hospital, Bangalore Urban District, Karnataka.

Background: Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) is the leading cause of mortality globally. Over 75% of CVD deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries.

Objectives: To assess the 10-year CVD risk among adults aged 30 years and above attending the outpatient department at a Taluk Hospital, Bangalore Urban District, Karnataka.

Nanohybrids as Protein-Polymer Conjugate Multimodal Therapeutics.

Protein therapeutic formulations are being widely explored as multifunctional nanotherapeutics. Challenges in ensuring susceptibility and efficacy of nanoformulation still prevail owing to various interactions with biological fluids before reaching the target site. Smart polymers with the capability of masking drugs, ease of chemical modification, and multi-stimuli responsiveness can assist controlled delivery.

Designing nanoformulation for the nose-to-brain delivery in Parkinson's disease: Advancements and barrier.

Parkinson's disease (PD), a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the degeneration of dopaminergic neurons, which results in the loss of motor activity. In the management of PD, the primary aim is to increase the dopamine content in the brain either by delivering the precursors of dopamine or by inhibiting the molecules responsible for dopamine degradation. Due to the low bioavailability, a higher dosage of drugs needs to be administered repeatedly for achieving the desired therapeutic effect.

Evaluation of Multivalent Sialylated Polyglycerols for Resistance Induction in and Broad Antiviral Activity against Influenza A Viruses.

The development of multivalent sialic acid-based inhibitors active against a variety of influenza A virus (IAV) strains has been hampered by high genetic and structural variability of the targeted viral hemagglutinin (HA). Here, we addressed this challenge by employing sialylated polyglycerols (PGs). Efficacy of prototypic PGs was restricted to a narrow spectrum of IAV strains.

Impact of a Residential Rural Community-Based Training Program for Medical Students on Cognitive and Affective Domains of Learning in Community Medicine: A Mixed Methods Study.

Introduction: As part of undergraduate training in community medicine, students of 1-year MBBS at our medical college in South India undergo rural residential community-based training called Rural Orientation Program (ROP).

Objective: The objective was to study the impact of ROP at a medical college in South India.

Methodology: Short-term impact was studied immediately before and after ROP using a 30-item questionnaire administered to 142 students.

Psychosocial Intervention Model of Kerala, India During Pandemic COVID-19: "Ottakkalla Oppamundu (You're not alone, we're with you)".

Globally, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in several psychosocial manifestations across all socioeconomic strata. This study attempted to explore the details of a psychosocial support system implemented in Kerala, India, to address psychosocial issues during this pandemic. It employed a descriptive approach using qualitative and quantitative methods.

Effect of focusing element-induced aberrations on filamentation and supercontinuum emission in ambient air.

Femtosecond laser pulse induced filamentation in atmosphere is susceptible to a number of input laser, focusing optics and medium characteristics. Filamentation of fs pulses in atmosphere is an intense propagation regime where the focusing geometry used to focus the fs laser pulses play an important role influencing the filament intensity and the associated supercontinuum. We identified different optical elements used for focusing the fs laser pulses leading to filamentation in air and classified them according to the induced aberrations.

Spatio-temporal characterization of ablative Cu plasma produced by femtosecond filaments.

We present the spatial and temporal characterization of the copper (Cu) plasma produced by the femtosecond laser filaments. The filaments of various lengths and intensities were generated with the aid of three different focusing lenses. Further, the filamentation induced breakdown spectroscopy (FIBS) measurements were carried out for each filament at three different positions along the length of the filament.

Supercontinuum generation from zinc borate glasses: bandgap versus rare-earth doping.

We report an enhanced supercontinuum generation (SCG) from a rare-earth () doped low bandgap zinc borate glass when excited with 60 fs pulses from a Ti-sapphire laser. The emission associated with the absorption bands due to doping (around 420-500 and 580-600 nm) is observed to assist the enhanced SCG.