Application of different mathematical models based on artificial intelligence technique to predict the concentration distribution of solute through a polymeric membrane

Membrane-based purification of therapeutic agents has recently attracted global attention as a promising replacement for conventional techniques like distillation and pervaporation. Despite the conduction of different investigations, development of more research about the operational feasibility of using polymeric membranes to separate the detrimental impurities of molecular entities is of great importance. The focus of this paper is to develop a numerical strategy based on multiple machine learning methods to predict the concentration distribution of solute through a membrane-based separation process. Two inputs are being analyzed in this study, specifically r and z. Furthermore, the single target output is C, and the number of data points exceeds 8000. To analyze and model the data for this study, we used the Adaboost (Adaptive Boosting) model over three different base learners (K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN), Linear Regression (LR), and Gaussian Process Regression (GPR)). In the process of hyper-parameter optimization for models, the BA optimization algorithm applied on the adaptive boosted models. Finally, Boosted KNN, Boosted LR, and Boosted GPR have scores of 0.9853, 0.8751, and 0.9793 in terms of R² metric. Based on the recent fact and other analyses, boosted KNN model is introduced as the most appropriate model of this research. The error rates for this model are 2.073 × 10¹ and 1.06 × 10^-2 in terms of MAE and MAPE metrics.

Infection Prevalence at a Tertiary Hospital in Hail, Saudi Arabia: A Single-Center Study to Identify Strategies to Improve Antibiotic Usage

Objective

Identifying the burden of disease and the condition of the Saudi population is in high demand from both a surveillance and analytical standpoint. The objective of this study was to determine the most prevalent infections among hospitalized patients (both community-acquired and hospital-acquired), the antibiotics prescribing pattern, and their relationship with patient characteristics like age and gender.

Methods

A retrospective study was conducted comprising 2646 patients with infectious diseases or complications admitted to a tertiary hospital in the Hail region of Saudi Arabia. A standardized form was used to collect information from patient's medical records. Demographic data such as age, gender, prescribed antibiotics, and culture-sensitivity tests were included in the study.

Results

Males represented about two-thirds (66.5%, n = 1760) of the patients. Most patients (45.9%) who suffered from infectious diseases were between the ages of 20 and 39. The most prevalent infectious ailment was respiratory tract infection (17.65%, n = 467). Furthermore, the most common multiple infectious diseases were gallbladder calculi with cholecystitis (40.3%, n = 69). Similarly, COVID-19 had the greatest impact on people over 60. Beta-lactam antibiotics were the most commonly prescribed (37.6%), followed by fluoroquinolones (26.26%) and macrolides (13.45%). But performing culture sensitivity tests were rather uncommon (3.8%, n = 101). For multiple infections, beta-lactam antibiotics (such as amoxicillin and cefuroxime) were the most commonly prescribed antibiotics (2.26%, n = 60), followed by macrolides (such as azithromycin and Clindamycin) and fluoroquinolones (eg, ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin).

Conclusion

Respiratory tract infections are the most prevalent infectious disease among hospital patients, who are primarily in their 20s. The frequency of performing culture tests is low. Therefore, it is important to promote culture sensitivity testing in order to support the prudent use of antibiotics. Guidelines for anti-microbial stewardship programs are also highly recommended.

Evaluating the Counseling Standards and Ability of Pharmacy Staff to Detect Antibiotic-Drugs Interactions: A Simulated Client Study from Pakistan

Effective and safe medication use can be maximized by providing medication counseling, which aims to optimize therapeutic results. This approach improves the effectiveness of antibacterial treatment, reduces treatment expenses, and mitigates the emergence of antimicrobial resistance. No research from Pakistan has been previously documented. The purpose of this research was to evaluate both the quality of antibiotic counseling provided and the level of understanding exhibited by pharmacy employees with regard to interactions involving antibiotic medications. Using a simulated client method, two scenarios were used to assess 562 pharmacies that were systematically selected. Scenario 1 focused the counseling for use of prescribed medicines with non-prescribed antibiotics. Scenario2 indicated counseling provision for prescribed antibiotics that have possible antibiotic-drug interactions. The evaluation of counseling skills was also conducted. The analysis involved the use of descriptive statistics and chi-square tests. Only 34.1% of simulated clients received medication counseling directly; 45% received it on request. About 31.2% of clients were referred to a physician without counseling. The most frequently provided information was therapy dose (81.6%) and duration (57.4%). More than half (54.0%) of clients were asked about disease duration, but drug storage was ignored. Insufficient information was provided about side effects (1.1%) and antibiotic-drug interactions (1.4%). Most (54.3%) clients were instructed about dietary or lifestyle modifications. Only 1.9% of clients received information about drug administration route. No information was provided about other medication during therapy, effect of medicine withdrawal, and compliance to medication. The current level of antibiotic counseling within Pakistani community pharmacies is inadequate and requires the attention of medical authorities. Professional training of staff could improve counseling.

Validation of a Novel RP-HPLC Technique for Simultaneous Estimation of Lignocaine Hydrochloride and Tibezonium Iodide: Greenness Estimation Using AGREE Penalties

Herein, we reported an HPLC method for the simultaneous determination of tibezonium iodide (TBN) and lignocaine hydrochloride (LGN). The method was developed according to the International Conference for Harmonization guidelines (ICH) Q2R1 using Agilent^® 1260 with a mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile and phosphate buffer (pH 4.5) in a volumetric ratio of 70:30 and flowing through a C₈ Agilent^® column at 1 mL/min. The results revealed that TBN and LGN peaks were isolated at 4.20 and 2.33 min, respectively, with a resolution of 2.59. The accuracy of TBN and LGN was calculated to be 100.01 ± 1.72% and 99.05 ± 0.65% at 100% concentration, respectively. Similarly, the respective precision was 100.03 ± 1.61% and 99.05 ± 0.48%. The repeatability for TBN and LGN was found to be 99.05 ± 0.48% and 99.19 ± 1.72%, respectively, indicating that the method was precise. The respective regression co-efficient (r²) for TBN and LGN was found to be 0.9995 and 0.9992. Moreover, the LOD and LOQ values for TBN were 0.012 and 0.037 µg/mL, respectively, while for LGN, they were 0.115 and 0.384 µg/mL, respectively. The calculated greenness of the method for ecological safety was found to be 0.83, depicting a green contour on the AGREE scale. No interfering peaks were found when the analyte was estimated in dosage form and in volunteers' saliva, depicting the specificity of the method. Conclusively, a robust, fast, accurate, precise and specific method was successfully validated to estimate TBN and LGN.

Beta Elemene induces cytotoxic effects in FLT3 ITD-mutated acute myeloid leukemia by modulating apoptosis

OBJECTIVE: β-Elemene, a sesquiterpene with a broad anti-cancer spectrum, is particularly effective against drug-resistant and complex tumors. It can also be efficient against FLT3-expressed acute myeloid leukemia. This research aims to determine whether β-Elemene has cytotoxic effects on FLT3 ITD-mutated AML cells. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cytotoxicity, cell morphology, mRNA analysis with apoptotic markers, and analysis of 43 distinct protein markers related to cell death, survival, and resistance were all performed to elucidate its mechanism. Additionally, in order to understand how β-Elemene and FLT3 interact, molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulations, and computational ADME investigations were performed. RESULTS: β-Elemene exhibited cytotoxic activity against FLT3-mutated MV4-11 and FLT3 wild-type THP-1 cells, with an IC50 of around 25 µg/ml. The molecular studies revealed that β-Elemene inhibited cell proliferation by inducing p53, and the involvement of p21, p27, HTRA, and HSPs were also demonstrated. The interactive inhibition in proliferation was confirmed via molecular docking and dynamics analyses. β-Elemene occupied the FLT3 enzymatic pocket with good stability at the FLT3 active site. CONCLUSIONS: We concluded from our observations that β-Elemene causes cell death in ITD mutant AML cells, together with the effects of stress factors and inhibiting cell division.

Clinical Resistant Strains of Enterococci and Their Correlation to Reduced Susceptibility to Biocides: Phenotypic and Genotypic Analysis of Macrolides, Lincosamides, and Streptogramins

Enterococci are troublesome nosocomial, opportunistic Gram-positive cocci bacteria showing enhanced resistance to many commonly used antibiotics. This study aims to investigate the prevalence and genetic basis of antibiotic resistance to macrolides, lincosamides, and streptogramins (MLS) in Enterococci, as well as the correlation between MLS resistance and biocide resistance. From 913 clinical isolates collected from King Khalid Hospital, Hail, Saudi Arabia, 131 isolates were identified as Enterococci spp. The susceptibility of the clinical enterococcal isolates to several MLS antibiotics was determined, and the resistance phenotype was detected by the triple disk method. The MLS-involved resistance genes were screened in the resistant isolates. The current results showed high resistance rates to MLS antibiotics, and the constitutive resistance to all MLS (cMLS) was the most prevalent phenotype, observed in 76.8% of resistant isolates. By screening the MLS resistance-encoding genes in the resistant isolates, the erythromycin ribosome methylase (erm) genes that are responsible for methylation of bacterial 23S rRNA were the most detected genes, in particular, ermB. The ereA esterase-encoding gene was the most detected MLS modifying-encoding genes, more than lnuA (adenylation) and mphC (phosphorylation). The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of commonly used biocides were detected in resistant isolates and correlated with the MICs of MLS antibiotics. The present findings showed a significant correlation between MLS resistance and reduced susceptibility to biocides. In compliance with the high incidence of the efflux-encoding genes, especially mefA and mefE genes in the tolerant isolates with higher MICs to both MLS antibiotics and biocides, the efflux of resistant isolates was quantified, and there was a significant increase in the efflux of resistant isolates with higher MICs as compared to those with lower MICs. This could explain the crucial role of efflux in developing cross-resistance to both MLS antibiotics and biocides.

3-Methoxy Carbazole Impedes the Growth of Human Breast Cancer Cells by Suppressing NF-κB Signaling Pathway

Breast cancer represents the most frequently occurring cancer globally among women. As per the recent report of the World Health Organization (WHO), it was documented that by the end of the year 2020, approximately 7.8 million females were positively diagnosed with breast cancer and in 2020 alone, 685,000 casualties were documented due to breast cancer. The use of standard chemotherapeutics includes the frontline treatment option for patients; however, the concomitant side effects represent a major obstacle for their usage. Carbazole alkaloids are one such group of naturally-occurring bioactive compounds belonging to the Rutaceae family. Among the various carbazole alkaloids, 3-Methoxy carbazole or C13H11NO (MHC) is obtained from Clausena heptaphylla as well as from Clausena indica. In this study, MHC was investigated for its anti-breast cancer activity based on molecular interactions with specific proteins related to breast cancer, where the MHC had predicted binding affinities for NF-κB with −8.3 kcal/mol. Furthermore, to evaluate the biological activity of MHC, we studied its in vitro cytotoxic effects on MCF-7 cells. This alkaloid showed significant inhibitory effects and induced apoptosis, as evidenced by enhanced caspase activities and the cellular generation of ROS. It was observed that a treatment with MHC inhibited the gene expression of NF-kB in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. These results suggest that MHC could be a promising medical plant for breast cancer treatment. Further studies are needed to understand the molecular mechanisms behind the anticancer action of MHC.

Significance of Orlistat in management of dyslipidemia, systolic blood pressure and body mass index

OBJECTIVE

The current study intends to find out the efficacy of Orlistat in the management of hyperlipidemia, Systolic Blood Pressure (SBP) and Body Mass Index (BMI).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This retrospective study has evaluated the lipid profiles of the patients, who have been using metformin therapy for Type 2 diabetes. The study has obtained data regarding the parameters like triglyceride, Total cholesterol (TC), LDL cholesterol, HDL cholesterol and LDL/HDL ratio, systolic blood pressure and Body Mass Index (BMI). Random distribution of patients was done into placebo and Orlistat groups. The placebo group received only metformin, and patients in the Orlistat group received Orlistat along with metformin. After 24 weeks, the follow-up study was done, and statistical analysis was conducted.

RESULTS

The study found that the Orlistat group has significant improvement (p<0.05) more improvement in LDL cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, Total cholesterol, LDL/HDL Ratio and Triglycerides, while BMI and systolic blood pressure did not show a significant difference between placebo and Orlistat group.

CONCLUSIONS

This study has concluded that Orlistat can be used for significant improvement in lipid profile. The study also found that Orlistat may not have a significant effect on reducing BMI and blood pressure without adequate lifestyle modification.

Prevalence of cardiovascular disease and osteoarthritis in obese population of Hail region, Saudi Arabia

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the study was to analyze if there was a link between chronic diseases, like cardiovascular disease (CVD) and osteoarthritis (OA), and obesity in the population of Saudi Arabia's Hail region.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The study was conducted over 12 months using an observational cross-sectional survey on 172 patients from five clinics in Hail, Saudi Arabia. A total of 172 individuals with obesity (BMI ≥ 30) finally participated in this research. The study evaluated sociodemographic variables via an electronic questionnaire with voluntary participation.

RESULTS

The study found a 76% prevalence of joint pain and 77.9% prevalence of cardiovascular abnormalities. Patients with CVD were older (58±23 vs. 56±12 years) than those with OA. CVD cases were found in 42 (31.3%) males and 92 (68.7%) females, whereas OA cases were recognized in 24 (18.5%) males and 106 (81.5%) females. The occurrence of various CVDs among our participants was 43 (32%) for high cholesterol, 64 (48%) for hypertension, and 27 for both high cholesterol and hypertension (20%). Definite osteophytes were found in 28 of 24 male knees (14 right and 14 left knees) and 175 of 106 female knees (88 right knees and 87 left knees).

CONCLUSIONS

The prevalence of obesity in the Hail region has continued to be a risk factor for CVD and OA in 2019 and 2020. The Saudi population has shown a higher prevalence of radiographic evidence of OA of the knee and associated symptoms than western civilizations, and preventive interventions are desperately needed in order to minimize overweight and obesity.

Association of SARS-CoV-2 and Polypharmacy with Gut-Lung Axis: From Pathogenesis to Treatment

SARS-CoV-2 is a novel infectious contagion leading to COVID-19 disease. The virus has affected the lives of millions of people across the globe with a high mortality rate. It predominantly affects the lung (respiratory system), but it also affects other organs, including the cardiovascular, psychological, and gastrointestinal (GIT) systems. Moreover, elderly and comorbid patients with compromised organ functioning and pre-existing polypharmacy have worsened COVID-19-associated complications. Microbiota (MB) of the lung plays an important role in developing COVID-19. The extent of damage mainly depends on the predominance of opportunistic pathogens and, inversely, with the predominance of advantageous commensals. Changes in the gut MB are associated with a bidirectional shift in the interaction among the gut with a number of vital human organs, which leads to severe disease symptoms. This review focuses on dysbiosis in the gut-lung axis, COVID-19-induced worsening of comorbidities, and the influence of polypharmacy on MB.