Structural, Elastic, Electronic and Optical Properties of SrTMO₃ (TM = Rh, Zr) Compounds: Insights from FP-LAPW Study.

The structural, mechanical, electronic and optical properties of SrTMO₃ (TM = Rh, Zr) compounds are investigated by using first principle calculations based on density functional theory (DFT). The exchange-correlation potential was treated with the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) for the structural properties. Moreover, the modified Becke-Johnson (mBJ) approximation was also employed for the electronic properties.

Genetic diversity of Taenia hydatigena in the northern part of the West Bank, Palestine as determined by mitochondrial DNA sequences.

Cysticercus tenuicollis is the metacestode of canine tapeworm Taenia hydatigena, which has been reported in domestic and wild ruminants and is causing veterinary and economic losses in the meat industry. This study was conducted to determine the sequence variation in the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (coxl) gene in 20 isolates of T. hydatigena metacestodes (cysticercus tenuicollis) collected from northern West Bank in Palestine.

Assessment of antifungal activity of herbal and conventional toothpastes against clinical isolates of Candida albicans.

Objective: To detect the anticandidal activity of nine toothpastes containing sodium fluoride, sodium monofluorophosphate and herbal extracts as an active ingredients against 45 oral and non oral Candida albicans (C. albicans) isolates.

Methods: The antifungal activity of these toothpaste formulations was determined using a standard agar well diffusion method.

Molecular characterization of Echinococcus granulosus isolated from sheep in Palestine.

A total of twenty-three Echinococcus granulosus hydatid cysts were collected from infected sheep slaughtered in Nablus abattoir, Nablus - Palestine. Protoscoleces or germinal membranes were used for DNA extraction followed by PCR amplification. Amplified products were analyzed the presence of a fragment of 444bp of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) gene followed by nucleotide sequencing.

Effect of ethanolic extract of Ecballium elaterium against Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans.

Objective: To evaluate the antimicrobial activity of ethanolic extract of Ecballium elaterium (E. elaterium) fruits alone against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) strains and Candida albicans (C.

Larval stages of digenetic trematodes in Melanopsis praemorsa snails from freshwater bodies in Palestine.

Objective: To detect the species of larval trematodes (cercariae) in Melanopsis praemorsa snails from 5 different fresh water bodies in Palestine.

Methods: A total of 1 880 Melanopsis praemorsa snails were collected from different fresh water bodies in Palestine from October, 2008 to November, 2010. Cercariae in Melanopsis praemorsa snails were obtained by lighting and crushing methods.

CdS-sensitized TiO2 in phenazopyridine photo-degradation: catalyst efficiency, stability and feasibility assessment.

Mineralization of phenazopyridine, 1, in water, under solar-simulator radiation was efficiently achieved using nanoparticle CdS-sensitized rutile TiO(2), TiO(2)/CdS, 2, as photo-catalysts. Despite that, 2 showed two main drawbacks. Firstly, the system was difficult to recover by simple filtration, and demanded centrifugation.

Community-acquired meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Palestine.

Community-acquired meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) is becoming an important public-health problem. This study attempted to investigate S. aureus and MRSA colonization in nasal swabs obtained from 843 patients without a history of hospitalization at the time of hospital admission and from 72 health-care workers chosen for comparison.

Spectrophotometric determination of nitrite and nitrate using phosphomolybdenum blue complex.

A method for spectrophotometric determination of nitrite and nitrate is described. This method is based on the reduction of phosphomolybdic acid to phosphomolybdenum blue complex by sodium sulfide. The obtained phosphomolybdenum blue complex is oxidized by the addition of nitrite and this causes a reduction in intensity of the blue color.

Spectrophotometric determination of some aromatic amines.

A method for spectrophotometric determination of four aromatic amines is described. The method is based on the reaction between the amine and the colorless Fe(III)-ferrozine complex. The amine reduces iron from Fe(III) to Fe(II) which forms a violet colored complex with ferrozine.

Synthesis of a new series of heterocyclic scaffolds for medicinal purposes.

A new series of substituted 8-fluro-4H-pyrimido[2,1-b] [1,3]benzothiazole-4-ones () substituted 7-methyl-4H-isoxazolo[2,3-a]pyrimidin-4-ones, and substituted 2-methyl-5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-9H-isoxazolo[2,3-a]pyridopyrimidin-9-ones, compounds I-VII, have been prepared via condensation of beta-keto esters with 2-aminopyridine derivatives, in the presence of polyphosphoric acid. The same technique has also been used to prepare diazepine compounds, VIII-X, by condensation of a gamma-keto ester with 2-aminopyridine derivatives. Details of synthetic procedures are shown.

Nosocomial infection caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Palestine.

This report presents the prevalence of Palestinian isolates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in nosocomial infections and their antibiotic resistant pattern. A total of 321 clinical isolates of S. aureus were identified from different patients.

Isolation of shiga toxigenic Escherichia coli from raw beef in Palestine.

Shiga toxigenic Escherichia coli (STEC) isolated from raw beef samples in northern Palestine during a 1-year period were characterized for virulence genes by a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay and screened for their antibiotic resistance. STEC was identified in 44 (14.7%) of 300 raw beef samples.

Molecular epidemiology of antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli isolated from hospitalized patients with urinary tract infections in Northern Palestine.

Eighty isolates of Escherichia coli were collected in Northern Palestine throughout the 1996 to 2000 period from hospitalized patients with urinary tract infections (UTIs). Resistance rates were ampicillin, 65%; co-trimoxazole, 55%; cefuroxime, 10%; cefotaxime, 7.5%; ceftazidime, 2.

Isolation and characterisation of Shiga toxigenic Escherichia coli strains from northern Palestine.

Shiga toxigenic Escherichia coli (STEC) isolates from symptomatic and asymptomatic patients in northern Palestine in 1999 were screened for serotype O157 and characterised for virulence genes by multiplex PCR assay. Of the 176 STEC isolates, 124 (70.5%) were of serotype O157.

Gentamicin resistance in clinical strains of Enterobacteriaceae associated with reduced gentamicin uptake.

Seven strains of Enterobacteriaceae resistant to gentamicin obtained as representatives of the predominant resistance profiles in the clinical laboratories of Rafeidia and Al-Watani Hospitals in Nablus (Palestine) were included. Five strains showed a broad aminoglycoside resistance profile but contained no evidence of gentamicin acetylation, adenylation, or phosphorylation. Gentamicin uptake in two tested strains was significantly reduced, compared to that of gentamicin-sensitive E.